BLA terrorists bomb Jinnah's Ziarat residency museum.

[Al Bhatti]

Nisar presents preliminary report on Ziarat attack in NA - DAWN.COM

Anything new? Is this the first report or the last report relating to the nation in the parliament?

 

[Marwat Khan Lodhi]

Symbol of slavery?. I didnt know that it was built as residence for sir robert sandeman...
Even if it was symbol of colonial rule, we dont blow it.

 

[Devil Soul]

Heritage under attack: PkMAP says it views Ziarat Residency as a



At least one noon leaguer had the good sense of speaking up for Pakistan while the entire Noon league is mincing words and ***** footing on the issue of an attack on Jinnah's residency!

Nisar presents preliminary report on Ziarat attack in NA - DAWN.COM



JIT recommendations always take like months, and then no one cares about it once it gives a ruling.

BLA has taken responsibility, your operation against BLA should not be dependent upon JIT!

What a stupid statement by PKMAP, going by his logic than we should destroy all railway tracks, hospitals & all Gov buildings constructed during Brit rule...

 

[Devil Soul]

 

[RabzonKhan]

It's a suspicion, that this Alphabet soup obscures a simple reality - Destabilize Pakistan till it's territorial integrity can no longer withhold the fissures within it - I say this because we see such little competition between these groups, for instance we do not see the Alphabet soup organizations targeting each other - is it because they all have the same goal?

Hey Muse, I am sorry for the late reply.

I think the key word is “suspicion” other than that this whole theory has no substance, it's all based on rumors, far-fetched allegations and of course conspiracies.

The fact of the matter is that Pakistan is under attack from the global jihadis, who wants to replace our Constitution with their brand of so-called Sharia and to use Pakistani territory for their global jihad, for example, just like what they did in Sudan, Somalia, Yemen, Afghanistan and North Waziristan.

You say how come these terrorist organizations do not “target each other” , a very legitimate question, I think most probably you are referring to Baluch separatist terrorists, TTP and Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ).

First of all, TTP and LeJ are working on the same agenda and both of them are allied with Al Qaeda and other global jihadis.

Know, why don't TTP, LeJ and Baluch separatist terrorists go after each other, well, the answer to that is quite simple, although their agenda are quite different, but all of them are at war with Pakistani state, the Baluch separatist terrorists are fighting for an independent Baluchistan, on the other hand, TTP and LeJ and their global jihadis partners have their own jihadis agenda, therefore they both know if they target each other the net beneficiary will be the state of Pakistan, and these terrorists are no fools.

Bty, here's food for thought, Baluch separatist terrorists have never attacked the Afghan Taliban's living in Baluchistan and vice versa, what you make of that?

 

[TruthSeeker]

See my post #13 above about the "Mount Vernon" analogy. From the American press:

Outrage as 'Pakistan's Mount Vernon' is destroyed by bombers

By Wajahat S. Khan, Producer, NBC News

Pakistan's equivalent of George Washington's Mount Vernon estate has been destroyed by militants.

The attack on the 111-year-old Ziarat Residency --- which is one of the country's most revered architectural landmarks and considered a final resting place of Pakistan's founder -- has sparked widespread outrage.

"Terrorists spare neither heritage nor future" screamed the front page of The Nation, a conservative English daily in the wake of the Saturday's assault at the former home of Mohammad Ali Jinnah.

Authorities said that four insurgents armed with Chinese-made rocket-propelled and hand grenades, remote-controlled improvised explosive devices and assault rifles targeted the site in Ziarat, a sleepy hamlet with a population of 2,000 in Pakistan's restive Balochistan province.

They took several minutes discovering the structure's weak points and laid out IEDs around its exterior, according to officials.
Then the insurgents broke in, planted more bombs inside, and proceeded to the roof where the Pakistani flag was torn down and burned, police said. On their way down, they tossed grenades in several rooms, setting the wooden structure alight.

No one had lived in Ziarat Residency for 65 years but Jinnah's summer retreat is considered sacred ground in the Islamic republic.
Mir Zubair, Balochistan's police chief, accused the culprits of "taking away our history."

The Balochistan Liberation Army -- a separatist group whose leader, Harbryar Marree, lives in London -- claimed responsibility for the attack. The BLA also planted its flag at the site before it left and killed a police officer.

The BLA has been demanding a homeland that is not controlled by Islamabad.

The attack comes less than a month after Balochistan got a newly elected "consensus government" that includes nationalists who have been demanding more rights and justice for the resource-rich western province.

The country's largely Punjabi and Pashtun military, that controls parts of the gas-rich province like a garrison, has quelled several insurgencies in Balochistan over the last six decades since independence from Britain.

Separatists cite political interference, abysmal economic, social and infrastructural development, and say hundreds of "missing" people -- writers, lawyers, activists and militants -- are presumed dead due to what Human Rights Watch calls the Pakistani state's extrajudicial methods of dealing with dissenters, nationalists and separatists.

The attack on the landmark incensed many Pakistanis. The newly appointed conservative prime minister, high-profile figures in the country's secular and religious opposition parties, sports stars and actors criticized the home's demolition.

The attack also damaged the sympathy some Pakistanis had felt for the separatists' cause.

Raza Rumi, director of The Jinnah Institute, a progressive and pro-rights think tank in Islamabad that has criticized the military's high-handedness in Balochistan, said: "The bombing of Jinnah's last resting place is a game changer, in the sense that the moderate Baloch opinion is also outraged… Basically, they've crossed the line."

Outrage as 'Pakistan's Mount Vernon' is destroyed by bombers - World News

 

[niaz]

An article that shows what many Pakistanis really thought of the Quaid.


Ziarat-Quetta-Karachi...Side-effect


Harris Khalique...The writer is a poet and author based in Islamabad.
Wednesday, June 19, 2013
From Print Edition


"As you know I am especially interested in Balochistan because it is my special responsibility. I want to see it play as full a part in the affairs of Pakistan as any other province, but it will take time to remove the symptoms of long neglect. In order that this time may not be a minute longer than necessary, I earnestly request you to cooperate with me, to give me your selfless support, and not to make my task difficult."

This reads like a fresh statement from either the newly elected Chief Minister of Balochistan, Dr Abdul Malik Baloch, or the Prime Minister of Pakistan Nawaz Sharif, himself. However, I am quoting these lines from a speech made by Quaid-e-Azam Mohammed Ali Jinnah on June 15, 1948 in Quetta, almost exactly 65 years before his last abode in Ziarat – the beautiful mountainous suburb of Quetta in the midst of Juniper forests – was bombed.

There is an irony here. Quaid-e-Azam is seen by the Baloch separatists as a representative character that defines the nature of the Pakistani state and is solely criticised for the annexation of the Kalat state. This is done while completely ignoring what the chiefs of Makran and Kharan had said to him at the time. He is also held symbolically responsible for the shabby treatment meted out to the Baloch over the last six decades. In their concerted view the state he founded deprived them of their rights over their land and their sea, politics and decision-making. Above all, they feel it denied them any decent share – let alone control – over the rich natural resources found in their province.

However, Quaid-e-Azam himself was treated with utmost disrespect by the new establishment of Pakistan from day one. The state of Pakistan we see today has little whatsoever to do with his idea of a modern, rational and forward-looking country.

The bomb blast and arson at the Ziarat Residency where Quaid-e-Azam spent most of his last days due to ill health reminded me of what we have done to him, to his sister and closest confidant and, above all, to his political legacy. The feudal and elitist leadership belonging to the UP League and Punjab Unionists who came together in Pakistan’s ruling Muslim League on the eve of Partition tried their best to sideline the Quaid from the very beginning.

Mian Iftikharuddin relates an incident when Quaid-e-Azam was chairing the cabinet meeting of the Punjab government in Lahore. The attitude of people like Gurmani and Daultana towards him was dismissive, to say the least. He left the meeting with a heavy heart. Of course, what led to this was his support to Mian Iftikharuddin’s proposals for land redistribution and repatriation of refugees from East Punjab.

Later, when Mian Sahib argued with these people that even if they did not agree to the proposals, they should have been respectful of the Quaid, one of them said, “What do we respect him for? He has already wrapped a garland of shoes around our neck in the shape of East Bengal.” In my view, the position taken in this statement is easy to understand. East Pakistan had no major landholdings and a vibrant, progressive and conscious political culture. They were also in a majority.

Speaking of East Pakistan, I may also not agree with the argument Quaid-e-Azam made or the words he chose to express his views on the question of language. However, the contents of the speech he made to the students of Dhaka University in March 1948 have also been twisted and were used by both the West Pakistani junta and the Bengali resistance movement to their benefit. For instance, he never said that Urdu will be the only national language of Pakistan.

He said, “Let me restate my views on the question of a state language for Pakistan. For official use in this province (East Bengal), the people of the province can choose any language they wish. This question will be decided solely in accordance with the wishes of the people of this province alone, as freely expressed through their accredited representatives at the appropriate time and after full and dispassionate consideration. There can, however, be only one lingua franca, that is, the language for inter-communication between the various provinces of the state, and that language should be Urdu and cannot be any other.”

We also tend to forget that Bangla was recognised as the other state language in as early as 1952. The reality is different though. The English-speaking elites call the shots to this day and none of our languages get their due recognition. Even in today’s Pakistan, the demand of those of us who believe in equality of languages and peoples remains that all our languages, particularly Sindhi, Punjabi, Pashto, Balochi, Seraiki, Hindko, Shina, Brushiski, etc, should be considered national languages and used in the offices and schools of provinces and regions where they are spoken.

There should be no hierarchy of languages imposed by the state and all must get equal support and encouragement. Urdu, nevertheless, will remain the lingua franca and a language of collective public discourse for the simple reason of being understood as a second language by most people across the country as well as in the South Asian region.

It is also said that when Quaid-e-Azam was bedridden and the then prime minister, Liaquat Ali Khan, took the draft of the Objectives Resolution for his review, he disapproved of the move to introduce such a resolution which would pave the way for a theocracy. It was eventually passed after his death, despite strong opposition from the minority members of the assembly. It also led to the resignation of the first competent minister for law and labour, and then commonwealth and Kashmir affairs, Jogendra Nath Mandal, who was appointed by the Quaid himself and who chose to leave Pakistan in 1950.

The Objectives Resolution – drafted by clerics and adopted by the League-Unionist nexus in order to use religion to consolidate their interests – played a key role in transforming Quaid-e-Azam’s Pakistan into what it has become now.

Quaid-e-Azam was brought to Karachi from Ziarat just before he passed away. We so conveniently forget that there was no one important to receive the founder of the nation and the governor-general, the head of the state, at the Mauripur air base, which was in the outskirts of Karachi then. It was only his sister, Fatima Jinnah who, along with medics, sat beside him. The ambulance ran out of fuel in the middle of nowhere. Imagine. He was lying in that ambulance for hours in the notorious September heat of Karachi.

Some years later, while the self-proclaimed Field Marshal and the first military dictator, Gen Ayub Khan, commissioned a mausoleum to be built on the Quaid’s grave, he also fought against his sister who had become a symbol of democracy. We also forget that some years later, Ms Jinnah was mysteriously found dead in her bed.

Lastly, it is to be reiterated again and again that while Quaid-e-Azam was above any sectarian identity, he was born into the Shia sect of Islam. Fatima Jinnah held a Majlis-e-Aza after his death as is done in the Shia tradition. He had married Ruttie according to the Shia jurisprudence as well. In the country he founded, today people of his community are being killed indiscriminately from Karachi to Quetta to Gilgit to parts of Punjab.

It will be easier to build the Ziarat Residency back. It is a mammoth task to resurrect the country he envisaged.

Email: harris.khalique@gmail.com

Ziarat-Quetta-Karachi...Side-effect - Harris Khalique...The writer is a poet and author based in Islamabad.

 

[muse]

Hey Muse, I am sorry for the late reply.

I think the key word is “suspicion” other than that this whole theory has no substance, it's all based on rumors, far-fetched allegations and of course conspiracies.

The fact of the matter is that Pakistan is under attack from the global jihadis, who wants to replace our Constitution with their brand of so-called Sharia and to use Pakistani territory for their global jihad, for example, just like what they did in Sudan, Somalia, Yemen, Afghanistan and North Waziristan.

You say how come these terrorist organizations do not “target each other” , a very legitimate question, I think most probably you are referring to Baluch separatist terrorists, TTP and Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ).

First of all, TTP and LeJ are working on the same agenda and both of them are allied with Al Qaeda and other global jihadis.

Know, why don't TTP, LeJ and Baluch separatist terrorists go after each other, well, the answer to that is quite simple, although their agenda are quite different, but all of them are at war with Pakistani state, the Baluch separatist terrorists are fighting for an independent Baluchistan, on the other hand, TTP and LeJ and their global jihadis partners have their own jihadis agenda, therefore they both know if they target each other the net beneficiary will be the state of Pakistan, and these terrorists are no fools.

Bty, here's food for thought, Baluch separatist terrorists have never attacked the Afghan Taliban's living in Baluchistan and vice versa, what you make of that?

Yes, certainly that's why we have said that should Pakistani authorities offer incontrovertible evidence, the country will rally behind them -

 

[Abu Zolfiqar]

BLA is a Marxist/socialist/secularist organization that relies on hatred, drugs smuggling and extortion (especially against Balouch) to survive
I reiterate - what the hell do they have to do with Islamist groups?

Some of you people really make fool out of yourselves for your stupidity and lack of knowledge. Tell me- how many of you all have been to Balochistan. Reply with a yea or no now.


Thanks

 

[Kompromat]

BLA is proudly marxist even after the champions of marxism have been chucked into the dustbin of history.

 

[muse]

BLA is a Marxist/socialist/secularist organization that relies on hatred, drugs smuggling and extortion (especially against Balouch) to survive
I reiterate - what the hell do they have to do with Islamist groups?

Some of you people really make fool out of yourselves for your stupidity and lack of knowledge. Tell me- how many of you all have been to Balochistan. Reply with a yea or no now.Thanks

Thank you for that excellent post, how do you explain the fact that while BLA is extreme left and LeJ is extreme right and yet their action even individual was coordinated?? Or are you persuaded that it's just a weird coincidence?

 

[Star Wars]

BLA is a Marxist/socialist/secularist organization that relies on hatred, drugs smuggling and extortion (especially against Balouch) to survive
I reiterate - what the hell do they have to do with Islamist groups?

Some of you people really make fool out of yourselves for your stupidity and lack of knowledge. Tell me- how many of you all have been to Balochistan. Reply with a yea or no now.


Thanks

I,d love to know how BLA is "secularist" ....

@karan.1970

 

[karan.1970]

I,d love to know how BLA is "secularist" ....

@karan.1970

me too ...

 

[Guest01]

What about the rebuilding? Are they getting some experts from the U.K or is it being outsourced to China? The architectural plans must be around somewhere anyway. I would believe that rebuilding must be a top priority now if Jinnah was truly so dear as so many on this forum exhort thus.

 

[Abu Zolfiqar]

Thank you for that excellent post, how do you explain the fact that while BLA is extreme left and LeJ is extreme right and yet their action even individual was coordinated?? Or are you persuaded that it's just a weird coincidence?

well there's been no shortage of terrorism and blasts in the country so it very well could be a "coincidence"

I,d love to know how BLA is "secularist" ....

@karan.1970

they have a secular/marxist agenda

kind of like the now defunct Pashtun seperatist movement of the 1970s

the movements your country tries to support (with little success).....thats one reason why the State uses Jamat ud Dawa and like-minded groups to help quell the foreign sponsored insurgency -- a tactic which has somehow helped