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THE GENERAL WANTS TO LEAVE PAKISTAN ASAP! MUSHARRAF APPEALS TO SINDH HIGH COURT FOR PERMISSION TO MEET AILING MOTHER IN DUBAI SPECIAL COURT TURNS DOWN FORMER MILITARY RULER’S PLEA FOR PROVISION OF ADDITIONAL DOCUMENTS RELATED TO 2007 EMERGENCY

STORY ON PAGE 04

Saturday, 14 June, 2014 Sha’aban 15, 1435 Rs 17.00 Vol IV No 346 16 Pages Islamabad Edition

Abdullah Abdullah seeks Pakistan’s cooperation

STORY ON PAGE 03

In letter to SharIf, ModI SeekS ‘new courSe’ In tIeS Indian PM says he wants bilateral relations ‘free from confrontation and violence’

Responding to Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's letter of June 2, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said that he looks forward to charting a "new course" in the bilateral relations in an atmosphere "free from confrontation and violence". Modi said that "a relationship between India and Pakistan defined by peace, friendship and cooperation would unleash enormous opportunities for our youth, secure a more prosperous future for our people and accelerate progress across our region". The Indian PM also condemned the terror strike in Karachi earlier this week and conveyed his "deepest condolences" for the loss of innocent lives in the "senseless and barbaric" attack.

2 civilians, including child, wounded by Indian fire STORIES ON PAGE 03

Cabinet reshuffle likely as Nisar takes Asif’s snub ‘to the heart’ Interior minister wanted PM to sack defence minister for criticising his handling of Taliban talks but Sharif rejected Nisar’s pressure STORY ON PAGE 03

With focus on South Punjab, govt presents Rs 1.3tr budget STORY ON PAGE 02

TALIBAN HAVE A PARTICULAR INTEREST IN KARACHI STORY ON PAGE 02

NORTH WAZIRISTAN EMPTIES OUT AS FOREIGN FIGHTERS FLEE STORY ON PAGE 02

02 NEWS

Saturday, 14 June 2014

North WaziristaN empties out as foreigN fighters flee RESIDENTS HAVE SEEN FOREIGN MILITANTS, INCLUDING CHECHENS, UZBEKS, TURKMEN, TAJIKS AND UIGHURS LEAVE THE MACHIS CAMP AND DATTAKHEL VILLAGE NEAR MIRAMSHAH, AS WELL AS THE VILLAGES OF MUSAKI, HURMAZ, HESSOKHEL AND API MIRANSHAH

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OME of the world’s most feared militants are quietly slipping away from the North Waziristan tribal region in anticipation of a long-rumoured military operation, raising questions about the effectiveness of such intervention.

The exodus from the mountainous district on the Afghan border began in late May following air strikes by the military, locals said. But it has been hastened by the Taliban’s all-night siege of Karachi airport this week, which all but destroyed a tentative peace process.

On Wednesday night two US drone strikes hit the region killing at least 16 in the first such attack this year, fueling suspicion of coordination between the two countries, with Islamabad’s patience for talks seemingly exhausted.

But as pressure builds for a fuller response to the airport assault, which was

joined by militants from Uzbekistan, residents and officials in North Waziristan’s main town of Miranshah said the majority of foreign and local fighters had already left.

“Most of them have gone deep into the mountains towards the Afghan border,” a senior security official said.

The locals said militant groups were also seen escaping from villages that are a known hub of the dreaded Haqqani network, an al Qaeda affiliate known for its spectacular attacks against US forces in Afghanistan.

Rumours of a ground offensive in North Waziristan, one of seven tribal regions along the border, have abounded for years. But authorities have held back from a final push — possibly fearing the blow-back in Pakistan’s major cities such as Karachi, where 38 people including 10 militants were killed at the airport.

However, the sheer numbers of people leaving — some 60,000, according to official estimates, since late May — suggest that this time might be different.

file photo

Residents saw foreign militants leaving the Machis Camp and Dattakhel village near Miramshah, as well as the villages of Musaki, Hurmaz, Hessokhel and Api. The fighters included Chechens, Uzbeks, Turkmen, Tajiks and Uighurs, residents and officials said.

They arrived during the early 2000s, lured by the fiery rhetoric of Osama bin Laden and the chance to fight “infidel” forces in Afghanistan. Married into the local population, some have erected mud houses in small villages among the area’s rugged mountains.

Others “have rented houses and rooms here but they have now left towards the Afghan border”, a grocery shop owner in Miranshah bazaar said.

PUNJAB GOVT PRESENTS RS 1.3TR BUDGET AMID OPP UPROAR RS 121.80 BILLION AND RS 273 GOVT ALLOCATES 36 PER BILLION HAVE BEEN ALLOCATED FOR CENT OF BUDGET FOR HEALTH AND EDUCATION, DEVELOPMENT IN RESPECTIVELY SOUTH PUNJAB FINANCE MINISTER ANNOUNCES 10 VOWS TO CREATE AS MANY PER CENT RAISE IN SALARIES AND AS 4 MILLION NEW JOBS IN PENSIONS OF GOVT EMPLOYEES NEXT 4 YEARS LAHORE STAFF REPORT

Punjab Finance Minister Mujtaba Shujaur Rehman presented Punjab’s financial budget for the fiscal year 2014-2015 on Friday while the opposition parties protested with budget copies in their hands.

Of the Rs 1045 billion volume budget, the finance minister announced 10% raise in the salaries and pensions of the government employees. He announced Rs 104 billion allocation towards the pension of provincial government employees.

He started his speech by promising that the lower class population of Punjab has been given priority in the budget. He said that Danish School was one of such projects of the government of Punjab.

The opposition interrupted the speech with heavy uproar protesting against the budget. Opposition members raised their budget copies and gathered around the finance minister and later torn their copies. The finance minister announced that 36% of total Punjab budget has been dedicated for development of Southern Punjab making it a total of 119 billion rupees. He said that some 2 million individuals of the province will be given technical training over the period of next 2 years.

Shujaur Rehman announced that an agriculture university will be built in Burewala. He said that the economic development ratio for next year is projected at 5%. The finance minister promised that some 2 million individuals will be given technical training over the period of next two years.

Shuja promised in his budget speech that as many as 4 million new employment opportunities will be created over the period of next 4 years.

Talking about taxing vehicles, finance minister said that luxury and heavy vehicles’ tax will be doubled whereas the token tax for cars of up to 1300CC set at 2,200 rupees.

He said that development work on 19 power projects has resumed, adding that a total of 31 billion rupees have been allocated to the energy sector.

The Punjab government decided to expand the Rescue 1122 service to another 12 districts of Punjab.

Coming towards the health sector, he said that a total of Rs 121.80 billion rupees have been allocated for the health sector, adding that another Rs 4 billion will be spent on health insurance cards.

Talking about the education sector, he announced that a total of 273 billion rupees have been allocated for the education sector. He said that 2 billion rupees will be dedicated to further Punjab government’s Danish School project.

Finance Minister said that a total of Rs 8.93 billion have been dedicated for the livestock development sector, adding that another 2.16 billion rupees have been allocated for women in the livestock sector.

Furthermore, a total of Rs 14.5 billion have been dedicated for the higher education. Rs 11 billion endowment funds have been allocated for extraordinary students.

Talking about land and housing, the minister said that a total of Rs 4.14 billion have been allocated for computerization of land record. He further said that four new Ashiana housing schemes will be launched to facilitate housing for low income families of Punjab.

The budget for police was raised from a previously set amount of 70 billion rupees to Rs 82.5 billion.

Another resident in Miranshah estimated that more than 80 per cent of local and foreign fighters have left North Waziristan. The migrations began on May 22 when Pakistani F-16s pounded suspected targets, killing at least 75 according to the military.

Government representatives also began holding talks two weeks ago with a grand Jira, or council of elders, warning them to hand over foreigners in the area or face severe consequences.

“Tribesmen are against war, they want to solve this conflict with talks and according to tribal traditions and that’s why we have formed a peace Jirga,” Jirga chief Sher Mohammed said.

Residents said some Jirga members

last week made announcements from mosque loudspeakers in several villages asking foreign fighters to leave the area.

They also made those under their command hoist Pakistani flags to demonstrate their loyalty and ward off aerial attacks.

Most areas along the border are not well demarcated, which allows militants to escape into Afghanistan.

“They have moved towards Shawal and Birmal,” an intelligence official said, referring to remote villages on the Afghan border. A second security official said: “It is good that they [fighters] are leaving.

We hope that tribesmen will not allow them to come and settle here again.

“In case of any military operation, we will face less resistance,” he added.

Residents said they have seen less activity of the feared Haqqani fighters in recent weeks. “They are also disappearing, probably they have gone to Khost, Paktia or Paktika,” one resident in Miranshah said, naming Afghan border provinces.

Imtiaz Gul, a security analyst and long-time observer of the tribal areas, said the Jirga and other threats of full-scale action in North Waziristan appeared to be a deliberate strategy on Pakistan’s part.

“This was probably done with a clear intent and that intent was to let them cross the border if they like.

“As long they cross the border — why should it be Pakistan’s headache?

It’s then the headache of Afghan and coalition forces,” he said, adding that such movement had occurred in the past when Islamabad had launched operations in other parts of the tribal areas and in Swat Valley. This is why it was so difficult to engage militants in a fight in the area, as they could eventually return.

“They keep going backwards and forwards — they can’t plug the entire border whether it’s Pakistani militants or foreign militants.”

TALIBAN HAVE A PARTICULAR INTEREST IN KARACHI SECURITY OFFICIAL SAYS KARACHI SEAPORT MAY BE TTP’S NEXT TARGET AS THEY AIM TO SABOTAGE PROCESS OF US TROOPS’ WITHDRAWAL FROM AFGHANISTAN ISLAMABAD MIAN ABRAR

After the terrorist attack on Karachi’s Jinnah International Airport, intelligence agencies believe that the next target of militants might be Karachi Seaport, Pakistan Today has learnt.

Karachi Seaport, like the Karachi airport, is a strategic facility being used by the US Army as it prepares to withdraw from Afghanistan this year.

The attack on Karachi airport’s old terminal was carried out by heavily-armed militants affiliated with the banned Tehreek-eTaliban Pakistan (TTP), who were on a suicidal mission to lay siege to the airport, inflict maximum damage, hold hostages and create psychological fear.

According to a security official familiar with the probe details, the militants entered through Engineering Section of the airport, using a passageway near the old terminal. After entering the building, the terrorists killed the Airport Security Force (ASF) personnel and made their way towards the tarmac, cargo and workshop.

The army’s quick response did not allow the militants to take full control of the airport but 19 lives were lost as a gunbattle ensued between the army and miscreants.

The gory drama ended when all the 10 militants were killed.

A source in the security establishment said that the country’s premier intelligence agency, InterServices Intelligence (ISI), has received information that TTP militants are planning attacks on all facilities used to assist the drawdown process of US troops

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from Afghanistan, which is scheduled to be completed by the end of this year.

Soon after the Karachi airport attack, TTP spokesman Shahidullah Shahid had claimed responsibility of the attack, stating that the attack had been carried out to avenge the killing of slain TTP commander Hakimullah Mehsud, who was killed in a drone strike.

The source said that Karachi airport was attacked to sabotage the US drawdown. “In this context, the possibility of TTP’s next attack on Karachi Seaport cannot be ruled out,” the official added.

Responding to a question, the official said that the Indian involvement cannot be ruled out as some weapons used by the terrorists were of Indian make. The official said that the Indian consulate in Herat, Afghanistan, was attacked by terrorists and Afghan President Hamid Karzai had blamed Pakistan for the attack.

“RAW’s retaliatory move came in the form of the Karachi airport attack,” the official asserted.

The official added that Indian involvement in FATA instigated the TTP militants to attack the airport. Recently Abdullah Abdullah (Afghan presidential candidate) narrowly escaped in an assassination attempt for which fingers were allegedly pointed towards Pakistan. This incident could also have prompted the Afghan leadership to instigate the TTP militants to take revenge by attacking Karachi Airport, using the IndoAfghan nexus working in the tribal belt.

The official said that blaming the intelligence agencies for having failed to see the possibility of an attack at Karachi airport was

not justified.

“Threat warnings were issued thrice for which the executive branch of Sindh government was to take necessary counter measures. Weakness of identification and spotting process was exploited by the militants,” he said, adding that the process requires improvement.

The official added that the attack on Karachi airport suggested that the Crisis Management Cell of the Interior Ministry could not arrange timely media-briefing on the subject. The same is required to be managed under all such crisis situations, he maintained.

“The responsibility of such attacks must be taken by political leadership as they make critical decisions and stand accountable for their judgment/options in a democratic set up. The Army, Rangers, Police and ASF must be applauded for their performance, timely reaction and sacrifice. Militants could not expand their initial penetration into the airport and were obstructed in the achievement of their goals. Credit goes to the security personnel for their excellent performance and professional competence,” the official asserted.

The official also criticised the ‘irresponsible behaviour’ of some television channels covering the Army’s response to the militants, stating that the media recklessly failed to show maturity in airing the live coverage of the airport operation.

“A line must be drawn beyond which media should not be allowed to operate,” he said.

He said that certain information, including different steps or techniques used by the armed forces, supervision of the operation by a particular tier of command, arrival of higher officials and reports submitted to Army’s high command should have been censored as the same information was also made available to terrorists through the live coverage.

Saturday, 14 June 2014

NEWS

INDIAN PM SAYS HE WANTS BILATERAL RELATIONS ‘FREE FROM CONFRONTATION AND VIOLENCE’ CONDEMNS ‘SENSELESS AND BARBARIC’TERRORIST ATTACK ON KARACHI AIRPORT NEW DELHI/ISLAMABAD

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ESPONDING to Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s letter of June 2, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he looked forward to charting a “new course” in the bilateral relations in an atmosphere “free from confrontation and violence”.

In his letter, Modi has said that “a relationship between India and Pakistan defined by peace, friendship and cooperation would unleash enormous opportunities for our youth, secure a more prosperous future for our people and accelerate progress across our region.”

He also condemned the terror strike in Karachi earlier this week and conveyed his “deepest condolences” for the loss of innocent lives in this “senseless and barbaric” attack.

Modi said he was encouraged by dis-

iN letter to sharif, modi seeks ‘NeW course’ iN ties cussions with Sharif during his visit to Delhi on bilateral relations and the convergence on views.

“I look forward therefore to working closely with you and your government in an atmosphere free from confrontation and violence in order to chart a new course in our bilateral relations,” he said according to text of the letter released by Nawaz Sharif’s office on Friday.

Sharif had written to Modi expressing satisfaction over his visit to Delhi for attending the swearing-in of the new government on May 26. The two leaders had then held talks to discuss the future of the bilateral relationship.

Modi thanked Sharif for attending the oath taking ceremony.

“Your presence and that of other leaders from our region not only added a special sheen to the event, but also a celebration of the strength of democracy in our region and a reflection of our collective hopes and shared destinies,” he

ABDULLAH ABDULLAH SEEKS PAKISTAN’S COOPERATION

wrote. He thanked for the letter which Sharif wrote on June 2 and also for the gift of sari that Sharif sent for his mother, saying it is “a gesture that she has deeply

appreciated”.

Last week, some media reports had quoted unnamed PML-N leaders as saying that the PM was “not too happy” with

ISLAMABAD AGENCIES

Pakistan accused Indian troops on Friday of wounding two civilians, including a seven-year-old boy, in separate incidents of “unprovoked firing” from across the de facto border in the disputed Kashmir region.

Indian Army in turn blamed Pakistan for firing on its troops, alleging its arch-rival had breached a ceasefire.

The clashes were the first in the Hi-

WASHINGTON: Afghan presidential frontrunner Abdullah Abdullah said Thursday he wanted “good neighbourly relations” with Pakistan, taking a conciliatory tone after accusations that Islamabad’s spy service tried to kill him. Outgoing President Hamid Karzai’s National Security Council said that “foreign intelligence services”- a thinly veiled reference to Pakistan – were behind two blasts last week aimed at Abdullah in which 12 people were killed. But Abdullah, speaking to a Washington think tank via Skype two days before the run-off election, said he would seek cooperation with Pakistan – which he noted has also experienced a series of deadly attacks.

“Today one harsh reality is that both countries are faced with the same challenges and it is in the interest of both countries to deal with it in a genuine spirit of good neighbourly relations,” Abdullah told the Atlantic Council.

Abdullah said he also sought to work with Afghanistan’s other neighbours including India, whose warm relationship with Karzai has alarmed rival Pakistan. Abdullah, an ophthalmologist turned foreign minister who lost a contested 2009 election to Karzai, placed first in the initial round of the latest election. The candidate reiterated that he would sign an agreement with the United States that would allow Obama to maintain nearly 10,000 troops in Afghanistan after the withdrawal of most combat forces this year. AGENCIES

malayan region since a new right-wing Indian government came to power last month headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. They follow a spate of cross-border skirmishes last year between the nuclear-armed powers, which have fought three wars since independence from Britain in 1947.

On the Pakistani side, local police official Chaudhry Ameen said “a sevenyear-old boy was injured due to unprovoked shelling by Indian troops in Nakyal sector,” referring to a border

district located 125 kilometres from Muzaffarabad city.

But Indian defence spokesman Manish Mehta said the Pakistan Army was responsible for firing on Indian soldiers “using automatic weapons and mortars” in the district of Rajouri, which borders the Nakyal area in Pakistan. Mehta said the Indian army responded to the firing, which continued for about half an hour, adding there were no casualties or damage reported on the Indian side.

CABINET RESHUFFLE LIKELY AS NISAR TAKES ASIF’S SNUB ‘TO THE HEART’ INTERIOR MINISTER WANTED PM TO SACK DEFENCE MINISTER FOR CRITICISING HIS HANDLING OF TALIBAN TALKS BUT SHARIF REFUSED

QADIR BALOCH LIKELY TO BE MADE INTERIOR MINISTER, NISAR MAY GET PETROLEUM MINISTRY

ISLAMABAD MIAN ABRAR

Federal Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan was taken to Armed Forces Institute of Cardiology (AFIC) late on Friday night after he complained of chest pain.

A well-placed source told Pakistan Today that Nisar was under intense mental pressure following his differences with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif over a recent statement by a fellow federal minister, Khawaja Mohammad Asif, who had criticised the interior minister’s handling of the dialogue process with the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and had described the exercise “a waste of time”.

The source said that following Asif’s interview, Nisar had raised the issue with the premier but could not convince him to sack the minister.

Nisar later tendered resignation from his office and did not attend the recent cabinet meeting however the prime minister persuaded Nisar to continue as a cabinet member.

The source said that Nisar had decided to relinquish the charge of Interior Ministry and a major cabinet reshuffle is on the cards. He added that SAFRON Minister Lt Gen (r) Abdul Qadir Baloch is set to take charge of Interior Ministry while Nisar would be given the charge of Petroleum and Natural Resources Ministry.

Minister for Petroleum Shahid

Khaqan Abbasi is likely to be made minister for commerce while Commerce Minister Khurram Dastagir Khan might be handed over charge of Textiles Ministry.

Nisar has been the interior minister since June 2013. Prior to being made the interior minister, Nisar had been PML-N’s leader of the opposition from 2008 till 2013, when the PML-N won the general elections.

Meanwhile, doctors at AFIC said that Nisar’s angiography report was clear and he had been moved to his house from the hospital.

pBa suspeNds geo NeWs memBership KARACHI The Pakistan Broadcasters Association (PBA) has suspended the membership of Jang/Geo Group’s flagship satellite television channel, Geo News, which was taken off air on the orders of electronic media watchdog last week.

According to a PBA handout, a decision to this effect was taken in an

the Modi meeting even though officially Islamabad has maintained that it was “better than expected”.

While Sharif did say in his letter that the two sides should work on “unsettled” matters, his first communication to Modi dispelled the notion that he was having second thoughts about the dialogue during which the two leaders also had a separate 10-minute one-on-one.

“I look forward to working with you in harmony on all unsettled matters for the benefit of both nations. Hope that our endeavors will lay the foundation of a much brighter future,” Sharif had said in the letter.

Sharif had also echoed Modi’s sentiment that the two countries needed to work together to successfully take care of their poor. “It is the millions living in poverty in both countries who deserve our foremost attention. I firmly believe that in our concerted efforts lies the welfare and prosperity of our two nations.”

TWO CIVILIANS, INCLUDING CHILD, WOUNDED BY INDIAN FIRE

AFGHAN PRESIDENTIAL FRONTRUNNER SAYS BOTH COUNTRIES FACED WITH SAME CHALLENGES

STAFF REPORT

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emergent meeting of the association’s board of directors on Friday. The meeting took up the issue in view of Defence Minister Khwaja Asif’s statement regarding charges of treason against Jang/Geo Group.

A representative of Jang/Geo Group was also present during the meeting. On top of suspending the membership of Geo News, the PBA board members also decided to slap a

show-cause notice on the television channel for misconduct in accordance with the articles of association.

On June 6, the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) suspended Geo News for 15 days and imposed a fine of Rs 10 million for flouting the laws.

Geo News locked horns with the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) following an attack on a prominent anchorper-

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son of the television channel.

Hamid Mir was shot thrice but survived, and his family immediately pinned the blame on ISI chief Lt General Zaheerul Islam.

Geo News broadcast images of Gen Islam along with the allegations for eight hours, following which the Ministry of Defence lodged a complaint with PEMRA seeking the channel’s closure.

Separately, another Pakistani civilian was wounded after Indian troops allegedly opened fire in Battal, a district 65 kilometres north of the first clash, according to local government official Malik Ayub. Indian defence officials told reporters they had no knowledge of a second incident. Friday’s events, described as a “ceasefire violation” by India, come a day before India’s new Defence Minister Arun Jaitley is scheduled to visit the disputed state of Jammu and Kashmir for a security review.

PML-N LEADER AMONG THREE SHOT DEAD IN BALOCHISTAN VIOLENCE QUETTA: Three people, including the Khuzdar chapter president of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), were shot dead in violence in separate incidents on Friday. PML-N Khuzdar president Haji Muhammad Alam Jattak was shot dead in the early hours of Friday when unidentified gunmen riding a motorbike opened fire at him. “Jattak died on the spot,” a police official said, adding that the attackers had managed to escape. Police personnel and rescue teams immediately reached the location and shifted Jattak’s body to Civil Hospital Khuzdar. The attack is believed to be an act of targeted killing and while no claim of responsibility has so far been made, police suspect that a separatist group may be behind the incident.’ Meanwhile, two people were killed and one other was injured in a firing incident in Quetta’s Pashtoonabad area on Friday. Police official Imran Qureshi said that assailants on a motorbike opened fire at a police head constable in Mitha Chowk area of Pashtoonabad. STAFF REPORT

FIA RAIDS GILANI’S HOUSE, RETURNS EMPTY-HANDED MULTAN: A four-member Federal Investigation Agency team raided the house of former prime minister Yousaf Raza Gilani on Friday but he was not present there at that time. The raid, led by an FIA assistant director, was carried out on the directives of an accountability court, which had issued arrest warrants for Gilani.

Gilani’s secretary informed the raiding party of his absence, saying he was not in the city.

Gilani is due to appear before the accountability court on June 17. According to reports, Gilani said that the FIA has violated the court order by raiding his house without any notice or warning. ONLINE

04 NEWS

Saturday, 14 June 2014

the geNeral WaNts to leaVe pakistaN asap!

MUSHARRAF APPEALS TO SINDH HIGH COURT FOR EARLY DEPARTURE TO MEET AILING MOTHER IN DUBAI KARACHI

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STAFF REPORT

ormer president General (r) Pervez Musharraf on Friday filed a petition in the Sindh High Court (SHC) requesting permission to

SPECIAL COURT TURNS DOWN FORMER MILITARY RULER’S PLEA FOR PROVISION OF ADDITIONAL DOCUMENTS RELATED TO 2007 EMERGENCY

leave the country at the earliest.

On June 12, the Sindh High Court (SHC) had ordered the removal of Musharraf’s name from the Exit Control List (ECL) but had suspended this order for around two weeks giving the federal government time to appeal against the de-

cision before the Supreme Court.

The order will be enforced in 15 days in case the government fails to make an appeal by then.

Musharraf’s lawyer Farogh Naseem appealed to the court on Friday to allow the former president to leave the country at the

MNAS DEMAND DUE DEVELOPMENT SHARE FOR PROVINCES sale that was already taxed and viewed that due to a strong lobby, sugar mills are taxed at only 8 percent.

Syed Javed Ali Shah said that anti-democratic elements were poised to destabilise democracy but they must realise that the country could never achieve progress through dictatorship.

He said that dictators are weak as they have to seek support of alien powers to stay to stay at the top.

He said that indirect taxes increase prices of commodities and suggested withdrawal of duty on tractors to support agriculture sector. He said the allocation of Rs64 billion for education sector was pleasing and asked the government to revise Indus Water Treaty that he said has dried out three of our rivers.

Shagufta Jamani said that under the PSDP, 57 higher education schemes have been announced for Punjab while 56 schemes have been allocated to the rest of the country. She requested the government to address the discrimination.

She said that for the land acquisition of HyderabadKarachi Motorway, spread over 136km, Rs300 million have been allocated while for the 57-km Multan Highway, Rs 24 billion have been specified.

Shaista Parvez said that the government was confidently pursuing its economic policies and was adamant over eliminating corruption.

She said the government’s economic policies were bearing fruit and viewed that if economic prosperity is achieved, the country would get deliverance from terrorism.

She said that the government had admitted that half of the population was living below the poverty line and has resolved to uplift the social standard of the people.

Muzammil Qureshi suggested that transport and agriculture sectors should be brought under the tax net and the import of luxury vehicles should be strictly monitored to discourage tax evaders.

He viewed that in the budget, Rs10 million have been allocated for Karachi Circular Railway and Rs300 million for HyderabadKarachi Motorway, adding that it was insufficient.

Taking part in the discussion, Dr Nighat Shakeel said no major development projects have been announced for Karachi.

She said that reasonable allocation should be made for the construction of new hospitals in the city as the existing facilities were overburdened.

SENATORS SAY NO RELIEF FOR COMMON MAN IN 2014-15 BUDGET

US TRANSFERS 12 DETAINEES, INCLUDING 10 PAKISTANIS, OUT OF AFGHAN PRISON

ALSO CALL FOR WIDENING TAX NET, ACTION AGAINST TAX EVADERS ISLAMABAD APP

Members of the National Assembly on Friday urged the government to ensure judicious allocation of developmental funds among all provinces and widening the tax net besides acting against those who evade taxes.

The House resumed general discussion on the proposed federal budget for 2014-15 with the treasury benches opining that the country has been put on a track of progress while the opposition members called for reducing inflation.

Taking part in the discussion, Gulzar Khan said the government should focus on gas, power and mass transit systems as these are closely associated with the public. He said in this era of globalisation, the government should train the labor and provide adequate machinery to promote the local industry and create employment opportunity.

He said that 18 percent of the GDP comprised retail

ISLAMABAD: Opposition senators on Friday said the federal budget for the year 2014-15 had failed to provide relief to the common people.

Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam Fazl (JUI-F) Senator Haji Ghulam Ali said that the government had failed to provide relief to common people in the recent budget, adding that the federal government should allocate funds for the education and health sectors of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan provinces. “The provincial government of KP is in the hands of juvenile people who are unable to work for the betterment of the com-

mon man,” he said during the Senate session.

ANP Senator Abdul Nabi Bangash said that Pakistan was fighting against terrorism while KP was playing a frontline role in the war against terror. “The suicide bombers are sitting in different ranks of the Pakistan Muslim LeagueNawaz (PML-N),” he alleged.

PML-N Senator M Hamza said that the government had focused on industries in the recent budget while it negated agriculture which was the back bone of Pakistan’s economy. He said that the government should reduce the prices of fertilizers which were very high. STAFF REPORT

earliest to visit his ailing mother.

Naseem told reporters that he hoped the SHC would make a decision regarding Musharraf’s early departure by Saturday (today) as his mother’s health is deteriorating. He further ensured that the former president is not

running away from the country and will return.

NO RECORD: Also on Friday, the special court hearing the treason case against the former military ruler rejected as “premature” Musharraf’s plea seeking additional documents related to the 2007 emergency.

Musharraf’s legal team had filed an application seeking additional documents, including minutes of the 44th session of the National Assembly, held on

November 7, 2007, which had endorsed emergency rule in the county.

Akram Sheikh, the chief prosecutor, informed the special court that the record of the investigation conducted by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) had already been handed to Musharraf’s legal team. Although his request for copies of several notifications has been rejected now, they may later be released to him during the hearings.

‘THREATS TO DEMOCRACY’ TAKE CENTRE STAGE IN BUDGET DEBATE ISLAMABAD: “Threats to democracy” compelled the members of the National Assembly to take up the issue again in Friday’s session which was initially scheduled to discuss the recently presented federal budget for the year 2014-15.

PML-N MNA Sardar Mansab Ali Dogar requested the NA speaker to continue a debate on the issue taken up

WASHINGTON: A US official said Thursday the United States has repatriated a dozen inmates from a secretive military prison in Afghanistan where foreign terror suspects have been held for years without trial. A French national, a Kuwaiti and 10 Pakistani detainees were sent back to their home countries last month from the Parwan prison, the defence official told a foreign news agency on condition of anonymity.

The move left 38 nonAfghan detainees at the prison. AGENCIES

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by Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party chief Mahmood Khan Achakzai the day before. Addressing the House, Achakzai had called on Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, Leader of Opposition Syed Khursheed Shah and former president Asif Ali Zardari to join hands and thwart any danger to democracy.

Responding to Dogar’s request, PTI’s Shafqat Mahmood questioned the

government’s reluctance in bringing transparency in its affairs and accused the PML-N for always creating problems between institutions. Mahmood said that democracy can be strengthened through election reforms. “Raising a voice for rights should not be considered a threat to the [democratic] system,” he argued, adding that politics of heredity posed a threat to democracy. STAFF REPORT

NEWS 05

Saturday, 14 June, 2014

ihc won’T leT news channel cross iTs liMiTs COURT ISSUES CONTEMPT NOTICES TO MUBASHAR LUCMAN, ARY NEWS CEO SULEMAN IQBAL AND ACTING PEMRA CHIEF

ANOTHER CONTEMPT NOTICE FOR ACTING PEMRA CHIEF ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Friday issued a contempt of court notice to Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) Acting Chairman Pervez Rathore. The notice was issued by Justice Noorul Haq Qureshi on a contempt of court application filed by Fareeha Iftikhar and Israr Ahmed Abbasi, two private members of the regulatory authority. The petition had contended that Rathore was functioning despite the IHC’s June 9 orders. Abbasi and Iftikhar had challenged the appointment of Rathore as acting chairman of PEMRA and Justice Qureshi on June 9 had ruled that “status quo shall be maintained” until June 17. Following Friday’s proceedings, the court issued a contempt notice to Rathore and directed the acting PEMRA chairman to personally appear in court and submit a reply on the matter in 10 days' time. In the June 9 order, Justice Qureshi had also decided to hold a joint hearing of all petitions filed in the IHC on the PEMRA issue on June 17 when the court would take a decision about Rathore’s appointment as acting chairman of the authority. A day after his appointment as acting chairman on June 5, Rathore had ordered the suspension of Geo News for 15 days and an imposition of Rs100 million fine for ‘defaming’ the director general of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI). ONLINE

ISLAMABAD ONLINE

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SlAMABAD High Court (IHC) has issued contempt of court notices to Mubashar lucman, a private TV channel anchorperson, ARY CEO Suleman Iqbal, acting PEMRA Chairman Pervez Rathore and information secretary and sought replies from them. The court ruled that the Supreme Court (SC), high courts and other courts believe in the independence of media and respect the media but added that no one has any right to unleash propaganda in their programs.

A single bench of the IHC, led by Justice Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui, took up for hearing District Bar Association Islamabad (DBAI) versus ARY News Channel case on Friday.

Former DBAI president Syed Nayyab Hassan Gardezi appeared in the court arguing that derogatory programs are being aired since some time back by a specific TV channel against judges of the SC, HCs and other courts but no action has been taken by the government or PEMRA in this regard.

A contempt of court plea has been filed in the court under Article 204 of the constitution. He took

uneasy civil-MiliTary relaTionshiP is for real, says durrani

the plea that the judiciary was restored due to untiring efforts of the legal fraternity, adding that certain elements could not stomach the independence and fortification of judiciary and the superior judiciary is being denigrated through vicious propagandas.

He argued that certain material in ARY TV programs has targeted the SC. He said it indicated that its anchorperson and CEO were working under a specific agenda. He prayed to the court to initiate contempt of court proceedings against Mubashar lucman, Suleman Iqbal, PEMRA chairman, and information secretary. The court ruled that lucman was expelled from Dunya channel some time before for this reason and secret hands got him reinstated in another media chan-

nel. The court ruled that a targeted campaign has been launched in program “Khara Sach”, aimed at launching propaganda campaign against courts, institutions and the lawyers’ community to hurt the dignity of the courts. The court said that certain limits have been crossed while conducting the program but no action has so far been taken by the government and PEMRA. The learned judge remarked “as to why a commission be not constituted to probe into the assets

held by the journalists sitting in these institutions, funds which are provided to them from different countries and gifts given to them. They have connections with different embassies and costly vehicles are given to them. These all facts should be brought to open”. The court also issued orders for providing all the CDs of “Khara Sach” program aired by a private television channel from May 22 to May 31. The hearing of the case was adjourned till first week of July.

CSF reimbursements are on track, US assures Pakistan

Tribunal disqualifies Jui-f MPa, orders re-Polling aT Mansehra seaT ABBOTTABAD STAFF REPORT

Commenting on the uneasy relationship that currently exists between the civilian government in Pakistan and the military, former ISI director general Lt Gen (r) Asad Durrani has said that throughout the history of this country, there has been a problem between the military and civilian government. In an exclusive interview published in SOUTHASIA Magazine, Durrani says that the military has always played a role in this part of the world given the Indian and the Kashmir problem since the civilian structure was not in place to take charge of the situation and lacked the ability to create robust structures. Asked about his views on the Pakistani strategy of conducting peace talks with the Taliban, he said that essentially it was a combination of military operations and persuasion. He said that since the Taliban insurgents had been sufficiently weakened, pacified or were suffering from problems within, reaching a deal now might be possible, adding that a military operation or some clandestine operation was also underway. NEWS DESK

ISLAMABAD APP

The US on Friday assured Pakistan that reimbursements on account of the Coalition Support Funds (CSF) are on track.

The assurance was given during a meeting between US Ambas-

sador Richard Olson and Finance Minister Ishaq Dar on Friday.

Dar and Olson also discussed bilateral economic issues and cooperation between the two countries including over the Dasu Hydro power project at the World Bank, the CASA-1000 power transmission project and the Di-

amer-Bhasha Dam. Olson further assured Dar that the US would continue to maintain partnership with Pakistan and will work for peace and stability in the region, adding that the US was looking forward to enhancing existing relations in all areas of mutual interest.

Sahiwal storm-ed!

TWO WOMEN KILLED, OVER 80 INJURED AS STORM CAUSES WALLS AND ROOFS OF MUD HOUSES TO COLLAPSE SAHIWAL/ISLAMABAD AGENCIES Two women were killed and more than 80 people sustained injuries after dozens of mud houses collapsed as a heavy storm hit different areas of Sahiwal on Friday.

According to sources, a whirlwind hit many areas of Sahiwal.

A woman named Sajida, resident of Hamid Town, was killed and her six-year-old daughter sustained injuries when a wall of their house collapsed due to the storm.

Another woman, Maryam, was killed and her four children were

injured when the roof of their mud house caved in at Nooran Sepal area due to the heavy storm.

At least 76 people, including women and children sustained injuries in various areas of Shaban Town, Kot Khatam, Ali Shan, Harrapa Station and Noorshan.

Sources said that due to the storm, a fire erupted in at least 78 areas of the Sahiwal, disrupting the routine life of the locals.

PRE-MONSOON RAINS NEXT WEEK: Meanwhile, giving a breather to the masses bearing

extreme hot weather conditions, Pakistan Meteorological Department has predicted preMonsoon rain in next week.

According to the Met Office, the current intense spell of heat would continue for another two to three days in most parts of the country and is expected to subside after pre-monsoon rain/thundershowers and duststorms hit Islamabad, Upper Punjab, Upper Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the Kashmir valley.

The Met Office further reported that a tropical cyclone was developing in eastern parts of the Arabian Sea. According to reports, the cyclone is likely to move in north-westerly direction (towards Oman coast) due to which the current intense

heat-wave over Pakistan is likely to further intensify and would extend northward (Islamabad, KP and Upper Punjab) today.

The heat wave will also envelop northern areas (Gilgit-Baltistan and the Kashmir valley) during the weekend, triggering large scale snow-melting from Friday to Monday.

The inflows in all hilly rivers of Upper KP and GB and Kashmir and Tarbela Dam may also increase.

Meanwhile, during the past 24 hours, the weather remained hot and dry in most parts of the country.

Light rain and thunderstorm associated with gusty winds occurred in areas of GB, Faisalabad, Multan, Dera Ghazi Khan and Karachi divisions.

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An election tribunal on Friday disqualified Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam Fazl (JUI-F) provincial lawmaker Zareen Gul Khan after it declared that polls had been rigged at his PK-58 Mansehra constituency in the May 2013 elections. The tribunal declared null and void the election results in the provincial constituency, and ordered re-polling at all polling stations. The petition had been taken up by the tribunal on the complaint of the Nimroz Khan of the Awami National Party (ANP). ANP's Nimroz Khan was the runner-up with 6,220 votes at the PK-58 constituency, where Zareen Gul Khan of the JUI-F had returned successful with 8,471 votes in the May 2013 polls. Nimroz Khan had filed a petition with the election tribunal at Abbottabad arguing that the polls had been rigged. He had pleaded to the tribunal to void the results and conduct re-polling at all stations. The tribunal had ordered NADRA to verify the votes on the complainant’s request. After NADRA confirmed on Friday that rigging took place at 22 women's polling stations in the constituency, the tribunal disqualified JUI-F's Zareen Gul Khan and ordered re-polling.

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WEATHER UPDATES SATURDAY

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0C 320C 20Saturday, 14 June, 2014

use reLigious tourism to portrAy couNtry’s soFt imAge ISLAMABAD APP

ISLAMABAD: PTI leader Shah Mahmood Qureshi addresses party workers during a demonstration outside Election Commission office on Friday. ONLINE

KAptAAN, QAdri No threAt to democrAcy: pmL-N seNAtor ISLAMABAD APP

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AkISTAN Muslim League-Nawaz Central Secretary Information Mushahidullah khan said on Friday that elements, who had already been rejected in last general elections does not pose any threat to democracy.

Talking to media outside the Parliament House, he said people, already rejected in the general elections by the masses are trying to hatch conspiracy against the democracy but their agenda will be rejected

ANF stArts drive AgAiNst drugs ISLAMABAD APP

The Anti-Narcotics Force (ANF) Islamabad-Rawalpindi region has launched an awareness campaign against drug abuse in connection with the World Anti-Narcotics Day to be observed on June 26. During awareness drive a series of lectures for the students of various educational institutions in twin cities of Islamabad and Rawalpindi would be organized till June 26. In this connection, the ANF has chalked out a comprehensive programme for creating awareness among youth, especially among students of colleges and universities, said a press release. The awareness drive first lecture was organized at Girls Degree College Satellite Town Rawalpindi in which more than 100 students and teachers participated.

The ANF Rawalpindi project officer briefed the youth about the disadvantages of using drugs saying that it not only destroys one person but damages the structure of a whole family.

He also highlighted the achievements by the ANF and said that the ANF was not only controlling the drugs in the society but also focusing on the treatment of drug addicts. The principal of the college thanked the ANF for arranging awareness programme for the youth that aims to exterminate this menace from the society.

by the people again.

Pakistan Awami Tehreek chief Dr Tahirul Qadri has no more role in country's politics, he forcefully gathered employees of Minhajul Quran to gain political mileage.

He asked Dr Qadri to arrange audit of the funds collected earlier to stage sit in at D-Chowk against the PPP government.

He said people of the country and leadership of the main political parties had rendered sacrifices for the flouring and strengthening of democracy.

The senator alleged that Dr Qadri and PTI Chairman Imran khan were

the close companions of former dictator Musharraf.

To a question he said the court of the country would decide the fate of dictator Pervez Musharraf. He said that the government would complete its constitutional tenure.

To a question he said, dialogue was the best way to resolve all disputes with India including kashmir.

"War was not a solution to any dispute; dialogue was the only way to resolve all disputes being confronted by the world."

He said peaceful solution of disputes with India will ensure peace in the whole region.

The Planning Commission of Pakistan has decided to take up the issue of religious tourism, preserving archaeological sites and helping economy by improving tourism.

Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Reform Ahsan Iqbal is set to chair the roundtable conference on ‘Developing Pakistan's Tourism: Religious, Cultural and Ancient Civilizations’ on June 18.

The conference is organised by Young Development Fellows to highlight the importance of tourism in Pakistan's economy and facilitating religious pilgrims coming to Pakistan.

The conference will be attended by provincial ministers/secretaries of tourism, several ambassadors and diplomats of relevant countries, development sector organizations, international NGOs, students and private citizens.

Young Development Fellows (YDFs) of Planning Commission are organizing these roundtable conferences to highlight the issues concerning development of Pakistan but are neglected somehow.

Previously, YDFs have organized two similar conferences on the issue of interfaith harmony and strengthening small and medium enterprise sector.

Recommendations presented in the conference are compiled in the form of a report which is distributed in the public sphere as well as used in the public policy formulation.

hAjis wiLL get best FAciLities: miNister

Russian envoy hosts reception on Russian Day ISLAMABAD

ISLAMABAD

APP

APP People from all walks of life, including diplomats, select parliamentarians, and journalists attended the reception hosted by Russian Federation Envoy Alexey Dedov to mark Russian Day at a hotel on Thursday night.

Defence Minister Khawaja Asif was the chief guest on the occasion while the function was also attended

by Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs Tariq Fatemi. National anthems of two countries were played on this occasion while a cake was cut by the chief guest Khawaja Asif and Russian Federation Ambassador Alexey Dedov along with some other guests. Special Russian and Pakistani food was served to the guests on this occasion.

Talking to reporters, Asif said Pakistan would improve its bilateral relations with Russian Federation in all fields including trade, economic and defence.

Confirming the interest of Pakistan to buy MI-35 helicopters from Russia, the defence minister said Pakistan would buy important and useful helicopters besides some 'necessary' military equipment.

He said the government has adopted a foreign policy to improve its relations with all the countries, based on mutual respect and honour. Asif said Pakistan will further improve its ties with Russian Federation in future and there will be exchange of delegations at various levels in this regard.

The Russian envoy while talking to journalists, said there has been never any ban on the sale of Russian military equipment to Pakistan. He said, "There is ongoing cooperation with Pakistan in the field of defence and counterterrorism and security."

The ambassador said, "The

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proposed deal on supply of MI-35 to Pakistan is still being negotiated between Russian and Pakistani defence officials, and hopefully would be finalised soon."

He said that Adviser on National Security and Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz would be visiting Russia to participate in the 5th International Meeting of High-Level Officials Responsible for Security Matters from June 18 to 20 and he will meet Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov during the visit.

He reiterated the desire of the Russian Federation to strengthen its bilateral relations with Pakistan in all spheres.

Religious Affairs Minister Sardar Muhammad Yousaf has said the government is making serious efforts to provide maximum facilities to the intending hajis this year.

He said while talking to Radio Pakistan that arrangements for 52,000 pilgrims have already been made. One hundred and forty three thousand Pakistanis will perform Hajj this year, he added.

Yousaf said that Ministry would adopt a transparent process while allocating accommodations to the pilgrims. He said accommodation arrangements for 52,000 pilgrims have already been made.

To a question, Yousaf said on special directives of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, haj package has already been reduced by Rs 23,000 as part of the government's commitment to extend maximum facilities to the pilgrims.

He said the ministry has made a special request to the Saudi authorities to exempt Pakistani pilgrims from submitting food charges during their stay in Saudi Arabia.

To another question on increase in Umrah fees by the Saudi government, the minister said though Umrah arrangements are made by private tour operators, yet the Ministry will take up this issue with Saudi officials.

ISLAMABAD 07 us embAssy, FjA sigN piL

Saturday, 14 June, 2014

ISLAMABAD APP

RAWALPINDI: Workers of a sweetmart prepare Halwa Puri on Friday as the faithful observe Shab-e-Barat. INP

PUNJAB GOVT EARMARKS RS 19.85B FOR METRO BUS LAHORE APP

The Punjab government has allocated Rs 19.85 billion in the budget 2014-15 for the construction of Rawalpindi-Islamabad Metro Bus System. According to budget documents, Rs 2.807 billion has been earmarked for land acquisition and shifting of utilities on the site of the project. Another Rs 6.5 billion would be spent on the Islamabad portion of the project. For Rawalpindi portion, Rs 3.30 billion would be spent on Package-I from Flashman Hotel to Committee Chowk, Rs 3.07 billion on Package-II from Committee Chowk to Sixth Road, Rs 2.657 billion on Package-III from Sixth Road to IJP Road. Another amount of Rs 1.52 billion has been earmarked for installation of escalators and platform screen doors at the Rawalpindi-Islamabad Metro project..

Not a single drop to drink!

ISLAMABAD APP

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He newly-developing housing societies in the suburbs of the capital have failed to satisfy residents as far as the provision of basic facilities are concerned. These residential areas were established mainly to accommodate the ever-increasing population in the city besides providing a standard lifestyle to masses who were now being witnessed complaining over one ground or the other.

Disappointed with the efforts of the concerned managements, the inhabitants of the housing societies, particularly those situated in Zone-IV and Zone-V, expressed their dissatisfaction over a number of issues, the most im-

portant one being the non-availability of adequate water for daily use. During a survey conducted

by APP, it was revealed that water, which was the basic necessity, had become a precious thing for the people who hardly find its supply in excessive amount.

"There is real shortage of water in our society as we get the supply after every second day, and that too only for half an hour," said Naveed Arshad, a resident of Police Foundation, Sector O-9, Islamabad.

He said people were compelled to hire water tankers. "It cost Rs 600 to 700 for each tanker and we have to manage it after 2 to 3 days," Naveed added.

Dozens of cooperative housing societies established alongside Islamabad Highway were still in developing phase and peo-

ple fear that what would be their fate once these societies were fully populated. "I am afraid that in years to come, when all the vacant plots will convert into houses and there will be more population here, how the need of water will be fulfilled," Bashir Ahmed, a resident of PWD housing society questioned. He said the water crisis became even worse in summer when its consumption increase.

Bashir further said there was a need to build a water reservoir in area to tackle this serious issue.

When contacted, an official of a housing society negated the fact that there was shortage of water in the area saying that the problem arises only when one of the tubewells stop working. He, however, opined that there was a need of a water reservoir in the area to avoid shortage in coming years.

NO PILFERAGE DURING FOOD DISTRIBUTION: WFP ISLAMABAD APP The World Food Programme (WFP) Country Director on Friday expressed her complete satisfaction over the implementation of its nutrition programme being carried out with the help of the local authorities, saying there were no reports of pilferage during food distribution among malnutrition women and children across the country.

"I am glad that there is no pilferage of food during distribution as it is reaching to the right women and children with the help of provincial and district government officials," Country Director, WFP, Lola Castro said.

She, however, stressed for more support and training of the officials responsible for distribution of food

among women and children.

Acknowledging the role of Lady Health Workers (LHWs), she said they are doing excellent job but they require more support and training.

She said that WFP team and local official frequently meet each other and make efforts that the food is provided to needy and right people.

She pointed out that more than two million children need supplementary food at the school level, adding, it is very difficult to reach each and every child aimed at providing them additional food.

The WFP official said that the Pakistan's National Nutrition Survey was conducted by Aga Khan University's Division of Women and Child Health, Pakistan's Ministry of Health and UNICEF to provide relevant information for planning, implementation and monitoring

appropriate population based interventions in Pakistan.

She said the major objective of survey was to assess the population nutritional status of women and children and other target groups and key micronutrient indicators. The survey indicated that stunting, wasting and micronutrient malnutrition are endemic in Pakistan.

These are caused by a combination of dietary deficiencies; poor maternal and child health and nutrition; a high burden of morbidity; and low micronutrient content in the soil, especially iodine and zinc.

Most of the micronutrients have profound effects on immunity, growth, and mental development, she added. The country director opined that exclusive breastfeeding in first six months of a child could protect him from a number of diseases.

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She said those children who are under-weight and not breast-fed properly are registered and provided with supplementary food through provincial health officials in the high risk districts identified through the survey.

After giving supplementary food for three months, the provision of food is extended if a child fails to improve his or her weight, she added.

When asked about the security issues, she expressed complete confidence in the central and provincial governments for providing ample security to the WFP officials.

"We have very good support from both federal and provincial governments in getting No Objection Certificates (NOCs)," she said and added, "the community also support us as we bring food, education and training for every one."

The Federal Judicial Academy and the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law enforcement Affairs of the US embassy on Friday signed the project implementation letter (PIL), under which some assistance in the form of provision of information technology (IT) would be provided to the academy to enhance its capacity and performance. khalid Ameen Tareen, Director Administration, Coe/FJA and INL Director John Hennessey Niland signed the PIL in a ceremony held in the academy. INL Director John Hennessey Niland exchanged the document with Dr Faqir Hussain, Director General, Coe in the ceremony. Dr Faqir Hussain, Director General of the FJA/Coe shed light on the extensive and expansive role of the center in the areas of legal education and judicial training in the wake of its conversion into a center of excellence for law and judicial education.

Regarding the operational strategy of the Center of excellence, he said, "Civil works and infrastructure has been completed but still lot of homework is needed to make this center of excellence fully operational. Assistance including technical assistance from the developed countries especially from the US in line with the aims and objects of the center would be highly appreciated."

Acknowledging the good relations with the Academy, INL Director John Hennessey made some brief remarks about the nature of the project and the future of the academy as it becomes a center of excellence for law and judicial education. Reiterating his vow, John Hennessey said that they were focusing on the professional development and training in the areas of justice and law enforcement sector mainly s on building, equipping and training of all stakeholders of legal and judicial system and that whole cycle helps to strengthen the rule of law. Since they all fall under the mandate of the academy/center now, therefore, all possible assistance would be extended to the Academy to strengthen the rule of law so as to have safe and secure Pakistan."

trAveL with ptdc, FeeL sAFe ISLAMABAD APP

Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation (PTDC) Managing Director (MD) kabir Ahmad khan said on Friday that a comprehensive security plan has been made to promote the sense of protection among the domestic and foreign tourists.

The MD said that on the directions of the Prime Minister, PTDC has decided to initiate certain steps to facilitate tourists and enhance the revenue generation of the corporation by taking initiatives of security provision.

"The step will help make the PTDC a selfsustaining organisation," he added.

Ch kabir Ahmad khan said that despite the unfortunate attack at Nanga Parbat base camp, more than 25 per cent increase in tourism was witnessed. He also stated that PTDC has re-launched its summer tour packages and announced special rates for hotels, motels and resorts situated in the most tourist-attractive places in the country.

He added that PTDC has also started bus services, escorted with armed guards, to Naran. "Despite the negative media projection by the international media, PTDC achieved its targets to promote domestic tourism from March to June", kabir added.

He said that PTDC has increased security at all resorts including Murree, Galiyat, Ayubia, kaghan, Swat Chitral, kalash, Shandur. "elaborate measures were being taken to provide security to the foreign tourists visiting different parts of the country" he added. khan further informed that current government was making earnest efforts to promote tourism sector and to reinstate the soft image of the country across the globe.

The provincial governments and concerned district management was in a close contact to PTDC to ensure the security to the tourists, he said.

The MD said in first step PTDC will introduce in near future Tourism Friends Club Card for Overseas Pakistani Tourists.

Through this card, PTDC would provide incentives like discount on room rent of PTDC motels and hotels, tour packages and transport services to tourists, he said.

08 COMMENT Pakistan, India and Afghanistan Friendly ties between Pakistan, India an Afghanistan can usher in a new era of development and progress

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areNDra Modi’s reply to Nawaz sharif’s letter would encourage those who are keen to see south asia develop and prosper. The governments of the two countries armed with nuclear weapons owe it to their people and the world at large to act responsibly. They simply cannot allow any thoughtless move which has the potential to wipe out all the gains made by the people of Pakistan and India through hard work and self sacrifice spread over decades. The two sides can realise their immense potential only if they maintain friendly ties and go for mutual cooperation. enhancement of regional trade can bring down costs of inputs and reduce prices of finished goods, generate more jobs and provide opportunities to the youth. Confidence building measures, combined with resolution of outstanding disputes, can lead to reduction in defence expenditure and diversion of extra funds to economic and social development and curtailment of poverty.

Border incidents should be immediately brought under control by energising the existing mechanism, as was agreed in December between the two DGMos. The fire that was ignited on LoC on Friday must not be allowed to spread to other places as happened during the last two years. agreements related to economy and visa liberalisation should be enforced and talks on substantive issues revived.

Islamabad needs to welcome and reciprocate the sentiments expressed by afghan presidential hopeful abdullah abdullah who has said he would seek Pakistan’s cooperation. Weeks before, he told a questioner that he was looking forward to improving relations with Pakistan. Pakistan should not let this chance of developing good neighbourly relations with afghanistan slip out of hand. Friendly ties between Pakistan, India an afghanistan can usher in a new era of development and progress. With better avenues for the release of energies made available, it will be possible to wean away the youth of the three countries from extremism and terrorist activities.

Some sense in Achakzai’s sermon

The need to put the house in order

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erhaPs implying democracy was in danger was going a step too far, but there was some sense in Pakhtunkhwa Milli awami Party chief Mehmood Khan achakzai’s speech at the National assembly the other day. There are definitely strains on democracy. But those are not the kind that require making “a front for democracy”, rather developing a service delivery framework that directly impacts the people. representative government must be seen improving lives of people. so far the government’s focus has been institutional superiority. But mere transfer of power means little to the man on the street. and if he remains disenfranchised, the ‘democratic system’ will indeed be derailed.

Mehmood Khan was also spot on that we need to turn our energies inwards, suggesting, of course, that our focus now must move away from threats across eastern and western borders, and putting the house in order must take precedence. and would that he could really, like he said, get hamid Karzai or abdullah abdullah to sign a non-interference commitment. There are too many preventive layers. Both countries’ agencies support proxies against each other, and, just like achakzai said, both host sanctuaries on their sides of the border.

Unwinding this web will take deep rooted government and institutional engagement. The region will turn a new leaf when the americans leave later this year, and a security vacuum will develop along the Durand Line. It is in both countries’ interest to go the extra mile to ensure that the transition is handled amicably. Both countries face insurgencies that can tear societal fabric apart if not handled properly. and if these problems snowball, then democracy will indeed be in jeopardy, and not just in Pakistan.

This is the sort of advice the PM should receive from his closer circle of advisors.

Dedicated to the legacy of the late Hameed Nizami

Arif Nizami Editor

Aziz-ud-Din Ahmad Joint Editor Lahore – Ph: 042-36375963-5 Fax: 042-32535230 Karachi – Ph: 021-35381208-9 Fax: 021-35381208 Islamabad – Ph: 051-2204545 Web: www.pakistantoday.com.pk Email: editorial@pakistantoday.com.pk

Saturday, 14 June, 2014

Waking from the slumber Government is content that terrorist foot soldiers were killed in Karachi airport attack while no one is talking about apprehending the mastermind

Abdul QuAyyum KhAn Kundi

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oMeTIMes it feels that our whole nation is in a constant state of slumber. at each terror incident we are jolted from that slumber, we move our limbs violently for a few moments and then get back to it. I am always surprised by the reaction we express at these incidents. When politicians are nothing but glorified municipal council members more interested in their development budgets that they can use to recoup their election expenses and seek committee memberships to earn perks; when Generals are more interested in politics than soldiering as reuters reported few weeks ago quoting an anonymous military source that the army chief would prefer to save the institution rather than the constitution; when media is more interested in getting the best shot for their eye balls even at the cost of jeopardising a counter offensive against a terrorist attack; when judges are indifferent towards delays and injustices in the judicial system to punish hardened criminals; when those responsible to seek advance knowledge of terror plots to prevent them from happening don’t feel the shame of failure in discharging their duties, then in these conditions terrorists and criminals roam free. God has informed us that the condition of a nation cannot change until they change themselves. We want the situation to improve without making any effort to improve ourselves in our attitude towards society and our social responsibility. This is not a sustainable condition and cannot go on forever. What are our options? our options are simple but difficult to implement as it requires character and will. The role of the parliament and elected government is to hold civil and military establishment responsible for delivery of services. They have to set policy direction and budget allocation based on their election promises. The government has failed to initiate a parliamentary oversight system so that subcommittees can call the intelligence and law enforcement officials to brief them about security threats and fail-

Editor’s mail

ures. The reports prepared by these subcommittees have to be shared with public so that they can judge those that are held accountable for these failures and corrective actions are taken to prevent future incidents. Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar ali Khan promised some months ago that a special federal force will be created to fight terrorists. This is not the first time that we are creating such a force. some years ago the sindh government created an elite Commando police force but political hiring, lack of discipline and resources resulted in total failure of that experiment. It is fine to try one more time to create such a force but what is the guarantee that it will not become another avenue to provide jobs to members of the political party.

Immediately after the Karachi airport incident, senior law enforcement officers issued press statements that terrorists had sophisticated weapons of Indian origin. a day later we learnt that those terrorists were Uzbeks. This means that this was an incident of cross-border terrorism. This raises the question which intelligence agency is responsible to prevent these kinds of incidents and why the officials of this agency are not called by the government to show cause for their failure. secondly, these terrorists travelled from North to south using domestic transportation but no one tracked them. someone transported their weapons as well as provided boarding and lodging while they planned their attack. This kind of attack requires detailed planning, training and resources. This means that someone provided them financial support as well.

Domestic intelligence and investigation of federal crime is the responsibility of Intelligence Bureau and Federal Investigation agency (FIa) respectively. Why government and parliament has not called these officials for questioning and find reasons for their failure? Why is it that not a single high official has lost their job despite repeated failures to prevent these terror incidents? It is the responsibility of the parliamentarians and elected government to hold them accountable. If they can’t do this then they are not suitable for elected offices.

No counter-terrorism intelligence operation can succeed unless and until there is a strong bond of trust and partnership between the agencies and people. People have to become eyes and ears for the agencies and provide information about suspicious activities in their neighbourhoods. Most of these terrorists have sympathisers among the civilian population who provide them intricate information about the area as well as offer them dwelling during the planning stage. Intelligence agencies need to improve their communication with the people through electronic and social media as well as set up a call centre to gather leads. right now people are too scared to come forward

with information as they feel they are mistreated and their identities could be revealed to the militants who could take revenge from them.

It is the role of the media to inform the nation about facts that state functionaries try to hide to protect their jobs. our investigative journalists are too busy chasing the money looted by petty criminals rather than write detailed reports about intelligence and security failure. It is true that there are risks in pursuing that path but if we ask our soldiers and policemen to risk their lives then journalists have to come forward too.

Coercive power of the state has to be used against all those militant factions that claim responsibility for these terrorist acts. There is no way dialogue or peace negotiations can be held with these factions. on the other hand, militant groups that are willing to reconcile with the state should be given an opportunity to lay their arms and provided support to rehabilitate. We also have to find a political solution to FaTa and most of the people from that region have expressed their desire to be given the status of a province. a parliamentary committee should be established to initiate preparatory work for an eventual political solution. a military operation without a viable political solution will only produce more grievances and recruits for the militants.

There is an international dynamic to the terrorism in Pakistan. It is important that government should organise a foreign minister level regional security conference in which all stakeholders have to be invited including Iran, afghanistan, India, Usa, China, russia, eU, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan. We need to inform India that in last five thousand years of south asian history almost all invasions of India originated from Kabul. It is in their, as well as Pakistan’s, interest that situation in afghanistan remains stable after the departure of IsaF forces. Pakistan has a strategic interest in afghanistan as a neighbour and India has to recognise it for their own economic and social stability.

It is important that a regional platform is developed that guarantees respect for sovereignty of each nation, economic development of the region in which everyone participates, and providing security guarantees to all members of the region. This is the only way this region can get out of over four decades of wars and turmoil and embark on stability and prosperity. It is our shared responsibility. sometimes complex problems have easy solutions. all it takes is to rise above the narrow self-interest and willingness to make sacrifices for the larger interest.

Abdul Quayyum Khan Kundi is former president of Pakistan Chamber of Commerce, USA, and member PTI Advisory Committee.

Send your letters to: Letters to Editor, Pakistan Today, 4-Shaarey Fatima Jinnah, Lahore, Pakistan.

Fax: +92-42-32535230 E-mail: letters@pakistantoday.com.pk Letters should be addressed to Pakistan Today exclusively

Misplaced priorities after Nawaz sharif’s recent meeting with Narendra Modi, hardliners on both sides of the border started their hate-campaign to discredit the peace move initiative between these two arch rival countries. I just wonder what our politicians’ real priorities are and who the forces are which influence the politicians to change their mind. Last week, Nawaz sharif was very rightly questioning in a seminar that how come Pakistan, a nuclear state, is facing power breakdowns of 6-8 hours duration on daily basis. In Pakistan, general public is on the streets demanding power and gas to run their daily chores in industries, offices and homes.

Pakistan wastes tens of MaF of fresh water into the sea instead of storing it for power generation; lack of trust among provinces on building new dams leads to expensive thermal power generation option. same goes for India – Narendra Modi promised during the elections campaign — ‘Toilets first, Temples later’. India, another nuclear state, wherein half-a-billion people, about 48% of the population, have no access to basic sanitation and defecate in the open. In villages, 65% people have to defecate in the open fields, same goes for slums and shanty towns around the major metropolises.

Increased number of reported/unreported rape and sexual assault cases have been blamed on vulnerability of women and girls while off to public toilets or open fields.

I wonder what the real priorities of these two states are which take pride in equipping themselves to teeth with nuclear weapons and missiles. Who will choose between stockpiles of nuclear weapons and improved law and order, economic growth, basic sanitation and

clean water for the general public? sadly, the policymakers have no clue what it is like to spend a summer day without electricity, or to walk to an open field to defecate.

MASOOD KHAN Jubail, Saudi Arabia

A cultural display Lahore is the cultural heart of Pakistan as it gathers most of the arts, cuisine, festivals, film-making, music, gardening and intelligentsia of the country. This spring the city is decorated by beautiful lights and colours.

The Lahore Branch Canal was constructed by the Mughals and upgraded during the British raj. This canal is surrounded by the roads form both sides and each side is called Canal Bank road. Canal Bank road passes through a variety of localities including farmland (from Khaira to Mughalpura) and some of Lahore’s older and most expensive residential areas including Garden Town, Gulberg, shah Jamal and Zaman Park. Punjab University’s Quaid-eazam Campus is also located alongside Canal Bank road; the hostels and faculty departments afford scenic views of the canal.

Canal holds importance in the culture of Lahore. relevant to the festivals, on the local and national events such as eid, Basant, Pakistan Day, Jashan-e-Baharn, Independence Day etc, the canal is decorated with different lights and other objects. on these occasions the canal presents a view worth watching that delights the hearts of the viewers.

This year the canal in Lahore was beautifully decorated with different art pieces and historical monument to welcome spring in the city. Masjid Wazir Khan, Bab-e-azaadi, Quaid tomb and many other models of important buildings were on display. Models depicting a man and monkey, various animals, peacock, and

CMYK

women using charkha and others were in display.

The poor people come to canal for their refreshment along with their families.

Children especially are found to enjoy this colourful exhibition of history and culture.

The canal is an essential part of Lahore’s historical and cultural identity. The government should encourage such cultural activities not only to enjoy but also to promote the culture. These types of activities encourage people to like their culture.

UMER SAEED Lahore

Energy solution for Pakistan Pakistan is facing a severe energy crisis in terms of inverse relationship between its demand and supply while keeping the influential factor ‘price’. In order to overcome such highly expensive mode of energy production, development of indigenous energy resources is the best suitable option. The ‘Thar Coal project’ lies under this category where hundreds of billions of tons of coal lies beneath the sand in Thar region of sindh, which can be utilised in a skilful manner by our own people in order to provide positive and fertile results; more cost-benefit, more chances of employment, long lasting effect etc.

There will be only one time expense in the initial stage of this effort unlike importing it again and again which makes this a very expensive trade. If we value the importance of Thar Coal project then we can get rid of many problems as it has the ability to produce 50,000 MW of energy for the next 50 years which will definitely enable us to strengthen our economy and our energy security.

HADIQA AMIN Karachi

WORLD VIEW 09

Saturday, 14 June, 2014

AFGHANISTAN WON'T TURN OUT LIKE IRAQ slate Joshua KeatinG

The worsening crisis in Iraq will inevitably raise questions about the other country the U.S. military is slowly disengaging from.

Afghanistan’s election, which is due to conclude in a runoff vote on Saturday, has gone surprisingly well so far, but at the same time there’s been a recent uptick in Taliban violence against U.S. and Afghan targets and there are good reasons to be concerned about the country’s very fragile security situation when the last U.S. troops finally leave in 2016.

In a Skype conversation sponsored by the Atlantic Council and the Center for American Progress in Washington, Abdullah Abdullah, the former foreign minister and leading presidential candidate in the first round of voting, rejected comparisons between Afghanistan and Iraq. “The circumstances are different between Afghanistan and Iraq,” he said. “Here, Talibanization has been rejected by the population as a whole, including different ethnic groups of the country. That ideology is rejected.”

All the same, Abdullah, who also served as foreign minister for the anti-Taliban North Alliance before 2001, is undoubtedly aware of the continuing threat posed by Taliban violence. He himself escaped a suicide bombing that killed three of his bodyguards and four pedestrians in an apparent assassination attempt four days ago.

Though half-Pashtun—Afghanistan’s largest ethnic group—Abdullah is widely viewed as Tajik, but he said that fears that his victory would result in sectarian violence are based on an “outdated perception of the situation.”

Unlike the current president, Hamid Karzai, Abdullah and his competitor Ashraf Ghani both say they will sign a troop agreement with the U.S. that will allow a smaller American force to remain in the country beyond the end of this year.

At the meeting, former U.N. Special Representative to Afghanistan Kai Eide pressed him on whether he would push for changes to what he called Washington’s “zero option” plan for troop withdrawal.

“Hopefully zero option will not mean zero cooperation,” he replied.

I asked Abdullah about widely held suspicions that Karzai will attempt to influence the new government from behind the scenes and through officials who remain loyal to him. (In one telling sign, the outgoing president is reportedly planning on moving into a mansion just next door to the presidential palace.)

“We should respect him as the ex-president of Afghanistan, and certainly he will have a role to play in national politics,” Abdullah replied. “But we have not discussed any details at this stage. We might have to speculate for a few more weeks before we are faced with the real situation.” Though he once served in Karzai’s administration, he reportedly had a falling out with the president around 2006. He came in second to Karzai in the 2009 election, a vote that was marred by widespread reports of corruption and interference.

Abdullah also addressed the controversial exchange of Taliban prisoners for Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl last month. He said the five men released had all “committed crimes in a massive way against the Afghan people” and that previous Taliban prisoners released as confidence-building measures had “gone directly back to the battlefield.” As for the circumstances surrounding the exchange, Abdullah said he had learned about it through the media and that “we didn’t know anything more than anyone else.” Abdullah won the first round of voting easily, but a recent poll suggests that Ghani may now be in the lead after allying with the Uzbek former rebel commander Abdul Rashid Dostum. He was asked whether he would consider forming a unity government if the runoff turned out to be close.

“Nobody is taking it seriously,” Abdullah said of the poll, confidently predicting victory by a wide margin.

Joshua Keating is a staff writer at Slate focusing on international affairs and writes the World blog.

Can an IslamIC CalIphate survIve? I Christian sCienCe monitor

RAq’S second largest city fell to a powerful militant group Tuesday, a stunning development that could quickly lead to the creation of a strict Islamic state in the heart of the Middle East.

This army of Muslim warriors, known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS), has already taken hundreds of square miles in both Iraq and Syria, and now threatens Baghdad.

As the group consolidates its rule and starts to govern millions of Muslims, it could come close to finally restoring the medieval-era caliphate that was once envisioned by the late Al qaeda leader, Osama bin Laden.

The region has recently seen other Islam-defined regimes, such as in Iran,

Egypt, Turkey, and Gaza. But this emerging state would be very different.

Its fighters are multiethnic, recruited from many countries to fight in Syria’s civil war. Now they are united by a religious fervor to also take over Iraq and break the colonial-era boundaries of the Middle East’s current states. And they show no interest in allowing even limited democracy, as in Iran.

The leader of ISIS, who calls himself Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, is little known.

But his military success over the past year indicates he is a shadowy, savvy, and savage ruler. His brutality even caused the current Al qaeda leader, Ayman alZawahiri, to break with the group.

By taking the Iraqi city of Mosul – in only a four-day battle – the group may have won the capital for its anticipated caliphate. It so far faces weak military re-

sistance from the Iraqi regime of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, who has alienated the country’s Sunni minority with his Shiite-dominated and authoritarian rule.

While the world may be alarmed at the possibility of an almost borderless Islamic theocracy, especially one that might export terrorists, such a concern must be tempered by the possibility that such a regime would be inherently flawed and create the seeds for its own collapse.

Up to now, ISIS has relied on extortion rackets and oil smuggling to raise money. Such corruption erodes its legitimacy as a pious ruler. While little is known of its social demands on those it now rules, chances are they will offend moderate Muslims. An estimated 500,000 people fled Mosul as the group advanced on the city. Its implementation

PAK-INDIA PROXY WAR FOR AFGHANISTAN LOOMS indian express Frederic Grare

On May 27, US President Barack Obama announced that the last American troops would withdraw from Afghanistan by the end of 2016.

Assuming that the two candidates in the Afghan presidential election run-off make good on their promises to conclude a bilateral security agreement (BSA) that would permit a residual American military presence, some 9,800 US troops will remain in the country after 2014, with half of them slated to depart by the end of 2015.

From 2015 onward, the remaining troops will conduct counter-terrorism operations and work to train the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) for two more years, eventually leaving only a token force to protect the American embassy in Kabul. The potential fallout of this relatively rapid departure of American forces does not bode well for Afghanistan’s future, and could exacerbate India-Pakistan rivalries in Afghanistan.

Obama’s decision should not surprise anyone. It is primarily a response to domestic political concerns, addressing the American public’s war fatigue. The swap between the only American prisoner of war in Afghanistan and five senior Taliban commanders, which took place on May 31, was perceived, rightly or wrongly, as evidence of Obama’s willingness to get rid of the conflict and all its consequences. At same time, the US decision to withdraw by the end of 2016 plays opportunistically on the undeniable success of the Afghan elections: even as Obama acknowledges that the United States will not leave behind “a perfect Afghanistan”, he can present the stable political transition as evidence of a successful mission that justifies the withdrawal.

In Afghanistan, however, the real question lies in the capacity of the Afghan government to survive. Whoever wins the presidential election will have to face the daunting task of stabilising the country, with diminishing resources and limited or nonexistent security guarantees in a context of unsolved regional disputes with neighbours.

The 9,800 troops scheduled to remain in Afghanistan will likely be a sufficient force to mitigate the consequences of these unstable circumstances long enough to allow Obama to leave office with the withdrawal complete and the Afghan government still intact. But this respite will probably be only temporary, and a longerterm American military commitment would have provided greater promise of stability.

True, there are limits to what a sustained US presence would have been able to accomplish. A mere 9,800 troops would have been incapable of achieving what a much larger force has been unable to do over the past 12 years. But it would have contributed to the consolidation of the Afghan government and reassured the international aid donors, ensuring a smoother transition.

India and Pakistan are equally unlikely to be very enthusiastic about the hasty US departure, though for different reasons. Each viewed an ongoing American presence as a check against its greatest fear: that the other would secure “undue influence” on the Afghan government. Yet even if both Delhi and Islamabad have anticipated the US move and started to prepare for it, it is doubtful that either had foreseen it at such an early date, with the political future of Afghanistan still so uncertain.

As such, both India and Pakistan fear the emergence of a “power vacuum” (in other words, chaos) in Afghanistan following the departure of American troops. Although this is not the most likely scenario in the short to medium term, it is an especially dramatic one. Both countries could be hurt by militants operating out of Afghanistan, with or without state support, while Afghan domestic actors’ relative weaknesses and lack of territorial control would make irrelevant both powers’ efforts to broker deals that advance their interests. Moreover, such a situation would introduce an additional element of suspicion between India and the US, because Delhi would fear that the US might be tempted to rely increasingly on Pakistan to prevent the occurrence of a power vacuum. The early departure of US troops will only exacerbate this perception.

But even in a more optimistic — and hopefully more realistic — scenario in which a partly dysfunctional Afghan state manages to survive in the short term but is unable to reestablish control over much of the country’s territory, the pace of the US withdrawal has the potential to destabilise the country by accelerating regional competition over Afghanistan’s future. For India and Pakistan, the main point of contention will be Taliban participation in the Afghan government.

Delhi adamantly rejects such an arrangement. Islamabad (despite its official claims to the contrary) is trying to promote a power-sharing agreement between the Afghan government and the Islamist militia. A closer look at each country’s strategy in Afghanistan is illuminating.

Pakistan has, over the past few years, partially redefined its Afghan policy. It no longer focuses exclusively on the Pashtun, reaching out to elements of the former Northern Alliance and thereby dividing the anti-Taliban camp. It has, moreover, favoured a bilateral reconciliation process between the Afghan government and the Taliban, contributing to the latter’s acceptance by the international community as a legitimate actor.

Finally, Islamabad has consolidated its control over the Taliban over the past few months. Yet Pakistan has managed to strengthen its bargaining position with Afghanistan and its neighbours.

It is now proposing to its neighbours a non-interference agreement that would de facto consolidate the position of its Taliban proxies.

India, on the other hand, has somehow managed to isolate Pakistan regionally and will continue to support the government produced by the Afghan elections. Yet Delhi cannot ignore the fact that the early departure of the last US forces will inevitably render that government even more fragile, with adverse consequences for Indian development efforts across the country.

The announcement of the full US withdrawal will only provide additional incentive for both India and Pakistan to accelerate their existing policies in order to gain the upper hand in Afghanistan before 2016, creating further mistrust and potential disequilibrium.

The paradox of the US decision is, therefore, that the pace of the withdrawal defeats the purpose of the BSA. Chances are that, in the process, this will lead the main regional players, India and Pakistan, to further question the reliability of the US and increase mistrust with both of them.

The writer is senior associate director of the South Asia Programme at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

of strict Islamic law and cultural purity will not sit well with a region that is growing accustomed to constitutional order under secular rule of law and feeling the influence of the Internet.

The group also largely defines itself by what it opposes – Shiites, Israel, the West, and nonreligious Arab leaders.

Such hate is no basis for creating any cohesion among the people it governs.

And its record of killing innocent people through terrorist acts violates an understanding of the quran adopted by almost every Muslim.

In other words, the world must be cautious rather than fearful as it orchestrates a response to this unusual Middle East threat. Patience and wisdom, rather than war, may help bring the downfall of a group whose ideas are devoid of substance.

The disaster of Obama's world

Commentator Well, we now have a pretty good idea of what the world looks like when American leadership is withdrawn. We are simultaneously reminded of what happens when a power vacuum opens up: it gets filled.

From Ukraine, through Afghanistan and Iraq all the way to the East China Sea, the world's dictatorships and terror groups smell weakness in Washington. They have adjusted their posture accordingly. To be sure, any one of those conflict zones, and all the others besides, were problematic to start with. On that most toxic of all modern conflicts, the Iraq war, we have long been of the opinion that reasonable people can disagree about whether the 2003 intervention was the right course of action or whether aggressive containment might have been a better option.

But simply washing one's hands of Iraq would have been as irresponsible in 2003 as it is today, when the increasingly hopeless Obama administration appears to have been taken by surprise at the consequences of its own incompetence.

There were never going to be any easy options in Iraq, or for that matter in Ukraine, Afghanistan and elsewhere.

Leadership is not about things being easy. It's about taking the really tough decisions, and sometimes getting things wrong. But above all else it's about being there, having your hand firmly on the rudder, and letting everyone know what you stand for and what you won't stand for.

Sound like Barack Obama? No, actually, it doesn't. And that's the core problem. No-one is blaming Obama for the existence of ISIS, the Islamist terror group now running riot in Iraq, where we did intervene, and in Syria where we didn't.

It's not that ISIS exists, it's what they have become in response to the power vacuums that Obama has allowed to be created.

Maybe there is nothing we could have done. But throwing one's hands in the air and shrugging one's shoulders is a sure fire way to guarantee the ascendance of the bad guys.

That applies to ISIS. It applies to the Taliban. It applies to Vladimir Putin's Russia, and it applies to China.

Again, don't expect a world with strong American leadership to be easy. Don't expect straight lines or an absence of complexity.

But without American leadership, do expect things to deteriorate rapidly. Don't take our word for it. Just look around you.

10 BUSINESS CORPORATE CORNER Lumia 930 with Windows Phone 8.1 launched across Middle East, Near East and North Africa

Saturday, 14 June, 2014

PAKISTAN ENDORSES CHINA’S ‘TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER’ PROPOSAL CHINA TO PROVIDE $ I MILLION TO EACH COUNTRY FOR SETTING UP SOUTH ASIA SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY CENTERS ISLAMABAD

DUBAI: At a regional conference held in Dubai, Microsoft Devices announced that the first Lumia devices running Windows Phone 8.1 are now available across the Middle East, Near East and North Africa.

“Lumia smartphones are growing in popularity across the region,” said Arto Nummela, Senior Vice President Microsoft Devices, India, Middle East and Africa. “This new chapter in the Lumia story builds on the success of the Lumia 520 for affordable smartphones, and also brings new innovations at the high end. The combination of Lumia differentiators and Microsoft services provides a compelling proposition for both consumers and business users”. PRESS RELEASE

Zong rolls out ‘Super 3G’ in Karachi and Lahore

I

MIAN ABRAR

n a major breakthrough, China, the world leader in modern technology, has offered its neighbours an unprecedented technology transfer agreement, especially with Pakistan, which may usher into the rapid economic boosting due to the development of modern technology and infrastructure in South Asia region.

The proposal was raised by Chinese government with the ministers of science and technology of the South Asian states at the inaugural ceremony of the South Asia Technology Transfer moot held at Kunming, China, on the sidelines of the second China-South Asia Exposition held from June 7-10.

'Technology transfer' is a process by which technology, knowledge, skills and manufacturing methodologies are transferred from one country or company to another. This transfer occurs from a technologically advanced economy to another emerging economy which is striving to move up the manufacturing value-chain.

The technology transfer would be made by

promoting specific industries, supporting companies which use globally-competitive technologies and facilitating joint ventures between foreign and Chinese companies where technology transfer is involved. The support often comes in the form of subsidies, easy access to capital, tax exemptions and loans on favourable terms, preferential access to market, implicit government backing in case of loan defaults, preferential treatment in bidding for government contracts, etc.

When contacted, Minister for Science and Technology Zahid Hamid, confirmed while talking to Pakistan Today that the proposal was raised by Chinese science and technology minister during his meeting with his counterparts on the sidelines of the China-South Asian expo, stating that it would be leapfrog in economic and technological fields for the developing countries like Pakistan.

“Under the proposal made by China, a South Asia Science and Technology Center would be set up in each South Asian country. Pakistan has supported the idea. As per the proposal, China would provide one million dollars to Pakistan and other member states for setting up the center and research laboratories for technology transfer and development,” added Zahid Hamid who attended the second China-South Asia Expo in Kunming.

He said that the Chinese Vice-Premier Wang Yang also had assured the member states in his opening remarks at the China-South Asia expo that China was ready to transfer technology to South Asian countries.

“Mr Wang said China will also cooperate in

mega infrastructure projects that include energy, technology and road through build-operatetransfer or public-private-partnership,” Mr Hamid added. He said under the technology transfer proposal, greater cooperation would be enhanced by China with the member states in the fields of telecommunications, agriculture, trade, railways, industry and infrastructure building.

He said that China also aimed at technology transfer and scientific research and joint labs would be established besides providing training to the scientists of South Asia and South East Asia countries.

Hamid added that China had also agreed to provide funds to support Pakistan’s maritime research center to be set up at Karachi which was in advanced stage and land had been acquired for the center.

China has made significant advancement in modern technology and the Asian giant has single-handedly has swept away the world technology market. During the past decade or so, China has developed high speed train manufacturing sector besides developing a high speed rail network across the country. China has also become one of the largest manufacturers of high speed trains in the world.

Though a few years back, Japanese bullet trains were termed as the word’s high speed trains but the situation has changed now in China’s favour and now China is manufacturing high speed trains for domestic use at a rapid pace, exporting it to countries like Turkey and planning vast projects across Southeast Asia.

GOVT PURSUING PROACTIVE POLICIES TO OVERCOME OUTAGES: AHSAN KARACHI APP

ISLAMABAD: Zong, a China mobile company and Pakistan’s fastest growing telecom network announced the official start of its exciting ‘Super 3G’ service for consumers in major cities of Pakistan at a press conference held in Islamabad. ‘Super 3G’ will help consumers experience lightening fast internet, through which they will be able to stream songs and videos within seconds. Zong ‘Super 3G’ will offer best in class technology HSPA+ (High Speed Packet Access) which will offer maximum speeds of up to 42 Mbps (twice as fast as normal 3G available in Pakistan). Speaking about the launch of the ‘Super 3G’ service, Dr. Fan Yunjun, chairman and chief executive, Zong said, “Superior customer service is an integral part of our business and cannot be ignored. Through our infrastructure - our people and processes are aligned to provide a differentiated customer experience as we keep the customer first in all that we do. Our ‘Super 3G’ service is just another example of our commitment towards providing the best data solutions to our tech-savvy customers. Our service shall offer speeds of up to 42 Mbps while normal 3G offers speeds of up to 21 Mbps. So Zong ‘Super 3G’ is twice as fast as normal 3G available in Pakistan today. The initial launch targets the two major cities of Pakistan i.e. Karachi and Lahore where we have the vastest coverage and will ensure the fastest data speed available. The second stage shall see us expand our services to other major cities”. He added “Customers should look forward to superior 4G services in the months to come.” PRESS RELEASE

Huawei sponsors Chinese language classes in Islamabad LAHORE: Huawei Technologies, a leading global information and communications technology (ICT) solutions provider, today announced to sponsor Chinese Language Classes at the Islamabad Club, starting from 16th June till 15th August. As part of its social initiatives, Huawei has taken this step to make summers more exciting for the people of Islamabad. The classes will involve the Club’s members and their children who will be sponsored by Huawei to participate in the Chinese language learning sessions. PRESS RELEASE

Federal Minister of Planning, Development and Reforms Ahsan Iqbal said that the present government was pursuing proactive policies to overcome energy crisis and security challenges.

Speaking at the inaugural session of Middle East South Asia CEO Summit, on Friday, he said Pakistan would get rid of energy crisis and load shedding in coming six to seven years. The minister said Pakistan was jointly working

with China on various power projects and in next five years 22,000 mega watts were expected to be added to the national power grid.

Pakistan was utilising every option available for power generation including enhancing hydropower production, expediting Thar Coal project and exploring renewable resources while negotiations were also underway with the US, European Union and other friendly countries in this regard, he said.

Foreign investors were reluctant to invest in Pakistan just a year ago, but thanks to positive and lucrative

PTCL holds annual HR conclave

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL) held its 2nd HR Conclave ‘Future-Fit HR’ here in Islamabad. The two day conference provided PTCL HR fraternity an opportunity to define together, the strategic HR agenda that reflects the commitment and readiness of PTCL’s Future-Fit HR team, to lead the company towards growth and success. The annual platform enables HR professionals to collectively review past performance, celebrate achievements, explore industry best practices, gain business insights and participate in focus group sessions to gear up for the future and develop a clear line of sight backed up by a strategic action plan. Syed Mazhar Hussain, Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO) PTCL while sharing his vision for the HR Function during his inaugural speech said: “The Future-Fit HR would take on a more proactive and progressive approach for enabling the line of business to attain elevated performance level in terms of business growth and delivering exceptional customer service. HR would be the transformative force driving the organizational revolution through development of a winning culture” PRESS RELEASE

investment policies of the present government foreign investment has started coming in, he said. The minister said some recent unpleasant in-

cidents took place in Karachi and media did not acknowledge and highlight the way the security forces met with this challenge.

Agriauto Stamping Company inaugurated KARACHI: Agriauto Industries Limited has established Agriauto Stamping Company which would pave the way for dye making and developing high tensile sheet metal parts for the auto industry in Pakistan. The inauguration ceremony of the company at Port Qasim was attended by auto industry stakeholders, officials from OEMs, members of the auto parts makers association, customers, representatives from House of Habib and Agriauto family. The company has been established with the technical collaboration of Ogihara Thailand Company, one of the largest makers of dies and sheet metal parts for the automotive industry. PRESS RELEASE

Correct cost of the Machike project of Hascol Petroleum Limited KARACHI: In the press release titled ‘Hascol builds strategic oil installation for organized petroleum infrastructure’ published on different dates in several local newspapers, the cost incurred on the Hascol Machike project was mistakenly mentioned as 450 Million Rupees instead of the actual cost of 750 Million Rupees. Therefore, all the press releases should be read with the rectified cost of 750 Million Rupees. PRESS RELEASE

SKMCH&RC to launch annual Zakat collection campaign LAHORE: Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital & Research Centre [SKMCH&RC] is going to launch its Zakat Collection Campaign for the year 2014. In this connection, members of Shaukat Khanum Tigers Club are organizing an official launch ceremony at the Hospital on 16th June at 6pm. Dr. Faisal Sultan, CEO, Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital will be the chief guest on this occasion and will highlight the significance of this campaign. The event aims to raise awareness amongst the youth about the Zakat Collection Campaign and its importance to the hospital and the cancer patients, andto encourage the youth to actively participate in this “all important” campaign. PRESS RELEASE

KARACHI: Omar Moin Malik, Head of Strategy Easypaisa, addresses journalists at the launch of Easypaisa Funds transfer facility/from banks across Pakistan at Telenor office on Friday. STAFF PHOTO

LEISURE 11

Saturday,14 June, 2014

HaGaR tHE HoRRIblE

aries

taurus

gemini

Don't panic when things start to get weird today -- you can handle this! Your energy is a bit flat, but that can actually work to your advantage if you open up to it and just let it happen.

Your intellect is open to a deeper understanding today -- so make sure that you're really paying attention to what's going on around you.

It's a great time to deal with your relatives.

Don't play guessing games -you need to make sure that you're ready for whatever is coming your way today. The only way to know if your ideas are going to work is to put them into practice.

cancer

leo

virgo

You may feel great today -- or you may feel like you're all the way on the other end of the spectrum. Try to move back toward some kind of balance and see if things can get better soon.

Try not to go on at too much length about your new passion -- nobody cares as much as you do. Things are settling down for everyone right now, which could mean that you're not the focus.

Whatever you've got going for you should be just about right -- so go along with whatever plans you've made. If anything, you may want to get even more ambitious as the day goes on.

libra

scorpio

sagittarius

You need to be wary of new developments today -- at least one new person is more trouble than they seem at first glance. That's not to say you're in danger of any kind, though.

Your group is working well together, and that's thanks in large part to your quiet contribution. You're not at your most intense, but that is actually working to your advantage.

Today's energy brings a kind of timidity, at least as far as change is concerned. You'd rather wait and see what happens, which is rather unusual for you.

Embrace this phase and have a quiet day.

dIlbERt

GaRFIEld

baldo

capricorn

aquarius

pisces

You feel that you could outlast almost anyone today -- and with energy this good, you're probably right! It's a great time to work long hours for greater reward or to play until late into the night.

If you feel exhausted, it's only because you're running on fumes -- but a refueling stop is just ahead! Don't worry if you don't get too much done today, because things are sure to change soon enough.

Your friends or colleagues are moving in the wrong direction -- and you're the only one who can see catastrophe looming!

It's hard to warn others of what they can't see, but you should still succeed.

cRosswoRd

sUdokU

woRd sEaRcH

ACROSS

fill in all the squares in the grid so that each row, column and each of the squares contains all the digits. the object is to insert the numbers in the boxes to satisfy only one condition: each row, column and 3x3 box must contain the digits 1 through 9 exactly once.

Today’s soluTions

MakInG a kIllInG

cHEss black TO PlaY aND MaTE IN fOur MOVEs 8 7 6 5 4 3 2

B

C

D

E

F

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chess solution

A

1...be7 2.Rdh1 Rh8 3.Qxg5 bxg5+ 4.f4 bxh4 *

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sudoku solution

Down 1 equivocate (5) 2 going from the sublime to the ridiculous? (13) 3 lack of false pride (8) 4 elaborately decorated (6) 5 two in a romantic relationship? (4) 6 eventually (6,2,5) 7 stinging plants (7) 12 died (6,2) 13 nice art (anag) (7) 15 obstruct (6) 18 void (5) 19 obstinate person? (4)

bRIdGE

How to play

grade grass hatred hips lane quell ration relay replica rogue scold sees shore stare stifle subdue vault wool

crossword solution

1 ingenious and ridiculously over-complicated in construction (5,8) 8 speck (3) 9 type of pea (9) 10 increase rapidly (8) 11 chime (4) 13 glazed cotton fabric (6) 14 celebrated (6) 16 thoroughfare (4) 17 loves sid (anag) (8) 20 knocked for six (9) 21 gratuity (3) 22 elementary source of heat and electricity (7,6)

abhorrence agency anger banjo bleed bluster brawl breach brush burns censure clock crown delegate deputy enigma envoy glance

12

Saturday, 14 June 2014

ARTS

CHILDREN CAN SPOT WHEN YOU'RE LYING - AND WHEN YOU HOLD BACK INFORMATION, STUDY CLAIMS

M

ANy adults will admit to telling white lies to children to make their lives a little easier. But research has found children can spot this tactic, and can even tell when their parents or teachers are deliberately withholding information from them, reports Daily Mail.

Once spotted, a study from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology found children will then try to fill in the gaps in the information themselves.

Determining who to trust is an important skill to learn at an early age because so much of our knowledge about the world comes from other people, explained Hyowon Gweon, lead author of the paper which is published in the journal Cognition.

‘When someone provides us information, we not only learn about what is being taught, we also learn something about that person. If the information is accurate and complete, then you might also trust that person in the future,’ she said.

‘But if this person has taught you something wrong, has made a mistake, or has omitted something that’s important for you to know, then you might want to suspend your trust, be sceptical of the information he provides in the future, and even seek other sources of information.’ The study builds on a 2011 paper in which the team of researchers

investigated how children behave when a teacher explained only one function of a toy that can do four different things.

They found children spent most of their time exploring only the function the teacher had demonstrated. However, children who received no instruction spent more time exploring all of the toy’s features and ended up discovering more of them. In the new study, Dr Gweon wanted to investigate what children thought of the teacher who did not fully explain what the toy could do.

She said: ‘Previous studies about children’s trust in informants or teach-

ers focused on whether children distinguish, and learn differentially from someone who says something false from someone who’s telling the truth.

‘Going beyond those sensitivities to truth and falseness, what I wanted to see in this study is whether children are also sensitive to someone who’s telling the truth but not the whole truth - someone who didn’t tell them everything that they ought to know.’

In the first experiment, children aged six and seven were given a toy to explore on their own until they discovered all of its functions.

One group of children received a toy that had four buttons, each of which activated a different function, while the other group was given a toy with only one button and function. Then the children watched as a ‘teacher’ puppet demonstrated the toy to a ‘student’ puppet. For both toys, the teacher’s instruction was the same. He demonstrated only one function - the windup mechanism.

After the demonstration, the children were asked to rate how helpful the teacher was, using a scale from one to 20.

Children who knew the toy had three more undemonstrated functions gave much lower ratings than children who knew it was the toy’s only function. In a follow-up experiment, the same ‘teacher’ demonstrated a second toy and only demonstrated one of its four functions.

Children who had previously seen a demonstration they knew to be incomplete explored the toy more thoroughly, suggesting they did not trust the teacher to be fully informative. ‘This shows that children are not just sensitive to who’s right or wrong,’ Dr Gweon said. ‘[They] can evaluate others based on who’s providing information that is enough or not enough for accurate inference. They can also adjust how they learn from a teacher in the future, depending on whether the teacher has previously committed a sin of omission or not.’ ONLINE

MATISSE PAINTING IN POSSESSION OF NAZI DEALER WAS STOLEN, EXPERTS CONFIRM A group of experts confirmed on Wednesday that a Matisse painting found in the possession of the reclusive son of a German art dealer linked to Adolf Hitler was "Nazi loot" taken from a Jewish art dealer in Paris.

Matisse's "Seated Woman" was among a treasure trove of art discovered in the Munich apartment of Cornelius Gurlitt, whose father Hildebrand was tasked by the Nazis with selling artwork stolen from Jewish

families in the 1930s and 1940s.

The German government had tasked the experts with settling a dispute over ownership between the heirs of Paris-based art dealer Paul Rosenberg and a second party whose identity has not been revealed.

“Even though it could not be documented with absolute certainty how the work came into Hildebrand Gurlitt’s possession, the task force has concluded that the work is Nazi loot and was taken from its rightful owner Paul Rosenberg," Ingeborg Bergreen-Merkel, the head of the task force, said in a statement.

Gurlitt, who died last month at the age of 81, struck an accord with the German government to help track down the rightful owners of his trove of 1,280 artworks.

The statement added that the final decision on what happens to the painting "lies in the hands of the heirs of Cornelius Gurlitt, who, shortly before his death, committed himself to returning looted works in line with the Washington Principles," referring to a 1998 international agreement signed by Germany on returning art stolen by the Nazis. The experts consulted archives in Germany, France and the United States, according to the statement. Chris Marinello, the director of Art Recovery International who is representing the Rosenberg family, told AFP the decision came as no surprise "given the strength of the documentation". "With this acknowledgement, we look forward to a swift and efficient restitution of this looted work to the family after a 73-year wait,” he added. AGENCIES

FACEBOOK TO USE USER’S BROWSING HISTORY TO TARGET ADS

Facebook will now use personal information gathered from your activities elsewhere on the Web to more precisely target advertisements on the social network.

Given Facebook's extensive reach around the globe, the development has alarmed privacy advocates who are asking federal regulators review the matter. Democratic Media vowed to press US’s Federal Trade Commission Chairwoman Edith Ramirez on the agency's failure to raise objections to Facebook's new data-grabbing plan. In an effort to quiet concerns, Facebook said it would let users see why certain ads pop up in their News Feeds, similar to what Google does. Users can then add or remove an interest to make the ads more relevant.

Facebook made the announcement in a blog post on Thursday. With its "like" buttons on websites across the Web, Facebook has been able to keep tabs on what its 1.3 billion users are doing. But this is the first time the company will use people's browsing history to target ads on its service. The company is looking to ramp up revenue as it competes with Google for ad dollars. Facebook said users have asked to see ads that are more relevant to them. "Let's say that you're thinking about buying a new TV, and you start researching TVs on the Web and in mobile apps. We may show you ads for deals on a TV to help you get the best price or other brands to consider. And because we think you're interested in electronics, we may show you ads for other electronics in the future, like speakers or a game console to go with your new TV," the company said.

But, if you are not interested in a new TV, a tool that you can click on each ad will explain why you are seeing the ad and make changes, Facebook said. Giving people the opportunity to fine tune their personal information and see more relevant ads could also boost Facebook's ad sales. For years, Facebook has dealt with qualms over how it handles the hoard of personal information it keeps on users. That concern has come to the attention of regulators. In 2012, it settled charges with the FTC that it had deceived consumers. Under the settlement, Facebook is required to get the consent of users before making changes to its privacy settings. It's also subject to 20 years of independent privacy audits. ONLINE

CHILDREN OF OVERBEARING PARENTS MORE LIKELY TO GO OFF THE RAILS: UK STUDY Many parents believe being strict with their children is the best way to keep them on the straight and narrow.

But new research suggests this theory may be misguided.

A study has found strict parents who fail to set down firm rules are more likely to have children who turn to bad habits such an doing drugs. It revealed children with authoritarian parents who show little affection are more likely to go off the rails.

However, those whose parents smother them with love are also more likely to smoke drugs or even drink.

Children least likely to adopt such habits are those whose parents are reasonable and set down clear rules but without being overbearing. The study, which was conducted across six European countries, found firm discipline can be just as bad as a lack of control when it comes to the

best way of bringing up a family.

Dr Amador Calafat, of the European Institute of Studies on Prevention, Mallorca, said: ‘Our results support the idea extremes are not effective, neither authoritarianism nor absence of control and affection.’ She noted different parental approaches are helpful in different scenarios.

For example, when dealing with a child's school performance, those who assert low levels of control are the most effective.

But Dr Calafat said when protecting students from drugs a good relationship with children was essential.

The study, published in the journal Drug and Alcohol Dependence, involved almost 8,000 youngsters aged between 11 and 19 who were questioned on the kind of parenting styles they had received.

It looked at four styles of parenting.

The authoritative model includes

those that ‘give clear rules and affectionately and flexibly reason with the children when asking for their compliance’. The authoritarian model coincides with the authoritative model in that both are demanding and controlling, but it differs in that mothers and fathers show less affection.

Meanwhile, mothers and fathers of the 'neglectful' and 'indulgent' models are characterised by their low level of control. But the former are ‘scarcely affectionate’, and the latter ‘very emotional’.

The results indicate that the indulgent and authoritative models are those that work best, both for preventing substance misuse and in stopping bad behaviour. Dr Calafat explained: ‘For self-esteem and school performance, it is still better when parents operate with the indulgent style.

‘This study allows a focus and common discussion in Europe in drug use

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prevention programmes.

‘From a global personal health perspective, the “authoritative” and “indulgent” parental styles equally protect

against the use of drugs.’ The researchers also suggested being too authoritarian with children could be as ineffectual as being too casual. BY MAIL ONLINE

Saturday, 14 June, 2014

ARTS

13

Beyonce divorce delayed over second pregnancy: report

BY CONTACT MUSIC

T

he seemingly perfect family may not be entirely how they appear. Beyoncé and Jay-Z's relationship has been heavily scrutinised since the Met Gala elevator incident in which Beyoncé's sister, Solange, was caught on camera assaulting her brother in law.

The couple are rumoured to, not only be divorcing, but also having another child together. has Beyoncé scrapped her reported plans to divorce Jay-Z as she is pregnant? The 32-year-old singer and her husband of 6 years Jay-Z AKA Shawn Carter are rumoured to be di-

Keira Knightley Poses as Britney For ConFused Fans

Angelina Jolie continued her campaign to end sexual violence in war zones by meeting British royal Camilla, Duchess Of Cornwall in

gerard Butler has Pug issues

Gerard Butler was shocked to see how small his dog is in comparison to him in paparazzi pictures. The 44-year-old actor adopted adorable pug pooch Lolita after falling in love with her but he accepts his pet doesn't necessarily fit in with his manly persona. Talking on chat show 'Late Night with Seth Meyers' about his diminutive dog, he said: ''It's weird because I never thought of it that way. I saw this little dog and fell in love with it and adopted it. And then, when I saw the first paparazzi photos she barely comes up to my ankles. And it's like, 'What are we doing together?' ''My Lolita - she's a little pug, she's beautiful.''

Although he has found a dog to love, Gerard can't find a lady to share his life with, recently admitting he is ''sadly'' single and hasn't met his ''princess'' yet. He said: ''I have not met the one princess yet. That doesn't mean I have not met a lot of princesses along the way, but not the one and only yet. ''Or maybe I have and she might come back into my life at some point. You should never rule out anything.

But am I seeing the one now? The answer, sadly, is no.'' VIA BANG SHOWBIZ

sister with numerous other women. It seems Solange is also pushing Beyoncé towards filing for divorce. A source said "Beyoncé knows everything about what's going on with Jay-Z and other women - and she knows most of it from Solange. The rumours of the Carter's imminent divorce began circulating mere weeks after the elevator incident.

Life&Style's cover story was of their reported '$1 Million Divorce' and sources speaking at the time claimed divorce was the only solution to their reported problems. The source said "It's been really rocky for them. There is trouble in paradise. Divorce is inevitable, and Beyoncé's only option." however, Bey-

Angelina Jolie wins royal seal of approval for anti-rape summit

BY WENN

Actress Keira Knightley has a bizarre doppelganger - she is frequently mistaken for Britney Spears. The clean-cut Pirates of the Caribbean star insists fans often mistake her for the former pop wild child when she is out and about in California. The British actress admits she is more often confused with fellow screen stars Natalie Portman and Kate Winslet, but it is the Spears comparisons that always catch her by surprise - and she is happy to play along and pretend she is the pop princess.

Knightley tells U.K. talk show host Graham Norton, "It has happened to me three times in L.A. I was quite excited by that and definitely signed and had a picture!" BY WENN

vorcing following allegations that JayZ is frequently unfaithful.

The veneer of happy family life began to crack earlier this year when Beyoncé, Jay-Z and Beyoncé's sister Solange Knowles appeared together at the Met Gala in New York. The event, held on May 5th, saw Solange attack Jay-Z whilst they were in an elevator at The Standard, a Manhattan hotel.

Footage was obtained by TMZ which clearly shows Solange hitting and kicking her brother-in-law.

Whilst everything now appears to have been swept under the rug, the cause of the incident appears to be Solange's belief Jay-Z is cheating on her

London on Thursday.

Alongside Britain's Foreign Secretary William hague, the hollywood actress launched the Global Summit to end Sexual Violence in Conflict in the British

capital on Tuesday. They have continued to promote the drive in the U.K. all week, and on Thursday they headed to royal residence Clarence house for a special meeting with the wife of Charles, Prince of Wales.

The trio discussed the women's campaign, which is trending on social media with the slogan #timetoact, during the meeting.

A post on the official Twitter.com account for Clarence house reads, "The Duchess of Cornwall has met @WilliamJhague and @UN Special envoy Angelina Jolie to discuss their #TimetoAct work.

"The Duchess has visited a number of projects over recent years working with victims of rape and sexual abuse, and is keen to raise awareness."

Madhuri Dixit to work with UNICEF ONLINE Bollywood actress Madhuri Dixit has now become the UNICEF celebrity advocate for child rights, reports MovieTalkies. She has been supporting UNICEF in the area of child rights over the last one year and has also done some key public service announcements for child protection, including messages on prevention of child labour and child trafficking.

As a UNICEF supporter, the Dhak Dhak girl will talk about child rights and in the coming years she will work closely with the organisation. She will travel across nation to support various programmes of UNICEF and will also meet government officials and seek their participation in fundraising. Talking about her association with UNICEF, Dixit says, ''I am honoured to associate with UNICEF in an effort to bring focus to issues concerning women and children in Indian society. As an ambassador for children's rights, I will work hard to give a voice to those who have none. My hope is that through these efforts, we will together change the lives of many in India.''

Her first field trip is to Madhya Pradesh on June 26th, followed by a number of other events related to child rights. Both UNICEF and Madhuri Dixit are committed to improve the lives of women and children in India.

oncé is allegedly pregnant with her second child to the rapper but reports remain unconfirmed and Beyoncé's agent has, according to the NY Daily News, entirely quashed these rumours. Yet sources, evidently believing the 'Single Ladies' singer is with child, claim Beyoncé is putting off divorce for the sake of her daughter Blue Ivy and her unborn (possibly fictitious) baby. This is apparently due to Beyonce's concern for her public image. A source, also speaking to Life&Style, said "Beyoncé is extremely careful about her image, and everything she does is thought out and planned. She is obsessed with them appearing as the perfect family."

Justin BieBer to Plead guilty to reCKless driving

AGENCIES Justin Bieber will reportedly plead guilty to reckless driving in order to settle his Miami driving under the influence (DUI) case.

The 20-year-old singer is to plead guilty to reckless driving after he was arrested in January for allegedly drag racing down the streets of Miami in the early hours of the morning.

The 'Baby' hitmaker was also charged with resisting arrested and driving without a valid licence, but it is believed those charges will be dropped if he pleads guilty, pays a fine and attends anger management classes.

A source told TMZ.com: ''Bieber will plead guilty to reckless driving and the other charges will be dismissed. he'll pay a fine and attend anger management classes. he will not be placed on probation.''

It is believed the settlement has taken so long because prosecutors allegedly wanted the troubled star to produce, star in and pay for an anti-drug PSA as well as attend a drugs and alcohol education course. however, Justin's lawyers allegedly resisted as they felt it was inappropriate as the hunk was reportedly neither drag racing or drunk on the night he was arrested in Miami. he did, however, test positive to marijuana.

Meanwhile, Justin's rapper friend Khalil Amir Sharieff, who was also arrested for DUI, will allegedly use the same plea but will not have to attend anger management classes.

The deal is expected to be entered in court in a few weeks.

TELETUBBIES TO RETURN WITH NEW EPISODES The Teletubbies are to return to CBeebies with a new series - the first produced since 2001. The BBC has ordered 60 new episodes of the show featuring Tinky Winky, Dipsy, Laa-Laa and Po. The series will be filmed on a replica set - instead of its original location in Warwickshire - and "enhanced

by CGI" to give it a more "contemporary look". Teletubbies ran for 365 episodes from March 1997 to January 2001 and became a worldwide phenomenon. The show has been broadcast in more than 120 countries in 45 languages. The commission comes after Canadian company DHX Media acquired Ragdoll Worldwide - which produced the original series - last September. The new episodes will be

made by UK production company Darrall Macqueen, who also make Baby Jake and the new Topsy and Tim series for CBeebies. "I think that now is the right time to create new episodes of this much-loved, iconic show for the

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current CBeebies audience," Kay Benbow, controller of CBeebies, said.

"Teletubbies is an enduringly popular series with our youngest viewers, although no new episodes have been made for over 10 years. "Early devel-

opment and test shoots have persuaded me that CBeebies viewers are in for a wonderful treat." Darrall Macqueen executive producer Maddy Darrall said: "To work on the new evolution of Teletubbies is like being handed the television crown jewels. "Teletubbies changed the landscape of children's television and remains a muchloved pre-school series. "Our creative focus is on respecting the legacy and the heritage of the original and giving it a little creative scrub-up and technological sparkle to match the viewing expectations of a new generation." Repeats of the original series are currently being shown on CBeebies. It is not known when the new episodes will be broadcast. VIA BBC

14 SPORTS

Saturday, 14 June, 2014

bangladEsH accusEs icc oF Failing to stoP FixEd matcHEs DHAkA

Edgy FEdErEr victorious in HallE HALLe WeStFALeN Agenciesz

Roger Federer got his Wimbledon preparations fully underway on the grasscourts of Halle on Thursday, but he looked out of sorts before finally edging Portugal’s Joao Sousa 6-7 (8/10), 6-4, 6-2 in a second-round tie. Playing for the first time since losing to Ernests Gulbis in the last 16 of the French Open, the six-time former winner of the German tournament started brightly but was soon on the back foot against the improving Sousa. There were no breaks of serve in the first set and it was Sousa who dominated the tie-break, clinching it on his fourth set point. Federer looked frustrated at times, but the match turned on the seventh game of the second set when Sousa’s level suddenly dipped allowing the Swiss great to pounce and secure his first break. From then on it was all Federer with a break of serve in the first game of the deciding set sending him safely on his way into the last eight. “I struggled a bit on return during a set and half,” said Federer. “Afterwards, it was better, more variation on the second serve.

FiFa bans bEckEnbauEr ovEr Qatar inQuiry rEjEction rIo De JANeIro Agencies

FIFA on Friday banned German football legend Franz Beckenbauer from any football-related activity for 90 days after he refused to speak to an inquiry into allegations that Qatar paid bribes to secure votes for its 2022 World Cup bid.

“Franz Beckenbauer was today provisionally banned from taking part in any football-related activity, at any level, for 90 days,” said a statement released by football's governing body.

The 68-year-old Beckenbauer, who won the World Cup as a player in 1974 and then as a coach in 1990, was on the FIFA executive board in 2010 when the 2022 tournament was awarded to Qatar. He has always refused to say who he voted for. Beckenbauer, known as the Kaiser, refused to cooperate with Michael Garcia the former US federal prosecutor who headed an investigation in the votes for the Qatar vote and another that awarded the 2018 World Cup to Russia. An international spotlight has fallen on the investigation following allegations reported by the Sunday Times newspaper that a former Qatar football boss paid more than five million dollars to get support for the emirate's bid.

b

Agencies

ANGLADESH has accused anti-corruption investigators from the International Cricket Council of allowing a match in a scandalplagued Twenty20 tournament to go ahead even though it knew it was fixed. A report from a special tribunal set up by the Bangladesh board said the ICC´s Anti Corruption and Security Unit (ACSU) was aware beforehand that a match in the Bangladesh Premier League was going to be fixed but decided to keep organisers in the dark rather than alert them. "The evidence is clear that the fixed match between DG (Dhaka Gladiators) and CK (Chittagong Kings) played in Chittagong on the 2 February 2013 was played with the consent of ACSU," the tribunal´s report said. "It is obvious that the focus of ACSU was on

gathering evidence and not on prevention of (the) fixed match," the report added. The report, a copy of which has been obtained by AFP, was handed to the ICC on June 8. The tribunal, headed by a retired judge, was set up by the board last September after the ICC brought charges against nine people over fixing.

Organisers had hired the ICC´s investigators to monitor the BPL after its inaugural edition in 2012 was tainted by similar allegations. The tribunal has subsequently convicted one of the owners of the Dhaka Gladiators of matchfixing, while three international players pleaded guilty over the 2013 scandal.

Former New Zealand international Lou Vincent pleaded guilty to breaching the ICC´s code of conduct for failing to tell authorities when a bookmaker approached him about fixing a match.

Former Bangladesh captain Mohammad Ashraful and Sri Lanka´s Kaushal Lokuarachchi have also pleaded guilty.

The report said Dhaka Gladiators coach Ian Pont alerted the ACSU that he had been approached by one of the team´s owners about fixing the February 2 match but was instructed to go ahead and play.ICC spokesman Sami Ul Hasan declined to comment on the report´s allegations. "We are reviewing the written judgement and have no comments to make at this stage," he

SWISS TRIP: MINISTRY DIPS INTO SPORTS BOARD FUNDS SportS DeSk Inter Provincial Coordination Ministry (IPC) directed the Pakistan Sports Board (PSB) Islamabad to re-appropriate an amount of Rs0.6 million from a fund for ‘Training and Coaching of Sportsmen’ in order to meet the expenses for a trip to Lausanne, Switzerland. The delegation planned a visit to Lausanne in order to resolve a conflict between the Pakistan Olympic Association (POA) and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and cost a reported Rs1.2 million, according to documents available with the Express Investigation Cell. According to a letter vide F.No 1-10/2012-DDS(S-I) the IPC

section officer made the request on June 6. The IPC secretary, as principal accounting officer, approved the transfer of the amount from a fund for training and coaching to one for ‘participation in international seminars, conferences or meetings’.

The two-member delegation making the trip to Lausanne included the secretary and additional secretary (sports wing) of the IPC and the visit was scheduled for the coming week. IPC Secretary Muhammad Ejaz Chaudhry confirmed that a delegation was scheduled to visit Lausanne on June 19, saying the visit is mandatory and approved by the prime minister. Even so, he added, funds are not allocated for the visit and hence the ministry approached the PSB. The letter was forwarded to the PSB director general on June 10.

According to sources, three delegations have made a similar trip to the IOC for the same purpose over the last two years. In 2012, a new body of the Pakistan Olympic Association (POA) was elected, but the IOC continues to recognise the representation of the former body.

Sources say the issue has remained unresolved and a divisive element within national sports associations and offices. “This time, we will try our best to resolve the issue as per law and policy,” Chaudhry said, referring to previous delegations.

Pakistan rEacH asian EvEnt QuartErs

kArACHI srAff report

Pakistan had a successful second day at the Asian Team Championship in Hong Kong as both the men and women’s teams registered convincing victories. In the morning session, Pakistan defeated South Korea 3-0.

Farhan Mehboob gave Pakistan a good start with a thumping 11-4, 1-6 and 12-10 win over Yoo Jae Jin, while Farhan Zaman doubled the lead with a 3-0 thrashing of Lee Seung Joon, winning by 13-11, 11-5 and 11-7. Even though Pakistan had already secured victory, Danish Atlas did not hold back as he demolished Hwang Joon Won in straight sets by 11-9, 11-2 and 11-9 In their second match of the day, the boys completed a 3-0 rout of Macau as again, Mehboob started off with a 3-0 win over Van Keng Hei. Nasir Iqbal defeated Steven Liu by 11-1, 11-6 and 112, while Zaman defeated Armando Amante 3-0 in straight games. They will now take on Iran in the quarter-final.

Meanwhile, the women’s team defeated China 2-1 after convincing victories from Maria Toor Pakay and Samar Anjum. Samar beat Duan Si Yu by 11-4, 11-4 and 11-5, while the lead was stretched by Maria as she won 3-1 against Li Dong Jin. In the only upset of the day for Pakistan, Muqaddas Ashraf lost the ceremonial third match in straight sets against Gu Jin Hue by 11-0, 11- 5 and 11-6.

A triumphant tapestry SportS DeSk Few New Zealand cricketers have exceeded expectations in their first Test as much as Mark Craig did. The Otago offspinner generated bounce and turn on a cooperative Sabina Park pitch to produce the country's best bowling figures on debut (8 for 188). He also hit a six from his maiden delivery - possibly a first. His debut might not have been to the standard of Lawrence Rowe (214 and 100 not out) or Narendra Hirwani (16 for 136) but it certainly ranks among the outliers on the expectation-versus-reality curve.

The evidence was in the build-up - Craig took 3 for 17 from nine overs in the practice two-dayer and 4 for 8 from four overs in the three-dayer - but it was downplayed as seizing on spin-friendly conditions. Even New Zealand coach Mike Hesson said: "He [Craig] couldn't have wished for a better pitch to bowl on but still created uncertainty for the batsmen. Hopefully the wicket for the second match will play flatter to challenge him more." By the time the first Test started Craig was the one doing the challenging. There was also a synergy between coach, captain and bowler. "Brilliant," Brendon McCullum said about Craig's effort. "He went about his work and was never fazed. Obviously the conditions were helpful but you've still got to be able to apply pres-

sure over a long period to get the rewards."

Craig appreciated the responsibility: "The big thing was the confidence Brendon and Mike gave me to do what I can do. Backing me was massive." All great spinners tend to experience an epiphany. For Shane Warne, it came midway through his third Test, in Sri Lanka, when he had taken one wicket and had a bowling average of 335. With Sri Lanka needing 31 runs to win chasing 181, Warne took three wickets in 13 balls without conceding a run, to eke out victory. Daniel Vettori's moment came in his fourth Test, against Sri Lanka in Hamilton in 1997.

He took nine wickets, including his first five-wicket bag in the second innings, to secure a 120-run win. It's rare for it to come instantly. Craig joined Stephen Fleming and Mathew Sinclair as New Zealanders to be awarded Man of the Match on debut. His display also raises questions.

Is Ish Sodhi the No. 1 fit spinner, given McCullum went to Craig as his first-change in both innings? Where does this leave Vettori's Test future? Craig needs to back this performance up, but selectors Hesson and Bruce Edgar should be taking a bow. After his selection Hesson said: "Mark has had a strong Plunket Shield, taking 22 wickets and his offspinners will be valuable against their [West Indies'] left-hand-heavy top order. He's been in our sights for some time." The comments now seem prescient - at the time Craig had 43 first-class wickets at 42.88. With Vettori's

ongoing injuries, Jeetan Patel's contractual obligations to Warwickshire, and Bruce Martin's lack of consistent penetration, Sodhi was expected to inherit the crown of the country's premier Test spinner. In a New Zealand rarity across seven Tests, he hasn't played in a losing team but is yet to put in a pivotal performance. Craig showed the way, although Sodhi's lbw of Shivnarine Chanderpaul was a key wicket in the second innings as part of 3 for 42.

Craig's role was part of a triumphant tapestry. Tim Southee reinforced his claim to the bowling "spearhead" title with six wickets for 51 runs from 25.2 overs, including Chris Gayle twice caught behind. Tom Latham exuded solidity in his second Test - and first opening with 83 and 73. Conscientious and stable, he spent more than four hours at the crease in each innings. Latham, along with Kane Williamson, Jimmy Neesham and BJ Watling, who stepped up with fifties or better, showed there is more to New Zealand's batting than Ross Taylor and McCullum. They increased the workload for opposition intelligence. Watling remained perhaps the most underrated performer. He conceded four byes across 129 overs and further enhanced his record as the only New Zealand wicketkeeper to take eight catches or more in three Tests. Ian Smith, Brendon McCullum and Warren Lees did it once. Watling's first innings of 89 was also pivotal in the 201-run sixth wicket stand with Neesham.

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told AFP in an email.

The tribunal said ICC investigators were obligated to inform the BCB of any wrongdoing. "The chairman of ACSU, Sir Ronald Flanagan, expressed his regret about this failure to inform BCB of this significant matter and made a personal unreserved apology on behalf of ACSU for not involving BCB at that stage.

Saturday, 14 June, 2014

mEssi, ronaldo to viE For EtErnal grEatnEss rIo De JANeIro

o

Agencies

NE is the world’s best known footballer, the other the most valuable. They have scored the same number of Champions League goals and are loaded down with titles. But superstars Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi are stuck in a World Cup dead end.

Between them, Messi and Ronaldo have monopolised the past six world player of the year awards.

But each have attended the last two World Cups and failed to even get near the trophy. Messi has scored just one goal at the finals; Ronaldo only two.

Now though the weight of Argentinian hopes rests on Messi’s slight shoulders. Portugal are going to be desperate for Ronaldo’s goals to get out of one of the most difficult groups in the contest. The Brazil World Cup could finally decide whether the name of Messi or Ronaldo is etched into the football hall of fame alongside greats like Pele, Diego Maradona and Zinedine Zidane. It is the competition which transforms reputations.

What sets them apart from the pack: Messi captured three Champions League wins with Barcelona while Ronaldo responded by adding a crown for Real Madrid last month to his earlier success with Manchester United.

Both average more than 50 goals a year in all

bakElants sPrints to win, FroomE survivEs crasH to kEEP lEad

competitions for their clubs. Ronaldo is the world’s most recognisable and marketable footballer, according to the Repucom, a sports marketing research company. The case for the elevation of Messi and Ronaldo to the almost deified heights of Pele and Maradona would surely be unanswerable if either were to lift the trophy on July 13 in Rio. “Both players are incredibly great athletes and both have outstanding qualities,” said Ottmar Hitzfeld, the respected German coach who will be in charge of Switzerland at the World Cup. “Both can win a match in their club or national team on their own.”

But the World Cup, high pressure over one month, is

vastly different from the Spanish league and Champions League duties which Messi and Ronaldo so brilliantly execute week in, week out.

Maradona is adamant that “Messi doesn’t have to win the World Cup to be the best in the world”.

For the 1986 world champion, “one world title more or one less can’t take anything away from anything Messi has achieved to be where he is today”.

With Messi having enjoyed a less than stellar campaign with Barcelona this season – and having seen Ronaldo take the Fifa Ballon d’Or for the world’s best player away from him – the World Cup is his chance to crown a loaded career trophy haul.

NORTH FIT TO FACE SPRINGBOKS SportS DeSk

Ferrari 'behind the curve' says boss SportS DeSk Ferrari is "behind the curve" in developing its Formula 1 car this year despite making constant improvements, according to team principal Marco Mattiacci. In Canada, the team produced its least competitive showing since the former CEO of Ferrari North America took over the squad, with Fernando Alonso qualifying seventh and only on course for a ninth placed finish until a spate of late retirements elevated him to sixth. Both Alonso and teammate Kimi Raikkonen struggled for speed despite an upgrade pakage introduced ahead of the race.Mattiacci said Ferrari has improved the F14T, but was being outdeveloped by rival teams. "We were expecting Canada to be a tough race," Mattiacci "We have seen some small

improvements overall on the car, but we are not improving better than the others. "That is the secret of Formula 1 - you need to be ahead of the curve. We are not." Alonso said the high temperatures in Canada had compromised Ferrari's update package. "We did improve the aero performance, [but] there were some parts we didn't use due to the temperatures," Alonso said. "On the engine side, there were minimal changes, so I don't think the step there was something we could feel."

Nevertheless, the double world champion backed Mattiacci to turn the team's dwindling fortunes around.

"Since the arrival of Marco Mattiacci, I think things are moving in the right direction," Alonso added.

"He has a good vision and a very clever approach.

We're just going to get stronger and stronger."

SportS DeSk Jan Bakelants earned a breakaway victory on the sixth stage of the Criterium du Dauphine, but the real drama came late on in the peloton where Tour de France champion Froome crashed on a high-speed descent. The Team Sky rider was forced to change bikes, but worked his way back to the peloton which had slowed after hearing that the race leader had crashed. Cycling Froome opens Dauphine in style by winning first stage TT Eurosport A bruised Froome remains 12 seconds ahead of Spain's Alberto Contador, who will be one of his main rivals at the Tour de France which starts in England next month. "I had a bit of a crash in the final. Obviously, it is quite painful, but I was OK to finish the stage," Froome told Team Sky's website. "It looks OK, I am just a little bit grazed for tomorrow. It is more just my hip, elbow and shoulder. "More than anything, I just want to thank the other riders for neutralising the race. That is really big of them - good sportsmanship."

Bakelants (Omega Quick-Step) had broken away with a group of 16 riders none of whom were a threat in the general classification. By the finish it was just Bakelants and Dutchman Lieuwe Westra (Astana) in a sprint to the finish.

SPORTS 15

Wales' hopes of beating South Africa in their own backyard for the first time have received a boost after George North was declared fit for the first Test in Durban. The 22-year-old Northampton wing had been a doubt after being struck down by a virus which left him unable to train for most of the week. But the British and Irish Lions star took part in final preparations at Kings Park on Friday, and will face the Springboks. Assistant coach Rob Howley said: "George trained this morning, he came through it very well. "I am delighted to say he is raring to go even though obviously it has been a difficult and different week for him. "But our medical team have been taking care of him, he has been hydrated, he has had some fuel onboard. "Having not trained for a couple of days he is feeling a little rough, but he has got time to go and he is raring to go. "South Africa will remember his debut against them in 2010 when he scored two tries. He is a world-class player, and you need your worldclass players against a side of the calibre of the Springboks." But Howley admits North is unlikely to be able to last a full 80 minutes, meaning Wales will need to shuffle their back-three resources at some stage. "We will take the decision from the player and I am sure George will communicate with us in terms of how he is feeling after 50-60 minutes. "The one thing in international rugby is you have to be flat out, that is part of the intensity and the pressure and it will be even greater on Saturday." Howley captained the only Welsh side to have beaten the Springboks, leading his side to a 29-19 win in the first game at the Millennium Stadium in 1999. But the former scrum-half reckons coaching a Welsh side to beat South Africa would top that achievement. "It would mean everything to me, much more than as a player," he said. "As a player there is a selfishness you have about professional rugby. It is almost a case of me, myself and I. "When you become a coach it is about the team and the players and giving them the best opportunity to perform. "We feel we have trained very well this week. "We started the tour with a win against the Eastern Province Kings on Tuesday. We know it is a step up on Saturday but we are really looking forward to a great challenge, which is what you always get when you face South Africa."

BSB: Byrne, Brookes lead Snetterton practice SportS DeSk Rapid Solicitors Kawasaki’s Shane Byrne set the pace in the opening MCE British Superbike free practice session at the Snetterton, closely followed by the Milwaukee Yamaha backed machine of Josh Brookes.

The former triple champ ended the morning with a 1’48.900, and was nine tenth off his lap record at the track. Brookes left it till his final lap to make his way into the top two times, but was four tenths off the lap set by Byrne – a 1’49.270. GBmoto Kawasaki’s Chris Walker completed the top three.

Byrne was the first rider to go to the top of the timesheets after only two laps with a 1’50.053 after ten minutes of lappery. Millsport Ducati’s Jakub Smrz went into the provisional front row position with 30 minutes remaining, with a 1’50.214, pushing Milwaukee Yamaha’s Josh Brookes to third.

Honda Racing’s development rider Julien Da

Costa experienced his first official BSB race weekend event of the year and after successfully testing his bike at the 300 circuit a few months ago. He started his first FP1 in solid fashion and was second quickest - after a 1’49.950 with 17 minutes left on the clock. He ended the session fourth fastest. Buildbase BMW’s Ryuichi Kiyonari left it till his 13th lap to make his way into the top two but was still seven tenths off the pace of pace-setter Byrne, the Japanese rider finished the outing rounding off the top five. Tyco Suzuki’s John Hopkins moved up to fourth fastest with less than ten minutes left of the opening session, but the Californian was soon pushed back to fifth when Walker went to second on the timing screens after a 1’49.527 after 44 minutes. But the American ended the session in the gravel as he fell at Montreal The Anvil Hire TAG Racing machine of Richard Cooper was under investigation after a technical problem out on track. He wasn’t the only rider to experienced a

CMYK

technical problem, Smrz also came to a stop just as the chequered flag appeared and ended the morning eighth fastest, with Bathams Patric Muff and Milwaukee Yamaha’s Tommy Bridewell rounding off the top ten

SPORTS Saturday, 14 June, 2014

NETHERLANDS CRUSH SPAIN 5-1

2014 fifa world cuptm match Schedule

Reigning champions humiliated as Robin van Persie inspires Dutch to 5-1 thrashing in Salvador

J

sports desk

uST like the last time, Spain were on the end of a display of Dutch brutality, but Total Football replaced total thuggery as Louis van Gaal's team humiliated the world champions in Salvador.

Vicente del Bosque described Holland's treatment of his Spain players as 'brutal' during the 2010 World Cup final, but Dutch goals replaced fouls on this occasion.

Manchester united may have to wait longer than they expected before Van Gaal begins work at Old Trafford.

Having masterminded a 5-1 victory over the world champions in this World Cup Group B opener, Van Gaal will fancy his chances of taking Holland all the way to the final on July 13 after Robin van Persie and Arjen Robben both scored twice in a dazzling performance.

Spain were lackluster, with age appearing to have caught up with Del Bosque's team, and they must now beat Chile in their next game to avoid a group stage elimination in Brazil.

With the two teams meeting for the first time since the Battle of Johannesburg in 2010 - Spain were hardly likely to accept any invitation to contest a 'friendly' against the Dutch after being kicked off the pitch in Soccer City - Van Gaal had gone into this game by defending the belligerent approach of Bert van Marwijk's team four years ago.

Van Gaal's insistence that the physical challenge of any football encounter was as important as the tech-

nique and skill of the players involved had its merits, but it also hinted at Holland's readiness to apply similar methods against the world champions in Salvador, if not apply them quite so brutally.

But nonetheless, the Dutch were quick to lay down their marker, with Ron Vlaar conceding the first foul of the game with a foul on Diego Costa just 18 seconds after kick-off.

Nigel de Jong proceeded to plunge an elbow into the ribs of Sergio Busquets and Wesley Sneijder clipped the Barcelona midfielder from behind as the Dutch served early notice of their determination to test Spain physically. The tactic did little to put Del Bosque's players off their stride, however, and it was left to Holland's more eye-catching qualities to find the first chink in Spain's armour in the first-half.

With eight minutes on the clock, Robben's sublime defence-splitting pass found Sneijder 25 yards from goal after full-back Jordi Alba had played the midfielder onside. But as the Galatasaray player bore down on Iker Casillas, the Spain goalkeeper cut an imposing figure and produced a crucial save with his right hand to deny Sneijder an opening goal for the Dutch.

It was a bad miss and Spain gradually began to apply pressure in an effort to punish their opponents for their wastefulness.

With Costa offering pace, movement and physical presence up front, Spain were able to threaten Holland's three-man defence with an array of passes to the Atletico Madrid forward,

who was playing to the backdrop of boos, jeers and derogatory chants from the Brazilian supporters inside the Arena Fonte Nova.

Costa's decision to pledge his allegiance to Spain, less than twelve months after making the first of two friendly appearances for Brazil, clearly rankled with the natives and his every touch drew a cacophony of abuse from the crowd.

But after allowing Vlaar to produce a block to deny him an early strike on goal, Costa delivered for Spain on 26 minutes when he drew a foul from Stefan de Vrij to earn a penalty.

Costa certainly made the most of the Feyenoord defender's sliding challenge, but he did enough to convince referee Nicola Rizzoli to point to the spot and Xabi Alonso stepped up to beat goalkeeper Jasper Cillessen from 12 yards.

Having lost to Switzerland in Durban in their World Cup opener four years ago, Spain were certainly making a better start to the defence of their crown.

And they should have doubled their lead before half-time when David Silva, moments after being body-checked by De Vrij, chipped over the crossbar after being released

by Andres Iniesta.

It proved a costly miss, however, with Van Persie hauling the Dutch level in the final minute of the firsthalf with an incredible diving header.

Daley Blind's raking pass from the halfway line appeared ambitious, but Van Persie threw himself at the ball and was able to direct a looping

header over Casillas from 15 yards.

It was a goal worthy of a wild celebration and Van Persie wheeled away and sprinted to Van Gaal before high-fiving the coach on the touchline.

Van Persie's goal injected the Dutch with the belief that they could avenge their World Cup final defeat of four years ago and they emerged in the second-half clearly the hungrier team.

Robben, Blind and Sneijder tormented the Spanish defence and Van Persie's movement proved too much for the static and slow Gerard Pique and Sergio Ramos at the heart of Spain's back four.

Xavi and Iniesta could not retain the ball and Busquets was nullified by De Jong and Jonathan Guzman and it took the Dutch just eight minutes of the second-half before they were rewarded for their dominance when Robben made it 2-1.

Blind, a gem of a player down the left, sent over another stunning pass, and Robben danced around Pique before shooting past Casillas.

De Vrij added a controversial third when he headed in at the far post, following Van Persie's heavy challenge on Casillas, before the united striker made it four by pouncing on a mistake by the shell-shocked goalkeeper.

Spain, now humiliated, then suffered a killer blow when Robben danced around Casillas to make it 5-1 on 79 minutes.

Game over, perhaps an era over for Spain, who now face a battle merely to stay in the competition.

Sat 14 Jun 09:00 pm colomBia

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coSta rica

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All times are in Pakistan Standard Time More on FIFA.com

England’s thrEE stEps to bEating italy

Peralta strikes as Mexico outclass sorry Cameroon sports desk Oribe Peralta scored a second-half winner in a 1-0 victory over Cameroon in rain-lashed Natal on Friday in a match which once again raised questions over the standard of refereeing at the World Cup. Miguel Herrera's Mexico side dominated throughout but went in for the halftime break feeling aggrieved after seeing what looked like two perfectly valid goals chalked off for offside.

Those decisions did little to appease a Mexican media which cried foul after seeing Group A opponents Brazil awarded a questionable penalty in a 3-1 win over Croatia on Thursday.

But against Cameroon, whose preWorld Cup was marred by a bitter row over bonuses, Mexico were a class apart. After a cagey start at a sodden Estadio das Dunas, Giovani Dos Santos appeared to have opened Mexico's account when he first-timed Miguel Layun's delivery past Cameroon 'keeper Charles Itandje inside the

quarter hour. But despite replays showing the Villarreal striker to be onside, the goal was chalked off by Colombian referee Wilmar Roldan.

Cameroon did not sight goal until minutes later when Eric Choupo-Moting tapped past 'keeper Guillermo Ochoa after the ball had been headed back into the box following a corner only to be ruled off

side. Cameroon eventually settled and Stephane M'Bia flashed a header wide from Alexandre Song's corner on 18 minutes. The Africans spurned a far better chance when Tottenham defender Benoit AssouEkotto finished off a mazy run down the left to deliver for Samuel Eto'o, but the Chelsea striker saw his first-time shot flash wide. Mex-

ico remained a constant threat and when Choupo-Moting brought down Francisco Rodriguez to hand Mexico a free kick the Cameroon defence was caught unawares.

With the goal at their mercy, Rafael Marquez and Hector Moreno collided at the back post to see the ball go wide. Mexico had the ball in the net for a second time when Dos Santos flashed a header past Itandje at the back post following a corner, although it too was waved off by Roldan.

Cameroon coach Volker Finke replaced defender Cedric Djeugoue with Dany Nounkeu for the start of the second half, but the African side were soon under pressure. Barely a minute after the restart Itandje was forced to block from Peralta as the Santos Laguna striker jumped on to Dos Santos's smart dink. At the other end, Choupo-Moting saw a deflected shot come off the the foot of defender Francisco Rodriguez as Ochoa collected with ease.

JOY FOR BRAZIL AS WORLD CUP OPENS sAo pAULo Agencies Brazil launched the World Cup with an emotion-fuelled 3-1 victory over Croatia on Thursday as an opening day which began with violent clashes gave way to an outpouring of joyful celebrations.

Barcelona superstar Neymar scored in each half as Brazil recovered from conceding an early Marcelo own goal to set up a win before hordes of golden-shirted fans at the 61,600 Corinthians Arena in Sao Paulo.

Chelsea midfielder Oscar put the seal on the win with a late strike from distance to trigger delirium.

The host nation's Group A victory was greeted by an explosion of fireworks across Sao Paulo, a sharp contrast to several hours earlier when riot police fired tear gas and stun grenades to

disperse angry protests.

But a largely free-flowing tournamentopener was shrouded in controversy, with Brazil's second coming courtesy of a dubious penalty when Croatia defender Dejan Lovren was harshly adjudged to have shoved Fred over.

The hosts, chasing a record sixth World Cup, had also enjoyed a degree of good fortune in the first half when Neymar received only a yellow card for elbowing Croatia's playmaker Luka Modric.

Moments later Neymar scored Brazil's equaliser to settle home nerves after Marcelo's 11th-minute own goal.

Lovren was furious with the performance of Japanese referee Yuichi Nishimura, branding his display a “scandal. “ “Two billion people I think saw that it was not a penalty. I didn't touch him,” Lovren said.

“It wasn't a mistake, it was a scandal.”

Published by Arif Nizami at Plot # 7, Al-Baber Centre, F/8 Markaz, Islamabad.

CMYK

sports desk The stifling humidity of the Amazonian jungle awaits European giants England and Italy on Saturday night, with the teams set to do battle for the first time since a Euro 2012 quarter final that the Azzurri dominated from start to finish. Somewhat fatalistically, England yet again eventually succumbed to defeat on penalties, but had been lucky to take the game to the lottery of spot-kicks at all. This time around, Italy will field a similar team, and Roy Hodgson thus has the benefit of being able to learn from previous mistakes. The main question for England is probably going to be how to stop the imperious Andrea Pirlo, sitting deep at the base of midfield, dictating the pace of the game with metronomic consistency. In the clash in Kiev, Pirlo had an incredible 155 touches (though that was over 120 minutes), making 131 passes and created six chances on his way to WhoScored rating of 8.87 and the man of the match award.

Wayne Rooney proved incapable of subduing the regista in that game, so his deployment out wide in a recent friendly was seen as an attempt by Hodgson to look for a way to disarm Pirlo by alternative means.