Fighting hegemony
The United Nations (UN) needs a complete reform and total structural overhaul. The most unfair body of the UN is the Security Council, having five nations with veto power to the decisions of the council. Because of this illegitimate and unfair veto power, the Security Council is incapable of administering justice and maintaining stable order and security in the world.
The United States is continuously misusing its veto rights to legitimise all the injustices of Israel. China and Russia are also using their veto rights to protect their vested interests. These permanent members of the Security Council were the victors of World War II. It’s why Germany and Japan don’t have permanent seats. They conveniently forgot to take into consideration the basic principles of absolute justice and its grave importance in order to maintain true international peace. How can the world body ignore India? These powers will never accept a true change that goes against their present hegemony.
From Mr N. E. Haq
Dubai
Website comment
Take the responsibility
From offensive to defensive, US focus is shifting to home affairs rather than meddling in international affairs. It has taken two beheadings for the US to realise that injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. The common enemy of all terrorists operating worldwide is not the countries or regions from where they are operating right now – it seems to be only the US. If all these terrorists converge into a collective force, they will probably outnumber the combined strength of North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (Nato) forces. Then, the fight would be between human beings who are ready to sacrifice their life for a supposed cause and forces trying to defeat them. One side likes total destruction, while the other is trying to maintain peace and security within their home country while causing harm elsewhere, in the meantime. Any movement by US-lead Nato forces against Russia would be a resumption of a bipolar world, with China playing a major role in it. I recently watched a report in one of the major international news channels operating from the US, and they were talking about a widow from Iraq who lost her dear ones due to the operations of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil). Even in the absence of so-called weapons of mass destruction, the so-called stabilisation forces actually destabilised Iraq and its economic fabric. The US cannot be absolved by simply conducting some kind of air strike against Isil. Who else will look after this menace, Isil, other than the US?
From Mr Girish R. Edathitta
Dubai
Hypocritical actions
Russia and Vladimir Putin are the latest bad boys of the world. Anybody who follows current affairs and understands geopolitics will know that Russia has been on the Western radar ever since it started showing economic growth. The West, through it’s own economic strength and military power, understands very well what it means to its hegemony in the world order. I believe the latest Nato summit in Wales is nothing but an attempt to drum up imaginary dangers and to start manufacturing people’s consent in order to put in place a move against Russia. If they do end up taking action against Russia, then it would be an even bigger mistake than the actions taken as a result of 9/11. When it came to acting against the Muslim countries, the West was warned by plenty of intellectuals about the potential backlash that would result from carrying out mass punishment and breaking of international laws, but they did not heed the warning. It seems the US believes that money, military, Western intellect, high moral standards and law can be utilised as seen fit and that it is beyond anybody else’s reach. When Israel announced it was going to annex more Palestinian land, did the West impose any sanctions on Israel? Of course not, that is only reserved for Russia. These are the hypocrisies and double standards of the West.
From Mr Hassan Ali Jamani
UAE
A stable Pakistan
Ever since Nawaz Sharif came into power, following the May 2013 general elections, the chairman of Pakistan’s Tehreek-e-Insaf party, Imran Khan, has accused Sharif of acquiring power through rigged elections (“Imran Khan’s party to celebrate a month of anti-government protests”, Gulf News, September 11). This led Khan to stage a protest and sit-ins in Islamabad that began on August 14, 2014. Even though Khan has made his demands to the government, which include the prime minister’s resignation and holding free and fair elections, the revolutionary marches have been hampering the growth of democracy in Pakistan. Although Pakistan came into existence 67 years ago, true democracy in the country is only six years old. Now that Islamabad has been taken over by the revolutionary march, Khan must resolve the issue — not for personal interest, but for Pakistan’s sake. If Sharif is not going to resign, then Khan and Sharif must live with it and devise a diplomatic strategy to tackle the situation. Public opinion states that the military might take over to dissolve the crisis; however the Chief of the Army Staff has spoken in favour of strengthening democracy. Therefore, a diplomatic stance will be the best option for a stable Pakistan.
From Mr Mohammad Omar Eftikhar
Karachi, Pakistan
Rise and fall
There needs to be change. This is the cry of every principled progressive Pakistani who is supporting Imran Khan. Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) demands for a free judicial commission for the alleged election rigging, along with the prime minister’s resignation, is in accordance with the law and constitution. I think that the majority agrees with this, except those who supported the five-year rule of Asif Ali Zardari from 2008-2013 and those who are now ridiculing the whole nation in the joint session. Nobody has bothered to discuss the PTI’s or the Pakistan Awami Tehreek’s (PAT) demands. People need to ask the country’s prime minister why he lied on the floor of the house, regarding the meetings between the leaders. Instead, everyone seems to be too busy showing support to a democracy that is based on false mandates. When will we, as a nation, learn to stand by the truth? We need to say ‘no’ to this corrupt system and corrupt politicians. People in authority need to say ‘no’ to injustice, whether they be in the military, judiciary, administration, police, or parliament. It’s time we show strength and support to someone like Khan, who is not standing there for personal gains, but for us and our children. The same generation that saw Pakistan liberated, is now seeing it go down one more time.
From Ms Khaula Shahbaz Rao
Dubai
Conflict of interest
Before elections, everyone was saying that Khan would win it, as he is the person that people trust the most. Pakistan has woken up now and people have come out from their houses. From a two-year-old child to a 70-year-old man, almost everyone is out there in Islamabad, demanding Nawaz Sharif’s resignation, because people believe he won the elections through false votes and a fake mandate. The government holds many from the Sharif family. It seems more like a family-owned government at times and as a citizen of Pakistan, I am fed up of this situation. I don’t think there is an economic boom happening — this is something the government has claimed. Plans for the metro project in Karachi are interesting. It seems that all the iron required for such a project is being purchased from Ittefaq Group, which is owned by the Sharif family. I believe the cement and other materials are going to be purchased from other family-owned companies as well. This is hypocritical and flippant, and not in the essence of democracy. In the end, we need a free and independent election commission and judicial reforms where police and courts are free from all kinds of political pressure. Then we will hold independent elections.
From Mr Asad Iqbal
Dubai
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