The Long March is imminent now; this country knows no peace in any sector. But never will we stop celebrating, will we?

I live in a neighborhood that apparently has a lot of people who have these programmes to celebrate every single festival on earth. Plus, they make sure that every house for miles around will hear every singer they put on their stages. No matter what time it is; if these people have a mind to do so, they will not let us sleep till the wee hours of the morning, and will not let us study during the day. No escaping their music or their qawwali, not a chance. And right now, what I’m listening to is someone shouting at the top of his lungs into a microphone ‘Basant Mubarak! Welcome Basant!’, while I’m sitting in my own house.

What’s wrong with us? I ponder on his thought every day, and I get so many answers it disturbs me even more. What is sickening us so much that we just don’t care about anything but our own frivolous, impermanent, and dangerous fun?

The boards on the Liberty roundabout are not even partially old yet. They still strike a pang to our hearts and we still crane our necks to see the pictures of the men that died in the attack on the Sri Lankan cricket team.

The story of the death of one particular guard on that day is still fresh in my mind. He was lying on the road, trying to make the gunmen think that he was dead, and when they were just leaving, he raised his head. And then they came back especially to kill him. How can someone be so cruel and so hard so as to kill a person who never did him any harm? How can someone come back especially to kill that person?

But then, how can a government be so cruel as to allow Basant to take place; an event that kills so many innocent children every year? How can they condone the death of so many people in such a horrible manner; by having strings dipped in powdered glass cut them on the neck?

Forget the government. Why do people do it? Why is there no pressure to stop this event?

We cannot deny that hundreds die on Basant every year. No one can deny that people will use powdered glass and even wires to fly their kites.

Most of all, we cannot deny that the frivolous pleasure that people get from it is so blatantly disrespectful of the events in this country, in this very city. Bomb blasts. Price hikes. Unemployment. Attacks on the cricket team. The death of seven young security guards who were only doing the best job they could.

One last thing. Has anyone noticed the decency displayed by the Sri Lankan cricketers?

I shudder to think what would have happened if (God forbid) an American cricket team had deigned to come to Pakistan for a tour, and the same thing happened. If some eyebrows are raised at the mention of America playing cricket, it may be well to mention here that the States were very interested in cricket at the time of the last World Cup. So it might have been a possibility. But if what the Sri Lankan cricketers went through had been experienced by most other cricket teams of the world, the result would have been much more disastrous in its impact on Pakistan in general.

Take India, for example. I hate doing this, because I’ve got some very close Indian friends of my own, but the way we are being treated by India now, there probably wouldn’t have been a shred of the decency that Sri Lankans have shown about this incident. For India, we’re the ultimate bombers. They have no terrorists of their own; at least not according to the mass media hype we hear and read about. At the least, I speculate that the airspace restrictions would have been put on again. And if any Americans were there, well, a few more drones, perhaps?

It’s not to say that what has happened is not such a huge deal after all; not to say that it is an incident that should be tolerated, but I merely point out the real gentlemen in the game here. Maybe we’re just not used to be treated politely anymore, but I was extremely surprised to hear that the bus driver who survived the attack has been called by the Sri Lankans for a tour with his family. Additionally, as soon as the cricketers landed and were interviewed in their home country, many of the first comments I read were praising the driver who saved their lives. Not one of them uttered a disparaging comment on the security provided, even though they had every right to do so. On the televised interviews, even though the reporters were trying to squeeze such comments out of them, the most these men would do would be to excuse themselves with a polite ‘thank you’.

Decency, people. Just simple decency. Something that we call in Urdu sharafat. That’s what is there in these cricketers who suffered so much at the hands of our country, and still do not say anything. Maybe they respect the deaths of the people who were protecting them. Maybe they’re just decent people overall, which comes to the same thing.

One thing I know; they’re showing more decency than our own people. For everyone here, a soon as something like Basant rolls around, nothing matters anymore. Not killing someone. Not feeling guilt for what our guests went through when they tried to save one of our biggest sports. Not mourning the mindless deaths of the countrymen who tried to protect them

All that matters, at the end of the day, is flying kites. But I’m going to skip the sarcastic ending for now and I’m going to plead with you. Anyone who is reading this; out of respect, out of decency, out of your own humanity, do not celebrate Basant. We have no excuse for celebrating anything; if we want to cheer ourselves up and not feel anything about what has been happening recently, we have means other than those which kill even more people. Try to convince your families and friends that such a celebration will be disgraceful behavior, to say the least. We owe our guests and our own people at least that much.

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Police block a street in Lahore ahead of Long March

Photo Courtesy: SeeNReport

The Government has literally let lose all patience in stopping lawyers, political activists, members of the civil society and the common people from reaching Islamabad for the lawyer’s mass sit-in. In Karachi, the launchpad of the march, we saw authorities blocking highways, baton-charging marchers and mass arrests of the participants. Situation may spiral out of control as there are reports of further clashes, protests, arrests and cars being set on fire in the metropolis.

Situation might not be different in Punjab and rest of the Sindh province, where Section 144 was imposed restricing public gatherings and processions of any sorts, as the march proceeds towards Islamabad.

Bloggers around the country are providing hand-on news of the Long March as it happens. Teeth Maestro is doing live coverage of the march by getting updates from people using wide number of sources and means including Twitter.

You can watch further citizen journalism updates on SeeNReport‘s Long March page.

Effective from today, Section 144 has been imposed throughout Punjab to bar public gatherings, protests or processions of the lawyers movement and their supporters. The Long March is to begin simultaneously from Karachi and Quetta on March 12 to reach Lahore on the 14th and arriving at Islamabad’s Constitution Avenue on March 16.

By official orders, army has been called in 30 while rangers in 11 districts of the Punjab province giving a clear sign that the Government seriously does not want things to proceed so easily. Security forces have also started search operations for prominent leaders to put them behind bars or under house arrest while the PML(N) leadership is asking the civil administration to not obey the ‘illegitimate’ orders.

Interior Minister, Rehman Malik, has on the other hand warned of dire consequences to law-breakers and anyone causing social unrest or igniting a security situation in the capital. For security reasons, he has also proposed the organizers of the Long March to chose a venue other than the sensitive Constitution Avenue. Lawyers rejected the government’s concern by guaranteeing that there will not be any law and order violation and crowds will be behaving according to a pre-defined code of march.

Both fronts are determined to their respective ambitions causing anxiety and fear of mass political or security instability in an already weakened nation. And unfortunately, our leaders have yet to realize how bad the situation for Pakistan has really become.

Section 144 was imposed in Lahore and in several other cities of Punjab on Tuesday for three days effective from Wednesday. The crack down agains different politicians and lawyers has been started.

Under the section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), no protest, march or gathering of people at one place would be allowed. These cities include Lahore, Rawalpindi, Faisalabad, Sheikhupura, Pakpattan, Dera Ghazi Khan and Gujrat.

The decision has been taken just a day before the date of proposed long march and when the President of Pakistan, Asif Ali Zardari is not in the country.

The government has been trying hard to stop the long march of lawyers and different political parties. For this reason, the government has imposed section 144 in different districts of Punjab and lists have been provided to the police officials for the instant arrest of different lawyers and political leaders.

The decision was taken after a long meeting held in office of Capital City Police Officer Lahore. The officials are denying any arrests so far whereas; the media has been reporting that many people have been arrested.

It is being considered the worst crack down so far. The government may deploy army in as many as 30 districts of Punjab province, whereas; the rangers will be deployed in 11 districts in face of lawyers and other political activists.

On other side, the politicians and the lawyers are still encouraging people to go for a peaceful long march and struggle peacefully to make this long march a success.

Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) president Mian Shahbaz Sharif on Tuesday urged police and administration to defy unconstitutional orders. ‘The government could not stop the people from joining the long march. The people shall reach Islamabad at all costs’, he said.

Ali Ahmed Kurd, the president of The Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) said, ’Section 144 could not stop the people from joining the long march’. ‘The lawyers are peaceful and the long march and subsequent sit-in will also be peaceful’, he added.

At the Liberty Roundabout, which was the scene of a bloody ambush of the Sri Lankan Cricket Team on March03, it has become a daily feature for passers by to stop and pay respects to the memory of the martyred policemen.

Six of the men guarding Sri Lankan Team’s convoy lost their lives while battling about twelve very heavily armed militants right in the heart of Lahore in broad daylight.

People paying their respects at the Memorial

Lahorites are proudly commemorating the bravery of these men who sacrificed their lives to save what is left of this country’s international image. It was due to the cover provided by deterrence of these men lasting 25 minutes against the terrorists that the bus carrying the Sri Lankans was able to escape to safety of the Qadaffi Stadium. Would they have not fought bravely enough, the whole Sri Lankan team might have been taken hostage or in a worse scenario; killed!

A tribute!

As you do a roundabout at Liberty, you can see stacks of flowers and bouquets coupled with hand written charts, banners, posters and candles adorning the small memorial erected in the grounds. The most prominent feature of the memorial is the official banners with pictures of the martyrs on them.

Martyred Policemen of the Punjab Elite Force

Liberty Memorial for Heroes of 3/3

We owe a lot to the ‘Shuhada of 3/3′ namely:

- Zafar Iqbal, Constable Elite Force
- Faisal Rasheed Butt, Head Constable Elite Force
- Mudassar Nadeem, Constable Elite Force
- Muhammad Sultan, Constable/Driver Elite Force
- Tipu Farid, Constable Mujahid Squad
- Tanveer Iqbal, Traffic Warden

We pray that may God grant peace to their loved ones and bless their souls by honoring them with the highest ranks in heaven. Amen!

More Pictures: Liberty Memorial at Flickr

Lahore is brimming to its maddening political edge as political parties battle it out in the streets. Loyalists branding party emblems are gathering everywhere. The Mall is a political boulevard where all parties deem it necessary to make their presence felt.

Such a “battle” brought me to an eventful PML-N rally on The Mall on 26 February. Armed with my camera and its bag; I walked hesitantly into the rally, a potential terrorist strike target. I freelance as a photojournalist, an interesting but risky job.

Here, the workers of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) had blocked The Mall for over five hours in their protest against the Supreme Court (SC) verdict that disqualified the Sharif brothers from contesting the general elections.

Unrest prevailed as the protest intensified when aggressive party workers marched towards the Punjab Assembly building to break the locks after PML-N parliamentarians had to sit on the staircase to conduct the session.

Anti-Zardari slogans were chanted, tyres were burnt tyres and banners containing pictures of PPP leaders were brandished. The protesters held placards and banners that condemned the SC and the PPP-led government.

During the protest, a worker climbed a streetlight to hoist a PML-N flag.

Addressing the workers, PML-N leader Hamza Shahbaz said the SC had disqualified PML-N leadership on the directives of President Asif Ali Zardari and alleged that “The decision was a raid on democracy”.

The other side:

Amid the noise at such ralies, a series of fortunate and misfortunate events also take place. A rally is a world in itself, in addition to the main political activity, there is a lot that goes on.

Pickpockets have a field day, robbing unsuspecting spectators of their cell phones, wallets and whatever they can get their hands on. I lost my cellphone as a man smuggled his way into my pocket and disappeared into thin air. 

Hawkers scramble about the gathering, selling water, food and the bare necessities. You’ll find people munching on goodies, browsing lottery tickets and offering free political analysis to everyone around them.

Pushy people:

Amid the commotion, one also gets assaulted by “pushy” people who force their way towards the stage. I was elbowed and my sunglasses fell to the road. Before I could pick them up, a “footful” of people stomped their way through and reduced it into a mere wire mesh! Why was I wearing sunglasses? Well the smoke from the burning tyres can be quite tearful at times!

“Zardari chuha”/Zardari Kuta

Animal rights everyone? Protesters hanged a live mouse from a board that read out “Zardaru chuha” (Translated: Zardari is a mouse). I couldn’t help but capture this one. Is this freedom of expression of abuse of expression? The little mouse was trembling and paying with its life for someone else’s crimes.

Zardari Chuha

Men wearing horror masks and holding placards inscribed with Zardari Kuta (Translated: Zardari is a dog) are rampant throughout these anti-PPP rallies. These men get a lot of press attention, though such images may not be published, but they remain an irresistible catch for any photographer.

Seems familiar?

The political circus brings with it many characters. Activists try to steal the show by using their theatrical abilities to catch everyone’s attention. Here men beat their chests, “mourning” the SC verdict.

PML N-autanki

 It seems that as things become increasingly complicated in this political turmoil, it is advisable to witness the events from the safety of your house. The Mall shall remain choked and tense until things settle down. Lets hope the anarchy simmers down and Lahore is restored to its glory.

Today’s headlines came as no surprise. There was a ‘usual’ grenade attack at a mosque in Dera Ismail Khan while more striking was the blowing up of Rahman Baba’s shrine in Peshawar. Rahman Baba is a 17th century sufi and is considered to be one of the highest ranking and most widely read poets of Pushtu language. The perpetrators are not new either. Call them religious extremists, Taliban, or foreign militants; we are now too familiar with their acts and the ideology that they promote.

Sufism is entrenched into the core of Pakistani society and is widely followed by the masses. Lahore itself is lovingly called ‘Data di Nagri’ because it boasts the shrine of Hazrat Ali Hajveri (RA) famously known as Data Gunj Baksh. In addition to this hallmark Sufi symbol, we also have the likes of Hazrat Mian Mir, Shah Jamal, Bibi Pak Daman in Lahore and literally hundreds of saints buried in cities like Multan (Baha-ud-din Zakaria), Pakpattan Sharif (Hazrat Baba Farid Shakkar Gunj), Kasur (Baba Bulleh Shah), Bhit Shah (Shah Abdul Latif Bhitai), and Sehwan Sharif (Hazrat Laal Shahbaz Qalandar) specifically across Punjab and Sindh provinces.

Abida Parveen – Teray Ishq Nachaya

Sufi tradition is one full of mysticism, the power of self-discovery, the evergreen message of equality, tolerance, love and universal peace. Widely propagated by Sufis, this form of Islam got more people into the folds of religion than any other fact in the Sub-continent.

As the west today talks about using Sufism to promote moderate Islam among the Pakistanis, they forget that it is already here and has continued influencing lives of millions over centuries in this region. However, over the decades we have seen a radical ideology countering Sufi way of Islam which now is blatantly attacking the Sufi symbols. Today’s incident in Peshawar was a stark proof.

Do you think message of the Sufis can still be revived to wide popularity and acceptance by all sections of our social and religious circles? And can it we propagated as a cure to radical ideologies supported by the Taliban and other insurgent groups which are becoming more assertive in promoting their Islam day by day?

One of the targets of yesterday’s shootout at Liberty was a van carrying Pakistani fourth umpire Ahsan Raza and ICC official Chris Broad. Just as the bus carrying Sri Lankan cricketers quickly drove out of danger,  thanks to their heroic Pakistani driver, an ambulance, a police escort vehicle and the white van carrying these two officials were left behind.

Ahsan Raza @ Cricinfo.com

Ahsan Raza was seriously injured after bullet shots and is still in critical condition at a hospital in Lahore while Chris Broad miraculously survived 25 minutes of targeted shooting unscathed.

In a press conference after reaching home safely, Broad has strongly criticized the security forces which left their van alone right in the middle of the roundabout with terrorists spread all around.

Broad‘s concerns and statements in this regard are very valid and justify his anger, however, we have to see what really happened as the attack continued.

When the bus carrying Sri Lankans moved on, other police vehicles might have followed hurriedly to provide cover for ‘the target’ against any further attacks on the stadium route. That might have left the remaining party vulnerable. On the other hand, it still is not clear how many escorts were initially with the convoy.

The Government seriously need to find some critical answers to these questions as soon as possible. Western media, on the other hand, is hailing the return of Broad as a ‘hero’s return’ while forgetting glorious sacrifices made by the policemen who laid their lives to cover the guests including him and his fellows. They surely owe their life to these ‘true’ heroes.

Meanwhile, we request everyone to please pray for Ahsan Raza‘s life and quick recovery of all others including policemen injured in this carnage.

Six policemen who laid their lives while fighting and bravely resisting the heavy assault by terrorists have been honored by their colleagues and senior police officers. A combined funeral was held for the departed souls at the city’s central police lines attended by higher-ups of the department.

The Government has paid homage to heroes of the day as President Zardai announced compensation of Rs.0.5 million for each of the victims’ families.

You have made us proud by showing courage and self-sacrifice. May your soul rest in eternal peace – Amen!