Pakistan

[Simon Butler (pictured) represented the Australian Socialist Alliance at the Labour Party Pakistan’s January 27-28 conference. He also addressed the 10,000 strong rally of workers and peasants on January 29 on behalf of the Alliance. The article below is abridged from the Pakistani News on Sunday.]
There are two things most Australians associate with Pakistan: cricket and terrorism. The fault lies mostly with the one-sided reporting by Australia’s mainstream media.
Most Australians heard of the terrorist attack on the Sri Lankan cricket team in March 2009. In May, they saw reports of the Taliban’s insurgency in the Swat Valley.

[Pictured: The Labour Party Pakistan's Farooq Tariq addresses the Faisalabad worker-peasant rally.]
By Farooq Tariq
February 1, 2010 -- An historic gathering took place at Faisalabad, the third largest city in Pakistan, on January 29, 2010. The event was jointly organised by the Labour Qaumi (National) Movement (LQM) and the Anjuman Mozareen Punjab (AMP -- Punjab Tenants' Association), two movements of workers and peasants that, by their defiant activities in several Punjabi districts, have caught the imagination of thousands. For the first time, these two important movements of workers and peasants in Punjab shared a common platform.

By Farooq Tariq
January 21, 2010 -- The political perspectives of the Labour Party Pakistan (LPP) have been put to the test several times in a rapidly changing political situation. From day one we opposed General Musharraf's military dictatorship. We oppose both US imperialism and religious fanaticism, while some feel they must support one side or the other.
Almost all of the present LPP leadership, including women leaders, were jailed under the Musharraf regime for demanding democratic rights or taking part in the struggle for workers’ and peasants’ rights. The LLP has worked to maintain its political space and refused to be driven underground.

By Farooq Tariq, Nasir Mansoor and Khalid Mahmood

December 27, 2009 -- The Labour Party Pakistan has lost our four most brilliant comrades, Abdul Salam, Najma Khanum, Rehana Kausar and Wahid Baloch, in a road accident on December 13 near Ormara, Baloachistan. They were in the coastal region, one of the most deprived areas of the country, to organise the home-based women workers (HBWW). They held two focus group meetings and a wider consultation on December 11, 12 and 13 in the port cities of Pasni and Gawadar. They also formed core groups and clusters of local HBWW and planned to organise more meeting in the region in month of January next year.

By Farooq Tariq, December 4, 2009
The Labour Party Pakistan (LPP) condemns US President Barack Obama's Afghanistan policy and demands that all NATO forces immediately withdraw from Afghanistan and stop drone attacks on Pakistan. The Labour Party Pakistan has decided to protest against this new escalation of the war effort in the region. The first protest took place on December 4 in front of US consulate in Lahore. There will be more demonstrations in different parts of Pakistan.

By Farooq Tariq
The historic and victorious lawyer's movement was a rainbow of various political colours. One could see all sorts of political trends trying to give their colours to lawyer's movement. There were greens like Jamaat-I Islami and Muslim League Nawaz, reds like Labour Party Pakistan and the National Workers Party. There was tri-colour Pakistan Peoples Party. Similarly, Tehreek Insaaf and some of the nationalist parties would join with their multi-coloured flags. Finally, the victory of the lawyer's movement was not seen as victory for a particular colour. Thus the victory brought partial successes for everybody but not a decisive one for anybody. But now a new movement is building up. It is a peasant movement that has been going on for nine long years. And its colour is red.

By S B Khan
In response to the kidnapping and murder of the three Baluch leaders last week, LPP Karachi called a protest in front of the Karachi Press Club on April 18. We publicly demonstrated our opposition to the brutal repression of the Baluchi people's movement - at a time when our Baluchi brothers and sisters are particularly enraged at the injustices visited upon them by the Pakistani State. Protesters demanded withdrawal of military operation in Baluchistan.

By Farooq Tariq
Okara Military Farms, Punjab, Pakistan, April 17, 2009: I am on the platform of the historic peasant convention at Okara Military Farms on the international day of peasants today. Thousands of peasants are pouring in at the convention with red flags demanding land ownership rights over 68,000 acres occupied by the military establishment - land the peasants have been cultivating more than 100 years.
More than 15,000 peasants [the crowd later swelled to 20,000 - FT] are already inside the huge ground which is covered by tents. Nearly one third of the participants are women and they are most active in the convention.

By Farooq Sulehria
A two-minute video episode captured on a cell phone shook Pakistan when it penetrated the blogosphere and began making rounds as everybody with a mobile phone passed the footage to all the contacts in his/her phone book. The rough-and-ready footage emerged from Swat. Once a honeymoon destination, this scenic valley has, of late, become a Saudi-style puritan "Emirate of Taliban".
Having earned itself the neologism of "Swat video", this widely watched footage shows a burka-clad girl pinned to ground. Two men holding her hand and feet while the third - with a black turban and beard - canning the girl. Crying for mercy ("stop it please") and begging forgiveness, the girl struggles - instinctively but unsuccessfully - to free herself.

By Farooq Tariq
Lahore, April 4, 2009: More than 2000 people joined a rally in Lahore against Talibanisation and terrorism. The rally was organised by Citizens of Lahore, a loose platform of different social, political and trade unions organization. The rally started from General Post Office Chowk (GPO) and ended at Charing Cross on Mall Road Lahore. The majority of the participants were women and youth.
A lot of banners and placards were carried by the rally participants. Slogans raised by the participants were: No to Talbanisation, no to terrorism!; Stop flogging women!; Behind terrorism is a uniform, are dying of hunger because General Head Quarters (GHQ) is taking it all!; No to religious fundamentalism, no to state terrorism, we want peace!; People united will never be defeated!