Remembering Michael

You might wonder why I feel the need to write thus about Michael Jackson, or even that I would title this blog post ‘Remembering Michael’ when I have not even met him. I feel moved to do so because of the sense of personal loss I feel at his death. Not a deep sense of loss leading to mourning, but a definite sense of loss, a void, that his death seems to leave behind.

Michael burst into our lives in the early eighties when we were a newly married young couple in our twenties living in Bombay. I hadn’t really listened to the Jackson Five but for some occasional exposure, but certainly knew he was the most personable and talented of the lot. That didn’t make any difference though, for I didn’t really take to their brand of music, and didn’t have any of it. It was his first solo album of ’82 that brought him into our lives.

Abha, then an air hostess with Air India, had gone on a flight to Europe- it was either Frankfurt or Rome, don’t remember which city. While watching TV in her hotel room, she had switched channels to a music channel and watched Michael perform the songs from the album. His enthusiasm and unaffected joy at performing was so infectious that she went out and bought ‘Off the wall’, the solo album that really launched his career.

She came home and enthused about this black singer from the US who was, in her words, so cute. That was, of course, enough to put me on my guard, but I did play the cassette and listened to him! Starting with ‘Don’t stop till you’ve had enough!’ his songs were energetic and, on the whole, quite captivating. At this stage, the music was a mix of pop and ballads. Very soon, Michael Jackson was very much a part of our lives with his music blasting from our system in the drawing room.

The launch of Thriller though was, I think, the defining point of his career. The songs were good, but it was the music videos that really captured everyone’s imagination. He still managed a mix of fast paced, pounding numbers along with lyrical ballads such as ‘The girl is mine’ with Paul McCartney and ‘PYT’. Not that we had MTV in India in those days, but we could see his music videos by renting video tapes from the video lending library! No longer did you listen to Michael, you experienced him, his dancing, singing, clothes and the funky sets created for the songs.

The first video I remember most vividly is ‘Billie Jean’ with everything he touched lighting up as he moved along. There were articles about this music video, that it had a cost a million dollars, that it set new standards for effects and so on that fueled the wave of excitement across the world. Soon, watching a Michael Jackson music video became a much anticipated event for the sheer entertainment you know you were in for.

And he didn’t disappoint with the launch of his next album ‘Bad’. By now the wholesome, young black singer we knew had morphed into an exciting, slick, supernova of a music sensation who helped drive demand for, and the success of MTV, with his music videos. The Bad collection too had a mix of songs that appealed across a broad spectrum. We longed for a music channel, but made do with the videos from the lending library.

The “Dangerous’ album followed with hits like ‘Black or white’, ‘Dangerous’ and ‘Heal the world’ which took the world by storm. Not only were the songs powerful, but the videos were scintillating. Many of us became consciously cognizant of the wonders of ‘morphing’ after seeing the ‘Black or white’ video. We’d seen it in films like ‘Terminator two’ by then, but this music video created a sensation and series of articles on how it was done. All of which captured our collective imagination.

By then he had set the standard so high, that expectations of his albums was soaring. By now he must have had enormous pressure to deliver, as well as the pressure of a life in a fish bowl. All of which seemed to take a toll. His troubled, abused childhood couldn’t have helped, for he wanted to be accepted, loved and appreciated for who he was. Instead, his isolation was complete with his image as a mega star between him and the world. We watched him with concern and affection, and not a little dismay as he lurched from one controversy to another.

There were endless articles about his surgeries that transformed him over time from a wholesome young man with a love of life and performing, to a white faced, bizarre mannequin whom people looked upon with pity and wonder. This also furthered his isolation from the real world and real people, making the fulfillment of his need to be accepted for himself even more remote. It was heartwarming to see his friends from Hollywood stand by him through all this, for they knew him as a vulnerable young man who needed a friend more than anything else. The black community sensed it too, with their cry of ‘Leave him alone’, and their unconditional acceptance of him no matter what he did.

And so the launch of his next album, ‘HIStory’ in 1995, a collection of his hits was a bit of an anti-climax but for ‘Earth song’ and ‘They don’t care about us’ which both had captivating videos as well. But the furor around his eccentric ways, the Neverland ranch, the scandals, marriages and so on robbed this album of much of the public’s attention. Both ‘Earth song’ and ‘They don’t care about us’ went on to become some of our favorites, but Michael no longer seemed that electric singer and performer that we had grown to love. There was too much negative content about him out there that rubbed off on him an affected the way we looked at him. Significantly, we didn’t buy this album nor did we feel like doing so.

By the time ‘Blood on the dance floor’ had its low key launch in 1997, Michael was being overshadowed in our psyche by a whole crop of exciting new talent, the advent of the Internet and a wave of films using new technologies that captured our imagination. Two of the songs went on to be noteworthy from this album, the title track and ‘Ghosts’, but the rest of the songs didn’t make the kind of impact his songs used to. The ‘Blood on the dance floor’ video was vintage Michael, but again, we had seen too much to be excited the way we used to be. I’m afraid, by then, the scandals, his leaving the US and moving to Dubai and so on took their toll, and he dropped from our radar.

The launch of ‘Invincible’ was a whimper which we didn’t notice. We didn’t buy the album, nor did we hear about the songs or see any of the music videos. By then Michael was no longer a part of our lives. He had become a recluse, a person reviled for his physical appearance, for bizarre behavior and tastes and for the various scandals and court cases. I felt sorry for him, but he was no longer in the public eye. I felt pretty sure that there were many people taking advantage of his loneliness and vulnerability, either as litigants or as advisors, but really had no idea of what he was doing or where he was. All we knew was he has running out of money, and had more problems than he could handle.

Then the tsunami of news around his death broke and swamped all of us. The vivid memories of the young man who so inspired those many years ago flashed through my mind. His songs kept playing in my head. I spent yesterday evening watching many of his music videos on You Tube and reliving those years when the magic of Michael Jackson had the world in its thrall. What drew me to him so powerfully that I still feel like I knew him in a way? Maybe it was the wholesome goodness of his early years.

Then again, maybe it was because we were around the same age. It was definitely also to do with his fitness and dancing, for I work out regularly and just love to dance. It was also the music, the variety, styles and heart thumping energy in them. It is for the both the latter reasons that I identify very strongly with Madonna as well. But Michael was always special, something else. Perhaps it was his loneliness that on sensed, the need to be accepted for he was. Or perhaps its because he was still very much a boy with big dreams although chronologically a much older man. Somehow when you think of Michael even today, you remember him more as a young boy or youth. Not as a middle aged man!

Whatever it was, he has left behind a sense of loss, for the world will never be the same again. Sort of like Princess Diana’s passing. The end of an era, at least in singer or performer terms.

Good by Michael, and may God bless you. Rest in peace where ever you are.

Internet Policy Failure

It is astonishing that, for a country lauded as an IT super power, we have such a poor level of Internet penetration- just about 2% of the population with PCs at home connected to the Net. To really understand how poor India’s position is, consider the Internet penetration of the BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India, China- all of whom show the most promise in terms of economic growth) countries of which India is a part. China, with a population of 1.33 billion, has over 20% penetration. Brazil, with a population of 191 million has 26% penetration and Russia with a population of 143 million has 20% penetration. And, more significantly, all of them have a penetration growth rate that is far higher than India’s.

The situation is equally serious when you consider the World Economic Forum’s Networked Readiness Index. The index is a measure of the impact of ICTs on the competitiveness of nations by gauging their environment for ICTs, the readiness of individuals, businesses and government to use ICTs and the usage level of ICTs by these stakeholders. India measures 50 out of 127 nations in 2008, having slipped four places over 2007. China on the other hand, rose 5 positions on the index in 2008. The Report further observes that though the business environment in India is sophisticated, the poor state of ICT infrastructure and extremely low level of ICT penetration among individuals are obstacles to economic growth.

So it is increasingly clear the current regulatory framework has been a dismal failure with regard to the growth of Internet penetration in India. This becomes evident when you consider that we are adding more than 10 million mobile connections a month currently, whereas after ten years, we have just over 10 million Internet connections in the country. Instead of a policy framework conducive to enabling a ‘broadband revolution’ according to the Ministry, what we actually have is policy failure.

The reasons for this failure are also evident. After the then government announced the ISP policy in November 1998 at a license fee of just Re 1, the policies that followed ensured that ISPs were not financially viable and could not invest in developing the market. In the beginning this appears to be to protect the incumbent, but this has continued even after the advent of private telcos for fixed line and mobile services.

Leave alone policies, the incumbent was not required to effect separation of accounting for infrastructure services to ISPs from retail services provided to consumers. This ensured that the incumbent charged high fees for infrastructure services (such as for bandwidth and port charges for dial up services), while undercutting ISPs on price of services to consumers. This resulted in the exit of many large companies from the ISP space such as Wipro, BPL, BT and Pacific Internet.

The focus of policy seems to be on charging high licensing fees to the telcos, and depending on them to take care of everything. This shortsighted approach has resulted in the completely unbalanced growth of data connectivity and the Internet in India. For example, universal access license holders had the freedom to provide domestic calls on VoIP since January 2006. They have not, prompting TRAI to call for opening this up to ISPs. Predictably, the policy maker has done nothing about this recommendation so far.

The question of who is responsible for Internet penetration and data connectivity growth in India versus who decides the policy contributes to the problem. The Ministry for Telecommunications and IT is divided into two Departments: the Department of Telecommunications and the Department of Information Technology. The Department of Information Technology is responsible for Internet penetration, but the policies are decided by the Department of Telecommunications! This obviously is not a situation that is likely to lead to a conducive policy framework for Internet penetration and growth.

Any discussion with the Department of Telecommunications is reduced to targeting ISPs for not having paid substantial license fees, or for having a base of users that is not significant. ISPs, the Department seems to conclude, are not important in the larger scheme of things as the telcos can take care of this anyway. What the Department, and indeed the Government, needs to realize is that the sorry state of Internet penetration in India is not in the national interest. For much like telecom penetration was considered an index of a country’s economic potential fifteen years ago, Internet penetration determines a country’s ability to grow and compete in an interconnected world today.

India is slipping because we do not have free and open competition for Internet services by ISPs as well as telcos. This has resulted in the rapid decline of ISPs with only one national ISP left. Wholesale bandwidth prices in the country are many times more expensive than markets like the US. Telecom policies are oriented towards the large telcos as evidenced in the pricing of spectrum for Wimax services, which have also been conveniently clubbed with spectrum for mobile use. Worse, spectrum already allocated to ISPs and being used by them for wireless connectivity for years is being recalled. So that when Wimax services are rolled out, they will continue to be the purview of telcos with the ISPs being effectively shut out of service provision.

Can we afford this? What happened to the vision of the National Telecom Policy of 98-99 of ‘Internet for all’? Can a country that is acknowledged to be an emerging economic super power risk its future in this short sighted manner? If this state of affairs is to be reversed, it can only by recognizing Internet penetration is a fundamental measure of a nation’s ability to compete in a globally networked economy. And by policies that balance the growth of Internet and data penetration along with telecom growth by encouraging ISPs. Countries such as France have become a role model for Europe with policies that have encouraged broadband penetration and use. We could emulate such a model.

The answer is clear. We must act quickly and decisively in the national interest to encourage Internet penetration and use with an ecosystem that encourages its adoption. This needs to be done on a war footing to ensure our continued economic growth, growth in the number of jobs and economic competitiveness. Perhaps it is time that the Prime Minister’s Office and the Planning Commission intervened, much as they did in 1998, to open up the sector and to rectify the sorry state of Internet penetration in India.

A rite of passage

There comes a time in everyone’s life when they lose their father. That time for me was twenty years ago on February 19, 1989. I still remember it as if it were yesterday, especially because it was so unexpected. I guess losing one’s father is one of the most significant landmarks in anyone’s life. Even more so if you are a son, and your father played a major role in who you are. So that it becomes a veritable right of passage that results in adding to your sense of responsibility and perspective immeasurably. Because now you are really on your own.

So it was today, when I went to condole with a friend whose father passed away this morning. First a flood of memories, a sense of déjà vu. The body, bedecked with flowers, laid out in state in the drawing room. The grim and grieving faces of family and friends gathered around the departed. The hush in the room as if any loud noise will break the fragile emotions that rule a moment like this. The bustle of those responsible for the arrangements, as they push back their grief to cope with what needs to be done. The sons moving around, meeting those gathered there to condole, graciously accepting the sentiments presented.

One can see the gathering sense of having to pick up the reins, of taking charge, of a new perspective that forms to fill the vacuum created by the loss of a father. Of how the baton passes on imperceptibly to the sons, starting with the eldest. Of how they are consulted, spoken to, advised and guided. Suddenly, they are not the dependants anymore, but have become the heads. This is a social and legal norm, and the rituals that follow an occasion such as this are all predicated on this rite of passage. So that it becomes a reiteration of succession, of formalizing the process.

It happened to me when I lost my father. Its happened to other friends in the intervening years. And it happened again today. And doubtless will happen again in the years to come. Then suddenly, it will happen to me, as I pass on, and imperceptibly hand over the reins to my progeny by the very act of dying. So that the circle of my life is complete as I finish with God’s purpose for me on this earth. How transient we are, here for a span, hopefully to make a mark, then we are gone. Leaving behind our children to carry on our line, and hopefully some of the good we sought to do. While we move on to be with an eternal God, who was in the beginning, is now, and will be in time to come.

The most dangerous place in the world

Some six months ago, Newsweek ran a cover story whose headline was ,’The most dangerous country in the world is not Iran. It is Pakistan’. How prophetic that turned out to be. They also had an incisive article by a diplomat as to why the paths of India and Pakistan, the two countries that were born at the end of British rule, have been so different. It essentially boiled down to the strength of the institutions that uphold democracy- the Constitution, the judiciary, the parliament, the ministries of government and the army.

These were established firmly at the beginning in India, where as they have apparently always been shaky from the start in Pakistan. This enabled various constituencies to take advantage of this to disrupt democratic government of the country. The army has taken over many times, as well as dictators of various hues. Pervez Musharaf , the last dictator who tried to perpetuate his rule, did enormous damage to the judiciary, changed the Constitution and weakened the pillars of democracy even further. But what is happening now is even more dangerous.

The locus of power n Pakistan does not lie with the government alone as it should for effective governance. Instead, it lies with the army, the ISI, the Taliban and other terrorist organizations, regional governments as well as the government- which appears to be the weakest of the lot. Although President Zardari promised all help when the attack on Bombay unfolded, including sending the head of the ISI to India for discussions, he backtracked overnight after a midnight visit from General Ashfaq Kayani, the head of the army. The denials and obfuscation that followed for many months until admission under US pressure to Pakistani involvement are well known.

Recent events in Swat with the government coming to an ‘agreement’ with the Taliban to govern the area under Sharia law in exchange for a ‘ceasefire’, as well as a payment of a rumoured Rs 30 crores smacks of capitulation. The government has literally given up the Swat valley to the Taliban forces, having already lost control of the NorthWest Frontier Province to them. In the middle of all this, the government lierally released A Q Khan, the father of the Islamic bomb, known to have sold nuclear secrets to North Korea and Iran. Now President Zardari has prevailed on the Supreme Court to declare Nawaz Sharif ineligible tpo hold public office, as well as his brother who was the Chief Minister of Pakistan’s Punjab province.

The Sharifs have called for civil unrest, and are strongly backed by the judiciary who want, as do the Sharifs, the reinstatement of Ifthikar Chaudhury as Chief Justice of Pakistan. President Zardari, of course, does not want him reinstated because he has sworn to bring charges of corruption against Mr Zardari who used to be known as ‘Mr Ten percent’ when his wife was the Prime Minister of Pakistan. So the government, weak as it is, now stands divided, the provinces are in turmoil, the judiciary in revolt and the economy is in a shambles. Fertile ground for the unfettered advancement of terrorist organizations and the Taliban.

The only constant in this toxic mess is the army and the ISI who quietly exercise power and political influence far beyond the ordinary. It is because of the army that Pakistan has always defined its existence versus India, else how would they get their allocation of 25% of the Budget to lead their lives of privilege? It was the army which fostered the terrorist organizations to take a toll on India through a shadowy war of attrition without ever directly attacking the country. That has now backfired severely with the terrrists slowly but surely taking over the country.

How else would one explain the attack on the Sri Lankan cricket team? The team was promised Presidential security to ensure their safety as they toured the country which is why they agreed to go there in the first place. Instead they are attacked at 10.30 in the morning in Lahore, one of the main cities in Pakistan. What is even more chilling, television footage shows the terrorists arriving nonchalantly with guns slung over their shoulders on motorbikes and parking in the street ahead of the team’s arrival. Despite it being ten thirty in the morning, none of the shops are open, and there was no one else on the street. Post the attack too, they walk causally down the street, get on their motorbikes and ride away.

People in the area clearly knew in advance and stayed away or kept their establishments closed, which means the terrorists had control of the area. This indicates a level of influence of local administration beyond the government’s control of the area. They still have not been able to convincingly bring the attackers to book, despite the attack being carried out in broad daylight in a public space for over twenty minutes or more. This indicates that no one wants to oppose them because they fear or support them. All this clearly indicates the government of Pakistan is not in control of the country, even a city like Lahore, leave alone distant provinces like the North West Frontier province.

No my friends, Pakistan is today a failed state, and is rapidly deteriorating into anarchy. Where and how it will end is anyone’s guess. But thing is for sure, the people of Pakistan deserve better than what their leaders, whether politicians or the army, have meted out to them. I have met some, know a few, and can tell you that they are good people. They are just like you and me. The fate of Pakistan is of concern not only because of them, but because they are our neighbor. With a deep impact on us, as well as West Asia and the Middle Eastern region. The turmoil in Afghanistan will worsen with the deterioration of Pakistan because it will allow the Taliban even greater leeway.

The most dangerous place in the world looks set to spawn the most dangerous region in the world.

The law must be supreme

It is with a rising sense of disquiet that we have seen the politicization of the legal fraternity in Tamil Nadu over the years. To my mind it began with the interest taken by the lady chief minister of the past to influence legal proceedings in the cases taken against her. She also made the police instruments of her will in many cases. All of which have vastly reduced the independence of the police, and the thinking of the judiciary in Tamil Nadu. What we are now experiencing is a result of this corrupting influence.

Anyone who has lived in Madras for years will have seen the descent of the law college into one of the most trouble prone and violent institutions of learning in the state. One often wondered if they were like that as students of the law, how were they going to uphold the rule of law once they entered that noble profession. Well, the answer is clear from recent events. If the those who are to uphold the law behave, in the words of the Justice Srikrishna Report, as ‘hooligans and miscreants’, what are we to expect in future?

It is no wonder that they are focusing on ‘police excesses’, and do not want the events of the day of the attack on Subramaniam Swamy, or the burning of the police station to be considered. I am so glad that Justice Srikrishna, in his wisdom, looked into the events leading up to the attack on Subramaniam Swamy, as well as the behavior of the lawyers thereafter leading up to the attack on the police station before bringing out his very balanced report. There is no doubt the police went on the rampage on that fateful day, but the lawyers are equally to blame for their behavior and actions before the incident and after it.

They need to be brought to heel, and to understand that they are not above the law. The politicization of the legal fraternity must also be brought to a stop. So that we do not have this ugly spectacle ever repeated again. As well as the courts brought to a stand still because of so called ‘strikes’ by the lawyers. There has to be a code of conduct for lawyers which stipulates the decorum with which they must conduct themselves and the legal profession against which their behavior can be measured, and offenders brought to book. Otherwise we will see the one of the great independent institutions on which our democracy rests brought to ruin.

Especially in this case, the law must be supreme.

Slumdog millionaire: Missing the point

A fair amount of sound and fury has been generated by the film for its depiction of the slums of Bombay where Jamal grew up. To begin with the critics need to accept that the film is based on Q&A, a book written by a fellow Indian. So it isn’t some Western plot to show India in a bad light. Nor is it a Western film makers obsession with India’s poverty as it is often made out. The fact is, it is a screen adaptation of an Indian book that traces the success of a boy from the slums of Bombay on the Indian version of ‘Who wants to be a millionaire?’

I don’t think this film would have been made by an Indian film maker, simply because the background for the film would not have appealed to them. Nor would they have believed that the film was bankable in terms of being a box office hit. So it took someone else to realize the book’s potential and make the film. More important, the script retains the book’s focus on the hope that all human beings have in transcending their circumstances to emerge victorious, even if they are from the slums. In addition to hope, the film focuses on Jamal’s grit, strength of character, intelligence and willingness to work hard. His dogged pursuit of the girl he loves despite her circumstances is also heartwarming.

Some others dismiss the film as media hype that has built it up internationally. I disagree. If the film did not have substance, it could never have got that far. The fact is, the story of hope in desperate circumstances, where the underdog emerges a winner because of his life’s experiences and character have touched a chord in audiences worldwide. The music is uplifting, the performances by the child actors as well the older ones convincing, the cinematography realistic without glossing over the abject misery of the slums and the editing between the show and is life effective in conveying the story. Frieda Pinto as Latika has the youth and vulnerability to elicit all our protective instincts and identify with Jamal. Jamal himself is no ‘hero’, but the tea shop boy, tentative and scared as he faces the suave, confident host of the show.

The film works, and works very well. So for all those who are continuing to deride the film, I have only this to offer. You really are missing the point. It isn’t about the slums, it is about Jamal. It isn’t about poverty and misery, it is about hope and victory. It isn’t about sordid lives, but about the strength of love despite the circumstances. The film is really about the best there is in the human spirit. This is a film that we should be proud of, and celebrate instead of criticizing. AR Rahman summed it up pretty well in his Oscar acceptance speech, “In life, you can choose either love or hate. I chose love”. You could apply this to the film too. Focus on the negatives and you’ll hate it. Instead focus on what it really is about, and you’ll love it.

What is Indian culture?

Who gave Mr Muthalik and the Ram Sene the right to determine what Indian culture is? What is ‘Indian culture’ any way? To begin with, we’re a patch work of cultures with many different ethnic groups in every state. There are the Tamils, Malayalees, Kannadigas, Telugus, Mangaloreans, Marathis, Goans, Gujaratis, Punjabis…you get the picture. Each with their own language, cuisine, culture including music and dance and so on. So what is this much touted ‘Indian’ culture?

What Mr Muthalik is trying to establish is that his brand of ‘Hindu’ culture is Indian culture. So where does it stop Mr Muthalik? If you had your way, would we have wives immolate themselves on their husband’s funeral pyres in future? After all, this was also Indian culture. What about orgies and the inclination to indulge and experiment with sexuality? As per the Kamasutra, this is also Indian culture. Tch, tch….and here you are Mr Muthalik, objecting to men and women going out for dinner on Valentine’s Day!

It’s pretty clear that this business of ‘Indian culture’ is a sham. A front that allows lumpen elements to impose their will on ordinary people with what their small little minds think is Indian culture. Under the umbrella of a BJP state government that allows it to do so because of a shared ideology. After all, this is the government whose Chief Minister declared that there was no question of banning this obscure organization. And which is now proposing to establish an ‘Ombudsman’ to control what the media writes about these lumen elements as they carry out their threats against the populace.

What is really happening? A bunch of thugs attacking innocent people for exercising their choice in what they would like to do for leisure, or expressing love for one another on the occasion of Valentine’s Day. This is nothing less than an assault on people’s individual rights, and a direct attack on the Constitution of India which guarantees it. Is this the kind of country we want India to be? A country with arbitrary rules of behaviour decided by ‘religious’ groups based on their own interests? With history being rewritten, the media muzzled and the secular nature of the country being assaulted? It’s time all Indians voiced their protest against this in every way.

Enough is enough!

Enough is enough is by now a much repeated phrase. It’s become the popular cry in Mumbai to convey what people feel about politicians and their ilk, as well as the poor governance that the country and its cities suffer from. But given the way Pakistan is behaving, I think ‘enough is enough!’ is what the international community should be telling their government. For it really begs the question, “Who is in control of Pakistan?”

When the attacks began in Mumbai, Asif Ali Zardari expressed horror and extended all support to the people of India. He even promised to send the head of the infamous ISI to New Delhi to assist in bringing the culprits to book. Sadly, all that changed after a midnight visit to him by General Kayani. Now it’s back to making repeated statements about ‘non-state actors’ in Pakistan, thereby absolving the country of all responsibility. And constantly harping about India’s aggression.

If non-state actors in Pakistan are responsible, why is Pakistan constantly asking for ‘incontrovertible’ proof? Why this defensive posture instead of assisting in bringing the non-state actors under control? The offer of a joint investigation by Pakistan is also laughable. When The Hindu published details of the interview with Asmal, the surviving terrorist, identifying his home village of Faridkot, what happened? The Guardian of the UK sent their Pakistani correspondent to interview the parents, only to be told by neighbors that some ‘people’ had come and taken them away!

The intrepid correspondent, not to be thwarted, then obtained their names from the voters list, thus establishing the fact that this family was in residence in Faridkot. He then managed to interview neighbors who identified the family, and also spoke of Asmal’s visits to the village. The Geo TV channel also established that Asmal was indeed from Faridkot. In the face of this, any sharing of information in a joint investigation will have Pakistan in overdrive eradicating evidence on their side of the border.

Asmal himself has written to the Pakistan High Commission asking for help as he is from Pakistan. The Pakistan ‘authorities’ are examining this letter before deciding their ‘course of action’. Nawaz Sharif meanwhile questioned why Faridkot had been cordoned off and people barred from speaking to Asmal’s family. Until he did an abrupt volte face and stated that India must provide ‘incontrovertible’ proof. In other words, he has also started toeing the official line. In the meantime, the politicians and army have made repeated jingoistic statements against India’s aggression and the ‘fitting response’ that Pakistan would deliver in the event of war.

Kayani also made a pointed statement with regard to responding in kind in case of ‘surgical strikes’ by India. There are also repeated statements by Kayani of Pakistan’s ‘right to defend itself’ against any aggression from India. What of India’s right to defend itself against repeated terrorist attacks from Pakistan? Which is why, despite overwhelming evidence, Kayani constantly repeats as ‘baseless’ the charges raised by India with regard to the terrorist attacks from Pakistan. While the politicians plead that these are ‘non-state’ actors, and that Pakistan itself is a victim of their terror attacks. The global misinformation to obfuscate the facts and create doubt is in over drive, and given time, may actually succeed.

The latest line is that Pakistan is a ‘responsible’ nuclear state, and will not escalate the crisis with India. Somehow the insinuation is that India is responsible for rising tensions with Pakistan because, I assume, of the ‘baseless’ charges. When I read the cover story ‘The world’s most dangerous country is not Iran. It is Pakistan’ in NewsWeek about six months ago, I wondered if that was not too drastic a conclusion. Well events have proved the article to be prophetic, and unless the world sits up, takes notice, and pressures Pakistan to change, things are only going to get worse. The reason I say that is because the reality of who is in control of Pakistan is pretty evident if you look at how events have unfolded post the Mumbai terror attacks.

The army, along with the ISI, is firmly in control, letting the politicians play at politics as long as they toe the line. Look at the volte face first by Zardari, then by Nawaz Sharif. Is it possible for people to turn a hundred and eighty degrees within a few days? Yes, if the ISI has dossiers on them and met them and said they would be exposed or investigated in some way. Zardari did try and curb the ISI’s power by declaring that the feared organization would no longer report to the military but the Home Ministry. That too was scuttled by the army, with the ISI continuing to report to the military and doing its bidding.

Why this obsession with power and control by the army you may ask? Well, if you are in Pakistan you will realize that the elite are the armed forces with privileges and resources that ordinary Pakistanis cannot dream of. All the aid that pours in to fight terror goes directly to these forces who have actually done precious little to curb terror schools in Pakistan. George Bush’s government gave them $10 billion for the war on terror. Do we see its effects today? Where did the money go? Remember also that 25% of Pakistan’s GDP is spent on its armed forces. The army, to continue to enjoy this privileged position, has to constantly bait India and raise the spectre of war. Peace would be its undoing!

When Vajpayee as India’s Prime Minister took the ‘peace bus’ for discussions with Nawaz Sharif toLahore, what happened? The Pakistan army infiltrated into Karghil even as peace was being discussed. Who was in charge of the army then? Musharaf. When Zardari spoke of peace with India what happens? Terrorists from Pakistan, trained by people with designations like ‘colonel’ and ‘major’ according to Asmal, attack Mumbai. Remember also that the terrorist strike on Mumbai was a classical commando strike with diversions to take the focus away from the main target of the Taj and Oberoi hotels. Eye witnesses have also testified to the accuracy and professionalism of these terrorists in shooting people during the attacks. Clearly they had military training to execute the attacks with such precision, and this has been recognized by an expert on terrorism quoted in NewsWeek.

Pakistan is both a failed state from the point of view of governance, and a terror state because of the development and use of terror by its armed forces to destabilize the region to justify its existence. Unless the international community recognizes this reality and deals with Pakistan accordingly, we are unlikely to see any real progress in the dismantling of the terror networks within Pakistan. So that it continues to be a haven and training ground for global terrorism. Don’t forget that the terrorists who brought down the WTC towers had direct links with terror groups in Pakistan. How long is the international community going to put up with this farce? Its time they said ‘Enough is enough!” and dealt with Pakistan in a manner in which it would have a decent chance to progress as a nation. Instead of lurching from dictatorships to puppet governments that use terrorism as an instrument of state policy.