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Unveiled

For the first time in 150 years, the French President was able to address Parliament. Nicolas Sarkozy, French President used the occasion to speak about the veil.

"We must not fight the wrong battle. In the republic, the Muslim faith must be respected as much as other religions."

"[The burkah] will not be welcome on French soil."

"We cannot accept, in our country, women imprisoned behind a mesh, cut off from society, deprived of all identity. That is not the French republic's idea of women's dignity."

What's in a piece of cloth? This continues to be an issue because of the on-going Western-centric vilification of Muslims and Islam. This is nothing short of a mammoth culture clash which leads to so many global conflicts. The veil, therefore, is neither here, nor there.

Waziristan: Pashtoon Country

With the US-backed Pakistan war on militancy now shifting attention to Waziristan, it seems ever more appropriate to mention this song here in this blog. I first heard this when Nazia Iqbal played this song to an enthusiastic Waziri crowd in Abu Dhabi in February this year. With a little digging around, I've come across an earlier popular Musharraf Bangash version of the song, Waziristan da Pukhtano Watan De. Dedicated to the ordinary folk.

Waziristan da Pukhtano Watan De
Waziristan is Pashtoon Country


Warra zwaanan ye de ghairat nishaani
Da nangyalo, da shah zulmo watan de
Qurban qurban me sar au maal sha warna
Waziristan da Pukhtano watan de

Da khpela khawre gadha girde manum
Kho da dukhman de para daal yaadegi
Pa Pukhtunkhwa ke na pa tola duniya
Da doyee kamal da doyee jalaal yaadeygi
Che sar tattee nakra zda pa umar
Da seekhaghal aw azmaro watan de
Qurban qurban me sar au maal sha warna
Waziristan da Pukhtano watan de

Da tor tor ghroona e gawa da ghairat
Da mohabbat pa ke chenee joregi
Monga bachi da daaghi kharri khawre
Zamonga dalta afsaani joregi
Da stergo tor de zre takor de zema
Da masomano gulalo watan de
Qurban qurban me sar au maal sha warna
Waziristan da Pukhtano watan de

Mong da Pukhto da shuja'at nishani
Monga majboor yu da Islam da laasa
Zamong pa zmaka ke owrruna bal de
Da khog Islam da inteqaam da laasa
Husn walarg wata pa khuley de warka
Da shno paslo, da sangaro watan de
Qurban qurban me sar au maal sha warna
Waziristan da Pukhtano watan de

Masoom aur mazey ehteram kawauma
Da lwarr tareekh ta salaam kawauma
Zamung watan de amanat zamunga
Za ye pa hara barkha paam kawuma
Pa ma shireen de pa ma gran alamma
Ka de azgho, ka de nizgho watan de
Qurban qurban me sar au maal sha warna
Waziristan da Pukhtano watan de

Warra zwaanan ye de ghairat nishaani
Da nangyalo, da shah zulmo watan de
Qurban qurban me sar au maal sha warna
Waziristan da Pukhtano watan de

تور خان

The Rift in the Gulf

Persian Rift: The Gulf in between

There's a stirring in the neighbourhood between leaders and people - just across the waters from where I live, here in the UAE, is Iran. Iran is one place that has continually fascinated me and one that I would like to visit some day, InshAllah. Persian influence on the Muslim world is deep and the cultural/linguisitic links are historic. To illustrate this, my father's ancestry is an admixture of Arab and Persian - the Awan people passed through Khorosan and today my understanding of Farsi, for example, is stronger than my Arabic. Greater Iran (ایران بزرگ) sometimes referred to as the Land of Iran (ایران ‌زمین) stretched across the Iranian plateau, encompassing the modern country, Afghanistan and up to the Indus in Western Pakistan. Of course, my mother tongue, Pashto is categorised as an Iranian language in the Indo-European classification of languages.

What is happening in Iran?

Like the reports coming out of Iran, I rely heavily on the Internet for my information. But in an age of disinformation I'm not quite sure what to make of what I see and read. I am left with a sense regret and of confusion over recent events. I pray for the well being of Iran and it's people. The Farsi proverb that I'm sharing here kind of sums up my hope that normalcy returns to the Land of the Aryans.

هر شب بلندى را پايانى است

Every long night has its end.

خدا حافظ - تور خان

Of Spice And Scent

When I was younger, I found that the slightly over-sweet scent of agarbattī incense sticks rather cloy. But times change, and as I've grown older, one of the things I've picked up - particularly since living in the Arab world, is a habit of lighting charcoals and burning bakhoor. A good quality bakhoor is less sweet, and has a more rustic, earthy element to it. I burn it at the door and in the majlis - the scent will linger and gives me a sense of being somewhere familiar. You can even smoke your wardrobe - this is very common amongst the Arabs of the Khaleej.

Omani Frankincense is a popular scent and has a 'creamy' feel to it - kind of makes one sleepy and induces a dream-like feeling ... (I'm sure there's more to it than a simple perfume ... not that I would ever advocate anything dodgy) ... but my personal favourite is Oudh.

Caution: Nanny State Strikes Back

To PC or Not PC

Ah, every now and then, I stumble across a news item which reminds me why schools in the UK are becoming increasingly irrational places to work in. Whilst, quite rightly, teachers are concerned about violence (directed towards them and their pupils), the focus on welfare is directed towards some more far out examples of Health and Safety. Take, for example, the following list of rules:

• Wearing goggles to put up posters
• Five-page briefing on the dangers of glue sticks
• Ban on running in the playground
• Wet grass stopping PE lessons
• Ban on playing with conkers
• One person at a time in staff kitchen
• Ban on sweets because of choking risk
• Buoyancy aids for capable year 11 swimmers on a school trip to France

Can you imagine what it's like to be nannied to the point of complete loss of freedom to think?

Kuch Dil Ne Kaha

I'm not a real Bollywood boffin and with exception, I have tended to avoid the newer, more western-orientated batch of popular films. I'm a family person, so the movies must generally fit that "viewing for all" criteria. There was a time, (think circa 1980) when my father would hire a video player from a place on Morley Street, Bradford, and a bunch of films that had been copied onto VHS. I distinctly remember seeing Gunga Jumna that way and maybe even Amar, Akbar, Anthony.

My father and my Mama* are compediums of knowledge when it comes to back and white Bombay Cinema - mixed in with recollections of their tales of growing up in Karachi - and can easily tell you all-you-need-to-know about the films of the time. Between them, they have a classic collection of films - mostly VHS (and some VCD/DVD), but one that would be a fine digital library if anyone took the time to convert. Anyway, the better impression of Bollywood that I have is of that classic era, so here's a clip. Lata Mangeshkar sings for Sharmila Tagore in the film Anupama (Unparalled), 1966. This song, Kuch Dil Ne Kaha (The Heart Said Something) is a personal favourite.

*Mama = Maternal Uncle

Weekend Over ...

Au Revoir Toronto, Canada - Salaam Abu Dhabi, UAE.

From Sea to Sea: O Canada!

O Canada!

O Canada! Our home and native land!
True patriot love in all thy sons command.
With glowing hearts we see thee rise,
The True North strong and free!
From far and wide, O Canada,
We stand on guard for thee.
God keep our land glorious and free!
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.

Crossroads

I'm at a crossroads - I ponder, quite often, where I will be next. I don't mean where I will travel to, although that does come into it. But what I mean is where in the world, does someone like me consider home? I'm really drawn to do something positive for my people - so I would like to make a positive impact in the Pashtoon heartlands. But I'm a British oddity and I think of things like career and schooling for the children. I'm also very affected by the security situation and the availability of basics such as electricity and clean water. Where exactly, can I find my bit of spiritually - to whence do I belong?

The places that I wanted to travel to this summer - Swat and Afghanistan - I am now being warned against going to. With the war, I am affected again. I had hoped to spend time in the villages in Lower Swat, to take in the environment, to give my children the opportunity to keep up with their Pashto and to look, interact and learn. Of course, the same can happen elsewhere, but this was going to be different.

This summer is something of an open-book. The Swat refugee crisis created something of an emergency so the wedding that we had intended to attend in the valley was brought forward and took place in Karachi last week. My wife and daughter flew there for a couple of days - it was her brother's wedding after all. I still intend to travel to Pakistan, and our initial plan is to stay in the family home in Karachi. I'm still keen on going to Afghanistan, but will need to judge the mood. In any case, very shortly we will be travelling to Toronto, Canada where I intend to "land" as an immigrant.


... InshAllah, a whole new chapter awaits to be written ...

Kill the Dragon: The Militant Money Trail

In an earlier posting, I mentioned the Atlantic Council's Afghanistan Report. I'd like to pick out a key point around extremism and the Taliban insurgency that continues to destabilise both Afghanistan and Pakistan. We learn from the report that Narcotics form an under-belly economy, but that this could be effectively be made non-viable if the rural Afghan per capita goes from $1 to $4. Afghanistan is rich in farmland and agriculture is a sustainable livelihood, so (with external support and subsidy) meeting the $4 mark can really turn the situation around.

But coming to the insurgency - and a discussion around the why the Taliban appears to have grown in strength since their ousting from power in 2001. It's difficult to pinpoint this one - the American-led NATO presence in Afghanistan is fast losing public support, especially since ground troops have not policed Afghanistan well and drone attacks into Pakistan (where there is currently no international remit to be there) target innocent villagers. Add to this the fact that clumsy operations in Afghanistan itself leads to an alarming number of civilian deaths and reconstruction efforts are not always coordinated well or concentrated in the Pashtoon belt (from where the Taliban draw their support).

And whilst, many don't agree with their methods or their ideology, the Taliban appear to have positioned themselves as a legitimate militia in order to fend off the advances of the many battalions of foreign troops sitting in pockets around the country. The Taliban is just one of many competing forces for control. There are still any number of other outfits and warlords, with internal and external sponsors able to raise private militias should a major stand off or continued power vacuum occur.

Unemployment

The Taliban issues is now more complex today than it was when the they controlled Afghanistan - they have regrouped, become more covert and find natural allies amongst people disappointed at NATO's lack of progress. Many Taliban recruits are being paid to be "day" Talibs whilst going about regular business at other times, ready to take up arms when commanded by a local chief. The day-Talibs are not driven by ideology, notions of world destruction or a version of rigid theological/tribal society. They are often unemployed youth who are easily manipulated and who are being paid to take part in an insurgency. There's been a whole lot of discussion on education for girls in Afghanistan, but little on the need to create vocational training opportunities to stop male youth drifting to paid Taliban employment.

The Taliban, when they held power, virulently ended the narcotics trade, so I'm not sure how much of this is involved today in financing them. The question to which I seek answers over and over again is another simple one. Who is financing the Taliban? There are rumours of wealthy patrons in oil-rich countries, covert agencies in neighbouring countries, the CIA and so on. Years on from their ousting of power in Kabul, the Taliban in their various guises control whole areas of Afghanistan and Pakistan. Confusion remains over who really is in control - but clearly somebody knows. If we are serious about removing them altogether, we have to end the money-trail.

Simple.