On the week 7 elimination episode of Dancing With the Stars, Pamela Anderson, the magically babelicious pop culture icon who reduced Tom Bergeron to a 12-year-old boy, said farewell to sequins, fringe, and the daily execution of splits. Her poise, ability to assume characters, and sweet nature will be missed. Honestly, it seemed like she knew she'd be gone. She was calm and cracking jokes, as if she'd already had a decent cry before the liiiiiive taping. Due to a vague-sounding injury, Pam got to close out her DWTS experience in a lovely pastel princess gown and perfect makeup instead of a black pleather raincoat and streaks of sweat. Hey, you gotta keep it classy, even on reality TV.
Your votes had set the stage for a shocking elimination! I wouldn't call Pam's oust that shocking, but it did provide the graphics department with a great excuse to splatter sliver lightning bolts all over the contestants' headshots. I have to say, when Tom said ''One of these couples will be in the bottom two'' and the audience gasped, I thought it would be Nicole and Derek. Alas, the ''fast, furious, and fabulous'' Erin and ''her Russian'' could not survive the unflattering bloodbath (of light) of the dreaded bottom two.
My favorite part of Tuesday's show was Niecy's previously taped outburst backstage. ''Why do people keep asking me that? Did I think .............
Read More:ezto.in
Thursday, May 6, 2010
Sunday, August 16, 2009
The end of hope in Swat Valley
In the summer of 1990, I was a carefree backpacker touring my way around Pakistan’s North West Frontier Province when I discovered a paradise in Swat Valley.
I walked in its lush emerald meadows, gasped in awe at the mountain ridges on the horizon and admired the striking, handsome faces of its fair-haired and often blue-eyed, peaceful people.
I thought then I’d found the most beautiful place on earth, one I’d come back to later when I had children and wanted to show them the majesty of God’s work.
Today that paradise has effectively been ceded by Pakistan’s government to a Taliban group which has bombed girls’ schools, music and video shops, and warned barbers the price of shaving a beard is death.
It has terrorized the elected, secular government of the North West Frontier Province, assassinated several of its key leaders and last month began dumping the bodies of those it has murdered in Green Square in the heart of the Valley’s largest town Mingora, including those of dancing girls who defied its warnings to give up performing at parties and weddings.
Swat’s danc ing girls turned out braver than the police, who ran or looked away, and the government which failed to train or properly equip them or support the ministers its people had elected to rule them.
Instead, in the new democratic Pakistan, and in an area ‘ruled’ by a secular party, terror is about to be announced the victor, and will now enjoy the spoils. The local Taliban’s demand of Sharia Law has been agreed and the hope of justice among the families of those butchered for buying a video, singing a song, or governing in accordance with their secular mandate, has been killed too.
The local Taliban, known as the Tehrik-e-Nifaz-e-Shariat-e-Mohammadi, and run by a man who has spent years in jail for leading militants to fight NATO troops in Afghanistan, has now been acknowledged as the true power in the Valley, and its fatwas are read out every evening on the eight o’clock broadcasts of Maulana Fazlullah, or ‘Maulana Radio’ as he is known. The Maulana, the son-in law of the TNSM’s leader Maulana Sufi Muhammad, and his henchmen, issue the latest fatwas and warnings on what they will not permit, and who they will kill.
The government claims that Maulana Radio’s ‘Taliban’ is different from the Taliban which hosts al-Qaeda militants in the tribal areas alongside the Afghan border and launches attacks on NATO forces on the other sides. This ‘Taliban’ is not out in the dusty wastes of the Federally-Administered Tribal Areas, but in a ‘settled’ area, not so far from Islamabad.
By coming to terms with this brand of Taliban, Pakistan’s government hopes it will stop its creed spreading throughout the country to the where the metropolitan elites of Lahore, Karachi and even Islamabad enjoy a party lifestyle, drink single malt whisky and admire their wives’ revealing saris and kurtas.
This deal to bless brutality in Swat is being described by some as an example of the ‘smart power’ Hillary Clinton spoke of recently in the U.S Senate, losing a battle to win a war, focusing on the realms of what’s possible, and recognizing that winning does not necessarily mean ‘interfering.’
Those with longer memories recall Sharia Law being a cornerstone of Swat’s legal system under the Raj of British India. Benazir Bhutto herself had agreed such a deal with Maulana Sufi Muhammad, and several National Assembly members from the PPP and other democratic parties support Sharia Law for Swat to speed up the slow judicial system.
But for those who voted for the secular Awami National Party because they wanted their daughters educated, or because they wanted all views to be tolerated, or they just wanted to watch a Lollywood film or enjoy an evening being entertained by Swat’s celebrated dancing girls and singers, it is a confirmation of what they already knew: Democracy and the rule of law in Pakistan are not matters of principle or inalienable rights, but fleeting blooms like those which briefly colour the slopes of Swat’s green spring meadows.
I’d love to be able to take my three children for lunch on the lawn of the Swat’s Serena Hotel, to take in the whitewashed colonial grandeur of its bungalow, and walk on the tracks up through the green hills to where the mountain ridges give way to the heavens.
Despite living in striking distance of the Swat Valley, my hopes of realizing this dream are inextricably linked to those looking for a justice and their private vices to be ignored or tolerated as they once were.
I’ll have to find another valley.
Source blogs.telegraph.co.uk
I walked in its lush emerald meadows, gasped in awe at the mountain ridges on the horizon and admired the striking, handsome faces of its fair-haired and often blue-eyed, peaceful people.
I thought then I’d found the most beautiful place on earth, one I’d come back to later when I had children and wanted to show them the majesty of God’s work.
Today that paradise has effectively been ceded by Pakistan’s government to a Taliban group which has bombed girls’ schools, music and video shops, and warned barbers the price of shaving a beard is death.
It has terrorized the elected, secular government of the North West Frontier Province, assassinated several of its key leaders and last month began dumping the bodies of those it has murdered in Green Square in the heart of the Valley’s largest town Mingora, including those of dancing girls who defied its warnings to give up performing at parties and weddings.
Swat’s danc ing girls turned out braver than the police, who ran or looked away, and the government which failed to train or properly equip them or support the ministers its people had elected to rule them.
Instead, in the new democratic Pakistan, and in an area ‘ruled’ by a secular party, terror is about to be announced the victor, and will now enjoy the spoils. The local Taliban’s demand of Sharia Law has been agreed and the hope of justice among the families of those butchered for buying a video, singing a song, or governing in accordance with their secular mandate, has been killed too.
The local Taliban, known as the Tehrik-e-Nifaz-e-Shariat-e-Mohammadi, and run by a man who has spent years in jail for leading militants to fight NATO troops in Afghanistan, has now been acknowledged as the true power in the Valley, and its fatwas are read out every evening on the eight o’clock broadcasts of Maulana Fazlullah, or ‘Maulana Radio’ as he is known. The Maulana, the son-in law of the TNSM’s leader Maulana Sufi Muhammad, and his henchmen, issue the latest fatwas and warnings on what they will not permit, and who they will kill.
The government claims that Maulana Radio’s ‘Taliban’ is different from the Taliban which hosts al-Qaeda militants in the tribal areas alongside the Afghan border and launches attacks on NATO forces on the other sides. This ‘Taliban’ is not out in the dusty wastes of the Federally-Administered Tribal Areas, but in a ‘settled’ area, not so far from Islamabad.
By coming to terms with this brand of Taliban, Pakistan’s government hopes it will stop its creed spreading throughout the country to the where the metropolitan elites of Lahore, Karachi and even Islamabad enjoy a party lifestyle, drink single malt whisky and admire their wives’ revealing saris and kurtas.
This deal to bless brutality in Swat is being described by some as an example of the ‘smart power’ Hillary Clinton spoke of recently in the U.S Senate, losing a battle to win a war, focusing on the realms of what’s possible, and recognizing that winning does not necessarily mean ‘interfering.’
Those with longer memories recall Sharia Law being a cornerstone of Swat’s legal system under the Raj of British India. Benazir Bhutto herself had agreed such a deal with Maulana Sufi Muhammad, and several National Assembly members from the PPP and other democratic parties support Sharia Law for Swat to speed up the slow judicial system.
But for those who voted for the secular Awami National Party because they wanted their daughters educated, or because they wanted all views to be tolerated, or they just wanted to watch a Lollywood film or enjoy an evening being entertained by Swat’s celebrated dancing girls and singers, it is a confirmation of what they already knew: Democracy and the rule of law in Pakistan are not matters of principle or inalienable rights, but fleeting blooms like those which briefly colour the slopes of Swat’s green spring meadows.
I’d love to be able to take my three children for lunch on the lawn of the Swat’s Serena Hotel, to take in the whitewashed colonial grandeur of its bungalow, and walk on the tracks up through the green hills to where the mountain ridges give way to the heavens.
Despite living in striking distance of the Swat Valley, my hopes of realizing this dream are inextricably linked to those looking for a justice and their private vices to be ignored or tolerated as they once were.
I’ll have to find another valley.
Source blogs.telegraph.co.uk
JI rally against military operation in Swat today
Jama’at-e-Islami will organise a rally from Nasir Bagh to Punjab Assembly on Sunday (today) to protest against military operation in Sawat, growing US intervention and drone attacks and to express solidarity with citizens of small provinces and tribal areas. JI Ameer Syed Munawar Hassan will lead the rally that will be participated by party leadership and workers. JI has finalised arrangements for making the rally a success. JI Punjab Ameer Liaquat Baloch made this announcement while addressing a Press conference here at Lahore Press Club on Saturday. Baloch said the NWFP, Sindh, Balochistan and tribal areas were targets of conspirators and the situation demands from the people of Punjab to raise voice. He said that operation in the past created gap between army and public and the recent one could prove disastrous for the federation. He demanded immediate end to the military operation and resolution of issues through dialogue. Referring to the situation in Balochistan, he said that the government was not taking measures for restoring the confidence of Baloch. He said that if the government let the situation go from bad to worse, it would be harmful for the federation. He demanded early recovery of missing persons and return of Dr Aafia Siddiqi. Terming May 12 as a black day in Pakistan history, Baloch said that the party responsible for Karachi carnage was now part of the govt. He said that the opposition parties decided in London APC that no alliance would be made with the MQM in future, but the PPP joined hands with the party in the name of national reconciliation.
Source www.nation.com.pk
Islamic Law Now Official for a Valley in Pakistan
Mr. Zardari’s approval came late Monday, after Parliament voted overwhelmingly for the measure, which would allow militants to administer justice through courts whose judges have Islamic training.
The local government in Swat agreed in February to allow the militants to impose Islamic law in exchange for a cease-fire. The deal came after months of fighting, during which the Pakistani Army was unable to subdue the militants.
Mr. Zardari had delayed giving the agreement a national stamp of approval, saying that the militants should first demonstrate that they would abide by the cease-fire. He signed the measure under pressure from conservatives, even though little in the valley has changed.
The deal has raised concerns in the Obama administration, which is pressing Pakistan to work harder to counter militants as the United States steps up its campaign in neighboring Afghanistan.
“We’re disappointed that the Parliament didn’t take into account the legitimate concerns around civil and human rights,” the White House spokesman, Robert Gibbs, said Tuesday.
Residents of the Swat Valley, once one of Pakistan’s most popular vacation spots, have been terrorized by militants from the Taliban, who human rights activists say are using Islam as an excuse to extend their own power. In the past week the Taliban made inroads into Buner, a district only 60 miles from the capital and likely to be the next district to fall under their control.
“The conflict is political, not religious,” said Ibn-e-Abduh Rehman, head of the Commission of “They don’t want Parliament, they don’t want elections, they don’t want judges.”
A former interior minister, Aftab Ahmad Sherpao, said the government had no choice but to back the deal because its military campaign in the area had failed and civilian casualties had been mounting.
“This agreement was reached not from a position of strength but from a position of weakness,” he said.
The government now needs to press the militants by monitoring whether they hold up their end of the bargain to lay down their arms, Mr. Sherpao said.
Critics of the deal worry that it could simply provide the militants with a new haven from which they can carry out attacks. But Mr. Sherpao said the signing meant the militants had no excuse to use violence.
Source NYTimes
The local government in Swat agreed in February to allow the militants to impose Islamic law in exchange for a cease-fire. The deal came after months of fighting, during which the Pakistani Army was unable to subdue the militants.
Mr. Zardari had delayed giving the agreement a national stamp of approval, saying that the militants should first demonstrate that they would abide by the cease-fire. He signed the measure under pressure from conservatives, even though little in the valley has changed.
The deal has raised concerns in the Obama administration, which is pressing Pakistan to work harder to counter militants as the United States steps up its campaign in neighboring Afghanistan.
“We’re disappointed that the Parliament didn’t take into account the legitimate concerns around civil and human rights,” the White House spokesman, Robert Gibbs, said Tuesday.
Residents of the Swat Valley, once one of Pakistan’s most popular vacation spots, have been terrorized by militants from the Taliban, who human rights activists say are using Islam as an excuse to extend their own power. In the past week the Taliban made inroads into Buner, a district only 60 miles from the capital and likely to be the next district to fall under their control.
“The conflict is political, not religious,” said Ibn-e-Abduh Rehman, head of the Commission of “They don’t want Parliament, they don’t want elections, they don’t want judges.”
A former interior minister, Aftab Ahmad Sherpao, said the government had no choice but to back the deal because its military campaign in the area had failed and civilian casualties had been mounting.
“This agreement was reached not from a position of strength but from a position of weakness,” he said.
The government now needs to press the militants by monitoring whether they hold up their end of the bargain to lay down their arms, Mr. Sherpao said.
Critics of the deal worry that it could simply provide the militants with a new haven from which they can carry out attacks. But Mr. Sherpao said the signing meant the militants had no excuse to use violence.
Source NYTimes
Taleban announce Swat ceasefire
Taleban fighters in north-west Pakistan's restive Swat valley have announced a 10-day ceasefire.
The move came after local officials signed a deal with a militant leader to enforce Islamic law in the district.
The ceasefire halts fighting between Pakistani security forces and Taleban militants in Swat that has raged since November 2007.
Once one of Pakistan's most popular holiday destinations, the Swat valley is now mostly under Taleban control.
Hundreds of civilians have died in an increasingly bloody insurgency there, while thousands of others have been forced to migrate.
The Taleban have set up their own system of Islamic justice, as they understand it, and have closed down schools, denying education to tens of thousands of children, says the BBC's M Ilyas Khan, who was recently in Swat.
Pakistani President Asif Zardari has warned that the entire country is fighting for its survival against the Taleban, whose influence he said has spread deep into the country.
In an interview with US TV network CBS, President Asif Zardari said the Taleban had established a presence across "huge parts" of Pakistan.
'Goodwill gesture'
The agreement was signed by Taleban cleric Sufi Mohammad after talks with the North West Frontier Province's government.
The agreement binds the provincial government to implement Sharia law in the Malakand division, which comprises Swat and its adjoining areas.
Many people in Swat now would favour an early exit by the army as the they have failed to roll back the Taleban or protect the Taleban's opponents
The BBC's M Ilyas Khan
A militant spokesman, Muslim Khan, said the ceasefire was a "goodwill gesture to the ongoing talks between Sufi Mohammad and the government".
Talks on how Sharia law will be implemented are to continue on Monday between Taleban representatives and officials of the provincial government in the capital of North West Frontier Province, Peshawar, said Reuters news agency.
Details are to be formally announced at that time.
There has been no reaction so far from the Pakistani central government.
The Taleban say they will examine the document thoroughly before announcing a permanent end to hostilities.
Army exit urged
A Chinese engineer held hostage for five months had also been released as a sign of good faith, the militants said.
Long Xiaowei, who was captured last August in the Dir region with a Chinese colleague, arrived at China's embassy in Islamabad earlier on Sunday and was in good health, a Chinese official said.
The colleague escaped in October, the Taleban said at the time.
The people of Swat have been caught between the army and the Taleban, says our correspondent.
More than 1,000 civilians have died in shelling by the army or from beheadings sanctioned by the Taleban. Thousands more have been displaced.
The Taleban now control the entire countryside of Swat, limiting army control to parts of the valley's capital, Mingora.
Many people in Swat now would favour an early exit by the army as the they have failed to roll back the Taleban or protect the Taleban's opponents, says our correspondent.
Source BBC
The move came after local officials signed a deal with a militant leader to enforce Islamic law in the district.
The ceasefire halts fighting between Pakistani security forces and Taleban militants in Swat that has raged since November 2007.
Once one of Pakistan's most popular holiday destinations, the Swat valley is now mostly under Taleban control.
Hundreds of civilians have died in an increasingly bloody insurgency there, while thousands of others have been forced to migrate.
The Taleban have set up their own system of Islamic justice, as they understand it, and have closed down schools, denying education to tens of thousands of children, says the BBC's M Ilyas Khan, who was recently in Swat.
Pakistani President Asif Zardari has warned that the entire country is fighting for its survival against the Taleban, whose influence he said has spread deep into the country.
In an interview with US TV network CBS, President Asif Zardari said the Taleban had established a presence across "huge parts" of Pakistan.
'Goodwill gesture'
The agreement was signed by Taleban cleric Sufi Mohammad after talks with the North West Frontier Province's government.
The agreement binds the provincial government to implement Sharia law in the Malakand division, which comprises Swat and its adjoining areas.
Many people in Swat now would favour an early exit by the army as the they have failed to roll back the Taleban or protect the Taleban's opponents
The BBC's M Ilyas Khan
A militant spokesman, Muslim Khan, said the ceasefire was a "goodwill gesture to the ongoing talks between Sufi Mohammad and the government".
Talks on how Sharia law will be implemented are to continue on Monday between Taleban representatives and officials of the provincial government in the capital of North West Frontier Province, Peshawar, said Reuters news agency.
Details are to be formally announced at that time.
There has been no reaction so far from the Pakistani central government.
The Taleban say they will examine the document thoroughly before announcing a permanent end to hostilities.
Army exit urged
A Chinese engineer held hostage for five months had also been released as a sign of good faith, the militants said.
Long Xiaowei, who was captured last August in the Dir region with a Chinese colleague, arrived at China's embassy in Islamabad earlier on Sunday and was in good health, a Chinese official said.
The colleague escaped in October, the Taleban said at the time.
The people of Swat have been caught between the army and the Taleban, says our correspondent.
More than 1,000 civilians have died in shelling by the army or from beheadings sanctioned by the Taleban. Thousands more have been displaced.
The Taleban now control the entire countryside of Swat, limiting army control to parts of the valley's capital, Mingora.
Many people in Swat now would favour an early exit by the army as the they have failed to roll back the Taleban or protect the Taleban's opponents, says our correspondent.
Source BBC
Taliban Leave Swat Now Set Up In Shangla!, Kill these ba*tards!
Easy To MeThe Taliban who escaped the military action in Swat are said now to have assembled in the neighbouring Shangla district. Politicians there have confirmed the presence of the militants in large numbers. They also appear unshaken by the action against them and have been establishing check posts and road blocks to assert their hold over the area. Local people quite naturally feel alarmed. Attacks have been reported on the homes of some influential people who have opposed extremism or spoken out against the Taliban. Quite evidently their tactics and methods remain the same. We wonder how the authorities plan to tackle this situation. It now seems quite apparent that this is the line of action the Taliban will follow. As they are hunted down in one part of the province they will simply retreat to another. From here they may already be planning an eventual return to areas wrested away from them after a massive effort. People in Shangla are now demanding they be flushed out of their towns and villages as well, but have been concerned about possible civilian casualties in case the army moves in.We need to find a solution. The one at present resembles some childish game of hide and seek. But for people it has deadly repercussions. It is obvious also that the Taliban possess enough gun power and force to present a threat even now. Key leaders who remain on the loose are possibly organizing their actions. We need a plan to deal with the militants in a more holistic manner. They must be prevented from terrorizing one group of people and then another. There is no sense in chasing them out from one location only to have them assemble in another. A plan needs to be put into effect to achieve this and rescue the NWFP of a scourge it has faced for far too many months and years.
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