By Syed Irfan RazaISLAMABAD, Nov 20: As the memogate scandal deepens with fresh revelations by US-based businessman Mansoor Ijaz, the man at the centre of the controversy, Ambassador Husain Haqqani twice met President Asif Ali Zardari at the presidency on Sunday and is reported to have stuck to his stance that he had nothing to do with the memo allegedly sent to former US military chief Mike Mullen to stave off a possible military takeover.
Sources close to the president told Dawn that these were informal meetings and, therefore, there was no official word about it from the presidency.
President`s Spokesman Farhatullah Babar neither confirmed nor denied that the meetings had taken place. He only said: `Today being a Sunday there was no official meeting slotted.
The sources said a high-level formal meeting with Mr Haqqani would be held in the presidency on Monday and it was expected to be attended by Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani, Chief of Army Staff Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani and ISPs Director-General Maj-Gen Shuja Pasha and Ambassador Haqqani.
Mr Haqqani who arrived in Islamabadon Sunday morning spent a busy day and held informal meetings also with some officials of the armed forces and Foreign Office officials, the sources said.
At the presidency, one-to-one meetings between the president and Mr Haqqani on Sunday continued for a few Related report on Page 3 hours and the ambassador presented his version in detail.
The first meeting took place in the morning and the second in the evening.
`I think the problem has been resolved and details will be made public in a couple of days,` the source said.
Before the meeting, it was expected that Mr Haqqani might tender his resignation as he had already said that he could quit if ordered by President Zardari to do so.
Mr Haqqani`s primary defence is that the memo is unsigned and unverified.
The sources, however, said Mr Haqqani was asked not to tender his resignation and face the situation with the assertion that he was not involved in the matter.
It is believed here that the matter willeventually go to the Supreme Court because PML-N leader Mian Nawaz Sharif said in his public meeting in Faisalabad on Sunday that he would take it to the apex court in two days if the government did not launch an inquiry.
Mr Ijaz, who had claimed to have handed over the memo to the US military chief on behalf of the Pakistani government to seek US help against a possible military takeover claimed in an interview with a private TV channel that he had given important evidences to the ISI chief Gen Pasha in London confirming that he had forwarded the confidential memo to the then US military chief on behalf of the government.
The PPP`s core committee at a meeting on Friday decided that Mr Haqqani would be given a chance to present his version.
President Zardari was of the view that Mr Haqqani could not get himself involved in such an anti-state affair.
The sources said President Zardari was expected to order an inquiry into the controversy to ascertain who had written the memo and at whose behest.
Sunday, November 20, 2011
Thursday, November 10, 2011
EU censors own film on Afghan women prisoners By Orla Guerin BBC News, Kabul
The European Union has blocked the release of a documentary on Afghan women who are in jail for so-called "moral crimes".
The EU says it decided to withdraw the film - which it commissioned and paid for - because of "very real concerns for the safety of the women portrayed".However, human rights workers say the injustice in the Afghan judicial system should be exposed.
Half of Afghanistan's women prisoners are inmates for "zina" or moral crimes.
A statement from the EU's Kabul delegation said the welfare of the women was the paramount consideration in its decision.
No official from the delegation was prepared to be interviewed about the film.
No new dawn Some of the women convicted of "zina" are guilty of nothing more than running away from forced marriages or violent husbands.
Human rights activists say hundreds of those behind bars are victims of domestic violence.
Amnesty International says it is important to "lift the lid on one of Afghanistan's most shameful judicial practices".
Continue reading the main story
“Start Quote
Heather Barr Human Rights WatchYou hear the story again and again of women going to the police and asking for help and ending up in prison instead”
The documentary told the story of a 19-year-old prisoner called Gulnaz.
After she was raped, she was charged with adultery. Her baby girl, born following the rape, is serving her sentence with her."At first my sentence was two years," Gulnaz said, as her baby coughed in her arms. "When I appealed it became 12 years. I didn't do anything. Why should I be sentenced for so long?"
Stories like hers are tragically typical, according to Heather Barr, of Human Rights Watch, who is carrying out research among Afghan female prisoners.
"It would be reassuring to think that the stories told in this film represent aberrations or extreme case," she said. "Unfortunately that couldn't be further from the truth."
She has interviewed many women behind bars, who were victims twice over - abused by their husbands, or relatives, and then by those who were supposed to protect them.
"You hear the story again and again of women going to the police and asking for help and ending up in prison instead," Ms Barr said.
A decade after the Taliban were overthrown, Afghan women are still waiting for justice, campaigners say.
Ms Barr said: "It's very important that people understand that there are these horrific stories that are happening now - 10 years after the fall of the Taliban government, 10 years after what was supposed to be a new dawn for Afghan women."
For many that new dawn has not come, but for Gulnaz there is now the hope of freedom.
Her name is on a list of women to be pardoned, according to a prison official, but as she has no lawyer, the paperwork has yet to be processed.
Gulnaz's pardon may be in the works because she has agreed - after 18 months of resisting - to marry her rapist.
"I need my daughter to have a father," she said.
Afghanistan: Mother, daughter stoned to death in Ghazni
A group of armed men have stoned a woman and her daughter to death in Afghanistan's Ghazni province, security officials have told the BBC.
Officials blamed the Taliban for the attack and said they had accused the widow and her daughter of "moral deviation and adultery".The incident happened on Thursday in the Khawaja Hakim area of Ghazni city, where the family lived.
The police said two men had been arrested in connection with the murder.
Security officials said armed men entered the house where the young widow lived with her daughter, took them out, and stoned them to death.
"Neighbours did not help or inform the authorities on time," an official said.
Taliban grip Officials said a number of religious leaders in the city had been issuing fatwas (Islamic religious edicts) asking people to report any one who was "involved in adultery".
In October last year, a woman accused of murdering her mother-in-law was killed by Taliban in Ghazni.
Ghazni has seen an upsurge in violence in recent years.
Strategically located on the route between Kabul and Kandahar, the province was once a centre of trade.
The BBC's Bilal Sarwary in Kabul says Taliban insurgents now control large parts of the province - and only seven of the 18 districts are in control of the Afghan government.
The Taliban have banned celebrations by men and women in wedding halls in the provincial capital - men can celebrate but without playing music and women have been asked to celebrate in their homes.
Several radio stations in the provincial capital broadcasts Taliban songs.
Illegal quarrying - Margalla Hills Pakistan
THE effort to protect the Margalla Hills, decared a national park in 1980, from the rapacious onslaught of illegal quarrying has been continuing for several decades. Yet each time the practice is stopped, the well-connected quarry owners manage to circumvent regulations and continue to denude the hills. As reported in this paper on Thursday, illegal quarrying has resumed in the area a year after the federal government banned it. Due to devolution, the Punjab government is now responsible for protecting the hills. Yet it has shown laxity. Across the province there are reportedly over 120 ongoing illegal stonecrushing operations and excessive quarrying has created a major health risk for the people, besides upsetting the region`s environmental balance.
The level of air pollution in the area is frightening.
According to the Pakistan Environmental Protection Agency, the total suspended particulate matter in the area has at times reached 20,000 cubic metres when the accept-able limit is 500. The quarrying has also caused streams and waterways to dry up and has endangered Taxila`s archaeological sites.
The government needs to ensure that its own departments are respecting environmental regulations. Currently, several government bodies allow contractors to extract material only from the Margallas. Alternative sites have been proposed for stone-crushing. These should be utilised so that what is lef t of the Margalla Hills can be saved, while it should be ensured these sites are located far from populated areas. Meanwhile, the demand for construction material is high because people build homes that are much larger than what they actually need having a huge house is, of course, considered a status symbol.
Perhaps the state can impose a tax on houses built beyond a certain size.
This may bring down the demand for building material and ultimately halt the further destruction of the Margallas and other natural treasures.
The level of air pollution in the area is frightening.
According to the Pakistan Environmental Protection Agency, the total suspended particulate matter in the area has at times reached 20,000 cubic metres when the accept-able limit is 500. The quarrying has also caused streams and waterways to dry up and has endangered Taxila`s archaeological sites.
The government needs to ensure that its own departments are respecting environmental regulations. Currently, several government bodies allow contractors to extract material only from the Margallas. Alternative sites have been proposed for stone-crushing. These should be utilised so that what is lef t of the Margalla Hills can be saved, while it should be ensured these sites are located far from populated areas. Meanwhile, the demand for construction material is high because people build homes that are much larger than what they actually need having a huge house is, of course, considered a status symbol.
Perhaps the state can impose a tax on houses built beyond a certain size.
This may bring down the demand for building material and ultimately halt the further destruction of the Margallas and other natural treasures.
Hate crime - Sindh Pakistan
THE events that led to the murder on Monday of three doctors belonging to the Hindu community in a town near Shikarpur remain shrouded in mystery as conflicting details have emerged in the press.
It is irrelevant whether the Muslim girl at the centre of the murders was an entertainer or simply someone in love with a Hindu man.
The offence committed had all the trappings of a hate crime which was rightly denounced by the highest in the government, Sindh`s opinion leaders, nationalist parties and civil society. It appeared a case of the perpetrators making a horrible example of the members of the minority community in a bid to further push the Hindu community to the wall, with a view to keeping in place the social apartheid practised against it. Unfortunately, as reported by Hindu leaders, there has emerged a pattern in the rising number of cases of kidnapping for ransom, forced conversions and violence against the community over the past few years.
The perpetrators comprise Islamic extremists who see nothing wrong in forcibly converting or harassing theminority community, totally disregarding the deeprooted culture of peaceful coexistence that has been the hallmark of Sindhi society for centuries.
The situation in certain pockets of Balochistan, including Quetta, where such misguided elements have reportedly kidnapped Hindu traders for ransom in recent months is equally cause for concern. There is a need to not allow any such criminal activity to take place under the cover of religion for there is nothing Islamic about terrorising minority communities.
While it is heartening to see civil society joining the ranks of the Hindu minority in Sindh in their protest against the latest killings, state institutions must play a proactive role in rooting out violence against minorities by bringing the culprits to justice. The police must build a prosecution case that stands the test of justice in a court of law and facilitates the judiciary`s role in establishing the criminals` guilt. Meanwhile, sensitising public opinion to the treatment meted out to minorities must be given top priority by civil society groups and government officials.
It is irrelevant whether the Muslim girl at the centre of the murders was an entertainer or simply someone in love with a Hindu man.
The offence committed had all the trappings of a hate crime which was rightly denounced by the highest in the government, Sindh`s opinion leaders, nationalist parties and civil society. It appeared a case of the perpetrators making a horrible example of the members of the minority community in a bid to further push the Hindu community to the wall, with a view to keeping in place the social apartheid practised against it. Unfortunately, as reported by Hindu leaders, there has emerged a pattern in the rising number of cases of kidnapping for ransom, forced conversions and violence against the community over the past few years.
The perpetrators comprise Islamic extremists who see nothing wrong in forcibly converting or harassing theminority community, totally disregarding the deeprooted culture of peaceful coexistence that has been the hallmark of Sindhi society for centuries.
The situation in certain pockets of Balochistan, including Quetta, where such misguided elements have reportedly kidnapped Hindu traders for ransom in recent months is equally cause for concern. There is a need to not allow any such criminal activity to take place under the cover of religion for there is nothing Islamic about terrorising minority communities.
While it is heartening to see civil society joining the ranks of the Hindu minority in Sindh in their protest against the latest killings, state institutions must play a proactive role in rooting out violence against minorities by bringing the culprits to justice. The police must build a prosecution case that stands the test of justice in a court of law and facilitates the judiciary`s role in establishing the criminals` guilt. Meanwhile, sensitising public opinion to the treatment meted out to minorities must be given top priority by civil society groups and government officials.
Islamabad urged to rein in LeT, JuD Pakistan, India seek new era in ties
ADDU (Maldives), Nov 10: Although India and Pakistan publicly expressed their willingness to discuss the core issues bedevilling bilateral relations and their prime ministers spoke of their desire to open a `new chapter` in ties, the former asked the latter to take strict action against Lashkare-Taiba (LeT) and Jamaatud Dawa if it wanted a meaningful dialogue.
Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani and his Indian counterpart Dr Manmohan Singh met for about an hour, prior to the opening of the 17th summit of the South AsianAssociation for Regional Cooperation (Saarc).
According to a federal minister who attended the meeting, the Indians categorically told the Pakistani side that it wasn`t possible to move forward until there were some on-ground actions against the two groups.
Otherwise, the minister said there were strong indications that India meant business on a whole lot of issues the two countries needed to thrash out.
They warned that they could not afford another Mumbai-like incident and to stop such terrorist acts Pakistan had no other option but to take care of both the groups, the minister, who didn`t want to be named, said.
A senior official of the Indian foreign ministry said it was unfair if people wereexpecting that the two countries would resolve all their outstanding issues overnight.
`Yes, we are finding common grounds on various issues from where we will move towards tough decisions. First, our main priority is to consolidate whatever achievements the two countries have made so far.
Later, during a brief appearance before the media, the two prime ministers vowed to open a new chapter in bilateral relationship and predicted more constructive and result-oriented talks in the near future.
`The next round of talks will be more positive, more constructive and will open a new chapter in the history of both countries,` Prime Minister Gilani said.
`I can only assure you that I discussed all core issueswith my Indian counterpart, including the core issue of Kashmir, terrorism, Sir Creek, Siachen, water and trade.
The prime minister thanked India for supporting Pakistan in the election to the UN Security Council and to get trade access in the European Union.
Prime Minister Singh was equally friendly and shared the tone and tenor of Mr Gilani.
`We will resume this dialogue with the expectation that all issues which have bedevilled relations between the two countries will be discussed.
`The time has come to write a new chapter in the history of the relationship of the two countries, because we have already wasted lots of time,` he said.
On a personal note, Mr Singh said: `I have always regarded Prime Minister Gilani as a man of peace.
Every time we have met over the past three years, my belief has further strengthened.
He said the destiny of the two countries was interlinked, hence they had no choice but to move forward together.
The discussions between the two countries had yielded positive results, but more needed to be done, the Indian prime minister said.
While the two prime ministers were busy in a one-toone meeting, Interior Minister Rehman Malik told media persons that a Pakistani judicial commission would soon visit India to investigate the Mumbai attacks.
Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani and his Indian counterpart Dr Manmohan Singh met for about an hour, prior to the opening of the 17th summit of the South AsianAssociation for Regional Cooperation (Saarc).
According to a federal minister who attended the meeting, the Indians categorically told the Pakistani side that it wasn`t possible to move forward until there were some on-ground actions against the two groups.
Otherwise, the minister said there were strong indications that India meant business on a whole lot of issues the two countries needed to thrash out.
They warned that they could not afford another Mumbai-like incident and to stop such terrorist acts Pakistan had no other option but to take care of both the groups, the minister, who didn`t want to be named, said.
A senior official of the Indian foreign ministry said it was unfair if people wereexpecting that the two countries would resolve all their outstanding issues overnight.
`Yes, we are finding common grounds on various issues from where we will move towards tough decisions. First, our main priority is to consolidate whatever achievements the two countries have made so far.
Later, during a brief appearance before the media, the two prime ministers vowed to open a new chapter in bilateral relationship and predicted more constructive and result-oriented talks in the near future.
`The next round of talks will be more positive, more constructive and will open a new chapter in the history of both countries,` Prime Minister Gilani said.
`I can only assure you that I discussed all core issueswith my Indian counterpart, including the core issue of Kashmir, terrorism, Sir Creek, Siachen, water and trade.
The prime minister thanked India for supporting Pakistan in the election to the UN Security Council and to get trade access in the European Union.
Prime Minister Singh was equally friendly and shared the tone and tenor of Mr Gilani.
`We will resume this dialogue with the expectation that all issues which have bedevilled relations between the two countries will be discussed.
`The time has come to write a new chapter in the history of the relationship of the two countries, because we have already wasted lots of time,` he said.
On a personal note, Mr Singh said: `I have always regarded Prime Minister Gilani as a man of peace.
Every time we have met over the past three years, my belief has further strengthened.
He said the destiny of the two countries was interlinked, hence they had no choice but to move forward together.
The discussions between the two countries had yielded positive results, but more needed to be done, the Indian prime minister said.
While the two prime ministers were busy in a one-toone meeting, Interior Minister Rehman Malik told media persons that a Pakistani judicial commission would soon visit India to investigate the Mumbai attacks.
Thursday, November 3, 2011
Sex harassment 'rife' at Australia military academy
The review, carried out by Human Rights Commissioner Elizabeth Broderick, said the situation had improved significantly in the last decade.
But it said that cultural changes were needed at the Canberra-based Australian Defence Force Academy (ADFA).
The review was ordered in the wake of a sex scandal at the institution.
Two cadets were accused of secretly filming a female cadet having sex and broadcasting it on the internet.
They have now been charged in connection with the incident, which raised questions about the treatment of women throughout the Australian military establishment.
'Cultural evolution' More than a quarter of all cadets and staff at the academy were interviewed by officials conducting the review.
Many women "stated clearly that they are treated equally and fairly", the report said. "The predominant view was that for most women, most of the time, ADFA was a good environment."
But 74% of female cadets said they had experienced harassment.
"Widespread, low-level sexual harassment exists at ADFA," Ms Broderick wrote.
"Women disproportionately experience gender and sex-related harassment, as well as general harassment and discrimination."
Data showed there had been "isolated incidents of serious sexual misconduct in recent years, including sexual assault", said the report.
Part of the problem was inadequate supervision in some areas and a poor complaints procedure.
The review made 31 recommendations, including a establishing a mentoring programme for cadets, more education on gender relations and increased control over cadets' alcohol consumption.
Ms Broderick said the academy and wider military needed to develop "a plan for cultural evolution which is more inclusive of women".
"This necessarily also requires a shift from managing and accommodating women to an attitude of full inclusion, where women are recognised as an essential and vital part of the future capability of the ADF [army]," she said.
Defence Minister Stephen Smith said the government would "determine the best way forward in formally adopting and implementing the review recommendations".
Navy case Ms Broderick is also carrying out a wider review of the treatment of women throughout the Australian military which will be completed in 2012.
A separate review, ordered by the Department of Defence, has received more than 1,000 allegations of abuse, ABC News reported last month.
Reviews have also been ordered into the use of alcohol and social media in the military.
The sex scandal at the academy in April followed another relating to the navy.
In February, the defence department released a report chronicling what it called a culture of predatory sexual behaviour on board the naval supply ship HMAS Success.
It revealed a fiercely tribal culture in which women sailors were treated with disdain, alcohol was seriously misused and discipline had broken down.
In September, in a separate incident, a navy cadet was convicted of raping a female colleague as she slept.
The man, who filmed himself committing the act on his phone, told a court that he did it to be accepted by his peers, and that filming sexual exploits and bragging about them was common.
But it said that cultural changes were needed at the Canberra-based Australian Defence Force Academy (ADFA).
The review was ordered in the wake of a sex scandal at the institution.
Two cadets were accused of secretly filming a female cadet having sex and broadcasting it on the internet.
They have now been charged in connection with the incident, which raised questions about the treatment of women throughout the Australian military establishment.
'Cultural evolution' More than a quarter of all cadets and staff at the academy were interviewed by officials conducting the review.
Many women "stated clearly that they are treated equally and fairly", the report said. "The predominant view was that for most women, most of the time, ADFA was a good environment."
But 74% of female cadets said they had experienced harassment.
"Widespread, low-level sexual harassment exists at ADFA," Ms Broderick wrote.
"Women disproportionately experience gender and sex-related harassment, as well as general harassment and discrimination."
Data showed there had been "isolated incidents of serious sexual misconduct in recent years, including sexual assault", said the report.
Part of the problem was inadequate supervision in some areas and a poor complaints procedure.
The review made 31 recommendations, including a establishing a mentoring programme for cadets, more education on gender relations and increased control over cadets' alcohol consumption.
Ms Broderick said the academy and wider military needed to develop "a plan for cultural evolution which is more inclusive of women".
"This necessarily also requires a shift from managing and accommodating women to an attitude of full inclusion, where women are recognised as an essential and vital part of the future capability of the ADF [army]," she said.
Defence Minister Stephen Smith said the government would "determine the best way forward in formally adopting and implementing the review recommendations".
Navy case Ms Broderick is also carrying out a wider review of the treatment of women throughout the Australian military which will be completed in 2012.
A separate review, ordered by the Department of Defence, has received more than 1,000 allegations of abuse, ABC News reported last month.
Reviews have also been ordered into the use of alcohol and social media in the military.
The sex scandal at the academy in April followed another relating to the navy.
In February, the defence department released a report chronicling what it called a culture of predatory sexual behaviour on board the naval supply ship HMAS Success.
It revealed a fiercely tribal culture in which women sailors were treated with disdain, alcohol was seriously misused and discipline had broken down.
In September, in a separate incident, a navy cadet was convicted of raping a female colleague as she slept.
The man, who filmed himself committing the act on his phone, told a court that he did it to be accepted by his peers, and that filming sexual exploits and bragging about them was common.
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