Alcohol should be as easily available as Pepsi or Coke: Sindh MPA
Khokhar, who is also the chairman of the Standing Committee on Minority Affairs, brought up the idea as the Excise and Taxation Minister Mukesh Chawla was answering questions in the Sindh Assembly on Wednesday.
While another MPA, Anwar Khan Mahar, had clarified that alcohol was not allowed in minority faiths either, the minster told the assembly that according to the 1979 Act regarding the sale of alcohol, only non-Muslims were allowed to sell or consume alcohol.
Khokhar's point was that reinforcing that non-Muslims drink alcohol created further divisions and it should just be made open for all.
COMMENTS (260)
@Mir: That way there are examples of Hazrat Umar being very strict against alcohol but that was the era when Islam spread like wild fire. According to you, technically that shouldnt have happened then :P
Totally agree
It's scary how much western liberal dogma some elements of Pakistani society have absorbed that they are actually putting forward Americanized arguments like "prohibition doesn't work" as seriously applicable to Pakistan. Then there's the utilitarians who argue from a revenue point of view, even though they lie to themselves if that is truly the justification.
It's clear as day what the internal beliefs and priorities of these people are. No, your individual freedom is not paramount. Yes, it will be constrained. That constraint creates healthy, rooted societies. We already have economic dysfunction, do you want to invite total social dysfunction down to our core fabric?
Freedom of choice is a lie. It doesn't transcend society. It doesn't transcend commonality in spirit. It doesn't transcend tradition. It doesn't transcend religion. Only narcissistic fools grasp it as if it is the truth, blind to the fact that it is decay. It's a good thing most Pakistanis grasp this enough for these people to always be a powerless minority.
Permissiveness creates demand, inevitably. Very, very slowly, but inevitably. Criminality is a small price to pay for overall purity. You want to drink? Go ahead, but don't expect it to be acceptable. Be forever marginalized and shamed. Justly so.
Wow, lets make prostitution, murdering, raping, bla bla bla, all legal, as the people who wanted to do these things will keep on doing and well lets also add sexology into the syllabus also for the school goers!!! ....
Lets make Pakistan Vegas!!!!
@GlobalNomad: My friend agreed that there are various Muslim countries that are selling alcohol without hinderance .. But this doesn't give us the license to do the same... Let me put it this way nowadays murder is a normal practice so does this also give me and you the license to kill someone? ... Peace...:)
@vasan: list what is pure beside hunger, corruption and lies!!
@some one: talking about Muslim countries, I have seen liquor shop and huge massive stores in the entire Middle East including all Gulf Countries, North African Muslim countries and far easter countries like Malaysia. Are we the only Muslim countries besides Saudi Arabia? You know what we are downright hypocrites and liars, we do everything just that we lie about it!!!!
Wow...instead of re-inforcing the law of alcohol being illegal...we are infact getting rid of the whole idea of being 'civilised' as told by God, not just of muslims but God of all religious minorities in Pakistan too, including christians and sikhs. Recent example is of England which has, just in the past week, put a ban on displaying cigarettes in shops to discourage people from smoking and we're thinking of making it not just easily available but also reachable like 'pepsi and coke'.... what about underage drinking? What about our youth that should be aspiring to be the next generation of role models? Isn't it going to widen the gap between the rich and the poor?hence further divide our nation! And once this is made legal, places to drink will need to be created...pubs, night clubs etc... Dont you the diminishing face of an 'Islamic Republic' there? These people speak FORIEGN language!
alcohol today heroin tomorrow.. who will be responsible for crimes like alcohol influenced drunk driving and domestic violence etc if the suggestion is implemented.. and those talking about revenues from alcohol, what about medical bills due to alcohol related health issues??
What a good idea, who could cope with the daisy chain of corrupt Generals and public officials your compatriots have to deal with, sober?
Intereference with Divine Law! May Allah give all of us guidance! Ameen
For some this is pretty exciting news! but I believe this will create more opportunities for muslims to be drink alcohol which is not allowed in Islam. Govt should further tighten its grip on sale of alcohol. As a muslim we are ordered to stop all this by force...not to allow and let the people decide.
Now this MPA making some sense. Bravo!
its easily available in every part of Pakistan. government should regularize it to create jobs and earn revenue yours truly moon wine shop.
Really, the state has no right to enforce any religious laws on anyone. If I want to, I can pray 5 times a day, get drunk, get stoned, and then keep 30 fasts, becaus that's my personal matter. The government cannot tell me what I can drink or eat. Plus, the money they can earn through taxes by regulating this market is quite large. It would be too naive to assume that only non-Muslims drink in Pakistan.
Khokar should be tried for treason or even blasphemy for suggesting alcohol is legal (halal).
Hello.... Is there a Muslim in the house because comments over here are in favor.. a hypocrite politician suggesting us to sell alcohal openly... What next make prostitution also legal and apply tax over it like some countries in asia are doing..... Do you guys even thought what will be the outcomes of this.... When our body get infected by a virus we do not just allow it to spread but try to find a cure.... As per me the cure is BAN it for everyone........ Peace :)
I am a muslim and such that people would call me a "moulvi" this mpa has a point either ban alcohol completely as we call ourselves muslim and Pakistan an islamic state or with draw the ban from all..
By letting minorities buy and sell alcohol, the state is pushing the youth of our fellow hindu, christians etc countrymen towards crime.. its because they have licenses so they are exploited by the muslims who drink alcohol, by this way the minority community is pushed towards easy income and crime..
Sale and purchase of Alcohol should be completely banned for all Pakistanis and foriegners travelling to Pakistan.
Even if alcohol is legalised doesn't mean that everyone will rush out to buy it. Legalising it would entail it being regulated and taxed. This would raise revenue for the government and also prevent the proliferation of dangerous homebrews. I'm all for legalising and controlling alcohol in Pakistan as under the present situation its illegal nature leads to unholy alliances, mafias and bootleggers flourishing.
Alcohol should be banned, being a citizen of Pakistan and Muslim, we must follow our Islamic and country laws. For non-Muslim, we introduce law for them provided all the check and balance .
What a pity .It has come from a public representative.PPP believes in free fall . they can say anything.Because they are on a special task to undermine the ideology of this Holy Land known as Pakistan.
Where are clerics and their blasphemy laws?
@All
I may be repeating.
Can some one quote the exact text forbidding consumption of alcoholic beverages?
@some one: Have you been to Malaysia Indonesia Egypt morocco? Is it like that there....also what is it like actually where prohibition is in place like Pakistan, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Afghanistan do you know. Please don't be in denial there is evidence that consumption is more where prohibition is and it also finances the criminal element of society
You can see when shsha was introduced ,lot of shsha shop opened and a number of youngster boys and girls were addicted. extremely condemn upon MNA.S statement.
strongly condemn, now one can realize why this government is a failure. they are drunk in the assembly and making such foolish decisions. they are unable to establish a socio/economic plan for this country. Hate it.
@Parvez: now we boost up our revenue by selling liquor and addicting our young generation by opening night clubs and discos. what a superb idea.
The nation has lost its IDEOLOGY... That is surely not the Nation for which our elders migrated. We must be ashamed of who we have brought up in the Parliament.
@bunty: 100% agree.
Our "Islamic" brothers in UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, Iraq, Oman, Syria, Jordan, Egypt, Morocco, Malaysia, Indonesia, Algeria, Tunisia, Lebanon, Turkey, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, Senegal, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Tajikstan, Uzbekistan, Bangladesh, Yemen all already allow alcohol - and I can honestly say 95% of those countries are doing better than us.
So what has prohibition done for Pakistan? NOTHING. Most other Islamic countries allow it, but somehow, they're societies aren't crumbling, but ours will? I dont buy that. Let the people decide how to live their own lives.
Let the people decide if they want to drink. Its not up to my neighbor or government to decide what I can consume. If I want to drink, it doesn't affect you - so let me do as I wish, and you can do as you wish.
You know what should be more easily available? Education and healthcare. Lets focus on social services maybe for a change?
The hair splitting that goes on here (not necessarily unhealthy) on different in puts, at times based strictly on hearsay or blind faith.
All religious texts/dogmas/tenets are in Arabic or based on Arabic sources. The original material is said to be almost un-translable. Would someone with mastery of classic Arabic quote the relevant text about alcohol consumption, from the holy book? That would certainly lift the level of discussion.
After all al cohol is an Arabic word, there would have been involvement of some sort, in production of the liquid. Was it distilled just for usage as a sterilizer for cleaning wounds, or used for a tipple once in a while?
My command of Arabic is very poor, I get lost in the translation.
@Mohsin: Brits and Yankees happy.... Hahaha hohoho. Out of touch you certainly are my friend. Stop living in the Lalaland. High crime rates. 60% divorce rate. High suicide rate. Children kicked out at age 16. Parents dumped in nursing homes. Home foreclosures. Credit card debt is a curse. Medical bills in US force thousands into bankruptcy. Fake lawsuits. Nobody can gather on the streets like in Pak. Happy? Sure!!
Clever politician.
If i'd run Pakistan i'd open for legalizing alcohol immidiatly. The nr 1 reason people keep interfaring with goverment and political issues is that they have nothin to do.
if they get to have fun and get their entertainnment theyll get their minds away from politics and religion.
Remember....the best entertainers in the world are the british/american. Founders of almost all great sports and home of actor, movie and musical giants. The people are so happy they dont care what their evil goverments do.
I agree. It should be avalible and it should be YOUR choice. Its between you and god. Not anyone else to decide. UAE, Turkey, Egypt, Malaysia, Marokko, Tunis ....all these are propouros muslim countries who lets u decide.
Why only alcohol? I think heroin should also be available publicly. There are reasonable number of heroin customers available in Pakistan. But it is quite difficult for them to find it and it has a high price. Legislators should make law to legitimate heroin business. It is a multi billion dollar industry and government can earn billions of dollars in tax revenue. The only thing which should be done is to make it compulsory to write a warning text on heroin packet that it is dangerous for health (just like cigarette packets). Public is wise enough to decide itself whether to use it or not.
About time! Alcohol is already freely available in Pakistan, with three breweries already operating at full capacity. Regulating this market and taxing imports that fill demand-supply gap would be great for government coffers.
Alcohol was legal in Pakistan for thirty years until 1977, things were great back then. Everything has gone downhill since alcohol was banned.
@omar bin abdulaziz: Equating alcohol to paedophilia is not just novel but incredibly stupid.... Your ability to analyse things appears to rather limited.
A COUNTRY can be no more or less Muslim than the chair you're sitting on, or the monitor you're staring at. A country is a large line drawn on a piece of land on a map of the world, and it's inhabitants can choose what religion they belong to, and how strictly they wish to follow it. Ironically, Islam gained popularity and spread like wildfire throughout the world nearly 1500 years ago BECAUSE of it's tolerance towards people's personal choices.
@omar bin abdulaziz: "....How about if the lawmaker even puts forward this resolution:* Allow pedophilia...."
Sigh! Another one with his head in the sand. Omar bhai. Kindly visit a truck driver hotel in KP or a tea shop/ khoka and observe the love that is showered on the tea boy. Our religious brothers are quick to point out immodestly dressed (without burqa) women but dont see the love showered on little kids by strangers. Have you ever wondered why there is Gods "azaab" on FATA?
@Parvez: This will increase hypocracy in Pakistan. If we want to stop hypocracy in Pkaistan then our rulers should start telling the truths.
@DevilHunterX:
The drunk drivers are already on the road!
@S.F.Ali: "Are you people insane??"
No, probably not. Slightly tipsy, perhaps.
good time to invest your money in Murree Brewery's stocks!!!
Corruption should also be legalized. It will help in promoting national integration. At least we would have a common cause to rally around and compete with each other.
Strongly condemn the statement! This is Muslim country, named Islamic Republic of Pakistan..!!