Articles and letters may be edited for the purposes of clarity and space. They are published in good faith with a view to enlightening all the stakeholders. However, the contents of these writings may not necessarily match the views of the newspaper.
US withdrawal
After two decades of war US finally realised peace cannot be maintained by prolonged war but by political parleys and by table talk.
Hence, the US with all NATO allies speedily pulled their troops out of Afghanistan. Within these decades Afghan civilians have experienced many forms of sufferings let it be drone strikes, shelling on a daily basis and long run displacement.
The question arises here after the withdraw of foreign troops who will take care of the innocent Afghans who have lost everything in war on terror including their bereaved ones? This is a question worth mulling over.
When it comes to Afghanistan, Pakistan has also suffered enormously over the last four decades: politically, economically, military, environmentally and most importantly in the domain of internal security. It merits mentioning that Pakistan lost 83,000 lives and cost $126 billion owing to war on terror.
It is a matter of great concern that Afghan government considers India as their friends instead. They never tolerate any Pakistani to have a visit in their land but thousands of Afghans are working and doing business in parts of Pakistan. The Indian influence is not a threat to the security of Pakistan but also for the entire region.
SAMEER UMRANI
Malir Karachi
Patriotism
Patriotism means “love of a country and willingness to defend it”. It motivates a man to do whatever he can for the development of his country.
Patriotism is the most powerful force that brings unity to nations. Patriotism enables the human to meet common aims and promotes the feeling of sacrifice.
A true loyalist loves his homeland passionately and proves his love by rendering valuable services with dedication and sincerity for the prosperity of his country. It’s because of patriotism that the soldiers are ready to sacrifice their life for the country.
Patriotism is a roadblock which never allows activities that may harm the nation such as bribery, corruption , discrimination and dishonest dealings.
Patriots love to work for the advancement and majesty of their country. They work to make their country muscular and rich by doing their duties in every possibly way. Whereas it is well said,” It is better to fight for something than live for nothing.”
Patriotism promotes the feeling of cooperation, unity, peace and brotherhood. It strengthens our ties and helps us behave sensibly and tolerate our country men.
Actual patriotism is one of the noblest virtues and we all possibly need to be patriotic in our aims, actions, beliefs and feelings.
We all need to be united and stand together for it’s important to show patriotism for the honour of our nation. We all need to always stay united, peaceful and devoted for the civility, development and betterment of our country.
SHADRI SAYAD
Turbat
Sports: Past and present
Traditionally, sports have been a strong part of our educational system. Sports competitions on a annual basis were a source of excitement for the students.
Students not only participate in these competitions but it was also a matter of pride for the students to be a part of the sports team.
Special seats for the sportsmen were reserved for admission in every educational institution and a strong competition was observed on these seats.
Trials were held and the best were selected. Many of these got distinctions on national as well as international level. A similar process is still present in most of the institutions but it is unable to produce results on any level, why?
The answer to this “why” is not a rocket science and is easy to answer. Education is distinctly divided into two major sectors, that is, public and private sectors. Private sector has strongly emerged out during last two to three decades.
During this period, many of the prominent public sector institutions have lost their fame and quality of work because of inefficient management so they are not as fruitful as they were in the past. So, along the quality of education, they also lost their name in the field of sports.
The private sector institutions indulged in a sort of competition which is meant only to produce positions in the examinations of boards and universities with the ultimate objective of earning maximum profit.
They do not find it necessary to invest the money and efforts in the fields which are unprofitable and obviously, sports are one of them. We can see no prominent sports facilities on their campuses.
Sports in schools, colleges and universities worked as a great sports nursery. With the deterioration of this nursery, our achievements on the international level are also getting decreased. Its most obvious example is Hockey.
Pakistan was world’s number one just two and a half decades ago and now we hold 18th position in the world ranking.
TARIQ MAHMOOD KHAN
Faisalabad
State gain nothing
Fr Stan Swamy was a humanitarian and a man of God whom our government could not treat with humanity.
He was not a part of the Bhima-Koregaon violence and had been arrested by the NIA (National Intelligence Agency) in a dubious case of the Elgar Parishad violence. He will live in our hearts as a hero, the brave dissenter who stood against the fascist Modi government at the cost of his life.
Narendra Modi and Amit Shah have Fr. Stan Swamy’s blood on their hands. The country will never forgive them. The death of Fr. Stan Swamy on July 5 will haunt the Indian judiciary forever. May his soul rest in peace.
Fr. Stan Swamy wouldn’t have survived for long. It was inevitable. His death was a murder and nothing else.
But the prolonged torture Fr. Stan Swamy faced at his age and in his condition, even in the face of all the protests, was deliberately imposed by the State, and done so defiantly, blatantly and openly to make a point and an example.
It was premeditated. And it was bloody-minded malice baring its fangs from the highest level.
But Stan Swamy’s defiance was of an epic level.
He stuck to his convictions to the very last. All the might and power of the State could not break an 84-year old man with so many ailments infected by Covid.
He won in the end. And like Gladys Staines, the widow of the late Graham Staines who was burnt alive along with his two sons, I am sure he was true to his faith by forgiving his oppressors. What did the State achieve by murdering Fr Stan Swamy?
JUBEL D’CRUZ
Mumbai, India
