After Eight!

Donot fear perfection- for you will never achieve it. That's what they say. Glad to not have had to go through covering live , the endless celebratory gatherings of Shoaib and Sania wedding. But yesterday, did have to ask my reporter at the hotel covering the final walima in Lahore as to what was cooking there. Well that is part of my job. And I sincerely hope that the celebrations have just begun for the couple to last a life time!

Shoaib at Walima in Lahore

But people have so much to talk about . More than is actually happening.And if you reprimand them for gossiping a bit too much about the Shoania nuptials, they are quick to snap at media, holding them responsible for creating a buzz that fails to subside. They are so disturbed over reports that the government financed Shoaib Malik's walima in the five star.

Policemen in uniform turn up to ensure closure of shops at 8pm

Then, there is this 8 pm market closing time that is pinching everyone. Literally, people have walked up to me to complain about this. In one part of Lahore for example, reportedly Police has taken upon itself to ensure that the poor close down their small general parchoon stores bang at eight. On the first day, as Police left, they threatened shopkeepers that if shopkeepers donot pull down the shutters on time the next day, the electricity meters of their shops will be disconnected and confiscated for six months. They would also be fined Rs.20,000.

Poor life for the poor.

But as the adage goes, where there is a will there is way. A guy in the same neighborhood who runs a Public Call Centre has come up with a brilliant idea. He takes out a table outside his home, displays his pone top up vouchers along with the phone set. People are able to communicate therfore.

And, all of this happens after eight.

Landmark

Diary Khan tells you why UAE loves Juma Al Majid.

One of the most interesting things about daily life in Dubai is the way you receive directions to a particular address. It involves alot of landmarks. In my case , it was Juma Al Majid Centre that was supposed to appear on the right when I took my first left on the main road that began where the Old Dubai Cinema used to exist once and which is just across the Naif Police Station. Thats how my would be land lady described to me the apartment block's precise location.

So, there is little chance ever to get lost on the streets of Dubai.

For me, Juma Al Majid has become more special. Not only because it helped me reach home every evening from work but also because he has made tremendous contribution towards preservation of Islamic culture .

And this week, the Arab American Institute (AAI) is giving its annual Kahlil Gibran “Spirit of Humanity” Awards in Washington, DC to him .

Named for the world renowned Lebanese poet and philosopher, Kahlil Gibran, the awards recognize individuals and institutions, who by the work they do, the values they project, or the challenges they issue forth, exemplify the “Spirit of Humanity”.

UAE businessman and philanthropist, Juma al Majid is being honored for his extraordinary efforts to preserve Arab and Islamic culture. Through his efforts, thousands of books and manuscripts have been saved. What a gift to give!

Juma Al Majid

Juma Al Majid was born in 1930, in the Al Shindagha area in Dubai. From a young age he understood the value of books which were not readily available at that time.From the early fifties he sought to open a number of private charity schools and went on to open two schools in Dubai.He himself took several trips to a number of countries worldwide in an effort to collect rare manuscripts. In 1990 he founded Beit Al Khair with a few of his benevolent peers, with the aim of providing financial and in-kind assistance to the needy and the poor.

These are just some of the reasons why Al Majid is revered in his own country for his philanthropy. So, when Arabs in nine countries were asked to name their favorite personality in the region, in most countries the winners were athletes or entertainers. Emiratis chose Juma al Majid.Nice choice!

Sequel

The picture above is just one small example of how the 2 Stroke rickshaw goes beyond just being a cheap mode of reasonable transport. It is culture. A way of life. The urban classes in the city donot care. Just as Basant is something to be scared of now, so is the rickshaw. It is not cool any longer. Even the Jashn e Ba0haaran is a festival for the under classes of the city, I mean what the burgers call......paindooz-it is for them only. I don't know if it is something to be sad about. May be that is how societies evolve.

With Naomi Campbell

( For more on her see, Naomi, She's so fly, post on her at Diary Khan)

Different Strokes

Two stroke rickshaw to get off the road
There are so many differences in the city where I have a home and in the city where I live. One of them, and a major one let me tell you is in terms of transportation for the common man. Really , this term common man is so derogatrory in so many ways.....but I can't think of a better alternative at the moment.

So, it could be a case of rickshaw versus the taxi . But now even the good old rickshaw faces a competition. The two stroke engine rickshaw faces competition from its newer Chinese version - the four stroke engine model. In a bid to go green perhaps , Punjab government is replacing the two stroke one with four stroke one.


The new model of the auto is quite attractive. It got a lustre exterior and is so spacious that a woman of any size could easily get in and out. You must have heard many a tales of some hind quarters getting stuck in a bid to get out! Well, the credit for that goes to the two stroke version. Four stroke makes no chugging sound and is also good for the environment in that it does not billow smoke that much.
Less smoke and noise but More space and price - The 4 Stroke



Its price is around 150,000 rupees and if you lease it , it would cost you around 240,000.Miantenance of the new auto is expensive . The accelerator wire for example costs around 500 bucks while the two stroke accelerator wire could be replaced in a mere 150.


Rickshaw walas are worried. Difficulties for them multiplied as the passengers for rickshaws have dwindled against growing trend of keeping personal bikes or cars as getting on a rickshaw is no longer considered classy. That's not all, the two stroke rickshaws are banned entry to many important roads of Lahore. Mall road, Jail road, Wahdat Road and even Ferozpur road is to be included in the list where two stroke is not allowed. That automatically brings down the number of passengers that would get on them.




What the Government did not do?


Authorities made a nice move to conserve fuel and environment. But as is always the case , the poor rickshaw wala was ignored. The government gave no incentive to them to switch to the newer version by accepting the old model back from them and letting them have the newer one at a discount. They are simply expected to buy the new model from their pockets at a time when
fuel prices and items of daily use are even beyond the middle classers.


Meanwhile I continue to explore the deep ocean that Lahore is, on a rickshaw sometimes the two stroke one and at times the four stroke one.

Fable?

Drawing by A.Durer

There was a king of Spain who was very proud of his ancestors, and who was known for his cruelty to the weak.

One time, he was walking with his advisers across a field in Aragon, where – years before – he had lost his father during a battle, when he found a holy man searching a large pile of bones.

What are you doing there? – asked the king.

Honored greetings, Your Majesty – said the holy man. – When I heard that the king of Spain was coming this way, I resolved to recover the bones of your late father and present them to you. But however hard I search, I cannot find them: they are exactly the same as the bones of country folk, the poor, beggars and slaves.

Resurrection

The entire Christian faith hinges upon the centrality of the resurrection of Jesus and the hope for a life after our own death. And this is what the Easter holiday is all about.

But this year on one of the most important holidays on the Christian calendar, the Church faces a real crisis that needs to be sorted out . The issue is child sex abuse by some clergy men over the past decades.

Although the Church is taking the issue of abuse very seriously, many feel that its time to consider celibacy.

Celibacy is a rule which prevents Catholic priests from marrying and this does not date back to early Christian times but became mandatory only during the middle ages. This is being now questioned by some Church heavy weights because they see a connection between celibacy and some psychological problems that can be associated by remaining unmarried.

Easter holiday was observed here in Pakistan too, ofcourse. Instead of the Midnight Mass on Christmas eve, there is an early morning mass on Easter which is followed by the usual eating and meeting that goes on at every festival irrespective of faith.