What a pity Dr. Shakil Afridi, the Pakistani surgeon who helped the Americans to ascertain the whereabouts of Osama Bin Laden in Abbottabad, has been sentenced to 33 years in jail. He was sentenced under the Frontier Crimes Regulation (FCR) clauses which deal with conspiracy and offenses against the state. He was charged with working against the sovereignty of the country. Afridi's sentence has, at least, ascertained one thing — Bin Laden was present in the compound raided by the US Marines on May 2, 2011. After determining this important point, let's ask whether Afridi is really a traitor. If he is a traitor, then what about those who facilitated Bin Laden's stay in Pakistan for so many years — should they be called patriotic? Suppose the Taliban stage a lightning strike on Peshawar jail (as they did a few weeks back when they broke into Bannu jail and took away around 400 hardcore terrorists and inmates to safety), then what will they do with Afridi? If they are going to shoot him then and there, then it's obvious who is siding with whom. Dr. Afridi's swift trial and subsequent sentence should not surprise us much as this has happened in the same country wherein the murderer of the Punjab governor Salman Taseer was showered with rose petals, not by ordinary people but by lawyers! Pakistan's high profile judiciary recently made history when it expressed its displeasure over the status of police cases against the Lal Masjid clerics and ordered the deputy attorney general to appear before the Supreme Court. And there is no need to mention that in 2007 Lal Masjid and its sister institution Jamia Hafsa were engaged in a full-scale insurgency against the Pakistan government. Is this the message we want to convey to the outside world that people who should be behind bars for terrorist activities are our heroes? What a pity. Masood Khan, Jubail Riyadh, a city to be admired! The recent news report “Several Riyadh buildings are aging” is very interesting. Having lived in this great city for over three decades it has become almost a part and parcel of my life. I might need guidance to drive back home in Colombo, but not in Riyadh. I have seen the transformation of this city with great pleasure. I give full credit to the municipal authorities as well as the residents of Riyadh for maintaining this city spotlessly clean and beautiful. Many friends who visit Riyadh from other cities and even from other countries never fail to express their admiration for, may I say, “our city”. The construction boom in Riyadh now is unprecedented compared to previous times. Sometimes you will note that there are more concrete mixers on the road than taxis. You also will not fail to hear the noise coming from the diggers and bulldozers around the clock. Another phenomenon we note now is the number of furnished apartments coming up in every corner of the city. Some old buildings left unattended are government departments in certain parts of the city. However, we learn that they too are earmarked for demolition and reconstruction with modern facilities. In short, I would say that Riyadh is an example for other cities in the Kingdom to follow if they too wish to be admired as beautiful cities. Finally, I salute the Riyadh municipality and Riyadh residents for their contribution and devotion to their city. S. H. Moulana, Riyadh Shameful mentality I was surprised to read a recent report that finally the Big B, Amitabh Bachchan has revealed the name of his granddaughter on one of his tweets. I cannot understand why people are so crazy to know the name of the granddaughter of Mr. B. People should be interested to know the names of those martyrs who sacrificed their lives in safeguarding the frontiers of their nations. People should know the names of those children who died of hunger in the remote areas of their country. People should be interested to know the names of those who brought medals to their nation, etc. The media also highlights such baseless issues and promotes such idle curiosity only to gain the maximum TRP for their channels. Shame on such mentalities. Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed, Jubail __
