The exhibition features 57 pieces from Jepar, Nusrat Raza Mangi, Hussain Chandio and Manzoor Ali Solangi, who are currently teaching at Mehran University of Engineering and Technology’s Centre of Excellence in Arts and Design.

“Art is only for pleasure, and is not [like] a story or a novel that must give a message,” said Depar.

Mangi, who is a sculptor, said that his work often reflects the culture around him. “My work depicts [the images] I see every day, like victims of violence and natural disasters.”

While standing beside a sculpture that represented a flood survivor, he said, “A writer [uses words] to describe what the condition of a common man is after the floods, but an artist has to [do the same] without using any words.” Child labour was another theme apparent in Mangi’s work. “We don’t give importance to our children and send them to work in fields and factories.”

Hussain Chandio’s paintings gave the impression that he was standing on a hilltop and observing people lead their lives. “It is figurative. I look at things from the top, not as if I am [standing next to them].”

Marjorie Husain, an art critic, said that Chandio’s artwork conveyed his views about society. “The feeling of movement predominates his work, clothes of a passerby float in the breeze and create diverse patterns and textures.”

While talking about the young artists, Husain said that they must have an imagination and know about the latest developments in the world of art.  The artists said that students were keen to enroll in their department at MUET. “Sindh has talent but students don’t [tend] to opt for such nontraditional subjects,” said Depar. However, he was hopeful that the trend would soon change.

The exhibition will continue till May 25.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 20^th, 2012.

A Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) jiyala, former vice president for Badin city, he set himself on fire on International Labour Day for not getting his already meager salary of Rs5,000 for a few months.

Ansari used to work in Mirza Sugar Mills in Badin. A little while after the prime minister announced to increase minimum wages to Rs8,000, Ansari burnt himself just outside the Badin press club. This was the second time he attempted self immolation.

He had set himself on fire before as well in 2011 after PPP’s president for Badin taluka, Dr Aziz Memon, did not give him a suction pump to drain water from his home which was flooded, according to an uncle, Soomar Ansari.

Ansari was the only bread-winner of his family. He leaves behind five daughters and a seven-month-old son. Two of his daughters can’t hear or speak and his parents are cardiac patients. “One of his younger brothers got operated for a stomach illness and youngest one is just 12 years old,” said Soomar.

Ansari had not been paid for the last four months. “He went to Dr Memon again for a job in the education department. He was very disappointed by his behavior and gathered around 50 people for a protest before attempting self-immolation. After he addressed the people he set himself on fire. “He also wanted to set his daughters, Irum, Neelam and Mehak ablaze,” said Soomar.

Razaque was taken to Badin’s civil hospital and the doctors referred him to Hyderabad. He stayed in Hyderabad’s burns ward for five days before being moved to Karachi on May 6. He was in critical condition.

Soomar said that Ansari had devoted his whole life to the PPP. “Not a single party leader came to visit him or did anything for his treatment.” He said that they were told that National Assembly Speaker Dr Fehmida Mirza had announced that he will be given a job and all his treatment expenses will be taken care of. “But nothing was done when he was crying in the burns ward.”

On Monday, the whole city shut down to mourn Ansari’s death. The next day a protest was also organised at DC Chowk where his funeral prayers were also held. Hundreds of people participated in the funeral and chanted slogans against the PPP leadership.

“We’ll register an FIR against Dr Aziz Memon after 10 days if concrete steps are not taken against him,” Soomar said.

In an interview Ansari had given to a Sindhi news channel, KTN, he had said that his daughters were not going to schools because of poverty. “I was the PPP’s city vice president but my own government ignored me,” he had said. “What has happened to the PPP leadership?”

However a social worker, Ameer Bux, said that it was the responsibility of everyone present at the moment, including journalists, social workers and the police, to try and stop him and not just the PPP. “They could have stopped him,” he said. “But all of them only watched and let him burn.”

During the Sindh Assembly session on Tuesday, fateha was offered for the departed soul of Ansari. Meanwhile, PPP MPAs Dr Sikandar Mandhro and Ghulam Qadir Chandio demanded financial help from the government for the family of the “Jiyalo” of PPP, who committed self-immolation because of poverty. Despite repeated pleas by the members, no government minister assured help to the victim’s family.

Dr Aziz Memon did not respond when The Express Tribune tried to contact him.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 9^th, 2012.

Correction: An earlier version of the article was running some grammatical inaccuracies. The errors have been rectified.

KARACHI: Anger and frustration run high among the Baloch residents of Karachi against the operation in Lyari. There were two violent protests at Mauripur Road and in front of the press club.

Early on Monday morning, hundreds of people walked through the streets of Nayabad and Khadda Market and then blocked the road from ICI Bridge to Shershah for over three hours. They also pelted passing vehicles with stones.

The police tried to disperse the protesters with tear gas but they remerged in clusters from Niazi Chowk and other streets. They also beat up the passengers and looted them. The hide-and-seek with the police continued till the evening.

The people who left their homes to go work in the morning on either side of the area were stuck at Native Jetty Bridge and many had to go by foot. All private and public schools in Lyari were closed while only a few shops were observed to go about their business.

“I was going to Merewether Tower to pick up passengers when some boys hit my car,” said a taxi driver, Muhammad Kalam. “There is no police. I didn’t know there was a protest. They should inform the people beforehand so that they can come by alternative routes.”

In the afternoon, the Baloch residents from the outskirts of Malir and Baldia, and other parts of the city, made their way to the press club stuffed in more than six buses and motorcycles. Young men wearing shalwar qameez and with their faces covered attacked other protesters who had set up camp outside the press club and burnt pictures of  President Asif Ali Zardari, Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah, MNA Faryal Talpur and Bilawal Bhutto Zardari after beating them with shoes.

The people came from Malir, Dalmia, Razaqabad, Jumma Goth, Jam Kunda, Saleh Muhammad Goth and other areas. They chanted slogans against the government and described the operation as genocide of the Baloch people by Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) government in collaboration with its coalition partner, Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM).

Support from rural Sindh

The Lyari operation has also caused ripples around Sindh and elicited a protest movement across the province by the people and nationalist parties.

The people of Shaheed Benazirabad, Sanghar, Mirpurkhas, Tandojam and other districts protested against the operation and members of nationalist parties observed hunger strikes on Monday.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 1^st, 2012.

KARACHI: For five-year-old Qasim Ali and four-year-old Soman, it is very difficult to sleep. They can’t even step out of the house to play because of firing and RPG blasts in Ali Mohammad Mohalla.

Their father, Iqbal Kutchi said that his children didn’t even ask for candy and chocolate on Sunday. “They stayed awake the entire night,” he said. “The children kept their eyes shut in fear and shivered whenever they heard any noise outside.”

Iqbal and his family reside in Ali Mohammad Mohalla, a neighbourhood which was one of the first to be targeted in the police operation in Lyari.

There are several other children like Qasim and Soman who live in Kutchi areas adjacent to Baloch Mohallas, including Rahimanabad, Haji Hussain Bachal Road, Mandra Jamaat Khana Road, Al-Falah Road and Moosa Lane, and are forbidden to go outside and play.

After 13 people, including two policemen, were gunned down in Lyari on Saturday, many Kutchi families decided it was time to move out. Some started moving on Saturday, and others followed them out on Sunday. These families are moving from one side of Lyari to the other – further out. Watching their Kutchi neighbours walking out in broad daylight with bags filled with their belongings, prompted Baloch, Pathan, Mianwali and Sindhi families in the area to move.

Family ties

As chaos disrupts the lives of Lyari’s residents every day – pharmacies, milk shops, grocery stores and hotels remain closed – elderly people, pregnant women and children are left to bear the brunt.

While talking to The Express Tribune, Zubair, a resident of Lyari, said that there were about 30 families living in an apartment block near Gabol Park but it was dangerous to stay indoors all the time. “We are living in the compound but cannot stay at home. The gangsters fire directly at our windows and walls,” he said. “Our children are crying for milk and are getting tired of hiding. If this battle continues, the food shortage will become another problem.” He added that almost all of his neighbours were running out of rations.

On the other side of the war zone which includes areas such as, New Kalri and Bihar Colony, children were running around giggling. According to Huzaifa who was standing near Hingorabad Road Corner, he was counting gunshots and wanted to collect the bullet shells. “I do not allow my children to go outside the house,” said Rahiman. “But it is very difficult to keep them in all day. My heart beat increases with every fire and blast. I feel like I’ll die.”

On Saturday, RPGs were fired at different locations in New Kalri and Old Kalri, gunshots echoed in Ali Mohammad Mohalla, Rahimanabad, Ahmed Shah Bukhari Road, Haji Hussain Bachal Road and Al-Falah Road. Shopkeepers were forced to pull their shutters down as the firing did not stop and kept going on till Sunday morning.

Around a dozen Baloch men were caught trespassing in Kutchi dominated area but were asked to leave after an interrogation.

Hafiz Naeem, 14, claimed that he was kidnapped from Al-Falah Road when he left home in search for milk and biscuits on Sunday morning. “As I was looking for a shop, four boys caught me by the neck and took me to a house,” he said. “They asked me to open my mouth and put a gun inside. They started asking me questions about my family and our telephone number.” Hafiz’s mother said that neighbours and relatives informed the family about the abduction. She added that the kidnappers asked her to go pick her son from Street 7.

“We were in such shock and had no idea what to do,” said Hafiz’s mother Kalsoom Hussain. “When they asked me to collect my son, I ran to the place. I was relieved to see my son walking towards me.”

Residents claim that ever since their former naib nazim was gunned down the situation in Lyari started to deteriorate again and expected it to get worse.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 30^th, 2012.

KARACHI: Sindh Minister for Information Shazia Marri stressed the need to change the rigid mindset regarding health issues and practices, and urged that society at large needs to focus on the prevention of various ailments through use of vitamins and minerals, instead of waiting for the disease to attack.

Marri was speaking as the chief guest at a seminar titled ‘Zinc se Zindagi’; organised by the Express Media Group in collaboration with Abbott Laboratories at a local hotel on Sunday. Marri appreciated the media group’s efforts in organising such events as part of their corporate social responsibility programme, and urged other media groups to follow it.

The minister also praised Abbott Laboratories for their continued efforts in research and development in the field of medicine. Marri said that the topic chosen was extremely relevant, since there are numerous advantages of zinc which are not known to common people and such programs provide the opportunity to spread such knowledge.

“Zinc truly is a life saver since it helps prevent so many diseases, or at least reduce chances of their affliction,” said Marri. “Diseases like various cancers, diabetes, male and female fertility, Alzheimer’s disease and so many others could be taken care of by the consumption of zinc. We must broaden our horizons and learn more about vitamins and minerals since they really help improve the quality of life,” she said.

She advised concerned persons to consult medical experts for the proper dosage of all vitamins and minerals in order to to avoid side-effects of over-dosage or wrong prescriptions.

Advising parents, Marri stressed that they should inculcate a concern for health among other constructive habits in their children.

Hassan Abbass, Mustafa Bilgrami and GM Jamali represented the Express Media Group while Dr Yusuf Kamal, Dr Tasneem Nakhuda, Dr Prof Rubina Tahir and Dr Alyscia Cheema gave their briefings on the significance of zinc.

Dr Kamal, talking on the role and importance of zinc on the general well-being of humans and their vitality, said that it was the third most abundant trace element found in every cell of the human body. “Zinc strengthens the immune system, repairs damaged DNA, supports stabilisation of blood glucose levels, maintains the sense of taste and smell, and boosts fertility,” he informed the attendees.

Dr Nakhuda, while highlighting the benefits of zinc for skin and hair, said that the mineral enhances the healing of wounds. “It decreases the relative risk of cancer and cardiovascular disease,” she added.

Prof Tahir highlighted zinc’s role in pregnancy cycles and infertility. She counted some symptoms of zinc deficiency in humans; these include growth retardation, diarrhoea, alopecia, decreased immunity and hypogonadism in males.

Dr Cheema, an opthalmic surgeon and retinal specialist, talked about the importance of zinc for the health of the human eye.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 24^th, 2012.

The Sunni Tehreek had been protesting the recent spate of violence in Karachi and had wrapped up the event. The Sindh Progressive Committee (SPC), which comprises the Workers Party, Labour Party, Communist Party, Jeay Sindh Mahaz, National Party, Awami Party and Watan Dost Inquilaabi Party, held a protest outside the press club against forced conversions and religious extremism.

The fight reportedly started as the Sunni Tehreek supporters alleged that attendees at the SPC’s event had beaten up a man who had stopped them from chanting slogans that they alleged were against religion.

Sunni Tehreek’s protestors went back to the press club and the fight forced SPC event attendees to hide inside the club as the Sunni Tehreek men threw stones and chanted slogans against them. While some female SPC leaders including Professor Arfana Mallah and Sindh University lecturer and activist Amar Sindhu managed to escape, the police cordoned off the area around the press club and rescued the rest. While they had assumed the police would release them, they were sent to the Cantonment Police Station.

The Sunni Tehreek’s Abid Qadri alleged that the SPC had “attacked our man first” and “used abusive language”. Arfana Mallah said their protest was peaceful but they had been attacked by the Sunni Tehreek, who brought “weapons, stones and sticks” and “forced us not to chant slogans”.

According to the police, 23 men from the Sindh Progressive Committee were arrested. The Sunni Tehreek’s Hyderabad General Secretary Muhammad Yaseen Qadri registered a First Information Report (FIR) under sections 148, 147 and 149. Even though the FIR mentions 60 people, only three are mentioned by name – Comrade Iqbal, Allah Bux and Bakhshal Thallo. The Sunni Tehreek and SPC have both claimed their supporters were injured.

At the SPC’s protest in Karachi, activists demanded that Rinkle Kumari and Asha Kumari, the two women who have drawn attention to the rise of Hindu conversions in Sindh, be handed over to their parents. They chanted slogans against landlords, clerics, army generals and extremists and asked that the government separate religion from matters of the state.

Speakers included Yousuf Masti Khan, Nasir Mansoor, Jan Muhammad Buledi, Usman Baloch, Mehnaz Rehman, Comrade Iqbal and Abdul Khaliq Junejo. “We don’t support a state that promotes religious extremism and stifles the environment for other religions. Every man is free in this country and has the right to move freely and perform his religious rituals,” said Usman Baloch.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 18^th, 2012.

The former dictator was speaking via video at a conference titled “Problems of Balochistan”, arranged by Pakistan First, a forum of retired servicemen at a local club on Sunday.

Musharraf alleged that certain politicians were supporting separatists for political benefits. “The chiefs of Bugti, Marri and Mengal (tribes) are involved in the prevailing condition of Balochistan. The Balochistan Liberation Army is a terrorist organisation which is targeting non-locals in the province. The present government has failed to tackle the province’s issues,” Musharraf said.

Shahzain Bugti, Talal Bugti and others have contacts with foreign elements. Not a single inch of the country would disintegrate in the presence of Pakistan Army,” he maintained.

He claimed that 60 per cent of Balochistan’s population had rejected the separatists. “He continued to downplay separatist elements in the province, saying: “The people do not know the real situation of Balochistan. Only four per cent of population of the country lives in Balochistan and 60 per cent of that population is in favour of Pakistan. Just three to four thousand people are involved in terrorism and those are supported by foreign elements,” he added.

The former president claimed that billions of rupees were spent on development projects in the province during his tenure.

Members of the Pakistan First forum, (conceived in January 2012), which has over 200 members affiliated with the Pakistan Ex-Servicemen Society, urged the government to implement the Aghaz-e-Haqooq-e-Balochistan package and the National Finance Commission Award.

Members highlighted how the province had been ignored and how its problems could be readdressed during their briefings. They stressed the significance of Gwadar Port which remains cut off from the railway system. They also expressed the geostrategic importance of the province as well as its abundance of unexploited natural resources.

General Farooq in his keynote address said: “The future of Balochistan is at stake and so is that of Pakistan,” while highlighting the province’s importance.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 16^th, 2012.

The smallest stamp on display at the exhibition belonged to South Africa, while the largest was issued by Pakistan. Visitors also came to see the world’s first prepaid adhesive stamp, the Penny Black, which was issued in the United Kingdom in 1840, as well as some of the oldest stamps of Pakistan.

“This hobby [stamp collecting] is the king of all hobbies. It is the hobby of kings as well,” Dr Shah told the group of people who had gathered to listen to the collector. “To collect stamps and to keep them intact is not an easy job, but a person gets addicted to it if he takes this up as a hobby.”

While going over the history of stamps, Shah said that they were initially developed in response to the British government’s failure to adequately recover the funds the postmasters owed it. “The government decided to follow Sir Rowland Hill’s proposal, after considering nearly 200 suggestions.”

While the United Kingdom did introduce the postal stamp as we know it today, “It is the only country that does not display its name on its stamps.” Hungary, meanwhile, has issued most postal stamps to date, said Shah.

Shah said that the price of the world’s smallest stamp was 500 pounds. The world’s most expensive stamp was issued by Mauritius. “Only four people have this stamp, and I don’t. Its price is about 50,000 pounds.”

Shah keeps his collection at his house in London and said that he rarely finds time in Pakistan to look after them. Shah’s sisters, Razia Shah, Dr Samreen Shah, and other family members were also present and informed visitors about values of various stamps.  “A stamp is not just a ticket; its value goes up with the passage of time,” shared Shah. He acquired a stamp nearly twenty years back, which was issued by the Pakistan Post in its early days. He paid Rs25,000 for it. The reason? “The moon and star were placed wrongly. The government had stopped its sale within a few months, but I was able to get it.”

Other people also helped Shah assemble his collection, by giving him historical and valuable stamps. “I gave Dr Shah over 100 good collections of mine because I think he can keep them very well,” said a journalist, Farzana Khanam.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 16^th, 2012.

KARACHI: Amina Masood Janjua, chairperson of the Defence of Human Rights Pakistan (DHRP), announced that families of people who have gone missing will hold a rally from Islamabad’s D-chowk to Parliament Houses on April 15.

Janjua said this during her telephonic address to a demonstration outside the Karachi Press Club on Monday, and appealed to political and religious parties to join her in the struggle for rescuing the “missing persons,” as they are popularly referred to.

Women, children, and the elderly had earlier braved scorching heat for two hours, and shouted slogans against the present government, former president Pervez Musharraf, intelligence agencies and the US.

Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz’s (PML-N) Saleem Zia and Nehal Hashmi, Jamaat-e-Islami’s (JI) Dr Merajul Huda Siddiqui and others attended the demonstration and accused President Zardari and the Musharraf government for kidnapping people from different parts of the country on the wishes of American officials after 9/11.

The PML-N leaders said that their party would support the cause till the whereabouts of all these people were known. “We are not here to garner political support. This is a human cause, and every sensible Pakistani stands beside the families whose members have been kidnapped for no reason,” said Hashmi.

Zia added that such heinous steps are always taken when a dictator is in power.

JI’s Dr Siddiqui added, “The Chief Justice of Pakistan had promised that missing persons would be recovered. The nation now asks him to fulfill his commitment.”

Muhammad Hussain Baloch, DHRP’s Karachi coordinator, informed The Express Tribune that all political and religious parties have been invited to join the rally on April 15. “We will try to go as close to the parliament as possible. We hope that all political parties will support our struggle.”

Published in The Express Tribune, April 10^th, 2012.

During a press conference at the Karachi Press Club, Mumtaz, also the former Sindh chief minister, said that an accountability process should be initiated immediately.

Criticising the law and order situation in Karachi, he said that about 6,000 people had been targeted, while the same kind of situation prevails in other parts of the country as well.

“Qaim Ali Shah is the chief minister but President Asif Ali Zardari’s sister, Faryal Talpur, manages affairs of the province,” he alleged.

Mumtaz said that President Zardari was not fit for the post, alleging he was “mentally unfit”. “He is not fit according to articles 47, 62 and 63. He is an illiterate man and is not able to contest the election either,” he said, adding: “There are 13 corruption cases against him and four murder cases, including that of Murtaza Bhutto.”

“Zardari’s family has no identity except as owners of Bambino Cinema, yet they use the name of the Bhutto family for political gain. President Zardari makes people fools and believes in using all sorts of methods, including apologies to get votes,” he said. “It is time to kick them out. This government will destroy the country before the general elections.”

Talks are under way between the SNF and the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) to forge an alliance between the two parties.

During the press conference, the SNF chairman also confirmed that both parties would soon decide the line of action.

Mumtaz indirectly supported the Punjab government, saying that the federal government has no writ in the province. “The provincial government doesn’t consider the federal government suitable,” he added.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 1^st, 2012.