Phantoms From My Future

When one of them flashed his FBI badge from accross the front desk counter and said that they had come to ask a few questions I was not amused but I tried to smile. For some strange reason I was not afraid. The one who showed his badge was taller, leaner with dark hair but looked younger. The other, the blond, just stared at me as if he was trying to read my reactions, body languagey, so he could connect his mental dots.

I came out and invited them to the lounge of my hotel and we sat around a table. At that point the second one also showed me his badge.

It was a little after nine the front desk manager came to our office and told me that there were two gentlemen at the desk who said they wanted to talk to me about some 'personal business'. I thought it must be some sales people. It turned out it was different kind of pitch.

One who had taken the lead sat down facing me accross the table. The second took his seat to my left.

They did not tell me their names. At the tail end of our meeting when I asked for their business cards both made flimsy excuses not to give me one but wrote their names on a piece of paper torn from the writing pad on which one was taking notes. The taller dark haired one was Jason Schactner and the other Peter Langrish. Jason also gave his cell phone number.

Jason took the lead as before and satrted telling me that last year I had gone to Pakistan and had declared at the airport that I was taking 19,000 dollars with me. Then went to Dubai in May and came back in July (he did not remember what he had read from his notes and was not sure when I came back) and declared at JFK airport that I was bringing 'rather a large amount of money' but had not done so when left USA. Where did I get the money from and what I did with 19000 dollars. He also mentioned my 2001 'interview' with FBI agent, Mark Johnston, in New Jersey and gave some vague details from that earlier encounter.

That was his way of telling me that they knew all about me.

I told them that last year when I went to Pakistan it was to have my son married. The marriage date was March 12. The money was for marriage expenses. In May, I had a cashier check made out from my bank for 'rather a large amount' and took it with me to Dubai where I intended to establish business but could not open an account in Dubai banks because I did not have a resident visa which was required to open an account. By the time I got my visa I was so disappointed with the superficial and discriminatory way of life and economy there that I decided to give up my dream of doing business there and brought the cashier check back with me and deposited back in the bank.

I did not declare this check to the authroities because it was not cash but had to declare it when my wallet and bags were searched at the JFK airport and the agent asked me if I wanted to declare it.

Jason asked me if I had some other business too, besides hotel business, because I have a lot of money.

I told him that I had a home equiry line of credit on my house in New Jersy with which I bought this hotel in partnership with two other persons. Later I bought a house in this town with what was left over from the sale of my house in NJ after paying the line of credit. But I had to borrow some money from my brother to pay off my house.

Last year when I was in Pakistan my brother started asking me, through my father, to return his loan. But I did not have any money so I told my father that I will go back to America and would sell my house and pay back my brother.

Later on, my father told me that my brother will give me some more money to buy half of my share in business. I told him it will not be possible to do on papers but I will pay him half of my profits every year as long as I am using his money. I got some more money from my brother. This was the money I had made the cashier check from.

Then he said he will read some names from a list and I tell him if I knew any one of them. He rattled off some Muslim names. First four and last three I did not recognize at all but I told him I knew Abdul Rashid Ghazi.

I told him I had recently gotten interested and involved in the issue of human rights of the missing Pakistanis who had been abducted by Pakistani government's intelligence agencies. To find out how I could help I had found the phone number of the Pak Tribune, an internet news outlet from Islamabad, that was covering news about disappeared Pakistanis. I called their office and asked for Mrs. Amina Masood Janjua's phone number. I was given the phone number for Defense of Human Rights for which she worked. When I called that number it was Abdul Rashid Ghazi who I spoke with and asked for a list of Pakistanis who had gone missing. Then I received an email from him thanking me for my interest in the issue of human rights violations. I exchanged a few emails with him until Amina Janjua and Khalid Khawaja were made point persons to keep in contact with me regarding the missing Pakistanis.

I have also been in contact with Amina Masood Janjua whose husband had been abducted by Pakistani secret services in July, 2005. And I also spoke and exchanged emails with Khalid Khawaja who is now in prison but was initially abducted at dawn when he was on his way to Masjid for Fajr prayers.

Abdul Rashid Ghazi is owner, I think, of a madrassah in Islamabad but also works with Defense of Human Rights. His madrassah was destroyed by Pakistani government and the female students of the madrassah occupied a library next to it. He said he knew about the whole madrassah matter - from papers.

I told him I was a product of madrassah myself and had memorized the Holy Quran in a madrassah. I know what a madrassah is. It is not what the Americans have come to believe it to be because of their ignorance about Islam or Muslims. Unfortunately, Muslims all over the world had similar problems because of their ignorance about America and Americans.

I said I believe in America the Muslims have become scapegoats and were going through the worst period of their collective life. They are being subjected to persecution and were under the microscope as Germans, Japanese, Jews and other minorities were before them. It too shall pass. But in the meantime a lot of innocent people will fall through the cracks.

I told him FBI had become Gestapo like and was using similar tactics against Muslims as Gestapo had done in Germany against Jews. Peter, who spoke ocassionally, said at least Bill of Rights had not been revoked. I said not on paper but in reality Muslims were losing their rights and Bill of Rights had become a joke. Jason said it was an insult and FBI had not become Gestapo. I said FBI is being used against Muslims as it was used against presumed communists in the days of Senator MaCarthy and J. Edgar Hoover.

I said it was very tragic that Muslims are hounded for just being Muslims. But it was important that we keep on fighting for our rights in this country and all over the world to keep our beliefs and not care what happens to us. We are ready to face the music. We have to fight for our rights by organizing ourselves and by drawing attention of media and Senators and Representatives to the plight of innocent Muslims.

A world wide drag net has been thrown and a lot of innocent people have been caught in it. I said about half of the Gitmo detainees have been release. That means they were found to be innocent after suffering years of persecustion and detention. CIA-run 'black sites' and extraordinary renditions have been going on. People are tortured under FBI and CIA watch.

In Pakistan the chief justice of the supreme court has been fired because he was asking the government to produce missing Pakistanis in the court or set them free. Musharraf has been let loose like an unleashed dog on whoever FBI points at.

I told him I had intended to go to Pakistan and join the fight for human rights. He said it was better that I did not go. I believe he had deeper meaning in this sentence but I did not ask him to elaborate.

They spent three long hours with me. I asked them if they cared for coffee or soft drinks. They just accepted water.

I gave them eamils I had received from Ghazi to show them they were all related to the Human Rights of missing Pakistanis and nothing else.

I think today I saw phantoms from my future life. Let us see what is in store for me.

It was not my first encounter with them. They came after 9/11 when I was in New Jersey. His name was Mark Johnston. He was with one local police officer. Second time I got a business card from an FBI agent from James Town. I called her but never got in contact with her. It was back in 2004, when I first came to this village.

I think they will come back. And will keep coming. I hope I am wrong.