How Pakistan is perceived by the outside world has huge implications for both the social and economic advancement of all members of this community in the UK.

We sincerely hope that President Pervez Musharraf's departure opens a fresh chapter for a proud and emerging nation and that it can signal a new era of peace and stability. This is vital. The new people at the helm must now get on with the important and challenging job of governing a country beset by huge social, health and economic hurdles. They must tackle poverty, which according to a recent Asian Development Bank report, is now actually worse than it was 10 years ago.

Food inflation running at 20 per cent is causing extreme hardship, especially for the old, the young and the vulnerable. Malnutrition is a major enemy. The figures speak for themselves. Last year it caused the deaths of 420,000 children under five. According to
Unicef, 38 per cent of all children are underweight, 37 per cent are stunted and 13 per cent are wasted.

Unemployment among the young is catastrophically high. Inflation is running at a crippling 25 per cent and the list goes on.

Add to that a humanitarian crisis unfolding in Baujaur on the Pakistan-Afghanistan border. Fighting between the Pakistani army and militants has caused "a human tide" of more than 200,000 people in recent weeks with the provincial government setting up refugee camps for tens of thousands.

As members of the British Pakistani community, we are always anxious and eager to help Pakistan in any positive ways we can, even though
we are separated by thousands of miles.

While each of us has individual ideas, hopes and fears for the country's future, the one sentiment which unites each and every one of us is our over-riding wish for lasting political stability and lasting harmony.


Totting up the tally of Olympic golds

From: Terry Duncan, Greame Road, Bridlington.

CONGRATULATIONS to the individuals who have, through their own efforts, won golds in the Chinese Olympics. Each deserves the medals for their dedication over many years.

But, is not the table of gold medals won not misleading? For instance, in team events, up to four medals could be awarded for just one win.

However, another country's tally of golds could be greater for individuals winning their events, which I believe is a greater honour.

From: David Quarrie, Lynden Way, Acomb, York.

WITH all the great success of Team GB at this year's Olympics, wouldn't it be nice if Labour, the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats all admitted how wrong they have been over sport. Since about 1958 they have all been anti-sport in one way or another.

They have sold off school playing fields, cut down the amount of time in schools devoted to sport and games, and come out with crass remarks like "it is the taking part that matters", "there should not be winners and losers", "competition is bad" and "there is not much interest in minority sports". The politically correct brigade have been proved utterly wrong.

Sport has very few negatives, and amateur sportspeople can go on playing games like bowls, riding, swimming, hockey, cricket, sailing, badminton, shooting, well into their 50s. I still play hockey, aged 62.

At last, things are looking better for London 2012 and "our" Olympics.


Shroud-waving hypocrisy by Tory health chief


From: Coun Sandy Fraser (Labour, Micklegate Ward) and Governor of York Hospitals Foundation Trust, Millfield Road, York.

What an irresponsible and hypocritical piece of shroud-waving on the part of the Tories' national spokesman on health, Shadow Health Secretary Andrew Lansley ("Named but not shamed", Yorkshire Post, August 11).

Your feature writer, Sarah Freeman, is to be congratulated on exposing this blatant piece of opportunistic politicking on the part of what used to be an honourable, albeit usually misguided, party.

Mr Lansley should remember that it was his governments, during the 1980s and '90s, that forced hospitals to bring in private cleaning contractors, leaving our hospitals filthy and costing countless health workers' jobs.

As Alison Hughes, director of facilities at York Hospital, points out in the article, the cleaning of the hospital has improved considerably since the trust reversed this particular piece of Tory dogma by bringing the cleaning back in-house.

Instead of rubbishing the efforts of today's hospital workers and managers, and scaring patients and their carers who rely on York's hospitals for their healthcare, Mr Lansley and his cohorts should instead recognise the dramatic improvements that have been made to
our health services over the last decade or so, with much-reduced waiting times, and a massive real increase in investment in hospital buildings and new treatments.

I call on local York Tories – their councillors, prospective parliamentary candidates, and the York Conservative Association – to publicly disown their Shadow Minister and his campaign, and instead congratulate York's honest and hard-working healthworkers and managers, who do such a good job of maintaining our health services.