MQM’s coming of age?

[Hasnain2009]

yWAj7Awj2ks[/media] - Altaf Hussain calls creation of Pakistan the Biggest Mistake

 

[jupiter2007]

MQM’s coming of age?​

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Posted by Murtaza Razvi in Featured Articles, Pakistan, Politics on 12 10th, 2009 | 11 responses

MQM has to drop Altaf "Taxi Driver" as it's leader. MQM needs to make some fundamental changes to it's stepup.
No political party can be owned by one person. If the party representing people then people have right to choose a leader that represent them....which means the party member can select new leader every 4 years. I think Mustafa Kamal should be select as new leader of MQM.

 

[pakdefender]

During US Election Barak Obama made a remark that you cant put lip stick on a pig , its still a pig

The problem with MQM is that its roots are in etnic politics and violence along with a very shady closeness to india.

In my opinion they still have a long way to go before they can hope to really come of age. Also so long as Altaf Hussain is sitting some where in London and doing the same dramay bazi there is no way MQM will come off age.

 

[jupiter2007]

During US Election Barak Obama made a remark that you cant put lip stick on a pig , its still a pig

The problem with MQM is that its roots are in etnic politics and violence along with a very shady closeness to india.

In my opinion they still have a long way to go before they can hope to really come of age. Also so long as Altaf Hussain is sitting some where in London and doing the same dramay bazi there is no way MQM will come off age.

As MQM maturing as a party, they need to drop Altaf and change the name to ....... I have given few choices about merging party and change name in few other threads.

---> Political Parties should work to promote harmony between different ethnic groups in Pakistan.

National Democratic Party
Pakistan Socialist Democratic Party
United National People's Party
Pakistan National Party,
Awami Jamhoori Party
Pakistan Socialist Party

 

[All-Green]

I used to dislike Altaf a lot but now not so much because his stance has become much more pro Pakistan and one that is in keeping with national integrity.
MQM has evolved into something much more than what is what a decade ago and that has to be respected.
Karachi is a huge city and houses a significant percentage of Pakistan's population, if a good job has been done by MQM then that is really not a small feat and should be appreciated.
Any positive has to be encouraged...eventually if MQM's more focused efforts and a national integrity drive gives them a reward in terms of greater electoral strength then it is all the more important for all Pakistanis to consider them much more seriously in the next elections, instead of voting for the so called local leaders across the various provinces.
Any party which works hard needs to be rewarded in the elections, this is the healthy competition we always talk about in an ideal democracy.
It can be ensured if we think out of the box and let go of past dislikes.

MQM has a lot of bad baggage but it has changed its approach and as long as it is willing to commit itself to the benefit of whole of Pakistan and not just one community, i shall support them for that is my point of view as a Pakistani and being from Punjab will in no way hinder my decision.

 

[apophenia]

Altaf Hussain /MQM might be guilty of confrontational (Ethnic) political tactics but it was strategic. The social and economic tensions saw MQM baptized by fire, giving its initiation a militant dimension. They turned against anyone which was not ready to accept them. With Rebellion brewing in Balochistan and a insurgency in the north, things couldn’t be worse. And in the mist of this mad circus, MQM has evolved into becoming a no-nonsense advocate of secular politics and sociology which seriously challenge the monstrous feudal system and extremism and for that we have to give MQM its due respect.

We need to grow up and look at the facts around them … endorsed em’ with their parietals not with their frontals.

 

[Developereo]

Didn't the MQM oppose the Swat IDPs coming into Karachi, purely because they were Pashtuns? That doesn't bode well for national unity.

It seems they are still motivated by ethnic politics. I wonder how much of their support for the army is based on principle (anti-terrorism) as opposed to anti-Pashtun bigotry.

Will an MQM government be the final straw that sees Balochistan and NWFP break away from Pakistan?

 

[araz]

MQM’s coming of age?​

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Posted by Murtaza Razvi in Featured Articles, Pakistan, Politics on 12 10th, 2009 | 11 responses

Of late, the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) is the only political party that has been making all the right noises on national issues, starting from its unequivocal condemnation of extremism to the considered stance on the controversial National Reconciliation Ordinance. The mourning day observed this week across urban Sindh on the call of the MQM for the victims of the Lahore Moon Market terrorist attacks was but a call for unity against a common enemy so opposed to the Pakistani majority’s way of life.

A transformation seems to be afoot in the party’s maturing political orientation. It is fanning out of its stronghold of urban Sindh to reach out to the people everywhere, be it in Gilgit-Baltistan or the huge swathes of the middle class in Punjab. If it continues on this path of widening its public appeal by raising issues that affect the citizens in their everyday lives, the party can truly come of age and broaden its public appeal.

There is a growing awareness of the dreadful gap left in national politics by the PPP and the PML-N, the two largest parties, which seem only to retreat into their entrenched positions to the detriment of public interest and good governance. This gap needs to be filled by a third force seeking wider public support based on doing politics that reflects the people’s needs and aspirations.

It was in 1967 when such a gap between the ruling and the ruled first came to the fore in what was then West Pakistan: Zulfikar Ali Bhutto’s Pakistan Peoples Party sought to bridge that gap by transforming the social contract, and with it the political lexicon. Let’s not forget that Mr Bhutto, too, was groomed in the lap of the military establishment, but when his calling beckoned he rose to the occasion. His party became the voice of the silent majority that had not been heard. The Bhutto magic lingers to this day, though the spell cast by the party has considerably weakened as it was diluted over time in the hurly burly that characterised the party’s every stint in power.

If the MQM can succeed in widening its public appeal on issue-based politics today, it could rekindle the hope for better governance than we have seen in the past many decades. The party can do it because it has, over the past seven years, acquired the wherewithal for such a role. It has been a ruling coalition partner at the centre and in Sindh, besides having effectively run city district governments in urban Sindh. This has helped the party break out of the ghetto mentality which went into its genesis.

A new sensibility, coupled with responsibility and the subtleties of being on the other side of the fence – that is, on the ruling side – while continuing to voice the concerns of the underdog, is just the right mix that a party claiming to represent the middle class needs. Despite many misgivings that exist against the MQM today, and for which the party too has to foot some blame, the people are so desperate right now that they would be willing to give the MQM a chance to deliver where all others have failed. And on the delivery front, the party is standing on firm ground given the good job it has done in Karachi over the past few years.

But even before that, the political vacuum that has existed for over two decades now is one that has left many middle-class people detached from politics. The people are just waiting to give anyone a chance having an agenda that resonates with their own wishes, as in hoping against hope. It should be recalled that under the devolution of power plan promulgated by General Musharraf in 2001, the MQM was able to secure over 100 nazims’ slots in Punjab alone.

This was because there was a big disconnect between the Muslim League headed by the Sharifs, who had been thrown out of power in the 1999 coup, and the people’s expectations of a representative government. But later it was the Muslim League of the Chaudhries that became Musharraf’s new surrogate. The ruling clique’s feudal mindset and the MQM’s pro-establishment stance at the time culminating in the mayhem of May 12, 2007, in Karachi, when the then defunct chief justice was not allowed to enter the city hurt the MQM’s popularity in Punjab.

However, the people of Punjab have a short memory; if the post-1970 election results are anything to go by, they, more than Pakistanis elsewhere, have voted across party lines. This makes the electorate there a potent force, one that can be won over provided your politics remains relevant to popular sentiment which, in turn, a party committed to its convictions can steer in the right direction. Isn’t that what democracy is all about?

Consider, for instance, the MQM’s popular demand to continue the local government system after making necessary changes to the laws that administer it, rather than scrapping the representative system at the grassroots level altogether. The stance resonates with public sentiment not only in Karachi but across the board.

At a recent conference held in the high security zone of Islamabad, some 500 supporters of the local government system, including many nazims from across the four provinces, braved the odds of reaching the capital to push the government for not derailing the local government system. The PPP and PML-N’s stance on the issue is highly controversial if not outright unpopular. It is seen by the people as an attempt to strengthen the provincial governments’ traditional, feudal-minded approach to amassing all power in their big-brotherly hand.

As for the MQM’s position on local governments, it is this brick-by-brick laying of the social and political edifice from the ground up that can win the party wider public support. But a prerequisite for garnering a broad-based backing will have to be MQM’s credentials as a political force that is inclusive and national in its appeal, as opposed to parochial or regional.

In the months ahead, if the MQM continues to throw its weight behind the right gut feel that can give way to a wider public consensus on a given issue, like on terrorism and the NRO, it can enjoy national leadership in a fairly good time.

Murtaza Razvi is the Editor, Magazines, at Dawn.

MQM’s coming of age? — The Dawn Blog Blog Archive

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"Despite many misgivings that exist against the MQM today, and for which the party too has to foot some blame, the people are so desperate right now that they would be willing to give the MQM a chance to deliver where all others have failed. And on the delivery front, the party is standing on firm ground given the good job it has done in Karachi over the past few years."

I agree with that - I don't agree ideologically with the PML-N's rather conservative views, and the Zardari led PPP has been a total disappointment and shown itself to be incapable of doing anything while acting as a lackey of the US and allowing the US to walk all over it.

I would definitely be in favor of giving the MQM a chance at national leadership and seeing how they can do better.

Although i agree with your sentiment, i do not agree with your inferance. the fact remains that MQM carries a lot of baggage with it. It is totally dependant on its leader in exile Altaf Hussain. Also on a national level, its policies are vague at best. if you look at the rank and file of MQM, it lacks the experience which is a hallmark of a mature party. Also, due to its fascist trends, it will not allow any discent in its ranks. This effectively means that it will never have quality thinkers and technocrats which give the party a national flavour and capability of handling the affairs of a nation. Although it has done well in karachi, people fail to recognize that the initial efforts were those of the Jamaat e islami nazim Naimatullah Saheb, who started the whole ball rolling with a master plan for the rejuvination of the city. Also inspite of having control over urban Hyderabad, MQM, has not been as successful in Hyderabad as it has been in karachi. I suspect, given their past performance in Sindh during nawaz Sharif,s time when they had relative power, they will fail miserably, as they do not have people of a calibre to lead the nation out of these difficult times. Much as i hate to say it, PPP minus its excess baggage under Gilan's leadership might be a better bet followed by PML N minus Mr N himself. That might still happen.
Araz

 

[araz]

I think his comment that creation of Pakistan was a blunder was a stupid statement was and will be. On the other hand things are not as bad as the author in the Pakistani spectator portrays. There are a lot of Immigrants that came and prospered in pakistan more then those they left behind in India.
When it comes to supporting the MQM i would have to say i would vote for them in the next election if i could. I think the more they get exposure in other parts of pakistan the more people will like them. If they want to became a truly
national party they have to include other ethnicities in there cadres especially Punjabis. I think they can make great inroads if they focus in southern Punjab because i think it is very underdeveloped and it is ripe for the picking.

I do not think his statement is a stupid one and reflects the thoughts of many who migrated from india with great expectations and great personal loss only to find a country rife with regional bias, ethnic tensions, and already dismembered. let me remind the board members that the true pakistan actually is a mere dream of what its creator thought it to be(a great part of it is already called Bangladesh, which is again a stark indication of the failure of pakistan as a state). Secondly, from my various conversations with quite a few senior people involved in the independance movement, it seems that till the last moment, we,ie the muslimsand their leadership did not want a separate homeland as such but wanted the right of self determination of our course within a loose indian confederation. i think the situation became Bleak due to a number of factors mainly, the intrigue of nehru and the remnants of the raj, and Mr jinnah's own failing health and some personal traits. Stating a fact does not make it stupid. However, As He has said pakistan is now formed and we have to live in it .So we must move on and develop harmony. Unfortunately we cant even look up above our petty biases and regionalism. Is it not true that most of the Bias Against Altaf hussain comes from regions in Punjab and NWFP, where the issue has been given a blatant regional flavour? Would any of the board members out here who are against him stand up and honestly say that their feeling are not based on regional grounds(wholly or in part). Who raised the spectre of Altaf hussain being Antipakistan and Antistate and to what end? What political gains were made especially in rural Sindh on this account? I do understand the pain of the people who have suffered on account of being affiliated with MQM, and wholeheartedly accept that it has carried out gross misjustice to many people.But this is not what we debate today!!
I think people must mature up and while having love for our country, accept that we and It has many short comings. the only way to solve these is to first accept thatr we have shortcomings which need to be overcome.
WaSalam
Araz

 

[araz]

During US Election Barak Obama made a remark that you cant put lip stick on a pig , its still a pig

The problem with MQM is that its roots are in etnic politics and violence along with a very shady closeness to india.

In my opinion they still have a long way to go before they can hope to really come of age. Also so long as Altaf Hussain is sitting some where in London and doing the same dramay bazi there is no way MQM will come off age.

Can you qaulify your satance. Who labelled us Mohajirs in Sindh!! Certaimnly not Altaf hussain!!Who incited the Sindhis against the mohajirs in the seventies when MQM was not even in sight? Do you even know what happened to the mohajirs in the seventies and eighties which eventually led to the formation of MQM? Even if Zia helped set it up, why did it get support overnight? Why do you think people are willing to give everything for the party, inspite of its fascist policies? Do PPP and PML(N) not have their roots in ethnic politics as well. Do PML and PPP not play the regional card?? Tell me the name of one party in the national mainstream having a vote bank which does not play the ethnic/or religious card.You may name a few parties who dont but where are they in the national mainstream? You have alluded t oMQM,s closeness to India. What is the basis of this and can you prove this. All of these allegations remain no more than allegations.Incidentally, does PML not collect money fromthe house of Saud, and Wali khan from USSR? I knew that PSF regularly got AID from friendship house. Its leader is currently sitting in the lap of US. Do you think he is doing so because he is in love wit the US of A? Come on man!! look at the ground reality.Thefact remains that MQM has had these allegations never proven against them, otherwise it would never have been allowed to work in Pakistani mainstream. Secondly, all parties are securing funds from somewhere outside. So what if?
Araz

 

[apophenia]

Didn't the MQM oppose the Swat IDPs coming into Karachi, purely because they were Pashtuns? That doesn't bode well for national unity.

Pashtuns come to Karachi but the change that new Pashtun (IDPs) arrivals maybe feeling is that because of the strong association of Pashtun elements with the Taliban and because from the news it seems the Pashtun just naturally join the Taliban which leads to is that “ All” Pushtun support the Taliban.This understandably makes people in Karachi wary of situation of IDPs. New arrivals make people uncertain because of the excess stress on the infrastructure but more so because they see them as possible threat.

As for MQM stand on the issue...

The MQM’s Dr. Farooq Sattar demanded the government register all displaced families entering Pakistan’s provinces. According to the Daily Times, “He said the Taliban had entered the settled areas along with the IDPs and had set up their operational points in Karachi and others cities of Sindh for suicide attacks and other terrorist activities.” Dawn quoted him adding, “Therefore, we demanded that the president, the prime minister, the interior minister and high-ups of the security agencies declare mandatory the registration of all migrating families arriving in Sindh, Punjab and Balochistan and lodge them at special makeshift camps so that the Taliban cannot enter the cities in disguise.”

NDMA lauds MQM’s support for IDPs

LONDON: The head of National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), Major General Farooq Ahmed has expressed his gratitude to the Muttahida Qaumi Movement Quaid Altaf Hussain for supporting the NDMA’s rehabilitation programs.Talking to Altaf on the phone, Maj. Gen. Farooq said that the initiative taken by the MQM was worth following. He also apprised the MQM chief of various relief and rehabilitation programs of the NDMA for Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) of Swat, Dir and Buner. Farooq also lauded role of the MQM in helping the affectees of the earthquake in Azad Kashmir, NWFP and Balochistan. Altaf Hussain assured Maj. Gen. Farooq his full support in relief and rehabilitation programs.

NDMA lauds MQM’s support for IDPs - GEO.tv

It seems they are still motivated by ethnic politics. I wonder how much of their support for the army is based on principle (anti-terrorism) as opposed to anti-Pashtun bigotry.

Still Karachi has long been a centre of migration, with an estimated 2.5 million Pashtuns not to mention millions of other ethnicities including Punjabis, Balochis, Kashmiris and foreigners such as Afghanis, Burmese, Bengalis, Vietnamese etc


Regardless of what impending crisis or ongoing military action, ethnic discourses are hard to shift and impossible to erase because of the political culture that has been prevailing since the inception of this country. Education is a part of the tool to solve this long standing predicament not cheap mud slugging . We don’t need any tutor to understand MQM’s shabby background but If we don’t agree with the existing political structure, then why not welcome something that’s has progressed.

 

[H2O3C4Nitrogen]

I personally think that MQM has entered the mainstream political arena of the country . I suggest this entity should also be injected in troubled areas of Balochistan and some few southren Punjab just to intense up the competition btw the Political giants like PPP and PML-N. By FAR MQM has done a marvelous job in shapping the Metropolitin city of Karachi though the crime factor is also on the rise which adds up to thier negative points.

 

[Fracker]

Somedays back our office fellows were sitting and discussing politics, we were discussing what could be worst then zardari. I said nothing can be worst the Zardari, one fellow raise his hand and said, well do u know "Altaf Bhai"? & all become agree yes there is something worst then "Zardari"

 

[Zee-Gen]

Mr. Araz I am in agreement with you here, but only to some extent. I spent almost my entire life here in Karachi (28 years) and have a lot of local very good friends. In my opinion, to understand the political approach of MQM, first, we have to understand the ethos of the Muhajir community……..especially in the case of MQM……majority of Muhajirs, u can say roughly 80 plus %, have no other point of view except only MQM is their sole representative and only MQM can protects their rights and without MQM, history repeats itself of 70s and 80s………all other nationalities hate us and they treated us and will like “outsiders”……so, whatever MQM did or doing has moral backing of their Muhajir community. On logical grounds, every political party has backing of their vehement workers regardless of what they are doing to country…….but my friend what I fear is, MQM is constantly sowing the seed of hate and with passage of time it is becoming stronger and growing. The latest development is Karachi is an example……..look at the, Surjani town, Nazimabad, F.B. area, Liquatabad, Gulshan, some parts of orangi town with Muhajir majority, Korangi, Landhi, Malir, Shah Faisal, model colony, Jacob line, jut line…………..and compare all these areas with non-Muhajir areas like Star gate, Chota gate, orangi town, Sohrab Goth, Banarus, Pehelwan Goth, Korangi (non-Muhajir area), Sultanabad, Lyari etc.……… community police all belongs to Muhajirs, u will never or hardly find any member of other community in it……….still plus four years’ checks are due of contractors belonging to non-Muhajir community and may more things…….

Creation of MQM, as far as 70s & 80s suppression of Muhajir community is concerned, was just a transformation from one sin to another and it was not a political rehabilitation because at that time other communities were involved in suppression of Muhajirs and now they are, nothing different….…..MQM was emerged with violence of years as being infuriated and fed up community of suppression and what will happen if history repeats itself, but this time by non-Muhajir communities……12 May was an example (u can pick dozens of examples from violent history of Karachi) and I am sure more violence is due if present policy of MQM continues and this is my fear………!!!!!

MQM’s “revenge mentality” is as disserviceable for Pakistan as their suppression in 70s and 80s because it is a manifestation of due future violence…….MQM’s true motto “salvation of Muhajir community” has been adulterated long ago with the takeover by Altaf Hussain as a sole leader, killing of Hakeem Saeed and many other capable members.

And on the positive side, no doubt, very social people…….mostly, what I found and that is the reason of their success in Karachi to make it an organized city, they love social activities, work as a community and always loyal to their organization and vice versa…..

With these capabilities, MQM can become a national party and I am sure very successful one, but only after elimination of “ethnic mentality” from party………!!!!

 

[zpak]

The MQM is definitely a party to take seriously now. Accusations that they are "anti Pakistani" or "ethnic based" have been mixed in the dirt. The amount of work they have done for Pakistan in terms of developing Karachi and support for the army against has won them hearts all over pakistan. I dont think there is a single party out there who has done more for urban sindh than the MQM has and is growing rapidly.

They are now representing districts in the Gilgit region and are also gaining popularity in parts of Punjab. Heck the PML-N feels threatened enough by the MQM to send police officers to harass MQM workers in Punjab.

Critics easily pull up the "Pakistan was a mistake" video up but they play the video out of context. If the MQM was soo anti Pakistani why would they help Pakistan's most important and strategic port so fast.