Headlines:
- Democracy Secures Wealth for the Powerful
- India’s $1bn Aid to Afghanistan is Another Evidence of the Folly of Alliance with the US
- Betrayal of Kashmir Mounts Ahead of UN General Assembly
Democracy Always Secures Wealth for the Powerful
If income tax returns are the gauge of assessing the wealth, income and expenditure of public figures, then Senator Taj Muhammad Afridi is the richest parliamentarian in the country of Pakistan and MNA Chaudhry Muhammad Ashraf the poorest. The tax directory of the parliamentarians released by Finance Minister Ishaq Dar on 9 September gives some insight into their wealth, based on the tax paid by the rich and the not-so-rich members of the National Assembly and the Senate, but the lifestyle and daily expenditures of many of them are in stark contrast to what the income tax declarations indicate. Few parliamentarians are among the highest tax-paying citizens, according to the directory of 1,074,000 taxpayers for the tax year 2015. The third ‘Tax Directory’ and ‘Parliamentarians’ Tax Directory’ issued by the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) on Friday shows that, save a few worthy exceptions, the sums paid as income tax by most of the elected representatives are laughably low and do not match their princely lifestyle.
Democracy is the reason why Pakistan is a wealthy country, and the reason for poverty while having immensely rich rulers and politicians. Over six decades, legislation has secured the ownership of public and state properties by a small elite. Using democracy they make laws that are preferential for their personal business interests, in addition to securing their assets from taxation. Wherever democracy exists, neglect and exploitation of the people by the few elite will always occur. It is a world wide phenomenon that the richest people are those with access to political power in democracy, either directly or through sponsorship of politicians. Democracy was never meant to grant justice to the masses, and instead was conceived to concentrate power and subsequently wealth into the hands of a few. This is made clear in the following statement by Madison, the Founder of the American Constitution stated, “landholders ought to have a share in the government, to support these invaluable interests, and to balance and check the other. They ought to be so constituted as to protect the minority of the opulent against the majority.” Democrat Robert C Byrd lamented of his democratic country as “an administration of the wealthy, by the wealthy, for the wealthy…Today I weep for my country”. In modern democracies, landowners have been replaced by the corporate businessmen, industrialists, property owners and families already in politics predominate.
The concentration of wealth in these hands is legalized through man made legislation under democracy. The political families make wealth because they have usurped from society sources of huge revenue. Specifically, the predominately state properties and public properties, such as large scale arms manufacture, banking and energy industry. This is why in America, Britain and France, there are ruling dynasties of large capitalists. There is an immense concentration of the wealth, such that ninety per cent of the wealth is concentrated in the hands of less than five per cent. Even during the global economic crisis, the global democracy elite have increased their wealth by over 60%. In India democracy has been uninterrupted for over sixty years, with the result of an extremely wealthy Brahmin elite with masses that are driven to suicide because of poverty, to the order of hundreds of thousands. Because democracy is the best system that money can buy, the costs of elections have escalated to enormous levels. The recent US Presidential elections was the most expensive in history, to the order of billions of dollars and that too at the time of the global economic crisis. And in Pakistan too, politicians spend tens of millions of Rupees as an investment to increase their wealth immensely. So as it is true to say regarding democracy that “Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts, absolutely.”
Thus, democracy gives human-beings the choice to obey Allah سبحانه وتعالى or disobey Him, whereas in the Khilafah, Muslims live according to the commands and prohibitions of Islam. Allah سبحانه وتعالى has revealed,
وَمَا كَانَ لِمُؤْمِنٍ وَلاَ مُؤْمِنَةٍ إِذَا قَضَى اللَّهُ وَرَسُولُهُ أَمْرًا أَنْ يَكُونَ لَهُمْ الْخِيَرَةُ مِنْ أَمْرِهِمْ وَمَنْ يَعْصِ اللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُ فَقَدْ ضَلَّ ضَلاَلاً مُبِينًا
“It is not befitting for a believing man or woman to have any choice in a matter, when it has been decided upon by Allah and His Messenger.”
(Surah Al-Ahzab 33:36)
And whereas in democracy, assemblies of men and women as sovereign, choose laws according to their whims and desires. In the Khilafah, the Muslims will act only for the pleasure of Allah سبحانه وتعالى. Allah سبحانه وتعالى said,
وَأَنِ احْكُمْ بَيْنَهُمْ بِمَا أَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ وَلَا تَتَّبِعْ أَهْوَاءَهُمْ وَاحْذَرْهُمْ أَنْ يَفْتِنُوكَ عَنْ بَعْضِ مَا أَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ إِلَيْكَ
“And judge between them by what Allah has revealed, and do not follow their desires, and beware (O Muhammad) that they might seduce you from some of what Allah has sent down to you.”
(Surah Al-Maaida 5:49)
India’s $1bn Aid to Afghanistan is Another Evidence of the Folly of Alliance with the US
India offered Afghanistan a fresh $1 billion in economic assistance after their leaders met in New Delhi on 13 September to strengthen already close ties between the neighbours. Modi and Ghani called in the statement for an end to sponsorship and support of militants. They did not name Pakistan, but they have previously accused their neighbour of supporting Islamic extremists. “The two leaders discussed the regional situation and expressed grave concern at continued use of terrorism and violence in the region for achieving political objectives,” Indian foreign secretary Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said. “They called upon the concerned to put an end to all sponsorship, support, safe havens and sanctuaries to terrorists, including for those who target Afghanistan and India,” he told reporters. The Afghan government has accused Pakistan of supporting the Taliban, while Delhi says Pakistan supports rebels crossing the border into Indian-controlled Kashmir — claims that Islamabad denies.
After the US invasion of Afghanistan and the establishment of a pro-US government in Afghanistan, the US effectively opened the doors of Afghanistan for an unprecedented Indian presence there, with the US puppet, Ashraf Ghani, shamelessly declaring Afghanistan as a “second home” for Narendra Modi. Now, the brutal occupier of Kashmir, India, is strengthening its relations with Afghanistan, a land of noble Muslims who have served Islam through the ages. As if this were not enough the US agents within Pakistan’s military and political leadership are working day and night to crush the Pushtoon tribal resistance against the US in Afghanistan as well as the Muslims who support the Kashmiri resistance as part of the National Action Plan. Since the invasion of Afghanistan until today, traitors in Pakistan’s political and military leadership exploited the resources of Pakistan and its armed forces to secure American interests in Afghanistan. However, after losing thousands of soldiers and civilians for American interests, America continues to demand from Pakistan to “do more,” whilst India “gets more” from America. The Afghan policy of traitors in the political and military leadership is not independent from any aspect, rather its only objective is to achieve the American interests, even it allows the belligerent enemy, India, to establish her presence in Afghanistan.
After the Peshawar Army Public School attack, the strenuous efforts of the Raheel-Nawaz regime in order to settle the Afghanistan issue according to American interests, are so obvious that even the families of the martyrs are declaring the attack as an inside job and their doubt about the sincerity of Raheel-Nawaz regime in their investigation. The mask is falling from the regime and its Nation Action Plan, which exploited the tragedy of the Peshawar school attack, and is indeed an American Action Plan. It is an obligation upon the sincere officers within the armed forces to stop this treachery, which was started by Musharaf and is ongoing. If this is not done, then next year, even after the change of guards in your command or an extension for Raheel is a reward for his treachery, traitors in the leadership will continue this treachery as well. Therefore it is imperative that sincere officers must come forward now to stop this treachery and give Nussrah to Hizb ut Tahrir for the establishment of Khilafah upon the method of the Prophethood so that the enemies can be dealt with on a war footing. Allah سبحانه وتعالى,
إِن يَثْقَفُوكُمْ يَكُونُواْ لَكُمْ أَعْدَآءً وَيَبْسُطُوۤاْ إِلَيْكُمْ أَيْدِيَهُمْ وَأَلْسِنَتَهُمْ بِٱلسُّوۤءِ وَوَدُّواْ لَوْ تَكْفُرُونَ
“Should they gain the upper hand over you, they would behave to you as enemies, and stretch forth their hands and their tongues against you with evil, and they desire that you should disbelieve”
(Surah Al-Mumtahinah 60:2)
Betrayal of Kashmir Mounts Ahead of UN General Assembly
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has decided to take Hurriyat and Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) leaders on board for his speech to be delivered at the UN General Assembly session on Sept 21.. “He will consult the Kashmiri leadership regarding his speech at the UN session,” AJK Prime Minister Raja Farooq Haider told Dawn News on 14 September 2016. So the Raheel-Nawaz regime is proceeding along the US plan for Kashmir, which is to grant India legally sanctioned authority over Occupied Kashmir, a grand prize for the Hindus that this cowardly nation could never earn for itself when faced with a noble and defiant Muslim resistance, bolstering India in its efforts for regional hegemony.
It cannot even be said that by surrendering land and authority, India will make peace with Muslims, thereby reducing Pakistan’s defence needs. It never has. In 1947, the Hindus took most of Muslim India to make their Hindu State but persisted in their hostility. In 1971, India ensured that Pakistan lost East Pakistan and still the Hindus persist in their hostility. Today, the present Hindu government remains so hostile to Muslims that it even massacred its own Muslim citizens in Gujarat, whom it has pledged to protect, just to win elections. Indeed, how can the Muslims ever expect the Hindus to withhold their hands from the lives, wealth and property of Muslims? The Hindu mushrikeen, like the mushrikeen of Makkah before them, are the most severe in their hatred for those who believe and are constantly scheming to deny the Islamic Ummah of the many bounties Allah سبحانه وتعالى has bestowed upon it. Allah سبحانه وتعالى said,
لَتَجِدَنَّ أَشَدَّ النَّاسِ عَدَاوَةً لِلَّذِينَ آمَنُوا الْيَهُودَ وَالَّذِينَ أَشْرَكُوا
“You will surely find that of all the people, the most hostile to the believers are the Jews and the mushrikeen.”
(Surah al-Maidah 5:82)
Abandoning and compromising over Occupied Kashmir condemns the Muslims of Occupied Kashmir to a life of subjugation by foreign forces that are openly hostile to Muslims and Islam. Cut off from Pakistan, a Kashmiri state will be easy prey for foreign subjugation, not only by India but by America as well. In fact, the Americans have long desired a separate Kashmiri state that will be so small that it will be independent in name only, enabling American companies to freely exploit the Muslim’s resources and American military to occupy their lands. As such, the Muslims of Kashmir will be abandoned to yet again face the era of the Raj, where Western forces and Hindus join hands to provide a life of slavery and poverty for Muslims. Indeed, Muslims must rescue the Muslims of Occupied Kashmir from humiliation at the hands of the Kuffar, facing the enemy as one Muslim people. Islam has obliged the Muslims to help their brothers in Occupied Kashmir.
And without doubt abandoning Occupied Kashmir will expose Muslims in the region to even greater danger, just as when Afghanistan fell under American occupation and also established strong relations with India as soon as Musharraf abandoned it. So, having lost strong ties to the Muslims of Afghanistan to America and India since 2001, the sole Muslim nuclear power will then find that America and India have strengthened themselves around it through their strongholds in Jammu-Kashmir. Muslims must reject yet another division of Muslims, that will prevent them from fully pooling their resources and combining their efforts, weakening them before their enemies through division.