VIP Killers

i got it through a forwarded email. this VIP movement is causring serious problems for citizens. i was once stuck because of this for an hour just one kilometer away from my home.

THE route seems longer than ever. She's in severe pain that starts from her abdomen and makes her entire body shiver. She desperately wants medical attention, but is trapped in a flood of vehicles. Her father looks at her helplessly; her brother anxiously searches for an exit. Her mother rubs her cold hand when she realizes that she's unconscious. Now she can vaguely hear sirens of the VVIP fleet passing from a distance. The ruptured appendix in her slim body is causing excruciating pain. She breathes her last in the back seat of a cab, without receiving any medical attention.

The girl referred to is Zill-e-Huma — a young, promising and polite M.A. Previous student of the Mass communication Department at the University of Karachi. She died on March 29, 2006, on her way to the Jinnah hospital after being stranded in a traffic jam caused by VVIP movement in the city because of a series of Expo exhibitions."Sorry, she's no more. Had she been brought a little earlier, her life could have been saved," doctors at the emergency department of the JPMC consoled her shocked family.

Huma was a popular student. Her friends are still in shock. She was a position-holder throughout her academic career. Her letters were frequently published in newspapers, and her news reports were appreciated for their accuracy and newsworthiness in her class. The day Huma passed away, she attended her classes till noon, worked on a group assignment, shared jokes with her classmates, promised her friend a belated birthday gift and even had a photograph taken with her close friends. Huma had been going through minor abdominal pains for a few days and was taking painkillers for relief. Doctors at a nearby hospital advised her family to rush her to the Jinnah hospital when she complained of severe pain on Wednesday afternoon after returning from the university. Her friends allege that she did not die from appendix rupture, but lost her life because of VVIP protocol that deprived her of immediate medical assistance, one of the basic rights of every citizen.

Huma's was not the first death caused by traffic jam during VIP movement. According to newspaper reports, five people died on their way to the National Institute of Cardio-Vascular Diseases in Karachi on Jan 7, 2006 when the vehicles carrying them got stuck in a traffic jam. "Only from Jan 1 to Jan 7 this year, 20 heart patients died on their way to the NICVD because of prolonged traffic jams," NICVD sources said.

In this regard, the Pakistan Medical Association also issued a press release according to which patients suffering from heart attack, severe abdominal pain, bleeding disorders, small children with foreign body bronchus, gynae and obstetric emergency problems, and trauma face hard times in reaching hospitals because of clogged traffic, particularly while the VIPs move around.
Despite frequent media coverage and public concern, the authorities have turned a blind eye to the issue. In all civilized societies, ambulances and fire engines have the first right to move ahead and no matter who's on theroad, traffic in one or two lanes keeps on moving to ensure the timely arrival of patients in hospitals. On the contrary, when the VIPs bless our cities with their generous presence, all roads and routes are blocked for hours in the name of security. With inauguration of the Expo centre in the heart of the city, organising regular exhibitions has intensified citizens' problems. Traffic jams on the University Road, Karsaz, Jail Road, Shahra-i-Faisal and other adjacent routes have become a routine thing during these exhibitions.

Reaching home, workplace and educational institution on time seems impossible for anyone faced with dense traffic, broken roads and confused traffic police. In these circumstances, the entire city gets paralysed for hours with road closures if God forbid any one of our leaders decides to appear in public.

Our government may have been able to promote its exports by $18 billion or more through these recent exhibitions, but is it a fair deal at the expense of precious lives? Do the authorities realise how suffocated and alienated Karachiites feel when they are denied to approach the Fatima Jinnah Road and the Abdullah Haroon Road in their own city for the sake of foreign delegates' security? What about the security of the common man?

Can't our leaders shift the Expo centre and foreign consulates to less crowded areas of the city, or perhaps out of the city? Can't they use helicopters and long flyovers from the airport to suitable points rather than paralysing city life? Are they least bothered to understand the resentment and agony of the people who are made to miss their trains, flights, classes, appointments, interviews and loved ones? Are we, the people, so worthless that we should die on roads while our leaders roam around in their bulletproof cars?

Who's responsible for these 21 cold-blooded murders on congested roads?

further links:
http://www.paktribune.com/news/index.php?id=141422
http://www.jang.com.pk/thenews/apr2006-daily/07-04-2006/oped/newspost.htm
http://67.59.144.177/daily_detail.asp?id=3047
http://www.dawn.com/weekly/dmag/dmag2.htm

The list goes on...

Have You?
Here's a list of things passed on from many bloggers. Copy it and put the things you've done in bold and add another thing at the end. By the way, I have scrutinized the list, it had become too long!!!

1. Swam with dolphins
2. Hugged a tree
3. Climbed a mountain
4. Been inside the Great Pyramid
5. Rode a boat
6. Saw a human being die.
7. Been stuck in a lift.
8. Chatted all night long.
9. Bungee jumped.
10. Watched a lightning storm at sea
11. Stayed up all night long, and watched the sunrise
12. Lost your Best Friend for reasons of death
13. Gone to a huge sports game
14. Walked the stairs to the top of the leaning Tower of Pisa
15. Grown and eaten your own vegetables
16. Fallen in love over the internet
17. Slept under the stars
18. Had to put someone you love into hospice care
19. Taken a trip in a hot air balloon
20. Watched a meteor shower
21. Built your own PC from parts
22. Given more than you can afford to charity
23. Looked up at the night sky through a telescope
24. Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment
25. Changed your name
26. Had a booth at a street fair
27. Taken a sick day when you're not ill
28. Gotten someone fired for his or her actions
29. Gone back to school (ok, yeah if visiting counts...)
30. Parasailed
31. Had a snowball fight
32. Had a food fight (food be much delicious and powerful commodity to waste)
33. Enacted a favorite fantasy
34. Had two hard drives for your computer
35. Screamed as loudly as you possibly can
36. Shouted as loudly as you possibly can
37. Taken an ice cold bath/shower
38. Had a meaningful conversation with a beggar
39. Seen a total eclipse
40. Ridden a roller coaster
41. Ridden a horse
42. Had major surgery
43. Loved your job for all accounts
44. Had a snake as a pet
45. Adopted an accent for an entire day
46. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
47. Actually felt happy about your life, even for just a moment
48. Slept for more than 30 hours over the course of 48 hours
49. Visited all 7 continents
50. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
51. Had amazing friends
52. Had your picture/name in the newspaper
53. Watched wild whales
54. Stolen a sign
55. Milked a cow
56. Midnight walk on the beach
57. Sky diving
58. Been heartbroken longer then you were actually in love
59. In a restaurant, sat at a stranger's table and had a meal with them
60. Bench-pressed your own weight
61. Alphabetized your records
62. Pretended to be a superhero
63. Sung karaoke
64. Lounged around in bed all day
65. Scuba diving
66. Played in the mud
67. Played in the rain
68. Gone to a drive-in theatre
69. Said 'I love you' and meant it
70. Visited the Great Wall of China
71. Discovered that someone who's not supposed to know about your blog has discovered your blog
72. Dropped Windows in favor of something better
73. Started a business
74. Fallen in love and not had your heart broken
75. Toured ancient sites
76. Taken a martial arts class
77. Sword fought for the honor of a woman.
78. Gotten married
79. Been in a movie
80. Crashed a party
81. Loved someone you shouldn't have
82. Gotten divorced
83. Gone without food for a whole day
84. Spent an extreme winter night under open sky.
85. Made cookies from scratch
86. Won first prize in a costume contest
87. Gotten into a fight while attempting to defend someone
88. Ridden a gondola in Venice
89. Been on television news programs as an "expert"
90. Got flowers for no reason
91. Performed on stage
92. Eaten shark
93. Bought a house
94. Been in a combat zone
95. Been on a cruise ship
96. Spoken more than one language fluently
97. Performed in Rocky Horror
98. Read - and understood - your credit report
99. Raised children
100. Recently bought and played with a favorite childhood toy
101. Gone out of your way to help someone.
102. Created and named your own constellation of stars
103. Taken an exotic bicycle tour in a foreign country
104. Found out something significant that your ancestors did
105. Packed up and moved to another city to just start over
106. Sang loudly in the car, and didn't stop when you knew someone was looking
107. Had plastic surgery
108. Survived an accident that you shouldn't have survived
109. Wrote articles for a large publication
110. Lost over 100 pounds
111. Held someone while they were having a flashback
112. Piloted an airplane
113. Broken someone's heart
114. Been fired or laid off from a job
115. Won money on a T.V. game show
116. Really really wanted to kill someone
117. Broken a bone
118. Gone on an African photo safari
119. Ridden a motorcycle
120. Driven any land vehicle at a speed of 100MPH or faster?
121. Fired a rifle, shotgun or pistol
122. Eaten mushrooms that were gathered in the wild
123. Changed someone's mind about something you care deeply about
124. Petted a cockroach
125. Selected one "important" author whom you missed in school, and read him/ her
126. Dined in a restaurant and stolen silverware, plates, cups because your apartment need them
127. Taught yourself an art from scratch (tried to anyway)
128. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
129. Apologized to someone years after inflicting the hurt
130. Skipped all your school reunions
131. Changed a light bulb.
132. Communicated with someone without sharing a common spoken language
133. Written your own computer language
134. Written your own computer program.
135. Thought to yourself that you're living your dream
136. Dyed your hair
137. Sung in a Barbers' Shop Quartet
138. Be able to relate to every song that you ever listen.
139. Had someone close to you hurt you so bad, SO bad....
140. Left smoking, only because someone you love said so.
141. Cried on death of a person you met just 2/3 times.
142. Tried to write with both hands.
143. Been to Northern Areas of Pakistan.

P.S.
now that u've read it, u MUST also post it to ur own blog. because if u dont, u will die within next 48 hours. its NOT a joke. one of my friends did not pass it on, and he died. i saw him in my dream afterwards, and he instructed me to post it on my blog. if u dont believe me, call him at 041-420-9211, and check for urself!!! :D

Iqbal - The great Philospher, Poet and Visionary

i was enjoying my favourite pastime - just switching the channels - when i came across TheMusic. some street show was on air and the host was wandering the streets with a "complex" question of "who is the author of kulyaat e iqbal?". i just laughed at the simplicity and triviality of the question, and remembered a blond joke:

a blonde asked someone: "if u tell me whats in this basket, u'll get all the eggs in it. and if u tell the number of eggs in the basket, then all of the twelve eggs will be yours"
and that someone, who happened to be a blonde too, replied after pondering over the question: "give me some hint please!!"

anyways, i was about to switch the channel when someone answered "ghalib", and i stopped. the screen flashed and another person replied "Ahmad Faraz". the screen kept flashing, and kept astonishing me. many asked in reply that what is kulyaat e iqbal. i just sat there, with my eyes transfixed on the TV screen and my jaws wide open. i could not believe it. PAKISTANIs did not know what is kulyaat e iqbal?? PAKISTANIs did not know who is the author of kulyaat e iqbal?? answering the question needed just a bit of common sense, and just slighetest of the knowledge of Pakistan's history. what happened to this nation?? how easily we forgot the conceiver of the whole idea of Pakistan?? what we've been teaching in schools?? i remember in my times, Iqbal was an essential part of every class from first to 12th. then what happened?? was the syllabus changed in order to "align it with modern needs"? or is it because of foreign educational systems?? if today they dont know what is kulyaat e Iqbal, tomorrow they wont even know who is Iqbal!! this is depressing i must say! had Iqbal been alive to see this day, he must've died watching that program!!
we MUST NOT forget the people who gave us this country. we MUST NOT forget our ancestors, for following their teachings can lead us to honor. and surely enough, its the ignorance of their teachings which has lead us to see this day. Iqbal said:

meray kaa'bay ko jabeenoon say sjaaya kis nay??
meray qur'aan ko seenay say lgaaya kis nay??
no e insaan ko ghulaami say churraya kis nay??
thay tou aaba woh tumhaaray hee magar tum kia ho??
haath per haath dhray muntazir e frda ho

i'm impressed!!

just noticed that my profile views counter has reached 73 in just 64 days!! i'm impressed with my performance as a blogger!! but more impressive is the fact that now i have more profile views than my "inspiration" to this world of blogging - Krak Head - who's profile views are 55. what do u say Krak Head?? but i guess it will take me some time to overtake another "inspiration" Sameer Durrani , who is at 115 right now!

thanks to all the readers who like my stupid thoughts!!!

iQuote

Really liked this quote by Luke Mellors:
"Significant others - in my case my wife - are like IT problems in that there are times when they require more attention, often are hard to figure out, break down now and again, need huge bandwidth in order to communicate and aren't nearly as redundant as you would like them to be."

Back in Action

I was obsessed with literature. could not go to bed without a book. there have been times when i "read" dictionary because i could not find anything better to read. and about writing, i used to keep a paper/pen under my pillow. i used to write alot. freedom of expression is a basic human right. i used to speak less, but write alot to express myself.... but time changed, and so my habits. i stopped reading, and stopped writing. but i could not stop thinking and feeling. thoughts started piling up inside me. my smile got replaced by an expressionless face, which was then replaced by an angry face. i became an angry man who knows nothing except shouting, who cannot see good in anything, and who does not know how to smile. i was falling into darkness. anger and pessimism took over me. i wanted to get rid of it, but did not know how. and then one day, i discovered Krakhead's Blog through orkut. and it reminded me that i used to be a writer once. the writer inside me woke up, and i came back on track. thoughts started transforming into words instead of frustration. i started feeling better.
but alot has changed during this break. my laptop has replaced my writing pad. my diary has been replaced by my blog. but more importantly, my writing style has changed. and above all, urdu has been replaced by english. four years back, i could not imagine that i would be writing in english. and now, its very hard to write the type of urdu that was once my specialty. it used to be difficult for me to find english translation of urdu words. and now, i keep searching and scraching my head for urdu translation of english words. its strange, and disturbing, because i dont want to lose the quality urdu language that i once possessed. i remember four years back, my urdu was so pure that people used to find it difficult to translate it into "normal" urdu. and now, i speak "normal" urdu as they say, but this urdu has surely been contaminated by some extensive use of english.
but still, no matter what the medium, no matter what the language, it really IS good to start writing again!! i'm feeling a lot lighter now, alot fresher and alot livelier.

The Psuedo Car, A Poem

when writing the post Oceanic Thoughts: The Psuedo Car, i was thinking of this poem, just got hold of it! so, here is what the legendary zameer jafri has to say about sameer's princess and the haunted grey one:

Aik She'r

Dont have courage to write anything on what happened in Karachi. just a she'r of Iqbal (i guess)

Ae Khasa e khaasaan e rusul, waqt e dua hai
ummat pey teri aa k ajab waqt prra hai

اے خاصہ خاصان رسل، وقت دعا ہے
امت پہ تری آ کے عجب وقت پڑا ہے

this really is a sad state of affairs i must say.

(Background: on 13th April 2006, A milaad gathering was bombed in Karachi on the day of Eid milaad un Nabi, killing more than 50 people)

I will always be there...

My Dear Friend
anytime u need
a shoulder to cry on
a friend to rely on
a hand to hold on
or any help to carry on
just give me a call
a missed call is all i need
write an sms if u can
or just send an email
and if u cant even do that
just call my name from inside ur heart
just think of me
and say that you need a friend
I promiss
I will be there
as soon as i could
I will be there
sooner than anyone else
I will be there
no matter how far i am
no matter how busy i am
I might not be able to solve
but i will definitely share
I might not be able to
shrink your long distances
but i will walk along till the end
and i will stand beside you
even if the whole world abandons you
even if i have to leave the whole world
even if the whole world leaves me
I will stand beside you
My Dear Friend
whenever u count the people you can count on
whenever u count the people you trust
whenever u count your friends
start counting from me
because even if everyone else abandons you
I wont
I will never ever let you face the problems alone
I will never break your trust
I will never dissappoint you
My Dear Friend
if you dont remember me in your good times
if you dont share your happy moments with me
I dont really mind
but
if you dont remember me in your bad times
if you dont share your sad moments with me
then I wont forgive you
but I will still stand beside you
and I would still love to help you
because I love you
becaues I love my friends
because I love myself
My Dear Friend
helping others gives me energy
helping others keeps me alive
helping others is purpose of my life
dont let me starve
dont let me die
help me achieve purpose of my life
remember me in your bad times
and i promiss
I will never dissappoint you
I will always be there to share
I will always be there to care
I will always be there to listen
I will always be there to help
I will always be there...

Marrying a lady doctor...

a medical student asked me to write a few lines in punjabi about marrying a lady doctor, which she wanted to use in her punjabi speech... i was told later that it DID amuse people! (and this comment DID amuse me!!!)

meri man k buch jaao gey
doctrni wiya k phas jao gey
pandday tou tou mar jao gey
ubli sabzi kha kha ak jao gey
bachay khaddanday reh jao gey
raataan jaag jaag rul jao gey

3rd March 2005