WASHINGTON, Dec 11: Pakistan has signalled its readiness to deal with
terrorists operating within its borders as well as with those who cross
over to Afghanistan, US Defence Secretary Leon Panetta said on Tuesday.
The
statement followed a clarification by officials of the Defence and
State Departments of a Pentagon report that tended to create an
impression that Pakistan was still allowing terrorist safe havens in
Fata to operate.
The officials said the report was old and since
then Pakistan had carried out several `complementary operations` with
Afghan and Nato forces against the terrorists.
`We are more
encouraged with the fact that they want to take steps to try to limit
the terrorist threat within their own country and obviously the threat
that goes across the border` to Afghanistan, Mr Panetta told reporters
travelling with him to Kuwait.He said that army chief Gen Ashfaq Parvez
Kayani had `indicated a willingness to try to put more pressure on safe
havens` While `actions have to speak louder than words, I do believe
they`re in a better place because they understand the kind of threats
they should deal with,` Mr Panetta added.
A Pentagon report,
released to the media on Monday but sent to Congress three months ago,
had alleged that terrorist safe havens in Fata were preventing US and
allied forces from dealing a `decisive defeat` to militants inside
Afghanistan.
`The Taliban-led insurgency and its Al Qaeda
affiliates still operate from sanctuaries in Pakistan,` the report
claimed. `The insurgency`s safe havens in Pakistan, the limited
institutional capacity of the Afghan government and endemic corruption
remain the greatest risks tolong-term stability and sustainable security
in Afghanistan.
The Pakistan Embassy in Washington drew the
Pentagon`s attention to the report, widely publicised by the media,
pointing out that it did not reflect the improvements that have occurred
since July this year.
In July, the United States had apologised
to Pakistan over an air raid that killed 24 Pakistani soldiers last year
and Islamabad reopened the supply routes to Afghanistan it had closed
after the attack.
Since then the two countries have taken a
number of steps to improve ties and this month they held a series of
working group meetings to restart the US-Pakistan strategic dialogue
after more than a year.
Secretary Panetta also acknowledged that
Pakistan was helping Afghanistan in talking to the Taliban for seeking a
peaceful solution to the Afghan conflict.
But reconciliation with the Taliban, he said, was not easy because of the number of factions involved in the conflict.
`We
have to at least make the effort to develop some kind of political
solution as well as the military effort we are engaged in.
PENTAGON
REPORT CLARIFIED: At the Pentagon, two senior Defence and State
Department officialsbriefed the media on the report sent to Congress,
explaining that relations with Pakistan had improved considerably since
the reporting period.
The report was apparently prepared before July, when the two countries took several significant steps to improve ties.
`We`re
very encouraged by the dialogue that`s taking place between Afghanistan
and Pakistan. And an important and essential part of that dialogue is
the cross-border situation,` said a senior State Department official.
`So
we hope that dialogue will continue. We hope and expect to see
confidencebuilding measures from both the Afghans, and the Pakistanis.
The
United States wants to encourage that dialogue is in the interest of
peace and stability `to the extent that can be helpful`, he said.
`Cooperation with Pakistan has improved during this reporting period.
Pakistan
agreed to reopen the ground lines of communication, which were closed
in November of last year, observed a senior Defence Department official.
Meetings
with Pakistan, both bilaterally between ISAF forces, and Pakistani
military forces, and trilaterally with Afghan military forces, were also
going well, he added.
The official noted that NATO forces were
now conducting `a growing number of complementary operations` with
Pakistan, which in the last reporting had virtually ceased.
`At
the same time, I don`t want to leave you with the impression that we
think everything is working well, because the safe havens do continue to
exist,` the official warned.
Wednesday, December 12, 2012
Thursday, November 29, 2012
New tax on CNG planned
ISLAMABAD, Nov 28: The government is considering to impose a new tax on
compressed naturalgas to reduce the price difference between CNG and
petrol in order to phase outtheuse ofthe gasin private transport.
`The government has planned to phase out CNG stations gradually as they are causing heavy loss to the national economy by wasting this valuable commodity (natural gas), instead of its use for industrialisation and investment and domestic use, Prime Minister`s Adviser on Petroleum Dr Asim Hussain told the National Assembly`s Standing Committee onPetroleum on Wednesday.
The country does not have sufficient or surplus gas reserves to allow it to be burnt in private and luxury vehicles.
He said the government wanted to set equitable prices for all fuels and allow only a reasonable profit to owners of CNG stations.
He said the CNG should only be used by public transport and private vehicles should be discouraged from burning the cheaper fuel.
To achieve this goal, he indicated imposition of a new tax but did not give details.
The committee headed by Muhammad Tariq Khattak asked the petroleum ministryto come up with a solution by Dec 5 and play the role of a mediator between the CNG station owners and the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra) in fixing a reasonable price to mitigate people`s difficulties.
It expressed concern over closure of CNG stations and the disagreement over the pricing mechanism.
Dr Asim said Ogra had failed to play the role of a regulator. The government increased the wellhead gas price to $6 which boosted exploration work and 40 rigs were operating in the country. He said 30,000 barrels of oil from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa would start flowing into the national system by March next year.
He said the department of explosives that granted no-objection certificate to CNG and petrol stations was under the industries ministry where officials received bribes to issue laboratory certificates. The petroleum ministry, he said, had initiated a legislation to bring the department under its control.
The parliamentarians expressed concern over recent explosions in CNGfitted vehicles and wondered what role the department of explosives and the Hydrocarbon Development Institute played in allowing substandard cylinders.
The members said that while Ogra and the station owners were taking extreme positions, the consumers were forced to spend a major part of their day in long queues to get CNG.
Some members called for a national debate to determine if there was sufficient gas available for vehicles or it should be used only for value-added sectors so that a clear roadmap could be followed and confusion and people`s difficulties removed.
MNA Rana Afzaal Hussain said the CNG Association had become a cartel and minted millions ofrupees at the cost ofpeople. He wondered why 100 per cent profit was promised in the agreement the government had reached with the CNG sector in 2008.
`The government has planned to phase out CNG stations gradually as they are causing heavy loss to the national economy by wasting this valuable commodity (natural gas), instead of its use for industrialisation and investment and domestic use, Prime Minister`s Adviser on Petroleum Dr Asim Hussain told the National Assembly`s Standing Committee onPetroleum on Wednesday.
The country does not have sufficient or surplus gas reserves to allow it to be burnt in private and luxury vehicles.
He said the government wanted to set equitable prices for all fuels and allow only a reasonable profit to owners of CNG stations.
He said the CNG should only be used by public transport and private vehicles should be discouraged from burning the cheaper fuel.
To achieve this goal, he indicated imposition of a new tax but did not give details.
The committee headed by Muhammad Tariq Khattak asked the petroleum ministryto come up with a solution by Dec 5 and play the role of a mediator between the CNG station owners and the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra) in fixing a reasonable price to mitigate people`s difficulties.
It expressed concern over closure of CNG stations and the disagreement over the pricing mechanism.
Dr Asim said Ogra had failed to play the role of a regulator. The government increased the wellhead gas price to $6 which boosted exploration work and 40 rigs were operating in the country. He said 30,000 barrels of oil from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa would start flowing into the national system by March next year.
He said the department of explosives that granted no-objection certificate to CNG and petrol stations was under the industries ministry where officials received bribes to issue laboratory certificates. The petroleum ministry, he said, had initiated a legislation to bring the department under its control.
The parliamentarians expressed concern over recent explosions in CNGfitted vehicles and wondered what role the department of explosives and the Hydrocarbon Development Institute played in allowing substandard cylinders.
The members said that while Ogra and the station owners were taking extreme positions, the consumers were forced to spend a major part of their day in long queues to get CNG.
Some members called for a national debate to determine if there was sufficient gas available for vehicles or it should be used only for value-added sectors so that a clear roadmap could be followed and confusion and people`s difficulties removed.
MNA Rana Afzaal Hussain said the CNG Association had become a cartel and minted millions ofrupees at the cost ofpeople. He wondered why 100 per cent profit was promised in the agreement the government had reached with the CNG sector in 2008.
Tuesday, November 13, 2012
Saving the saviours ( the bomb disposal squad is at risk)
WHILE the security situation has been derailed across the country over
the past decade or so, it is Khyber Pakhtunkhwa that has borne the brunt
of increasing incidents of bombing. Lives are not only lost when
terrorists hit security or civilian targets; even the bomb disposal
squad is at risk when it attempts to defuse an unexploded device. The
latter point was underscored by the death of explosives expert Inspector
Hukam Khan who was killed while defusing an IED device in September.
The incident highlighted the fact that bomb disposal is a potentially
lethal line of work and each attempt at defusing explosives is haunted
by potential tragedy. It is fitting, then, that yesterday`s newspapers
carried photographs of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa police department
initiating the use of robotic systems operated remotely through a
computer interface and capable of defusing explosive devices. Purchased
from the British government, the robotic systems can scan a suspicious
object or vehicleand defuse explosives if present. Equipped with camera
sensors and with the capability to dig up explosives, they can be used
for dealing with IEDs, bombs, parcel bombs and vehicles rigged with
explosives. Indeed, on Monday such a robot was used to defuse a device
in Peshawar`s Nasirpur area.
Police departments all across the country, particularly in metropolises where bomb attacks are common, need to be equipped with such technology. The hard fact is that militants and terrorists are conversant with technology of various kinds for their grim purposes from cellular communication tools to the Internet to ever-mutating methods of blowing things up. Worryingly, however, the country`s law-enforcement agencies, particularly on the civilian side, continue to operate with archaic methodologies and insufficient technology. Investing in machines and systems that can help save lives and avert tragedy is expensive, but the country`s hostile and worsening climate demands just this.
Police departments all across the country, particularly in metropolises where bomb attacks are common, need to be equipped with such technology. The hard fact is that militants and terrorists are conversant with technology of various kinds for their grim purposes from cellular communication tools to the Internet to ever-mutating methods of blowing things up. Worryingly, however, the country`s law-enforcement agencies, particularly on the civilian side, continue to operate with archaic methodologies and insufficient technology. Investing in machines and systems that can help save lives and avert tragedy is expensive, but the country`s hostile and worsening climate demands just this.
karachi- new wave of violence
EVEN as the law and order situation in Karachi gets increasingly out of
hand dozens have been killed since the start of the weekend the reaction
to the sectarian violence that has flared up has been as inadequate as
the usual response to political violence in the city. When clashes erupt
between activists of ethnic or mainstream political parties, those
parties let a certain amount of bloodshed take place before they hammer
out a deal and then issue instructions to their workers or affiliates to
retreat.
While that process is taking place, law enforcement appears to be at a complete loss as it sits back, taking only reactive action, and waits for the politicians to sort out the mess. Meanwhile, the interior minister blames mysterious and unnamed external forces.
As sectarian clashes now dominate the Karachi headlines, a similar pattern of response or lack thereof seems to be emerging.
In this case it is the ulema who are issuing empty platitudes in public while in reality being unable or unwilling to order their followers to stop the bloodbath. Over the weekend the Milli Yakjehti Council met in Islamabad not in Karachi, where a meeting of this particular organisation, meant to promote cooperation across sects, would have sent a strong signal against sectarian violence. And while it discussed everythingfrom the role of religious parties in Pakistani politics to unity of Muslims across the world to supporting the blasphemy laws, what got lost in all this talk was the carnage taking place in Karachi, which should have been thefocus of the meeting. A couple of days later, the interior minister made the rather remarkable assertion that there is no sectarian conflict in Karachi and that the recent clashes are being carried out by `invisible forces`. He said this after another meeting of the ulema again held in Islamabad.
The upshot of all this is that officials and leaders appear to be doing nothing, leaving an illequipped, poorly trained and understaffed lawenforcement structure to react to incidents once they have already taken place. Putting in place extraordinary Muharram security arrangements is a necessary step, but that is only a short-term fix. What it will not improve is the fundamental inability of law enforcement to tackle a problem that is simply beyond its scope;even the army is now vulnerable to anti-state groups, and the Rangers have demonstrated that they cannot fill the void created by an undermanned and easily influenced police force. As long as the ulema and the government fail to develop a more lasting political solution, there is only so much any of these organisations can do
While that process is taking place, law enforcement appears to be at a complete loss as it sits back, taking only reactive action, and waits for the politicians to sort out the mess. Meanwhile, the interior minister blames mysterious and unnamed external forces.
As sectarian clashes now dominate the Karachi headlines, a similar pattern of response or lack thereof seems to be emerging.
In this case it is the ulema who are issuing empty platitudes in public while in reality being unable or unwilling to order their followers to stop the bloodbath. Over the weekend the Milli Yakjehti Council met in Islamabad not in Karachi, where a meeting of this particular organisation, meant to promote cooperation across sects, would have sent a strong signal against sectarian violence. And while it discussed everythingfrom the role of religious parties in Pakistani politics to unity of Muslims across the world to supporting the blasphemy laws, what got lost in all this talk was the carnage taking place in Karachi, which should have been thefocus of the meeting. A couple of days later, the interior minister made the rather remarkable assertion that there is no sectarian conflict in Karachi and that the recent clashes are being carried out by `invisible forces`. He said this after another meeting of the ulema again held in Islamabad.
The upshot of all this is that officials and leaders appear to be doing nothing, leaving an illequipped, poorly trained and understaffed lawenforcement structure to react to incidents once they have already taken place. Putting in place extraordinary Muharram security arrangements is a necessary step, but that is only a short-term fix. What it will not improve is the fundamental inability of law enforcement to tackle a problem that is simply beyond its scope;even the army is now vulnerable to anti-state groups, and the Rangers have demonstrated that they cannot fill the void created by an undermanned and easily influenced police force. As long as the ulema and the government fail to develop a more lasting political solution, there is only so much any of these organisations can do
the good qualities of west
IN one of the provinces of Canada the electricity bill is delivered
after every two months. Owing to the use of the central heating system
the bill charges rise three to four times in winters as compared to the
rest of the seasons.
As my semester was to conclude at the end ofJune 2009,Ireturned to Pakistan. Since my electricity bill for May and June wouldn`t have been delivered before the first week of July and my flight back home was at the end of June, I decided to make the bill payment in advance.
I wrote the cheque for an amount exceeding even that of our last bill for (winter) months of March and April, though there was no need for showing such generosity as I had not used the central heating system in May and June). I did that as I did not want ourhost country authorities to have the slightest idea that we had cheated them.
On the same note, like my university, bank, insurance, Internet and telephone company and mobile phone service provider, I had also apprised the electricity company about my address in Pakistan in case a need arises to settle the bills.
However, to my surprise and delight, in August and then in November 2009 I received two cheques from our electricity company.
I have personally known a number of people, including doctors and engineers who got loans worth thousands of pounds from banks abroad, never to return the same, before going back to Pakistan.
On the other hand, there are institutions like our electricitycompany in Canada which gladly returned almost 100 Canadian dollars to me without any demand and that too to an ex-consumer who is not even residing in Canada.
I feel pity for the West bashers, the majority of whom might not have even gone beyond their provincial territories but feel it their birthright to condemn the West for their say one per cent evil deeds and very conveniently overlook 99 per cent of their traits like honesty, justice, fairness and, above all, respect for humanity without any discrimination.
Lastly, I pity this mob of most ignorant hooligans who burn down their own abodes just to condemn sheer acts of stupidity committed by some lunatics thousands of miles away.
MAKHDOOM SAIF Islamabad
As my semester was to conclude at the end ofJune 2009,Ireturned to Pakistan. Since my electricity bill for May and June wouldn`t have been delivered before the first week of July and my flight back home was at the end of June, I decided to make the bill payment in advance.
I wrote the cheque for an amount exceeding even that of our last bill for (winter) months of March and April, though there was no need for showing such generosity as I had not used the central heating system in May and June). I did that as I did not want ourhost country authorities to have the slightest idea that we had cheated them.
On the same note, like my university, bank, insurance, Internet and telephone company and mobile phone service provider, I had also apprised the electricity company about my address in Pakistan in case a need arises to settle the bills.
However, to my surprise and delight, in August and then in November 2009 I received two cheques from our electricity company.
I have personally known a number of people, including doctors and engineers who got loans worth thousands of pounds from banks abroad, never to return the same, before going back to Pakistan.
On the other hand, there are institutions like our electricitycompany in Canada which gladly returned almost 100 Canadian dollars to me without any demand and that too to an ex-consumer who is not even residing in Canada.
I feel pity for the West bashers, the majority of whom might not have even gone beyond their provincial territories but feel it their birthright to condemn the West for their say one per cent evil deeds and very conveniently overlook 99 per cent of their traits like honesty, justice, fairness and, above all, respect for humanity without any discrimination.
Lastly, I pity this mob of most ignorant hooligans who burn down their own abodes just to condemn sheer acts of stupidity committed by some lunatics thousands of miles away.
MAKHDOOM SAIF Islamabad
private school vs government schools
PRIVATE schools are better than public schools. This is an established
fact in the urban areas of Pakistan. Now this trend is also seen taking
place among the rural population, as the demand for private schools is
increasing. The main reason is the belief that the quality of education
and facilities in these schools is better than that of their
public-sector counterparts.
But is that really the case? Recent studies show that there definitely is a difference in the quality of education between the two sectors, measured by the difference in the learning-level outcomes of the students.
Students studying in privately-owned schools in the rural areas perform better atevery level of schooling as compared to the students from the same grade levels in government schools.
However, the alarming feature that needs to be noted is that the difference between the two education providers is negligible at best.
Using the information from a survey of 32 districts across the country by ASER 2010, it was seen that any child going to a private school has less than four per cent probability of having better learning levels as compared to a child going to a government school. The difference is minute.
This is the case because private schools have no incentive to improve any further than the bare minimum that is required forthem to attract demand.
The quality of government schools is the benchmark for the private sector education providers, above which they have no incentive to further improve their facilities or other quality indicators.
The pre-conceived notion of private schools being always better than government schools is contradicted by the evidence from ASER 2010 facilities` statistics where other than the availability of water and toilet facilities, private schools have no edge over government schools.
In case of the number of classrooms, availability of playgrounds, boundary wall and the attendance of teachers, private schoolsare not only at similar levels but are even worse off than government schools in some provinces.
The poor quality of education and facilities is not just an issue in government schools but for the whole educational system. There is not only a need to alter the popular notion that private schools are always better than government schools but also to work on improving the quality of learning in both types of school.
Improving quality in government schools, and regulating and setting standards for the private sector is the need of the hour.
But is that really the case? Recent studies show that there definitely is a difference in the quality of education between the two sectors, measured by the difference in the learning-level outcomes of the students.
Students studying in privately-owned schools in the rural areas perform better atevery level of schooling as compared to the students from the same grade levels in government schools.
However, the alarming feature that needs to be noted is that the difference between the two education providers is negligible at best.
Using the information from a survey of 32 districts across the country by ASER 2010, it was seen that any child going to a private school has less than four per cent probability of having better learning levels as compared to a child going to a government school. The difference is minute.
This is the case because private schools have no incentive to improve any further than the bare minimum that is required forthem to attract demand.
The quality of government schools is the benchmark for the private sector education providers, above which they have no incentive to further improve their facilities or other quality indicators.
The pre-conceived notion of private schools being always better than government schools is contradicted by the evidence from ASER 2010 facilities` statistics where other than the availability of water and toilet facilities, private schools have no edge over government schools.
In case of the number of classrooms, availability of playgrounds, boundary wall and the attendance of teachers, private schoolsare not only at similar levels but are even worse off than government schools in some provinces.
The poor quality of education and facilities is not just an issue in government schools but for the whole educational system. There is not only a need to alter the popular notion that private schools are always better than government schools but also to work on improving the quality of learning in both types of school.
Improving quality in government schools, and regulating and setting standards for the private sector is the need of the hour.
Pakistan agrees to set free Taliban leaders
SLAMABAD, Nov 13: In an unprecedented gesture of support for
Afghanistan`s struggling reconciliation process, Pakistan agreed on
Tuesday to release several Taliban leaders detained in the country`s
jails.
The development, which hasn`t been made public by either side, came on the second day of Afghan High Peace Council Chief Mr Salahuddin Rabbani`s three-day visit to Islamabad to re-start the peace process which has been in the limbo for over a year now.
It was unclear if the detainees, who are said to be numbering close to 10, have been set free on Tuesday or would be released at the conclusion of Mr Rabbani`s visit.
The group, according to a source, does not include Mullah Baradar Taliban`s second in command who was captured by Pakistani security forces in Karachi in 2010.
Talks between the peace delegation led by Mr Rabbani and Pakistani officials would continue on Wednesday when the two sides are expected to come up with a joint statement on the progress made by them.
A Pakistani official, who had been briefed on the talks, told Dawn that `significant progress has already been made`.
The release of Taliban detainees in Pakistan has been a longstanding Afghan demand for catalysing the slow moving process.
A keen follower of the negotiations, who didn`t want to be named, said the release of prisoners was a positive step, which would provide the right environment for reconciliation.
Islamabad has long said that it supportedpeace and stability in Afghanistan, but has been holding back its cards in view of lack of clarity about the peace process with Taliban both in Kabul and Washington.
However, with the drawdown deadline approaching fast and all sorts of unfavourable scenarios for Pakistan being projected (with the assumption that instability in Afghanistan would continue), the government appears to have changed its tack and decided to more proactively support the process for the sake of its success. It is more than clear to Pakistani strategists that successful reconciliation in Afghanistan is their best bet.
Dr Maleeha Lodhi, Pakistan`s former envoy to US and UK, had last week told the Senate Standing Committee on Defence that absence of a political settlement in Afghanistan `could lead to disastrous consequences for the region, especially for Pakistan, which is already reeling from over three decades of turmoil and conflict in its western neighbour`.
President Asif Ali Zardari in his meeting with the Afghan peace delegation reiterated the government`s position that Pakistan would continue to extend every possible support to Afghanistan in its journey to peace and socio-economic development.
Mr Zardari noted that a peaceful, stable and economically developed Afghanistan was vital for Pakistan`s own stability and prosperity.
The delegation also called on Army Chief Gen Ashfaq Pervez Kayani at the military headquarters in Rawalpindi. Mr Rabbani was invariably reminded by all his interlocutors in Islamabad that trust deficit remained to be addressed and that cross-border shelling by Afghanistan was adding to problems in ties.
The development, which hasn`t been made public by either side, came on the second day of Afghan High Peace Council Chief Mr Salahuddin Rabbani`s three-day visit to Islamabad to re-start the peace process which has been in the limbo for over a year now.
It was unclear if the detainees, who are said to be numbering close to 10, have been set free on Tuesday or would be released at the conclusion of Mr Rabbani`s visit.
The group, according to a source, does not include Mullah Baradar Taliban`s second in command who was captured by Pakistani security forces in Karachi in 2010.
Talks between the peace delegation led by Mr Rabbani and Pakistani officials would continue on Wednesday when the two sides are expected to come up with a joint statement on the progress made by them.
A Pakistani official, who had been briefed on the talks, told Dawn that `significant progress has already been made`.
The release of Taliban detainees in Pakistan has been a longstanding Afghan demand for catalysing the slow moving process.
A keen follower of the negotiations, who didn`t want to be named, said the release of prisoners was a positive step, which would provide the right environment for reconciliation.
Islamabad has long said that it supportedpeace and stability in Afghanistan, but has been holding back its cards in view of lack of clarity about the peace process with Taliban both in Kabul and Washington.
However, with the drawdown deadline approaching fast and all sorts of unfavourable scenarios for Pakistan being projected (with the assumption that instability in Afghanistan would continue), the government appears to have changed its tack and decided to more proactively support the process for the sake of its success. It is more than clear to Pakistani strategists that successful reconciliation in Afghanistan is their best bet.
Dr Maleeha Lodhi, Pakistan`s former envoy to US and UK, had last week told the Senate Standing Committee on Defence that absence of a political settlement in Afghanistan `could lead to disastrous consequences for the region, especially for Pakistan, which is already reeling from over three decades of turmoil and conflict in its western neighbour`.
President Asif Ali Zardari in his meeting with the Afghan peace delegation reiterated the government`s position that Pakistan would continue to extend every possible support to Afghanistan in its journey to peace and socio-economic development.
Mr Zardari noted that a peaceful, stable and economically developed Afghanistan was vital for Pakistan`s own stability and prosperity.
The delegation also called on Army Chief Gen Ashfaq Pervez Kayani at the military headquarters in Rawalpindi. Mr Rabbani was invariably reminded by all his interlocutors in Islamabad that trust deficit remained to be addressed and that cross-border shelling by Afghanistan was adding to problems in ties.
education is the only way out
SINCE years we have been in a state of war. ...[There are] bomb blasts,
suicide attacks, passengers travelling by bus being made to disembark
and then shot dead on sectarian grounds. ...This has become the order of
the day. In rural areas there are tribal feuds and ethnic conflict. It
seems as if this state has become a nursery for riots where ...
clashesand conflicts are growing. This continues regardless of whether
there is a democratic era or dictatorship in thecountry. In a
dictatorship, the bureaucracy calls the shots, while in a democracy
chieftains, feudals ... enjoy power.
Neither dictatorship nor democracy has changed the situation for the common man.
This does not mean that we are opposed to democracy, but we want to point out that elected representatives ... do not follow democratic values.
These feudals cannot be friends of the people. We are unable to promote education.
No outsider is hampering the progress of education, but it is our feudals, chaudhries and waderas who have converted school buildings into cattlepens.... They have neither allowed the middle class to rise nor have they worked in the spirit of democracy. This can also be seen in the recruitment for jobs where no merit is observed. ...[J]obs are handed over to MNAs and MPAs.
Hence jobs are not given on merit but according to political compulsions.... We have a majority of such people in theeducation department.
...President Asif Ali Zardari, while inaugurating the Waseela-iTaleem scheme ..warned that if we failed to impart education to our children history will not forgive us. President Zardari has rightly said that history will not only hold us accountable but the nation will be wiped out [from the world map] if we failed to educate them. Today we are stuck in the quagmire of extremism; the reason behind it is also the lack of education. ...It is painful that we ... spend the budget on purchasing arms. This has destroyed our health and education sectors. ...-(Nov 11) • Selected and translated by Sohail Sangi
Neither dictatorship nor democracy has changed the situation for the common man.
This does not mean that we are opposed to democracy, but we want to point out that elected representatives ... do not follow democratic values.
These feudals cannot be friends of the people. We are unable to promote education.
No outsider is hampering the progress of education, but it is our feudals, chaudhries and waderas who have converted school buildings into cattlepens.... They have neither allowed the middle class to rise nor have they worked in the spirit of democracy. This can also be seen in the recruitment for jobs where no merit is observed. ...[J]obs are handed over to MNAs and MPAs.
Hence jobs are not given on merit but according to political compulsions.... We have a majority of such people in theeducation department.
...President Asif Ali Zardari, while inaugurating the Waseela-iTaleem scheme ..warned that if we failed to impart education to our children history will not forgive us. President Zardari has rightly said that history will not only hold us accountable but the nation will be wiped out [from the world map] if we failed to educate them. Today we are stuck in the quagmire of extremism; the reason behind it is also the lack of education. ...It is painful that we ... spend the budget on purchasing arms. This has destroyed our health and education sectors. ...-(Nov 11) • Selected and translated by Sohail Sangi
Monday, November 12, 2012
Iran warns US it will act firmly if airspace violated
TEHRAN, Nov 11: Iran warned on Sunday it would react strongly against
any US intrusion into its airspace after two of its warplanes fired at
an American drone 10 days ago, the ISNA news agency reported.
`Yes, we opened fire, and it was with warning shots. If they do it again they can expect an even stronger response,` the agency quoted General Amir-Ali Hadjizadeh, head of the elite Revolutionary Guards air and space forces, as saying.
Pentagon spokesman George Little said on Thursday the Iranian Su-25 Frogfoot fighters fired at the robotic Predator drone on Nov 1 but did not hit it.
`They intercepted the aircraft and fired multiple rounds,` he said.
The American drone was `never in Iranian airspace` and came under fire from the fighter jets off the Iranian coast over international waters, Little said.
In a warning to Tehran, the Pentagon spokesman said the United States was prepared to safeguard its forces.
`We have a wide range of options, from diplomatic to military, to protect our military assets and our forces in the region and will do so when necessary,` Little said.
On Friday, Iranian Defence Minister Ahmad Vahidi confirmed the incident, saying the drone had `entered the space over the territorial waters of the Islamic Republic of Iran in the Persian Gulf area` Hadjizadeh was reported as saying on Sunday: `This spy drone entered Iranian airspace and had to turn around because of the immediate reaction by fighters of the Revolutionary Guards.
He added that the US unmanned aircraft had been `flying over Kharg island to gather information about economic activity on the island, and the arrival and departure of oil tankers.
Kharg, 25 kilometres off the Iranian mainland, is the Islamic republic`s main export terminal for its oil.
The United States and the European Union have both imposed economic sanctions against Iran over its controversial nuclear ambitions which western powers and Israel believe are aimed at producing atomic weapons.
Tehran denies the charge, sayings its programme of uranium enrichment is entirely peaceful and is for energy and medical purposes. The Nov 1 drone incident came less than a week before America`s presidential election, but the Pentagon kept it quiet until reports of the confrontation leaked out.-AFP
`Yes, we opened fire, and it was with warning shots. If they do it again they can expect an even stronger response,` the agency quoted General Amir-Ali Hadjizadeh, head of the elite Revolutionary Guards air and space forces, as saying.
Pentagon spokesman George Little said on Thursday the Iranian Su-25 Frogfoot fighters fired at the robotic Predator drone on Nov 1 but did not hit it.
`They intercepted the aircraft and fired multiple rounds,` he said.
The American drone was `never in Iranian airspace` and came under fire from the fighter jets off the Iranian coast over international waters, Little said.
In a warning to Tehran, the Pentagon spokesman said the United States was prepared to safeguard its forces.
`We have a wide range of options, from diplomatic to military, to protect our military assets and our forces in the region and will do so when necessary,` Little said.
On Friday, Iranian Defence Minister Ahmad Vahidi confirmed the incident, saying the drone had `entered the space over the territorial waters of the Islamic Republic of Iran in the Persian Gulf area` Hadjizadeh was reported as saying on Sunday: `This spy drone entered Iranian airspace and had to turn around because of the immediate reaction by fighters of the Revolutionary Guards.
He added that the US unmanned aircraft had been `flying over Kharg island to gather information about economic activity on the island, and the arrival and departure of oil tankers.
Kharg, 25 kilometres off the Iranian mainland, is the Islamic republic`s main export terminal for its oil.
The United States and the European Union have both imposed economic sanctions against Iran over its controversial nuclear ambitions which western powers and Israel believe are aimed at producing atomic weapons.
Tehran denies the charge, sayings its programme of uranium enrichment is entirely peaceful and is for energy and medical purposes. The Nov 1 drone incident came less than a week before America`s presidential election, but the Pentagon kept it quiet until reports of the confrontation leaked out.-AFP
education and Global Action Day for Malala Yousufzai
AS the world geared up to mark the Global Action Day for Malala
Yousufzai, the Pakistan government launched on Friday a literacy
programme to provide free education to children, primarily girls. The
fouryear Waseela-i-Taleem initiative, undertaken under the umbrella of
the Benazir Income Support Programme, aims to educate three million poor
children, with President Zardari noting during its launch that `no
country can make any progress without investing in its human capital`.
We hope the state remains committed enough to achieve its goals. There
is no doubt that, as report after report has pointed out, Pakistan faces
an education emergency with the young not being able to attend school
due to a wide variety of reasons ranging from convention or poverty to
security as the injuries suffered by Malala so horrifyingly
demonstrated. Not only are there not enough schools in the country,
Pakistan`s dropout rates are much higher andenrolment figures woefully
lower than they should be.
The grim picture of the fate of the next generation, particularly its female members, is drawn in clear lines by the recently released Education for All Global Monitoring Report.
Pakistan is among the bottom 10 countries in terms of education for females in straitened financial circumstances. It was also amongst the last 10 for the amount of time girls spend in schools in their lifetimes, with almost two-thirds of the poorest girls never going to school at all. These figures are cause for serious concern, for coupled with population growth and demographic figures, they point towards a future where growing numbers of people are not just poor but illiterate as well, thus further decreasing opportunities for uplift. Only if the government takes strides towards achieving the Waseela-i-Taleem initiative`s goal can it be considered to have demonstrated its commitment to this crucial sector.
The grim picture of the fate of the next generation, particularly its female members, is drawn in clear lines by the recently released Education for All Global Monitoring Report.
Pakistan is among the bottom 10 countries in terms of education for females in straitened financial circumstances. It was also amongst the last 10 for the amount of time girls spend in schools in their lifetimes, with almost two-thirds of the poorest girls never going to school at all. These figures are cause for serious concern, for coupled with population growth and demographic figures, they point towards a future where growing numbers of people are not just poor but illiterate as well, thus further decreasing opportunities for uplift. Only if the government takes strides towards achieving the Waseela-i-Taleem initiative`s goal can it be considered to have demonstrated its commitment to this crucial sector.
Wednesday, November 7, 2012
In heart of France, Islamic school trains clerics
AINT-LIGER-DE-FOUGERET (France), Nov 6: Deep in the wooded hills of
Burgundy in central France, an unusual institute is training unusual
students: aspiring French imams who hope to minister to the country`s
large Muslim population.
Early in the morning, some 200 students from across the country stream into the European Institute of Human Sciences de Saint-Legerde-Fougeret, where they learn to read the holy Quran and study Islamic theology and Arabic literature.
After seven intensive years of study, only 10 or so graduates eachyear to lead prayers or preach at mosques.
Estimates of France`s Muslim population vary widely, from between 3.5 million and 6.0 million, though there is little hard evidence as to how many are practising. In any event, France`s Muslim community is the largest in western Europe.
Relations between the authorities and Muslims, many of them secondor third-generation immigrants, chiefly from North Africa, have often been tense.
Some younger Muslims have been tempted by extremist jihadist views and France hasimplemented a contentious ban on women wearing full veils.
Over the past nine years, various governments have encouraged the professional training of local religious leaders. Interior Minister Manuel Valls recently backed the practice, even if the job of imam is badly paid, if at all, and enjoys no official recognition.
The initiative goes back 20 years when the Union of Islamic Organisations in France, which has close ties to the Muslim Brotherhood, converted a former children`s holiday centre into the institute. Its stated aim is to train imams equipped `with a solidknowledge of Islam and the sociocultural realities of Europe`.
The idea was to provide an alternative to the recruitment of foreign imams, who often spoke no French and had little or no knowledge of French lifestyles.
`The training of imams who are products of French society is vital: Today 70 per cent of the faithful don`t speak Arabic,` said the institute`s director Zuhair Mahmood.
Initially financed by the Gulf States, the school depends heavily on fees of about 3,400 euros ($4,400) a year board and lodging included.
`Since I was small I havedreamed of becoming an imam, said 18-year-old Wahib, who did not want to give his last name, `but seven years is long and there are no grants`.
Apart from the rural setting, the atmosphere in the run-down prefabricated corridors of the institute is like that of any other college.
At break time men, often bearded, and women, all of them wearing head scarves, wait for coffee.
The women can follow the 20 hours of weekly courses but cannot become imams.
Said, who also did not want to give his last name, was born inMorocco and now living in Nice in southern France. He took correspondence courses for two years and left his family to `deepen` his knowledge of Islam. `If I succeed, I become an imam. It`s my vocation,` he said.
`I would love to pass on my knowledge to others and above all fight against extremism.
There are about 10 people in his class. They listen to the interpretations of a sura from holy Quran, as part of a third year theology course, which also includes an introduction to French law.
`Being an imam, it isn`t something that happens,` the 33-year-old Said told this correspondent.
`It`s a real responsibility, We have to be safeguards.
`Radicalism is always the result of ignorance,` Said`s theology teacher Larbi Belbachir added.
Traditionally, congregations of the faithful choose their imams, who carry out their duties as volunteers or are paid by gifts. Those presiding in large mosques can earn 1,500 euros ($1,950) a month.
They are classified as educators or teachers but never as imams.
`When this profession is recognised and paid as such,` Said suggested, `perhaps there will be more vocations`.-AFP
Early in the morning, some 200 students from across the country stream into the European Institute of Human Sciences de Saint-Legerde-Fougeret, where they learn to read the holy Quran and study Islamic theology and Arabic literature.
After seven intensive years of study, only 10 or so graduates eachyear to lead prayers or preach at mosques.
Estimates of France`s Muslim population vary widely, from between 3.5 million and 6.0 million, though there is little hard evidence as to how many are practising. In any event, France`s Muslim community is the largest in western Europe.
Relations between the authorities and Muslims, many of them secondor third-generation immigrants, chiefly from North Africa, have often been tense.
Some younger Muslims have been tempted by extremist jihadist views and France hasimplemented a contentious ban on women wearing full veils.
Over the past nine years, various governments have encouraged the professional training of local religious leaders. Interior Minister Manuel Valls recently backed the practice, even if the job of imam is badly paid, if at all, and enjoys no official recognition.
The initiative goes back 20 years when the Union of Islamic Organisations in France, which has close ties to the Muslim Brotherhood, converted a former children`s holiday centre into the institute. Its stated aim is to train imams equipped `with a solidknowledge of Islam and the sociocultural realities of Europe`.
The idea was to provide an alternative to the recruitment of foreign imams, who often spoke no French and had little or no knowledge of French lifestyles.
`The training of imams who are products of French society is vital: Today 70 per cent of the faithful don`t speak Arabic,` said the institute`s director Zuhair Mahmood.
Initially financed by the Gulf States, the school depends heavily on fees of about 3,400 euros ($4,400) a year board and lodging included.
`Since I was small I havedreamed of becoming an imam, said 18-year-old Wahib, who did not want to give his last name, `but seven years is long and there are no grants`.
Apart from the rural setting, the atmosphere in the run-down prefabricated corridors of the institute is like that of any other college.
At break time men, often bearded, and women, all of them wearing head scarves, wait for coffee.
The women can follow the 20 hours of weekly courses but cannot become imams.
Said, who also did not want to give his last name, was born inMorocco and now living in Nice in southern France. He took correspondence courses for two years and left his family to `deepen` his knowledge of Islam. `If I succeed, I become an imam. It`s my vocation,` he said.
`I would love to pass on my knowledge to others and above all fight against extremism.
There are about 10 people in his class. They listen to the interpretations of a sura from holy Quran, as part of a third year theology course, which also includes an introduction to French law.
`Being an imam, it isn`t something that happens,` the 33-year-old Said told this correspondent.
`It`s a real responsibility, We have to be safeguards.
`Radicalism is always the result of ignorance,` Said`s theology teacher Larbi Belbachir added.
Traditionally, congregations of the faithful choose their imams, who carry out their duties as volunteers or are paid by gifts. Those presiding in large mosques can earn 1,500 euros ($1,950) a month.
They are classified as educators or teachers but never as imams.
`When this profession is recognised and paid as such,` Said suggested, `perhaps there will be more vocations`.-AFP
Army`s concerns
AS the country digests the army chief`s latest foray into, strictly
speaking, non-military matters, it appears that Gen Kayani`s comments on
Monday were directed at his principal constituency: the armed forces
itself. The discomfort within the rank and file and the leadership too
in recent weeks is not very difficult to fathom.
Mehrangate, the NLC scam, inquiries into a luxury resort in Lahore, and myriad other questions about the army`s political role and management of security affairs have all combined to probably create a sense of siege. For an institution as proud and domestically predominant as the army has been over the decades, it may well be bewildering to be subjected to the kind of scrutiny and commentary that nonuniformed leaders have long been used to. So Gen Kayani`s words targeted as they appear to have been against the judiciary and sections of the media, and not really the civilian political leadership were probably intended to allay concerns within the armed forces that somewhat legitimate criticism of narrow problems, from the army`s perspective, were growing into wanton and gratuitous criticism of the entire institution.
Questionable as the army`s concerns may be those never subjected to intense scrutiny will always resist a changing order it is perhaps a signof the times, and a good one at that, that the army chief chose tough words instead of strong action. In eras past, a discreet phone call or a public swipe would have been enough to tamp down criticism and make unwanted investigations disappear. So perhaps in time, even the dubious use of the ISPR to put out such controversial statements will be a practice curbed.
For the long road to civilian control of the state to be travelled, however, one of the key elements is the question of who determines the `national interest`. Gen Kayani was correct in saying that `no individual or institution has the monopoly to decide what is right or wrong in defining the national interest` and that it should emerge through a `consensus`. But in truth, it must go much further than that in a truly democratic polity. While other institutions do have some role to play, the central pivot has to be the civilian leadership that represents the will of the people through parliament. It cannot and must not be forgotten that the internal and external instability the country faces today is largely rooted in policies pursued by the army itself in the name of the national interest. But if a few court cases and investigations so unsettle the armed forces, can they really be willing to cede control of the `national interest`?
Mehrangate, the NLC scam, inquiries into a luxury resort in Lahore, and myriad other questions about the army`s political role and management of security affairs have all combined to probably create a sense of siege. For an institution as proud and domestically predominant as the army has been over the decades, it may well be bewildering to be subjected to the kind of scrutiny and commentary that nonuniformed leaders have long been used to. So Gen Kayani`s words targeted as they appear to have been against the judiciary and sections of the media, and not really the civilian political leadership were probably intended to allay concerns within the armed forces that somewhat legitimate criticism of narrow problems, from the army`s perspective, were growing into wanton and gratuitous criticism of the entire institution.
Questionable as the army`s concerns may be those never subjected to intense scrutiny will always resist a changing order it is perhaps a signof the times, and a good one at that, that the army chief chose tough words instead of strong action. In eras past, a discreet phone call or a public swipe would have been enough to tamp down criticism and make unwanted investigations disappear. So perhaps in time, even the dubious use of the ISPR to put out such controversial statements will be a practice curbed.
For the long road to civilian control of the state to be travelled, however, one of the key elements is the question of who determines the `national interest`. Gen Kayani was correct in saying that `no individual or institution has the monopoly to decide what is right or wrong in defining the national interest` and that it should emerge through a `consensus`. But in truth, it must go much further than that in a truly democratic polity. While other institutions do have some role to play, the central pivot has to be the civilian leadership that represents the will of the people through parliament. It cannot and must not be forgotten that the internal and external instability the country faces today is largely rooted in policies pursued by the army itself in the name of the national interest. But if a few court cases and investigations so unsettle the armed forces, can they really be willing to cede control of the `national interest`?
Sandy Storm: learning a lesson from America
KEEPING aside the rhetoric of some right-wing elements in our society
that the storm Sandy is `natural justice` on the `infidels`, the cue for
Pakistan should be the management part of it.
The normality witnessed just on the third day after the storm hit the United States of America`s east coast is a leading example for nations to follow.
More than anything else, it was sheer determination on the part of their leaders to stand united in theface of this catastrophe.
They threw politics off their shoulders and tackled what turned out to be one of the worst disasters in American history.
Out of 78 million people affected, the number of deaths at 100 shows the preparedness on all three stages: pre-disaster, during disaster and postdisaster.
Even though Pakistan has seen worst of floods during the past three years, yet the levelof preparednessis unfortunately at the lowest ebb.Vast areas still remain inundated, while scores of people are still fighting their fate and struggling to make ends meet.
Blaming destiny has become a synonym for lack of preparedness in our country.
Hopefully, our leaders who often portray a pro-western stance would follow in the footsteps of their counterparts in the West in this regard as well.
The normality witnessed just on the third day after the storm hit the United States of America`s east coast is a leading example for nations to follow.
More than anything else, it was sheer determination on the part of their leaders to stand united in theface of this catastrophe.
They threw politics off their shoulders and tackled what turned out to be one of the worst disasters in American history.
Out of 78 million people affected, the number of deaths at 100 shows the preparedness on all three stages: pre-disaster, during disaster and postdisaster.
Even though Pakistan has seen worst of floods during the past three years, yet the levelof preparednessis unfortunately at the lowest ebb.Vast areas still remain inundated, while scores of people are still fighting their fate and struggling to make ends meet.
Blaming destiny has become a synonym for lack of preparedness in our country.
Hopefully, our leaders who often portray a pro-western stance would follow in the footsteps of their counterparts in the West in this regard as well.
Thursday, October 25, 2012
Malala Yousafzai and the Other Half of Muslim History
BLOOMINGTON, Indiana -- As someone who writes and lectures about women and gender in Islam, I am often asked if women had any role in the making of the Islamic tradition. Happily, the answer is always yes. There were in fact many prominent women in the early history of Islam.
At the top of the list would have to be Aisha, the widow of the Prophet Muhammad, who was renowned for her learning and wit. The Prophet in fact is said to have counselled his followers to "take half of your religion" from Aisha -- in recognition of her learning. After his death, she spent the rest of her life transmitting the sayings of her husband and commenting on the Quran. Her authoritative pronouncements have decisively shaped the later Islamic legal tradition.
The early period of Islam in particular is peopled with such intelligent, assertive and pious women. Another name that comes to mind is Umm Umara. Although she was a prominent companion of the Prophet Muhammad, whom he regarded highly in her own time, she has become an obscure figure over the centuries. One possible reason for this is that Umm Umara was a "difficult" woman -- that is to say, she was someone who asked a lot of questions and who protested loudly when she was faced with inequality, especially in regard to women's rights. Her passion for justice and outspokenness, however, were hardly out of place in the first century of Islam.
As historical records inform us, women in particular excelled in religious scholarship through the late Mamluk period, the 14th and 15th centuries of the common era. This should not be surprising since women's right to education is firmly guaranteed by Islam. A well-known saying of the Prophet Muhammad asserts that knowledge is equally obligatory for males and females -- which has allowed for considerable Muslim receptivity toward providing education for girls and women alongside their male counterparts through the centuries. As a result, women scholars dot the Islamic intellectual landscape.
The famous ninth century Muslim jurist al-Shafii, widely regarded as the father of Islamic jurisprudence, studied with female teachers. Ibn Hajar, another prominent jurist from the 15th century, gratefully acknowledges his debt to a number of his female professors whose study circles he frequented.
Ibn Hajar's student, al-Sakhawi, dedicated one whole volume of his encyclopaedic biographical work on famous scholars from the Mamluk period to women alone. Among the 1,075 women listed in this volume, over 400 were active in scholarship. One such scholar is on record as having complained that she was not getting adequate compensation for her teaching (a complaint that may sound dismayingly familiar to contemporary professional women the world over today).
Regrettably, the memory of these accomplished women has grown dim over time. As Muslim societies became more patriarchal after the first century of Islam, many of these women have been air-brushed out of the master narrative of Islamic history, leaving us with the impression that the Islamic tradition was shaped mainly by men.
This erasure of women can lead to a dangerously mistaken belief that Islam itself mandates this marginalization of women. The danger is real -- as became recently evident in the Taliban's brutal and misogynist vendetta against the indomitable 14-year-old Malala Yousafzai. A fearless warrior to promote education for females in her native Pakistan, Yousafzai has paid a huge price for her courageous stance, as she now struggles to recover after being shot by the Taliban.
Yousafzai's fate is a reminder that women's historical roles in Islamic learning and scholarship need to become much better known among Muslims themselves. This is imperative so that in the future the Taliban's grotesque interpretation of women's rights can immediately be recognised for what it is: a violation of fundamental Islamic principles and one that should not be granted even the veneer of religious legitimacy.
In her fearless insistence on the right to be educated and to be heard in public, Yousafzai is following in the footsteps of her illustrious female forebears from the first century of Islam. Learned, feisty and principled women have contributed much to the Islamic heritage.
Her predicament reminds us why this history must be featured prominently in our own times and why women must be reinstated into the very mainstream of the Islamic intellectual tradition. It is the most effective way to keep religious obscurantism at bay in Muslim-majority societies, especially the kind that threatens the well-being of Muslim girls and women.
Congressional Gold Medal proposed for Malala
WASHINGTON, Oct 24: A senior American lawmaker on Wednesday distributed a
letter in the US Congress, urging her colleagues to award the
Congressional Gold Medal to Malala Yousuf zai.
Separately, thousands of people have signed an online petition to nominate Malala for the Nobel Peace Prize.
Angelina Jolie, a famous American actress who is also a goodwill ambassador for the United Nations, was the first to propose this idea, saying that the 14-year-old girl deserved a Nobel Prize for standing up to the forces that others did not have the courage to confront.
Malala, who was shot in the head by a Taliban gunman for speaking up for her rights, is undergoing treatment at a British hospital in Birmingham.
`Malala ... stood against the oppressive policies imposed upon the citizens of Pakistan by the Taliban. Her stand for education for girl and gender equality resulted in a fatwa issued by the Taliban calling for her death,` Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee wrote in her letter.
The congresswoman, a Democrat from Texas who has been a member of the House since1995, also heads the Pakistan caucus on the Hill and is one of few US lawmakers who still openly support Pakistan.
`The shooting of this young girl has sent shockwaves through the region and around the world; religious leaders and communities are condemning her shooting, yet the Taliban remains unrepentant,` the congresswoman wrote.
`Malala has displayed true courage as she continued to fight for justice, even while her life was in danger. Because of her courage, Malala Yousufzai has become a symbol of hope in a country long beset by violence and oppression,` she noted.
`It is fitting that Malala has become the new face of Pakistan. She represents the future of Pakistan, where young girls can attend school and expect equal rights.
Congresswoman Lee noted that Malala`s actions demonstrated the power one child can have on an entire region. `Her message could not be silenced by the cowardly acts of the few.
It is my firm belief that we should honour her message and recognise her bravery,` she said.
`I, like all of you, value the need for education, justice, and gender equality. Join me in supporting this legislation to honour Malala Yousufzai and her message,` she wrote.
Separately, thousands of people have signed an online petition to nominate Malala for the Nobel Peace Prize.
Angelina Jolie, a famous American actress who is also a goodwill ambassador for the United Nations, was the first to propose this idea, saying that the 14-year-old girl deserved a Nobel Prize for standing up to the forces that others did not have the courage to confront.
Malala, who was shot in the head by a Taliban gunman for speaking up for her rights, is undergoing treatment at a British hospital in Birmingham.
`Malala ... stood against the oppressive policies imposed upon the citizens of Pakistan by the Taliban. Her stand for education for girl and gender equality resulted in a fatwa issued by the Taliban calling for her death,` Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee wrote in her letter.
The congresswoman, a Democrat from Texas who has been a member of the House since1995, also heads the Pakistan caucus on the Hill and is one of few US lawmakers who still openly support Pakistan.
`The shooting of this young girl has sent shockwaves through the region and around the world; religious leaders and communities are condemning her shooting, yet the Taliban remains unrepentant,` the congresswoman wrote.
`Malala has displayed true courage as she continued to fight for justice, even while her life was in danger. Because of her courage, Malala Yousufzai has become a symbol of hope in a country long beset by violence and oppression,` she noted.
`It is fitting that Malala has become the new face of Pakistan. She represents the future of Pakistan, where young girls can attend school and expect equal rights.
Congresswoman Lee noted that Malala`s actions demonstrated the power one child can have on an entire region. `Her message could not be silenced by the cowardly acts of the few.
It is my firm belief that we should honour her message and recognise her bravery,` she said.
`I, like all of you, value the need for education, justice, and gender equality. Join me in supporting this legislation to honour Malala Yousufzai and her message,` she wrote.
China and India are partners instead of rivals: Beijing
BEIJING: Beijing stressed on Wednesday that India and China were
`partners instead of rivals` with common interests in development,
striking a conciliatory note on the 50th anniversary of a war between
the neighbours.
Badly-equipped Indian troops were humiliated in the four-week war along the Himalayan frontier which begn in October 1962, with Chinese forces pouring through the mountains and advancing as far as the plains of Assam.
China then withdrew to the current border but it still claims much of the remote Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh, and the dispute consistently sours efforts to improve ties between the regional rivals.-AFP
Badly-equipped Indian troops were humiliated in the four-week war along the Himalayan frontier which begn in October 1962, with Chinese forces pouring through the mountains and advancing as far as the plains of Assam.
China then withdrew to the current border but it still claims much of the remote Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh, and the dispute consistently sours efforts to improve ties between the regional rivals.-AFP
Sudan accuses Israel of bombing factory, threatens retaliation
KHARTOUM, Oct 24: Sudan on Wednesday accused Israel of carrying out
missile strikes against a military factory that killed two people in
Khartoum overnight and threatened to retaliate `We think Israel did the
bombing,` Culture and Information Minister Ahmed Bilal Osman told a news
conference. `We reserve the right to react at a place and time we
choose.
The military and foreign ministry in Israel, which has long accused Khartoum of serving as a base for militants from the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, refused to comment.
Osman said four radar-evading aircraft conducted an attack at around midnight on the Yarmouk military manufacturing facility in the south of the Sudanese capital.
Evidence pointing to Israel was found among remnants of the explosives, he said, adding that the cabinet would hold an urgent meeting.
Residents of the area earlier said an aircraft or missile flew over the facili-ty shortly before the plant exploded and burst into flames.
A journalist several kilometres away saw two or three fires flaring across a wide area, with heavy smoke and intermittent flashes of white light bursting above the state-owned factory.
In 1998, Human Rights Watch said a coalition of opposition groups alleged that Sudan stored chemical weapons for Iraq at the Yarmouk facility but government officials strenuously denied the charges at the time.
In August of that year, US cruise missiles struck the Al-Shifa pharmaceutical factory in North Khartoum, which Washington alleged was linked to chemical weapons production.
Evidence for that claim later proved questionable.
`I heard a sound like a plane in the sky, but I didn`t see any light from a plane. Then I heard two explosions, and fire erupted in the compound, said a resident who asked to be identified only as Faize.A woman living south of the compound also reported two initial blasts.
`I saw a plane coming from east to west and I heard explosions and there was a short length of time between the first one and the second one,` she said.
`Then I saw fire and our neighbour`s house was hit by shrapnel, causing minor damage. The windows of my own house rattled after the second explosion.
The sprawling Yarmouk facility is surrounded by barbed wire and set back about two kilometres from the district`s main road, meaning signs of damage were not visible later Wednesday when a journalist reporter visited.
But at least three houses in the neighbourhood had been punctured by shrapnel which left walls and a fence with holes about 20-centimetres in diameter, the reporter said.
There was also slight damage to a Coca-Cola warehouse.
The fires appeared to be extin-guished by 3.30am, more than three hours after they began, a journalist said.
Osman said Yarmouk makes `traditional weapons`.
`The attack destroyed part of the compound infrastructure, killed two people inside and injured another who is in serious condition,` he said.
There have been other mysterious blasts in Sudan and allegations of Israeli involvement.
In April last year, Sudan said it had irrefutable evidence that Israeli attack helicopters carried out a missile and machinegun strike on a car south of Port Sudan.
Israel refused to comment.
Last year`s attack mirrored a similar strike by foreign aircraft on a truck convoy reporte dly laden with weapons in eastern Sudan in January 2009.
Khartoum is seeking the removal of US sanctions imposed in 1997 over alleged support for international terrorism, its human rights record and other concerns.-AFP
The military and foreign ministry in Israel, which has long accused Khartoum of serving as a base for militants from the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, refused to comment.
Osman said four radar-evading aircraft conducted an attack at around midnight on the Yarmouk military manufacturing facility in the south of the Sudanese capital.
Evidence pointing to Israel was found among remnants of the explosives, he said, adding that the cabinet would hold an urgent meeting.
Residents of the area earlier said an aircraft or missile flew over the facili-ty shortly before the plant exploded and burst into flames.
A journalist several kilometres away saw two or three fires flaring across a wide area, with heavy smoke and intermittent flashes of white light bursting above the state-owned factory.
In 1998, Human Rights Watch said a coalition of opposition groups alleged that Sudan stored chemical weapons for Iraq at the Yarmouk facility but government officials strenuously denied the charges at the time.
In August of that year, US cruise missiles struck the Al-Shifa pharmaceutical factory in North Khartoum, which Washington alleged was linked to chemical weapons production.
Evidence for that claim later proved questionable.
`I heard a sound like a plane in the sky, but I didn`t see any light from a plane. Then I heard two explosions, and fire erupted in the compound, said a resident who asked to be identified only as Faize.A woman living south of the compound also reported two initial blasts.
`I saw a plane coming from east to west and I heard explosions and there was a short length of time between the first one and the second one,` she said.
`Then I saw fire and our neighbour`s house was hit by shrapnel, causing minor damage. The windows of my own house rattled after the second explosion.
The sprawling Yarmouk facility is surrounded by barbed wire and set back about two kilometres from the district`s main road, meaning signs of damage were not visible later Wednesday when a journalist reporter visited.
But at least three houses in the neighbourhood had been punctured by shrapnel which left walls and a fence with holes about 20-centimetres in diameter, the reporter said.
There was also slight damage to a Coca-Cola warehouse.
The fires appeared to be extin-guished by 3.30am, more than three hours after they began, a journalist said.
Osman said Yarmouk makes `traditional weapons`.
`The attack destroyed part of the compound infrastructure, killed two people inside and injured another who is in serious condition,` he said.
There have been other mysterious blasts in Sudan and allegations of Israeli involvement.
In April last year, Sudan said it had irrefutable evidence that Israeli attack helicopters carried out a missile and machinegun strike on a car south of Port Sudan.
Israel refused to comment.
Last year`s attack mirrored a similar strike by foreign aircraft on a truck convoy reporte dly laden with weapons in eastern Sudan in January 2009.
Khartoum is seeking the removal of US sanctions imposed in 1997 over alleged support for international terrorism, its human rights record and other concerns.-AFP
most dangerous country for journalists
THERE is no doubt that for journalists, this is one of the most dangerous countries in the world.
Journalists are killed or harassed because of their work or in the line of duty partly because the state has consistently refused to track down the killers or intimidators. Here, journalists are sandwiched between a rock and a hard place: at one end is a shadowy establishment that tries to keep certain information cloaked, and at the other, a war with elements that consider no means too foul to achieve their end. Yet the harassment of journalists, and their killing with impunity is a global problem. The Committee to Protect Journalists estimates that some 49 journalists have been killed around the world so far this year, while Reporters Without Borders` `Press Freedom Barometer` points out that over 270 people, including journalists and `netizens`, have been put in prison during these 10 months. In this tug-of-war between those who seek to expose the truth and those who try to contain it, what is at stake is the citizens` right to know.It was in defence of this right that the world media community expressed dismay at the ineffectiveness of UN efforts to ensure the safety of newsmen the 2006 UNSC Resolution 1738, among other matters, reminded all parties in situations of armed conflict to respect the professional independence of media personnel. At a symposium on `Media Responses to Matters of Life and Death` that took place in London last week, ahead of the second UN Inter-Agency meeting on `the safety of journalists and the issue of impunity` that is to be held in Vienna next month, representatives of 40 media organisations from around the world called upon the UN to persuade member states to create a safer environment for journalists. The symposium has drafted a set of proposals in this regard. This needs to be given due attention.
Too many governments, among them the Pakistani government, are guilty of either perpetrating violence against media personnel or standing by as such violence occurs. If the world is concerned about the freedom of speech, here is where it begins.
Journalists are killed or harassed because of their work or in the line of duty partly because the state has consistently refused to track down the killers or intimidators. Here, journalists are sandwiched between a rock and a hard place: at one end is a shadowy establishment that tries to keep certain information cloaked, and at the other, a war with elements that consider no means too foul to achieve their end. Yet the harassment of journalists, and their killing with impunity is a global problem. The Committee to Protect Journalists estimates that some 49 journalists have been killed around the world so far this year, while Reporters Without Borders` `Press Freedom Barometer` points out that over 270 people, including journalists and `netizens`, have been put in prison during these 10 months. In this tug-of-war between those who seek to expose the truth and those who try to contain it, what is at stake is the citizens` right to know.It was in defence of this right that the world media community expressed dismay at the ineffectiveness of UN efforts to ensure the safety of newsmen the 2006 UNSC Resolution 1738, among other matters, reminded all parties in situations of armed conflict to respect the professional independence of media personnel. At a symposium on `Media Responses to Matters of Life and Death` that took place in London last week, ahead of the second UN Inter-Agency meeting on `the safety of journalists and the issue of impunity` that is to be held in Vienna next month, representatives of 40 media organisations from around the world called upon the UN to persuade member states to create a safer environment for journalists. The symposium has drafted a set of proposals in this regard. This needs to be given due attention.
Too many governments, among them the Pakistani government, are guilty of either perpetrating violence against media personnel or standing by as such violence occurs. If the world is concerned about the freedom of speech, here is where it begins.
Guns, drones and butter By Michael Krepon
THERE is no shortage of young talent with restless intellectual energy
and entrepreneurial skills in Pakistan. Natural resources are untapped.
Despite its economic travails, Pakistan has a middle class that can grow
if markets grow.
A Pakistani diaspora in the West could come to the country`s aid. These positive notes within Pakistan cannot become music until governance improves and the writ of the state extends toits borders.
The music has stopped completely after the Pakistani Taliban`s attempt to kill Malala Yousufzai. It also stops whenever they blow up markets, record shops, cinemas, and other places where civilians congregate. No city in Pakistan is immune from these attacks. Thousands have been killed annually.
The deaths of innocent civilians from drone strikes represent a small fraction of this carnage. The Tehrik-iTaliban Pakistan (TTP) didn`t begin this reign of terror because of drone strikes, and they won`t end it if the drone strikes stop. The strongest linkage between these disparate phenomena is that some US drone strikes are directed at those who plan and direct this carnage on Pakistani soil. No one in authority in Pakistan appears willing to acknowledge this.
My advice, freely and repeatedly given, has been for the Obama administration to fundamentally reassess its policy on drone strikes, and to make them exceptional, rather than common occurrences in Pakistan. As was evident in the foreign policy debate between President Obama and Gov Mitt Romney, this is unlikely to happen. As long as US and Nato forces in Afghanistan are being targeted by Afghan Talibanfighters who take refuge on Pakistan`s soil, drone strikes will continue.
When US forces are mostly withdrawn from Afghanistan, and if the Afghan Taliban leadership move themselves as well as their operations across the Durand Line, drone strikes in Pakistan may be significantly reduced but not until then.
In my view, a qualified suspension of drone strikes within Pakistan is still warranted, even in the aftermath of the attempt to kill Malala. What are the qualifications?First, if Pakistani authorities privately request them and if the targets are legitimate. Second, if extremist groups continue to plan and carry out attacks on US and Nato forces, Washington would reserve the right to respond not at lieutenants, but at their leaders, wherever they may be a difficult standard for Washington and Islamabad to swallow.
Third, if there is actionable intelligence about plans to carry out attacks on US or allied territory, the United States would reserve the right to disrupt them.
Taken together, all of these qualifications are likely to result in far fewer drone strikes. These strikes would become even rarer if Pakistani authorities assumed the responsibility of preventing their soil from becoming a launching pad for attacks that ruin Pakistan`s international standing and economic prospects.
A secondary reason for this proposal is that it would clarify the wrongheaded conclusion that drone strikes make every one of Pakistan`s problems worse. I disagree. Drone strikes do not make Pakistan`s economic prospects worse, and the absence of drone strikes would not make deals with the TTP any more likely to succeed.
Drone strikes had nothing to do with the attempt to kill Malala. Nor did drone strikes factor in the ill-fated deal between the Pakistani government and the TTP in Swat, or its predictable demise. Horrific Muslim-on-Muslim violence in Pakistan will continue as long as political leaders look the other way while seeking `consensus`, and as long as poor governance, economic stagnation, corruption, flimsy social services, and a deteriorating educational system hold sway.
Even if civilian casualties are kept to an absolute minimum, there are three primary reasons for a reassessment of US policy regarding drone strikes. First, they are unlikely to make a significant difference in Afghanistan`s future dispensation.
Second, they can help Pakistan`s armed forces only marginally to reclaim their country`s periphery. Third, drone strikes ruin America`s standing in Pakistan, and decent US-Pakistani relations are one essential condition for a reversal of Pakistan`s fortunes.
Unless drone strikes become exceptional rather than routine, they are a diversion and a hindrance to steps that eventually help Pakistan to become whole.
Whether drone strikes increase, decrease, or are suspended, Pakistan cannot hope to become healthy unless its economy grows. Pakistan could eventually become a beneficiary of its geography if trade flows naturally through Pakistan between Central Asia and the subcontinent.
This promise cannot be realised as long as Pakistan remains at loggerheads with India, and if Afghanistan is mired in perpetual turmoil. Unchecked violence checkmates trade flows.
Afghanistan may remain unsettled for some time to come, blocking Pakistan`s economic growth via Central Asia. Increased trade with India is far more feasible. If leaders in both countries can keep increased trade on course, despite explosions intended to stop progress, radical elements can be marginalised and Pakistan can hope for a brighter future. • The writer is co-founder of the Stimson Centre in Washington.
A Pakistani diaspora in the West could come to the country`s aid. These positive notes within Pakistan cannot become music until governance improves and the writ of the state extends toits borders.
The music has stopped completely after the Pakistani Taliban`s attempt to kill Malala Yousufzai. It also stops whenever they blow up markets, record shops, cinemas, and other places where civilians congregate. No city in Pakistan is immune from these attacks. Thousands have been killed annually.
The deaths of innocent civilians from drone strikes represent a small fraction of this carnage. The Tehrik-iTaliban Pakistan (TTP) didn`t begin this reign of terror because of drone strikes, and they won`t end it if the drone strikes stop. The strongest linkage between these disparate phenomena is that some US drone strikes are directed at those who plan and direct this carnage on Pakistani soil. No one in authority in Pakistan appears willing to acknowledge this.
My advice, freely and repeatedly given, has been for the Obama administration to fundamentally reassess its policy on drone strikes, and to make them exceptional, rather than common occurrences in Pakistan. As was evident in the foreign policy debate between President Obama and Gov Mitt Romney, this is unlikely to happen. As long as US and Nato forces in Afghanistan are being targeted by Afghan Talibanfighters who take refuge on Pakistan`s soil, drone strikes will continue.
When US forces are mostly withdrawn from Afghanistan, and if the Afghan Taliban leadership move themselves as well as their operations across the Durand Line, drone strikes in Pakistan may be significantly reduced but not until then.
In my view, a qualified suspension of drone strikes within Pakistan is still warranted, even in the aftermath of the attempt to kill Malala. What are the qualifications?First, if Pakistani authorities privately request them and if the targets are legitimate. Second, if extremist groups continue to plan and carry out attacks on US and Nato forces, Washington would reserve the right to respond not at lieutenants, but at their leaders, wherever they may be a difficult standard for Washington and Islamabad to swallow.
Third, if there is actionable intelligence about plans to carry out attacks on US or allied territory, the United States would reserve the right to disrupt them.
Taken together, all of these qualifications are likely to result in far fewer drone strikes. These strikes would become even rarer if Pakistani authorities assumed the responsibility of preventing their soil from becoming a launching pad for attacks that ruin Pakistan`s international standing and economic prospects.
A secondary reason for this proposal is that it would clarify the wrongheaded conclusion that drone strikes make every one of Pakistan`s problems worse. I disagree. Drone strikes do not make Pakistan`s economic prospects worse, and the absence of drone strikes would not make deals with the TTP any more likely to succeed.
Drone strikes had nothing to do with the attempt to kill Malala. Nor did drone strikes factor in the ill-fated deal between the Pakistani government and the TTP in Swat, or its predictable demise. Horrific Muslim-on-Muslim violence in Pakistan will continue as long as political leaders look the other way while seeking `consensus`, and as long as poor governance, economic stagnation, corruption, flimsy social services, and a deteriorating educational system hold sway.
Even if civilian casualties are kept to an absolute minimum, there are three primary reasons for a reassessment of US policy regarding drone strikes. First, they are unlikely to make a significant difference in Afghanistan`s future dispensation.
Second, they can help Pakistan`s armed forces only marginally to reclaim their country`s periphery. Third, drone strikes ruin America`s standing in Pakistan, and decent US-Pakistani relations are one essential condition for a reversal of Pakistan`s fortunes.
Unless drone strikes become exceptional rather than routine, they are a diversion and a hindrance to steps that eventually help Pakistan to become whole.
Whether drone strikes increase, decrease, or are suspended, Pakistan cannot hope to become healthy unless its economy grows. Pakistan could eventually become a beneficiary of its geography if trade flows naturally through Pakistan between Central Asia and the subcontinent.
This promise cannot be realised as long as Pakistan remains at loggerheads with India, and if Afghanistan is mired in perpetual turmoil. Unchecked violence checkmates trade flows.
Afghanistan may remain unsettled for some time to come, blocking Pakistan`s economic growth via Central Asia. Increased trade with India is far more feasible. If leaders in both countries can keep increased trade on course, despite explosions intended to stop progress, radical elements can be marginalised and Pakistan can hope for a brighter future. • The writer is co-founder of the Stimson Centre in Washington.
In defence of Aafia Siddiqui
THIS refers to Shafiq Murad`s letter `Malala vs Aafia` (Oct 21) wherein
he has tried to distort the facts about Dr Aafia Siddiqui, dubbing her
an American national and an aide ofterrorists.
Perhaps the writer does not know that Dr Aafia has not been convicted of being associated with Al Qaeda or the Taliban. In fact, she has been sentenced to jail for 86 years for attacking an American soldier in the Afghan province of Ghazni.
I was one of the participants of an eight-member delegation that visited the United States under Pakistan-US journalists` exchange programme last year. The Pakistani journalists had a meeting with senior FBI officials in New York as part of the tour. During the meeting an FBI official, who claimed to be aware of the arrest, interrogation and prosecution process which ultimately led to Dr Aafia`s conviction, was very upset over a `hue and cry` in Pakistan with respect to the matter.He asserted that the FBI had ample reasons and proofs to believe that Dr Aafia was an Al Qaeda operative, a fund-raiser and had been associated with an alleged senior Al Qaeda member, Adnan Al Shukri Jumma.
The FBI official was repeatedly asked by the Pakistani journalists that if the agency had ample evidences against Dr Aafia, why was she thennottnedunderthose charges? Why was she charged with trying to kill a US soldier in Afghanistan? The FBI official had no answer except that `I cannot comment on that. It is not within my purview.
The fact is that Dr Aafia had been arrested by a joint team of FBI and Pakistani security officials in Karachi in 2003. She was immediately shifted to Bagram airbase in Kandahar. According to her family, one of her three children died when he was thrown on the floor by an investigator during her detention. Luckily, her eldest son,Ahmed and daughter Mariyam, were handed over to the family a few years ago.
It was a British journalist, Yvonne Ridley, who revealed the presence of Dr Aafia at the Bagram detention centre in 2008. A joint campaign launched by the US and the UKbased human rights groups, Ms Ridley and Imran Khan, had forced the US forces to stage this drama otherwise she might have spent her whole life in that illegal detention.
How surprising it is that a woman, who had gone so weak and lost her senses due to torture by interrogators, attacked a US soldier, but instead of harming him, she received two bullets.
Ironically, the court declared the two important issues raised by Dr Aafia`s lawyer, i.e., her illegal detention for five years, and torture by investigators, irrelevant.
A former US attorney-general, Ramsey Clarke, and other American lawyers, who visited Pakistan and met Dr Aafia`s family last month,categorically stated that her conviction had raised questions on the US justice system.
If US secret agencies had even minor evidence against Dr Aafia regarding her involvement in terrorist activities, she would have been tried for that.
I believe we should avoid exploiting attack on Malala to justify a blatant injustice with Dr Aafia. It will earn nothing but aggravate the already brewing polarisation in our society.
The Pakistani government should learn a lesson from the US government which went beyond justice to get Raymond Davis released. Mr Clarke and other lawyers are of the view that if the government of Pakistan wants Dr Aafia back home, she can be back home in weeks.
For Mr Murad`s information, Dr Aafia is not an American citizen which has been clarified by her family many times.
Perhaps the writer does not know that Dr Aafia has not been convicted of being associated with Al Qaeda or the Taliban. In fact, she has been sentenced to jail for 86 years for attacking an American soldier in the Afghan province of Ghazni.
I was one of the participants of an eight-member delegation that visited the United States under Pakistan-US journalists` exchange programme last year. The Pakistani journalists had a meeting with senior FBI officials in New York as part of the tour. During the meeting an FBI official, who claimed to be aware of the arrest, interrogation and prosecution process which ultimately led to Dr Aafia`s conviction, was very upset over a `hue and cry` in Pakistan with respect to the matter.He asserted that the FBI had ample reasons and proofs to believe that Dr Aafia was an Al Qaeda operative, a fund-raiser and had been associated with an alleged senior Al Qaeda member, Adnan Al Shukri Jumma.
The FBI official was repeatedly asked by the Pakistani journalists that if the agency had ample evidences against Dr Aafia, why was she thennottnedunderthose charges? Why was she charged with trying to kill a US soldier in Afghanistan? The FBI official had no answer except that `I cannot comment on that. It is not within my purview.
The fact is that Dr Aafia had been arrested by a joint team of FBI and Pakistani security officials in Karachi in 2003. She was immediately shifted to Bagram airbase in Kandahar. According to her family, one of her three children died when he was thrown on the floor by an investigator during her detention. Luckily, her eldest son,Ahmed and daughter Mariyam, were handed over to the family a few years ago.
It was a British journalist, Yvonne Ridley, who revealed the presence of Dr Aafia at the Bagram detention centre in 2008. A joint campaign launched by the US and the UKbased human rights groups, Ms Ridley and Imran Khan, had forced the US forces to stage this drama otherwise she might have spent her whole life in that illegal detention.
How surprising it is that a woman, who had gone so weak and lost her senses due to torture by interrogators, attacked a US soldier, but instead of harming him, she received two bullets.
Ironically, the court declared the two important issues raised by Dr Aafia`s lawyer, i.e., her illegal detention for five years, and torture by investigators, irrelevant.
A former US attorney-general, Ramsey Clarke, and other American lawyers, who visited Pakistan and met Dr Aafia`s family last month,categorically stated that her conviction had raised questions on the US justice system.
If US secret agencies had even minor evidence against Dr Aafia regarding her involvement in terrorist activities, she would have been tried for that.
I believe we should avoid exploiting attack on Malala to justify a blatant injustice with Dr Aafia. It will earn nothing but aggravate the already brewing polarisation in our society.
The Pakistani government should learn a lesson from the US government which went beyond justice to get Raymond Davis released. Mr Clarke and other lawyers are of the view that if the government of Pakistan wants Dr Aafia back home, she can be back home in weeks.
For Mr Murad`s information, Dr Aafia is not an American citizen which has been clarified by her family many times.
Wednesday, October 24, 2012
Nearly three million pilgrims started the first phase of Haj
MAKKAH, Oct 24: Nearly three million pilgrims started the first phase of
Haj on Wednesday, travelling through packed streets from Makkah`s Grand
Mosque to the enormous camp at Mina just outside the city.
In a dense sea of humanity, all clad in white abram, the pilgrims who were unable to get onto a new rail link were packed into 18,000 buses provided by the city or perched on the roofs of trucks.
Others walked the 5km to Mina in late afternoon temperatures of 35 degrees Celsius.
The mayor of Makkah, Osama Fadl al-Bar, said he expected the number of pilgrims this year to be close to three million people, including those from inside Saudi Arabia.
The interior ministry said 1.75 million had arrived from abroad.-Reuters
In a dense sea of humanity, all clad in white abram, the pilgrims who were unable to get onto a new rail link were packed into 18,000 buses provided by the city or perched on the roofs of trucks.
Others walked the 5km to Mina in late afternoon temperatures of 35 degrees Celsius.
The mayor of Makkah, Osama Fadl al-Bar, said he expected the number of pilgrims this year to be close to three million people, including those from inside Saudi Arabia.
The interior ministry said 1.75 million had arrived from abroad.-Reuters
Friday, October 19, 2012
Reality of US-China ties lost in debate
BEIJING: In the narrative of US presidential politics, China is a
Hollywood villain, a monetary cheat that is stealing American jobs. But
the one-dimensional caricature offered by President Barack Obama and
Republican challenger Mitt Romney obscures the crucial reality of
US-China relations: For all the talk about getting tough on Beijing, the
US and China are deeply entwined, defying easy solutions to the
friction and troubles that beset their relations.
The two countries are the first and second largest economies in the world, doing nearly a half-trillion dollars in trade which in turn buoys the global economy. Their governments are in constant contact on North Korea`s and Iran`s nuclear programmes and Syria`s civil war and are trying to work out rules of the road for their huge militaries and such 21st century problems as cyberwarfare.
Few relationships are as critical to the world today. Managing the competition for global influence between the world`s superpower and its stillrising rival so that it does not become outright confrontation will be a priority for whoever wins next month`s presidential election.
Little of the enormity and importance of US-China ties found its way into Tuesday night`s debate betweenObama and Romney. Instead, the candidates used it as a convenient foil for their campaign positions about revitalising the US economy and getting Americans back to work.
Both candidates sought to portray China as vacuuming up American jobs. Their arguments contained halftruths and flaws.
Romney said excessive regulation and misguided policies during Obama`s first term drained away American jobs, turning China into the largest manufacturer in the world.` Obama said Romney, through his work for private equity and investment firm Bain Capital, bore responsibility by investing in companies that moved jobs to China.
The title of No 1 manufacturer is a matter of dispute. The research firm IHS Global Insight said last year that China overtook the United States in 2010, with total output of $1.995 trillion, compared with $1.952 trillion for the US. The National Association of Manufacturers disputed that, saying the United States still was in the lead and IHS Global Insight`s figures were distorted by changes in exchange rates and other factors. L e f t unsaid by both candidates: That if low-cost manufacturing jobs don`t go to China, they`ll go somewhere else.
Think Mexico.
Obama, for his part, said his focuson doubling US exports is ``creating tens of thousands of jobs all across the country.` But one concrete example he cited in getting tough on China slapping levies on imports of lowpriced Chinese-made tires that he said saved 1,000 jobs had mixed results. Economists at the Peterson Institute for International Economics in Washington have said that some 1,200 jobs might have been preserved, but that the cost amounted to $1.1 billion in higher prices paid by American consumers or $900,000 per job. Whether the outcome was good or bad for Americans is a matter of perspective.
Nor did they point out that in an era of globalised business, an Apple iPhone created in America and assembled in China helps both, as well as component suppliers in Japan, Germany and South Korea.
True, China has used its mix of free-market, state-directed economic policies to support Chinese business to the disadvantage of foreign competitors. Romney came closest to hitting that mark, ticking off China`s rampant theft of intellectual property and other trade secrets as well as policies that help hold down the value of its currency, the yuan, thereby keeping low the price of Chinese exports.
Yet Romney`s campaign promise repeated in the debate that hewould brand China a currency manipulator on his first day in office may merely be symbolic. The act does not require immediate punitive measures, and while economists estimate the yuan is still undervalued, it has appreciated markedly, as Obama said.
And applying that label may be counterproductive if Beijing retaliates. On cue, China`s government news agency, Xinhua, soon after the debate warned that China ``perhaps would be forced to fight back,` sparking a global trade war. One Romney supporter in the business community, former American International Group Inc. chairman Maurice Greenberg, told Bloomberg Television last week that the candidate is unlikely to follow through with the promise if elected. Lost in the back-and-forth is any defence of US-China relations as a whole, and how the candidates would handle the challenges China`s burgeoning economic, diplomatic and military might pose to US pre-eminence.
For much of the past two decades, presidential candidates have bashed China on the campaign trail and taken a tough line once in office only to find that global trade and hotspots require engaging Beijing. The Chinese government has reminded its people of that pattern in state media reporting on the election
The two countries are the first and second largest economies in the world, doing nearly a half-trillion dollars in trade which in turn buoys the global economy. Their governments are in constant contact on North Korea`s and Iran`s nuclear programmes and Syria`s civil war and are trying to work out rules of the road for their huge militaries and such 21st century problems as cyberwarfare.
Few relationships are as critical to the world today. Managing the competition for global influence between the world`s superpower and its stillrising rival so that it does not become outright confrontation will be a priority for whoever wins next month`s presidential election.
Little of the enormity and importance of US-China ties found its way into Tuesday night`s debate betweenObama and Romney. Instead, the candidates used it as a convenient foil for their campaign positions about revitalising the US economy and getting Americans back to work.
Both candidates sought to portray China as vacuuming up American jobs. Their arguments contained halftruths and flaws.
Romney said excessive regulation and misguided policies during Obama`s first term drained away American jobs, turning China into the largest manufacturer in the world.` Obama said Romney, through his work for private equity and investment firm Bain Capital, bore responsibility by investing in companies that moved jobs to China.
The title of No 1 manufacturer is a matter of dispute. The research firm IHS Global Insight said last year that China overtook the United States in 2010, with total output of $1.995 trillion, compared with $1.952 trillion for the US. The National Association of Manufacturers disputed that, saying the United States still was in the lead and IHS Global Insight`s figures were distorted by changes in exchange rates and other factors. L e f t unsaid by both candidates: That if low-cost manufacturing jobs don`t go to China, they`ll go somewhere else.
Think Mexico.
Obama, for his part, said his focuson doubling US exports is ``creating tens of thousands of jobs all across the country.` But one concrete example he cited in getting tough on China slapping levies on imports of lowpriced Chinese-made tires that he said saved 1,000 jobs had mixed results. Economists at the Peterson Institute for International Economics in Washington have said that some 1,200 jobs might have been preserved, but that the cost amounted to $1.1 billion in higher prices paid by American consumers or $900,000 per job. Whether the outcome was good or bad for Americans is a matter of perspective.
Nor did they point out that in an era of globalised business, an Apple iPhone created in America and assembled in China helps both, as well as component suppliers in Japan, Germany and South Korea.
True, China has used its mix of free-market, state-directed economic policies to support Chinese business to the disadvantage of foreign competitors. Romney came closest to hitting that mark, ticking off China`s rampant theft of intellectual property and other trade secrets as well as policies that help hold down the value of its currency, the yuan, thereby keeping low the price of Chinese exports.
Yet Romney`s campaign promise repeated in the debate that hewould brand China a currency manipulator on his first day in office may merely be symbolic. The act does not require immediate punitive measures, and while economists estimate the yuan is still undervalued, it has appreciated markedly, as Obama said.
And applying that label may be counterproductive if Beijing retaliates. On cue, China`s government news agency, Xinhua, soon after the debate warned that China ``perhaps would be forced to fight back,` sparking a global trade war. One Romney supporter in the business community, former American International Group Inc. chairman Maurice Greenberg, told Bloomberg Television last week that the candidate is unlikely to follow through with the promise if elected. Lost in the back-and-forth is any defence of US-China relations as a whole, and how the candidates would handle the challenges China`s burgeoning economic, diplomatic and military might pose to US pre-eminence.
For much of the past two decades, presidential candidates have bashed China on the campaign trail and taken a tough line once in office only to find that global trade and hotspots require engaging Beijing. The Chinese government has reminded its people of that pattern in state media reporting on the election
Balochistan: three choices
A LEADING columnist in the country has excluded the army or the FC for
taking the blame of deteriorating law and order situation in
Balochistan. If it is not taken as a fashion, I beg to agree with what
he says in his careful study of Balochistan`s history, especially after
the independence.
His conclusion is that the Balochistan issue is not political but an issue of administrative delinquency caused by inept successive federal and provincial governments and by hoards of sardars and their attempt to save the antiquated sardari system for selfish reasons.
Some of the root causes are the federal government`s incompetence and inability toabolish the sardari system, the self-serving behaviour of sardars enjoying unlimited powers over the poor tribal Baloch, just as they did 200 years ago, and the interest of foreign powers in the strategic location of Balochistan.
Solution to all these problems require many steps and corrective actions as no solution will be meaningful until the sardari system is permanently abolished, with no sardar using the word `nawab` or `sardar as a title.
To him (the columnist), Balochistan requires the governor`s rule which must be imposed immediately after abolishing the Sardari system.
It is true that at present Balochistan is not in a position to run its own provincial governmentand will not be ready for several years after the socio-political situation has been stabilised by removing all ill effects of the Sardari system and private armies.
`The province needs to be disarmed as the top priority.` One wonders that the Baloch, hostage in the hands of their sardars, are themselves responsible for the present condition, which has been exploited by political mainstream of the country, the centre and indirectly the army, perhaps for national interest. This we need to consider and move for its solution as early as possible.
His conclusion is that the Balochistan issue is not political but an issue of administrative delinquency caused by inept successive federal and provincial governments and by hoards of sardars and their attempt to save the antiquated sardari system for selfish reasons.
Some of the root causes are the federal government`s incompetence and inability toabolish the sardari system, the self-serving behaviour of sardars enjoying unlimited powers over the poor tribal Baloch, just as they did 200 years ago, and the interest of foreign powers in the strategic location of Balochistan.
Solution to all these problems require many steps and corrective actions as no solution will be meaningful until the sardari system is permanently abolished, with no sardar using the word `nawab` or `sardar as a title.
To him (the columnist), Balochistan requires the governor`s rule which must be imposed immediately after abolishing the Sardari system.
It is true that at present Balochistan is not in a position to run its own provincial governmentand will not be ready for several years after the socio-political situation has been stabilised by removing all ill effects of the Sardari system and private armies.
`The province needs to be disarmed as the top priority.` One wonders that the Baloch, hostage in the hands of their sardars, are themselves responsible for the present condition, which has been exploited by political mainstream of the country, the centre and indirectly the army, perhaps for national interest. This we need to consider and move for its solution as early as possible.
Thursday, October 18, 2012
China`s fight against corruption and `conspicuous consumption`
BEIJING: Fighting corruption is one of the top priorities of the
Communist Party of China (CPC) and the Chinese government. People
resonate to this priority, as reflected in the cooperative, outspoken
and effective anti-corruption stance of the ever vigilant and active
netizens.
In December 2010, the State Council formally issued the anti-corruption white paper: `China`s Efforts to Combat Corruption and Build a Clean Government`. And the anti-corruption campaign will be a key issue on the agenda of the 18th National Congress of the CPC, which begins on Nov 8.
During the past decade, the Central Commission of Discipline Inspection of the CPC processed about 700,000 corruption cases. It will expose many more cases and prosecute many more people. Corruption must be checked and not allowed to contaminate and corrode CPC members and government officials.
Generally, fighting corruption requires trained eyes for telltale signs of corrupt practices. One key thing to look for is public officials` relation (possession, use and dissemination of or access) to luxuries, be they goods, services or both. In fact, succumbing to the lure of luxuries has become a key element of corruption in China.
Accordingly, China`s anticorruption agencies are educating and training agents about luxury goods and services to better fight corruption. Netizens are also playing their part in fighting corruption by being alert to the lure of luxuries tocorrupt officials.
A recent example, widely reported on the Internet, shows how netizens and official anti-corruption agencies are cooperating. Looking at photographs, some netizens noticed that Yang Dacai, a senior Shaanxi province work safety official, had a repugnant smirk on his face while inspecting the site of a tragic transport accident. Checking other photographs of Yang, they identified that he sported 11 luxury watches on different occasions, which he could not afford given his level of income as a civil servant. This exposure led to official investigations, which found Yang guilty of corruption. He was sacked on Sept 21, 2012.
Yang`s public display of luxury products is a case of inappropriate `conspicuous consumption`, a socioeconomic phenomenon of `wasteful and lavish consumption to enhance social prestige`. Yang did not have to wear his pricey watches in public, but he was driven by vanity and a false sense of social prestige to do so. Many corrupt officials like Yang indulge in conspicuous consumption to gratify themselves with illegally earned money.
It was Thorstein B. Veblen, a Norwegian-American sociologist and economist, who coined the term `conspicuous consumption` in his book `The Theory of the Leisure Class` in 1899. The term describes the socioeconomic reality of the then nouveaux riches in the United States, who, after acquiring sudden wealth, spent extravagantly on material excesses purely to show off and match the much envied lifestyle of the longestablished rich. It was a case ofshowing off `new money` to `old money` to gain self-esteem.
By the 1920s, conspicuous consumption had become the prevalent culture in the US. E Scott Fitzgerald fictionally documented this wayward 1920s culture in his celebrated novel `The Great Gatsby`. The novel is about corruption rooted in personal moral failings. It is about the corruption of people seeking social prominence through conspicuous consumption. In the value-neutral scholarly words of Veblen: `to gain and hold the esteem of men is not sufficient merely to hold wealth and power. The wealth and power must be put into evidence.
In separate scholarly and literary works Veblen and Fitzgerald both documented a universal condition of human weakness: Humans need to bolster self-esteem through ostentatious display of wealth and power, often through socially unacceptable means. This universal human condition has been present throughout history and across geographical boundaries. The verdict that `socially unacceptable means` must be eradicated is universal. The ways to eradicate them, however, are less universal, and are largely particular to a society.
In 30-odd years of reform and opening-up, China has lifted millions of people out of poverty and is moving toward achieving the ancient ideal of a `moderately prosperous` (xiaokang) society. Along the way, many people have become rich, sought social prominence or indulged in `conspicuous consumption`, and many officials have wallowed in corruption. Being wealthy, seeking social prominence and even indulging in`conspicuous consumption` are, to various degrees, acceptable, but being corrupt can never be acceptable.
Realistically, given human nature, corruption in Chinese society today is like a cancerous pain, to snip it now will bring enduring joy, China has to remove the malignant growth in the best possible way.
China is fighting corruption and conspicuous consumption in three ways: formally, informally and culturally. The formal ways are documented in the State Council`s 2010 anti-corruption white paper, and include systemic reform, enforcement of laws and regulations, education and international cooperation. The informal ways include creative contributions from people, for example, anonymous netizens.
On the cultural front, however, appeals should be made to the traditional social values of frugality and moral rectitude, long found in the practices of Confucianism, Daoism and Buddhism. Appeals also should be made to the modern spirit of Lei Feng`s service to the people. This spirit combines values of traditional Chinese culture and contemporary socialist values. The three ways are interconnected.
China has to be patient in its fight against corruption, though, for as the country moves toward realising a `moderately prosperous` society, the novelty of being wealthy will wear off, self-esteem will be less dependent on conspicuous consumption and corruption will be under greater control.
By arrangement with the China Daily/ANN
In December 2010, the State Council formally issued the anti-corruption white paper: `China`s Efforts to Combat Corruption and Build a Clean Government`. And the anti-corruption campaign will be a key issue on the agenda of the 18th National Congress of the CPC, which begins on Nov 8.
During the past decade, the Central Commission of Discipline Inspection of the CPC processed about 700,000 corruption cases. It will expose many more cases and prosecute many more people. Corruption must be checked and not allowed to contaminate and corrode CPC members and government officials.
Generally, fighting corruption requires trained eyes for telltale signs of corrupt practices. One key thing to look for is public officials` relation (possession, use and dissemination of or access) to luxuries, be they goods, services or both. In fact, succumbing to the lure of luxuries has become a key element of corruption in China.
Accordingly, China`s anticorruption agencies are educating and training agents about luxury goods and services to better fight corruption. Netizens are also playing their part in fighting corruption by being alert to the lure of luxuries tocorrupt officials.
A recent example, widely reported on the Internet, shows how netizens and official anti-corruption agencies are cooperating. Looking at photographs, some netizens noticed that Yang Dacai, a senior Shaanxi province work safety official, had a repugnant smirk on his face while inspecting the site of a tragic transport accident. Checking other photographs of Yang, they identified that he sported 11 luxury watches on different occasions, which he could not afford given his level of income as a civil servant. This exposure led to official investigations, which found Yang guilty of corruption. He was sacked on Sept 21, 2012.
Yang`s public display of luxury products is a case of inappropriate `conspicuous consumption`, a socioeconomic phenomenon of `wasteful and lavish consumption to enhance social prestige`. Yang did not have to wear his pricey watches in public, but he was driven by vanity and a false sense of social prestige to do so. Many corrupt officials like Yang indulge in conspicuous consumption to gratify themselves with illegally earned money.
It was Thorstein B. Veblen, a Norwegian-American sociologist and economist, who coined the term `conspicuous consumption` in his book `The Theory of the Leisure Class` in 1899. The term describes the socioeconomic reality of the then nouveaux riches in the United States, who, after acquiring sudden wealth, spent extravagantly on material excesses purely to show off and match the much envied lifestyle of the longestablished rich. It was a case ofshowing off `new money` to `old money` to gain self-esteem.
By the 1920s, conspicuous consumption had become the prevalent culture in the US. E Scott Fitzgerald fictionally documented this wayward 1920s culture in his celebrated novel `The Great Gatsby`. The novel is about corruption rooted in personal moral failings. It is about the corruption of people seeking social prominence through conspicuous consumption. In the value-neutral scholarly words of Veblen: `to gain and hold the esteem of men is not sufficient merely to hold wealth and power. The wealth and power must be put into evidence.
In separate scholarly and literary works Veblen and Fitzgerald both documented a universal condition of human weakness: Humans need to bolster self-esteem through ostentatious display of wealth and power, often through socially unacceptable means. This universal human condition has been present throughout history and across geographical boundaries. The verdict that `socially unacceptable means` must be eradicated is universal. The ways to eradicate them, however, are less universal, and are largely particular to a society.
In 30-odd years of reform and opening-up, China has lifted millions of people out of poverty and is moving toward achieving the ancient ideal of a `moderately prosperous` (xiaokang) society. Along the way, many people have become rich, sought social prominence or indulged in `conspicuous consumption`, and many officials have wallowed in corruption. Being wealthy, seeking social prominence and even indulging in`conspicuous consumption` are, to various degrees, acceptable, but being corrupt can never be acceptable.
Realistically, given human nature, corruption in Chinese society today is like a cancerous pain, to snip it now will bring enduring joy, China has to remove the malignant growth in the best possible way.
China is fighting corruption and conspicuous consumption in three ways: formally, informally and culturally. The formal ways are documented in the State Council`s 2010 anti-corruption white paper, and include systemic reform, enforcement of laws and regulations, education and international cooperation. The informal ways include creative contributions from people, for example, anonymous netizens.
On the cultural front, however, appeals should be made to the traditional social values of frugality and moral rectitude, long found in the practices of Confucianism, Daoism and Buddhism. Appeals also should be made to the modern spirit of Lei Feng`s service to the people. This spirit combines values of traditional Chinese culture and contemporary socialist values. The three ways are interconnected.
China has to be patient in its fight against corruption, though, for as the country moves toward realising a `moderately prosperous` society, the novelty of being wealthy will wear off, self-esteem will be less dependent on conspicuous consumption and corruption will be under greater control.
By arrangement with the China Daily/ANN
Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan Bill, 2012 by the National Assembly
THE eventual, unanimous passage of the Drug Regulatory Authority of
Pakistan Bill, 2012 by the National Assembly on Tuesday is a step in the
right direction. The consensus achieved underscores the ability of this
set of lawmakers to come together for a common cause. It vindicates the
feeling that, with a little more purpose, this House could have had an
even more productive record than it has shown overall. On Tuesday, the
not so minor step of removing the single word `only` was agreed to by
all parties.
`...[N]o person shall be appointed as the CEO or director of the authority unless he is a citizen of Pakistan only`, read the original draft. The MQM sought the deletion of `only` from the line, opening up the way for Pakistanis with dual nationality to hold the posts. This was in sync with the position of most parties in the National Assembly.
The need for regulating this sphere has in recent times been highlighted by unfortunate deaths resulting from the consumption of spurious or low-quality drugs and by scandals surrounding the granting of quotasfor substances used in the manufacture of medicines. Even without these high-profile incidents, the greed of pharmaceutical companies is well known, as is the fact that other makers and suppliers of fake, substandard drugs have remained a threat to public health. Governments have failed to take due action and, in return, have exposed themselvesto allegations of not just apathy but collusion with such unscrupulous manufacturers and suppliers.
Whatever mechanism the country had for controlling the sector was made largely ineffective by the transfer of the subject of health to the provinces under the 18th Amendment, and reminders were sent to the legislators that they needed to move fast and decisively on this.
The bill, which now needs a nod from the Senate to become law, raises genuine hope about regulation of the drug sector. One of the drug authority`s vital tasks would be to streamline the interprovincial trade of drugs.
The authority will also help define the federal government`s response and role in relation to obligations and commitments with international organisations. Not least, it will help develop ethical criteria on drug promotion, marketing and advertising, and on the rational use of drugs, on research and development.
The authority `shall undertake measures to ensure self-sufficiency ... to create a conducive environment for manufacture, import and promotion of export`.
This is not an easy agenda but the Drug Regulatory Authority bill is an expression of intent to allow experts to oversee the sector. So long as the emphasis is on merit, so long as the authority is free of politics and is willing to improve its working while learning through experience, success can be achieved.
`...[N]o person shall be appointed as the CEO or director of the authority unless he is a citizen of Pakistan only`, read the original draft. The MQM sought the deletion of `only` from the line, opening up the way for Pakistanis with dual nationality to hold the posts. This was in sync with the position of most parties in the National Assembly.
The need for regulating this sphere has in recent times been highlighted by unfortunate deaths resulting from the consumption of spurious or low-quality drugs and by scandals surrounding the granting of quotasfor substances used in the manufacture of medicines. Even without these high-profile incidents, the greed of pharmaceutical companies is well known, as is the fact that other makers and suppliers of fake, substandard drugs have remained a threat to public health. Governments have failed to take due action and, in return, have exposed themselvesto allegations of not just apathy but collusion with such unscrupulous manufacturers and suppliers.
Whatever mechanism the country had for controlling the sector was made largely ineffective by the transfer of the subject of health to the provinces under the 18th Amendment, and reminders were sent to the legislators that they needed to move fast and decisively on this.
The bill, which now needs a nod from the Senate to become law, raises genuine hope about regulation of the drug sector. One of the drug authority`s vital tasks would be to streamline the interprovincial trade of drugs.
The authority will also help define the federal government`s response and role in relation to obligations and commitments with international organisations. Not least, it will help develop ethical criteria on drug promotion, marketing and advertising, and on the rational use of drugs, on research and development.
The authority `shall undertake measures to ensure self-sufficiency ... to create a conducive environment for manufacture, import and promotion of export`.
This is not an easy agenda but the Drug Regulatory Authority bill is an expression of intent to allow experts to oversee the sector. So long as the emphasis is on merit, so long as the authority is free of politics and is willing to improve its working while learning through experience, success can be achieved.
Hyropower: no money for dams
THE financial constraints facing Wapda are likely to hit another hydropower project Gomal Zam dam.
The contractor, the Frontier Works Organisation, has put the authority on notice for immediate clearance of its dues of Rs4bn.
In case Wapda fails to do so, the work on the dam will be stopped. It means the commissioning of the project, which was scheduled to be completed five years ago, will be further delayed. The nearly completed dam will produce 17.5MW electricity and irrigate 191,000 acres of land in Tank and D.L Khan.
Gomal Zam is not the first hydropower project hit by the paucity of funds. There are many others, like Neelum-Jhelum, while the work on the 4,500MW Diamer-Bhasha dam is yet to start because of unavailability of financing.
Several factors security conditions, fund shortage and no political consensus can be cited as responsible for the failure to develop Pakistan`s hydropower potential. Indeed, the scarcity of funds for new projects remains on top of the list. Hydropower generation is crucial for Pakistan not only to ensure its energy and water securi-ty but also to change the existing generation mix for providing affordable electricity to consumers.
Currently, we have an installed hydel generation capacity of just 6,500MW 13 per cent of the country`s estimated hydropower potential of over 50,000MW. India too has developed just 15 per cent of its hydropower potential, but is making fast progress on several projects to change the hydel-thermal power mix to 40:60. We, on the other hand, are doing little to exploit this natural source of affordable power at the expense of economic development.
No significant project has been undertaken since the completion of the Ghazi Barotha Hydropower Project with a capacity of 1,400MW almost a decade ago. That project came decades after Tarbela. Wapda claims that it could add 6,000MW of hydel power to the system in five years and another 15,000 by 2020 provided it receives uninterrupted funding. It is time that the government spared some funds for hydel generation to prevent further damage to the economy due to power shortages and high energy prices
The contractor, the Frontier Works Organisation, has put the authority on notice for immediate clearance of its dues of Rs4bn.
In case Wapda fails to do so, the work on the dam will be stopped. It means the commissioning of the project, which was scheduled to be completed five years ago, will be further delayed. The nearly completed dam will produce 17.5MW electricity and irrigate 191,000 acres of land in Tank and D.L Khan.
Gomal Zam is not the first hydropower project hit by the paucity of funds. There are many others, like Neelum-Jhelum, while the work on the 4,500MW Diamer-Bhasha dam is yet to start because of unavailability of financing.
Several factors security conditions, fund shortage and no political consensus can be cited as responsible for the failure to develop Pakistan`s hydropower potential. Indeed, the scarcity of funds for new projects remains on top of the list. Hydropower generation is crucial for Pakistan not only to ensure its energy and water securi-ty but also to change the existing generation mix for providing affordable electricity to consumers.
Currently, we have an installed hydel generation capacity of just 6,500MW 13 per cent of the country`s estimated hydropower potential of over 50,000MW. India too has developed just 15 per cent of its hydropower potential, but is making fast progress on several projects to change the hydel-thermal power mix to 40:60. We, on the other hand, are doing little to exploit this natural source of affordable power at the expense of economic development.
No significant project has been undertaken since the completion of the Ghazi Barotha Hydropower Project with a capacity of 1,400MW almost a decade ago. That project came decades after Tarbela. Wapda claims that it could add 6,000MW of hydel power to the system in five years and another 15,000 by 2020 provided it receives uninterrupted funding. It is time that the government spared some funds for hydel generation to prevent further damage to the economy due to power shortages and high energy prices
Polio drive in balochistan
IT is indeed ironic that on the day an advertisement was published in a
number of papers proclaiming the `achievements` of the Balochistan
government particularly the province`s chief minister two news reports
were also printed highlighting the frequent acts of violence that occur
in this troubled province. A vaccinator taking part in an antipolio
campaign was shot dead on the outskirts of Quetta, while four men
belonging to the Shia Hazara community were also gunned down in the
Balochistan capital on Tuesday. The frequently targeted Hazara have
become Balochistan`s most vulnerable community, while the targeting of
the vaccinator is also cause for concern, especially considering that
Balochistan is one of the key areas of polio transmission in Pakistan.
In the face of such rampant lawlessness, the Balochistan government is
hardly qualified to trumpet its `achievements`.
At this point it is not clear if the vaccinator wasshot because of his association with the anti-polio drive, or due to some other motive. What is certain is that the attack affected the campaign, as vaccinations in several parts of Quetta were suspended following the murder. While no major incidents of intimidation of pollo vaccination staff have previously been reported in Balochistan, the authorities need to keep their guard up, for elsewhere in the country opposition to the drive has manifested itself in unambiguously brutal ways. The Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan has banned the campaign in parts of the tribal areas while in Karachi a local anti-polio campaigner was shot dead in July. The attack came just days after a foreign WHO consultant was targeted in the port city; the expert luckily survived. These incidents lend weight to calls that vaccination teams be provided security, especially in highrisk areas. The state cannot allow extremists to violently derail the anti-polio campaign and put the lives of countless children at risk.
At this point it is not clear if the vaccinator wasshot because of his association with the anti-polio drive, or due to some other motive. What is certain is that the attack affected the campaign, as vaccinations in several parts of Quetta were suspended following the murder. While no major incidents of intimidation of pollo vaccination staff have previously been reported in Balochistan, the authorities need to keep their guard up, for elsewhere in the country opposition to the drive has manifested itself in unambiguously brutal ways. The Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan has banned the campaign in parts of the tribal areas while in Karachi a local anti-polio campaigner was shot dead in July. The attack came just days after a foreign WHO consultant was targeted in the port city; the expert luckily survived. These incidents lend weight to calls that vaccination teams be provided security, especially in highrisk areas. The state cannot allow extremists to violently derail the anti-polio campaign and put the lives of countless children at risk.
Sir Syed: a role model |
10/17/2012 12:00:00 AM
TODAY is Sir Syed`s birthday. Let us take stock of his legacy and count his beneficiaries. M.A.O College was established in 1877 with seven teachers and a small number of students. This proved to be the foundation stone for Aligarh Muslim University, which came into being in 1920. Now this university has 1,400 teachers and 30,000 students.
There are 109 departments, six colleges, two polytechnics, five institutes and 13 centres. It offers 323 courses. It is ranked the 8th university in India. This banyan tree of knowledge is still growing and sprouting new branches. Malapuram in Kerala and Murshidabad in West Bengal started working in February and March 2011, respectively.
Kishananj in Bihar and Aurangabad in Maharashtra are in the offing.
Approval has been given for the fifth centre to be located later.
Sir Syed University of Engineering and Technology in Karachi with its over 6,000 students and Aligarh Institute of Technology with its 2,500students are the main beneficiaries in Pakistan, besides numerous institutions using the name of Sir Syed.
In the 92 years of life of this spring of knowledge, hundreds of thousands have improved their quality of life. All the alumni owe their academic beingto this university.
It may not be the largest university of the world, but it carries two features which make it unique in the world.
This university came into being after the relentless efforts of a single man seeking donations from all and sundry. To pursue his dream he went to England and got the academic and building blueprints for this university.
He advocated the use of English for instructions at the university. All this coming from a man whose own English was very rudimentary. In this pursuit, he had to recourse to translators.
On this day let us pledge to accomplish his mission which he spelled out in 1894: `My friends, we will be fully educated only when we have full control of education in our hands ... when philosophy will be in our right hand, natural sciences in our left hand, and the crown of la elaha illallah will be on our heads ... We become humans only when we take education in our hands.
M. HANIF KHAN Karachi
TODAY is Sir Syed`s birthday. Let us take stock of his legacy and count his beneficiaries. M.A.O College was established in 1877 with seven teachers and a small number of students. This proved to be the foundation stone for Aligarh Muslim University, which came into being in 1920. Now this university has 1,400 teachers and 30,000 students.
There are 109 departments, six colleges, two polytechnics, five institutes and 13 centres. It offers 323 courses. It is ranked the 8th university in India. This banyan tree of knowledge is still growing and sprouting new branches. Malapuram in Kerala and Murshidabad in West Bengal started working in February and March 2011, respectively.
Kishananj in Bihar and Aurangabad in Maharashtra are in the offing.
Approval has been given for the fifth centre to be located later.
Sir Syed University of Engineering and Technology in Karachi with its over 6,000 students and Aligarh Institute of Technology with its 2,500students are the main beneficiaries in Pakistan, besides numerous institutions using the name of Sir Syed.
In the 92 years of life of this spring of knowledge, hundreds of thousands have improved their quality of life. All the alumni owe their academic beingto this university.
It may not be the largest university of the world, but it carries two features which make it unique in the world.
This university came into being after the relentless efforts of a single man seeking donations from all and sundry. To pursue his dream he went to England and got the academic and building blueprints for this university.
He advocated the use of English for instructions at the university. All this coming from a man whose own English was very rudimentary. In this pursuit, he had to recourse to translators.
On this day let us pledge to accomplish his mission which he spelled out in 1894: `My friends, we will be fully educated only when we have full control of education in our hands ... when philosophy will be in our right hand, natural sciences in our left hand, and the crown of la elaha illallah will be on our heads ... We become humans only when we take education in our hands.
M. HANIF KHAN Karachi
Wednesday, October 17, 2012
ECO: Pakistan, Iran vow to jointly pursue major projects
AKU (Azerbaijan), Oct 16: President Asif Ali Zardari on Tuesday called
for speeding up work on joint projects like the Iran-Pakistan gas
pipeline, electricity transmission lines and rail and road schemes.
During a meeting between President Zardari and his Iranian counterpart Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on the sidelines of the 12th ECO summit, the two sides discussed bilateral, regional and international issues.
From the Pakistani side, the meeting was also attended by Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar, Senator Haji Mohammad Adeel, Inayatullah Kakar and Ambassador to Azerbaijan Alamgir Babar.
The president noted that relations with Iran were growing steadily and expressed adesire for more collaboration in trade and investment, energy and connectivity to bring the two peoples closer.
He said greater interaction between the leadership and the two nations would not only strengthen historical, cultural and religious bonds but would also help them to benefit from each other`s resources and expertise.
President Zardari said there was a huge potential for trade between the two countries and called for concessions like preferential tariff and free trade arrangements to take the volume or bilateral trade to $10 billion.
`The agreement on export of wheat and rice to Iran is a test case for our barter trade and if successful, it can be replicated in other areas.
President Zardari calledfor removing tariff and nontariff barriers and identifying alternative arrangements to expand bilateral trade.
Asif Zardari and President Ahmadinejad called for expediting work on projects like the Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline, the 1000MW TaftanQuetta power transmission line, 100MW Gwadar power supply project, construction of Nushki-Dalbandin section of Quetta-Taftan highway and upgradation of Quetta-Taftan railway track.
Issues related to visa facilitation and opening of new border posts at Mand-Pishin and Gabd-Rimdan to connect Karachi and Gwadar with Chah Bahar and Bandar Abbas through the Coastal Highway were also discussed.
President Zardari said Pakistan was concerned overthe deteriorating situation in Syria. `We believe that stability in this region is important for peace in the region and beyond.
He said Pakistan desired an immediate end to the bloodshed in Syria and would continue advocating principles of non-intervention and non-interference in the internal affairs of states.
The president said Pakistan supported independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Syria and that it would continue supporting any initiative which could provide political space to Syrian parties for bringing peace and stability in the country.
Mr Zardari reiterated Pakistan`s stance to support an Afghan-led and Afghan-owned reconciliation process.-APP
During a meeting between President Zardari and his Iranian counterpart Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on the sidelines of the 12th ECO summit, the two sides discussed bilateral, regional and international issues.
From the Pakistani side, the meeting was also attended by Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar, Senator Haji Mohammad Adeel, Inayatullah Kakar and Ambassador to Azerbaijan Alamgir Babar.
The president noted that relations with Iran were growing steadily and expressed adesire for more collaboration in trade and investment, energy and connectivity to bring the two peoples closer.
He said greater interaction between the leadership and the two nations would not only strengthen historical, cultural and religious bonds but would also help them to benefit from each other`s resources and expertise.
President Zardari said there was a huge potential for trade between the two countries and called for concessions like preferential tariff and free trade arrangements to take the volume or bilateral trade to $10 billion.
`The agreement on export of wheat and rice to Iran is a test case for our barter trade and if successful, it can be replicated in other areas.
President Zardari calledfor removing tariff and nontariff barriers and identifying alternative arrangements to expand bilateral trade.
Asif Zardari and President Ahmadinejad called for expediting work on projects like the Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline, the 1000MW TaftanQuetta power transmission line, 100MW Gwadar power supply project, construction of Nushki-Dalbandin section of Quetta-Taftan highway and upgradation of Quetta-Taftan railway track.
Issues related to visa facilitation and opening of new border posts at Mand-Pishin and Gabd-Rimdan to connect Karachi and Gwadar with Chah Bahar and Bandar Abbas through the Coastal Highway were also discussed.
President Zardari said Pakistan was concerned overthe deteriorating situation in Syria. `We believe that stability in this region is important for peace in the region and beyond.
He said Pakistan desired an immediate end to the bloodshed in Syria and would continue advocating principles of non-intervention and non-interference in the internal affairs of states.
The president said Pakistan supported independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Syria and that it would continue supporting any initiative which could provide political space to Syrian parties for bringing peace and stability in the country.
Mr Zardari reiterated Pakistan`s stance to support an Afghan-led and Afghan-owned reconciliation process.-APP
Tuesday, October 16, 2012
Russia assures India it won`t sell arms to Pakistan
NEW DELHI, Oct 15: Russia has assured India it will not sell any arms to
Pakistan, a clarification delivered through the media ahead of
President Vladimir Putin`s visit to New Delhi in November, local reports
said on Monday.
`We are always cooperating with India to ensure safety of the region. We never created trouble for India in the region as compared to other countries. If someone says otherwise, spit in his face,` The Hindu quoted Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin as saying on Sunday.
`We don`t do military business with your enemies. We don`t transfer any arms to them,` he told journalists after arriving here on Sunday to co-chair the India-Russia Inter-governmental Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific, Technological and Cultural Cooperation (IRIGC-TEC) with India`s External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna.
It was a run-up to Mr. Putin`s first visit to South Asia in his third term as Russian President. Separate Indian reports have suggested that Mr Putin postponed a landmark October visit to Pakistan at New Delhi`s behest.
`Mr Rogozin was clearing the air on several high-level engagements with Pakistan in recent times, which has led to talk about a reset in Russia-Pakistan ties,` The Hindu said.
While Mr Putin cancelled his Islamabad visit last month, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov held con-sultations with the Pakistani leadership.
Around the same time, Pakistan Army chief Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani visited Moscow, Indian reports recalled.
The two countries appear to be in a bind over a nuclear plant in India`s southern Kundankulam town. Russia does not want the civil nuclear liability law to apply to the proposed units 3 and 4. India has not applied the law to units 1 and 2.
The exemption is being challenged in the Supreme Court. The first two were constructed under an agreement that predated the 2010 civil liability law.
But India is against exempting units 3 and 4 because this will be seen as discriminating against companies from the US and France.
`We are always cooperating with India to ensure safety of the region. We never created trouble for India in the region as compared to other countries. If someone says otherwise, spit in his face,` The Hindu quoted Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin as saying on Sunday.
`We don`t do military business with your enemies. We don`t transfer any arms to them,` he told journalists after arriving here on Sunday to co-chair the India-Russia Inter-governmental Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific, Technological and Cultural Cooperation (IRIGC-TEC) with India`s External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna.
It was a run-up to Mr. Putin`s first visit to South Asia in his third term as Russian President. Separate Indian reports have suggested that Mr Putin postponed a landmark October visit to Pakistan at New Delhi`s behest.
`Mr Rogozin was clearing the air on several high-level engagements with Pakistan in recent times, which has led to talk about a reset in Russia-Pakistan ties,` The Hindu said.
While Mr Putin cancelled his Islamabad visit last month, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov held con-sultations with the Pakistani leadership.
Around the same time, Pakistan Army chief Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani visited Moscow, Indian reports recalled.
The two countries appear to be in a bind over a nuclear plant in India`s southern Kundankulam town. Russia does not want the civil nuclear liability law to apply to the proposed units 3 and 4. India has not applied the law to units 1 and 2.
The exemption is being challenged in the Supreme Court. The first two were constructed under an agreement that predated the 2010 civil liability law.
But India is against exempting units 3 and 4 because this will be seen as discriminating against companies from the US and France.
Controversy over hijab ban at schools in Russia
MOSCOW: Several Muslim families pulled their daughters out of schools in
Russia`s south after the girls were told they were not allowed to wear
their hijabs, a top Muslim cleric said on Monday.
The Mufti of the southern Stavropol region Muhammad-Haji Rakhimov said he had received complaints from several parents whose daughters were for the first time not being allowed into their schools wearing the headscarves.
The situation resembles a `stalemate` because both the Muslim parents and school authorities refuse to budge, and several girls including second-graders have not been to school for two weeks now, he said.
`The parents of these girls are not letting them go to school, which can lead to the child welfare services taking them away,` Rakhimov said.-AFP
The Mufti of the southern Stavropol region Muhammad-Haji Rakhimov said he had received complaints from several parents whose daughters were for the first time not being allowed into their schools wearing the headscarves.
The situation resembles a `stalemate` because both the Muslim parents and school authorities refuse to budge, and several girls including second-graders have not been to school for two weeks now, he said.
`The parents of these girls are not letting them go to school, which can lead to the child welfare services taking them away,` Rakhimov said.-AFP
Skewed narrative - comparing malala with drones
LET`S get one thing straight about the attack on Malala Yousufzai. It is
not comparable to drone strikes. It is not comparable to the Lal Masjid
operation. Nor is it likely to be comparable to other incidents the
religious right might use to try to divert attention from the particular
evil of this one.
Because here is what this incident was: a deliberate attack on a specific teenage girl in retaliation for her activism for girls` education and opposition to Islamist militancy, a harmless, non-violent cause the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan happen not to like. Drone strikes may be unacceptable in their current form and end up killing innocent children, but doing so is not their intent. The figure of 1,200 women killed in the Lal Masjid operation is highly dubious; this paper`s investigations had indicated that most women left the compound during the amnesty granted before the operation. And yet moves are afoot to position these events as comparisons in an attempt to dampen the widespread recognition of the Malala incident for what it was the targeting of an innocent girl by an outfit that does not believe in the most basic of human rights and is prepared to attack even children to promote its regressive ideas.
These attempts to fudge the truth and make false comparisons indicate that the religious right feelsthreatened by the public outcry against Malala`s attackers. But it is also a chilling reminder of the degree to which most right-wing groups harbour sympathies for violent extremism. The Difa-i-Pakistan Council is an obvious member of this club, but even leaders of the more mainstream JUI-F and JI have questioned the focus on Malala, compared the attack to other events or dismissed its real implications by declaring it a conspiracy to trigger an operation in North Waziristan. And while secular political parties have not been as quick to do so, most have shied away from naming the TTP and demonstrating the singlemindedness that is needed to dismantle that organisation`s ability to terrorise Pakistan.
Battle lines have been drawn across the political landscape, and few groups are taking as courageous and clear a stand as is needed. The reaction in the first couple of days after Malala was attacked had inspired hope that a political consensus against the TTP, not just violent extremism, might be formed. But that has not taken place, despite the public`s demonstrated anger at the terrorist group. And as long as political forces hold back, the military will have a reason to hold back too.
The moment Pakistan should not have wasted is being squandered before our very eyes.
Because here is what this incident was: a deliberate attack on a specific teenage girl in retaliation for her activism for girls` education and opposition to Islamist militancy, a harmless, non-violent cause the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan happen not to like. Drone strikes may be unacceptable in their current form and end up killing innocent children, but doing so is not their intent. The figure of 1,200 women killed in the Lal Masjid operation is highly dubious; this paper`s investigations had indicated that most women left the compound during the amnesty granted before the operation. And yet moves are afoot to position these events as comparisons in an attempt to dampen the widespread recognition of the Malala incident for what it was the targeting of an innocent girl by an outfit that does not believe in the most basic of human rights and is prepared to attack even children to promote its regressive ideas.
These attempts to fudge the truth and make false comparisons indicate that the religious right feelsthreatened by the public outcry against Malala`s attackers. But it is also a chilling reminder of the degree to which most right-wing groups harbour sympathies for violent extremism. The Difa-i-Pakistan Council is an obvious member of this club, but even leaders of the more mainstream JUI-F and JI have questioned the focus on Malala, compared the attack to other events or dismissed its real implications by declaring it a conspiracy to trigger an operation in North Waziristan. And while secular political parties have not been as quick to do so, most have shied away from naming the TTP and demonstrating the singlemindedness that is needed to dismantle that organisation`s ability to terrorise Pakistan.
Battle lines have been drawn across the political landscape, and few groups are taking as courageous and clear a stand as is needed. The reaction in the first couple of days after Malala was attacked had inspired hope that a political consensus against the TTP, not just violent extremism, might be formed. But that has not taken place, despite the public`s demonstrated anger at the terrorist group. And as long as political forces hold back, the military will have a reason to hold back too.
The moment Pakistan should not have wasted is being squandered before our very eyes.
Utilisation of Thar coal
THE government has decided to convert all existing thermal power plants
on coal-firing to save foreign exchange required to import heavy fuel
oil (furnace oil). At present the plants are either operating on gas or
heavy fuel oil. In future Thar coal is intended to be used in boilers of
aH thermal plants.
In this context I would like to mention that due to my 35 years of experience in construction, operation and maintenance of thermal power plants inside and outside of the country, I have some reservations for burning of Thar coal in the existing thermal power plants which are as under: First, Thar coal is lying underground in water. As soon as the coal is taken out, water evaporates and coal becomespowder. It will not be easy to transport the powdered coal to different thermal power plants. All other transportation methods will be very difficult and expensive.
Second, Thar coal is lignite, containing about seven per cent sulphur in it. It will not be suitable for burning in conventional boilers.
Third, a lot of wastage and pilferage is likely to occur on the way from the mine to power plant sites.
Fourth, at the power plants the stacking of coal is necessary to keep plants running round the clock. The stacking of coal is a big problem because the innerlayer ofcoalgets heated up, produces gas which catches fire in the presence of air.
To avoid such fire, we have to compress the stack to remove airand sprinkle water continuously on it to keep it cool.
I have seen in Germany sprinkling of water on the coal stack continuously, though the ambient temperature in Germany remains much low as compared with Pakistan. This coal stack was small and was not meant for burning in the power plant.
In our country big stacks of coal are required, particularly for Jamshoro, Guddu and Muzaffargarh power plants, and it will be difficult to maintain such stacks due to high ambient temperature. Ambient temperature also accelerates coal stack firing.
Generally, thermal power plants are preferred to be installed near coalmines to avoid transportation and stacking of the coal. I visitedtwo thermal power plants in Germany one 1600 MW and another 600 MW installed close to coal mines and the excavated coal was being carried on conveyor belts to boilers directly without stacking.
I suggest that new thermal plants should be installed in Thar area near to the coalmine and the existing thermal power plants in the country be supplied with gas whenever available.
The dual firing equipment (oil and gas) is already existing in almost all thermal units. This will save substantial amount of money required for conversion to coalfiring mode.
MEHR M. SIDDIQUE Ex-General Manager (Thermal) Wapda Lahore
In this context I would like to mention that due to my 35 years of experience in construction, operation and maintenance of thermal power plants inside and outside of the country, I have some reservations for burning of Thar coal in the existing thermal power plants which are as under: First, Thar coal is lying underground in water. As soon as the coal is taken out, water evaporates and coal becomespowder. It will not be easy to transport the powdered coal to different thermal power plants. All other transportation methods will be very difficult and expensive.
Second, Thar coal is lignite, containing about seven per cent sulphur in it. It will not be suitable for burning in conventional boilers.
Third, a lot of wastage and pilferage is likely to occur on the way from the mine to power plant sites.
Fourth, at the power plants the stacking of coal is necessary to keep plants running round the clock. The stacking of coal is a big problem because the innerlayer ofcoalgets heated up, produces gas which catches fire in the presence of air.
To avoid such fire, we have to compress the stack to remove airand sprinkle water continuously on it to keep it cool.
I have seen in Germany sprinkling of water on the coal stack continuously, though the ambient temperature in Germany remains much low as compared with Pakistan. This coal stack was small and was not meant for burning in the power plant.
In our country big stacks of coal are required, particularly for Jamshoro, Guddu and Muzaffargarh power plants, and it will be difficult to maintain such stacks due to high ambient temperature. Ambient temperature also accelerates coal stack firing.
Generally, thermal power plants are preferred to be installed near coalmines to avoid transportation and stacking of the coal. I visitedtwo thermal power plants in Germany one 1600 MW and another 600 MW installed close to coal mines and the excavated coal was being carried on conveyor belts to boilers directly without stacking.
I suggest that new thermal plants should be installed in Thar area near to the coalmine and the existing thermal power plants in the country be supplied with gas whenever available.
The dual firing equipment (oil and gas) is already existing in almost all thermal units. This will save substantial amount of money required for conversion to coalfiring mode.
MEHR M. SIDDIQUE Ex-General Manager (Thermal) Wapda Lahore
N. Waziristan operation put on hold again?
SLAMABAD, Oct 15: Soon after the unconscious teenage activist, Malala
Yousufzai, flew out of the country for treatment in the United Kingdom,
all the hype about long anticipated North Waziristan operation
surreptitiously began to dissipate.
Expediencies, both on civilian and military side, emerged as the roadblock to any major operation for clearing North Waziristan home to a variety of terrorist groups where the army had all through the decade of war on terror avoided going on one pretext or the other.
But, strikingly the military looked to be passing the buck for the crunch time dithering to the civilian leadership.
Talking to journalists on Monday, Interior Minister Rehman Malik conceded that no operation in the area was being planned.
His response followed military`s statement over the weekend that a political decision was needed to launch the offensive for dislodging Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TPP) and its local affiliates from their headquarters in the tribal agency, where they moved in 2007 after being targeted by the army in South Waziristan and elsewhere in Fata.
The army, while putting the ball in the civilian leadership`s court, had noted that its commanders had time and again reiterated their resolve to rid the country of the menace. No mention, however, was made to the longstanding stance of the army that it would enter North Waziristan at a time of its own choosing or whether the moment had arrived.
Back to back statements by Army Chief Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani and Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, after Malala shooting, on carrying on the fight against terrorism were taken as a pointer to a looming operation in Waziristan.
What missed everyone`s sight while reading the army`s new found resoluteness was that beyond the rhetoric timed to match the national angst, nothing was said of the army`s assessment of the situation crossing the threshold.
Erroneous as it may be, the obvious inference drawn from the arising situation is that the government ultimately balked at the pro-posal for going all out against virulent militant groups holed up in North Waziristan.
Sceptics, however, say the military didn`t at any stage unequivocally indicated that North Waziristan operation was inevitable. Had it done so everyone would have fallen in line, they observed and pointed to previous military offensives in Swat, Bajaur and elsewhere.
The government`s disclosure that it wasn`t contemplating North Waziristan operation coincided with a resolute fightback by the right wingers to regain the space lost due to sudden outpouring of sympathy for Malala after the TTP attacked her in Mingora last Tuesday.
Military-backed groups like Difa-i-Pakistan Council, which had been hibernating since the impasse over Nato supply routes was resolved in July, suddenly sprung back into action to oppose the proposed military operation. Some analysts believe that the DPC`s return itself suggested that either there were differences within the army on the issue or the army through its tough statements only meant to mollify revulsion against Taliban.
A military commander, who previously served in the region, insisted that it was only the political will that was lacking and there were no other operational obstacles.
He pointed out that despite overwhelming grief and anger over the assassination bid on Malala, a national consensus could not be achieved.
`It`s not only about the operation. There have to be large number of IDPs (internally displaced persons) and other implications for which there should be clear political backing.
Asked what was preventing the political parties from agreeing on the military operation, he said it were only the political expediencies. `You know we are into the election year and no political party wants to hurt its prospects.
He emphasised that once the political decision is in place other challenges could be addressed.
The army, which for long avoided taking on militants in North Waziristan because of strategic compulsions, doesn`t want to be seen as obstructing the operation in view of the world`s anti-terror resolve.
In addition to TTP, which is based in and around Mirali, and Lashkar-i-Jhangvi, North Waziristan plays host to Haqqani Network, Al Qaeda and a number of other foreign fighters mostly from Arab and Central Asian countries.
Expediencies, both on civilian and military side, emerged as the roadblock to any major operation for clearing North Waziristan home to a variety of terrorist groups where the army had all through the decade of war on terror avoided going on one pretext or the other.
But, strikingly the military looked to be passing the buck for the crunch time dithering to the civilian leadership.
Talking to journalists on Monday, Interior Minister Rehman Malik conceded that no operation in the area was being planned.
His response followed military`s statement over the weekend that a political decision was needed to launch the offensive for dislodging Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TPP) and its local affiliates from their headquarters in the tribal agency, where they moved in 2007 after being targeted by the army in South Waziristan and elsewhere in Fata.
The army, while putting the ball in the civilian leadership`s court, had noted that its commanders had time and again reiterated their resolve to rid the country of the menace. No mention, however, was made to the longstanding stance of the army that it would enter North Waziristan at a time of its own choosing or whether the moment had arrived.
Back to back statements by Army Chief Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani and Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, after Malala shooting, on carrying on the fight against terrorism were taken as a pointer to a looming operation in Waziristan.
What missed everyone`s sight while reading the army`s new found resoluteness was that beyond the rhetoric timed to match the national angst, nothing was said of the army`s assessment of the situation crossing the threshold.
Erroneous as it may be, the obvious inference drawn from the arising situation is that the government ultimately balked at the pro-posal for going all out against virulent militant groups holed up in North Waziristan.
Sceptics, however, say the military didn`t at any stage unequivocally indicated that North Waziristan operation was inevitable. Had it done so everyone would have fallen in line, they observed and pointed to previous military offensives in Swat, Bajaur and elsewhere.
The government`s disclosure that it wasn`t contemplating North Waziristan operation coincided with a resolute fightback by the right wingers to regain the space lost due to sudden outpouring of sympathy for Malala after the TTP attacked her in Mingora last Tuesday.
Military-backed groups like Difa-i-Pakistan Council, which had been hibernating since the impasse over Nato supply routes was resolved in July, suddenly sprung back into action to oppose the proposed military operation. Some analysts believe that the DPC`s return itself suggested that either there were differences within the army on the issue or the army through its tough statements only meant to mollify revulsion against Taliban.
A military commander, who previously served in the region, insisted that it was only the political will that was lacking and there were no other operational obstacles.
He pointed out that despite overwhelming grief and anger over the assassination bid on Malala, a national consensus could not be achieved.
`It`s not only about the operation. There have to be large number of IDPs (internally displaced persons) and other implications for which there should be clear political backing.
Asked what was preventing the political parties from agreeing on the military operation, he said it were only the political expediencies. `You know we are into the election year and no political party wants to hurt its prospects.
He emphasised that once the political decision is in place other challenges could be addressed.
The army, which for long avoided taking on militants in North Waziristan because of strategic compulsions, doesn`t want to be seen as obstructing the operation in view of the world`s anti-terror resolve.
In addition to TTP, which is based in and around Mirali, and Lashkar-i-Jhangvi, North Waziristan plays host to Haqqani Network, Al Qaeda and a number of other foreign fighters mostly from Arab and Central Asian countries.
Malala can recover, say UK doctors
BIRMINGHAM (UK), Oct 15: A Pakistani schoolgirl shot in the head by the
Taliban has every chance of making a `good recovery`, British doctors
said on Monday as 14year-old Malala Yousufzai arrived at a hospital in
central England for treatment of her severe wounds.
Malala, who was shot for advocating education for girls, was flown from Pakistan to receive specialist treatment at Birmingham`s Queen Elizabeth Hospital at a unit expert in dealing with complex trauma cases that has treated hundreds of soldiers wounded in Afghanistan.
`Doctors...believe she has a chance of making a good recovery on every level,` said Dr Dave Rosser, the hospital`s medical director, adding that her treatment and rehabilitation could take months.
He told reporters Malala had not yet been assessed by British medics but said she would not have been brought to Britain at all if her prognosis was not good.
TV footage showed a patient, believed to be the schoolgirl, being rushed from an ambulance into the hospital surrounded by a large team of medical staff.
She will now undergo scans to reveal the extent of her injuries, but Rosser said they could not provide any further details without her agreement.
Pakistani surgeons removed a bullet from near her spinal cord during a three-hour operation the day after the attack last week, but she now needs intensive specialist follow-up care.
The unit at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, a large blue and white glass-plated complex in the south of England`s second city, has treated every British battle casualty for the last decade, Rosser said.
Built at a cost of 545 million pounds ($877 million), the hospital has the world`s largest single-floor critical care unit for patients with gunshot wounds, burns, spinal damage and major head injuries.
Treatment for Malala is likely to include repairing damaged bones in her skull and complex follow-up neurological treatment.
`Injuries to bones in the skull can be treated very successfully by the neurosurgeons and the plastic surgeons, but it is the damage to the blood supply to the brain that will determine long-term disability,` said Duncan Bew, consultanttrauma surgeon at Barts Health NHS Trust in London.
Judging the best way forward in such difficult cases requires a wide range of experienced medics working as a team.
`In trauma, it is really the coordinated impact of intensive care that is critical. It`s not just about keeping the patient alive but also maximising their rehabilitation potential. With neurological injuries that is paramount,` Bew said.
Doctors said youth was on her side since a young brain has more ability to recover from injury than a mature one.`On the positive side, Malala has passed two major hurdles the removal of the bullet and the very critical 48-hour window after surgery,` said Anders Cohen, head of neurosurgery at the Brooklyn Hospital Centre in New York.
Compared with some of the nation`s ageing hospitals, the new National Health Service (NHS) hospital offers a spectrum of services ranging from plastic surgery to neuroscience.
They may all be needed in Malala`s case.
The hospital and government officials declined to give any details about the security measuresthat would be put in place to protect the girl but a spokesman for the interior ministry said her security was `a priority for both Pakistan and the UK`.
A hospital spokesman said no extra measures were in place but because the unit treated British military personnel it already had `fairly robust security Care of soldiers on the battlefield has improved dramatically in recent years, so that many now survive injuries that would have been a death sentence in the past.
As a result, Birmingham now handles extremely challenging injuries that were previously littleknown and has built up enormous experience in head and brain injuries, multiple fractures and amputations.
Malala did not come from Pakistan with any of her relatives but the Pakistani Consulate is providing support and her family may join her at a later date.
Malala, a cheerful schoolgirl who had wanted to become a doctor before agreeing to her father`s wishes that she strive to be a politician, has become a potent symbol of resistance against the Taliban`s efforts to deprive girls of an education.
British Foreign Secretary William Hague said the `barbaric`attack on Malala had `shocked Pakistan and the world`.
`Malala will now receive specialist medical care in an NHS hospital,` he said.
`The public revulsion and condemnation of this cowardly attack shows that the people of Pakistan will not be beaten by terrorists.
Security concerns meant Malala`s departure after daybreak from Islamabad Airport in an air ambulance provided by the United Arab Emirates was not announced until the plane was airborne. She was accompanied on the plane by an intensive care specialist.-Agencies
Malala, who was shot for advocating education for girls, was flown from Pakistan to receive specialist treatment at Birmingham`s Queen Elizabeth Hospital at a unit expert in dealing with complex trauma cases that has treated hundreds of soldiers wounded in Afghanistan.
`Doctors...believe she has a chance of making a good recovery on every level,` said Dr Dave Rosser, the hospital`s medical director, adding that her treatment and rehabilitation could take months.
He told reporters Malala had not yet been assessed by British medics but said she would not have been brought to Britain at all if her prognosis was not good.
TV footage showed a patient, believed to be the schoolgirl, being rushed from an ambulance into the hospital surrounded by a large team of medical staff.
She will now undergo scans to reveal the extent of her injuries, but Rosser said they could not provide any further details without her agreement.
Pakistani surgeons removed a bullet from near her spinal cord during a three-hour operation the day after the attack last week, but she now needs intensive specialist follow-up care.
The unit at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, a large blue and white glass-plated complex in the south of England`s second city, has treated every British battle casualty for the last decade, Rosser said.
Built at a cost of 545 million pounds ($877 million), the hospital has the world`s largest single-floor critical care unit for patients with gunshot wounds, burns, spinal damage and major head injuries.
Treatment for Malala is likely to include repairing damaged bones in her skull and complex follow-up neurological treatment.
`Injuries to bones in the skull can be treated very successfully by the neurosurgeons and the plastic surgeons, but it is the damage to the blood supply to the brain that will determine long-term disability,` said Duncan Bew, consultanttrauma surgeon at Barts Health NHS Trust in London.
Judging the best way forward in such difficult cases requires a wide range of experienced medics working as a team.
`In trauma, it is really the coordinated impact of intensive care that is critical. It`s not just about keeping the patient alive but also maximising their rehabilitation potential. With neurological injuries that is paramount,` Bew said.
Doctors said youth was on her side since a young brain has more ability to recover from injury than a mature one.`On the positive side, Malala has passed two major hurdles the removal of the bullet and the very critical 48-hour window after surgery,` said Anders Cohen, head of neurosurgery at the Brooklyn Hospital Centre in New York.
Compared with some of the nation`s ageing hospitals, the new National Health Service (NHS) hospital offers a spectrum of services ranging from plastic surgery to neuroscience.
They may all be needed in Malala`s case.
The hospital and government officials declined to give any details about the security measuresthat would be put in place to protect the girl but a spokesman for the interior ministry said her security was `a priority for both Pakistan and the UK`.
A hospital spokesman said no extra measures were in place but because the unit treated British military personnel it already had `fairly robust security Care of soldiers on the battlefield has improved dramatically in recent years, so that many now survive injuries that would have been a death sentence in the past.
As a result, Birmingham now handles extremely challenging injuries that were previously littleknown and has built up enormous experience in head and brain injuries, multiple fractures and amputations.
Malala did not come from Pakistan with any of her relatives but the Pakistani Consulate is providing support and her family may join her at a later date.
Malala, a cheerful schoolgirl who had wanted to become a doctor before agreeing to her father`s wishes that she strive to be a politician, has become a potent symbol of resistance against the Taliban`s efforts to deprive girls of an education.
British Foreign Secretary William Hague said the `barbaric`attack on Malala had `shocked Pakistan and the world`.
`Malala will now receive specialist medical care in an NHS hospital,` he said.
`The public revulsion and condemnation of this cowardly attack shows that the people of Pakistan will not be beaten by terrorists.
Security concerns meant Malala`s departure after daybreak from Islamabad Airport in an air ambulance provided by the United Arab Emirates was not announced until the plane was airborne. She was accompanied on the plane by an intensive care specialist.-Agencies
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