UAE

Keep Expectations Low Pakistan

Pakistan the land of the pure and the defender of Muslims around the world. This is the Pakistan that most of the Pakistani know and want. It doesn’t matter what I want or how I want Pakistan to be; Majority of Pakistani consider Pakistan as the Fort of Islam; a country built on the basis of Islam and a country that should embody Islamic laws. I have been lucky enough to meet people from different parts of Pakistan, with different economic and cultural background and can safely say with clarity and honesty most people in Pakistan are conservative and believe the notion that Pakistan is the fort of Islam.

I have no problem with this notion and respect majorities opinion being a democrat but the problem arises when people start to give examples of Saudia Arabia, Dubai and Iran. Their implementation of Islamic laws and their way of governance. So here a few nuggets for people to chew on before giving advice or quoting these countries. Lets start with Saudia Arabia

Saudia Arabia: Actually it is Kingdom of Saudia Arabia. Our savior and friends. It has been there to support Pakistan when ever we require assistance and has flourished Pakistan with aid and help. That is the Saudi state I hear about. The Saudia I know is when I went for Umrah in 1997; as a 13 year old all I remember green lights at the Jeddah Airport and an extremely rude Arab man screaming instructions at people on the immigration counter that too in Arabic; If you don’t know Arabic hard luck. That may be just one man but I have heard countless tales by people who visited Saudia of being treated like Dogs. There is a certain uneasiness you feel when there and that should not be the case in a place where you go for inner peace and be closer to God. I wont get into conspiracy theories into who the Sauds are or how they rule but the following documentary by PBS is quite interesting and should be seen by all Pakistanis

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/saud/

Dubai: Ah !!! Dubai the solution to all Pakistan’s problem be more like Dubai; that what I hear a lot !!! It is a Kingdom; that benefited from Pakistan’s inability to see the potential of its money making ports. Never the less give credit where due Dubai is awesome in every sense; modern yet conservative and there are laws (http://www.thatdubaisite.com/thatdubaisite.com/That_Dubai_Site_Dos_and_Donts.html). So why cant Pakistan be more like Dubai;

  1. It is a City not a Country; Entire UAE is not like Dubai.
  2. Its a Kingdom
  3. Population of Dubai is 2.106 million (2013) and Population of Pakistan 179.2 million  and Population of Largest city  Pakistan Karachi is 9.339 million that too according to a census that was conducted in 1998. (These figures are according  to a quick Google search)
  4. Only  17% UAE nationals live in Dubai & the rest 83%  are Ex-Pats who live under constant threat of being deported from UAE even for minor offences. So one has to live by their rules or leave
  5. Dubai has a big brother who saved for rainy day called Abu-Dhabi

Iran: The revolution most people in Pakistan crave for; the uncle who always says you will see there will be an Iran like revolution. So Iran where honey and milk flow from the streams and every one lives happily under the guidance of the supreme leader. Most of Irans’s population is Shiite; so laws and policies are according to that sect. Pakistan has 32% Shiite population while the rest are Sunni; and than there are further divided in multiple sects of Sunnis; so getting all these sects to come under one banner and agreeing on an Islamic law is something I don’t see happening. Iran is oil rich but is under international sanctions due to the bravado they showed during the Ahmed-di-Nijaad’s presidency. Ah Ahmed-di-Nijaad the role model for all leaders; the simple man; who sleeps on the floor; wears simple cloths and is the man of the people. Atleast for me any one who has their pictures taken while sleeping on the floor is fake and a show off.  Please ask Iranians about Ahmed-di-Nijaad  before making him a hero please.

So I have made peace with the fact that when and if we ever eventually become a nation; Pakistan will be a conservative Saudia, Iran, Dubai wannabe state; It does not matter what I want as I am less than 10% of the entire population who dreams of a different progressive path for Pakistan.  Like most Pakistani’s I have a favorite country I want Pakistan to be like; that is Turkey (Best of the Worst). For me the best outcome would be for Pakistan to be more like Turkey (which also completed a full circle and now has a conservative Erdogan’s AKP in Power). I am also a realist and would not keep my self  in illusions and I am preparing my self for the time when the above will be true and I suggest others to do so too. If you have problems with the Path Pakistan will take time to consider your future plan is now.

For Correction and Typos: Kindly email me at adil_raza@hotmail.com

Bye Bye BlackBerry in UAE !!! UAE, Saudi Arabia to Implement BlackBerry Bans!!!

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Multi-billionaires in Dubai and Abu Dhabi may soon have more trouble doing business on the go, as officials in the United Arab Emirates have announced that as of October, BlackBerry users will no longer be able to send e-mails or instant messages within the country. As the New York Times reports, Sunday’s announcement comes after a lengthy standoff between the Middle East nation and Research in Motion (RIM), which produces the BlackBerry. Because encrypted data sent via BlackBerrys are automatically routed to servers located outside of the UAE, it’s difficult for Emirate authorities to monitor user activity. RIM has thus far refused to meet the UAE’s demands, although the looming threat of a ban, as the country’s telecom regulator told the BBC, will certainly put the Canadian company under serious pressure.

Should the ban go into effect, it could severely hamper RIM’s business not only in the UAE, which boasts an estimated 500,000 BlackBerry users, but throughout the Middle East as well. Authorities in Saudi Arabia, for example, are already planning on instituting a ban on BBs next month, while regulators in Kuwait and Bahrain have begun raising similar concerns over RIM’s services.

Mohammed al-Ghanem, director general of UAE’s telecom regulatory body, claims that “censorship has got nothing to do with” Sunday’s decision, and cited RIM’s “lack of compliance with UAE telecommunications regulations” as the decisive factor. And, considering the UAE’s history of electronic monitoring, its hardened stance isn’t all that surprising. Although the country has developed into a hub of global finance, it’s “never been a place that offered much in the way of electronic privacy,” says Dubai scholar and author Jim Krane. After the January assassination of a Palestinian operative in a Dubai hotel, the government only ramped up security and began more closely monitoring messages sent within its borders.

RIM now finds itself in a precarious spot. The circumstances, at first glance, may seem similar to Google’s lingering dispute with China. Unlike search engines, though, smartphones are, by definition, used primarily to facilitate direct communication among businessmen, politicians, or, perhaps, militant extremists. It’s understandable that RIM wouldn’t want the rest of the world to see it “cave in” to a regime, but doing business worldwide means dealing with multitudinous cultures and practices.

(Source: Switched)