The World's Toughest Job

"Some Of The Hardest-Working People On Earth"

Nowadays, the most popular debate-for-entertainment in the civilized world is based on the following question: "What is the toughest job in the world?"

According to the BBC, it is a tie between rock lobster fishing & cattle ranching in Australia, tree planting & skyscraper cleaning in Canada, trawler fishing in Norway & sheep shearing in New Zealand.

However, I think I have figured out the answer: keeping your legal documents in order if you are a law-abiding Pakistani citizen.

United States: The REAL ID Act (2005)

Over the last week, there has been a series of online news articles about the United States' REAL ID Act (2005). The articles explained that this legislation was passed in response to the tragic events of 9/11. It introduced modifications to US federal laws concerning immigrants & issuance of ID cards & driver's licenses. However, according to these articles, the various individual States are not particularly impressed with the ramifications on the illegal immigrants & the US economy, therefore a debate is raging as to whether this Act should be modified or scrapped.

It is impressive to think that there could be a Government that is so committed to economic prosperity, that it would be ready to question a "security-related legislation" pertaining to (at best) dual-nationality citizens, because making life difficult for them could deplete the National Treasury. The current debate sends the message loud & clear that, security is important but it is meaningless if security measures render the citizenry so poor that the biggest danger they face is simply dying of hunger.

Pakistan: The National Action Plan

The law-abiding citizens of Pakistan are still reeling from the shock that they were sent flying in panic to the nearest grocery store to prove their identities to a sales representative of their chosen cell service provider, in obedience to a security arrangement that the authorities eventually admitted was poorly planned. Those who had some knowledge of the law & were quite certain that justifying yourself to a private sector business representative doesn't fall under the heading of "security" got a further jolt when they were told that, even though the plan was shaky, it was not going to be altered or scrapped. They have until April 12, 2015 to perform the afore-mentioned justification, or else they can learn to do without their right to a vital part of modern communication. In addition, the cancellation of cell services does not only mean isolation from normal communications, it will also have a highly detrimental effect on the jobs & revenues generated by the courier services & cost Web-based businesses like Google billions of dollars in prospective earnings, because a number of services are tied to the applicant's cellphone number.

NADRA: Registration...& De-Registration?

To make things even more exciting, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly recently tabled the issue of the National Database & Registration Authority's (NADRA's) latest policy: it has started to block (or render invalid) the Computerized National Identity Cards (CNICs) that it has been issuing to people recently. This has caused the citizenry a deal of disquietude, considering the fact that getting such a card is an odyssey in itself. It not only takes several thousand rupees to get a proper card, it also takes the patience of Job to put up with miles of red tape. What happens once the cards are blocked? So far, all that anyone has mentioned is that people will not be authorized to vote. But what about the SIMs they got registered on the basis of those cards? What about the driving & business licenses? What about the fact that the Pakistan Finance Minister has stated that CNIC numbers will be given the additional significance of being each adult Pakistani citizen's National Tax Number (NTN) by July, 2015?

Is there anything more capable of robbing a person of his peace of mind, than a question without an answer?