American Media uses the word Pakistan every day without even pausing to wonder what that name means. The word “Stan” is a Persian derivative of the Sanskrut word “Sthan“ which means “abode of “ or “land of”. So, Afghanistan means Afghan-i-Stan, or the land of the Afghans and Tajikistan means the land of the Tajiks, and so on.
Unlike all other “Stans”, the word Pakistan is totally different in its etymology and the dark meaning it conveys. (see our article – “Why are they called “Stans” and why is “Pak-i-Stan” Unique?” – August 9, 2008 – www.cinemarasik.com/2008/08/06/what-are-the-stans-and-why-is-pakistan-unique.aspx
The word “Pak” does not mean a race or a community. In the Islamic sense, it literally mean “Pure“. When this breakaway regime had to choose a name for their makeshift country (with 5 different races), they chose to call it “The Land of The PURE” or Pak-i-Stan. Even the Nazis were content to call themselves as only a master race. A master race does has subjects and at least some of the subjects need to be alive to serve the masters.
But, a Pure land does not wish to be polluted at all with impure people. This is why, as its first act, the Pakistani regime began cleansing its new land of Hindus and every Pakistani regime has continued to engage in the persistent unending campaign of cleansing its land of impure people such as Hindus. So it should not come as a surprise that state-sponsored terrorism against impure people has been a policy of every Pak-i-Stani regime since 1947.
Recently, the entire world witnessed a brilliantly planned, flawlessly executed attack by Pak-i-Stani commandos on Mumbai. In our opinion, the culpability of Pak-i-Stani military-intelligence complex was again demonstrated to the world.
Yet, Mr. Asif Ali Zardari, the current and figure-head President of Pak-i-Stan wrote an opinion in Washington Post on January 28, 2009 essentially asking for more money and a closer relationship with America to, get this, fight terrorism.
We are impressed by the sheer gall of Mr. Zardari. But, we should not be. After all, such chutzpah was the style of General Musharaf, Mr. Zardari’s predecessor. Mr. Musharaf conned the Bush Administration into giving him over $10 billion to ostensibly fight terrorism and he was awarded the title of America’s most critical ally by American Television anchors. Yet, under Mr. Musharaf, the Taliban grew in size and power to become a fighting force that has seized control of vast lands within the territory claimed by Pakistan and guarded by the Pakistani Military. No one in America knows what happened to the $10 billion given to Musharaf regime.
Today, there is virtual consensus within America that Pakistan is neither reliable nor an ally; that it might be in cahoots with the same Talibani terrorists it professes to fight. President Obama has declared the war in Afghanistan to be his main focus and Candidate Obama had called for attacks on Pakistani soil.
None of this fazes Mr. Zardari. He has no problem in making the same tired argument and asking for even greater amounts of American aid. He went so far as to state that “Pakistan and the United States have much in common”. But the smart Mr. Zardari omitted to state even one point of commonality.
Mr. Zardari then proclaimed that “Pakistan’s new democracy has pried open the clenched fists of the extremists, to use a metaphor from President Obama’s inaugural address.” This is from a man who takes orders from General Kiyani , Pakistan’s Military Chief and a man who has done nothing to capture or punish the people of Laskhar-e-Toiba, the organization that carried out the Mumbai attacks and that has been declared as a terrorist organization by the United States. In fact, last week, the head of Lashkar-e-Toiba summoned 50 dignitaries to his self-proclaimed court in a display of his power in Pakistan and Mr. Zardari did nothing about it.
Others have called this regime and its land as Terror-i-Stan. But, we think it should be renamed as “Gall-i-Stan” or the “Land of Gall”. No other regime in the world has so much experience in displaying this level of gall or comes anywhere close to the skill with which this regime uses it.
Kudos to you, Mr. Zardari – the President of Gall-i-Stan! You are the master of the art.
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Opinion In Washington Post By Asif Ali Zardari – President of Pak-i-Stan, nay Gall-i-Stan
