The call for a nationwide strike on Friday, January 1, 2010, given by several religious and political parties and councils to protest the Ashura carnage and arson in Karachi could have hardly come at a worse time. Dozens lost their lives and limbs in the suicide bombing (?) claimed by the Pakistani Taliban (?) – there are question marks on both accounts because the police have not confirmed either. Moreover, thousands of families were deprived of their livelihoods owing to the arson attacks on businesses that followed the bombing as law-enforcement personnel reportedly looked on. Now it seems that we are also bent on denying the daily wage-earners their livelihoods by calling for a shutter down and a wheel-jam.
Where has reason gone? Is this the ideal way to start the New Year after all the grief and loss that people have suffered in 2009? Do you support the call for the strike? Or do you think the country’s financial capital should resume normal functioning as soon as possible?
Murtaza Razvi is the Editor, Magazines, at Dawn.
The following reader comments do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the Dawn Media Group.
No it Serve no purpose. Already there has been colossal damage both human and financial. There is no room for further losses. Anger has already been manifested. Now it is time to show solidarity with the bereaved families of those that lost their loved ones or those whose shops/homes were burnt. Strike will be seen as something very unwise on the part of politicians and ulemas. It is needed that more meetings should take place to find out ways to improve the security. Let us meet to explore ways to identify such incidents before they occur. We should try to build not to make attempts to gain on dead ones.
If shutter down and wheel jam strikes are answers to all our problems, then there should be strikes calls every passing day. But unfortunately this is the worst form of expressing one’s dissent.
In my personal opinion shutting down the business and also disallowing labored and working class to go to work is uncalled for and should be stopped in every possible way.