Daily Diary (DD) - Day 327 of 2019

1014hrs:

A challenging night spent in our vehicle.....what doesn't kill you makes you stronger.

Chela - Muzaffarabad

Now, it is important that we make our activities in public interest as transparent and as accessible as possible. Even more than we have done thus far. The resources (mental, physical, financial and in terms of time) are always there in the society in question. They just have to be identified and activated according to each co-citizen's capacity.

We had to use cardboard to stave off the wind and rain as the 2 front windows in my vehicle do not close, on account of the electric motor being jammed. 

We put out a message for financial assistance - what I've described as our self determination fund (SDF) since 2014 - to 64 co-citizens at home and abroad. 2 responded immediately to intimate that they would contribute as soon as possible while 1 other said he would contribute when he returned to the Middle East. He was currently on holiday at home and hence his current resources were limited.

It is Important to go through a lot in order to achieve success for public interest, otherwise everybody would be queuing up to do this work. We got through the night unscathed. Meanwhile, a student in Muzaffarabad from my home tehsil of Sehnsa has invited us to stay with him tonight. My assistant has decided to make use of the time at hand and work on cleaning the vehicle and begin addressing its faults. Of course, over the years I have had to neglect a lot of what the vehicle needs as I'm so absorbed in my work. It definitely needed manpower to devote attention to it and thus I feel my prayers are answered somewhat.

We also put out the word to many co-citizens that we are in search of accommodation on a long term basis. By right as citizens and inheritors of this territory, we should have access to one of many government buildings that are not in use. A prime example is the old concrete building at the Red Fort in Plate. It has been disused for years.  

Our night tonight is a lot less challenging than last night, as we are in comfortable surroundings around students, most of whom hail from my ancestral tehsil (subdivision).

We use this opportunity to begin discussion on the concept of a People's Assembly to make up for the legislative lacunae that exists in AJK's Assembly. If possible, we want to organise this assembly for a Sunday in December, whereby we invite 100 co-citizens divided by representatives of each tehsil according to their population ratio, to the grounds of the Assembly Secretariat for a session on public policy. What is the criteria for these 100 representatives? That they are capable of speaking consistently for public interest and are able to protect what they say. 

How do we get through the logistics of this novel exercise in public interest?

We will work that out in due course but proceed one step at a time. The discussion has just begun and it will take shape over the coming days.

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Meanwhile, we decided to make full use of the sun's appearance - after a few days of incessant rain - by revisiting an important heritage site in Muzaffarabad:



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Day 3 - Back at Laal Qila (Red Fort) in Muzaffarabad...Owning our heritage.....

Discussing water management, soil management and waste management. This formula is our key to world class governance:



We also discussed what happened in Norway at Laal Qila (Red Fort) in Muzaffarabad today:

Urdu (Roman)

Teesri din (mojooda safar par) Laal Qila Muzaffarabad me hum ne Norway ke waqaye par bhi guftagoo ki.



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Our time at the Red Fort didn't end yet. We had to interview this young child, enforced by circumstances to earn a daily wage for his family:



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In the late afternoon, I was invited to a civil society forum here. It is comforting to know that we have made some progress in our efforts to develop civil society here, since our first forum in December 2009. At that time, we had difficulty in explaining the concept and couldn't mobilise many people. Today, many activists in Muzaffarabad have taken the initiative and have also succeeded in engaging the AJK government too. Now, I can analyse and assist in developing this relationship, without which we cannot address any of our problems, let alone our enduring national question, which is firmly within the grip of the following 5 countries: China, India, Pakistan, UK and USA.

Here are my notes at Civil Society Forum - Muzaffarabad:
                 
- Policy making needed    
- For industry/entrepreneurship 
- Police corruption incl traffic police
- Medical corruption
- Water corruption
- Electricity corruption       
- Waste issues              
- Frustration over lack of economic opportunities
- Parking issues  
- Over abundance of Rickshaws in the city                       
- Food quality control                     
- Blood donor fees     
- Organising public interest
- Take one issue at a time
- Solutions not analysis      
- Public/civil society and relationship with Government
- Urban development issues         
- Unenforceable reforms because of collective habits or political connections?

Is accountability possible?

The above notes were expressed in words in the following video:



In the evening, as we drove to our resting place, the vehicle's diesel tank also gave heavy indications that it needed urgent replenishment.

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Opening Bal. 3

X:
80D - Kashmir tea x 2
(150 spent by assistant on multiple tea and kahwa from 500 he received on 20/11/19)
250 - B & H cig.
100 - Assorted dry fruit, Capstan cig and nimko etc...by assistant

Y:
200 - MD
150 - KA

Material/in kind support:
250 - breakfast, channa, half-fried egg, bakarkhaani x 2, dry paratha, kahwa x 2, tea x 2 - KSA
Kahwa x 2 - MD
Pakoras (quite a few, I eat more than anybody else) at Civil Society meeting
Guavas and warm fire - MD
Kahwa x 4 - KSA

SDF (Self Determination Fund - in other words 'public funding' requests):
1) 

MD - The gentleman I asked laughed it off although he does contribute in kind from time to time.
MD - This gentleman also shrugged off the request despite contributing in the past.

Abbreviations:

Bal. - Balance

X - Outgoing

D - Debt (incurred)

cig. - cigarettes

Y - Incoming

KSA - Sehnsa

MD - Muzaffarabad

Closing Bal. 3

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