August 1947 brought freedom from foreigners who ruled India and exploited its resources to enrich the British. Indian politicians insisted they must rule their native land. The British, who built roads, railways, schools and hospitals, left India. Had the British been defeated in 1857 and independence came a few decades earlier, would we still have all that railroad and infrastructure that carried us until now?

Nation-states, that replaced dynastic-empires, went through transformation rather quickly. Two states that separated a culturally homogeneous nation Germany, became one. A state that united multiple nationalities broke into smaller units. The Czechs and Slovaks parted ways and Yugoslavia broke after bitter genocidal wars. Cultural-identity related fault lines decided the fate of some conflicts but the new states desire integration on an international level. Globalization and Internationalism is an irreversible reality that inspires participation or precipitates inclusion.

The two states that British Empire delivered in South Asia, India and Pakistan, imbibed the same desire of nation-building but experiments carried out in each of them were quite different. India adhered to a pluralist democracy despite bitter conflicts between communities. Pakistan ventured on creating one nation. Jinnah prescribed one language. Religious identity had already been the binding force for the movement of secession from India.

Building an army must have been a hot trend. The eternal pacifist, great leader of non-violence Mahatma Gandhi’s views were reported in The Times, on September 27, 1947, under the headline “Mr. Gandhi on ‘war’ with Pakistan”:

“Mr. Gandhi told his prayer meeting to-night that, though he had always opposed all warfare, if there was no other way of securing justice from Pakistan and if Pakistan persistently refused to see its proved error and continued to minimise it, the Indian Union Government would have to go to war against it. No one wanted war, but he could never advise anyone to put up with injustice. If all Hindus were annihilated for a just cause he would not mind. If there was war, the Hindus in Pakistan could not be fifth columnists. If their loyalty lay not with Pakistan they should leave it. Similarly Muslims whose loyalty was with Pakistan should not stay in the Indian Union.”

Soon after its inception in August 1947, Pakistan sent a rag-tag militia into Kashmir. The army became the most important pillar for survival in Pakistan’s ideology, besides Islam and Urdu. Class and ethnic rivalry flared conflicts that were doused by military power. The army became the care-taker, direct-ruler and ultimately the owner of Pakistan.

Democracy never flourished and the majority opted out after a genocidal operation in 1971. The remainder Pakistan kept up with the high cost of maintaining a big army. Impoverished citizens were squeezed and international bidders solicited. Everything else, education, police, infra-structure, rights of smaller provinces and minorities were shelved for keeping the boots of the soldiers shining. The civilian elite helped the army in this exploitation. Urdu gave way to the language best suited for international aid-collection and religion became deceit, thievery, oppression and murder.

Millions of Pakistanis were made destitute by the floods and thousands perished but the international community is reluctant in coming forward to help. The money they give could end up in grooming Islamist militia that strengthens Pakistan’s army in lording over a country of 180 million.

Pakistan has declined into no-governance. A communal anarchy could be seen in the largest city Karachi. Skills of deception and corruption are displayed with pride. Society has fallen apart. Without international-aid this nation-state will perish.

A self-rule, based on global-ethic, at the local level, has become necessary at this time.

Freedom and religion were abused like another false promise of food and shelter in Pakistan.

The following poem by Dr. Shams Hamid glances through some realities of the sub-continent that I tried to explore in my article above.

Several Pakistani intellectuals who had descended on Washington DC to attend 11th International Kashmir Peace Conference (July 28-29, 2010) were neither intellectuals nor interested in peace.

Wasting time and resources, Pakistani representatives (with very few exceptions) read from a script crafted decades ago at the GHQ – slightly changing words.

I bet if you took the text of their speeches and ran it through sophisticated software to check intellectual integrity you will find an abundance of plagiarisms.

Negativity of approach was so overwhelming that ‘Kashmir issue’ lost more currency instead of gaining ground. With WikiLeaks dominating the mind share, American media barely covered the event.

In discussions, both private and public, Pakistani speakers demanded that America must broker a settlement in exchange for the ‘sacrifices’ Pakistan has made in war against terror. All accused America of betraying Pakistan, an ally of nearly 60 years. “Under Bush administration, the neo-cons have steered US towards India and away from Pakistan,” a Pakistani intellectual claimed. And, he explained that is “because Jewish-Hindu lobby dominates policy making in Washington.”

In abundance was child like envy over growing India-US ties, and old and tired threats that if Kashmir issue is not resolved there will be no peace in either Afghanistan or India. Unfortunately, many who “spoke for” Kashmir lacked intellectual depth, and understanding of imperatives that drive strategic diplomatic ties.

All agree that last decade has been a truly transformational one in the India- U.S ties but cannot explain why. In November last year when Prime Minister Manmohan Singh came to Washington on the first State visit of the new U.S. Administration, it was a clear indication that Democrats on the Hill will continue to see India through the prism it first located during the BJP government. India’s proverbial ‘openness’ has yielded rich dividends in terms of cooperation in many areas, underscoring the vitality and the relevance of India-US strategic partnership.

It was therefore, not surprising when Obama administration recalibrated her earlier stance of bracketing “Afghanistan, India, and Pakistan” together. Afghanistan and Pakistan are ‘pain points’ but Washington sees India as a center of influence in the 21st century.

A Pakistani diplomat had whispered in my ears that Americans realize that they cannot “clean the mess in Afghanistan without our help. And of course we want a solution to Kashmir issue in return.”

A friend who also spoke at the conference claimed that Washington is finally realizing that India and Pakistan are equally important in that region. I beg to differ!

I would urge you to look at the transformation of DC-Delhi relationship against the backdrop of India’s initiatives to reform its economy and the geopolitical changes in the post-Cold War world.

Indian officials would claim that their ties with US are primarily due to shared values of democracy, pluralism, tolerance, and respect for fundamental freedoms. You may not agree with this assertion – I don’t buy this argument in entirety either.

But we can’t deny that growing economic linkages and people-to- people contact between India and US are real. Over the last two decades, Indian and American businesses have formed strong and mutually beneficial partnerships touching the lives of ordinary people; a fairly balanced trade in goods and services has grown astronomically.

Most importantly, Pakistanis tend to forget that both Indians and Americans share an increasing convergence of interests on major global issues.

By using the 11th Kashmir moot in Washington DC as a venting session, Pakistanis basically lost an opportunity to build the zone of trust. Kashmir issue is real, and solution will emerge only when Pakistan and India stop exploiting the people of Kashmir. It has become a financial drain for India and Pakistani strategy to use rag-tag army of fundamentalists has cost Pakistan in orders of magnitude more than anyone every estimated.

There is a broad-based political support both in India and Pakistan to finally let the people of Kashmir speak for themselves but these pseudo intellectuals who had come to attend the conference are not ready to move on.

Instead of allowing the GHQ to drive India-centric foreign policy, we will do Pakistan and Kashmir more justice if we were to expand our diplomatic orbit. If we establish mutually beneficial economic ties with Brazil and Venezuela, South Africa and Kenya, Chile and Bolivia, Malaysia and Indonesia – Pakistan will have more allies in the world and we will not have to run to Washington DC to beg Americans for stewardship on Kashmir issue.

India today has free pass to commit unthinkable violence on Kashmiri people partially because we have lost all legitimacy. How can we raise our voices and wave our fists when it is an undisputed fact that Pakistan army used rag-tag warriors of Lashkar-e-Taiba, the Jaish-e- Mohammed, the Taliban, and more with intent to make India bleed in Kashmir? What moral grounds do we stand on?

We can’t be running to the US or Israel for support – we must build a broad based multi-lateral framework of developing nations to counter Indian belligerence in Kashmir. We must stop thinking about Kashmir as a ‘disputed territory’ and start working for the safety and security – both physical and financial of the people of Kashmir.

No cause can justify terrorism – Kashmir is no exception. Both India and Pakistan have a vital interest in defeating terrorism and in this context, our bilateral cooperation on terrorism is crucial.

Mos importantly- both India and Pakistan should immediately cease terrorizing Kashmiri people.

As we reported two months earlier, Prime Minister of Pakistan Yusuf Raza Gilani Thursday extended the term of Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Ashfaq Paervez Kayani for three years starting from November 29, 2010.

Annoucement came days after high level US administration delegation visited Islamabad. In an exclusive report on May 17th, 2010, we published a report confirming that General Kayani will get an extension because American administrtion does not want to change local leadership mid-stream.

Today Pakistani Premier praised General Kayani’s professional capabilities and said his leadership qualities are valued both domestically and internationally. He said the decision to extend the term of COAS has been in consultation with the President Asif Ali Zardari ‘to ensure successful culmination of the ongoing war against terrorism’.

“The government is presently engaged in war against terrorism which is now in a critical stage,” the Premier pointed out, adding, this requires continuity of military leadership under the present Army Chief who led successful operations in Swat, Malakand and South Waziristan.

He said the Army Chief, due to his professional capabilities and leadership qualities, is looked upon with respect and honor both domestically and internationally.

The Prime Minister said the operations initiated against Army Chief remained engaged in the planning, execution and supervision of military operations, making possible success of the offensives launched against the militants.

General Kayani who succeeded Gen Musharraf as Pakistan’s 14th army chief on November 29, 2007, is a recipient of Hilal-i-Imtiaz and Hilal-i-Imtiaz (Military) for his meritorious services.

He served at various levels of command including his stint as Director General Inter Services Intelligence.

Besides being Chief of Staff Corps, General Kayani has also held the coveted post of Director General Military Operations.

General Kayani is a graduate of Fort Benning (USA), Command and Staff College Quetta, Command and General Staff College Fort Leavenworth (USA), Asia Pacific Center for Security Studies, Hawaii (USA), and National Defence College Islamabad.

He possesses wide ranging experience in Command, Instructional and staff appointments and has commanded an infantry Battalion, Infantry Brigade, Infantry Division and a Corps.

Following article appeared in The News on July 18th, 2010

http://www.thenews.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=251448

When I talk to my nieces and nephews, Pakistan’s millennial generation, I feel rejuvenated and perplexed, at the same time. I get excited because these young children are so creative and worldly. The minute I log into Skype, Gmail, or Facbook, my young buddies tell me about some technological experience or an epiphany they had on how to change Pakistan. I am invigorated listening to their ideas.

I am at a loss, however, when these bright young kids tell me how they struggle to find a job. I am baffled because they are looking for job the same way I did. Trust me it was a long time ago.

In 1985-86 when I was entering the job market with my peers, we had a routine. We would review all the vacancies announced in the daily ‘Dawn’ every week and mail our resume (we used to call it bio-data) to prospects. And, we waited. Like other struggling middle class families we did not know ‘people’ at the right places. But we applied for positions and prayed for an interview and all of us finally found work. Not necessarily doing what we wanted to do, but jobs that paid enough to make us get up in the morning.

That was 25 years ago. Men and women in India, Bangladesh and other developing countries were looking for work in the same way as we were in Pakistan. There was parity.

Now when I talk to people in India and the Philippines, Ukraine and Russia, Brazil and Poland, I find that unlike Pakistan, a growing number of employable youth in these countries are not looking for a job. They are interested in gigs. And that reflects the structural change in the post-modern job market across the globe.

The millennial generation across the world prefer being self-employed instead of becoming an employee. They can do that because of advances in computer and telecommunications technology. But these successful service providers (individuals) at portals such as eLance, Guru, oDesk, iFreelance had to change their attitude towards work.

Taking advantage of the rapid pace of technological change, a globalised market place and a boom and bust economy, millions of workers have found security in the idea of free agency. And, this spirit of enterprise has produced workers around the world that are more resilient, adaptable and entrepreneurial than their predecessors.

I personally know hundreds of successful individuals around the world who have traded in careers for gigs.

In the US this trend is pretty established. According to the Online Talent Report, more than 100,000 businesses listed 300,000 new jobs last year. Last month alone, the number of jobs posted grew by 30 percent from the previous month. And that trend isn’t exclusive to the United States and Europe. Data shows that there are online and self-employed workers all around the world with India leading the curve.

Demand for certain types of jobs such as mobile application programmers and social media management is far outstripping supply. So far, small businesses are the first to look for talent online. But larger enterprises are following, as well. AT&T, IBM, Cisco, Novartis, P&G and Kimberly Clarke are among a few that you will find posting transactional opportunities through their contractors or directly. Many more are expected to follow the suit.

Test this: go to craigslist.org for Pakistan and look for jobs/services offered and than go to any of the large Indian city and you will find that entire country of Pakistan has less than 10 percent postings compared to any Indian city. I am always told not to compare us with India because we are ‘special’. OK, just compare Pakistan and the Philippines and there is a difference in order of magnitude.

After speaking to several people in Pakistan, I realise that there are some real challenges that make it rather difficult to work from home. I will address that below. But I want to first dispel some established myths about the online marketplace first:

MYTH No 1: All jobs are posted by American and European employers and they don’t want to hire Pakistanis for several reasons.

Reality: Online hiring is not asymmetrical. It is a misnomer that service providers are from low-cost destinations and all buyers are from the United States and Europe. Some basic research will show that employers from across the world are taking advantage of a flexible workforce. With the Internet, the search for talented employees is no longer limited by geography. And, the same tool allows professionals to find work from anywhere, as well. I live in New York and I have provided services to employers in Indonesia, the Philippines and Brazil. And, I am just an individual.

Also, I have yet to find an American who will refuse a talented resource from any part of the world. Money transcends national boundaries and religion. Any Indian and Israeli employer will be happy to hire someone from Pakistan if the service is good and priced competitively. It is all about adding value.

MYTH No 2: Online jobs are for programmers only.

Reality: You don’t need to be a programmer to work online. Whether you are skilled for sales and marketing, finance and management; administrative or legal; engineering or manufacturing, you can work remotely. A majority of jobs today can be outsourced except those require a physical presence. Many of us have a full time administrative assistant (Executive Secretary, as they are called in Pakistan) sitting thousands of miles away.

There are several MBAs from leading institutions who provide management or marketing or sales-related services. Project Management work is pretty much done remotely. My brother works for IBM and he could be sitting anywhere in the world to do his job, and do it well.

I know several individuals in India and the Philippines who provide writing services to employers all around the world. And, you don’t need to be Mark Twain to find online gigs for writing. On an average, an individual who works eight hours a day can easily earn $600 to $2,500 per month, depending on their skills.

Accounting and legal services are also quickly emerging. I know several bookkeepers in Brazil and Argentina who provide accounting services to small businesses around the world. I know several lawyers who have paralegals sitting in India to do research and prepare court papers. The opportunities are endless.

Now let’s talk about some real challenges that an individual from Pakistan will have compared to their peers from across the border.

Challenge No 1: Many young middle class men and women do not have a credit or debit card and, thus, cannot sign up for services such as eLance, Facebook, iFreelance. There are at least two ways to address this; open a checking account with a global bank that has branch near you and make sure they will issue a debit card that can be used internationally. Or open accounts where you don’t need a credit card such as oDesk or post your services in places like Craigslist.

Challenge No 2: There is so much power outages that even if we get work (which is easy to find) we can’t deliver on time and, therefore, get negative feedback from employers.

I know this is real. We have more power outages than India, for example. I have no magic wand, but I will tell you if my livelihood was dependant on electricity, I would make secondary and tertiary plans to have minimum power to run a computer. I get a push back that we don’t have enough money to buy a UPS or generator. What about setting up small cooperatives with your friends and neighbours? Why don’t four or five of you get together and make it happen? The return on investment is so rapid and it will change your life. So what are you waiting for?

Challenge No 3: How will I get paid? Open a bank account or PayPal account (or other similar services). Of course, there may be a time when you put in several hours, and may not get paid, but there are ways to mitigate that risk. When you work with an established service you are pretty much guaranteed about the payment. These services charge a couple of points to cover your risk. But you will get paid.

Here is a challenge that many learn after they start offering services online: not everyone can work from home. You need lots of discipline because there are plenty of distractions when you are working from home. But I know several individuals in Pakistan, as well who do it really well. Setting up a place of work at home is a serious matter and requires careful planning. You must be comfortable to produce good quality work. You must be able to get up, take a shower (or not) and go through the routine as if you were going to work outside. Once you get to your desk you must be able to tune out your family and surrounding.

It is not that there are no Pakistanis. I see a few firms as top tier providers on oDesk, eLance and Guru. But there are a very small number of independent Pakistani individuals.

Here is my challenge to you: if you are educated and unemployed (BA, BCom, BSc at minimum) establish your practice online and make your first $100 and post a comment to let us know that you are on your way to making millions.

Speaking at the China Pavilion of Shanghai Expo, President Zardari said what has pretty much become a cliché’; “Pakistan can learn a lot from the Chinese model of economic development.” I assume President Zardari is aware of an ideologically circumscribed, intellectually coherent set of policies or strategic decisions which together make up a ‘China model’.

Chinese think tanks, scholars, diplomats, entrepreneurs, and journalists that I frequently meet seem to have divergent and pragmatic view of what constitutes ‘Chinese model,’ and how it differs from previously worshiped ‘Asian model’ or ‘Japanese model.’

Does President Zardari want to learn from Chinese experience of lifting approximately 300 million out of poverty? This would of course be a noble endeavor. But it will be terrible if our President thinks of ‘Chinese model’ as economic freedom but political repression.

I am sure he meant something – maybe he characterized the China model as export-oriented growth? But wait – wasn’t that Asian development model and our leaders used to lecture us how we should be following that model of growth until it fell apart.

Maybe President Zardari finds China’s success in selective industrial policy? But that would make it a Japanese model, wouldn’t it?

I wish I could pick my phone and call him and ask; “Mr. President, please tell me if you are absolutely convinced that China is really a success story? Please tell me if China’s growth was planned, intentional and by design? Please tell me if China’s footstep can be copied in Pakistan?”

I know our president is so witty he may have responded with a popular Chinese idiom: “A bird does not sing because it has an answer. It sings because it has a song.”

And, I respect that. There is no consensus on ‘Chinese model’ – economists, policy makers and entrepreneurs have their guesses but there is a consensus around pragmatism. China has been pragmatic in seeking opportunities and fostering innovation from the bottom up. The hallmark of China’s success has been it’s refusal to espouse any complete scheme of change. This has defined Chinese development style ever since the policy of reform was initiated in 1978.

Majority reforms in China have resulted from a process of experimentation, usually on a limited jurisdictional scale. China has 32 provinces. The bankruptcy law, for example, was tested out in one province and then it was rolled out to the rest of the country. Similarly, the special economic zones in four provinces were an important precursor to a whole raft of market-oriented reforms that followed.

In addition to the top-down experimentation, there have been plenty of bottom-up innovation and grassroots efforts. In fact, most rural reforms in China were driven from the bottom up. The disbanding of the communes, for example, was initiated when a commune decided to break ranks with party orthodoxy and decided to sell their surplus food on the market. This was a reaction to a desperate situation and it spread. Within the space of a few years, almost the whole country had followed suit. These things were allowed by the state; they were not designed by the state.

But the wisdom of the Chinese government was to step back to observe changes and to make room for good practices to spread.

Following the flow can be a good practice but not an economic model – at least not one taught in text books.

And, that brings me to second key ingredient of a model – “success.” It is true that China has lifted nearly 300 million people out of poverty but growth has been polarizing. China’s Gini coefficient (It is commonly used as a measure of inequality of income or wealth), has in a few years already surpassed that of the United States, which is rather interesting for a communist country. The fruits of growth have been largely shared, but there are also a lot of massive swaths of the population who are excluded from this growth. There has been massive dislocation that has resulted from this growth, too. Unprecedented scale of urbanization; from about 20 percent just a few years ago to nearly 50 percent today—the largest movement of people from the countryside to cities ever seen in the history of humanity.

Maybe President Zardari finds success in China but for many, jury is still out. However, all agree that China’s progress has been significant. Pakistan can learn plenty from the bottom up approach of China. It is high time that Islamabad allows provinces to make key strategic decisions and be around to cheer their progress.

With all the tragic news of suicide bombing, target killings and political instability emanating from Pakistan it is hard to believe that the country has viable golf community as well, reports a prominent golfing Your Golf Home.

Your Golf Home reported Friday that a twenty year old Pakistani who recently returned after completing undergraduate degree from US turned a pro golfer giving country some hope and a rising star.

Pakistan‘s youngest golfer Aleem-ur-Rehman, this week announced that he will be playing in all open championships as a professional player. Announcement came after he outperformed his peers and many senior players at the Lahore Gymkhana Golf Course, winning a slot in the prestigious CNS Open Golf Championship to be held in Karachi from July 15.

Young Aleem emerged as the top contender in the trials carding a round of 5 under par 67, including 8 birdies. He demonstrated superb play on the fairways and the putting greens.

During his stay in the US, Aleem took golfing lessons and paid attention to the tips and tricks from the global golf experts.

Aleem is the youngest Pakistani golfer to turn professional. It remains to be seen how far Aleem will travel and whether he will make name in global golf tournaments but he absolutely helps soften Pakistan?s image as a country on the brink of disaster.

It is rather erroneous that the city where Aleem launched his professional golfing career witnessed the gruesome suicide bombing that killed 45 people at the shrine of saint Syed Ali Hajwairi,popularly known as Data Gunj Bakhsh. Grieving Pakistanis look at younger generation of Aleem for delivering good news – and this young man is doing his part.