Pakistani man liveblogs raid on twitter without knowing what it was...

[davepc]

http://twitter.com/#!/ReallyVirtual


Sohaib Athar
ReallyVirtual Sohaib Athar
@
@m0hcin the few people online at this time of the night are saying one of the copters was not Pakistani...
9 hours ago
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Sohaib Athar
ReallyVirtual Sohaib Athar
@
@m0hcin http://bit.ly/ljB6p6 seems like my giant swatter worked !
9 hours ago
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Sohaib Athar
ReallyVirtual Sohaib Athar
@
@m0hcin all silent after the blast, but a friend heard it 6 km away too... the helicopter is gone too.
9 hours ago
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Sohaib Athar
ReallyVirtual Sohaib Athar
A huge window shaking bang here in Abbottabad Cantt. I hope its not the start of something nasty :-S
9 hours ago
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Sohaib Athar
ReallyVirtual Sohaib Athar
Go away helicopter - before I take out my giant swatter :-/
10 hours ago
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Sohaib Athar
ReallyVirtual Sohaib Athar
Helicopter hovering above Abbottabad at 1AM (is a rare event).

[Hannah Bell]

1. twitters it in english, no less. is english common parlance in pakistan?

[davepc]

2. I guess he could of been a CIA plant

Or maybe he actually does speak English.

The whole thing went down not far from the Capital in an urban area. Not in some remote mountain range among the goat herds.

[Hannah Bell]

3. obviously he speaks english, since he twittered in english. that doesn't answer the question.

here's the answer, since i was curious:

English in Pakistan is used as official and second language. It is used by small but extremely influential portion of the population. In Pakistan it is used in civil administration, bureaucratic communication, federal as well as provincial government, mass media, legal and military system. The constitution and laws are presented in English and it is also used extensively by armed forces for communication, documentation, to issue field orders and to train officers and personnel. In fact the knowledge of English is essential for office going people and the question for their promotion without it does not arise (Ghani, 1999, p. 104).

http://www.pakistanlaw.net/law-articles/english-language-teaching-in-pakistan/.

interesting, especially the use of english in the military.

i would assume that is because of the continuing influence of brits/us following independence.

[davepc]

4. I imagne it's about as common as in any area that was under British occupation for 200+ years.

Especially among those with higher education.

[Hannah Bell]

5. pakistan wasn't under english rule for 200 years.

Although British Raj in South Asia lasted for almost two hundred years, the areas which comprise what is now Pakistan, were amongst the last to be conquered; Punjab, which included what is now the NWFP, was captured in 1849, Sindh a few years before; while Balochistan was never fully integrated into the Indian Empire.

http://www.pakistanlaw.net/law-articles/english-language-teaching-in-pakistan/


it's more likely the continuing influence of the uk that is the reason for the continuing importance of english at the "commanding heights".

[suffragette]

7. Hmm, might want to take a look at this

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=439x1005671

[rollin74]

6. English is an official language of Pakistan

The linguistic makeup of Pakistan is similarly complex. While the national language is Urdu, English is an official language and used in business, government, and law.<4> English is a compulsory language in schools. All school courses are taught in English. Pakistan is the 9th largest English-speaking country in the world by population.<5>

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_where_English_is_an_official_language

[Hannah Bell]

8. beat cha.

English in Pakistan is used as official and second language. It is used by small but extremely influential portion of the population. In Pakistan it is used in civil administration, bureaucratic communication, federal as well as provincial government, mass media, legal and military system. The constitution and laws are presented in English and it is also used extensively by armed forces for communication, documentation, to issue field orders and to train officers and personnel. In fact the knowledge of English is essential for office going people and the question for their promotion without it does not arise (Ghani, 1999, p. 104).

http://www.pakistanlaw.net/law-articles/english-languag... /.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=439&topic_id=1007927&mesg_id=1008023