Our expats: The Pakistanis living abroad – by Fawad Manzoor
I wrote this in response to an article by Adnan R. Khan who covers Pakistan for AOL News. Title of his article was “On Being Pakistani“. He wrote the article after Faisal Shehzad was arrested in NY trying to bomb Time Square in May of 2010. (Nothing changed, the contents are still relevant.. aliarqam)My dear readers some of what I am writing might be hard to swallow but it is true. I know because I have myself studied lived and worked in US for twelve long years. What I have pointed out as criticism towards ex-pats (Expatriates a term used for people of Pakistani origins living abroad), my dear I was also part of those ex-pats and that criticism is also directed at my self too. What Mr. Adnan said in his column that Pakistanis have become undesirables, he is correct in his right what he wrote but there is also another side to the story too. We as Pakistanis living in Pakistan are also to be blamed but the blame needs to be shared by all my dear ex-pats too. Yes I look at it differently after I have been back and living in Pakistan for fifteen years. Nothing personal towards ex-pats either.
All the time we hear from Ex-Pats that there is something wrong with Pakistan and Pakistanis. They are always trying to advise us fools who are living in Pakistan to correct ourselves, do this and that but if you really look at it Ex Pats have caused more pain than the comfort. One and fore most comfort that ex pats has given to this country is their hard earned money as foreign exchange. But if we start counting pains there is absolutely no end to it.
- Ex-pats are the ones who have always supported Military dictators like Zia and Musharraf. Dictators have always found refuge amongst ex pat organizations like North American Physicians and other Political Action Committees.
- Ex-pats are responsible for providing pounds and dollars to any bearded pedophile-homosexual mullah/drug lord/child smuggler/murderer/ who asked for money in the name of religion to build madrasah.
- Ex-pats are law abiding citizens of any country they live in but when they come to Pakistan they are most law breaking citizens.
- Ex-Pats are most extremist in their religious views than average Pakistani. It is due to heir living in western countries where they counter western life style by adopting extreme(wrong) interpretation of Islam.
- Ex-pats in western countries are more likely to be member of some Islamic fundo center where they are being taught to fight against US in the name of Jihad to kill innocent people. Those idiots dont realize they are biting the hand that feeds them. If US is so bad then get the hell out of there. These fundo extremist ex pats love US dollars but hate US.
From Pakistan I have one request before all of you starting firing guns at me or start issuing Fundo fatwas against me. You ex pats are ambassadors of Pakistan. No gorra knows Pakistanis neither they want to know us living in slums of Karachi, Lahore, Rawalpindi and some small rickety village Toba Tek Singh in Pakistan. But they know Pakistanis living in NY, LA, NJ and any small red neck town located on Route 66 in US, look where we are today. You guys have brought bad name to Pakistan and Muslims. You contributed / negatively badly to your families, country and religion.
We were poor people in a poor country but your dollars and pounds have destroyed the religious harmony in Pakistan. You take pride in bad mouthing Pakistan and Islam in front of a gorra to show that you are above all this mess. But have you looked at all what you have contributed to. Mr. Jack Smith in Conneticut or Jane in kentucky doesnt know Mr. Malua Bakhsh and Ulfat Bibi living in Jhand (small village of Dist Attock) but they sure know Faisal Shehzad (a Pakistani) who is a bomb maker and tried to kill innocent civilians.
Comments
Latest Comments
The confused Pakistanis become more confused about their religion and religious practices abroad. It was Zakir Naik who was able to address thousand of peoples in Canada.
Madressas here in Karachi have these people as the big financers and even some of them have set a foreigners students section facilitated with luxuries and good meals having monthly charges in thousands, even they have shorten the 8 year Dars E Nizami course for these ex pats sons to five years.
Well its good to criticise people,but i think you did more than that.
You said that Military dictators takes refugee among ex-pats.Can i ask why you people let them flew away?And why should we take action against dictators when the govenment of Pakistan is not interested in even filing a case against them.Has this government tried to brought Mushraf to justice?
You acused ex-pats of providing funds to mullas for madressah, my question is why you people dont ask funds for universities?And offcourse not all have the luxury to donate funds, most of people living abroad lives hand to mouth and try to support their relative, if they have previlige to do so.
Can you please explains how ex-pats are most law breaking when they come to pakistan.
How can most of the ex-pats are members of Islamic fundo centre when most of them dont even offer Eid prayers.
A threat always comes from with in the lines,I would suggest to put your house in order.You people want a democratic Pakistan but dont want to democratise your Political parties. You want Interpol to brought Mushraf back to Pakistan, but gave him the opportunity to flew away with Guard of honour.
WHY NOT a founder PP worker could be appointed / ——– experienced embassy official abroad ______________ Khwaja Aftab Ali, Orlando, Florida, USA, Pakistan (2008-12-22 20:39:29)
I am one of the founder worker and son of a founder PPP president of a district in Punjab. I am a law graduate with legal experience and first & only Pakistani lawyer who earned scholarship to study Intellectual property law in USA. In an open examination for commercial counselor, I was selected but never appointed because of PPP background in Nawaz Sharif tenure as PM. And above all, I have worked in Iranian Embassy, Saudi Arabia for 12 years- 3 years in Shah time and 9 years after Islamic revolution. Although I was a local employee but 7 Iranian ambassador with whom I worked may tell that I was always a 2nd/ 3rd man of the embassy. and was a Liaison Officer of the Iranian embassy for Organization of the Islamic Conference in Jeddah for some years as well. Would President Zardari be kind and fair enough to appoint me against any opening anywhere in a Pakistani embassy abroad. I am sure if a daughter of a PPP leader could be appointed directly, why not a PPP worker with necessary experience could be appointed. Thanking you in advance, KHWAJA AFTAB ALI, 4418 St. Georges court, Kissimmee, Florida 34746, USA