Musharraf the Out-smarter

A little addition to the last part of my previous post, for an accurate timeline of events, and to put the decision in proper perspective, the additions are in bold:

"So the best option for the US and its occupation force (and as such the decision by the SC) was to let him run, and then take his uniform off in private (voluntarily)- [after the talks with the BB regarding the uniform failed at the last moment inspite of the US warning shots of two bomb blasts in the heart of the military compounds as you would recall]- and he be made meaningless without it- which I seriously doubt he will do (i.e. take the uniform off) unless he has understood the game and wants to live. If he does not take off the uniform in private after the elections he will be stripped in public by the US elite, and then as I suggested, hell would gain an inmate and the Zia ul Fcuk a companion....

#222 Posted by hamidm2,

Hamid mian if you had any braincells left from all that cheap bootlegged whiskey you would have figured it out.

What SC has done is to say "It's none of our business". It has neither interpreted the constitution nor allowed or disallowed the uniform, but just refused to hear the petition citing a technicality - AFTER hearing it for all these days!!!

I think this is fair. The constitution clauses relating to the President are so badly mangled that it is impossible to arrive at any judgment on merits. The only way it can be done is to throw out the entire 17th amendment - but that wasn't the plea was it? The plea was just the dual office clause.

But this doesn't solve musharraf's problems because it appears he is not even BA pass as required ...

Hope that didn't make your nasha 'hiran' :)

Re: # 275

echo,

.... your and masadi's brand of conspiracy theory driven pakistani politics is beyond my comprehension .... so now you are saying that musharaf won because the democrats are going to win ??? .... i thought bush was his friend - make up your mind ........

anyway, as much as i loathe musharraf, i would rather see him president as long as a mullah doesn't get elected as dog-catcher (khassi or otherwise) ......

.... on the bright side, i think this bandar baant will work out ...... we pakis will sell our own mothers for a pajero and a senate seat - and that includes your mullah in a yellow head towel .... the students of the jamiat are your only chance - so get to work ........

Zee:

Those wimin look horrible ... yuck. Is the guy sitting in the corner, with a yellow t-shirt hamidm2 or romair?

Did anyone catch this article in the Wall Street Journal? I think it is a very interesting piece.

MODERN AND MUSLIM

By PETER WONACOTT
September 5, 2007; Page A1

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan -- Pakistan's political scene is growing more clouded, but a clear demonstration of confidence in the country's future is coming from an emerging economic force: entrepreneurs.

Scores of new businesses once unseen in Pakistan, from fitness studios to chic coffee shops to hair-transplant centers, are springing up in the wake of a dramatic economic expansion. As a result, new wealth and unprecedented consumer choice have become part of Pakistan's volatile social mix.

NICHE MARKETING


• The Situation: A new class of entrepreneurs is emerging in Pakistan, adding momentum to the country's economic boom.
• The Background: In the past four years, Pakistan has been one of Asia's fastest-growing economies. But clashes between militants and security forces have clouded Pakistan's future.
• What's Next: The expected return from exile of former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif adds to political uncertainty.Volatility has erupted often in recent weeks. Yesterday, two bombs exploded outside this city, killing 25 people. Adding to the political uncertainty is the expected return Monday from exile of former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who was ousted in a 1999 military coup led by Pervez Musharraf. To counter that challenge, President Musharraf is close to sealing a power-sharing pact with another former prime minister, Benazir Bhutto. The two aim to join forces in a government that would take on Islamic extremists who have recently launched a series of suicide attacks around Pakistan. (See related article.)

Clashes between militants and security forces have pushed Pakistan toward an uncertain future. But they have largely overshadowed some of the broader changes taking place.

A new class of entrepreneurs is emerging who, in small but significant ways, have challenged the religious orthodoxy. They provide a stark counterpoint to the rising Islamic radicalism that the U.S. and others view as a threat to Pakistan's position as a staunch Western ally. And with many importing ideas from abroad, they are contributing to Pakistan's 21st-century search for itself.

"Can you be modern and Muslim? How is Pakistan going to link into the global economy?" asks Ali Cheema, an economics professor at Lahore University of Management Sciences, who has researched Pakistan's entrepreneurs. "These people are posing important questions."

By sheer demographic weight, the younger generation will determine Pakistan's direction. Of its 160 million people, 100 million are under the age of 25. Many are rural, poor and unprepared for a role in the global economy. But fast economic growth has also drawn more men and women to the cities, propelling some up the income ladder through education and new jobs.


On a recent summer afternoon, clerics from a Muslim seminary here walked across the street to a new boutique, which purports to be the first couture store in Islamabad. The bearded men, clad in white cotton tunics and trousers, were patrolling the neighborhood for signs of moral laxity. Upon entering the store, they walked over to a rack of slinky shirts.

"Our women don't wear such clothes," declared one of the visitors.

"You're right," replied Yasser Anees, the boutique's 26-year-old co-owner. "Those are for men." The patrol soon departed.

Overall, the entrepreneurial class remains a sliver, just over a million people by some estimates. Much of the business is confined to pockets of urban wealth that most Pakistanis won't experience in their lifetimes. And yet, the brief business careers of many entrepreneurs show how rapidly dramatic change can unfold in Pakistan. That change also helps explain why Gen. Musharraf remains relatively popular among this group.

Following recent events that have engulfed his government in turmoil, Gen. Musharraf can use all the support he can get. His efforts earlier this year to oust the country's Supreme Court chief -- which were unsuccessful -- provoked months of street protests from people worried about the loss of civil liberties, many of them from Pakistan's new middle class.

Meanwhile, many fear the country has become less safe. The Pakistani army has battled militants in the northwest and on the border with Afghanistan, which is where the U.S. government believes tribal chieftains harbor key figures of al-Qaeda, possibly including Osama bin Laden. In July, Pakistani security forces raided a heavily fortified mosque in Islamabad, killing dozens of armed militants.

With Pakistan's past leaders preparing to return from exile, the turmoil is likely to intensify.


Mr. Sharif and Ms. Bhutto will be coming back to a country that is much different, economically at least, from the one they left.

Since Mr. Musharraf's coup in 1999, Pakistan has become one of Asia's fastest-growing economies. In the past eight years, sales of cars have climbed 20% annually, televisions, 29%, and air conditioners, 206%. Over the past four years, economic growth has averaged 7%, according to government figures.

The consumer-driven growth has signaled the spread of a middle class in Pakistan's biggest cities. For decades after independence in 1947, a handful of extremely wealthy industrial families dominated the economy. In the 1970s, nationalization of important industries gave the government a major economic role. In recent years, a privatization program has sought to shrink the state's hand, while introducing more investment and competition.

Pakistan now permits 100% foreign ownership of its banks, prompting more consumer-friendly lending for home mortgages and cars. Meanwhile, a telecommunications monopoly has been broken up and policies have been tweaked to reduce user fees. Cellular subscribers have expanded 94% a year since 1999.

Government economists boast that these changes -- greater access to credit and more mobile phone and Internet connections -- have ushered people into the economic and social mainstream. "Millions of young people now have a way to escape from poverty and get away from extremism," says Salman Shah, an economic adviser to the prime minister.

Not all are convinced the economic traction is sustainable, though. While Pakistan has seen an unprecedented consumer boom, 7.9% inflation and a sluggish job market have undercut modest income gains, contends ABN Amro's senior economist in Islamabad, Sakib Sherani. In luring new industries and cultivating a broad-based business class that will keep the economy globally competitive, Pakistan lags behind countries such as Vietnam, as well as China and India, Mr. Sherani says.

Many critics also contend that substantial amounts of U.S. assistance -- estimated at more than $1 billion a year -- may be the biggest underlying reason why Pakistan's economy is doing well.

But the economy is also sprouting from the bottom, thanks to seed capital from abroad and more credit-friendly banks. Last fiscal year, Pakistan received a record $5.1 billion in foreign direct investment, the government says. Overseas remittances, which are what Pakistanis are returning from bank accounts overseas, hit $5.5 billion in the same period, also a record.

In the past, many entrepreneurs would need to rely on family or unethical money lenders who would sometimes break a leg -- "maybe two" -- if not paid, says Sardar Usman Rashid, chief of the credit division for the SME Bank, a government arm that lends to small and medium-size companies. More choices are available now. This year, SME Bank expects to extend about 6,000 loans ranging from $5,000 to $1.3 million, up from about 5,000 last year. Larger banks are now wading into a loan market for small and medium-size companies valued at about $2.2 billion, according to Mr. Rashid.

"Banks are not so shy about lending to the small guy," he says.

Signs of how this change is rippling through the economy are evident on bustling MM Alam road in Lahore.

A decade ago, Asma Shah opened a small store that centered on novelty-scented candles. In 2004, Ms. Shah, a British citizen of Pakistani origin, sold her apartment in London and brought the capital back to finance a big expansion of her store, called "Candelicious." She's imported silk throw pillows from China, and glass and silverware from India and Thailand. The furnishings offer a cosmopolitan flair to the homes of those looking to veer from traditional Pakistani decor, Ms. Shah says.

On her counter are brochures for a new health club Ms. Shah's sister-in-law is opening. "Body & Soul" will offer personal trainers, yoga and Pilates, a popular physical-fitness regime. The studio promises to "keep you positive and help you bring out your personal best!"

Another prominent symbol of the new Pakistan: cosmetic surgery. Clinics for hair transplants, hair removal and liposuction have popped up on MM Alam road. Some are franchises brought back from overseas by entrepreneurs who believed they spotted a market for the same business at home.

In the past, customers would have splurged for a hair-transplant trip to the U.S. or Europe, but now options are close at home, says Tahir Mahmood, country manager for the International Laser Hair Transplant Surgery Center in Lahore. "There are quite a few bald people in Pakistan," he says. "We have helped the nation by keeping the revenue here."

New niches in Pakistan's economy have created space for people like Haroon Qureshi, a 30-year-old self-employed private-wealth manager. In T-shirt and jeans, smoking Benson & Hedges cigarettes, Mr. Qureshi recounts how earlier this year he made money for clients by buying and selling the same 500-square-yard plot of land -- twice. Those transactions earned him $16,000 in 60 days, he says. Real-estate prices have rocketed in Pakistan's big cities, and on the fringes, as development pushes outward.

Mr. Qureshi believes the social change that has accompanied Pakistan's economic growth is spreading widely and can't be rolled back. On an early August evening, he sits in Masoom's Pancake Lounge, one of two coffeehouses in Lahore started by a husband and wife team returned from Reno, Nev. It's filled with twenty-somethings drinking cappuccino and listening to loud music. Over the din of Hot Chocolate's song, "You Sexy Thing," Mr. Qureshi credits such achievements to Pakistan's top leader, Gen. Musharraf.

"For our emerging economy," he shouts, "we need an army man right now."

Gen. Musharraf's policies also have been good to Mr. Anees, the fashion designer and co-owner of the Islamabad boutique. After graduating from high school, Mr. Anees says his only ambitions were hanging out with friends and wearing cool clothes. The problem was that he couldn't find the clothes he saw in India's Bollywood movies. So he ended up drawing the designs from some foreign glossy magazines that he says were beginning to come into the country.

In 2004, while Mr. Anees was still a student, Gen. Musharraf showed up as chief guest at a fashion show that helped launch Mr. Anees's designs. A year ago, Mr. Anees and his fashion-school classmate, 22-year-old Atif Ali, founded their boutique, called "at Yas."

In June, Fashion TV Pakistan, one of dozens of private television channels that have popped up since Gen. Musharraf came to power, covered the first fashion show of at Yas. After the show, Mr. Anees says the at Yas team received a message from local clerics, via an at Yas employee. "They told us to watch our step," he says.

The owners built a brick wall to obscure their glass showroom. They hired a guard with a pump-action shotgun to stand outside the store.

Though they describe their clothes as "classic," at Yas designers give them flourishes. There are billowy harem pants and see-through tops made from Pakistani chiffon. Many items are priced above $200, a lofty sum in a country where per-capita income is still under $1,000 a year.

Business has been brisk, the owners say. They can barely keep up with orders for lavishly embroidered bridal gowns. In a nod toward the country's conservative crosswinds, they plan a line of designer burqas, which will fit more snugly than the typical head-to-toe gowns.

Some shoppers see at Yas clothes as too racy for formal occasions and too dressy for more relaxed social gatherings. At the store earlier in the day, one young woman complained that she wanted something traditional or modern, not something in between. An hour later, she was squeezing through the door with a full bag.

"That's typical," says Mr. Anees. "People change their minds after they come to our store. Happens all the time."

Write to Peter Wonacott at peter.wonacott@wsj.com

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#202 Posted by jayp,

Yaar I got bored so now I've taken to posting mujra photos ...

Check out www.angelfire.com/zine/gomal ;-)

Heed, O heed,

the wise words of Head Caliph, President in Waiting of the Caliphate, His Excellency, PhD, MBBS, Hamid II son of Hamid I

"blaming the americans for all your woes, does change the fact that your muslimeen and momineen brethren are a bunch of impotent imbeciles who should stick to banging their head on the floor instead of trying to play politics"

Ignore these wise words at your own peril. I, GT the faithful of HamidII, am also privy to a page written by the great Caliph, which was eaten by a goat (may God have mercy on him). It says:

"..... 20 cents to that chowkie who is able to offer the head of laadu's father mohar11 on a silver plate to my faithful servant GT".

Hamidumdumdumdumbed:
Nov.2008 is when it is already known who the next Pres. will and that is the decision time.

No need to gloat..Mucharraf is still a Kanjaroon & your support for him proves it...but then your pride in being a Kanjarr still wins you the dubious honour of being a straight shooter..

Wish the same was true of those who are still trying to find their moorings & checking which side their toast will be buttered.

At least you I know where to locate and encourage you to go through that long & repeatedly postponed Hara-Kiri of yours.

For now the Kanjaroons can roam about the precincts of G7 or in the vicinity of Wah Cantt. without a bullet-proof vardi.

Mohar11,

This whole kashmir jihad business is the fault of hinuds. If Indira had let the mukhti bahini gangbang the 90'000 brave jawans than you wouldn't have to deal with this kashmir shit today. Face it you guys screwed up.

urstruly,

are we meeting today to celebrate ? .... i am buying

musharraf has outsmarted everyone !

..... and being a smart man myself, i declare my full support for this man (until i change my mind).......

to hell with democracy shamocracy !..... long live enlightened moderation and an end to the insanity of ramadhan .....it is driving me insane

urstruly,

.... i feel your pain and it makes me very happy !

Re: # 268

masadi,

... i know a fool is born every minute on this forum, but you don't have to prove it all the time!

..... there is a us elite hiding under your bed - booo !....... get a grip on yourself !... you are really loosing it now !.......

Re: # 266

echo,

... now you are going stupid on us : " If democrats do not win, BB and PP stand no chance in nov. 2008 as well." ........ the way i understand it, 2009 comes after 2008 ... no? .... or are you saying that the oucome of pakistan's election will determine the outcome of the us election ?

..... by the way, blaming the americans for all your woes, does change the fact that your muslimeen and momineen brethren are a bunch of impotent imbeciles who should stick to banging their head on the floor instead of trying to play politics ......

As I have been saying since the beginning of the CJ (manufactured) crisis, that this "crisis" was the doing of the US elite working with its occupation force, the Pak Army to cause trouble for Musharraf who had fallen out of favor with the US elite, who were now seeking a change of leadership. Today's decision puts to rest all contentions of a "free" Supreme Court or the "revolution" of law in this country when the decision makes us the poster child for a "banana republic" par excellence! Freak Show Central.

Why did this decision come. The US wants to strip Musharraf of his uniform either in private (willingly which no stading military dictator in Pakistan will ever do) or publicly (by use of a hellfire aimed for his a$$). What if the SC controlled by the military were to make Musharraf ineligible for election or demand that he take the uniform off. Would he just walk away naked? Of course not. There would be martial law and it is premature for martial law where the US elite are concerned at this moment. They want it at the heels of the Iran war, after a transitory period of "democracy", and that "martial law" will involve a new general not this "fallen out of favor peon" who cannot handle the heat. So the best option for the US and its occupation force (and as such by the SC) was to let him run, and then take his uniform off in private (voluntarily) and be made meaningless without it- which I seriously doubt he will do unless he has understood the game and wants to live. If he does not take off the uniform in private after the elections he will be stripped in public by the US elite, and then as I suggested, hell would await an inmate and the Zia ul Fcuk a companion....

Re: # 266 ah pahleez; this a-hole mucharaf is massacaring school children with impunity for God's sakes and you are suggesting that we should accept this attrocity?. This can not be allowed to let go. It will be a crime to accept the status quo and say mitti pao. SC hands were not tied. They could have invoked the doctrine of necessity this time for the good of nation for a change this time - necessity to change the asshole that is, now couldn't they? But they didn't because they have vested interests in keeping this status quo of corruption, colonial oppression, and lawlessness alive, well, and legitamized.

tha jo na-khoob, b`tadreej wohi khoob hoa
keh ghulami maiN badal jata hay quomoN ka zameer

.......Allama Iqbal

tr: vassalage changes the mindset of vassal nations slowly,
the (perception of) good turns into bad and bad turns into good