BHAGWAL: Bereaved Pakistanis are demanding an end to their country’s alliance with the US and banning of drone attacks in the region. It remains unclear the extent to which the government or the military will implement changes.
Relatives of martyred soldiers believe that Pakistan should not be paying a high price to figh this war.
Sergeant Mumtaz Hussain was deployed to fight the Taliban on the Afghan border and was the sole breadwinner of the family. The survival of his family, which includes his mother, wife and two young children, depended on the military salary and pension.
“The day he died, the children missed him immensely. They told me they just wanted to see him and would not go to school until they had. My son still does not believe he is dead,” Mussarrat Bibi said.
“This is not the first time the US attacked our soldiers, but our government is not responding,” she added. “If our government decides to come out of this alliance, things may improve ... These drone strikes are fuelling terrorism and strengthening the Taliban,” said his uncle Muhammad Nazeer.
Tasleem Akhter’s 20-year-old son, Rizwan Abbas, was recruited last year.
“He desired to sacrifice his life for his country. I can sacrifice all my sons for my homeland but our government should also take necessary action,” said Akhter. “While we were out walking down the streets, he told me this might be his last trip to the village and asked me to change the national flag on his grave regularly after his death,” recalled Jameel Akhter. “He always told stories about fights against the Taliban. I never expected he would die so soon,” he added.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 5th, 2011.
COMMENTS (11)
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@Mj: @muhammad saad:
This is not true. Those videos and funerals are shown constantly on TV. We have documentaries and dramas created for them. It is only the habitual liars of our liberal brigade who will never acknowledge the sacrifices of our soldiers against TTP. They are only point scoring now.
"why no protests,no banners,no candles being lit for the thousands of our brave soldiers murdered by the religious fanatics?"
The religious fanatics are also Muslims as the civil deads. When a Mulim A kills the Muslim B, A does not become a Mujahid and B a Shaheed. Both of them remain Muslim brothers as part of trhe same Ummah. A is Qatil and B is Maqtool. The family of B can retaliate and kill A or pardon him if Blood Money is accepted. This is the religious point of our religion. It is also the Arab culture which is very closely followed by Pakistani Mulims and by the State of Pakistan. Let us not forget that we live in ISLAMIC Republic of Pakistan where Islam is every where and Rebuplic is absent.
I am not sure if my remark will be of any help to @Mj and @muhammad saad.
@Mj We hate them alot, we dont know about their country because they have no country and we believe that PAK tehreek e Taliban is a crop of Americans to destabilise PAK whenever PAK goes against wishes of US
@Mj: Always go to the source of the problem. We never had suicide blasts or attack on our soldiers before this dreaded war on terror.
@Mj: I agree with you. I have asked this question from a lot of people as well but with no answer rather more rhetoric about the same. It’s not that people don't have an answer; they don't want to give an answer as it will expose their double standards. And who wants that to happen.
@indian Dont even compare your crap to the mess that goes on in our country ok. We have been suffering before the mumbai attacks. And btw those terrorists were trained by TTP in Pakistan and the fake Taliban which operates under Indian and CIA influence. Our army didn't do anything. You Indians have suffered nOthing!!
@Indian: Don't you feel that the in-your-face sense of self-pity that Indians like to parade on every online forum is at least A BIT uncalled for? Are Indians the only people in the world who have ever suffered a terrorist attack? Are Indians completely innocent of carrying out such atrocities against others?
@Indian: When the Mumbai attacks were taking place all Pakistanis were heartbroken by it, it is only when Indians started throwing their reckless tantrum when the sympathies of Pakistanis evaporated. Your argument is quite ludicrous and you have no idea what you're talking about. We suffer terrorist attacks every day too without childishly making a fuss of them so you Indians need to stop dwelling on Mumbai and act more maturely.
Eventhough every death is deplorable. i guess pakistanis will now know how indians felt when their countrymen were being slaughtered in mumbai by gunmen from a foreign country.
@muhammad saad: I have asked this question from many people and so far no one has provided satisfactory reply to it. Someone please enlighten me why 35,000 civies and 3,000 military deaths at the hands of Islamists don't even register in the minds of local people but when NATO kills 24 the whole country is up in arms?
Very heartbreaking to see the families of the shaheed soldiers.why doesn't show the funerals,the families of our shaheed soldiers when they are die in action against religious terrorists? why no protests,no banners,no candles being lit for the thousands of our brave soldiers murdered by the religious fanatics? Are our soldiers only shaheeds when killed by the non-muslim Americans? why this double standard from our media? why this hypocrisy by our public?