THE untapped gold and copper deposits at Reko Dig are in the news again,
with more of the same further delays. The dispute at the moment is over
which lawyers will hear the case in international arbitration. But this
is only the latest obstacle in a standoff between a foreign mining
company and the Balochistan government that flared up a year and a half
ago over the reportedly massive deposits in the province. And it has
been nearly two decades since an exploration agreement was first signed
that could by now have helped transform Balochistan`s fortunes. Now
stuck in both the Supreme Court and in international arbitration, the
disagreement shows no signs of being resolved while the province relies
on handouts from the federal government and languishes for lack of
development.
Each side offers a series of arguments against the
other. Tethyan Copper claims the 1993 agreement includes a generous
pay-off for the provincial government and that there was no valid reason
to deny them a mining license after they invested more than $200m in
exploration. Balochistanclaims the agreement offers no real financial
benefit for the province and did not guarantee a mining license, and
that the company has failed to begin mining for years. Lost in all of
this is the bigger picture.
For one, although various speculative
figures are thrown around by people on both sides of the debate who
undervalue or overvalue the deposits depending on their motivations,
Reko Dig is a substantial deposit by global standards. The Balochistan
government needs to get realistic about whether it has the means or the
expertise to tap into this badly needed source of revenue. Second, the
matter goes beyond Reko Diq.
Foreign direct investment has been
falling for the last four years, including by 50 per cent in 2011-12. If
this case becomes yet another example of Pakistani economic policies
and contracts changing depending on the government in power, that will
only further damage the country`s reputation as an investment
destination. It is worth trying to put nationalist rhetoric aside and
reshape the agreement rather than necessarily throwing it out
altogether.
Monday, July 30, 2012
Cross-border attacks from Afghanistan
AT the Aspen Security Conference, Pakistani Ambassador to the US Sherry
Rehman and President Obama`s special adviser on Afghanistan and
Pakistan, Gen Douglas Lute (retd), squared off over cross-border raids
on Saturday.
When Ms Rehman complained about the rising incidents of cross-border attacks from Afghanistan into Pakistan, Mr Lute struck back with longstanding accusations that Pakistan was effectively sponsoring Afghan Taliban attacks inside Afghanistan from sanctuaries on the Pakistani side of the border. Who`s right, who`s wrong partisans can debate the subject endlessly. More independent observers would suggest that both sides are to blame. The recent attacks into Pakistan particularly the savage attacks in Dir in June, but also in Bajaur and Mohmand agencies have clearly riled up the Pakistani security establishment, which believes that Afghan and American forces in Afghanistan have either looked the other way or not done enough to stop the attacks into Pakistan. It is an entirely plausible accusation and one that neither the Afghan government nor the Americans have done much to credibly distance themselves from.
The danger at presentis that the low-level attacks into Pakistan could spiral out of control as Pakistan reacts and Afghanistan counter-reacts. In response to the killings and beheadings of Pakistani security per-sonnel in Dir, the Pakistani security forces shelled villages along the border in Kunar where they believed the attacks emanated from.
Angered by this, the Afghan forces have shown signs of increasingly turning to hot pursuit of Afghan militants with sanctuaries on this side of the border. If not checked, this cycle of violence and counter-violence could get out of control, particularly given acute mistrust on both sides of the border.
Unwelcome as the suggestion may be in Pakistani security circles, perhaps the first move toward ratcheting down the tension should come from the Pakistani side. Unpalatable as it is, Douglas Lute was closer to the truth than Ms Rehman`s formulation when he said, `There`s no comparison of the Pakistani Taliban`s relatively recent, small-in-scale presence inside Afghanistan ...
to the decades-long experience and relations between elements of the Pakistani government and the Afghan Taliban.` The key, then, to resolving this or realistically, just managing the problem lies perhaps in North Waziristan. While the Haqqani network contributes no more than 15-20 per cent of attacks inside Afghanistan, it does carry out a disproportionately large number of the highprofile, headline-grabbing attacks. If something were tobe done aboutthatproblem, perhaps cooperation from the Afghan side on problems that concern Pakistan would be forthcoming.
When Ms Rehman complained about the rising incidents of cross-border attacks from Afghanistan into Pakistan, Mr Lute struck back with longstanding accusations that Pakistan was effectively sponsoring Afghan Taliban attacks inside Afghanistan from sanctuaries on the Pakistani side of the border. Who`s right, who`s wrong partisans can debate the subject endlessly. More independent observers would suggest that both sides are to blame. The recent attacks into Pakistan particularly the savage attacks in Dir in June, but also in Bajaur and Mohmand agencies have clearly riled up the Pakistani security establishment, which believes that Afghan and American forces in Afghanistan have either looked the other way or not done enough to stop the attacks into Pakistan. It is an entirely plausible accusation and one that neither the Afghan government nor the Americans have done much to credibly distance themselves from.
The danger at presentis that the low-level attacks into Pakistan could spiral out of control as Pakistan reacts and Afghanistan counter-reacts. In response to the killings and beheadings of Pakistani security per-sonnel in Dir, the Pakistani security forces shelled villages along the border in Kunar where they believed the attacks emanated from.
Angered by this, the Afghan forces have shown signs of increasingly turning to hot pursuit of Afghan militants with sanctuaries on this side of the border. If not checked, this cycle of violence and counter-violence could get out of control, particularly given acute mistrust on both sides of the border.
Unwelcome as the suggestion may be in Pakistani security circles, perhaps the first move toward ratcheting down the tension should come from the Pakistani side. Unpalatable as it is, Douglas Lute was closer to the truth than Ms Rehman`s formulation when he said, `There`s no comparison of the Pakistani Taliban`s relatively recent, small-in-scale presence inside Afghanistan ...
to the decades-long experience and relations between elements of the Pakistani government and the Afghan Taliban.` The key, then, to resolving this or realistically, just managing the problem lies perhaps in North Waziristan. While the Haqqani network contributes no more than 15-20 per cent of attacks inside Afghanistan, it does carry out a disproportionately large number of the highprofile, headline-grabbing attacks. If something were tobe done aboutthatproblem, perhaps cooperation from the Afghan side on problems that concern Pakistan would be forthcoming.
UN Rights Envoy in Myanmar
YANGON, July 29: The United Nations expert on human rights in Myanmar
arrived in the country late Sunday, days after the UN voiced fears that
efforts to end unrest in Rakhine state had turned into a crackdown on
Muslims.
UN Special Rapporteur Tomas Ojea Quintana flew into the main city of Yangon for a visit set to include a trip to the restive western state as well as meetings with Myanmar`s president and civil society.It comes after a warning by UN human rights chief Navi Pillay that Muslim communities in Rakhine, particularly the Rohingya minority, were being targeted by security forces.
`We have been receiving a stream of reports from independent sources alleging discriminatory and arbitrary responses by security forces, and even their instigation of and involvement in clashes,` she said in a statement Friday.
Quintana says that Myanmarhas made `significant` progress on reforms under President Thein Sein, who came to power last year, but said the country faced `ongoing human rights challenges` Violence between Buddhist ethnic Rakhine and Muslim Rohingya communities erupted in early June and have left at least 78 people dead and 70,000 homeless, according to official figures.
Unofficial estimates of the death toll were higher, the UN said.
UN Special Rapporteur Tomas Ojea Quintana flew into the main city of Yangon for a visit set to include a trip to the restive western state as well as meetings with Myanmar`s president and civil society.It comes after a warning by UN human rights chief Navi Pillay that Muslim communities in Rakhine, particularly the Rohingya minority, were being targeted by security forces.
`We have been receiving a stream of reports from independent sources alleging discriminatory and arbitrary responses by security forces, and even their instigation of and involvement in clashes,` she said in a statement Friday.
Quintana says that Myanmarhas made `significant` progress on reforms under President Thein Sein, who came to power last year, but said the country faced `ongoing human rights challenges` Violence between Buddhist ethnic Rakhine and Muslim Rohingya communities erupted in early June and have left at least 78 people dead and 70,000 homeless, according to official figures.
Unofficial estimates of the death toll were higher, the UN said.
Muslim holocast in barma
ISRAELIS have often complained that whenever a Palestinian is killed,
the story is carried by the media across the Islamic world. But when a
Muslim is slain by a fellow Muslim, nobody pays attention. There is some
truth in this charge: Palestine has come to occupy such a focal point
in the Muslim sense of identity that reminders of the Israeli occupation
feed into a constant feeling of collective outrage.
It is very human to be selective in our sympathy: with all the suffering around the world, it would take a saint to grieve equally for all the victims of injustice. So we pick and choose according to our views, beliefs and proximity. It would be fair to say that the average Pakistani feels little for, say, the native tribes being virtually wiped out due to land clearing along the Amazon.
For the same reason, the plight of the Myanmar Muslim Rohingyas does not strike a chordin much of the Muslim world. The recent outbreak of violence against them by the majority Buddhists was reported widely last month, but the story has virtually disappeared from the media. It wasn`t till the Taliban threatened action against Burmese interests that we paid attention again.
The fact is that until last month`s slaughter, few of us were even aware of the substantial Muslim population of 800,000 in Myanmar. The image of the country has always been that of a predominantly Buddhist one, with the courageous Nobel Peace Prize winner, Aung San Suu Kyi, being the face of Burma.
However, the fact is that the Rohingyas have been subjected to persecution for decades.
According to Amnesty International, some 200, 000 of them fled to Bangladesh in 1978 to escape a brutal military operation. This was followed by anotherwave of around 250,000 in 199192. The refugees complained of rape, persecution and forced labour by the military. Another 100,000 fled to Thailand, but were forced to leave for camps along the border with Myanmar.
The Muslim presence in Myanmar goes back to the 8th century, when Arab merchants and sailors set up settlements along the coast. Later, in the 15th century, a king from the independent kingdom of Arakan sought help from the neighbouring state of Bengal. For centuries after these early contacts, there was no check on movement between the two neighbouring states. When the British took over Burma, as it was then known as, they encouraged Muslim farmers from Bengal to move to the underpopulated valleys of Arakan.
Now, virtually the entire Rohingya population of Myanmar is viewed as having entered illegally, and is denied basic humanrights. As the recent massacre shows, they have a very precarious existence, and are deeply resented by the majority Buddhists. Since Buddhism is a religion that teaches its followers to walk the path of non-violence and tolerance, outsiders assume that Buddhists are essentially peaceful people. Sadly, this is just not so. Over the last decade, I have spent at least a couple of months a year in Sri Lanka, another Buddhist country. While I have mostly enjoyed being there, I have been very conscious of a violent streak running just below the surface.
During the vicious civil war between the Tamil Tigers and the Sri Lankan state fought over a quarter of a century, many terrible atrocities were committed by both sides. The last few days of the war, in particular, saw horrors seldom matched in modern warfare.
It is feared that as many as 80,000 Tamil civilians were killed in theclosing stages of the separatist conflict.
To try and understand how devout Buddhists could justify any kind of killing, I asked Sri Lankan friends to explain the contradiction. According to several of them, Buddhist monks had issued their version of a fatwa to the effect that violence was justified in defence of the Buddhist homeland.
Indeed, the Buddhist clergy in Sri Lanka were the most rigid opponents to a negotiated settlement. They set up their own political party, and were part of the coalition government that rejected any compromise. Had it not been for the intransigence shown by these monks, it is just possible that the civil war could have been ended without so much bloodshed.
But even apart from this kind of organised warfare, there is much domestic violence and public brutality in evidence. Many politicalopponents have been killed, kidnapped and beaten up over the years. Thus, for all the rosy-hued images of peaceful, gentle people projected abroad, Buddhist states seldom live up to their billing.
Thailand is another Buddhist country where the government has no compunctions about putting down opposition with great force. This is as true of Muslim separatists in the southern provinces as of Buddhist supporters of political opponents of the previous junta.
More often than not, Buddhist monks play the same kind of role clerics do in Muslim countries.
Fanning the flames of religious intolerance and rabid nationalism, they both equate political differences with treachery and even apostasy. Instead of advocating peace and harmony, they teach messages of hate and fanaticism.
Neither of them can win elections on their own as their followers seldom vote for them. To makeup for this lack of popularity, they push their agendas in the streets, in mosques and in temples. All too often, they lend their support to oppressive regimes.
And yet the teachings of Lord Buddha have left a lasting impact: in Sri Lanka, wildlife is largely doing well because hunting is banned. Nevertheless, wild elephants are often killed by villagers for damaging crops. But to its credit, the Sri Lankan government has established over a score of national parks across the island where all kinds of wild animals and birds are protected.
Now that Myanmar is edging towards more representative government, we can hope that Aung San Suu Kyi`s towering moral authority will make it possible for the state to accommodate the unfortunate Rohingyas. However, her stand has not been encouraging for thus far, she has not condemned the violence against them in unequivocal terms.
It is very human to be selective in our sympathy: with all the suffering around the world, it would take a saint to grieve equally for all the victims of injustice. So we pick and choose according to our views, beliefs and proximity. It would be fair to say that the average Pakistani feels little for, say, the native tribes being virtually wiped out due to land clearing along the Amazon.
For the same reason, the plight of the Myanmar Muslim Rohingyas does not strike a chordin much of the Muslim world. The recent outbreak of violence against them by the majority Buddhists was reported widely last month, but the story has virtually disappeared from the media. It wasn`t till the Taliban threatened action against Burmese interests that we paid attention again.
The fact is that until last month`s slaughter, few of us were even aware of the substantial Muslim population of 800,000 in Myanmar. The image of the country has always been that of a predominantly Buddhist one, with the courageous Nobel Peace Prize winner, Aung San Suu Kyi, being the face of Burma.
However, the fact is that the Rohingyas have been subjected to persecution for decades.
According to Amnesty International, some 200, 000 of them fled to Bangladesh in 1978 to escape a brutal military operation. This was followed by anotherwave of around 250,000 in 199192. The refugees complained of rape, persecution and forced labour by the military. Another 100,000 fled to Thailand, but were forced to leave for camps along the border with Myanmar.
The Muslim presence in Myanmar goes back to the 8th century, when Arab merchants and sailors set up settlements along the coast. Later, in the 15th century, a king from the independent kingdom of Arakan sought help from the neighbouring state of Bengal. For centuries after these early contacts, there was no check on movement between the two neighbouring states. When the British took over Burma, as it was then known as, they encouraged Muslim farmers from Bengal to move to the underpopulated valleys of Arakan.
Now, virtually the entire Rohingya population of Myanmar is viewed as having entered illegally, and is denied basic humanrights. As the recent massacre shows, they have a very precarious existence, and are deeply resented by the majority Buddhists. Since Buddhism is a religion that teaches its followers to walk the path of non-violence and tolerance, outsiders assume that Buddhists are essentially peaceful people. Sadly, this is just not so. Over the last decade, I have spent at least a couple of months a year in Sri Lanka, another Buddhist country. While I have mostly enjoyed being there, I have been very conscious of a violent streak running just below the surface.
During the vicious civil war between the Tamil Tigers and the Sri Lankan state fought over a quarter of a century, many terrible atrocities were committed by both sides. The last few days of the war, in particular, saw horrors seldom matched in modern warfare.
It is feared that as many as 80,000 Tamil civilians were killed in theclosing stages of the separatist conflict.
To try and understand how devout Buddhists could justify any kind of killing, I asked Sri Lankan friends to explain the contradiction. According to several of them, Buddhist monks had issued their version of a fatwa to the effect that violence was justified in defence of the Buddhist homeland.
Indeed, the Buddhist clergy in Sri Lanka were the most rigid opponents to a negotiated settlement. They set up their own political party, and were part of the coalition government that rejected any compromise. Had it not been for the intransigence shown by these monks, it is just possible that the civil war could have been ended without so much bloodshed.
But even apart from this kind of organised warfare, there is much domestic violence and public brutality in evidence. Many politicalopponents have been killed, kidnapped and beaten up over the years. Thus, for all the rosy-hued images of peaceful, gentle people projected abroad, Buddhist states seldom live up to their billing.
Thailand is another Buddhist country where the government has no compunctions about putting down opposition with great force. This is as true of Muslim separatists in the southern provinces as of Buddhist supporters of political opponents of the previous junta.
More often than not, Buddhist monks play the same kind of role clerics do in Muslim countries.
Fanning the flames of religious intolerance and rabid nationalism, they both equate political differences with treachery and even apostasy. Instead of advocating peace and harmony, they teach messages of hate and fanaticism.
Neither of them can win elections on their own as their followers seldom vote for them. To makeup for this lack of popularity, they push their agendas in the streets, in mosques and in temples. All too often, they lend their support to oppressive regimes.
And yet the teachings of Lord Buddha have left a lasting impact: in Sri Lanka, wildlife is largely doing well because hunting is banned. Nevertheless, wild elephants are often killed by villagers for damaging crops. But to its credit, the Sri Lankan government has established over a score of national parks across the island where all kinds of wild animals and birds are protected.
Now that Myanmar is edging towards more representative government, we can hope that Aung San Suu Kyi`s towering moral authority will make it possible for the state to accommodate the unfortunate Rohingyas. However, her stand has not been encouraging for thus far, she has not condemned the violence against them in unequivocal terms.
Pakistan`s institutional lapse helps India complete water projects
ISLAMABAD, July 29: Having been officially informed about India`s intentions to avail itself of the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) benefits from Nimoo-Bazgo and Chutak Hydroelectric Power Projects, Pakistan has decided not to move the international legal system because a committee to investigate an institutional lapse stands dissolved.
An inquiry conducted by Wapda secretary Mohammad Imtiaz Tajwar has found that the Indian commissioner of Indus waters (ICIW) had informed his Pakistani counterpart that `India will be availing CDM benefits from Nimoo-Bazgo project`.
The decision not to challenge in the international court of arbitration a verdict of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) to grant carbon credits to India on a controversial hydropower project without mandatory clearance of its trans-boundary environmental impact assessment follows completion of the two projects a few weeks ago by India without any fanfare to avoid media attention.
`The two projects (Nimoo-Bazgo and Chutak) are complete, producing electricity and contributing to the Indian energy system,` a source confirmed to Dawn requesting anonymity because of his official position.
The decision not to go ahead with the international arbitration was also based on a premise that the projects had became a fait accompli and any court or arbitrator would unlikely to decide against an engineering project that has been completed and built for public interest.The source said that while the Pakistan commissioner of Indus waters (PCIW) had come under too much focus, the government agencies, ministries and a couple of inquiry committees did not examine the negligence or connivance of former secretaries of water and power, environment and foreign affairs who did not take steps to stop India from completing the projects without trans-boundary impact assessment.
The inquiry report said the information about the Nimoo-Bazgo project had been received in 2002. India was asked through letters in 2002-2004 which suggested that the `PCIW was in knowledge of the issue and could have approached the authorities to approach court of arbitration or neutral experts at that stage.
However, that initiative was not availed and the opportunity was missed`.
It said the intelligence agencies had been providing sufficient information about the Nimoo-Bazgo project but proper objections were not raised and opportunities to approach international courts should have been utilised between 2002 and 2005. On the other hand, it was continuously reported in the media until 2010 but the `PCIW never asked Indian commissioner regarding the awaited reply from Indian side or raising the project or raising the issue of carbon credit benefits which were disputed aspects in all aspects`.The inquiry report said a few years were lost during the course of deliberations between the ministries of law and justice, foreign affairs, water and power and the prime minister`s secretariat to take up the issue at the international level.
Officials said another inquiry committee had stood dissolved following retire-ment of its head a few months ago and his replacement had not yet been made while other members of the committee had been transferred.
Wapda secretary Mohammad Imtiaz Tajwar, who was appointed an inquiry officer by the ministry of water and power, confirmed a Dawn report of July 2010 that India had secured carbon credits for the controversial 45-MW NimooBazgo hydropower project from the UNFCCC without mandatory clearance of its impact assessment from Pakistan.
India applied for carbon credits for the project which was a `long-term process and must have spread over 4-5 years`, the inquiry officer wrote. `It is still not established how India was able to get carbon credit benefits for the Nimoo-Bazgo project which is located on trans-boundary water and for which ratification of the parties concerned should have been procured beforehand by it under clause 37(b) of UNFCCC. Although it is too difficult to get carbon credits on a trans-boundary project such as Nimoo-Bazgo, due to lack of contest by PCIW, India was able to get the credits on the project,` he said.
In December 2010, the ministry of foreign affairs said there were enough credible ground to refer the project to a neutral expert or the court of arbitration, but it was obvious that the project was at the stage of fait accompli, not due to India`s design but because of carelessness of the Pakistan side and it was difficult now to get a favourable outcome from arbitration. It remained, however, unclear why the ministries of law and foreign affairs and other related institutions failed to know about the Indian success at the UNFCCC during the carbon credit approval process of four to five years.
An inquiry conducted by Wapda secretary Mohammad Imtiaz Tajwar has found that the Indian commissioner of Indus waters (ICIW) had informed his Pakistani counterpart that `India will be availing CDM benefits from Nimoo-Bazgo project`.
The decision not to challenge in the international court of arbitration a verdict of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) to grant carbon credits to India on a controversial hydropower project without mandatory clearance of its trans-boundary environmental impact assessment follows completion of the two projects a few weeks ago by India without any fanfare to avoid media attention.
`The two projects (Nimoo-Bazgo and Chutak) are complete, producing electricity and contributing to the Indian energy system,` a source confirmed to Dawn requesting anonymity because of his official position.
The decision not to go ahead with the international arbitration was also based on a premise that the projects had became a fait accompli and any court or arbitrator would unlikely to decide against an engineering project that has been completed and built for public interest.The source said that while the Pakistan commissioner of Indus waters (PCIW) had come under too much focus, the government agencies, ministries and a couple of inquiry committees did not examine the negligence or connivance of former secretaries of water and power, environment and foreign affairs who did not take steps to stop India from completing the projects without trans-boundary impact assessment.
The inquiry report said the information about the Nimoo-Bazgo project had been received in 2002. India was asked through letters in 2002-2004 which suggested that the `PCIW was in knowledge of the issue and could have approached the authorities to approach court of arbitration or neutral experts at that stage.
However, that initiative was not availed and the opportunity was missed`.
It said the intelligence agencies had been providing sufficient information about the Nimoo-Bazgo project but proper objections were not raised and opportunities to approach international courts should have been utilised between 2002 and 2005. On the other hand, it was continuously reported in the media until 2010 but the `PCIW never asked Indian commissioner regarding the awaited reply from Indian side or raising the project or raising the issue of carbon credit benefits which were disputed aspects in all aspects`.The inquiry report said a few years were lost during the course of deliberations between the ministries of law and justice, foreign affairs, water and power and the prime minister`s secretariat to take up the issue at the international level.
Officials said another inquiry committee had stood dissolved following retire-ment of its head a few months ago and his replacement had not yet been made while other members of the committee had been transferred.
Wapda secretary Mohammad Imtiaz Tajwar, who was appointed an inquiry officer by the ministry of water and power, confirmed a Dawn report of July 2010 that India had secured carbon credits for the controversial 45-MW NimooBazgo hydropower project from the UNFCCC without mandatory clearance of its impact assessment from Pakistan.
India applied for carbon credits for the project which was a `long-term process and must have spread over 4-5 years`, the inquiry officer wrote. `It is still not established how India was able to get carbon credit benefits for the Nimoo-Bazgo project which is located on trans-boundary water and for which ratification of the parties concerned should have been procured beforehand by it under clause 37(b) of UNFCCC. Although it is too difficult to get carbon credits on a trans-boundary project such as Nimoo-Bazgo, due to lack of contest by PCIW, India was able to get the credits on the project,` he said.
In December 2010, the ministry of foreign affairs said there were enough credible ground to refer the project to a neutral expert or the court of arbitration, but it was obvious that the project was at the stage of fait accompli, not due to India`s design but because of carelessness of the Pakistan side and it was difficult now to get a favourable outcome from arbitration. It remained, however, unclear why the ministries of law and foreign affairs and other related institutions failed to know about the Indian success at the UNFCCC during the carbon credit approval process of four to five years.
Thursday, July 26, 2012
Samosa Justics
THE days of the cheap samosa are over. While the savoury little delight is consumed with great relish by Pakistanis around the year, sales of the samosa skyrocket during Ramazan as it is a staple of the iftar spread. However, the Supreme Court has set aside a notification of the Punjab government regulating the price of samosas.
As reported in the media, in 2009 the Lahore local government had fixed the price of the crispy delight at Rs6 a samosa. The local government`s machinery took action against some shopkeepers found to be selling more expensive samosas. However, not satisfied with the price set for their product, the bakers and sweet-makers of the Punjab went to court.
When the Lahore High Court turned down their petition, the bakers appealed to the Supreme Court. They felt the samosa did not fall within the purview of the Punjab Foodstuffs (Control) Act, 1958, hence the government could not fix itsprices, a notion the apex court seemed to agree with.
While the commercial bakers will rejoice at the verdict, others waiting for justice in Pakistan`s everclogged judicial system may be wondering when their turn will come. With a question of interpretation of a law at stake, the Supreme Court was the ultimate forum for resolving the matter, however trifling it may appear to the average citizen. The question, then, is whether the superior judiciary should devise some rules and a system to fast-track more urgent and serious matters for justice rather than spend valuable time on a regulation that is virtually unenforceable in any case the proof of that being a visit to any market in Lahore where samosas are openly being sold for much higher than Rs6. Samosa-makers may be happy and another case struck from the superior judiciary`s docket, but was it the court`s best use of time at this stage?
As reported in the media, in 2009 the Lahore local government had fixed the price of the crispy delight at Rs6 a samosa. The local government`s machinery took action against some shopkeepers found to be selling more expensive samosas. However, not satisfied with the price set for their product, the bakers and sweet-makers of the Punjab went to court.
When the Lahore High Court turned down their petition, the bakers appealed to the Supreme Court. They felt the samosa did not fall within the purview of the Punjab Foodstuffs (Control) Act, 1958, hence the government could not fix itsprices, a notion the apex court seemed to agree with.
While the commercial bakers will rejoice at the verdict, others waiting for justice in Pakistan`s everclogged judicial system may be wondering when their turn will come. With a question of interpretation of a law at stake, the Supreme Court was the ultimate forum for resolving the matter, however trifling it may appear to the average citizen. The question, then, is whether the superior judiciary should devise some rules and a system to fast-track more urgent and serious matters for justice rather than spend valuable time on a regulation that is virtually unenforceable in any case the proof of that being a visit to any market in Lahore where samosas are openly being sold for much higher than Rs6. Samosa-makers may be happy and another case struck from the superior judiciary`s docket, but was it the court`s best use of time at this stage?
SC Restraint
WITH apprehensions running high and speculation running wild, something needed to be done to lower the political temperature. That something came from the Supreme Court yesterday in the form of an accommodating and conciliatory hearing in the NRO implementation case. Without giving any specific directions, the court essentially asked the government to find a compromise and return on Aug 8 with some kind of solution to the writing of the so-called Swiss letter.
What could a compromise look like? Perhaps just writing to Swiss authorities that the state of Pakistan no longer considers the letter written by the Musharraf-era attorney general, Malik Qayyum, to be legally valid. By stopping at that and not going on to specifically say that the state of Pakistan renews its request for legal assistance, wants once more to secure its status as a civil party in any revived proceedings against President Zardari in Switzerland and is once again laying a claim to the money that was once lodged in the Swiss accounts and which allegedly belonged to Mr Zardari, a compromise of sorts could be fashioned the Malik Qayyum letter would stand void but the Swiss would not have to consider whether to restart the proceedings against the president. Will the government meet the court halfway now andsave its second prime minister and the country from more political instability? The country will know more between now and Aug 8 on that front.
The government should think hard about how it wants to proceed. Welcome as the court`s restraint is, it is unlikely to last indefinitely. At least two reasons other than perhaps a change of heart at this late stage can be discerned for the court`s soft approach yesterday.
One, the Supreme Court hearings into the new contempt law passed by the government to try and protect Prime Minister Ashraf are still continuing.
While that matter has yet to be decided, contempt proceedings against him would be difficult to initiate after all, were the court to choose to move against Mr Ashraf, would it do so under the old, presently repealed law, or the new, presently under-challenge law? Two, after having suffered strident and increasingly direct criticism, the court may be aware that it has to tread softly at the moment. Throwing the ball into the government`s court to find an acceptable compromise now will make it more difficult for blame to be pinned on the judiciary later were Prime Minister Ashraf also to find himself in the dock.
Now is the time, then, for the government to compromise to disperse the clouds obscuring the election on the horizon.
What could a compromise look like? Perhaps just writing to Swiss authorities that the state of Pakistan no longer considers the letter written by the Musharraf-era attorney general, Malik Qayyum, to be legally valid. By stopping at that and not going on to specifically say that the state of Pakistan renews its request for legal assistance, wants once more to secure its status as a civil party in any revived proceedings against President Zardari in Switzerland and is once again laying a claim to the money that was once lodged in the Swiss accounts and which allegedly belonged to Mr Zardari, a compromise of sorts could be fashioned the Malik Qayyum letter would stand void but the Swiss would not have to consider whether to restart the proceedings against the president. Will the government meet the court halfway now andsave its second prime minister and the country from more political instability? The country will know more between now and Aug 8 on that front.
The government should think hard about how it wants to proceed. Welcome as the court`s restraint is, it is unlikely to last indefinitely. At least two reasons other than perhaps a change of heart at this late stage can be discerned for the court`s soft approach yesterday.
One, the Supreme Court hearings into the new contempt law passed by the government to try and protect Prime Minister Ashraf are still continuing.
While that matter has yet to be decided, contempt proceedings against him would be difficult to initiate after all, were the court to choose to move against Mr Ashraf, would it do so under the old, presently repealed law, or the new, presently under-challenge law? Two, after having suffered strident and increasingly direct criticism, the court may be aware that it has to tread softly at the moment. Throwing the ball into the government`s court to find an acceptable compromise now will make it more difficult for blame to be pinned on the judiciary later were Prime Minister Ashraf also to find himself in the dock.
Now is the time, then, for the government to compromise to disperse the clouds obscuring the election on the horizon.
Wednesday, July 25, 2012
Sialkot FootBall in Olympics
PAKISTAN will not be a part of football matches at the Olympics, but
footballs manufactured in Sialkot will. After a Chinese machine-made
ball was selected for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, breaking years
of Pakistani domination, Sialkot`s official selection as producer for
the Olympics should please Pakistani fans of the game and serve as a
morale booster for the Sialkot sportsmanufacturing industry.
Until 2000, Pakistan was the world leader in football production. But several factors, including global concerns about child labour, competition from China and Thailand, and production issues related to the power crisis have reduced the country`s share considerably. The Chinese ball used in 2010 had come under intense criticism from leading players, and the selection of the colourful Sialkoti ball for the Olympics instead is a sign that despite the industry`s difficulties Pakistani footballs were able to meetplayers` needs and that leading multinational sports brands continue to look to Sialkot for world-class footballs.
The challenge now is to regain the city`s slot as world leader in the sector.
Proper attention paid to Sialkot`s sports-manufacturing sector can not only provide much-needed jobs and bring in valuable foreign exchange, it could also help improve Pakistan`s unenviable global public image. Manufacturers need to be able to compete with the savvy and technology of foreign producers while adhering to global standards against child labour.
The power shortage is, of course, a national issue and needs to be addressed from the top. With commitment to quality and proper marketing, it should be possible for Sialkot to recapture its share in the global sports market. In the meantime, we should celebrate the contribution Pakistan will make to global sporting competition this summer.
Until 2000, Pakistan was the world leader in football production. But several factors, including global concerns about child labour, competition from China and Thailand, and production issues related to the power crisis have reduced the country`s share considerably. The Chinese ball used in 2010 had come under intense criticism from leading players, and the selection of the colourful Sialkoti ball for the Olympics instead is a sign that despite the industry`s difficulties Pakistani footballs were able to meetplayers` needs and that leading multinational sports brands continue to look to Sialkot for world-class footballs.
The challenge now is to regain the city`s slot as world leader in the sector.
Proper attention paid to Sialkot`s sports-manufacturing sector can not only provide much-needed jobs and bring in valuable foreign exchange, it could also help improve Pakistan`s unenviable global public image. Manufacturers need to be able to compete with the savvy and technology of foreign producers while adhering to global standards against child labour.
The power shortage is, of course, a national issue and needs to be addressed from the top. With commitment to quality and proper marketing, it should be possible for Sialkot to recapture its share in the global sports market. In the meantime, we should celebrate the contribution Pakistan will make to global sporting competition this summer.
fake identity documents
A BRITISH tabloid`s exposé of the ease of obtaining fake identity documents and UK visas in Pakistan has become a scandal of international proportions because of its link with the upcoming Olympics. But the problem is not a new one. Despite the money and expertise that has been poured into modernising CNICs and passports in recent years, getting hold of fake ones remains shockingly easy.
The old days of manual processes for creating these documents are long gone.
But even now, when they are computerised and managed through automated processes and electronic databases, the systems which apparently meet international standards remain vulnerable to corruption. If you can find an agent with the right links inside Nadra and the passport directorate, procuring another person`s identity is simple enough for anyone willing to pay a price.
And as long as it doesn`t crack down hard enough on people on the inside who are willing to tamper with the process, Nadra, where the CNICs that become the basis for fake passports originate, has limited options. It can continue building more sophisticated checks into the system, but much of the technology used is already world-class, including software that carries out fingerprint and photograph matching.
Ultimately, the problem comes down to corrupt individuals being willing to manually override systemsand tamper with records for a fee. While there have been multiple raids within Nadra over the years, many of which don`t make it into the media, they have obviously not been effective enough as deterrents.
Fixing responsibility is not difficult the names of operators are entered at every step of the process so this seems to be a simple enough matter of being more vigilant about detecting irregularities and cracking down more frequently on operators on the inside and agents on the outside.
Despite the implication that the UK visa scam could have been used to smuggle terrorists into the Olympics, at the moment this seems like pure speculation. And the history of Islamist terrorist attacks in the UK indicates that it is largely a home-grown problem there. But for Pakistan itself, this is a national-security matter. Fake Pakistani documents have been found on foreign terrorists, including former Iranian Jundullah head Abdolmalek Rigi and Ramzi Yousef, and been used by members of banned Pakistani outfits to leave the country.
So while such forgeries take place in other countries too, in Pakistan`s case they are particularly risky, further damaging its international reputation and allowing domestic militants to get away. World-class systems may be in place, but Nadra and the passport directorate need to carry out some significant housecleaning.
The old days of manual processes for creating these documents are long gone.
But even now, when they are computerised and managed through automated processes and electronic databases, the systems which apparently meet international standards remain vulnerable to corruption. If you can find an agent with the right links inside Nadra and the passport directorate, procuring another person`s identity is simple enough for anyone willing to pay a price.
And as long as it doesn`t crack down hard enough on people on the inside who are willing to tamper with the process, Nadra, where the CNICs that become the basis for fake passports originate, has limited options. It can continue building more sophisticated checks into the system, but much of the technology used is already world-class, including software that carries out fingerprint and photograph matching.
Ultimately, the problem comes down to corrupt individuals being willing to manually override systemsand tamper with records for a fee. While there have been multiple raids within Nadra over the years, many of which don`t make it into the media, they have obviously not been effective enough as deterrents.
Fixing responsibility is not difficult the names of operators are entered at every step of the process so this seems to be a simple enough matter of being more vigilant about detecting irregularities and cracking down more frequently on operators on the inside and agents on the outside.
Despite the implication that the UK visa scam could have been used to smuggle terrorists into the Olympics, at the moment this seems like pure speculation. And the history of Islamist terrorist attacks in the UK indicates that it is largely a home-grown problem there. But for Pakistan itself, this is a national-security matter. Fake Pakistani documents have been found on foreign terrorists, including former Iranian Jundullah head Abdolmalek Rigi and Ramzi Yousef, and been used by members of banned Pakistani outfits to leave the country.
So while such forgeries take place in other countries too, in Pakistan`s case they are particularly risky, further damaging its international reputation and allowing domestic militants to get away. World-class systems may be in place, but Nadra and the passport directorate need to carry out some significant housecleaning.
Afghanistan`s refusal to act against militant sanctuaries in Kunar and Nuristan
SLAMABAD, July 24: Afghanistan`s refusal to act against militant sanctuaries in Kunar and Nuristan provinces has left the Pakistan government frustrated.
When Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf visited Kabul last week, one of his main objectives was to get a firm commitment from his host, President Hamid Karzai, that he would act against militants` sanctuaries in eastern Afghan provinces of Kunar and Nuristan from where terrorists have launched15 attacks against Pakistani border posts and villages over the past year, killing 105 soldiers and civilians.
A member of Pakistani del-egation said the issue was `strongly` raised by Prime Minister Ashraf.
But, the prime minister found Mr Karzai unwilling to act unconditionally against militants` hideouts on his territory.
Afghans, who have apparently stiffened their stance on militant havens, did not even allow the Pakistanis to mention the matter in the joint statement issued after the Ashraf-Karzai meeting.
Observing diplomatic niceties, Mr Karzai had only agreed on setting up a factfinding body of senior officials from both sides.
Senior officials of the Karzai administration have, during conversation with Pakistani officials, beenlately admitting the presence of Mullah Fazlullah and other Pakistani militant commanders in the eastern provinces.
The militants had taken refuge in Afghan villages along the border after fleeing military operations in Swat and Bajaur.
The issue of sanctuaries has been on Pakistan`s priority list not only because of the casualties suffered because of militant attacks, but also because of the risk they pose to the progress they have achieved in their counter-militancy efforts.
A Pakistani source noted that these sanctuaries were not only causing problems for Pakistanis, but local Afghans were also against their presence in their villages.
Some of the locals had initially accommodated them but have now turned against them.
However, it is believed that some political considerations are stopping the Afghan government from evicting the terrorists from the area.
Even prior to Mr Ashraf`s meeting with the Afghan president, the issue had been raised with Isaf commander Gen John Allen, at the diplomatic level and during meetings of border coordination centre. However, Islamabad has consistently failed to get a sympathetic ear.Isaf and Afghan officials have told Pakistani interlocutors that the coalition and Afghan forces were too preoccupied with operations in other areas to secure the eastern region.
The army has quite often responded to militant attacks by firing rockets at terrorists fleeing back to their sanctuaries across the border.
But the shellings have served only to provoke a strong reaction from Kabul which over the weekend warned that future incidents would seriously harm relations.
The senior military brass have now started believing that the Afghans were not acting against sanctuaries held by Pakistani militants inresponse to perceived Pakistan`s inaction against havens of Afghan militants in tribal areas.
A senior military official said it was a tactical plan of the NDS (National Directorate of Security).
There is no direct evidence of Isaf`s involvement with the Pakistani militants, another official noted.
Pakistan Army, however, is playing a `wait and see` game to fully comprehend the Afghan game plan. For now they are concentrating on reinforcing the borders and strengthen defences.
`It is a clear sign that the militants have so far failed to dent the security situation in the region despite the attacks,` an official said.
When Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf visited Kabul last week, one of his main objectives was to get a firm commitment from his host, President Hamid Karzai, that he would act against militants` sanctuaries in eastern Afghan provinces of Kunar and Nuristan from where terrorists have launched15 attacks against Pakistani border posts and villages over the past year, killing 105 soldiers and civilians.
A member of Pakistani del-egation said the issue was `strongly` raised by Prime Minister Ashraf.
But, the prime minister found Mr Karzai unwilling to act unconditionally against militants` hideouts on his territory.
Afghans, who have apparently stiffened their stance on militant havens, did not even allow the Pakistanis to mention the matter in the joint statement issued after the Ashraf-Karzai meeting.
Observing diplomatic niceties, Mr Karzai had only agreed on setting up a factfinding body of senior officials from both sides.
Senior officials of the Karzai administration have, during conversation with Pakistani officials, beenlately admitting the presence of Mullah Fazlullah and other Pakistani militant commanders in the eastern provinces.
The militants had taken refuge in Afghan villages along the border after fleeing military operations in Swat and Bajaur.
The issue of sanctuaries has been on Pakistan`s priority list not only because of the casualties suffered because of militant attacks, but also because of the risk they pose to the progress they have achieved in their counter-militancy efforts.
A Pakistani source noted that these sanctuaries were not only causing problems for Pakistanis, but local Afghans were also against their presence in their villages.
Some of the locals had initially accommodated them but have now turned against them.
However, it is believed that some political considerations are stopping the Afghan government from evicting the terrorists from the area.
Even prior to Mr Ashraf`s meeting with the Afghan president, the issue had been raised with Isaf commander Gen John Allen, at the diplomatic level and during meetings of border coordination centre. However, Islamabad has consistently failed to get a sympathetic ear.Isaf and Afghan officials have told Pakistani interlocutors that the coalition and Afghan forces were too preoccupied with operations in other areas to secure the eastern region.
The army has quite often responded to militant attacks by firing rockets at terrorists fleeing back to their sanctuaries across the border.
But the shellings have served only to provoke a strong reaction from Kabul which over the weekend warned that future incidents would seriously harm relations.
The senior military brass have now started believing that the Afghans were not acting against sanctuaries held by Pakistani militants inresponse to perceived Pakistan`s inaction against havens of Afghan militants in tribal areas.
A senior military official said it was a tactical plan of the NDS (National Directorate of Security).
There is no direct evidence of Isaf`s involvement with the Pakistani militants, another official noted.
Pakistan Army, however, is playing a `wait and see` game to fully comprehend the Afghan game plan. For now they are concentrating on reinforcing the borders and strengthen defences.
`It is a clear sign that the militants have so far failed to dent the security situation in the region despite the attacks,` an official said.
Plea on NRO case returned with objection Govt stance on Swiss letter unchanged
ISLAMABAD, July 24: A day ahead of the hearing of NRO implementation case by a five-judge Supreme Court bench, the federal government filed on Tuesday an application in which it unequivocally stated that it would not write a letter to the Swiss authorities to reopen graft cases against President Asif Zardari.
But the response drafted by Attorney General Irfan Qadir after holding brainstorming sessions with Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf and Law Minister Farooq H. Naek on Monday night was returned by the court office with an objection that a civil miscellaneous application could not be filed against a court decision, although a petition seeking review of an earlier order was possible.
Mr Qadir told reporters that he would move a review petition possibly Wednesday with contentions similar to that contained in the application, reflecting the government`s mood that it was not going to budge from its stance on NRO implementation.
`The prime minister cannot be asked by means of the July 12 order to implement an un-implementable directiongiven by the Supreme Court in the NRO case,` said the application returned by the court. It requested the court to recall its June 27 and July 12 orders asking the prime minister to clarify his stance on implementing the NRO verdict.
On July 12, the special bench headed by Justice Asif Saeed Khosa had asked the prime minister to submit a report about compliance with the NRO judgment which required writing the letter to Swiss authorities. The court • Legal brains in a fix: Page 3 • Scope of immunity clause widened: Page 14 also warned that it could initiate any appropriate action under the Constitution if the government failed to comply with its orders.
`There is no question whatsoever ofrevivalofPakistan`s status as a damaged party (writing of letter to the Swiss authorities) because the Supreme Court`s own jurisdiction is limited to the territories of Pakistan,` the application said, adding that if the apex court itself was not in a position to seek revival of Pakistan`s status as a damaged party then it also had no mandate to force the prime minister to do the same. `In fact after the conclusion of Swiss investigations Pakistan has no role to play in these matters. There was no occasion for the seven-judgeSupreme Court hearing a contempt case against the former prime minister to have called him thrice in the court. This is an utter disregard of the Constitution and the law,` the application said.
It also argued that since the new prime minister had not received any advice from his cabinet to implement the NRO judgment, he (prime minister) was, therefore, not obliged under the Constitution and the rules of business to do so.
The application said the June 27 and July 12 orders were against Article 248 (1 and 2) (immunity) because the prime minister by virtue of his oath was bound to preserve and protect the Constitution and was under constitutional obligation to disregard any order of the court which negated the Constitution and the law.
The application pointed out certain peculiarities of the NRO case and said: `In this case over 8,000 persons were condemned unheard.
The government did not contest this case. Seventeen judges sat for a considerably long period in a case not contested by either side at all. .
The Supreme Court assumed full control of NAB, thereby transgressing into executive domain.
It said a number of portions of paragraphs 177, 178 and 179 (writing of letter to the Swiss authorities) were not implementable. `In fact such portions have not been implemented till date,` it said
But the response drafted by Attorney General Irfan Qadir after holding brainstorming sessions with Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf and Law Minister Farooq H. Naek on Monday night was returned by the court office with an objection that a civil miscellaneous application could not be filed against a court decision, although a petition seeking review of an earlier order was possible.
Mr Qadir told reporters that he would move a review petition possibly Wednesday with contentions similar to that contained in the application, reflecting the government`s mood that it was not going to budge from its stance on NRO implementation.
`The prime minister cannot be asked by means of the July 12 order to implement an un-implementable directiongiven by the Supreme Court in the NRO case,` said the application returned by the court. It requested the court to recall its June 27 and July 12 orders asking the prime minister to clarify his stance on implementing the NRO verdict.
On July 12, the special bench headed by Justice Asif Saeed Khosa had asked the prime minister to submit a report about compliance with the NRO judgment which required writing the letter to Swiss authorities. The court • Legal brains in a fix: Page 3 • Scope of immunity clause widened: Page 14 also warned that it could initiate any appropriate action under the Constitution if the government failed to comply with its orders.
`There is no question whatsoever ofrevivalofPakistan`s status as a damaged party (writing of letter to the Swiss authorities) because the Supreme Court`s own jurisdiction is limited to the territories of Pakistan,` the application said, adding that if the apex court itself was not in a position to seek revival of Pakistan`s status as a damaged party then it also had no mandate to force the prime minister to do the same. `In fact after the conclusion of Swiss investigations Pakistan has no role to play in these matters. There was no occasion for the seven-judgeSupreme Court hearing a contempt case against the former prime minister to have called him thrice in the court. This is an utter disregard of the Constitution and the law,` the application said.
It also argued that since the new prime minister had not received any advice from his cabinet to implement the NRO judgment, he (prime minister) was, therefore, not obliged under the Constitution and the rules of business to do so.
The application said the June 27 and July 12 orders were against Article 248 (1 and 2) (immunity) because the prime minister by virtue of his oath was bound to preserve and protect the Constitution and was under constitutional obligation to disregard any order of the court which negated the Constitution and the law.
The application pointed out certain peculiarities of the NRO case and said: `In this case over 8,000 persons were condemned unheard.
The government did not contest this case. Seventeen judges sat for a considerably long period in a case not contested by either side at all. .
The Supreme Court assumed full control of NAB, thereby transgressing into executive domain.
It said a number of portions of paragraphs 177, 178 and 179 (writing of letter to the Swiss authorities) were not implementable. `In fact such portions have not been implemented till date,` it said
Tuesday, July 24, 2012
China Empty Nests
BEIJING: The `empty-nest` elderly have become an increasingly important
social issue in China, especially as the population is aging rapidly. By
the end of 2011, there were about 185 million people above the age of
60 in China.
Almost half of them live independently, according to the third China Urban and Rural Elderly Demographic Situation Tracking Survey released on July 10. Care and support for the elderly is urgently needed nowadays, as many don`t see their adult kids very often.
`Grown-up children are required to visit their parents regularly`, was written into the draft amendment of the Law on Protection ofthe Rights and Interests of the Elderly, which was submitted to the top legislature in June.
However, in an online survey launched by Sohu, a major Chinese Web portal, only a little more than half of the respondents supported the idea of making, `visiting parents regularly`, a legal duty.
Nobody denies the good intention behind the idea of making visiting parents a legal duty. But the fact is adult children aren`t always able to visit their parents frequently. It`s not simply a matter of them not wanting to.
China`s large-scale population migration is the main reason that adult children are separated from their elderly parents. Data fromNational Bureau of Statistics show that in 2011, there were 158.63 million people working away from their hometown for more than six months. Migrant workers can hardly afford the expense of visiting their parents frequently. To make a living and support their families many of them have to work overtime and voluntarily give up leave, which makes going back home an extravagant use of time and money.
Also the expansion of college enrolment over the last two decades means more young people have been leaving their hometowns to study, live and work in large and middle-sized cities. Many of them can only visit their parentsonce a year due to the cost of living and the time needed for returning home. Many employees only have five to 10 days annual holiday.
Under such circumstances visiting parents once a year may be the best they can do.The authorities generally encourage adult children to live with their parents. But the cost of living, high property prices, low-level, unsound and fragmented social security and medical insurance for the elderly prevent many people from taking their parents away from their hometown.
The changes in family structure have also increased the burden of parental care for many. China has implemented a family planning policy nationwide since the 1980s,which has led to the emergence of `4-2-1` or `4-2-2` family units where two adults who are both an `only child` have to support four elders and raise one or two children after they get married. Before the introduction of the family planning policy several siblings would help each other and support their parents.
In a nutshell, visiting parents frequently is a social issue rather than a moral one.
Legal scholars may argue that this amendment can become the legal basis for the elders to protect their rights when their adult children fail to fulfil their obligation of support. But visiting in itself will be of little comfort to the elderly ifit is forced rather than voluntary.
From this perspective, making visiting parents frequently a legal duty will not meet the emotional needs of `empty-nest` elderly but will add to the burden on children who are far away from their parents.
There`s nothing wrong with advocating and fostering positive social values and traditional virtues, but it requires more than just good intentions. Without the necessary institutional support, even with the best will in the world many people will be unable to take good care of their parents physically and emotionally.
By arrangement with the China Daily/ANN
Almost half of them live independently, according to the third China Urban and Rural Elderly Demographic Situation Tracking Survey released on July 10. Care and support for the elderly is urgently needed nowadays, as many don`t see their adult kids very often.
`Grown-up children are required to visit their parents regularly`, was written into the draft amendment of the Law on Protection ofthe Rights and Interests of the Elderly, which was submitted to the top legislature in June.
However, in an online survey launched by Sohu, a major Chinese Web portal, only a little more than half of the respondents supported the idea of making, `visiting parents regularly`, a legal duty.
Nobody denies the good intention behind the idea of making visiting parents a legal duty. But the fact is adult children aren`t always able to visit their parents frequently. It`s not simply a matter of them not wanting to.
China`s large-scale population migration is the main reason that adult children are separated from their elderly parents. Data fromNational Bureau of Statistics show that in 2011, there were 158.63 million people working away from their hometown for more than six months. Migrant workers can hardly afford the expense of visiting their parents frequently. To make a living and support their families many of them have to work overtime and voluntarily give up leave, which makes going back home an extravagant use of time and money.
Also the expansion of college enrolment over the last two decades means more young people have been leaving their hometowns to study, live and work in large and middle-sized cities. Many of them can only visit their parentsonce a year due to the cost of living and the time needed for returning home. Many employees only have five to 10 days annual holiday.
Under such circumstances visiting parents once a year may be the best they can do.The authorities generally encourage adult children to live with their parents. But the cost of living, high property prices, low-level, unsound and fragmented social security and medical insurance for the elderly prevent many people from taking their parents away from their hometown.
The changes in family structure have also increased the burden of parental care for many. China has implemented a family planning policy nationwide since the 1980s,which has led to the emergence of `4-2-1` or `4-2-2` family units where two adults who are both an `only child` have to support four elders and raise one or two children after they get married. Before the introduction of the family planning policy several siblings would help each other and support their parents.
In a nutshell, visiting parents frequently is a social issue rather than a moral one.
Legal scholars may argue that this amendment can become the legal basis for the elders to protect their rights when their adult children fail to fulfil their obligation of support. But visiting in itself will be of little comfort to the elderly ifit is forced rather than voluntary.
From this perspective, making visiting parents frequently a legal duty will not meet the emotional needs of `empty-nest` elderly but will add to the burden on children who are far away from their parents.
There`s nothing wrong with advocating and fostering positive social values and traditional virtues, but it requires more than just good intentions. Without the necessary institutional support, even with the best will in the world many people will be unable to take good care of their parents physically and emotionally.
By arrangement with the China Daily/ANN
kidnapping turned into business
FOR the common man, kidnappings may be agony but they`re business for
those who conduct them. Sindh has turned into a haven for criminals;
other businesses may have become non-profitable or loss-incurring, but
this one is on the rise because it needs no investment or hard workand
yields more profit.
. . It is also low-risk in the sense that the institutions responsible for law and order and therecovery of hostage do nothing.
A special report by this newspaper reveals that around 44 people are still in the clutches of their abductors.... Qamar Janwari, a transporter of Mehar, and his nephew were kidnapped but the police remain clueless even 50 days later; the kidnappers demanded Rs40m.
Ali Murad Chandio, a lecturer of the degree college, Mehar, was kidnapped six months ago but has not been located. The kidnappers have threatened to kill him unless a ransom of Rs5m is paid.
These incidents reveal how the dacoits` demand is not just one or two lakhs but starts from Rs5m and the fig-ure goes up. In case of nonpayment, they issue threats and in some cases they kill the hostages. Those who can afford it have their loved one freed. Those who can`t are worried. But why should even those who have money hand it over to criminals?.
Many doctors were kid-napped because they were earning good amounts due to their expertise. Nearly all such doctors were freedafter paying ransom since no institution took any effective measure for their recovery.
Even where the authorities took action, it was only to expose their inefficiency Dr Aftab Qureshi ... being an example. There are reports that due to the increasing incidence of kidnapping, some specialist doctors bid farewell to their motherland and settled abroad.... This is injustice which we are committing against ourselves.
Good people will leave and only those will be left here who can either not afford to go abroad, or are criminals.
. . It is also low-risk in the sense that the institutions responsible for law and order and therecovery of hostage do nothing.
A special report by this newspaper reveals that around 44 people are still in the clutches of their abductors.... Qamar Janwari, a transporter of Mehar, and his nephew were kidnapped but the police remain clueless even 50 days later; the kidnappers demanded Rs40m.
Ali Murad Chandio, a lecturer of the degree college, Mehar, was kidnapped six months ago but has not been located. The kidnappers have threatened to kill him unless a ransom of Rs5m is paid.
These incidents reveal how the dacoits` demand is not just one or two lakhs but starts from Rs5m and the fig-ure goes up. In case of nonpayment, they issue threats and in some cases they kill the hostages. Those who can afford it have their loved one freed. Those who can`t are worried. But why should even those who have money hand it over to criminals?.
Many doctors were kid-napped because they were earning good amounts due to their expertise. Nearly all such doctors were freedafter paying ransom since no institution took any effective measure for their recovery.
Even where the authorities took action, it was only to expose their inefficiency Dr Aftab Qureshi ... being an example. There are reports that due to the increasing incidence of kidnapping, some specialist doctors bid farewell to their motherland and settled abroad.... This is injustice which we are committing against ourselves.
Good people will leave and only those will be left here who can either not afford to go abroad, or are criminals.
another flood cirsis likely
FREAK weather in some of the world`s vital food-producing regions is
ravaging crops and threatening another global food crisis like the price
shocks that unleashed social and political unrest in 2008 and 2010,
food experts are warning.
As the US suffers the worst drought in more than 50 years, analysts say rising food prices could hit the world`s poorest countries, leading to shortages and social upheaval.
The situation has led to comparisons to 2008, when high food prices sparked a wave of riots in 30 countries across the world from Haiti to Bangladesh. Researchers say rising food prices also helped trigger the Arab spring in 2011.
Nick Higgins, commodity analyst at Rabobank, said: `Food riots are a real risk at this point. Wheat prices aren`t up at the level they got to in 2008 but they are still very high and that will have an effect on those who are least able to pay higher prices for food.
In the US`s agricultural heartland, searing heat and sparse rainfall have left farm-ers helpless as their maize and soya bean crops wither in dry fields. Earlier this month, the US department of agriculture (USDA) slashed forecasts for the maize crop by 12 per cent. US agriculture secretary Tom Vilsack said: `If I had a rain prayer or a rain dance I could do, I would do it.
As it is, weather forecasts suggest the drought will continue and experts fear the USDA may have to cut its targets again next month. Dan Basse, president of research firm AgResources in Chicago, said: `We`ve been traipsing through the fields of southern Illinois and it is worse than the government says.
The US is crucial to global food markets as the world`s largest exporter of maize, soya beans and wheat. Maize prices have already shot up 40 per cent since June to hit all-time highs, soya bean prices have jumped 30 per cent to record levels, and wheat has surged 50 per cent.
`What happens to the US supply has an immense impact around the world, said Robert Thompson, a food security expert at the ChicagoCouncil on Global Affairs. `If the price of corn rises high enough, it also pulls up the price of wheat. I think we are in for a very serious situation worldwide.
Thompson also warned that countries could make matters worse by stockpiling. That was the pattern during the 2008 food crisis, when Russia, Ukraine, India and Argentina all cut off grain exports.
Unseasonal weather, thought to be caused by climate change, is affecting farmers across the world.
South America has been hit by a drought, which could damage the soya bean harvest, while UK wheat has been damaged by the rain.
Flash flooding in Russia could also affect the wheat harvest, which could see the country limit exports.
Shortages have been compounded by huge orders for maize and soya beans to make biofuels in order to meet quotas in the US and Europe.
Consumers will soon feel the effects of these spikes.
Wheat is the main ingredient for bread and other staples.
Maize and soya beans are used to feed livestock, sohigher prices will ultimately cause the price of meat to rise. In the short term, however, they will have the reverse effect as farmers kill cattle at lighter weights to avoid having to feed them.
Rising food prices have a disproportionate effect on the poorest people in the world.
According to Ruth Kelly, Oxfam`s food policy adviser, people in the West spend about 15 per cent of their income on food, but that rises to around 75 per cent in developing countries.
`People are already in debt from previous spikes and suffering the consequences, Kelly said. `When the first food crisis hit, people were forced to sell off their assets, their cattle and jewellery, and take on debt to make ends meet. After multiple crises, people run out of savings and that can be quite disastrous.
Countries that are net importers of maize will be hit the hardest, including South Korea, Japan, Peru, Guatemala, El Salvador and Colombia, while much of east Africa will also be badly affected. • The Guardian, London
As the US suffers the worst drought in more than 50 years, analysts say rising food prices could hit the world`s poorest countries, leading to shortages and social upheaval.
The situation has led to comparisons to 2008, when high food prices sparked a wave of riots in 30 countries across the world from Haiti to Bangladesh. Researchers say rising food prices also helped trigger the Arab spring in 2011.
Nick Higgins, commodity analyst at Rabobank, said: `Food riots are a real risk at this point. Wheat prices aren`t up at the level they got to in 2008 but they are still very high and that will have an effect on those who are least able to pay higher prices for food.
In the US`s agricultural heartland, searing heat and sparse rainfall have left farm-ers helpless as their maize and soya bean crops wither in dry fields. Earlier this month, the US department of agriculture (USDA) slashed forecasts for the maize crop by 12 per cent. US agriculture secretary Tom Vilsack said: `If I had a rain prayer or a rain dance I could do, I would do it.
As it is, weather forecasts suggest the drought will continue and experts fear the USDA may have to cut its targets again next month. Dan Basse, president of research firm AgResources in Chicago, said: `We`ve been traipsing through the fields of southern Illinois and it is worse than the government says.
The US is crucial to global food markets as the world`s largest exporter of maize, soya beans and wheat. Maize prices have already shot up 40 per cent since June to hit all-time highs, soya bean prices have jumped 30 per cent to record levels, and wheat has surged 50 per cent.
`What happens to the US supply has an immense impact around the world, said Robert Thompson, a food security expert at the ChicagoCouncil on Global Affairs. `If the price of corn rises high enough, it also pulls up the price of wheat. I think we are in for a very serious situation worldwide.
Thompson also warned that countries could make matters worse by stockpiling. That was the pattern during the 2008 food crisis, when Russia, Ukraine, India and Argentina all cut off grain exports.
Unseasonal weather, thought to be caused by climate change, is affecting farmers across the world.
South America has been hit by a drought, which could damage the soya bean harvest, while UK wheat has been damaged by the rain.
Flash flooding in Russia could also affect the wheat harvest, which could see the country limit exports.
Shortages have been compounded by huge orders for maize and soya beans to make biofuels in order to meet quotas in the US and Europe.
Consumers will soon feel the effects of these spikes.
Wheat is the main ingredient for bread and other staples.
Maize and soya beans are used to feed livestock, sohigher prices will ultimately cause the price of meat to rise. In the short term, however, they will have the reverse effect as farmers kill cattle at lighter weights to avoid having to feed them.
Rising food prices have a disproportionate effect on the poorest people in the world.
According to Ruth Kelly, Oxfam`s food policy adviser, people in the West spend about 15 per cent of their income on food, but that rises to around 75 per cent in developing countries.
`People are already in debt from previous spikes and suffering the consequences, Kelly said. `When the first food crisis hit, people were forced to sell off their assets, their cattle and jewellery, and take on debt to make ends meet. After multiple crises, people run out of savings and that can be quite disastrous.
Countries that are net importers of maize will be hit the hardest, including South Korea, Japan, Peru, Guatemala, El Salvador and Colombia, while much of east Africa will also be badly affected. • The Guardian, London
archives in distress
IF anyone ever wonders why Pakistan seems to learn no lessons from the
past, part of the answer can be found in the manner in which we treat
our links with history. Even when the state`s intentions are good, poor
execution means that the end result is far from desirable. Just
recently, the Karachi police intercepted a truckload of Gandhara-era
artefacts. Yet the police then went on to handle it with such
carelessness that a number of pieces were damaged; others were stolen
from the police station premises. No better treatment is being meted out
to the treasure trove of archival material collected at the National
Archives of Pakistan, including irreplaceable documents such as the
Quaid-i-Azam Papers that include Jinnah`s personal notebooks, Fatima
Jinnah`s letters and royal orders from the Mughal emperor Akbar. But the
collection is aging and decaying, partly due to insufficient
temperaturecontrol facilities and partly because of the institu-tion`s
inability to carry out restoration work.
Preserving and restoring documents is a specialised field, and it is to some extent understandable that NAP is unable to do much in this regard.
However, that such historical records are allowed to be damaged by the elements heat, humidity, etc is unpardonable.
The fault lies not so much in funding as in interest, as is evidenced by the fact that the same careless attitude is evident in institutions across the country.
Paintings in Islamabad`s National Art Gallery are suffering damage because the administrators have not been able to ensure a suitable environment, for example. The situation at the permanent art gallery at the Alhamra Cultural Complex in Lahore is no different. For such cultural and historical treasures to be saved, it must become a priority. And for that to happen, Pakistan must learn to recognise the value of such material.
That is a far harder task than installing air-conditioners and dehumidifiers.
Preserving and restoring documents is a specialised field, and it is to some extent understandable that NAP is unable to do much in this regard.
However, that such historical records are allowed to be damaged by the elements heat, humidity, etc is unpardonable.
The fault lies not so much in funding as in interest, as is evidenced by the fact that the same careless attitude is evident in institutions across the country.
Paintings in Islamabad`s National Art Gallery are suffering damage because the administrators have not been able to ensure a suitable environment, for example. The situation at the permanent art gallery at the Alhamra Cultural Complex in Lahore is no different. For such cultural and historical treasures to be saved, it must become a priority. And for that to happen, Pakistan must learn to recognise the value of such material.
That is a far harder task than installing air-conditioners and dehumidifiers.
OIC meeting for Arab uprisings!
THE Saudi king has called a summit of Muslim leaders for next month to
address risks of `sedition` within Muslim countries. It is not yet clear
if this will be a purely Saudi-led initiative, or if it`ll happen under
the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation`s aegis.
Over the past few years, confronting change from within has become the biggest challenge for Muslim-majority states. However, even though the events of the Arab Spring have severely shaken the status quo, many Muslim autocrats remain in a state of denial. First and foremost, that is about clinging to power in a world that is crumbling around them. As in the case of Egypt, Middle Eastern rulers rallied to Hosni Mubarak`s support at first, frightened by the possible repercussions for them if a symbol of the old order collapsed. But, as in the case of Bahrain and Syria, sectarian dimensions have also crept in.
The lack of fundamental freedoms is what is driving the fury and anger against Muslim rulers. Apart from a handful of democracies, Pakistan imperfect as it is being among them, most Muslim-majoritynations are either ruled by absolute monarchs or strongmen in republican garb. Democracy and representative rule need to be gradually structured into the systems so that people don`t take to the streets or, as in Syria`s case, take up arms and seek to violently overthrow the system. The often violent suppression of dissent in many Muslim countries has also been citied as a key factor behind the growth of extremism and terrorism.
The mode of ruling countries through families and clans needs to be reconsidered. If the meeting in Saudi Arabia can succeed in discussing meaningful reform for the people`s welfare, it`ll be a considerable achievement. If it is just another OIC-like talk shop, or worse, an attempt to protect Muslim autocrats, the masses shouldn`t expect much from the summit. The proposed meeting also raises questions about the OIC`s utility, for the pan-Islamic body has been a perpetualunderachiever.
In short, Muslim leaders can choose to address and accommodate change, or wait for the anger of the masses to boil over into the streets.
Over the past few years, confronting change from within has become the biggest challenge for Muslim-majority states. However, even though the events of the Arab Spring have severely shaken the status quo, many Muslim autocrats remain in a state of denial. First and foremost, that is about clinging to power in a world that is crumbling around them. As in the case of Egypt, Middle Eastern rulers rallied to Hosni Mubarak`s support at first, frightened by the possible repercussions for them if a symbol of the old order collapsed. But, as in the case of Bahrain and Syria, sectarian dimensions have also crept in.
The lack of fundamental freedoms is what is driving the fury and anger against Muslim rulers. Apart from a handful of democracies, Pakistan imperfect as it is being among them, most Muslim-majoritynations are either ruled by absolute monarchs or strongmen in republican garb. Democracy and representative rule need to be gradually structured into the systems so that people don`t take to the streets or, as in Syria`s case, take up arms and seek to violently overthrow the system. The often violent suppression of dissent in many Muslim countries has also been citied as a key factor behind the growth of extremism and terrorism.
The mode of ruling countries through families and clans needs to be reconsidered. If the meeting in Saudi Arabia can succeed in discussing meaningful reform for the people`s welfare, it`ll be a considerable achievement. If it is just another OIC-like talk shop, or worse, an attempt to protect Muslim autocrats, the masses shouldn`t expect much from the summit. The proposed meeting also raises questions about the OIC`s utility, for the pan-Islamic body has been a perpetualunderachiever.
In short, Muslim leaders can choose to address and accommodate change, or wait for the anger of the masses to boil over into the streets.
Election Preparation
WHO will get to vote, and will the Election Commission be able to
protect that vote? The new chief election commissioner was sworn in
yesterday, and these are the two major issues he should focus on before
the next polls. As many as 20 million Pakistanis of voting age the
majority of them women are estimated to have been unregistered in the
draft electoral rolls revealed in March. The other major problem was
registration of citizens at the wrong addresses, especially migrants
registered in their hometowns. What is important now is that the time is
taken to fix these flaws if they still exist in the updated rolls due
this month so that no citizens especially women, migrants and young
people who have recently turned 18 are disenfranchised. There has been a
general hurry about this, with the ECP, in part pushed by the Supreme
Court, rushing to draft rolls, producing a flawed list and missing
several self-imposed revision deadlines. But if the new list is also
flawed, the ECP needs to ensure citizens have an easier way to check and
correct their status this time by increasing the number of display
centres and making the process more efficient. In the worst case, if
problems are widespread, it may have to conduct another door-to-door
exercise. But ensuring that all citizenshave the ability to vote is
worth the effort.
There is also the issue of the ECP`s authority over polling staff. Brought in from the local bureaucracy, they are not subject to disciplinary action by the commission. Nor does the ECP have the authority to transfer or discipline administrators, such as those from Wapda or the police, who can influence outcomes in their areas.
Electoral reforms to address these issues have been praised in the Indian context, but they are languishing somewhere between the ECP and parliament in Pakistan, and now is the time to pass them. There are other issues with staff too both polling staff and many returning officers are under pressure from local politicians. Posting them outside their districts, or appointing more lower-court judges as returning officers, are alternatives to look into.
Much progress has been made since the last election. Linking electoral rolls to Nadra data has reduced duplication and will allow more reliable identification of voters.
We now have an ECP and a CEC appointed by consensus between the government and the opposition. But these improvements are not enough. More people need to be able to vote, and the commission needs to be empowered. It is worth taking the time to do this before the country goes to the polls.
There is also the issue of the ECP`s authority over polling staff. Brought in from the local bureaucracy, they are not subject to disciplinary action by the commission. Nor does the ECP have the authority to transfer or discipline administrators, such as those from Wapda or the police, who can influence outcomes in their areas.
Electoral reforms to address these issues have been praised in the Indian context, but they are languishing somewhere between the ECP and parliament in Pakistan, and now is the time to pass them. There are other issues with staff too both polling staff and many returning officers are under pressure from local politicians. Posting them outside their districts, or appointing more lower-court judges as returning officers, are alternatives to look into.
Much progress has been made since the last election. Linking electoral rolls to Nadra data has reduced duplication and will allow more reliable identification of voters.
We now have an ECP and a CEC appointed by consensus between the government and the opposition. But these improvements are not enough. More people need to be able to vote, and the commission needs to be empowered. It is worth taking the time to do this before the country goes to the polls.
Afghan couple looking for asylum in peshawar
PESHAWAR, July 23: The Peshawar High Court on Monday quashed a case of
illegal entry and stay in Pakistan against an Afghan couple, who fled
their country after facing death threats over marriage.
A bench comprising Chief Justice Dost Mohammad Khan and Justice Shahjehan Khan Akhunzada handed over the couple to local police directing them to keep them at a safe place preferably the women`s police station or police lines and provide them with food, clothes and money for daily expenditure.
The court fixed for July 31 the hearing into the case. The couple were produced before the bench on the orders of the chief justice, who had taken a suo motu notice of their arrest by Abbottabad police.
The complainant in the case against the couple, Ishaq Khan, appeared before the court and alleged that the woman, Ms Maryam, already married to his brother, had eloped with the man, Hewad.
He informed the bench that he had been legally living in Peshawar`s Scheme Chowk and possessed a proof of registration card issued by Nadra.
The bench ordered the card`s verification, which revealed that the card was fake.
The bench ordered Mr Ishaq`s arrest and directed the SHO of the relevant east cantonment police station to investigate how he acquired the card and who the culpable officials were.
Senior superintendent of police (investigation), Abbottabad, Raza Hussain and the SHO of the relevant Mirpur police station produced the couple, saying they were taken into custody on complaint lodged by Ishaq, who claimed to be the brother-in-law of thewoman, Ms Maryam.
They added that the couple illegally stayed in Pakistan and therefore, FIR was registered against them under Section 14 of the Foreigners Act.
The chief justice observed that hundreds of thousands of Afghan nationals had illegally been roaming around but the authorities had not been taking action against them and in that light, why action was taken against the said couple.
The chief justice observed that the couple had escaped from Afghanistan under serious circumstances for asylum here and it was not appropriate for po-lice to use the Foreigners Act for them.
The couple told the judges and later journalists that instead of returning to Afghanistan, they would prefer dieing in Pakistan.
The couple were taken into custody four days ago by Mirpur police in Abbottabad.
A local judicial magistrate sent the woman, 22, to a women`s shelter house and the man charged under Section 14 of Foreigners Act to Mansehra prison.
The couple claimed that father of Maryam had planned to marry her against her consent and therefore, she escaped to Pakistan along with Hewad.
A bench comprising Chief Justice Dost Mohammad Khan and Justice Shahjehan Khan Akhunzada handed over the couple to local police directing them to keep them at a safe place preferably the women`s police station or police lines and provide them with food, clothes and money for daily expenditure.
The court fixed for July 31 the hearing into the case. The couple were produced before the bench on the orders of the chief justice, who had taken a suo motu notice of their arrest by Abbottabad police.
The complainant in the case against the couple, Ishaq Khan, appeared before the court and alleged that the woman, Ms Maryam, already married to his brother, had eloped with the man, Hewad.
He informed the bench that he had been legally living in Peshawar`s Scheme Chowk and possessed a proof of registration card issued by Nadra.
The bench ordered the card`s verification, which revealed that the card was fake.
The bench ordered Mr Ishaq`s arrest and directed the SHO of the relevant east cantonment police station to investigate how he acquired the card and who the culpable officials were.
Senior superintendent of police (investigation), Abbottabad, Raza Hussain and the SHO of the relevant Mirpur police station produced the couple, saying they were taken into custody on complaint lodged by Ishaq, who claimed to be the brother-in-law of thewoman, Ms Maryam.
They added that the couple illegally stayed in Pakistan and therefore, FIR was registered against them under Section 14 of the Foreigners Act.
The chief justice observed that hundreds of thousands of Afghan nationals had illegally been roaming around but the authorities had not been taking action against them and in that light, why action was taken against the said couple.
The chief justice observed that the couple had escaped from Afghanistan under serious circumstances for asylum here and it was not appropriate for po-lice to use the Foreigners Act for them.
The couple told the judges and later journalists that instead of returning to Afghanistan, they would prefer dieing in Pakistan.
The couple were taken into custody four days ago by Mirpur police in Abbottabad.
A local judicial magistrate sent the woman, 22, to a women`s shelter house and the man charged under Section 14 of Foreigners Act to Mansehra prison.
The couple claimed that father of Maryam had planned to marry her against her consent and therefore, she escaped to Pakistan along with Hewad.
Only fair polls can secure future: CEC
ISLAMABAD, July 23: Justice (retd) Fakhruddin G.
Ebrahim who took the oath of the Chief Election Commissioner on Monday has said that only three free and fair general elections have been held in the history of the country.
At a meeting he held with members, officers and employees of the commission, Justice Ebrahim said that the elections held in 1971, 1988 and 2008 were to some extent free and fair.
Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry administered the oath to the new CEC at a ceremony attended by judges of the Supreme Court, members and officers of the Election Commission and senior lawyers.
Justice Ebrahim said the country`s future depended on transparent and fair electionsand his one-point agenda was to hold free and fair elections.
`We have the Constitution and electoral laws to guide us and do not have to look here and there,` sources quoted him as saying at the meeting.
He asked officers and staff of the Election Commission to work with dedication and honesty without any pressure.
He said it was his dream to give a prosperous and democratic Pakistan to the new generation and the Election Commission was the institution which could turn the dream into reality.
`We have only one-point agenda and that is public justice through free, fair, transparent and impartial elections so that no-one could ever point a finger at the impartiality of the EC and all employees of the EC should work to achieve that goal.He said democracy was a philosophy leading to a democratic system and this could only be achieved through a process of election. Justice Ebrahim said that the Constitution and law would be followed by the Election Commission in holding free and fair elections.
Talking to reporters after the swearing-in ceremony, he said it was the prerogative of the government to hold elections, adding that his earlier statement about the need for early elections had been made in his personal capacity.
Justice Ebrahim said his predecessor had recently said that the commission was ready to hold general and local government elections and he was confident that this was the factual position.
Meanwhile, PMIzN Senator Syed Zafar Ali Shah has expressed reservations over Justice Ebrahim`s views about fairness of elections held in 1971, 1988 and 2008.
He said there was no doubt that the 1971 polls were free and fair, but Mujibur Rehman`s Awami League, and not the PPP, emerged victorious.
In accordance with the principle of majority, the Awami League should have formed the government but the PPP because of what he termed its lust for power dismembered the country.
He said that the elections held in 1988 were to a large extent free from interference of the establishment which was under pressure at that time. He said the polls had taken place months after the death of Gen Ziaul Haq in a plane crash in Bahawalpur and Ghulam Ishaq Khan, being the acting president, had no political interests.He said that Gen (retd) Aslam Beg was the chief of the army staff who avoided meddling in the electoral process.
About 2008 elections, the PML-N leader said Justice Ebrahim appeared to have some misunderstanding about fairness of the polls which `in no way were either free or fair` He said the elections were held under military ruler Gen (retd) Pervez Musharraf and even the president of the `King`s party`, Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain was on record having said that his defeat had been engineered by the establishment.`Justice Fakhruddin G. Ebrahim is a good jurist and let us see how he holds next general elections,` he said.
Justice Ebrahim is the first Chief Election Commissioner appointed through a changed procedure involving a parliamentary committee with equal representation of the treasury and opposition. He is also the first CEC appointed for a term of five years under a provision of the 18th Constitution Amendment.
Ebrahim who took the oath of the Chief Election Commissioner on Monday has said that only three free and fair general elections have been held in the history of the country.
At a meeting he held with members, officers and employees of the commission, Justice Ebrahim said that the elections held in 1971, 1988 and 2008 were to some extent free and fair.
Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry administered the oath to the new CEC at a ceremony attended by judges of the Supreme Court, members and officers of the Election Commission and senior lawyers.
Justice Ebrahim said the country`s future depended on transparent and fair electionsand his one-point agenda was to hold free and fair elections.
`We have the Constitution and electoral laws to guide us and do not have to look here and there,` sources quoted him as saying at the meeting.
He asked officers and staff of the Election Commission to work with dedication and honesty without any pressure.
He said it was his dream to give a prosperous and democratic Pakistan to the new generation and the Election Commission was the institution which could turn the dream into reality.
`We have only one-point agenda and that is public justice through free, fair, transparent and impartial elections so that no-one could ever point a finger at the impartiality of the EC and all employees of the EC should work to achieve that goal.He said democracy was a philosophy leading to a democratic system and this could only be achieved through a process of election. Justice Ebrahim said that the Constitution and law would be followed by the Election Commission in holding free and fair elections.
Talking to reporters after the swearing-in ceremony, he said it was the prerogative of the government to hold elections, adding that his earlier statement about the need for early elections had been made in his personal capacity.
Justice Ebrahim said his predecessor had recently said that the commission was ready to hold general and local government elections and he was confident that this was the factual position.
Meanwhile, PMIzN Senator Syed Zafar Ali Shah has expressed reservations over Justice Ebrahim`s views about fairness of elections held in 1971, 1988 and 2008.
He said there was no doubt that the 1971 polls were free and fair, but Mujibur Rehman`s Awami League, and not the PPP, emerged victorious.
In accordance with the principle of majority, the Awami League should have formed the government but the PPP because of what he termed its lust for power dismembered the country.
He said that the elections held in 1988 were to a large extent free from interference of the establishment which was under pressure at that time. He said the polls had taken place months after the death of Gen Ziaul Haq in a plane crash in Bahawalpur and Ghulam Ishaq Khan, being the acting president, had no political interests.He said that Gen (retd) Aslam Beg was the chief of the army staff who avoided meddling in the electoral process.
About 2008 elections, the PML-N leader said Justice Ebrahim appeared to have some misunderstanding about fairness of the polls which `in no way were either free or fair` He said the elections were held under military ruler Gen (retd) Pervez Musharraf and even the president of the `King`s party`, Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain was on record having said that his defeat had been engineered by the establishment.`Justice Fakhruddin G. Ebrahim is a good jurist and let us see how he holds next general elections,` he said.
Justice Ebrahim is the first Chief Election Commissioner appointed through a changed procedure involving a parliamentary committee with equal representation of the treasury and opposition. He is also the first CEC appointed for a term of five years under a provision of the 18th Constitution Amendment.
Friday, July 20, 2012
Syria - Blow to Asad
ALREADY on its knees, the Syrian regime of Bashar al-Assad took another
body blow on Wednesday. The assassination of three of the regime`s top
security advisers, including the defence minister, occurred in the heart
of the capital and highlighted the continued shrinkage of the area
under Baathist control. On Wednesday also, 600 more Syrians, including
two brigadier generals, crossed over to Turkey, thus adding to the ranks
of the Free Syrian Army. With fighting no longer confined to the
provinces helicopters and artillery are shelling parts of Damascus there
are rumours that President Assad`s whereabouts are not known. There is
no doubt the 17-month-old uprising has now turned into a ferocious civil
war, with the opposition claiming 17,000 fatalities. After Libya, this
is the highest death toll for an `Arab spring`country.
President Assad missed the bus in April when he accepted Kofi Annan`s six-point plan only to renege on it. The plan had provided for a ceasefire and smooth transition to democracy. The caretakercabinet proposal, too, is dead. Even Russia had agreed to a neutral cabinet in which there would be men from both sides.
But President Assad`s intransigence scuttled it when he insisted that he should be part of it. This was not acceptable to the opposition. Fissures in the security establishment have now been so widened and the loyalist ranks so weakened that Assad is pulling troops out of the Golan Heights to bolster security around him. The world has watched the fate of the four Arab dictators who have fallen. It is now for President Assad to decide whether he would choose to seek a Saleh-like amnesty and go abroad or suffer a worse fate. If his regime falls, there could be repercussions in the region. The causes of the uprising are not sectarian, but the fact that the Alawite minority has been ruling for four decades may give a sectarIan touch to the aftermath.
If there is a sectarian flare-up, there could be political fallout in neighbouring Lebanon. Iran would lose one of its allies and that would also affect Hezbollah and Hamas.
President Assad missed the bus in April when he accepted Kofi Annan`s six-point plan only to renege on it. The plan had provided for a ceasefire and smooth transition to democracy. The caretakercabinet proposal, too, is dead. Even Russia had agreed to a neutral cabinet in which there would be men from both sides.
But President Assad`s intransigence scuttled it when he insisted that he should be part of it. This was not acceptable to the opposition. Fissures in the security establishment have now been so widened and the loyalist ranks so weakened that Assad is pulling troops out of the Golan Heights to bolster security around him. The world has watched the fate of the four Arab dictators who have fallen. It is now for President Assad to decide whether he would choose to seek a Saleh-like amnesty and go abroad or suffer a worse fate. If his regime falls, there could be repercussions in the region. The causes of the uprising are not sectarian, but the fact that the Alawite minority has been ruling for four decades may give a sectarIan touch to the aftermath.
If there is a sectarian flare-up, there could be political fallout in neighbouring Lebanon. Iran would lose one of its allies and that would also affect Hezbollah and Hamas.
New ambassadors to Af-Pak
TWO new envoys in critical posts at a critical time for the region: the
replacement of the American ambassadors in Kabul and Islamabad is both a
risk and an opportunity for a fresh start. Continuity at such a
delicate stage might have worked better than the early departures of the
outgoing chief diplomats; Cameron Munter left in less than two years
and Ryan Crocker in just one. And lingering sources of tension with
America in both countries will not make these changes simple or easy. Mr
Munter had been here for some of the most damaging episodes in USPak
relations, but much about this relationship still remains to be sorted
out, particularly on the counterterrorism front.
And while Mr Crocker helped develop the framework that will guide the withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan, the trickiest part of it is likely to be its implementation; the new envoy will have to manage both Afghan anxiety about the country`s security post-2014 and mistrust of the American presence.
But persistent problems also suggest that new faces could become an opportunity to reset ties.
In part this is because the success of American diplomacy here depends as much on how Washington works as it does on what goes on in Kabul or Islamabad. Mr Munter reportedly wanted to takea less aggressive approach to Pakistan than the CIA, on drone strikes, for example. And although Mr Crocker`s health was put forward as the reason for his departure, he is said to have been in favour of a slower withdrawal from Afghanistan than has been planned.
The more effective the US wants its new envoys to be, the more coordinated the Pentagon, the CIA, the State Department, the Af-Pak office within the State Department and the White House will need to be while still allowing the diplomats the independence they need to do their jobs. With Pakistan the main sticking point is counterterrorism, and in Kabul the focus is on war. Ambassadors, military and intelligence will have to develop consistent approaches without constricting the space for diplomacy to work.
For Pakistan an ambassador coming from a post in the Kabul embassy, as is Richard Olson, is not likely to wholly sympathise with its point of view. Alternatively, his contacts with Kabul could help navigate our own tricky relations with Afghanistan and coordinate a more integrated American approach to the region. Most importantly, the hope is that he is able to bring to Islamabad an open mind and the ability to balance America`s counterterrorism demands with Pakistan`s interests, politics and public opinion.
And while Mr Crocker helped develop the framework that will guide the withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan, the trickiest part of it is likely to be its implementation; the new envoy will have to manage both Afghan anxiety about the country`s security post-2014 and mistrust of the American presence.
But persistent problems also suggest that new faces could become an opportunity to reset ties.
In part this is because the success of American diplomacy here depends as much on how Washington works as it does on what goes on in Kabul or Islamabad. Mr Munter reportedly wanted to takea less aggressive approach to Pakistan than the CIA, on drone strikes, for example. And although Mr Crocker`s health was put forward as the reason for his departure, he is said to have been in favour of a slower withdrawal from Afghanistan than has been planned.
The more effective the US wants its new envoys to be, the more coordinated the Pentagon, the CIA, the State Department, the Af-Pak office within the State Department and the White House will need to be while still allowing the diplomats the independence they need to do their jobs. With Pakistan the main sticking point is counterterrorism, and in Kabul the focus is on war. Ambassadors, military and intelligence will have to develop consistent approaches without constricting the space for diplomacy to work.
For Pakistan an ambassador coming from a post in the Kabul embassy, as is Richard Olson, is not likely to wholly sympathise with its point of view. Alternatively, his contacts with Kabul could help navigate our own tricky relations with Afghanistan and coordinate a more integrated American approach to the region. Most importantly, the hope is that he is able to bring to Islamabad an open mind and the ability to balance America`s counterterrorism demands with Pakistan`s interests, politics and public opinion.
`WHAT is this social media, and why is it so important?`
`WHAT is this social media, and why is it so important?` Variations of
this question rang out all weekend as news spread of the Social Media
Mela, a conference that brought Indian journalists, writers, and
activists to Karachi to discuss with their Pakistani counterparts how
the social media has affected various aspects of their lives.
According to Wikipedia, social media is, simply put, `web-based and mobile-based technologies which are used to turn communication into interactive dialogue among organisations, communities, and individuals` (also known as Web 2.0). It includes Twitter and Facbeook, but also blogs and microblogs, online communities, YouTube and any other space on the Web that is accessible to all and enabled by `scalable communication techniques` meaning that it can be accessed as easily on a humble mobile phone as on a sophisticated laptop.
The conference illustrated how Pakistanis are using social media, integrating it into culture, politics, activism and education, amongst other disciplines and areas, in a positive and constructive way.
Recognising the potential of the social media to effect farreaching change in Pakistan, the US Consulate organised last year`s social media conference but this year took a back seat and left it to the NGO PeaceNiche, run by Sabeen Mahmud. She and her team decided to make Pakistan-India relations a primary theme at this year`s event, and for many attendees, the highlight of the weekend was meeting theIndian guests who were able to attend thanks to former Interior Minister Rehman Malik`s personal influence in having their visas issued.
The conference had a laid-back, relaxed feel with a desi atmosphere.
Speakers from a variety of organisations and disciplines, as well as appeal-ing graphic designs, gave the mela a unique branding, with an army of young volunteers ushering guests around the venue and a buzz that lingered for several days after the event. During the sessions, attendees learned how the social media has been used to raise funds for a movie in India (`crowdfunding`), enhance and support the learning activities in a school in Kashmir, effect political change through online petitions, create instant celebrities in the arts and media, engage Pakistani youth in the political process and raise awareness about media ethics, sexual harassment and human rights issues. The Indian guests returned home with many negative illusions about Pakistan countered, and crates of mangoes to share with their families.
But the conference was as much about the limits of social media as it was about what it can achieve. This was brought to light in Ali Dayan Hasan`s keynote speech on social media and human rights. The Pakistan director of Human Rights Watch said that the social media helped spread information quickly and was useful for recording human rights abuses, but policymakers had to listen and effectchange in government which the social media has not been able to achieve.
Raheel Khursheed, communications director for India`s Change.org, also addressed the issue of armchair activism enabled by the social media, saying bluntly that online activism was useless if it was not followed by real-world action. Beena Sarwar, a peace activist, echoed Hasan in her blog observations about the social media conference: `Political establishments have the power to change [the situation between India and Pakistan], if only they would follow the voice of the people.
That voice is being expressedlouderthaneveron the social media, but is anyone from the government actually listening? In Pakistan, there is an image problem in the context of the social media. Its proponents sometimes expect far too much of it; they are almost evangelical about its powers to change society and the political system. They will be disappointed by the fact that the social media mela did not solve the Kashmir problem, eliminate corruption, stop the killing of the Hazara Shias or the Baloch, or the persecution of Ahmadis and Christians.
Such people need constant reminding that the revolution will not come just because people click `like` on a Facebook link or retweet a popular politician`s messages.
By the same token, many don`t take the social media seriously enough. Its detractors are often those who simply don`t understand it. Take the example of Pakistani journalists who think that the social media is merely reporting about social events.
Jokes aside, mainstreammedia in Pakistan has practitioners who feel that the social media is no competition to traditional print or broadcast journalism, or lacks legitimacy as a medium. And those Pakistani politicians who are online and tweeting to their followers seem to think of the social media as a game or a popularity contest: who has the most ardent followers or who has the most abusive trolls.
The power of the social media lies in its ability to give a voice to people traditionally left out of the mainstream media, to hold political figures and governments to account for their actions and abuses, and to mobilise people to action in communities and across them.
But there`s still a huge gap between intent and action, and it will take several years for the social media scene in Pakistan to mature enough to have a tangible effect on governance and policy. Still, learning, observing and experimenting without fear is the most intelligent approach to understanding what the social media can and can`t do for us. • The writer is the author of Slum Child.
binashah@yahoo.com
According to Wikipedia, social media is, simply put, `web-based and mobile-based technologies which are used to turn communication into interactive dialogue among organisations, communities, and individuals` (also known as Web 2.0). It includes Twitter and Facbeook, but also blogs and microblogs, online communities, YouTube and any other space on the Web that is accessible to all and enabled by `scalable communication techniques` meaning that it can be accessed as easily on a humble mobile phone as on a sophisticated laptop.
The conference illustrated how Pakistanis are using social media, integrating it into culture, politics, activism and education, amongst other disciplines and areas, in a positive and constructive way.
Recognising the potential of the social media to effect farreaching change in Pakistan, the US Consulate organised last year`s social media conference but this year took a back seat and left it to the NGO PeaceNiche, run by Sabeen Mahmud. She and her team decided to make Pakistan-India relations a primary theme at this year`s event, and for many attendees, the highlight of the weekend was meeting theIndian guests who were able to attend thanks to former Interior Minister Rehman Malik`s personal influence in having their visas issued.
The conference had a laid-back, relaxed feel with a desi atmosphere.
Speakers from a variety of organisations and disciplines, as well as appeal-ing graphic designs, gave the mela a unique branding, with an army of young volunteers ushering guests around the venue and a buzz that lingered for several days after the event. During the sessions, attendees learned how the social media has been used to raise funds for a movie in India (`crowdfunding`), enhance and support the learning activities in a school in Kashmir, effect political change through online petitions, create instant celebrities in the arts and media, engage Pakistani youth in the political process and raise awareness about media ethics, sexual harassment and human rights issues. The Indian guests returned home with many negative illusions about Pakistan countered, and crates of mangoes to share with their families.
But the conference was as much about the limits of social media as it was about what it can achieve. This was brought to light in Ali Dayan Hasan`s keynote speech on social media and human rights. The Pakistan director of Human Rights Watch said that the social media helped spread information quickly and was useful for recording human rights abuses, but policymakers had to listen and effectchange in government which the social media has not been able to achieve.
Raheel Khursheed, communications director for India`s Change.org, also addressed the issue of armchair activism enabled by the social media, saying bluntly that online activism was useless if it was not followed by real-world action. Beena Sarwar, a peace activist, echoed Hasan in her blog observations about the social media conference: `Political establishments have the power to change [the situation between India and Pakistan], if only they would follow the voice of the people.
That voice is being expressedlouderthaneveron the social media, but is anyone from the government actually listening? In Pakistan, there is an image problem in the context of the social media. Its proponents sometimes expect far too much of it; they are almost evangelical about its powers to change society and the political system. They will be disappointed by the fact that the social media mela did not solve the Kashmir problem, eliminate corruption, stop the killing of the Hazara Shias or the Baloch, or the persecution of Ahmadis and Christians.
Such people need constant reminding that the revolution will not come just because people click `like` on a Facebook link or retweet a popular politician`s messages.
By the same token, many don`t take the social media seriously enough. Its detractors are often those who simply don`t understand it. Take the example of Pakistani journalists who think that the social media is merely reporting about social events.
Jokes aside, mainstreammedia in Pakistan has practitioners who feel that the social media is no competition to traditional print or broadcast journalism, or lacks legitimacy as a medium. And those Pakistani politicians who are online and tweeting to their followers seem to think of the social media as a game or a popularity contest: who has the most ardent followers or who has the most abusive trolls.
The power of the social media lies in its ability to give a voice to people traditionally left out of the mainstream media, to hold political figures and governments to account for their actions and abuses, and to mobilise people to action in communities and across them.
But there`s still a huge gap between intent and action, and it will take several years for the social media scene in Pakistan to mature enough to have a tangible effect on governance and policy. Still, learning, observing and experimenting without fear is the most intelligent approach to understanding what the social media can and can`t do for us. • The writer is the author of Slum Child.
binashah@yahoo.com
Qadir Gilani scrapes through in neck `n` neck fight
MULTAN, July 19: A contest which the PPP expected to be a walkover turned out to be a neck `n` neck fight in Multan on Thursday.
The voters of the NA-151 constituency gave their mandate to Abdul Qadir Gilani, son of disqualified prime minister Yousuf Raza Gilani, but it was only a marginal victory for the PPP.
According to observers, the thin margin of the Gilani junior`s victory showed that the voters were disgruntled with the ruling party.
Independent candidate Shaukat Bosan, who was being dubbed the underdog despite enjoying the support of major opposition parties PTI, PML-N and the JI, put up a tough fight and lost by only 4,096 votes.According to unofficial results, Mr Gilani secured 64,628 votes and Mr Bosan 60,532.
Celebrations erupted in the Gilani camp once the count was completed.
There was tension in both camps during the count and fortunes fluctuated as results trickled in.
The Election Commission had set up 245 polling stations 62 for men, 59 for women and 123 joint with 712 booths.
The number of registered voters was 307,871.
Although the EC had declared 64 polling stations sensitive, the electoral process went on peacefully, except in Khairpur Bhutta where two groups occasionally fired into the air.
Ten candidates were in the run but only Mr Gilani contested on a party tick-et.
The polling began at 8am and concluded at 5pm.
Urban stations saw a slow turnout, but polling in rural areas was brisk throughout the day.
Many voters reached polling stations on their own as under the new election rules candidates were not allowed to arrange pick-and-drop facility for them and the EC failed to provide transport in several areas.
The commission, however, made adequate arrangements to provide slips to voters containing their names, voter numbers and polling station by setting up camps outside polling booths.
But several voters at the Muhammadpura Ghota polling station complained that the slips were incorrect.
The voters of the NA-151 constituency gave their mandate to Abdul Qadir Gilani, son of disqualified prime minister Yousuf Raza Gilani, but it was only a marginal victory for the PPP.
According to observers, the thin margin of the Gilani junior`s victory showed that the voters were disgruntled with the ruling party.
Independent candidate Shaukat Bosan, who was being dubbed the underdog despite enjoying the support of major opposition parties PTI, PML-N and the JI, put up a tough fight and lost by only 4,096 votes.According to unofficial results, Mr Gilani secured 64,628 votes and Mr Bosan 60,532.
Celebrations erupted in the Gilani camp once the count was completed.
There was tension in both camps during the count and fortunes fluctuated as results trickled in.
The Election Commission had set up 245 polling stations 62 for men, 59 for women and 123 joint with 712 booths.
The number of registered voters was 307,871.
Although the EC had declared 64 polling stations sensitive, the electoral process went on peacefully, except in Khairpur Bhutta where two groups occasionally fired into the air.
Ten candidates were in the run but only Mr Gilani contested on a party tick-et.
The polling began at 8am and concluded at 5pm.
Urban stations saw a slow turnout, but polling in rural areas was brisk throughout the day.
Many voters reached polling stations on their own as under the new election rules candidates were not allowed to arrange pick-and-drop facility for them and the EC failed to provide transport in several areas.
The commission, however, made adequate arrangements to provide slips to voters containing their names, voter numbers and polling station by setting up camps outside polling booths.
But several voters at the Muhammadpura Ghota polling station complained that the slips were incorrect.
Trilateral summit in Kabul
KABUL, July 19: Afghan efforts to negotiate with the Taliban need
Islamabad`s help to be successful, the leaders of Afghanistan, Britain
and Pakistan emphasised on Thursday, following threeway talks in Kabul.
British leader David Cameron and Afghan President Hamid Karzai met Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf for the first time, as British and Nato combat troops prepare to leave Afghanistan in 18 months`time.
Mr Karzai has long sought to negotiate with the Taliban, who have been fighting for a decade to topple his Westernbacked government, but the Islamist militia has in public refused to deal with his administration, branding it an American puppet.
During the talks, Mr Karzai reiterated the `urgency` of a political solution.
His office said Mr Ashraf and Mr Cameron reaffirmed support for such a process, `led and owned by Afghans, facilitated by Pakistan and other regional countries` Mr Cameron appreciated the sacrifices and role of Pakistan in the war against terrorism. Mr Karzai seconded him in acknowledging Pakistan`s efforts for longlasting peace in the region.
Kabul has repeatedlyasked Islamabad to assist efforts to broker a peace deal with the Taliban, whose leaders have traditionally had close ties to Pakistan. But it remains unclear to what extent Pakistan controls core Taliban leaders and to what extent it can facilitate a peace process.
Pakistan`s oldest newspaper, Dawn, on Thursday counselled Pakistan to `begin to match its claims and demands with what it can actually deliver`.
`It will need to demonstrate at least a genuine effort to try to persuade the Taliban (which) it does have contact with, to talk to the Afghan government and the US and turning over prisoners could be a first step,` the newspaper wrote.
It was Prime Minister Ashraf`s first visit to Kabul since being elected. He assured Pakistan`s full support for an Afghan-led peace process leading to an intraAfghan consensus for durable peace.
He said the current situation needed practical and realistic strategy within the framework of an Afghanowned inclusive peace and reconciliation process that should be based on trust and transparency.
Mr Ashraf said to secure the promise of a brighter tomorrow for their people, Pakistan and Afghanistan needed to work closely together with support of friends and partners like theUnited Kingdom.
According to the joint statement released by Kabul, the three leaders `reiterated their strong commitment to working together to eliminate` terrorism, which `poses the gravest threat to regional and international security`.
`They also emphasised the importance of peace in Afghanistan for the peace and security of Pakistan,` it said.
Mr Cameron warned the Taliban at a joint news conference with Mr Karzai earlier that the international community would continue to support the Afghan government after Nato troops pull out in 2014.
`I think this sends a very clear message to the Taliban, that you cannot wait this out until foreign forces leave in 2014, because we will be firm friends and supporters of Afghanistan long beyond then.
`So now is the time for everyone to participate in a peaceful political process in Afghanistan.
Mr Karzai said the peace process was `the most important goal that we pursue` adding that Thursday`s talks were `to see how we could intensify the Pakistan role in the Afghan peace process` Mr Cameron also signed a dealto build an officers`training academy modelled on Britain`s Sandhurst as Afghan forces take increasing responsibility for the fight against Taliban insurgents.
Britain has around 9,500 troops in Afghanistan, making it the second-largest contributor to Nato`s US-led 130,000-strong International Security Assistance Force.
Asked about reductions in troop numbers, Mr Cameron said it would be done gradually, from 9,500 to 9,000 this year.
`I don`t want to see some cliff edge. I`m confident we are going to have a staged reduction and deliver a safe and secure situation.
Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar, Adviser on Interior Rehman Malik, Minister of State for Commerce Abbas Ahmed Afridi and Director General of the InterServices Intelligence General Zaheerul Islam accompanied Prime Minister Ashraf.
DIALOGUE: Pakistan and Afghanistan agreed on Thursday to resume regular talks on Afghanistan`s peace process, with the new Pakistani prime minister promising to help arrange meetings between Afghan and Taliban representatives.
Following daylong talks in Kabul, Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf and President Hamid Karzai said they had agreed to resume meetings of the two-track Peace Commission.
The commission, which drew together political and military leaders from both neighbours, was suspended last year following the assassination of former Afghan president and peace envoy Burhanuddin Rabbani. Afghan officials accused Pakistani intelligence of being involved in the killing.
`Pakistan is playing the role of facilitator ... If Pakistan can facilitate in any manner, we will do it,` Mr Ashraf told reporters at Karzai`s garden palace in Kabul.
`Let me assure you that Pakistan does not support any terrorists. It is not in our interest and we cannot afford it, he said.
Both leaders said Mr Rabbani`s son Salahuddin Rabbani who replaced his father as head of Afghanistan`s High Peace Council, the body tasked with reaching out to the Taliban would travel to Pakistan for talks soon. It would be his first visit since his appointment in April.-Agencies
British leader David Cameron and Afghan President Hamid Karzai met Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf for the first time, as British and Nato combat troops prepare to leave Afghanistan in 18 months`time.
Mr Karzai has long sought to negotiate with the Taliban, who have been fighting for a decade to topple his Westernbacked government, but the Islamist militia has in public refused to deal with his administration, branding it an American puppet.
During the talks, Mr Karzai reiterated the `urgency` of a political solution.
His office said Mr Ashraf and Mr Cameron reaffirmed support for such a process, `led and owned by Afghans, facilitated by Pakistan and other regional countries` Mr Cameron appreciated the sacrifices and role of Pakistan in the war against terrorism. Mr Karzai seconded him in acknowledging Pakistan`s efforts for longlasting peace in the region.
Kabul has repeatedlyasked Islamabad to assist efforts to broker a peace deal with the Taliban, whose leaders have traditionally had close ties to Pakistan. But it remains unclear to what extent Pakistan controls core Taliban leaders and to what extent it can facilitate a peace process.
Pakistan`s oldest newspaper, Dawn, on Thursday counselled Pakistan to `begin to match its claims and demands with what it can actually deliver`.
`It will need to demonstrate at least a genuine effort to try to persuade the Taliban (which) it does have contact with, to talk to the Afghan government and the US and turning over prisoners could be a first step,` the newspaper wrote.
It was Prime Minister Ashraf`s first visit to Kabul since being elected. He assured Pakistan`s full support for an Afghan-led peace process leading to an intraAfghan consensus for durable peace.
He said the current situation needed practical and realistic strategy within the framework of an Afghanowned inclusive peace and reconciliation process that should be based on trust and transparency.
Mr Ashraf said to secure the promise of a brighter tomorrow for their people, Pakistan and Afghanistan needed to work closely together with support of friends and partners like theUnited Kingdom.
According to the joint statement released by Kabul, the three leaders `reiterated their strong commitment to working together to eliminate` terrorism, which `poses the gravest threat to regional and international security`.
`They also emphasised the importance of peace in Afghanistan for the peace and security of Pakistan,` it said.
Mr Cameron warned the Taliban at a joint news conference with Mr Karzai earlier that the international community would continue to support the Afghan government after Nato troops pull out in 2014.
`I think this sends a very clear message to the Taliban, that you cannot wait this out until foreign forces leave in 2014, because we will be firm friends and supporters of Afghanistan long beyond then.
`So now is the time for everyone to participate in a peaceful political process in Afghanistan.
Mr Karzai said the peace process was `the most important goal that we pursue` adding that Thursday`s talks were `to see how we could intensify the Pakistan role in the Afghan peace process` Mr Cameron also signed a dealto build an officers`training academy modelled on Britain`s Sandhurst as Afghan forces take increasing responsibility for the fight against Taliban insurgents.
Britain has around 9,500 troops in Afghanistan, making it the second-largest contributor to Nato`s US-led 130,000-strong International Security Assistance Force.
Asked about reductions in troop numbers, Mr Cameron said it would be done gradually, from 9,500 to 9,000 this year.
`I don`t want to see some cliff edge. I`m confident we are going to have a staged reduction and deliver a safe and secure situation.
Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar, Adviser on Interior Rehman Malik, Minister of State for Commerce Abbas Ahmed Afridi and Director General of the InterServices Intelligence General Zaheerul Islam accompanied Prime Minister Ashraf.
DIALOGUE: Pakistan and Afghanistan agreed on Thursday to resume regular talks on Afghanistan`s peace process, with the new Pakistani prime minister promising to help arrange meetings between Afghan and Taliban representatives.
Following daylong talks in Kabul, Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf and President Hamid Karzai said they had agreed to resume meetings of the two-track Peace Commission.
The commission, which drew together political and military leaders from both neighbours, was suspended last year following the assassination of former Afghan president and peace envoy Burhanuddin Rabbani. Afghan officials accused Pakistani intelligence of being involved in the killing.
`Pakistan is playing the role of facilitator ... If Pakistan can facilitate in any manner, we will do it,` Mr Ashraf told reporters at Karzai`s garden palace in Kabul.
`Let me assure you that Pakistan does not support any terrorists. It is not in our interest and we cannot afford it, he said.
Both leaders said Mr Rabbani`s son Salahuddin Rabbani who replaced his father as head of Afghanistan`s High Peace Council, the body tasked with reaching out to the Taliban would travel to Pakistan for talks soon. It would be his first visit since his appointment in April.-Agencies
Thursday, July 19, 2012
Pakistan Rol in Afghanistan
ACCORDING to the Afghan ambassador to Pakistan, Afghan reconciliation and Pakistan`s support for it will be the most important item on the agenda for Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf`s visit to Kabul today. This follows earlier statements from President Hamid Karzai asking for Islamabad`s help for talks with the Taliban. But the reality of what Pakistan can do lies somewhere between international perceptions that it could make major contributions to peace in Afghanistan if only it wanted to and the very limited, logistical role Islamabad played in facilitating the Taliban`s passage to Qatar for talks with the Americans.
It`s true that some Taliban leaders, their families and livelihoods are in Pakistan, and that security agencies have contacts with them. Other operatives are in Pakistani jails and have not been handed over despite Kabul`s requests. Pakistan is also holding itself back because of paranoia about its interests in the region and the lack of a clear centre of power when it comes to devising foreign policy. But there are also some real constraints on its ability to facilitate talks: its control over the Taliban is not as extensive as is portrayed by the Americans and the Afghans; the Taliban have repeatedly claimed they will not talk to the Karzai government;the US government`s election-year calculations and internal disagreements make it difficult for Washington to maintain a successful peace process with the Taliban; and the Taliban themselves are fragmented over whether and with whom talks should take place.
In this complex scenario, one thing Pakistan can do is begin to match its claims and demands with what it can actually deliver. If it wants a seat at the table and have the international community address its concerns about Afghanistan`s future, it will have to deliver more than just logistical support. It will need to demonstrate at least a genuine effort to try to persuade the Taliban it does have contacts with to talk to the Afghan government and the US, and turning over prisoners could be a first step. The Taliban have recently sent public signals that they might be ready to talk to the Americans again, and have even sent an envoy to the Kyoto conference attended by Afghan government officials. So there may be an opportunity now for Pakistan to get involved in shaping the region`s future and counter the international perception that it is an impediment to peace.
It doesn`t have the degree of power projected by the West and Afghanistan, and there are limits to what it can do. But that is no excuse not to do whatever it can.
It`s true that some Taliban leaders, their families and livelihoods are in Pakistan, and that security agencies have contacts with them. Other operatives are in Pakistani jails and have not been handed over despite Kabul`s requests. Pakistan is also holding itself back because of paranoia about its interests in the region and the lack of a clear centre of power when it comes to devising foreign policy. But there are also some real constraints on its ability to facilitate talks: its control over the Taliban is not as extensive as is portrayed by the Americans and the Afghans; the Taliban have repeatedly claimed they will not talk to the Karzai government;the US government`s election-year calculations and internal disagreements make it difficult for Washington to maintain a successful peace process with the Taliban; and the Taliban themselves are fragmented over whether and with whom talks should take place.
In this complex scenario, one thing Pakistan can do is begin to match its claims and demands with what it can actually deliver. If it wants a seat at the table and have the international community address its concerns about Afghanistan`s future, it will have to deliver more than just logistical support. It will need to demonstrate at least a genuine effort to try to persuade the Taliban it does have contacts with to talk to the Afghan government and the US, and turning over prisoners could be a first step. The Taliban have recently sent public signals that they might be ready to talk to the Americans again, and have even sent an envoy to the Kyoto conference attended by Afghan government officials. So there may be an opportunity now for Pakistan to get involved in shaping the region`s future and counter the international perception that it is an impediment to peace.
It doesn`t have the degree of power projected by the West and Afghanistan, and there are limits to what it can do. But that is no excuse not to do whatever it can.
Tuesday, July 17, 2012
Wedding rush
IT`S wedding season in Mirpur and love has only a little to do with it.
The town in Pakistan-administered Kashmir best known for its migrant
population in the UK is racing against the clock to beat a deadline for
changes in British immigration laws. As reported in this paper, people
rushed to book places in crash courses in English while immigration
consultants in the town also saw brisk business in the run-up to the
July 6 deadline, after which the new laws were to take effect.
Needless to say, those in the wedding industry were also quite busy, as couples tied the knot in droves. The reason for these speedy weddings and associated frenzied activity is that as per the new rules, the minimum income ceiling has been raised for Britons wishing to bring foreign spouses to the UK, while foreign nationals wishing to marry British partners will also be required to pass an English proficiency test. The rush to securea coveted British visa has also reportedly caused delays at the British High Commission in Islamabad.
The hasty weddings show how globalised the world has become, when changes in British laws can have such an impact thousands of miles away in Mirpur, which has seen many locals settled in Britain return to invest and marry in their ancestral hometown. This particular development also illustrates the strength of global networks and how people use these for upward mobility. While people in developing countries such as Pakistan have always sought greener pastures in the First World, the current dismal economic and law and order situation in this country has only strengthened people`s urge to flee.
Unfortunately, the sad fact is that many Pakistanis will grab the first opportunity to settle abroad should it become available, both through legal means and otherwise. That is a sobering thought.
Needless to say, those in the wedding industry were also quite busy, as couples tied the knot in droves. The reason for these speedy weddings and associated frenzied activity is that as per the new rules, the minimum income ceiling has been raised for Britons wishing to bring foreign spouses to the UK, while foreign nationals wishing to marry British partners will also be required to pass an English proficiency test. The rush to securea coveted British visa has also reportedly caused delays at the British High Commission in Islamabad.
The hasty weddings show how globalised the world has become, when changes in British laws can have such an impact thousands of miles away in Mirpur, which has seen many locals settled in Britain return to invest and marry in their ancestral hometown. This particular development also illustrates the strength of global networks and how people use these for upward mobility. While people in developing countries such as Pakistan have always sought greener pastures in the First World, the current dismal economic and law and order situation in this country has only strengthened people`s urge to flee.
Unfortunately, the sad fact is that many Pakistanis will grab the first opportunity to settle abroad should it become available, both through legal means and otherwise. That is a sobering thought.
Lobbying and image of pakistan
FOURTEEN telephone calls and 15 meetings: this is part of the six months
of activity an American lobbying firm did for Pakistan. The firm is
paid $75,000 a month to advance Pakistan`s cause and stem the downhill
slide of its image. As a report by our diplomatic correspondent points
out, despite the nearly one million dollars given annually to the firm,
Pakistan`s image has earned it few admirers. There is a long list of
reasons why the American public has developed the kind of view it has
about this country. Islamabad`s role in the war on terror, the
post-Salala confrontation and the army`s covert relationship with the
Haqqani militia have merely contributed to an image that has been
negative for quite some time because of Pakistan`s domestic scene
bordering on anarchy. It is not a question of an incident here and
there; it is decades of political chaos and extremist violence which
have given Pakistan the stamp of an abnormal country.
A country`s image is not created overnight, nor can lobbyists succeed in theirjob when the news emanating from the country shows perpetual chaos, a constant perversion of constitutional and legal processes, sectarian violence,unabashed persecution of women and minorities, massive financial scams, a horrendous level of xenophobic violence that deters foreign tourists and investment, the purported misuse and waste of foreign aid, and above all, a corrupt elite that is perceived to be indifferent to national interests.
In such a scenario, lobbyists can do little to earn their keep. A country`s image is built at home, not abroad, for it stems from the kind of message a nation gives to the world by collective behaviour and by its commitment to principles universally shared. The lobbying firm may win over a couple of congressmen or journalists willing to listen, but this will be a poor substitute for what the people of Pakistan themselves and their leaders can and should do to reverse the image. A stable, democratic and peaceful Pakistan will in itself constitute an image that would hardly need lobbying.
A country`s image is not created overnight, nor can lobbyists succeed in theirjob when the news emanating from the country shows perpetual chaos, a constant perversion of constitutional and legal processes, sectarian violence,unabashed persecution of women and minorities, massive financial scams, a horrendous level of xenophobic violence that deters foreign tourists and investment, the purported misuse and waste of foreign aid, and above all, a corrupt elite that is perceived to be indifferent to national interests.
In such a scenario, lobbyists can do little to earn their keep. A country`s image is built at home, not abroad, for it stems from the kind of message a nation gives to the world by collective behaviour and by its commitment to principles universally shared. The lobbying firm may win over a couple of congressmen or journalists willing to listen, but this will be a poor substitute for what the people of Pakistan themselves and their leaders can and should do to reverse the image. A stable, democratic and peaceful Pakistan will in itself constitute an image that would hardly need lobbying.
Paki- india Ties
N an interview with an Indian news channel a day after presenting his
credentials to the Indian president, Salman Bashir, the new high
commissioner to India, has said that `the atmospherics have witnessed a
sea change` in the relationship between Pakistan and India. Mr Bashir
may well be right and in a relationship as fraught and contentious as
the one between the two South Asian neighbours `atmospherics` are
nothing to be scoffed at. However, thereis asense thatrather than Mr
Bashir`s upbeat assessment, the relationship is drifting again.
Trade negotiations have been bogged down in minutiae, a more liberal visa regime has seemingly been stalled and there`s next to nothing to show on the fiendishly more difficult fronts: Kashmir, Siachen and terrorism.
Perhaps what can reinvigorate the push for normalisation of ties between India and Pakistan is the much talked about but never quite near enough visit of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to Pakistan. Intransigence and stubbornness of the security and foreign-policy establishments on both sides is almost a given, so it comes down to finding someone who can rise about the calcified and ossified positions of old and drag ties forward.
Throughout his tenure as prime minister, Mr Singh has appeared to be the man who could possibly make it happen buttime is running out.
Weakened domestically and unable to find a partner in Pakistan who is willing to meet him half way, the space for Prime Minister Singh to manoeuvre on Pakistan has certainly diminished a great deal. Here on the Pakistani side, the demand for `progress on all fronts` has been wielded as a soft veto by the army-led security establishment on improving trade and visa relations. The thought behind that may well be that when Pakistan first signalled its intention to move ahead on certain subjects, it hoped that India would reciprocate by offering talks and the hope of stepping back from rigid Indian positions on other subjects. But then the Indian side appeared to want to keep the focus of the talks narrow and Pakistan`s interest diminished.
Certainly, from the Indian side, the shadow of the Mumbai attacks still lingers and a significant gesture from Pakistan expediting the trial of the suspects here perhaps is yet to come. The weight of history means that both sides have a thousand and one reasons to not genuinely seek a full peace with one another. So officials like Prime Minister Singh, so obviously and so genuinely interested in peace with Pakistan, do not come about often. He should follow his instinct.
Roll the dice: visit Pakistan. Of such gestures is history sometimes made.
Trade negotiations have been bogged down in minutiae, a more liberal visa regime has seemingly been stalled and there`s next to nothing to show on the fiendishly more difficult fronts: Kashmir, Siachen and terrorism.
Perhaps what can reinvigorate the push for normalisation of ties between India and Pakistan is the much talked about but never quite near enough visit of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to Pakistan. Intransigence and stubbornness of the security and foreign-policy establishments on both sides is almost a given, so it comes down to finding someone who can rise about the calcified and ossified positions of old and drag ties forward.
Throughout his tenure as prime minister, Mr Singh has appeared to be the man who could possibly make it happen buttime is running out.
Weakened domestically and unable to find a partner in Pakistan who is willing to meet him half way, the space for Prime Minister Singh to manoeuvre on Pakistan has certainly diminished a great deal. Here on the Pakistani side, the demand for `progress on all fronts` has been wielded as a soft veto by the army-led security establishment on improving trade and visa relations. The thought behind that may well be that when Pakistan first signalled its intention to move ahead on certain subjects, it hoped that India would reciprocate by offering talks and the hope of stepping back from rigid Indian positions on other subjects. But then the Indian side appeared to want to keep the focus of the talks narrow and Pakistan`s interest diminished.
Certainly, from the Indian side, the shadow of the Mumbai attacks still lingers and a significant gesture from Pakistan expediting the trial of the suspects here perhaps is yet to come. The weight of history means that both sides have a thousand and one reasons to not genuinely seek a full peace with one another. So officials like Prime Minister Singh, so obviously and so genuinely interested in peace with Pakistan, do not come about often. He should follow his instinct.
Roll the dice: visit Pakistan. Of such gestures is history sometimes made.
Raja's Positive move
PRIME Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf, during the inauguration ceremony of a
hydroelectricity project in Besham, once again invited all political
parties to come and sit together ... to find a workable solution to the
persisting crisis... He lamented that a dictator ruled the country for
10 years but no one stopped him while all stepstaken by a democratic
government are being challenged.
We cannot say how political parties willrespond to the prime minister`s offer, but we are sure that if they do not respond positively no one will be able to stop us from destruction. It is strange that despite the hard experience of dictatorships our politicians fail to develop democratic attitudes.... The sufferers from dictatorship and political confrontation are the people. .
Regrettably our leaders and guides ... are further pushing us to this undesired destination.
One can have hundreds of differences with ... the incum-bent government. Its performance may not be praised, the restoration of the constitution and of the rights of the provinces might be brushed aside, but it deserves credit that it was heading to complete its tenure. No doubt this is a victory for democrats...
[In the past] the attitudes of political parties and their unwise steps were causes forthe imposition of dictatorship. The undemocratic forces always took advantage of this situation. It appears that wehave neither learnt from the past nor want to learn in the future. Otherwise political parties might not be demanding early elections.
However, the prime minister`s offer is a positive sign and we hope political forces will take it with sincerity and cooperate with the government so that the democratic dispensation can complete its destination and heal injuries caused by undemocratic forces. (July 16) • Selected and translated by Sohail Sangi
We cannot say how political parties willrespond to the prime minister`s offer, but we are sure that if they do not respond positively no one will be able to stop us from destruction. It is strange that despite the hard experience of dictatorships our politicians fail to develop democratic attitudes.... The sufferers from dictatorship and political confrontation are the people. .
Regrettably our leaders and guides ... are further pushing us to this undesired destination.
One can have hundreds of differences with ... the incum-bent government. Its performance may not be praised, the restoration of the constitution and of the rights of the provinces might be brushed aside, but it deserves credit that it was heading to complete its tenure. No doubt this is a victory for democrats...
[In the past] the attitudes of political parties and their unwise steps were causes forthe imposition of dictatorship. The undemocratic forces always took advantage of this situation. It appears that wehave neither learnt from the past nor want to learn in the future. Otherwise political parties might not be demanding early elections.
However, the prime minister`s offer is a positive sign and we hope political forces will take it with sincerity and cooperate with the government so that the democratic dispensation can complete its destination and heal injuries caused by undemocratic forces. (July 16) • Selected and translated by Sohail Sangi
Asghar`s petition hearing in SC ISI cell on the receiving end of criticism
ISLAMABAD, July 16: While referring to the dreaded political cell in the InterServices Intelligence (ISI), the Supreme Court categorically stated on Monday that the judiciary would not accept any extra-constitutional interference in the democratic order.
Citing a number of judgments, including the July 31, 2009, landmark verdict which denounced successive military takeovers and the one which sent former prime minister Yousuf Raza Gilani home, a three-judge bench said that through these pronouncements the court had made it abundantly clearthat the affairs ofthe state had to be governed strictly in accordance with the Constitution and no interference of any nature from functionaries, other than those under the Constitution, was acceptable.
The bench comprising Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, Justice Jawwad S. Khwaja and Justice Khilji Arif Hussain had taken up a 1996 petition of Tehrik-i-Istiqlal chief Air Martial (retd) Asghar Khan who accused the ISI of financing politicians in the 1990 elections by dishing out Rs140 million to create Islami Jamboori Ittehad (IJI) and prevent Benazir Bhutto`s PPP from winning the polls.
`The democratic order under the Constitution shouldbe allowed to continue without any extra-constitutional interference,` the court said while citing its earlier verdicts. It asked Attorney General Irfan Qadir to seek instructions from the quarters concerned about the existence of the cell.
On May 17 also the court had directed the AG to procure and submit the notification under which the political cen had been set up in 1975 by then chief executive Zulfikar Ali Bhutto.
Mr Qadir assured the court that he would dig out information about the notification. He is also required to bring into the notice of the prime minister underwhose commands the ISI functions about the dictum laid down by the Supreme Court in different cases in which the court always encouraged the continuation of the democratic system of governance.
`What the Constitution provides are required to be done accordingly,` observed the chief justice while dictating the order after Monday`s proceedings.
Advocate Salman Akram Raja, representing Asghar Khan, regretted that former ISI chief Hameed Gul had been claiming in interviews that given the chance what was done in the 90s would be repeated again. `There has been no repentance and this mindset has not changed, the counsel said.
The court observed that it had endeavoured to change this mindset through theJuly 31 judgment.
Bangladesh model `Let the democratic process continue. We are happy that the new prime minister has come. No Bangladesh model can be introduced in Pakistan,` the court observed.
The chief justice had some praise for the armed forces when he said the court had great respect for the troops.
`They are being slaughtered like anything,` the court said.
The court was informed that former director general of ISI Lt-Gen (retd) Asad Durrani had submitted documents which shed light on the process of setting up the ISI political cell. The documents include facts about the existence of the cell contained in a concise statement he had earlier submitted to the court.
Gen Durrani is also required to submit the list he had promised containing the names of ISI officials involved in the operation to substantiate the doling out of funds among different politicians.
The attorney general said nothing substantive or detrimental evidence in any manner had been provided in the documents. The court asked him to submit the documents in a sealed cover.
The court also mentioned the Feb 6, 1997, order which indicated that the former AG had to inform the court whether the ISI political cell was still working or had been disbanded.
Defence Secretary Nargis Sethi, who appeared before the court, was asked if the ISI, Military Intelligence and the defence ministry would be represented by any counsel.
`We want to give an opportunity so that nobody can say he has been condemned unheard,` the court said.
The defence secretary said she would consult relevant stakeholders in this regard.
She said that despite her best efforts the notification about the setting up of political cell in the ISI could not be traced.
`The issue is 38 years old, but I will make another effort, she assured the court.
The attorney general informed the court that authenticity or veracity of the commission`s report on Mehran Bank Limited was not possible because the original one was still missing.
About the report on Habib Bank Limited, the AG said it could not be completed because the then government had stopped the commission concerned from conducting the inquiry in 1997.
The court recalled that 14 to 15 statements had been recorded before the commission on Habib Bank and asked the AG to get their copies.
The court adjourned the hearing till July 30.
Citing a number of judgments, including the July 31, 2009, landmark verdict which denounced successive military takeovers and the one which sent former prime minister Yousuf Raza Gilani home, a three-judge bench said that through these pronouncements the court had made it abundantly clearthat the affairs ofthe state had to be governed strictly in accordance with the Constitution and no interference of any nature from functionaries, other than those under the Constitution, was acceptable.
The bench comprising Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, Justice Jawwad S. Khwaja and Justice Khilji Arif Hussain had taken up a 1996 petition of Tehrik-i-Istiqlal chief Air Martial (retd) Asghar Khan who accused the ISI of financing politicians in the 1990 elections by dishing out Rs140 million to create Islami Jamboori Ittehad (IJI) and prevent Benazir Bhutto`s PPP from winning the polls.
`The democratic order under the Constitution shouldbe allowed to continue without any extra-constitutional interference,` the court said while citing its earlier verdicts. It asked Attorney General Irfan Qadir to seek instructions from the quarters concerned about the existence of the cell.
On May 17 also the court had directed the AG to procure and submit the notification under which the political cen had been set up in 1975 by then chief executive Zulfikar Ali Bhutto.
Mr Qadir assured the court that he would dig out information about the notification. He is also required to bring into the notice of the prime minister underwhose commands the ISI functions about the dictum laid down by the Supreme Court in different cases in which the court always encouraged the continuation of the democratic system of governance.
`What the Constitution provides are required to be done accordingly,` observed the chief justice while dictating the order after Monday`s proceedings.
Advocate Salman Akram Raja, representing Asghar Khan, regretted that former ISI chief Hameed Gul had been claiming in interviews that given the chance what was done in the 90s would be repeated again. `There has been no repentance and this mindset has not changed, the counsel said.
The court observed that it had endeavoured to change this mindset through theJuly 31 judgment.
Bangladesh model `Let the democratic process continue. We are happy that the new prime minister has come. No Bangladesh model can be introduced in Pakistan,` the court observed.
The chief justice had some praise for the armed forces when he said the court had great respect for the troops.
`They are being slaughtered like anything,` the court said.
The court was informed that former director general of ISI Lt-Gen (retd) Asad Durrani had submitted documents which shed light on the process of setting up the ISI political cell. The documents include facts about the existence of the cell contained in a concise statement he had earlier submitted to the court.
Gen Durrani is also required to submit the list he had promised containing the names of ISI officials involved in the operation to substantiate the doling out of funds among different politicians.
The attorney general said nothing substantive or detrimental evidence in any manner had been provided in the documents. The court asked him to submit the documents in a sealed cover.
The court also mentioned the Feb 6, 1997, order which indicated that the former AG had to inform the court whether the ISI political cell was still working or had been disbanded.
Defence Secretary Nargis Sethi, who appeared before the court, was asked if the ISI, Military Intelligence and the defence ministry would be represented by any counsel.
`We want to give an opportunity so that nobody can say he has been condemned unheard,` the court said.
The defence secretary said she would consult relevant stakeholders in this regard.
She said that despite her best efforts the notification about the setting up of political cell in the ISI could not be traced.
`The issue is 38 years old, but I will make another effort, she assured the court.
The attorney general informed the court that authenticity or veracity of the commission`s report on Mehran Bank Limited was not possible because the original one was still missing.
About the report on Habib Bank Limited, the AG said it could not be completed because the then government had stopped the commission concerned from conducting the inquiry in 1997.
The court recalled that 14 to 15 statements had been recorded before the commission on Habib Bank and asked the AG to get their copies.
The court adjourned the hearing till July 30.
India invites Pakistan Circket Team
NEW DELHI, July 16: The Indian cricket board said on Monday it had invited Pakistan for a series later this year, their first in five years, in a further sign of improving ties between the neighbours.
If approved by the two governments, the series would comprise three one-day internationals and two Twenty20 games in December-January, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) said in a statement.
`It was decided to resume cricketing ties with Pakistanby inviting the Pakistan cricket team for a short series in Dec 2012-Jan 2013,` it said, adding that modalities would be worked out shortly.
The rivals have not played a series since Pakistan`s tour of India in 2007, after cricket ties were snapped following the 2008 terror attacks on Mumbai.
The ODI matches will be played in Chennai, Kolkata and New Delhi and the Twenty20 games in Bangalore and Ahmedabad, BCCI spokesman Rajiv Shukla toldreporters in New Delhi.
The series will be held when England, who are dueto tour India later this year, return home briefly for Christmas and New Year.Cricket ties have been the subject of discussions between the two governments that have been holding regular meetings in a bid to improve ties and eventually thrash out a peace agreement. Indian and Pakistani cricket teams have only met in international tournaments since 2007. `Once they have decided, then there will be the issue of internal security, which will be reviewed and decided by various agencies.
Former Indian captain Sunil Gavaskar said Pakistanwas still not cooperating in the Mumbai attacks probe.
`Being a Mumbaikar (hailing from Mumbai), I feel what is the urgency (for a series) when there is no cooperation from the other side,` the Press Trust of India (PTI) news agency quoted him as saying.
But fellow former skipper Bishan Bedi welcomed the revival. `It is a step in the right direction,` he told PTI.
`The amount of interest and goodwill it will generate will be huge.`-AFP
If approved by the two governments, the series would comprise three one-day internationals and two Twenty20 games in December-January, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) said in a statement.
`It was decided to resume cricketing ties with Pakistanby inviting the Pakistan cricket team for a short series in Dec 2012-Jan 2013,` it said, adding that modalities would be worked out shortly.
The rivals have not played a series since Pakistan`s tour of India in 2007, after cricket ties were snapped following the 2008 terror attacks on Mumbai.
The ODI matches will be played in Chennai, Kolkata and New Delhi and the Twenty20 games in Bangalore and Ahmedabad, BCCI spokesman Rajiv Shukla toldreporters in New Delhi.
The series will be held when England, who are dueto tour India later this year, return home briefly for Christmas and New Year.Cricket ties have been the subject of discussions between the two governments that have been holding regular meetings in a bid to improve ties and eventually thrash out a peace agreement. Indian and Pakistani cricket teams have only met in international tournaments since 2007. `Once they have decided, then there will be the issue of internal security, which will be reviewed and decided by various agencies.
Former Indian captain Sunil Gavaskar said Pakistanwas still not cooperating in the Mumbai attacks probe.
`Being a Mumbaikar (hailing from Mumbai), I feel what is the urgency (for a series) when there is no cooperation from the other side,` the Press Trust of India (PTI) news agency quoted him as saying.
But fellow former skipper Bishan Bedi welcomed the revival. `It is a step in the right direction,` he told PTI.
`The amount of interest and goodwill it will generate will be huge.`-AFP
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