E paper pdf (18 1 2017) isb

CMYK

wednesday, 18 January, 2017 I 19 rabi-us-sani, 1438 I rs 19.00 I Vol VII no 200 I 16 pages I Islamabad Edition

Modi turns guns on Pakistan g

tells PaKistaN to distaNce itselF From terror iF it waNts dialogue

g

says NeighBours who suPPort violeNce, exPort terror staNd isolated

g

says he had visited lahore, But iNdia aloNe caNNot walK the Path oF Peace

woN’t tolerate exterNal Pressure oN iwt, says deFeNce miNister STORIES ON PAGE 03 panaMaGatE hEarInG

‘Pm isn’t seeking immunity’ g

But that’s what the PetitioNers have Based their case oN, says Pm’s couNsel

g

maryam says she is Not dePeNdeNt oF her Father siNce her marriage

IMran says nawaz wants IMMUnIty froM corrUptIon, fraUd Pti’s evideNce is No evideNce: Pml-N STORIES ON PAGE 02

Government, opposition reach an impasse on military courts’ extension STORY ON PAGE 04

Britain will leave EU single market as May sets aim for ‘hard Brexit’

Nigeria mistakenly bombs refugee camp, kills more than 100: official

STORY ON PAGE 02

STORY ON PAGE 02

in davos, Pm will showcase Pakistan’s economic success Fatemi says Pm will discuss Plight oF Kashmiris with uN secretary geNeral oN sideliNes oF weF STORIES ON PAGES 03 & 04

02 NEWS

Wednesday, 18 January, 2017

PANAMA PAPERS LEAKS

‘PM is Not sEEkiNg iMMUNity’ ISLAMABAD

o

SHAH NAWAZ MOHAL

N the 10th day of Panamagate Case hearing, Prime Minister’s Counsel Makhdoom Ali Khan told the Supreme Court bench that it is parliament that makes laws while it is courts that interpret them.

He was arguing for fourth consecutive day.

A five-member larger bench of the apex court, headed by Justice Asif Saeed Khan Khosa, resumed hearing on Tuesday in the petitions filed by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) and Awami Muslim League (AML).

Justice Khosa said that the business of parliament can be discussed in the court, as the court has decided before that the speeches in parliament can be used against members as evidence. ‘British Parliament in a decision has ruled that corruption does not have parliamentary exemption,’ he remarked. Justice Khosa also pointed out that according to Article 68 of Constitution, the parliament has been barred to discuss conduct of any judge of higher judiciary.

ExEMptIOn UnDER ARtIclE 248: Makhdoom agreed with the court that articles 68 and 204 bar discussing conduct of judges and if a member par-

Britain to leave EU’s single market: PM May LONDON AGENCIES

Prime Minister Theresa May on Tuesday said Britain will leave the EU’s single market in order to restrict immigration in a clean break from the bloc, but lawmakers can vote on the final deal.

“Brexit must mean control of the number of people coming from Europe, and that is what we will deliver. What I am proposing cannot mean membership of the single market,” May said during a highly-anticipated speech at London’s Lancaster House.

She added that Britain would seek a trade deal giving “the greatest possible access” to the market on its departure. The prime minister also announced that any divorce deal with the remaining EU members must be approved by votes in both chambers of Britain’s parliament.

Britain has two years to negotiate a breakup deal once May triggers Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty, officially declaring the country’s intention to quit, or face leaving with no agreement. May has promised to trigger Article 50 by the end of March, and said that she believed a final settlement and trade deal could be simultaneously negotiated within the timeframe.

Nigeria mistakenly bombs refugee camp, kills more than 100: official A Nigerian state official says an air force fighter jet on a mission against Boko Haram extremists has mistakenly bombed a refugee camp, killing more than 100 refugees and wounding aid workers.

The Borno state government official is helping to coordinate the evacuation of the wounded. The official spoke Tuesday on condition of anonymity because he is not authorised to speak to the media.

Military commander Maj Gen Lucky Irabor confirmed the accidental bombardment in northeast Rann, near the border with Cameroon. The general says among the wounded are Nigerians working for Doctors Without Borders and the International Committee of the Red Cross. This is believed to be the first time Nigeria’s military has admitted to making such a mistake. AGENCIES

liament discusses the matter on the floor of the house, he won’t have the exemption. However, ‘President, Prime Minister and Governors have constitutional exemption. PM has it to run the affairs of the State,’ he argued. Makhdoom said that the PM has asked for exemption under Article 248 (Protection to President, Governor, Ministers, etc) not under Article 66 (Privileges of Members).

Continuing his arguments, Makhdoom Ali Khan referred to Article 66 of the Constitution that gives legal protection to the proceedings of parliament wherein it is clearly mentioned that the proceedings of parliament could not be called into question by any court.

He contended that his client had not made any wrong statement on the floor of the house and even if he had, he enjoyed immunity. When the court asked him if the immunity given to the members of parliament could be withdrawn, Makhdoom Ali Khan replied that parliament could withdraw the immunity but even then the apex court will have to give its verdict in accordance with the law on the issue of disqualification of prime minister for his speeches.

The court asked Makhdoom if the prime minister had not given a wrong statement in parliament, why he was

seeking immunity. When Justice Ijazul Ahsan asked Khan if he was contradicting the statement of his client, he said he was not contradicting the statement of prime minister but stressed that the court should also look into Article 66 that gives legal protection to proceedings of parliament. pM’S SpEEcH IS nOt cOvERED

by ARtIclE 19: PM’s counsel Makhdoom Ali Khan pleaded that article 19 guaranteed freedom of expression to everyone.

On this, Justice Asif Khosa reminded him that his case doesn’t fall under article 19 and he should confine his arguments to the case. Article 19 gives you the right to express and you are seeking immunity, he observed. We are not prosecuting the prime minister on his speech, Justice Khosa said. The prime minister’s lawyer stated that his client has not sought immunity under Article 248 and his focus on this matter is because the petitioners have based their arguments on PM’s speech in the National Assembly.

Justice Sheikh Azmat Saeed observed that another allegation on PM is that his speech was not in accordance with facts and they contradict each other.

Makhdoom read excerpts from PM’s speech in the parliament and argued that

PM was only giving the details of his children’s properties abroad. ‘The speech contained nothing on whose basis he could be disqualified,’ he said while adding that even if there are contradictions between PM’s speech and statement by his children, he can’t be disqualified on this count by the court.

Justice Khosa however observed that the court can view speeches to interpret law. ‘The exemption granted to speeches in parliament extends to the point that courts don’t usually view them to interpret law,’ contended Makhdoom.

Justice Khosa asked Makhdoom as to who is telling the truth: PM or his children. He reminded him that that the question before the court is not one of privilege or exemption. ‘We are trying to understand an issue brought before us,’ he remarked.

Concluding his arguments for the day, Makhdoom said that no evidence has been brought before the court that links his client to mills in Dubai.

MARyAM SUbMItS DOcUMEntS: Maryam Nawaz on Tuesday, through her counsel Shahid Hamid, submitted additional documents before the bench, refuting the allegations of PTI. In her application moved under Supreme Court Rules of 1980, she had at-

tached certified copies of her wealth and bank statements and relevant record to clarify her position.

Placing record under the relevant laws, the bench is prayed to dismiss the pending petitions and issue appropriate order against the petitioner for falsely maligning the respondent.

Maryam Nawaz in her plea stated that she had never been dependent on her father after her marriage in December 1992.

The non-agriculture and agriculture income during the last five tax years (2012 to 2016) stood around Rs 39,174,184. She further said that she continued to live with her husband and three children after her marriage. She also submitted her tax details for the past five years. In 2012, she had filed Rs2,314,917 as income tax, Rs6,517,504 in 2013, Rs8,872,742 in 2014, Rs9,340,243 in 2015 and Rs12,128,778 in 2016.

Maryam Nawaz’s reply stated that five homes comprise the Raiwind Estate which she said belongs to her paternal grandmother. Around 45.5 acres of 48 acres are under her grandmother’s supervision, the reply said.

The costs on Shamim Agricultural Farm are jointly paid, the reply said, of which Maryam Nawaz paid Rs6,000,000 in 2014 and 2015.

Nawaz wants immunity from corruption, fraud, says Imran PTI CHIEF DENIES HE TENDERED APOLOGY TO ECP ISLAMABAD ONLINE

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf chief Imran Khan said on Tuesday that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif wanted immunity from corruption, lies and fraud, but his address in parliament ran contrary to the facts. Talking to media on the Supreme Court premises after the Panamagate hearing, Khan said he had not apologised to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) and that all such media reports were baseless.

“I have not tendered any apology to the EC and all such media reports are unfounded. “The prime minister had no idea that he would be held accountable in the Supreme Court,” he added.

He said that the Prime Minister had read from a written text in the parliament, he had not spoken extempore,

CASE TO BE WITHDRAWN IF NAWAZ SHOWS MONEY TRAIL: SHEIKH RASHEED ISLAMABAD: Awami Muslim League (AML) Chief Sheikh Rasheed Ahmad has said that if Prime Minister (PM) Nawaz showed his money trail in the Panama Papers case, then we would withdraw his case from the Supreme Court. He said this while talking to the media outside the Supreme Court.

Sheikh underlined that if the Sharif family did not explain the money trail leading to Panama, then he would keep chasing it as long as they lived. He said that thieves are ruling the country at present, and added that he was “with the lawyers on the issue of the colony.” “What Nawaz Sharif says in the assembly contradicts what he says in the Supreme Court. The day that Nawaz speaks the truth will be his last day in politics,” Sheikh Rasheed said. ONLINE

and so his speech could not be ignored during proceedings of the Panama Leaks case.

“Initially he said all of the family worked together. Now he is saying they are all separate entities,” he added.

During the hearing, Prime Minister’s counsel Makhdoom Ali Khan had

clarified that the PM had not sought immunity under Article 248 of the constitution. “The speech could not be presented as evidence in the case”, he had argued. Khan also expressed solidarity with the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) after its lawyers stopped political leaders from entering

the Supreme Court here on Tuesday.

The SCBA lawyers had established a cordon, and were demanding an NOC for land acquisition of a housing society. “I stand with the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA). All the pledges made with them should be fulfilled,” Khan said. Earlier, PTI Leader Shafqat Mahmood and the Protocol Officer for the State Minister for Information and Broadcasting Marryam Aurangzeb were stopped by the lawyers from entering the Supreme Court.

SHAH MEMOOD QURESHI: Senior PTI leader Shah Mehmood Qureshi said the press release issued by the Prime Minister’s House and PML-N’s counsel’s arguments in the Panamagate case were in conflict with each other.

He said that the PM’s House press release stated he was not seeking immunity on the one hand, while on the other hand arguments of the counsel for PM focussed on Article 66 wherein immunity for MP was explained.

He said that cross questioning was continuing since the last three days but no cross questioning could be made on PM’s speech in the House.

PTI’s evidence is no evidence: PML-N ASIF SAYS PTI FILED CASE ON BASIS OF NEWSPAPER CLIPPINGS, INTERNET FINDINGS ISLAMABAD StAff rEpOrt

Minister for Water and Power Khawaja Muhammad Asif said Tuesday the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) had filed the Panama Papers case on the basis of newspaper clippings and Internet findings.

Talking to media persons outside the Supreme Court along with Minister for Railways Khawaja Saad Rafique, Asif said the politics of the PTI chief would come to an end following the judgment on the Panama Papers case.

He asserted that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif had not sought any immunity from the court.

The minister said that the politics of Imran Khan was not based on principles but was in fact aimed at keeping himself in media.

“Now the political career of Imran Khan will not last,” he said, adding that Nawaz Sharif would become the prime minister for the fourth time by securing victory in the next general elections.

Speaking to media, Railway Minister Saad Rafique said the PTI chairman changed his stance so frequently that even a chameleon did not change its colour that often.

“They abuse us. Now they should listen to our speech”, said Rafique as the PTI leaders listened in the background while Imran

CMYK

MARRIYUM ASKS IMRAN KHAN TO APOLOGISE TO NATION FOR TELLING LIES Khan just kept smiling.

Speaking on her turn, Minister of State for Information, Broadcasting and National Heritage Marriyum Aurangzeb said Imran Khan should apologise to the nation for telling lies and doing politics of anarchy during the past three years.

The minister said that several portions of Imran’s petition were read in the court, on which the PTI counsel did not present any argument and not only his legal team but Imran Khan himself had retreated on those portions of the petition.

She reiterated that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif had not sought immunity in the court, and if he had, the case

would not have been contested in the Supreme Court.

She said the law which applies on the masses and members of parliament, the same law applies to the prime minister.

Marriyum said that in fact it was Imran who sought immunity in the Election Commission by saying that he was not answerable for what he had done before the elections.

PML-N leader Daniyal Aziz said the PTI chief had hurled allegations but he did not present any evidence in the court. He said the evidence which PTI had presented in the press conferences and talk shows, could not be presented it in the court as evidence.

Wednesday, 18 January, 2017

NEWS HAWKISH POLITICS CONTINUES

‘Walk aWay FroM tError’ C NEWS DESK

ONTINUING with his hawkish politics, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday asked Pakistan to “walk away from terror” if it wants to establish amicable relations with India, reported.

The Indian PM was speaking at the inauguration of the second edition of the Raisina Dialogue, an annual conference held in New Delhi, envisioned to be India’s flagship conference on geopolitics and geo-economics.

In his speech, he said Pakistan must walk away from terror if it wants to walk towards dialogue with India.

“Those in our neighbours who support violence, hatred and export terror stand isolated and ignored,” Modi said.

Relations between the two nuclear states have deteriorated over the past

MODI TELLS PAKISTAN IT IS A CONDITION TO HAVE DIALOGUE WITH INDIA

few years. They have often stood against each other on issues like Kashmir, cross-border terrorism, Indus Waters Treaty, attacks in Pathankot and Uri and others.

India has also declared that it will isolate Pakistan in the international community, a claim that seems to have no effect as prove. On the other hand, US President-elect Donald Trump has not yet announced his official policy on the subcontinent or individual countries.

Hawkish statements from Indian politicians and government officials have become a routine matter as its military leaders recently said that they would carry out a ‘surgical strike’ in

Pakistan if needed. Islamabad reacted sharply to this statement when its Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said that if India tries to conduct any so-called surgical strike. the other day condemning the statement of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi about attributing terrorism to Pakistan, and reiterated there will be no compromise on defence and sovereignty of the country.

Pakistan’s Adviser to Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz said that India’s attitude of no-dialogue policy is unreasonable, and that “ to establish peace with India”.

He said, “My vision for our neighbourhood led me to invite leaders of all

SAARC neighbours including Pakistan for my swearing in.”

“I had also travelled to Lahore but India alone cannot walk the path of peace,” the Indian premier added.

Emphasising the importance of security in India’s “neighbourhood”, he said, “Security of our citizens is of paramount importance [but] self-interest alone is not in our culture or behaviour.”“A thriving well-integrated neighbourhood is my dream,” Modi added.

He said ‘non-state actors are significant contributors to the spread of challenges we face’. Modi also played down India’s deteriorating relationship with China, saying having differences between two “large neighbouring powers” is not “unnatural”.

“In the management of our relationship and for peace and progress, we need to show sensitivity and respect for our core concerns,” he added.

Pakistan won’t tolerate external pressure on IWT, says Kh Asif ISLAMABAD App

Minister for Defence, and Water and Power Khawaja Muhammad Asif Tuesday said Pakistan would not accept any external pressure on Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) reached with India in 1960 for distribution of water between the two countries.

“Each and every clause of the IWT should be followed by both signatories in its letter and spirit,” he said while talking to media persons after addressing a national seminar.

The seminar titled “Hydro Politics around Pakistan: Reassessing the Efficacy of IWT” was organised by the Institute of Strategic Studies, Research and Analysis (ISSRA) here at the National Defence University (NDU).

Commenting on India’s latest move to build Ratle Dam on the River Chenab after Baglihar and Kishanganga projects, the minister said Pakistan did an extensive exercise in one and half years over the issue.

“Pakistan’s case is stronger than that of India’s and we would safeguard our national interests at every cost,” he asserted.

Answering a question, the minister underlined the need for conserving water, electricity and gas, highlighting the importance of developing

habit of conservation at every level.

In the existing system, he said, Pakistan had sufficient water resources to meet its needs but “we will have to end the culture of wastage”.

Replying to another question, Khawaja Asif said around 6,500 MW electricity would be added in the national grid from April to December this year.

The electricity would be coming from five power generation plants, out of which two are coal-fired and three LNG-based.

“This will help eliminate the power shortages in peak summer season,” he said, adding that an additional 3,500 MW electricity would be added in the system from other resources by the end of the current year.

He expressed confidence that the commitment made by the prime minister with regard to overcoming load shedding in the given time would be fulfilled.

Earlier addressing participants of the seminar, Khawaja Asif said the waters regime as envisaged in the IWT continued to take the brunt of Indian mindset and their inclination to interfere with the waters exclusively reserved for Pakistan.

However, he said, the treaty was an instrument which could avoid wars, so Pakistan’s focus remained on implementation of the treaty in letter and spirit.

“The question of upper and lower riparian is essentially a misnomer in the IWT context. In the first place, Pakistan needs to stick to the treaty while emphasising on its true implementation. Secondly, we need to keep in mind that the country’s water security dilemma is accentuated in the absence of an effective water storage capacity, water conservation and management strategy,” he remarked.

The minister said the situation could improve through a multi-pronged and time efficient management, and a strong political will to translate plans into reality.

“We should put our house in order and take meaningful steps to enhance our storage capacity.”

In his welcome address, NDU President Lt Gen Rizwan Akhtar said the IWT 1960 had been the most outstanding achievement that established a technical formula and mechanism for water division of the Indus River basin system in an otherwise politi-

PM TO SHARE PAKISTAN’S ECONOMIC SUCCESS AT WEF SWITZERLAND AGENCIES

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Tuesday said he had come to the World Economic Forum (WEF) to share the remarkable economic turnaround of Pakistan, that only a few years back was on the verge of an economic collapse and the entire global financial community was acknowledging this positive change.

In a brief chat with reporters here at the hotel, soon after his arrival from Zurich, the prime minister said the economic indicators of the country were very positive and were improving further with each passing day. The prime minister who is in Switzerland for the Annual Meeting of the WEF, said the country’s economic development was moving ahead at a rapid pace and was being acknowledged by the international media and global financial institutions.

Nawaz Sharif has a hectic schedule ahead with several meetings lined up

with heads of the top ranking companies and financial institutions in the next few days where he will apprise them about the great investment opportunities and bright prospects for large international brands.

Nawaz Sharif said the international agencies were giving very encouraging signals about Pakistan’s economy and lots of foreign investment was pouring into the country. He said the country’s inflation was at the lowest ebb while the GDP was on the rise.

He said work on the CPEC was underway in all regions of the country and the people of Pakistan were the real beneficiaries. He said no matter whether a person was in Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Sindh, Punjab, AJK or Gilgit-Baltistan, he would benefit equally and the country would witness a development boom across its length and breadth.

The prime minister to a question about the growth in Pakistan and its trickle-down effect for the masses said

that there has been great social and economic improvement in the lives of the people and pointed to the disparity that once plagued the Balochistan province.

However, he said that the situation was rapidly improving in the province and today one can travel from the Gwadar Port in morning to reach Quetta by midday-something that was unimaginable a few years back.

The prime minister said there was no concept of overnight development, and road networks were the key to progress, prosperity and development.

He said there would be more farms to market roads, new schools, health centres, economic zones, a new industry that would generate employment and above all will bring the people of the country closer.

The prime minister regretted that the governments in the past ignored their vital duty of serving the masses selflessly while his government was proud to have gone to all lengths to serve the people of Pakistan.

CMYK

cally volatile region.

The legal instrument, he said, had so far sustained and delivered despite ups and downs in PakistanIndia relations.

Other participants of the seminar emphasised that water, being a lifeline, had become an important factor in shaping the relationship between co-riparian in the changing geo-strategic environment.

Pakistan and India share the waters of Indus River basin which has been a major source of contention between the two states since independence.

In order to resolve the disputes, both countries signed IWT in 1960 with the help of World Bank which has survived over five decades of hostilities between the two states.

However, due to the recent indigenous upsurge in Indian Occupied Kashmir (IOK), water has once again become a divisive issue.

The Indian statement “blood and water cannot flow together” and the threat of unilaterally abrogating the treaty have resulted into a new wave of hydro politics around Pakistan and brought IWT under stress.

Highlighting Pakistan’s primary concerns regarding the IWT, the seminar participants gave different suggestions to counter the Indian hydro hegemony in an effective manner.

03

First migrant boat disaster of 2017 leaves 180 dead MONITORING DESK Around 180 people are presumed to have died in the first major migrant boat disaster of 2017 in the Mediterranean, officials said Tuesday after interviewing a handful of survivors. Humanitarian workers from the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the UN refugee agency (UNHCR), recounted harrowing details of a capsize that occurred on Saturday in waters off Libya after talking to four rescued passengers, two Eritreans and two Ethiopians.The survivors, three men and one woman, arrived on Monday evening in the Sicilian port of Trapani, in a “traumatised and exhausted” state, aid workers said.

They said their two-tier, wooden boat had left Libya on Friday with more than 180 people packed on board, all of them originally from East Africa. After five hours at sea, the engine cut out and the boat started to take on water. As it slowly sank, more and more of the people on board were submerged under water. One of the survivors described his desperate effort to find his wife, who had taken a spot in the centre of the ship along with around 70 other women.

A number of children were also on board and none of them survived. After hours in the water, the four survivors were rescued on Saturday 30 nautical miles from the Libyan coast by a French boat operating as part of the European borders agency Frontex’s Operation Triton before being transferred to another Frontex ship, the Siem Pilot. Siem Pilot, provided by the Norwegian coastguard, arrived in Trapani on Monday evening with the four survivors, four recovered corpses and 34 people rescued from another stricken migrant boat.

Ghazala Hameed, wife of Sheikh Amar Hameed and mother of Alia Hameed, Osman Hameed and Saif Hameed, passed away on Friday 13th January in London. Ghazala was born in Dhaka in former East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) to Hasan Turab Ali and Tara Turab Ali. She and her family returned to Lahore, where she spent the majority of her life. She was a committed social worker, and served the Pakistan Society for the Rehabilitation of the Disabled in various executive roles (most recently as Senior Vice President) for almost three decades. She was also the Pakistan representative for a number of international organisations focused on helping people with disabilities, including Rehabilitation International, of which she was elected to the Executive Committee as Deputy Vice President for the Asia Pacific region.

The funeral will be held in Lahore on Thursday, January 19, at 12:00pm at the deceased’s home: 4 Amjad Khurshid Road, Cantt, Lahore.

04 NEWS

Wednesday, 18 January, 2017

GovERNmENT, oppoSiTioN REAch AN impASSE oN ExTENSioN FoR miliTARy couRTS

p

Monitoring Desk

AKISTAN Muslim LeagueNawaz (PML-N) government on Tuesday failed to secure the approval of opposition parties on the matter of extension to military courts.

The special powers given to the army to establish tribunals to try civilians on terrorism charges had ended earlier this month on the expiry of the mandated period. The military courts had been established through a constitutional amendment following the attack on the Army Public School in Peshawar.

This was the government’s second in-camera consultation with parliamen-

tary leaders on the issue. The meeting, held at the parliament house, was chaired by Speaker National Assembly Ayaz Sadiq. The first meeting in this regard had also concluded without a consensus. Federal Law and Justice Minister Zahid Hamid briefed the meeting on the performance of the military courts till their disbandment.

Following the meeting, PTI leader Shah Mahmood Qureshi told media that opposition parties had demanded that the government call an in-camera session of the parliament in which representatives from security institutions should brief the house.

He said that this meeting had given birth to several more questions, and

WEF: Raheel Sharif urges intelligence sharing to counter terror Monitoring Desk Pakistan’s former army chief General (r) Raheel Sharif said on Tuesday that intelligence sharing was an important component of the strategy to counter terrorism, adding that the year 2016 was a witness to a considerable decrease in the menace. Sharif was speaking at World Economic Forum (WEF) titled “Terrorism in the digital age”. He said, “Terrorism is a global issue and the global community will have to get united if it wants to defeat terrorism.” Talking about the accomplishments of Pakistan Army in combating terrorism, he said the military cleared an area of 8,000km after recapturing it from militant control. He notified the gathering that tens of thousands of affected people were rehabilitated in the area. Raheel Sharif went on to say that terrorism has become “gangrene for the world”.

added that opposition parties now seek an explanation from the government on the issue.

Leader of the Opposition in National Assembly Syed Khursheed Shah said that the opposition asked for explanation on issues pertaining to the military courts. He was of the view that military courts are an issue of the state and not of the government. Shah said the government has ensured that the opposition will be provided further details and responses in the next meeting, scheduled for January 31.

Following the meeting, NA Speaker Ayaz Sadiq said that all the stakeholders had participated in the meeting with an open mind. He said the government

would come up with more details in the next meeting. He was optimistic that the issue would be resolved in good faith.

Meanwhile, sources told a private news publication that opposition parties had also asked the government to disclose its policy towards proscribed organisations during the meeting. They also raised questions over seminary reforms and the implementation of the National Action Plan.

The absence of Federal Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar was noted in the meeting. Following the session, Qaumi Watan Party chief Aftab Sherpao expressed his displeasure over Nisar’s absence and said the minister should have been present at the meeting.

PM to discuss plight of Kashmiris with UN secretary general, says Fatemi ZUriCH APP

Prime Minister’s Special Assistant Tariq Fatemi on Tuesday said that Nawaz Sharif would highlight the critical situation in Indian Occupied Kashmir (IOK) during his upcoming meeting with the United Nations (UN) Secretary General on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum (WEF).

“If the situation in Indian Occupied Kashmir is not addressed according to the wishes of its people, it would have far-reaching consequences,” he told APP here when asked about the meetings of the prime minister on the sidelines of the 47th WEF at Davos.

Fatemi termed Kashmir a “flash point” which he said could turn into a very serious situation.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif is scheduled to meet Secretary General

Antonio Guterres on the sidelines of WEF on January 19. The prime minister, who has been forcefully raising the Kashmir issue at all international forums, including the UN General Assembly, would seek the secretary general’s input in addressing the long-standing dispute.

Pakistan earlier this month asked the United Nations to restrain India from activities aimed at destabilising Pakistan. Tariq Fatemi said that the prime minister would highlight the deployment of over 700,000 troops in the IOK, use of pellet guns, and the rejection of a fact-finding mission by India.

He regretted the oppression of Kashmiris by the Indian occupational forces and said that even independent human rights groups in Kashmir were describing the movement as “indigenous and homegrown” and without any foreign influence. He added that

the movement gained momentum after the death of Burhanuddin Wani.

Fatemi said the prime minister would also take up the incidents of firing on unarmed civilians, the ongoing curfew and demonstrations of the Kashmiri youth against the atrocities.

He said the prime minister’s participation in the annual meeting of the WEF was aimed at sharing with the world leaders and heads of leading business houses the analysis of leading global financial institutions about the country’s bright economic prospects, adding that the success of government’s macro and micro economic policies were becoming evident. Tariq Fatemi also pointed out the successful tackling of extremism and terrorism, a weak economy, and load shedding.

He said Pakistan’s success story was “credible and factual” and its role in the region critical was significant.

DNA report resolves puzzle about Tayyaba’s biological parents n Accused judge says maid torture case’s a conspiracy by neighbours isLAMABAD HAMID KHAN WAZIR

The DNA test has eventually resolved the puzzle of the real parents of Tayyaba, a 10year-old maid who was allegedly tortured by her employers, an additional district & sessions judge and his wife, it has been learnt reliably. Sources said that the DNA report determined that Muhammad Azam and Nusrat Bibi, residents of the suburbs of Jaranwala, were the real parents of Tayyaba.

The torture case of the minor child took strange twist when different persons came to the fore claiming to be her parents. “DNA samples have established that Tayyaba is the daughter of Mohammad Azam and Nusrat,” said PIMS Executive Director Dr Altaf on Tuesday. The couple from Jaranwala were the first to claim Tayyaba as their daughter, with four other couples making the same claim. The DNA test was conducted more than a week ago following court orders, Tayyaba herself had also identified Azam and Nusrat as her parents. The report will be submitted in court during the next hearing, which is scheduled for January 18.

Meanwhile, the accused judge claimed that the torture case was a conspiracy by his neighbours. Denying all the charges of torture, the judge and his wife in their statements said a few neighbours allegedly hatched a conspiracy against them. The couple said they had kept the girl on a humanitarian basis due to poverty of her parents. The judge and his spouse were booked after the minor girl accused them of keeping her in a wrongful confinement, burning her hand over a missing broom, beating her with a ladle, detaining her in storeroom and threatening her of even worse.

AD&SJ Khurram said on Dec 27, a day before Tayyaba’s photograph surfaced in the social media, he returned from his village at around 7pm. His wife informed him that Tayyaba had gone to the house of a neighbour and was refusing to come back. Subsequently, he stated, her disappearance was reported to the I-9 police. Early on Dec 29, the judge said, the girl came back to his house and in the evening was handed over to SHO Khalid Awan who took her for a medical examination and then sent her to Darul Aman.

GOVERNANCE SUFFERS AS PANAMAGATE LINGERS ON IN SC FIVE SLOTS OF GRADE 22 OFFICERS ARE AWAITING PM’S NOD SECRETARIES OF FINANCE, FOREIGN AFFAIRS, COMMUNICATIONS AND PETROLEUM YET TO BE NAMED isLAMABAD MIAN ABRAR

It seems that Panamagte case is taking its toll on Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif as governance has become the first casualty of the high-profile case whose proceedings at the Supreme Court of Pakistan have

caught the attention of the ruling family.

Well-placed sources in the federal government have told Pakistan Today that the prime minister was so busy these past few days that he was delaying key decisions of the federal government, including the appointments of four federal secretaries and Chairman of Federal Bureau of Revenue (FBR). They say that it seems that the entire business at the Prime Minister’s Office has come to a halt and everything has turned static.

A source in the Establishment Division told Pakistan Today that the prime minister has to decide the appointments of at least five officers of grade 22, including the key slots of Secretaries for Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Finance. “Moreover, the appointments of full time secretaries of the Ministry of Communications and Ministry of Petroleum are already pending with the prime minister,” the source said.

The source added that the appointment of Chairman Federal Bureau of Revenue (FBR) was also pending with

the prime minister.

Despite repeated calls and text messages sent to her number, State Minister for Information Mariyyum Aurangzeb did not respond. Rao Tehseen Ali Khan, Principal Information Officer (PIO), also did not respond while his staff officer was also unable to provide with their version.

Hopeful for foreign, finance secretaries: While Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has not appointed foreign minister, he has also failed to appoint new Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The source said that the ministry had forwarded three names for appointment of the foreign secretary including Abdul Basit, Tehmina Janjua and Syed Ibne Abbas. Abdul Basit is currently Pakistan’s Ambassador in New Delhi where he has been doing a splendid job. Before moving to New Delhi, Ambassador Abdul Basit was Pakistan’s Ambassador to Germany till March 2014. He has also served as Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Spokesman.

Ambassador Tehmina Janjua has

CMYK

been serving as Permanent Representative of Pakistan to the United Nations and other international organisations in Geneva. She has earlier served in permanent missions of Pakistan in both Geneva and New York. Her last assignment was Pakistan’s Ambassador to Italy.

Syed Ibne Abbas has been serving as envoy to United Kingdom. He has been associated with some controversies attached to the sale of High Commission’s chancery building. With the tenure of Finance Secretary Waqar Masood ending on January 20, there is yet no decision on his successor. Tariq Bajwa, currently Secretary of Economic Affairs Division, is favourite for the post of Secretary Finance.

Per sources, other probable names for new finance secretary include Shahid Mehmood Khan, who is currently Executive Director to the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Shahid Mehmood previously worked as a Special Assistant to Minister Finance Ishaq Dar. Secretary Commerce Azmat Ranjha is also in the queue for the slot of Finance Secretary.

As the term for the incumbent Chairman FBR ended on Tuesday, January 17, the country also awaits appointment of his successor. The proposed officers for the post of Chairman FBR are Rehmatullah Wazir, Khwaja Tanvir and Tariq Mehmood. Wazir previously worked as Chief Commissioner RTO Karachi. However, Khwaja Tanvir is set to retire in December 2017. The source said that full time appointments of Secretary Communications and Secretary Petroleum are also being dragged on by the PM Office.

Additional Secretary Arshad Mirza currently has the charge of Federal Secretary Ministry of Petroleum. Khalid Masud Chaudhry is currently officiating as Acting Secretary Ministry of Communications.

Despite the fact that the Ministry of Communications is undertaking mega projects under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), there is neither a full time minister nor secretary for the ministry.

Moreover, the appointment of Chairman of Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) is also overdue.

FOREIGN NEWS 05

Wednesday, 18 January, 2017

Gunmen kill 8 policemen in southwest Egypt CAIRO: Gunmen killed eight police late Monday in an attack on a checkpoint in elWadi el-Gedid province in southwest Egypt, the interior ministry said. Two of the attackers were killed when security forces fought back, and three other security personnel were injured, the ministry said in a statement. The attack took place on al-Naqab checkpoint, about 80 kilometres (50 miles) from el-Kharga city, the capital of the province, the ministry said. Militants have killed hundreds of soldiers and policemen since the military overthrow of Islamist president Mohamed Morsi in 2013, which was followed by a bloody crackdown on his supporters. Most of the attacks have taken place in the north of the Sinai Peninsula, which borders Israel and the Palestinian Gaza Strip. Attacks have occurred in other parts of the country, including Cairo. The Daesh group said on January 10 it was behind a car bomb assault on a police checkpoint in the Sinai that killed eight people a day earlier. Daesh also claimed responsibility for a suicide bombing that killed 28 Christian Copts at a church service in Cairo on December 11. AGENCIES

Former diplomats caution against extending Erdogan’s power A number of former Turkish diplomats have issued a statement urging their government to not go ahead with a constitutional amendment that will shift the country towards an executive presidential system of governance. The statement signed by 62 former diplomats state, “We are deeply concerned that such a development will further divide Turkey and will put it into a serious internal and external crisis at a time when the Republic of Turkey is facing terrorism, economic difficulties and the threat of war,” according to reports in Turkish media. Reuters adds: Turkey’s parliament has voted in favor in a first round ballot on a constitutional bill that will extend President Tayyip Erdogan’s powers, which opposition politicians say could put the country at risk of growing authoritarianism. The assembly approved the final 18th article of the package late on Sunday and according to parliament regulations will now take a two-day break from the talks before a second round of voting during which any changes to the articles will be debated. The ruling AK Party, backed by the nationalist MHP, is pushing through legislation that Erdogan says will bring strong executive leadership needed to prevent a return to the fragile coalition governments of the past. If parliament gives final approval to the constitutional package it will be put to a referendum expected in the spring. The main opposition CHP and the pro-Kurdish HDP, the second largest opposition party, strongly oppose the changes. The reform will enable the president to issue decrees and will allow him to be a member of a political party. The plans envisage presidential and general elections in 2019 with a president eligible to serve a maximum two five-year terms. NEWS DESK

‘Draconian’ EU antitError laws targEt MUsliMs, warns aMnEsty intErnational

a

AGENCIES

draft of new counterterrorism laws across Europe discriminate against Muslims and refugees, spreading fear and alienation, Amnesty International said in a report on Tuesday. The human rights group sounded the alarm over security measures adopted over the past two years in 14 EU nations, including expanded surveillance powers. During that period, militant attacks have killed some 280 people in France, Belgium and Germany.

The attacks, mostly claimed by Daesh, have fanned tensions over immigration, fuelled the popularity of right-wing parties and made security a key theme in upcoming French, Dutch and German elections.

“Right across the EU regional space we see Muslims and foreigners being equated with terrorists,” said Julia

Hall, an Amnesty International expert on counterterrorism and author of the report. “This stereotyping so disproportionately affects these communities that there is a high degree of fear and alienation.” She warned that “draconian” surveillance measures and powers of search, detention and arrest like those introduced in France since November 2015, when attacks killed 130 people, could be abused to target activists or minority groups that did not pose a genuine threat. Amnesty’s report said new measures to crack down on glorifying or being an apologist for terrorism were shrinking the space for freedom of expression. In France in 2015, a third of more than 380 people prosecuted for apologising for terrorism were minors, it said.

Amnesty condemned what it dubbed the “Orwellian” use of curfews, travel restrictions and police check-ins to monitor individuals who were not con-

victed of crimes and often did not know what they were accused of. Hall criticised what she described as “governments looking at a person and saying: ‘You look very suspicious to me. So I’m going to restrict your behaviour because I think you might commit a crime.’” In January, France paid tribute to 17 people killed two years ago by militants in three days of violence that began with an attack on satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo.

Among other major attacks, suicide bombings in Brussels last March killed 32 people, and a Tunisian man mowed down 86 by driving a truck through a Bastille Day crowd in July in the French city of Nice.

Another truck attack killed 12 in Berlin last month.

China unveils new plan to further open economy to foreign investment AGENCIES China’s State Council, the country’s Cabinet, issued on Tuesday new measures to further open the world’s second-largest economy to foreign investment, including easing restrictions on investment in banks and other financial institutions.

The move comes as President Xi Jinping seeks to project China as a leader in combating increasing global protectionism. Xi defended globalisation in a speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos on Tuesday amid mounting public hos-

tility in the West. China itself, however, has been the target of complaints from foreign business groups who have criticised its slow pace of market reforms and say its national security regulations and industrial policies are at odds with its reform goals. The Cabinet said in a statement posted on its website that China would lower restrictions on foreign investment in banking, securities, investment management, futures, insurance, credit ratings and accounting sectors.

No further details were provided, nor a timetable for their im-

plementation. The country’s state planner had indicated at the end of last year that China would take measures to relax foreign investment in certain sectors. The government will also allow foreign-invested firms to list on the Shanghai and Shenzhen exchanges and a new third board, and also allow them to issue corporate and convertible bonds, it added. The Cabinet said the measures were intended to create a “fair and competitive” environment that puts “domestic and foreign companies on an equal footing.”

“The devil is always in the details,” said Arthur Kroeber, partner of Gavekal Dragonomics. “How the rules get implemented will be very important.” Restrictions on foreign investment in telecommunications, internet, culture, education and transportation sectors will be opened “in an orderly way”, the State Council said.

The measures will also cancel restrictions on foreign investment in the manufacture of rail equipment, motorbikes, fuel ethanol, and oils and fats processing, while easing restrictions on unconventional gas, including oil shale, oil sands and shale gas, and mineral resources.

Foreign investment in oil and natural gas projects will shift from an approval based system to a registration system, the notice said.

SUSPECTED ISTANBUL NEW YEAR GUNMAN ‘CONFESSES’ AGENCIES A 34-year-old Uzbek man suspected of slaughtering 39 people at an Istanbul nightclub on New Year’s eve confessed to the massacre on Tuesday, hours after his capture in a police raid.

Authorities detained Abdulgadir Masharipov, who spent 17 days on the run after the attack claimed by the militant Islamic State (IS) group, along with three women and an Iraqi man during a massive police operation in Istanbul.

“The terrorist confessed his crime,” Istanbul Governor Vasip Sahin told reporters, saying the suspect’s fingerprints matched those of the attacker and confirming he is an Uzbek national.

“He was trained in Afghanistan and can speak four languages. He’s a welltrained terrorist,” added the governor, saying Masharipov is believed to have

first entered Turkey in January 2016.

Police also confiscated 197,000 US dollars (185,000 euros), two firearms and clips during the raid on an apartment, he added.

The arrest lessened the anxiety of Istanbul residents, already on edge after a string of attacks, who had feared for more than a fortnight that a trained killer was on the loose in the city.

Local media published a picture of the detained man with blood on his face and T-shirt, his neck gripped by a policeman. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan hailed the arrest and congratulated the security forces.

“From now on in this country nobody will get away with what they have done,” he said in a speech in Ankara.

“Everyone will be brought to account within the rule of law.”

‘VIle AttACk’ The operation to

capture the suspected militant involved some 2,000 police officers, the Istanbul governor said. The suspect had apparently slipped into the night following the attack on the glamorous Reina nightclub on the Bosphorus, while police tightened borders to prevent him escaping. But he was hiding in the working-class, densely populated western districts of Istanbul. Days of police tracking eventually traced him to an apartment in the residential Esenyurt district. An Iraqi man was also detained with him, as well as three women, one a Egyptian citizen and two others from African states, Sahin said.

All the suspects were currently still being interrogated at the police headquarters, he added. The IS took responsibility for the bloodbath, the first time it has ever openly claimed a major attack in Turkey. It had previously been

CMYK

blamed for several strikes in Turkey, including the triple suicide bombings at Istanbul airport in June.

“It is clear that the attack was carried out on behalf of Daesh,” Sahin said, using an Arabic acronym for the IS group, adding that the other four suspects were likely linked to the militants.

Capturing the suspect alive will be seen as a major victory for the Turkish security forces and he may be able to shed light on the existence of other IS cells in the city.

Turkey’s Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu wrote on Twitter that “in the name of the nation” he thanked the police and Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu for the capture.

Prime Minister Binali Yildirim added: “What matters is the capture of the perpetrator of this vile attack and exposing the powers behind him.”

iran president says ‘no sense’ in renegotiating nuclear deal TEHRAN AGENCIES

President Hassan Rouhani said Tuesday there was no chance of Iran renegotiating the nuclear deal with world powers if US President-elect Donald Trump demands it.

“The nuclear deal is finished, it has been approved by the UN Security Council and has become an international document. It is a multilateral accord and there is no sense in renegotiating it,” said Rouhani at a news conference a year on from the deal coming into force. Trump frequently criticised the nuclear deal during campaigning and called for fresh negotiations, but has refused to be drawn on his plans since being elected. His nominee for secretary of state, Rex Tillerson, has called for a “full review” of the deal. “Mr Trump, the president-elect, has made various statements that the nuclear deal does not satisfy him, that it was not a good deal or even that it was the worst deal ever,” said Rouhani. “These are mostly slogans, and I don’t think that when he enters the White House, something will happen. It is not a bilateral deal that he can decide he likes or doesn’t like,” the president added. The deal was signed between Iran, the US, Britain, China, France, Germany and Russia. EU and British officials have this week said they would not support any renegotiation of the deal, which places strict curbs on Iran’s nuclear programme in exchange for a lifting of international sanctions.

anti-isis coalition meets in Ksa NEWS DESK The global coalition of 14 countries against Daesh met in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia for a two-day conference where it stressed the need to defeat the terrorist group and focused on identifying operational means for the purpose. According to Arab media, the participants, who met on January 15-16, agreed to hold general and bilateral meetings at the level of army chiefs of staff and their representatives in allied states as part of continued efforts to defeat Daesh and block terrorists’ propaganda. The participants also affirmed their support for Turkey’s Operation Euphrates Shield to fight the terrorist group in Syria.

06 ISLAMABAD

WEATHER UPDATES

Wednesday, 18 January, 2017

WEDNESDAY

100C 30C

THURSDAY

130C 20C

FRIDAY

140C 40C

SATURDAY

140C 50C

PRAyER TImINgS FAJR SUNRISE

ZUHR

ASR MAGHRIB ISHA

5:45

12:19

3:47

7:11

5:25

6:52

Gas cylinder explosion injures eight in Haripur, rawalpindi HARIPUR/RAWALPINDI: At least six members of a family were seriously injured in a gas cylinder explosion in Kangra colony of Haripur.

The gas cylinder blasted with big bang due to leakage in a house, leaving husband, his wife and their four children injured. Rescue team and police have reached the spot and shifted the victims to hospital for treatment.

Meanwhile in Rawalpindi, a couple sustained burn injuries in a gas cylinder blast within the Waris Khan police jurisdiction. A gas cylinder blast occurred in a house located in Waris Khan, and later the fire and smoke engulfed the whole room, leaving two people injured.

The rescue teams reached the area and shifted the wounded to local hospital for medical treatment. The doctors stated that the injured were in critical condition. ONLINE

lady teacher to be interrogated in student murder case ISLAMABAD: Islamabad police have included a lady class teacher in investigation of suicide case of 7th grade student named osama.

Sources said that a student of seventh grade, named osama had allegedly committed suicide on Monday over his ‘failure in love’ with his class teacher.

The lady teacher stated that she considered osama her pupil. Police also recorded statements of 20 students present therein and younger brother of the deceased. The students told the police that osama fired bullet in his belly in front of them. ONLINE

Six arrested for raping minor boy ISLAMABAD: Koral police have arrested six people for raping a minor boy.

The accused identified as chaudhary Hasan, Ahmad Hassan Shah, Umair Khan, Inzamam, osama and Habib had molested the boy at gunpoint and filmed the entire act.

The accused had allegedly been blackmailing the victim’s family that they would sell the video in local markets if the family doesn’t give them Rs 60,000 and six carat of gold. The police have arrested them and started investigation. ONLINE

ISLAMABAD: Policemen stand alert outside Supreme Court during the hearing of Panama Papers Leaks case. ONLINE

PakIStan, turkey take uP un-related matterS

President urges expansion of BISP to far-flung areas

ISLAMABAD

S

STAFF REPORT

econd round of Pakistan-Turkey consultations on Un related matters was held on Tuesday at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Islamabad.

The Turkish delegation was led by Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs directorate general for multilateral political affairs Ambassador Hasan Ulusoy, and the Pakistan side was led by Ministry of Foreign Affairs Un director General Asif Iftikhar.

The two sides exchanged views on a wide range of issues including Un Security council reform, human rights and humanitarian issues, refugees, cooperation in the context of ecoSoc, Sustainable development Goals, political and peace and security issues, counter-terrorism, combating Islamophobia and religious discrimination, and candidatures in international organisations.

Both sides welcomed that the excellent bilateral relations between the two countries and similarity of views, guided by the political leadership, was manifest in common understanding,

mutual support, and close collaboration on a host of issues at the United nations and other multilateral forums.

They reiterated the common desire and commitment to further strengthen this cooperation in the years ahead. They also reaffirmed faith in United nations and multilateralism as the best mechanisms for collectively addressing the challenges faced by the international community.

The visiting delegation also called on Foreign Secretary Aizaz Ahmad chaudhry.

The foreign secretary noted that the consultations would deepen relations and help identify new avenues of cooperation between the two countries at multilateral forums.

ISLAMABAD: President Mamnoon Hussain has stressed the expansion of Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) to far-flung areas. He was addressing the launching ceremony of BISP Impact Assessment Report on Tuesday.

The president also desired that programmes should be launched to ensure that the existing beneficiaries are able to stand on their own feet economically. For this purpose, he proposed initiation of training programmes for people in backward areas and locality for small businesses. Mamnoon expressed the confidence that BISP would secure a prominent place globally if it pays attention to these aspects.

The president asked BISP management to come out with proposals in this regard in the next review report so that practicable new programmes are launched to address the problem of poverty and backwardness. He expressed that satisfaction that under Waseela-e-Taleem programme of BISP, 1.3 million children have been registered who will now be able to equip themselves with education and skills. ONLINE

Navy chief meets Bahraini defence leaders, US NAVCENT commander ISLAMABD APP

chief of naval Staff Admiral Zakaullah on Tuesday highlighted Pakistan’s commitment and performance in fight against terrorism in general and Pakistan navy’s efforts for maintaining regional peace and security in particular.

Admiral Zakaullah is currently on an official visit to Bahrain, where he held meetings with military leadership of the host country and US naval central command (nAVceT) commander.

According to Pakistan navy Media directorate, the naval chief separately called on Bahrain defence Forces commander in chief Field Marshal Sheikh Khalifa Bin Ahmed AlKhalifa, commander Bahrain national Guards Lt Gen Sheikh Mohammed Bin Isa Al Khalifa, chief of Staff Bahrain defence Forces Lt Gen Thiyab Bin Saqer

Al noami and commander Bahrain coast Guards, Staff Brig Gen Alaa Abdullah Siyadi. during the meetings with

Bahraini dignitaries, matters of mutual interest including defence and security collaboration were discussed.

The dignitaries acknowledged warm and brotherly relations between Pakistan and Bahrain, based on strong founda-

tions and historical ties and lauded Pakistan navy’s efforts and focused commitments in support of collaborative maritime

security in the region and extending cooperation in diverse fields to Royal Bahrain naval Force.

In a separate visit, the admiral also called on commander US nAVcenT Vice Admiral Kevin M donegan.

Upon his arrival at US nAVcenT Headquarters, he was warmly received by Admiral Kevin M donegan. during the meeting, Admiral Muhammad Zakaullah dilated upon matters of mutual interest including bilateral naval collaboration and security environment in Indian ocean Region. commander US nAVcenT highly appreciated the professionalism of Pakistan navy personnel and active role being played for maritime security and stability in the region.

He said the near permanent presence of Pakistan navy units in the Area of Responsibility (AoR) had greatly helped shape a secure environment for freedom of navigation in the region.

ISLAMABAD 07

Wednesday, 18 January, 2017

ISLAMABAD

t

APP

He Senate was informed Tuesday that the US spy agency aide Shakeel Afridi, who helped the American intelligence trace osama Bin Laden in Abbotabad, was getting fair trial, even though he had violated the national interest of Pakistan.

Responding to a calling attention notice, Minister for Law and Justice Zahid Hamid informed the House on behalf of the Adviser to Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs that Shakeel Afridi was arrested on charges of anti-state activities in May 2012 and was awarded 33 years imprisonment by a local jirga (village council).

The minister said that Afridi filed an appeal with court of commissioner in FATA who had recommended reducing

SHakeel aFrIdI GettInG FaIr trIal, Senate InFormed his sentence to 22 years imprisonment.

This decision as appealed against at the FcR Tribunal that subsequently sent the matter to the court of commissioner where the matter is still pending.

He said Shakeel Afridi had violated the local law by spying for foreign intelligence agency in the name of polio vaccination campaign thus severely harming this campaign especially in tribal areas. due to this act of Shakeel Afridi, he

said, the polio workers in the region were seen as spies of foreign agencies and around 50 people lost their lives on this suspicion. The minister explained that in case of Shakeel Afridi there is a difference of perception between Pakistan and United States as people here consider him a traitor who worked against the national interests. “our view point in this case is very clear that law is taking its course and Afridi is having full

opportunity of a fair trial,” he added. earlier, moving the calling attention notice to the House, Senator Hafiz Hamadullah had mentioned the reports that Shakeel Afridi was being released and handed over to United States.

He said Afridi worked against the law and our national interest and the Pakistan government had repeatedly been telling the United States that under our law he had committed a crime and is facing the law.

rabbani directs issuance of contempt of Parliament notice to aviation secy

ISLAMABAD: Senate chairman Mian Raza Rabbani on Tuesday expressed displeasure over concealing of information from the House and directed to issue contempt of Parliament notice to HR director and aviation division secretary.

The chairman said it was a severe breach of parliament that information was being hidden from the sacred house.

The chair issued directives when Farhatullah Babar informed the House that wrong information were provided in response to a question asked from Aviation division about stoppage of salary to fire fighter at cAA Headquarter. earlier, Farhatullah Babar presented a copy of letter with signature of civil Aviation Authority HR director to stop paying salary to the fire fighter. He also requested the chair to refer the issue to the concerned standing committee for through report into the matter. APP

expo centre to be constructed in Capital ISLAMABAD: An expo centre will be developed in the federal capital with a total cost of Rs 2,500 million to provide international standard infrastructure for the promotion of economic activities through trade exhibitions, consumer fairs and conferences in Islamabad.

This was informed at a meeting of the national Assembly Standing committee on commerce on Tuesday presided over by Siraj Muhammad Khan.

A sum of Rs 300 million has been allocated for the project in the Public Sector development Programme (PSdP) 2016-17.

The Ministry of commerce has asked the cdA to allocate a suitable piece of land measuring 30-40 acres in Islamabad for the project that needs budgetary allocation of Rs 1,600 million in the financial year 2017-18. An expo centre will also be developed in Peshawar at a cost of Rs 2,500 million.

The government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) has allocated 200 kanals of land along the GT Road, Tarnab, for the project. expo centre in Quetta will also be constructed with a cost of Rs 2,700 million. APP

Woman among two abducted in Pindi RAWALPINDI: At least two people including a married woman have allegedly been abducted within the Sadiqabad and chauntra police jurisdictions. Sheikh Mohammad, a resident of Sadiqabad, lodged a complaint with the local police that kidnappers have abducted his married daughter from the local market. He named Mohammad Haroon and Waheed as suspects behind the kidnapping. Meanwhile, a female resident of chauntra lodged a complaint with the local police that kidnappers have abducted her husband Fayaz Mahmood. The police have registered cases and started investigations. ONLINE

ISLAMABAD: Two women on their way to dispose of garbage in Sector F-6. ONLINE

No violation of quota in allotment of plots to police officers: minister ISLAMABAD: Minister for Housing and Works Akram Khan durrani on Tuesday informed the Senate that no violation was committed in allotment of plots by Federal Government Housing Foundation to officers of Islamabad police and district administration.

Responding to a calling attention notice, the minister said that the quota for professionals was two per cent earlier that was later revised upward to three per cent and the decision about allotment was made by the executive committee strictly as per quota.

He said previously there were also problems of quota among the professionals but the matter was resolved by the executive committee by bifurcation of the quota in each professional category. Senator Tahir Hussain Mashhadi had drawn the attention of the minister towards what he claimed violation of quota in allotment of plots by the housing foundation.

He claimed that plots were allotted to 60 officers of Islamabad police, and that the district administration out of turn had caused a loss of Rs 389 million to national exchequer. APP

CDA’s anti-encroachment drive in full swing ISLAMABAD: capital development Authority (cdA)’s anti-encroachment drive is in full swing and during the operation the authority has demolished two kiosks and two hotels in sector G-6. on the directions of Islamabad Mayor and cdA chairman Sheikh Anser Aziz, cdA’s enforcement directorate carried out

anti encroachment operations around the city and demolished illegal constructions, removed encroachments and retrieved several kanals of government land from illegal occupants. during recent operations, the team of enforcement directorate removed 6 illegal building material depots from the green belt along

the Margalla Road, Sector e.11 while 2 containers that were being used for building material storage and an illegal kiosk in the same vicinity were demolished. The mayor directed the authority to expedite the drive against encroachments without any pressure and restore the real beauty of the capital city. APP

Five milk samples found substandard during inspection ISLAMABAD: Islamabad capital Territory (IcT) administration Tuesday found five milk samples substandard during inspection in the federal capital. According to the details, the raiding team constituted for monitoring supply and quality of milk, inspected 110 milk shops. The five challans have been submitted in the court for further proceedings.

The administration is adopting measures to control sale of contaminated/ adulterated milk under Pure Food ordinance 1960. Special teams have been constituted comprising district health officer, assistant commissioners and sanitary inspectors for the drive against adulteration in milk.

The team is supervised by Additional deputy commissioner for effective coordination and speedy action against the culprits.

An awareness campaign targeting dairy farmers against use of unhygienic injections to cows and buffaloes has been launched to create awareness about the side effects of oxytocin. Weekly free camps and awareness campaigns have also been launched in remote areas of the IcT administration. APP

Careem expansion’s spree involves three more cities careem expansion continues with 50 destinations now serviced across the MenASA region. The recent addition of 3 new cities in Pakistan ensures the app-based ride-hailing service is accessible in more than 50 cities within 4 years since its launch in dubai, UAe. careem has launched initial operations in three new cities in Pakistan – Peshawar, Hyderabad and Faisalabad. The move extends careem’s presence in Pakistan to 6

destinations, while taking its overall tally to more than 50 cities across the broader MenASA (Middle east, north Africa and South Asia) region, including Turkey. careem already operates in the capital Islamabad and in Pakistan’s two most populous cities – Karachi and Lahore. Mudassir Sheikha, co-founder and ceo of careem, said, “Testament to our continued expansion and ambitions for further growth is the recent USd 350 mil-

lion tranche of investment in our company, making careem one of the few tech unicorns in the Middle east and north Africa.” careem will launch with two car types during the initial launch phase in the new cities – economy in Hyderabad and Peshawar, and Business in Faisalabad. careem users in Peshawar, Hyderabad and Faisalabad will have access to complete information on their captains who drive them, along

with access to a 24×7, dedicated call center manned by a multi-lingual team of 200 employees. Last month, careem announced a funding round of USd 500 million in the company with USd 350 million already secured from new and existing investors. co-led by Rakuten, Inc., a global leader in internet services and innovation headquartered in Japan, Saudi Telecom company (“STc”), the largest telecom operator in the Middle east. COuRTESy PROPAkISTANI

08 COMMENT

Wednesday, 18 January, 2017

When politicians lose moral high ground Media trials and the public opinion

W

HEn mainstream leaders take recourse to constitutional immunity to dodge accountability, they lose moral high ground even if they get away with the excuse. Accusations by political opponents or media trial by governments, both civil and military, did not hurt the PPP’s standing with the common man as much as did the posture that Zardari could not to be made to appear in a Swiss court because this amounted to demeaning the President of Pakistan or because Zardari enjoyed constitutional immunity.

Yousaf raza gillani lost neither public sympathy nor political support when he was sentenced for five years in jail with hard labour by an Accountability Court in 2002.

On getting free he not only won the 2008 election but was also appointed Prime Minister. He lost his office and later his constituency when he pleaded for Zardari’s immunity. Zardari was saved but the party faced a historic defeat in the polls.

Legal nitpicking or constitutional fiats employed to obstruct the ongoing accountability of nawaz Sharif might save the PML-n chief. But these moves, particularly the recourse to immunity, would damage his moral standing.

A public representative has to fight his case both in the court of law and the court of public opinion. in case he wants to remain in politics, the most important thing for him is to ensure that he also wins the case in the latter court also. if he succeeds in that any punishment by a court if law would be perceived by his supporters as a politically motivated act. The sentenced leader would be considered a martyr as gillani was in 2002.

The contradictions in the statements of the PM and his scions have already raised questions among the general public. They require straightforward answers supported by documentary evidence. Questions have also been raised by the sudden and unexpected entry of a Qatari prince to provide relief to the Prime Minister because his name was never mentioned in earlier accounts of the money trail given by nawaz Sharif and his scions. The reference to the immunity enjoyed by the parliamentarians would give birth to more doubts and damage the defendant’s credibility.

Bilawal gets his way Though shrunk to a mere rally, the PPP movement kicks off on the 19th

C

HAirMAn Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari reached Lahore to lead the PPP’s Thursday rally, a belated retort to the snub of his four demands by the PML-n. it marks the start of a public movement from city to city and in Parliament till all PPP goals were realised. From Lahore to Faisalabad, the slow moving procession will provide ample opportunity to Bilawal to vent his rhetoric. But will his first protest outing attract the impressive numbers needed to promote self-belief and restore sagging morale among the jiyalas? Will the old slogans and songs ring out once again and the never-say-die spirit resurface in the heartland of the Sharif’s, or will the show only be a pale shadow of the past, lifeless, soulless and heartless? Total success seems an uphill task indeed.

The PPP is a ship pulled in opposite directions by two captains. The first view, endorsed by the CoChairman, favours a flexible policy of conciliation to avoid antagonising the PML-n, with whom a deal can be cut over core interests, in tandem with other parties.

A comeback in the Punjab in 2018 looks bleak, and it is better to retain the Sindh majority and thereby its presence in the Senate. Considering the PML-n’s iron grip in the Punjab and the PPP’s own misrule over five years, this cynical policy has its merits.

But the senior provincial leadership holds that Punjab is the real battleground, and the lion’s share of the party’s resources, energies and strategems should aggressively target it. The Punjab PPP’s Old guard apprehends that it does not stand a chance in the next elections without the party’s revival in a big way in the largest province. Aitzaz Ahsan has suggested that the Elder Zardari stay out of decision making and act only as a counsellor. Bilawal seems precariously positioned between these two differing viewpoints. And this is the real PPP dilemma, for a divided self is no self.

Dedicated to the legacy of the late Hameed Nizami

Arif Nizami Editor

Aziz-ud-Din Ahmad Joint Editor Lahore – Ph: 042-36300938, 042-36375965

I

Visit to Vietnam Moving forward and putting the past in the past

AbbAs HAsAn

D

uring the evacuation of Saigon in 1975 with the north Vietnamese troops closing on the city, the then Life-Time magazine editor sent a telex (there were no email then), to his photographer that he wanted a photograph of the last person to die in the Vietnam War. The photographer replied that this was not possible as the last person to die in the Vietnam War has not yet been born.

The recent visit to Vietnam made one thing clear it is a country that has put aside its troubled past and the issue of the last person to die in the Vietnam War has been resolved. indeed the country is moving ahead and great speed. in the last sixteen years it has managed to increase its share of global exports by seven times. Compare this with Pakistan whose exports have declined slightly over the same period. Their gDP growth rate has averaged over 7 % substantially higher than Pakistan’s 4-5% growth rate.

Vietnam’s has a total population of 95 million or almost half of Pakistan yet its gDP is similar to Pakistan, which means that per capita Vietnam gDP is twice that of Pakistan.

The major cities are Ho Chi Men city (Saigon) with a population of 10 million, Hanoi population 8 million.

Vietnam exports goods worth approx. 175 billion dollars annually as compare this with Pakistan’s exports of around $25 billion, there are over 8,000 km2 of Export Processing Zones (EPZ) with a total investment of almost $100 billion that produce everything from footwear and apparel to electronic goods. While we were there the newspaper carried stories on how Samsung had pledged to invest $1.5 billion for

a new factory to manufacture Television components, and how the Korean engineering giant Doosan had export $15 million worth of gantry cranes to Dammam Port from their new $200 million engineering production facilities in Vietnam. in terms of energy Vietnam power generating capacity is approx. 37,000 MW as compared with Pakistan’s 23,000 MW but in sharp contrast with Pakistan they do not rely on imported energy source, Hydropower supplies 57% or 18,000 MW while indigenous coal and gas provide the remaining. in the last three years Vietnam added 3000 MW to the grid, 1,800 MW of hydel power and 1,200 MW of coal based power. Compare this with Pakistan that is planning to add 6,000 MW to the grid but almost all of it based on imported Lng or coal. The main advantage is that Vietnam is relatively insulted from the shocks of drastic change in energy prices or depreciation of its currency.

Vietnam was in ruins in 1975, yet the country has recovered remarkably mainly due to the ideology and struggle that took place prior to its reunification. Ho Chi Minh and general giap the two architects of modern Vietnam had a three central pillars in their ideology that has shaped the nation i) independence, ii) unity and iii) Prosperity for all. The Communist Party and its five million members that still rules Vietnam acts upon this ideology.

Vietnam had been colonised by the Chinese, Japanese, French and unification was achieved by defeating an American backed regime. independence therefore signifies eco-

nomic as well as political independence, all Vietnamese government decision reflect this and no agreements are made that could risk long term economic or political independence.

Although there are tension in the country particularly as the southern part of the country is the more prosperous and educated part, yet unlike Pakistan where certain regions absorb a majority of the resources and associated development benefits, the development in Vietnam is more be balanced with all eighty provinces sharing the growth.

When he set out to win the war against the French in Dien Bien Phu, general giap set out a plan for 4,000 days to win the war with gradual escalation and small victories and defeats.

Similarly the plan for enhancing prosperity in Vietnam is not constraint by the urgency to win the next elections but by building on a well thought out plan to achieve sustainable goals.

Admittedly Vietnam has a geographical advantage being close to China, Taiwan, Japan and Korea as well as no terrorism or sectarian issues. But the fact that the country leadership thinks long term and is reasonably honest is a major plus. Contrast this with Pakistan where the last two ruling parties have been obsessed with only two things winning elections and lining their pockets. Which is could explain why the development graphs of the two countries have diverged dramatically particularly over the last ten years.

Abbas Hasan is an engineer and a cricket fan who works in the Middle East. He can be reached on Twitter at: @A3bbasHasan

Is there a doctor in the house?

There’s a healthcare crisis in Pakistan

I

Such appalling health indicators of Pakistan are attributed to the indifference of the government towards the health sector. The ratio of gDP to health spending in Pakistan is only 0.9%. This figure is relatively lower when compared against 3.4% of gDP spent on defence, and 2% of gDP spent on education. This reflects the pervasive negligence of the government in reformation of the health sector, which ultimately results in its underperformance. The current budget for fiscal year 2016/17 has allocated rs22.4 billion for its health as compared to rs11 billion in the previous fiscal year. However, there still stands a question mark as to whether the allocated sums could be effectively used or not to bring a marked change in the health sector than before.

Another major anomaly seen in the health sector is that there is a wide expenditure gap seen in the public and private health institutions across the country. The expenditure on public health institutions is merely 3% of the total health expenditure owing to which the public hospitals lack well-developed and effective healthcare facilities. it is a pity that the public at large especially the poor echelon of the society is deprived of quality and affordable healthcare facilities; as

AiyzA JAvAid

T is indeed disillusioning to see that the health sector in Pakistan, which is deemed to be a paramount component of human well-being, is the most neglected. Pakistan’s government over the years has not prioritised health sector as expected for its improvement. Though the media often plays a pivotal role in highlighting the health issues such as breast cancer, spread of polio, tuberculosis and child death in Thar; a sound and effective debate on the causes of poor health services is always lacking.

The health indicators in Pakistan indicate that ineffective healthcare facilities are one of the greatest adversities facing Pakistan. At present, the infant mortality rate in Pakistan is 53.9 deaths per 1000 births compared with 39 in india, and 8.9 in Sri Lanka. The life expectancy in Pakistan for women is 67 years compared with 69 years in india, and 73 years in Bangladesh. Likewise, in Pakistan it is 65 years for men compared with 67 years in india and 70 years in Bangladesh. The maternal mortality rate in Pakistan is 178 per 100,000 live births compared with 167 in india, and 20 in Thailand.

Karachi – Ph: 021-35381208-9 Fax: 021-35381208

I

Islamabad – Ph: 051-2204545

I

the government hospitals fail to provide timely effective and sound medical treatment. The limited purchasing power of the poor deprives them from accessing quality health facilities of the private hospitals whenever required. This makes them worse off, and often results in heartrending stories of their ruined lives and casualties.

On the other side of the spectrum, it is only the affluent strata of our society; which is privileged to afford an access to provision of quality medical treatment rendered by private hospitals whenever required. The private hospitals enjoy state of the art infrastructure with effective quality medical facilities. in contrast, the public hospitals lack basic health facilities, and are even deprived of adequate patient beds.

Such a bleak scenario of discrimination between the public and private hospitals is an outcome of negligence of the government. it is a shame for the government that healthcare is not an immediate priority rather it is on the backburner of the policy discourse. This negligence is counterproductive indeed as lack of equal accessible healthcare for all stratas of the society leads to an unhealthy population, which cannot substantially contribute to an economy.

The assertion that Pakistan is a

Web: www.pakistantoday.com.pk

I

developing nation with limited resources is insufficient in justifying its limited expenditure on public healthcare. Compared with other developing countries such as Thailand and Sri Lanka; it is known that the public expenditure accounts for most of health spending in these countries. Such developing countries are rapidly progressing in the field of health, and their invaluable experiences should be learnt and applied in Pakistan.

An effective action plan is immediately required to be formulated by the government for overcoming the health crisis in Pakistan. The government support in making healthcare services affordable and accessible to all is inevitably required. Health services require a political priority by the government to make it functional and effective. The elected representatives and public officials should consider health the backbone of its political issues. The support of well-informed public in activating public health units can also reap positive results for reformation of health institutions.

Aiyza Javaid is a graduate of FAST-NU. She is a freelance writer, a regular writer in newspapers and is a teacher. She can be contacted at aiyza.javaid@gmail.com

Email: editorial@pakistantoday.com.pk

COMMENT 09

Wednesday, 18 January, 2017

Editor’s mail

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

A comprehensive water policy

A kink in Pakistan Afghanistan relations Patience and perseverance are the key

MAlik MuHAMMAd AsHrAf

I

n the backdrop of recent terrorist attacks in Kabul, Kandhar and Helmand which claimed nearly 60 lives including five uAE diplomats, the COAS according to a press release of the iSPr made a telephone call to the Afghan President. While expressing sympathy with the families of the victims he reiterated cooperation of the government of Pakistan with the Afghan government and people of Afghanistan to eliminate the scourge of terrorism and suggested robust border management and intelligence cooperation to put an end to cross border movement of the terrorists instead of blame-game that strengthened the forces inimical to peace in the region. The press release said that the Afghan President thanked the COAS for his sentiments and reiterated that both the countries must work together for peace and stability in the region.

However, the details of the conversation placed at the website of the Afghan President claimed that the Afghan President told the Pakistani COAS that those who carried out recent attacks “lived, were recruited and operated freely within Pakistan and no action was taken against them” Vowing to take revenge from the perpetrators of the attacks he described terrorism and extremis as a serious threat for the region and the world and said that lack determination to fight against the common threat could pose dangers to Pakistan itself and the region. He said that he wanted serious talks to discuss Kabul’s future relationship with Pakistan.

As is evident there is a marked contrast regarding the contents of the telephonic talk between the two. Why the iSPr chose to reveal the reaction of the Afghan President knowing that in this age of information revolution it was absolutely impossible to keep the things under wraps, can only be explained by them but one thing that comes out clear is that the Afghan President was not willing to buy the position taken by Pakistan in regards to working for the elimination of terrorism from the region and promoting peace in Afghanistan. He continues to look askance at every Pakistani initiative without any let up in the blame-game. That however does not mean that Pakistan should feel discouraged from playing its role in bringing peace to Afghanistan - on which hinges the peace in Pakistan and the region.

The call made by the COAS needs to be

seen in the perspective of Pakistan’s unswerving commitment to taking the fight against terrorism to its logical end and making its earnest contribution in restoring peace in Afghanistan. it is an irrefutable reality that terrorism is a common enemy of Afghanistan and Pakistan and both of them need to cooperate with each other against this common enemy. Therefore one cannot take an issue with the part of ghani’s statement that lack of determination to fight against the common threat could pose dangers to Pakistan itself and he want serious talks in regards to future relationship between the two countries.

However, he also needs to accept the reality that peace in Afghanistan could not be established without Pakistan and vice versa. The fact is that Pakistan has taken an indiscriminate action against all the terrorist outfits based in north Waziristan including the Haqqanis through operation Zarb-e-Azb. The uS commander in Afghanistan general John F Campbell in a written testimony to the Senate Armed Committee in last October said “Senior Pakistan military officers have repeatedly declared that they can no longer discriminate between good and bad terrorists. They appear to be taking meaningful actions to back up their words”. noting that considerable obstacles existed between Pakistan and Afghanistan which were likely to persist past 2016, he emphasized that the common threat of violent extremism could still serve as a catalyst to improve cooperation between the two countries. He felt that before working for reconciliation between the Afghan government and the Taliban, rapprochement between Pakistan and Afghanistan has to occur first as the fight against terrorism and terrorist outfits needed concerted Pak-Afghan efforts. His assessment conforms to the position taken by Pakistan.

Both the countries need to avoid blame game as reiterated by the COAS and also hold serious negotiations in regards to future relationship between them as pointed out by the Afghan President. The Afghan President though needs to match his words for serious dialogue with serious and realistic steps as well.

He must honestly evaluate all the variables involved in the obtaining situation in Afghanistan instead of impulsively blaming Pakistan for terrorist acts in Afghanistan. it is a permeating view among the political analysts and observers of the developments in the region that the blame-game mode of the Afghan President is attributable to weak structure of the Afghan state incapable to deal with the threat posed by

the Taliban which in turn is a cumulative consequence of the continuing rift between ghani and Abdullah, frequent desertions from Afghan Army, weak Afghan economy, rampant corruption within the government departments and failure of the Afghan Army in checking the onslaught of the Taliban. under the circumstances ghani finds it convenient to use Pakistan as a fall guy for all his troubles.

That stance is hypocritical. if the Afghan President is really serious in removing the kink in relations between the two countries, he will have to accept the ground realities earnestly.

The fact is that those who are carrying out acts of terrorism in Afghanistan including the Haqqanis are all based in that country in the areas controlled by the Afghan Taliban. Even the TTP operatives who are orchestrating attacks in Pakistan are also based in Afghanistan.

They all fled to Afghanistan during operation Zarb-e-Azb because the Afghan government did not try to prevent their escape to Afghanistan in spite of requests from Pakistan to the Afghan government to make sure that they were not allowed to enter Afghanistan.

The situation in Afghanistan, particularly the emergence of Daesh in that country demands collaborative efforts between the two countries supported by other states of the region like China and russia. Therefore both the countries need to let the bygones be bygones and make a new beginning by removing the ambience of mistrust. For that the Afghan President will also have to end his connivance with india to malign and isolate Pakistan in the region as well as at the global level, which he has been doing in the recent past. The Afghan President must understand that peace in Afghanistan was absolutely imperative for dealing with phenomenon of terrorism in Pakistan, therefore, the latter could not afford to foment acts of terrorism in that country.

An earnest beginning can be made by enhancing intelligence cooperation between the two countries and also taking effective collaborative measures to manage the border between the two countries. Pakistan on its part has already started strict monitoring of the border and repatriation of the Afghan refugees which can go a long way in checking the menace of terrorism. reciprocal steps by Afghanistan could supplement these efforts and eventually pave the way for eventual solution of the Afghan conundrum.

Malik Muhammad Ashraf is an academic.

He can be contacted at: ashpak10@gmail.com

Dr Yasmin rashid, chairperson of insaf Professional Forum has appealed to the government to prepare a comprehensive policy to save the water of Pakistan. After Mangla Dam a second dam could be built either at Kalabagh or at Tarbela.

WB wanted to build the smaller, cheaper and less complex Kalabagh Dam but a group of WAPDA engineers prevailed upon their government to get WB to build the bigger, costlier and much more complex Tarbela Dam, they argued that Kalabagh Dam could be build later with own resources.

Storage capacity has to be the key in any water policy not only to meet the ever increasing demand for irrigation water but also to increase our very inadequate reserve of 30 days only for any contingency. Kalabagh Dam can provide us with a capacity of 6.1 million acre feet in less than five years (could have done it 20 years ago) while Bhasha Dam will take at least 15 years to give us 7 maf. Dr Yasmin rashid should enquire from the Sindh assembly as to what is so wrong with Kalabagh Dam which even WB was prepared to build, the much touted assembly resolutions do not tell us much. The first thing they will say is that the dams have depleted the indus river and the indus delta, they don’t even know that the dams have actually increased canal supplies (35.6 to 44.5 maf in Sindh canals alone), and have not depleted the indus or the delta. it is the people who have depleted the indus, 8 crore people have increased to 20 crore in 40 years without any increase in supply , add 15 years for Bhasha Dam and we have 55 years without increase in storage.

A neutral observer will be fully justified in thinking that we are stark, raving mad and fully deserve the fate that awaits us.

ENGR KHURSHID ANWER Lahore

Players of the year THE name of players for the Test team and ODi team of the year 2016 was announced where so many good players managed to secure place in the teams. Pakistan may have climbed to the top of the iCC’s Test rankings this year, but none of their players managed to secure a place in the iCC Test team as well as ODi Team. According to international Cricket Council (iCC), England’s Alastair Cook has been named the captain of the iCC Test Team of the Year, which includes three other Englishmen (Joe root, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Stokes), four Australians (David Warner, Mitchell Starc, Steve Smith, Adam Voges), and a player each from new Zealand (Kane Williamson), from india (ravichandran Ashwin), from Sri Lanka (rangana Herath) and from South Africa (Dale Steyn), while Virat Kohli has been named as captain of the iCC ODi Team of the Year, which includes two other indians (rohit Sharma, ravindra Jadeja), three Australians (David Warner, Mitchell Marsh, Mitchell Starc), four South Africans (Quinton de Kock, AB de Villiers, Kagiso rabada, imran Tahir) and one each from England (Jos Buttler) and from West indies (Sunil narine). it is really a shocking announcement for the fans of green shirt that no one from the team make place in teams of the years and we hope that next year our players will not make us disappointed rather they will show brilliant performance in their upcoming matches which can help them to secure place in the teams of the year of 2017.

MUHAMMAD BAKHTIYAR Kech

Don’t fall prey to chatter A section of media is portraying doomsday scenario on the news of gen (retd) raheel Sharif’s joining of islamic military alliance.

This requires blunt debunking. Tantrums are being thrown because the kingdom is traditionally seen as hostile to iran. While iran and Saudi Arabia should settle their differences mutually, Pakistan must take full advantage of this golden opportunity and must not fall prey to so-called iranian sympathisers in the media.

Heading a military coalition of 39 islamic countries must be a matter of pride for Pakistan. Saudi Arabia has always backed Pakistan both monetarily and diplomatically. it doled out $1.5 billion to Pakistan when Pakistan’s forex reserves were historically low. iran on the other hand has always stabbed Pakistan. iran provided Pakistani designs of Pakistani centrifuges to iAEA during Musharraf regime when pressure mounted on iran to cap its nuke programme. iran never supported Pakistan on Afghan issue and partnered with india.

Both iran and india are hostile to CPEC and Pakistani efforts of economically uplifting Balochistan. The move will certainly thwart indian efforts to isolate Pakistan internationally and allow Pakistan to use this clout against india diplomatically.

UMAR TAJ Karachi

Digital libraries THE decision by the Punjab government to establish 151 digital, smart libraries across the province at an estimated cost of rs940 million is commendable as the move will help promote reading and learning among the masses. Joseph Addison has said that “reading is to the mind what exercise is to the body”. reading is so important because it not only exposes us to new things and improves our understanding but also boosts our imagination and creativity. Because educational researchers have also found a strong correlation between reading and vocabulary knowledge therefore, this decision by the government would facilitate students more than any other person. it is hoped that the government would remain sincere in its efforts to introduce more such initiatives which would ultimately help educate the masses and increase the literacy rate in the province.

SHEHAR BANo SYED Lahore

10 BUSINESS

Wednesday, 18 January, 2017

SBP ExEmPtS ExChangE COmPaniES frOm SElling 10% dOllar tO intErBank exchange cos bounD to sell 10% Dollar to banks agaInst other currencIes exports KARACHI

t

ARSHAD HUSSAIN

HE State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on Tuesday gave twomonth exemption to exchange companies from surrendering 10 percent dollar to the banking system against its exports of other foreign currencies and directed them to reduce the gap between Interbank and Kerb market.

According to the SBP Manual, all the exchange companies were bound to sell their 10 percent US dollars received against the export of foreign currencies in the interbank market. SBP governor Ashraf Mahmood Wathra held a meeting with the owners of the exchange companies and heard the issues regarding USD prices in the open currency market.

The dollar rates in the open market are at Rs 108.40 for buying and Rs

108.65 for selling for the last few weeks. The gap between interbank and Kerb is Rs 3.40.

“SBP governor has assured us in the meeting that the SBP would provide dollars to the Companies to bring the dollar’s rates down in the open market, said Malik Bostan, president Forex Association of Pakistan. The SBP further assured that the SBP will take action against those banks in case of refusal to clear cheques of foreign currency account holders in future.

He said, “Dollar will start declining in the open market from this week and close at Rs 106 and below it.” The central bank has given us an exemption for the next two months, he added.

The exchange companies informed

Pakistan among fastest growing e-commerce markets: eBay CEO ISLAMABAD: Chief Executive Officer of eBay, an American Inc and e-commerce company, has termed Pakistan among the fastest growing e-commerce markets in the world. In a Facebook Live session on the page of the World Economic Forum (WEF), Wenig was asked a question regarding his thoughts on Pakistan and emerging markets. “It’s the fastest growing markets we have around the world.

Anywhere where wealth is growing and technology is being adopted, e-commerce is being adopted like crazy,” said Wenig in his remarks also carried by a section of media here. According to the eBay CEO, the perfect opportunity for e-commerce was in countries where people were growing in wealth and do not have access to goods. “People use e-commerce to get access to those goods”. When asked as to why eBay was not in Pakistan, Devin Wenig said eBay did not have a local Pakistani version, however, there were customers shopping from the country on various eBay sites. “We absolutely encourage you to shop, and we will get our goods and services in Pakistan for sure. Go and use eBay in Pakistan,” Wenig said. APP

FDI Faces oscIllatIng trenD DespIte cpec Investments ISLAMABAD FARRUKH KARAMAT

The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) disclosed that for the period July to December 2016 the Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) amounted to $1.08 billion, registering a growth of over 10 per cent versus the $978 million FDI for the same period in the last fiscal year.

As per the data, the overall investment has been increased by 52 per cent to approximately $1.8 Billion for the period July to December 2016, due to the inclusion of the borrowings under the Eurobond offering by the government. The fact is that FDI inflows into Pakistan have maintained a steady decline, from a peak

SBP head that they are facing a shortage of dollar because of lower remittances for the last few months, said Zafar Paracha, secretary general Exchange Companies Association of Pakistan (ECAP). “After getting this concession from SBP, we are looking greenback down at Rs 106 or Rs 107 in next few weeks,” he informed on the phone. The exchange companies will not sell their dollars to the bank in Pakistan and we will use these dollars against counter’s demand, he added.

He further claimed that the dollar is being smuggled from Pakistan to Dubai while people are importing gold and investing their money in Dubai projects etc.

“The inflows of remittances in exchange companies have come down by

50 percent in last six months of the current fiscal year,” said Malik Bostan. We can blame the current situation in the Middle East countries for this shortage, but, actually we are still unable to find out the main reason, he added.

He said the governor SBP has agreed to relax the companies accepting their demands to enhance the dollar liquidity by exempting the sale of the dollar to the interbank market.

For the last few years, the country’s remittances were stable despite lower exports and FDI and this declining scene surfaced after restructuring of property valuations on retail and purchase of lands throughout the country.

This decision of Ishaq Dar proves as the last nail in Pakistan’s construction industry. Overseas Pakistanis were sending hard earnings in Pakistan for the purchase of properties and earning profits on it, a currency expert said.

A major demand of the dollar is coming from the gold importers who are buying yellow metal from MiddleEast countries owing to a big price difference of Rs 3000-4000 in Pakistan, the currency experts said, adding that the other demand is from the local builders who are investing their money in big projects of Dubai.

PC board approves 30 year lease plan for PSM ISLAMABAD STAFF REPORT

The Privatisation Commission’s Board on Tuesday approved a thirty year transaction structure proposed by its financial advisors for the restructuring of Pakistan Steel Mills (PSM).

The decision was taken during the PC Board meeting.

The proposed structure, which is set to be presented to the Cabinet Committee on Privatisation (CCoP) in coming days, includes a tripartite concession agreement between the government, PSMC and the investor for a period of 30 years on the basis of revenue sharing.

PSM’s land will remain with the government while the plant and machinery will be handed over to the new company for a maximum period of 30 years, and no asset of PSMC will be sold.

The board also approved the transaction structure of SME Bank which includes a sale of 93.88 per-

cent shareholding of the government of Pakistan. Based on the proposed structure, the State Bank of Pakistan is to allow a reduced Minimum Capital Requirement (MCR) of Rs 6 billion on staggered basis over five years, with Rs 2 billion upfront and Rs 1 billion each for next four years.

The SBP will also issue a new banking license of a specialised nature with at least 60 percent advances

for the SME sector to the investor while also allowing Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) at 10 percent for five years post-privatisation.

Based on the request from Ministry of Information, PC board agreed to delist Shalimar Recording and Broadcasting Company from the privatisation program, while it agreed to constitute a committee to evaluate the viability of delisting Sindh Engineering Limited (SE) which has been requested by the Ministry of Industries and Production.

The committee will assess the legal status of the SE assets and provide a comparative analysis in case of privatisation and restructuring or delisting of the entity.

The board also approved the initiation of process for hiring of Financial Advisors for Pakistan Re-Insurance Company, National Insurance Company and Heavy Electrical Complex (HEC). It also approved the initiation of capital market transaction of the OGDC shares up to a maximum of 5 percent.

Ogra asks gas companies to address low gas pressure complaints ISLAMABAD” For the first time the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) has intervened on the behalf of its consumers and directed both state-owned Sui gas companies to ensuring adequate line pressure to meet the contractual obligations in line with the minimum performance and services standards notified by the regulator. Directive issued to sui companies said complaints are rampant from all over the country from domestic consumers, in particular, and commercial, industrial consumers in general against low pressure of gas. Such low gas pressure is causing great inconvenience apart from socioeconomic concerns for all sections of the society. The gas utilities are therefore directed to put all efforts with a view to ensuring adequate line pressure to meet the contractual obligations in line with the Minimum Performance and Services Standards notified by the OGRA. The low pressure complaints may immediately be addressed, prompt response be given to the complainants, necessary system augmentation may be planned wherever required along with continuity of supplies, safety and energy conservation measure may suitably be advertised to overcome this seasonal phenomenon so as to reduce consumers grievances. All regions may also be directed to initiate/utilise all resources to overcome the issue of low pressure of gas. STAFF REPORT

SngPl suspends Cng supply to filling stations in Punjab, islamabad

ISLAMABAD: The Sui Northern Gas Pipeline Limited (SNGPL) has decided to suspend gas supply to CNG stations in Punjab and Islamabad for four days. A spokesperson of SNGPL said that the gas supply to CNG stations in Punjab and Islamabad will remain suspended for four days. The spokesperson added that provision of gas to domestic consumers is the top priority. The spokesperson further added that efforts are in full swing to ensure smooth supply of gas to domestic consumers. ONLINE

FDI InCreaSeS to 10 Per Cent In July-DeCeMber of $5.2 billion in the period 2007-08, mainly as a result of a fragile security situation, ongoing political instability, and serious governance issues. In contrast to the investment situation in Pakistan India has been able to consistently attract FDI of around $25-30 billion annually.

The total foreign investment increased by 11.4 per cent during July-December 2016 as compared to $741 million in July-December 2015. FDI has shown an oscillating trend over the past three years despite the much-hyped CPEC investments. During December 2016 a major investment from the Netherlands for the acquisition of a 51 per cent stake in Engro Foods by Friesland Campina valued at $460 million helped improve the FDI situation. As a result of the Netherland investment and inflows from UAE and China the in-

flows for December 2016 alone contributed around 55 per cent of the total FDI for six months.

Based on the six-month FDI the food sector remained dominant with almost 50 per cent of the inflows going towards the purchase of the Engro Foods stake.

The portfolio investment in equity market fell by 7.4 per cent in July to December 2016 to $237 million as against $254 million in the same period last year.

On an aggregate basis, China and Netherlands accounted for 61 per cent of the six month FDI till December 2016.

This in itself is an alarming sign, as it serves to show the reluctance of larger investment partners in making economic and financial forays into Pakistan. While the law and order situation has improved considerably in the last two years as a result of the firm resolve shown by the

Armed Forces in combating terrorism, there is considerable apprehension in the implementation of the National Action Plan (NAP) and the issue of institutional corruption. The Panamagate case has also not been a positive for the country, having inflicted considerable reputational damage internationally.

Alongside the low level of investment inflows, the government continues to enhance the fiscal burden through the grant of subsidies. A recent case in point is the Rs.77 billion subsidy announced to the agricultural (fertiliser) sector and the Rs.180 Billion relief package for the Textile sector. This is on top of the subsidies and rebates being offered to the other sectors of the economy. While the agriculture and textile sectors are the mainstay of the economy, such arbitrary announcements appear to be more of political gimmicks

as opposed to well-thought out fiscal and economic strategies. The burden of such actions has to ultimately be borne by the tax payers and the people of the country.

The government continues to be criticised for the debt accumulation, both external and internal; the recent Sukuk offering of $1 Billion as well as mortgaging of key national assets for collateralizing borrowings. Intensive efforts and policy initiatives are required by the government to have a meaningful increase in the FDI in Pakistan.

At the same time as part of the structural and fiscal reforms, the government needs to lessen the fiscal burden and learn to live within its means, by increasing inflows. This is possible only by creating an environment for providing competitive conditions, a level playing field, and long-term economic vision.

BUSINESS 11

Wednesday, 18 January, 2017

CORPORATE CORNER mcdonald’s unveils its new tVC at party

CdWP aPPrOVES 18 PrOjECtS WOrth rS 154 BilliOn ISLAMABAD

t

KARACHI: McDonald’s unveiled its new TVC at a star studded Golden Party held on 15th January, 2017 at McDonald’s Seaview Rooftop. A great party for everyone is all about great food, great music and even greater company. McDonald’s Golden Party was everything a great party is all about and more. Many celebrities also joined in the celebration such as Sumbul Iqbal, Sara Khan, ShamoonAbbasi, Hira Hussain, Omer Shehzad, SaimaAzher, Asif Rehman, EkraFaiz, Falak Sheikh, Rubab, Faria Bukhari, Kiran Khan and Nausheen Shan were seen at the event. PRESS RELEASE

fWBl signs avanza solutions to power internet banking services

KARACHI: First Women Bank Ltd. (FWBL) has signed Avanza Solutions’ Ambit 2 to run its internet banking services, which will allow FWBL to offer internet banking facilities to its customer base, thereby making its services more convenient and accessible. The Signing Ceremony took place at the FWBL Head Office, where Tahira Raza, President & CEO FWBL, and Mahmood Kapurwala, CEO Avanza Solutions, officially kicked-off the project. Speaking at the Signing Ceremony, Tahira Raza said “We are pleased to have started the new year with this initiative as FWBL has always strived to stay true to its roots and provide convenient banking services to its customers.

Mahmood Kapurwala said “Avanza strives to enable organisations like FWBL with state-of-the-art technology, ultimately helping them maximise reach, effectiveness and productivity. Avanza’s Ambit provides continuous delivery of retail internet banking services using the best and latest security standards, coupled with a responsive and user-friendly interface. Ambit does not require any software to be preloaded on the customer’s website, and is a browser-based solution. This makes the solution accessible and ensures a pleasant consumer experience every time. PRESS RELEASE

The CDWP approved Saaf Suthro Sindh (SSS) Programme - scaling up of rural sanitation worth Rs 1.5 billion in principle. While giving his observations the federal minister Ahsan observed that the project needed restructuring to ensure solid outcomes and deliverables. The CDWP approved Punjab Irrigated Agriculture Productivity Improvement (PIPIP) worth Rs 80 Billion with FEC Rs 48 billion. The minister stressed the need to partner agricultural university in this project for research and innovation purposes.

In Higher Education, CDWP approved the provision of academic and research facilities, Air University, Islamabad worth Rs 1.6 billion with FEC Rs 269 million. However, the minister urged to rationalise scope of the project. In Information Technology, CDWP approved the provision of seamless GSM Coverage along KKH in support of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and up-gradation of GSM Network for Gilgit Baltistan Phase-II worth Rs 3.3 billion.

The CDWP approved institutional strengthening & efficiency enhancement of Planning Commission worth Rs 200 million.

It gave clearance to two projects in principle which include Pakistan Programme - the revival of wildlife resources in Pakistan worth Rs 1.1 billion and Zoological survey of Pakistan worth Rs 99 million. The chair observed to review and rationalise the cost of the project. In addition, CDWP also approved 2 position papers which include construction of 100 dams in Tehsil Dubandal, Gulistan, Killa Abdullah and Chaman area in Killa Abdullah worth Rs 1.5 billion and Pehur high-level canal extension district Swabi worth Rs 10 billion.

STAFF REPORT

HE Central Development Working Party (CDWP) on Tuesday approved significant projects to transmit electricity from the power plants to the national grid for transfer to upcountry load centres.

Overall, the CDWP approved 18 projects worth Rs154 billion, including seven project costing Rs 134 billion, which were referred to the executive committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC). In addition, it approved two position papers.

The meeting was chaired by Planning and Development Federal Minister Ahsan Iqbal and was attended by senior officers of the provincial governments and ministries concerned. In energy sector, CDWP approved and referred two projects including evacuation of power from two 1100 MW K2/K-3 coastal power plants near Karachi worth Rs 5.6 billion with FEC Rs 2.6 billion and evacuation of power from two 660 MW Thar coal based SSRL/SECL power plant at Thar worth Rs 23 billion with FEC Rs 12 billion to ECNEC. It also approved evacuation of power from 350 MW Siddiq sons energy coal-fired power plant near Port Qasim worth Rs 2.9 billion with FEC Rs 1.4 billion.

The three projects aim to transmit power from the power plants and transfer it to the national grid.

The CDWP approved rehabilitation of damaged 66 KV grid station at Ghiljo Orakzai Agency worth Rs 145 million and construction of 132 KV SDT transmission line for making interconnecting arrangement

between 132 KV grid station Kharan and Mall grid (82 KM) worth Rs 650 million. It referred 500 KV Chakwal sub-station worth Rs 7 billion with FEC Rs 3.8 billion to ECNEC. The CDWP also gave clearance and referred revised Koto hydropower project located in Lower Dir, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to ECNEC worth Rs 14 billion with FEC Rs 7 billion.

In transport and communication sector, CDWP approved revised project of improvement and construction of Jalkhad- Chilas road project worth Rs 7.8 billion, feasibility studies of up-gradation of existing railway line from Rohri to Koti- Taftan via Quetta including the realignment of Sibi-Spez and Section (1022 km) and feasibility study of rail link from Quetta to Kotla Jam (538 Kms) worth Rs 292 million. This project would help to connect Quetta to Peshawar through the rail.

It also approved up-gradation of VHF communication system for operational staff worth Rs 737 million. In addition, it approved up-gradation of a road from RCC Konodas Bridge to Naltar Airbase Camp via Nomal (47 km) of worth Rs 2.7 billion.

of economic reforms which were drafted at the beginning of 2013-14. He also said that the FRDL requires the debt-to-GDP ratio to be brought down from the current statutory limit of 60pc to down to 50pc in 15 years.

The finance minister directed that these commitments should be built and adhered to in future projections of the macroeconomic framework. He highlighted that a comprehensive and thorough macroeconomic framework enables the federal government, provincial governments as well as the private sector to plan ahead with confidence and take vital decisions in a timely manner. The framework forms the basis of policy decisions in the areas of annual and multi-annual budgets, management of reserves, investments and economic growth.

Finance minister reviews five-year macroeconomic framework ISLAMABAD AGENCIES

Finance Minister Ishaq Dar on Tuesday said the government is focused on improving key macroeconomic indicators, including the investment-to-GDP and tax-to-GDP ratios.

He was chairing a meeting to review the five-year (2017-22) macroeconomic framework. The finance minister gave instructions to align the medium-term fiscal policy with the

targets provided in the amended Fiscal Responsibility and Debt Limitations (FRDL) Act. Dar underlined the importance of recent amendments in the FRDL Act, which has assisted in limiting the deficit of the federal government. The FRDL Act requires the federal government to decrease its deficit in three years, starting with 2017-18, to 4 per cent of the GDP, and thereafter maintaining it at a maximum of 3.5pc. Dar reiterated the government's resolve to continue on the path

Major Gainers

balochistan govt bans transfer of land in Gwadar for three months ISLAMABAD AHMAD AHMADANI

Balochistan government has imposed a ban on the transfer of land in Gwadar; Planning Ministry and Gwadar Development Authority (GDA) along with an international firm will jointly devise a plan to make Gwadar a planned city.

This was told by Secretary Ministry of Planning, Development and Reform Yousaf Naseem Khokar to the National Assembly Standing Committee on Planning, Development and Reform which met here on Tuesday under the Chairmanship of MNA Abdul Majeed Khan Khanankhail.

The secretary said the ban of transfer of land in Gwadar will be effective for three months and a notification to this effect has been issued by the provincial government.

“This ban on new schemes has been imposed to make Gwadar a planned port city for business and other activities,” the secretary said. He added that services of an international firm will be hired to devise a plan for making Gwadar a city that will carry international standards.

The city of Gwadar is a hub of connectivity for the corridor, and an indispensable interchange for the Silk Route. The ChinaPakistan Economic Corridor, however, plans not to limit Gwadar to a connecting port only, but enriches it as an economic hub that

will cater to the needs of local population by improving their livelihoods.

Projects planned for Gwadar port city aim at capacitating Balochistan to its full economic, social, technical, and energy potential, and closely integrating it within the economic framework of Pakistan and China. However, land use in the port city has not shown rosy picture.

But, it has been creating problems to make Gwadar a planned port city. Large part of the land of Gwadar city has been allotted under various schemes.

The land use by Gwadar Development Authority (GDA) till December 2016 discloses that GDA has issued 100 No Objection Certificates (NOCs) to various residential, industrial, commercial and recreational schemes.

Among them, there are 75 housing/residential schemes in Gwadar that cover 12677.604 acres of land, while 15 industrial schemes cover 2174.87 acres, commercial schemes are six and they cover 299.84 acres.

Also, recreational schemes are four and they have covered 381 acres.

During the course of this meeting, the secretary comprehensively briefed the committee over the updated status of the CPEC projects post 6th Joint Committee on CPEC (JCC) meeting held on 29th December, 2016, at Beijing co-chaired by professor Ahsan Iqbal Minister for PD &

R and Wang Xiaota, Vice Chairman National Development Reform Commission (NDRC).

“This meeting was unique as all chief ministers of Provinces attended the meeting and presented new project proposals and preferred sites for special economic zones,” Yousaf Naseem Khokar said.

Sharing details of projects under the CPEC, Secretary Planning informed that there are 12 energy projects under the CPEC which is expected that 5000 MW of CPEC energy will be put into operation by 2017-18. The committee directed secretary Planning Ministry to submit project wise details along with breakup in the next meeting. The Committee also recommended that all concern departments would be invited in the next meeting to brief the Committee over the said energy projects under CPEC in detail.

The secretary also briefed the committee over the Transport Infrastructure, Rail Based Mass Transit System, Railways, new Provincial Projects and new Gwadar Projects in detail.

Rail Based Mass Transit System includes Karachi Circular Railway, Greater Peshawar region Mass Transit, Quetta Mass Transit and Orange Line, Lahore, however, he informed that the Orange Line Lahore is not part of the CPEC it is a Punjab government project.

CoMPany unilever Foods rafhan maize Wyeth pak ltd ghandhara Ind. colgate palmolive

oPen 5899.99 7950.00 4849.99 1000.00 1710.00

HIGH 5900.00 7950.00 4850.00 1026.46 1750.00

low 5899.99 7950.00 4700.00 955.00 1710.00

CloSe CHanGe turnover 5900.00 150.00 40 7950.00 140.00 20 4779.54 69.33 580 1026.46 48.87 330,450 1750.00 40.00 60

1569.00 882.00 2849.99 1099.00 530.00

1539.00 849.01 2715.01 1035.00 530.00

1540.25 853.71 2767.50 1067.00 530.00

-37.02 -28.52 -22.92 -22.00 -19.50

4,220 310,200 960 40 50

39.87 25.84 18.65 9.50 11.39

38.30 24.40 17.20 9.31 10.64

39.17 25.84 18.42 9.42 10.73

0.53 1.23 0.43 -0.04 -0.39

22,577,500 21,292,500 15,732,000 13,767,000 13,260,500

Major Losers service Ind.ltd lucky cement sanofi-aventis khyber tobacco shield corp.

1550.00 882.00 2790.00 1035.00 530.00

Volume Leaders sui south gas Faysal bank aisha steel mill k-electric ltd. pace (pak) ltd.

38.69 24.50 18.18 9.48 11.12

Interbank Rates usD gbp JpY euro

pkr 104.8525 pkr 127.5321 pkr 0.9270 pkr 111.9563

Forex australian Dollar canadian Dollar china Yuan euro Japanese Yen saudi riyal u.a.e Dirham uk pound sterling us Dollar

buy

Sell

80 81.75 15.1 114.5 0.9 28.7 29.45 131 108.35

80.8 82.6 15.25 115.7 0.93 28.9 29.7 132.75 108.65

12 WORLD VIEW

Wednesday, 18 January, 2017

How tHe politics of fear defines modern society nAtionAl

i

joSeph Dana

MAGINE sitting in a plane, flying high above the clouds when suddenly the passengers realise there is nobody in the cockpit. The plane is flying itself, but it is unclear where the aircraft is headed and whether it will land.

This hypothetical situation, according to Polish socialist Zygmunt Bauman who died last week at the age of 91, exemplifies the fears that define contemporary society.

Security concerns dominate nations around the world and yet individuals don’t feel secure. The media exploits the collective feeling that freak events such as natural disasters and terrorist attacks are beyond our control.

“Fear,” Bauman wrote in one of his late essays, “is arguably the most sinister of the demons nesting in the open societies of our time. But it is the insecurity of the present and uncertainty about the future that hatch and breed the most awesome and least bearable of our fears.”

In the course of Bauman’s life, the world changed dramatically around him. Born in Poland to a non-observant Jewish family just before the Second World War, he fled with his family to the Soviet Union to avoid Hitler’s gas chambers. He then served in the First Polish Army and took part in the battle for Berlin in 1945 along with the Soviets.

Following the war, Bauman’s family emigrated to Israel despite his vociferous anti-Zionist objections informed by an adherence to Marxism. Instead, he chose to pursue a life as a sociologist of modernity and eventually ended up in the United Kingdom after being forced to leave Poland during a political purge in 1968.

Publishing more than 50 books on critical theory and modernity, he is regarded as one of the eminent European thinkers of the late 20th century.

It is his association with critical theory that made Bauman a sought-after celebrity scholar on contemporary society. With the rise of far-right political movements in Europe and the United States in the past decade, critical theory has become popular again.

The philosophy was first defined by the scholars of the Frankfurt School for Social Research in the late 1930s as an attempt to understand the social, historical and ideological forces that produce culture. Made up of largely German Jews of the Marxist political persuasion, the Frankfurt School was forced into exile to escape Hitler.

Popular contemporary philosophers such as SlavojZizek and even Alain de Botton would not exist if it weren’t for the work of early critical theorists such as Theodor Adorno and Max Horkheimer who analysed how culture is born out of and perpetuates ideology.

For example, critical theorists are less interested in the definition of happiness but rather how society has arrived at our definition of happiness and what role culture plays in constructing such a definition.

The bulk of Bauman’s early work concentrated on social movements, modernity and socialism. Later in life, he turned his focus on the notion of liquidity as a signifier of modernity. In what became his most famous work, Liquid Modernity, he argued that in an increasingly interconnected, globalised and affluent world, the individual can now shift from one social position to another in a fluid manner. This liquid environment allowed individuals to free themselves from several traditional burdens but also created new problems, namely a suffocating form of anxiety and fear along with the desire to escape.

But how can we understand these esoteric concepts in our own lives? Last year, Bauman gave an insightful interview to Al Jazeera in which he deployed his thinking to analyse one of the major challenges we face today: the Syrian refugee crisis.

Before the civil war, he argued, many Syrians lived proud and secure lives. They had jobs, homes, business and families just as people in Berlin or Paris do. Today, they are refugees at home and abroad. Many who have left the country for shelter in Europe are now homeless, stripped of the ability to work and uncertain about where they will rest their head at day’s end. Because we see ourselves in their plight, we can’t omit their presence from our subconscious. It’s not that they are coming for our resources, it’s that we fear that, at some point, we could be those people.

From his earliest brushes with Zionism, Bauman was a profound critic of Israel. He became an outspoken opponent of the occupation, which he saw as a toxic and corrosive force that enabled the Israelis to hide “numerous and inevitably growing internal social problems”. He compared the West Bank separation barrier to the walls of the Warsaw Ghetto and while he never fully embraced the boycott movement, he wrote damningly of Israel’s use (and abuse) of the Holocaust to forward its colonial ambitions.

“The way of ‘commemorating’ the Holocaust in Israeli politics is,” he said in an interview with a Polish magazine in 2011, “in a way a post-mortem triumph for Hitler, who dreamed of creating conflict between Jews and the whole world, and between the whole world and the Jews, in preventing Jews from ever having peaceful coexistence with others.

“My radically opposite way of ‘commemorating’ the Holocaust can be summarised as follows: it is forbidden to stay silent in the face of Israeli crimes and their persecution of Palestinians exactly because the fate of Jews in Europe had similar beginnings – discrimination, pogroms, ghettos, concluding with the Shoah.”

We are in the midst of profound uncertainty, and the outlets that traditionally help us make sense of things, such as the media, are failing. In such a climate, the work of Bauman and other critical theorists take on new urgency and necessary perspective. Despite his death, Zygmunt Bauman’s theories on society and modernity will far outlive him.

‘Serious job losses are taking place’ Hindu SuvojitBagchi

Q: We’ve seen the primary impact of the demonetisation: long queues outside banks and shortage of cash. Now we are seeing the secondary impact, which is on the informal sector. Potato sowing in West Bengal is affected and some other businesses are collapsing.

What could be the impact of all this?

What you are calling “the secondary impact” shouldn’t at all be surprising since the availability of money plays a very big part in facilitating business and trade. Particularly for small businesses (farming, for example), money is often used in the form of cash. In the long run, cashless transactions can perhaps be made into routine practice, through organisation and training, but that would take time. To act on the presumption of instant learning and institutionalisation is to place the hard-earned interests of many people without any connection to ‘black money’ in serious risk.

Most of what we now call cash is actually promissory notes, the emergence of which reflected a big advance over relying only on precious metals (like gold and silver). Promissory notes played a significant part in building up the financial backbone of industrial Europe. If in the 18th or 19th century, Britain had been demonetised suddenly, it would have devastated British industrial progress.

Given the underdevelopment of electronic accounts and transactions, big parts of the economy are similarly vulnerable. For many, especially among the poor, making efficient and correct use of electronic payments and receipts would remain difficult to master and the possibility of losing one’s money would be hard to avoid, especially given the shortage of infrastructure and the slowness of learning in using cashless transactions. The perplexing question is why some people — those who gave us demonetisation — did not foresee that this would happen and even more perplexing is how the promoters of demonetisation can be so blind even now to the overwhelming evidence of a crisis.

Q: Why has over 85 per cent of cash suddenly been taken out of circulation?

The Government of India seems to have been caught in a confusion of purposes. Demonetisation has been seen both as a way of catching and eliminating ‘black money’, and as a way of moving towards a ‘cashless economy’. The former has gradually been replaced in the rhetoric of the government by the latter, which is not surprising as demonetisation can make only a very small contribution — at a huge social cost — to the ‘black money problem’. This is because only a very small proportion of black money (it is estimated to be 6 per cent or so, certainly less than 10 per cent) is in cash.

Most black money is in the form of precious metals and other assets in foreign accounts.

The inconvenience and loss imposed with no black money (workers earning wages; small businesses doing trade or production; people, even housewives, keeping small savings) are much more acute than any benefit from catch-

Nobel Laureate and economist Amartya Sen

ing relatively small amounts of black money.

There are going to be huge job losses too, and the recent reports by All India Manufacturers’ Organisation are beginning to show that serious job losses are already happening as a result of what London’s Financial Times has called “a dramatic drop in business in the 34 days since Narendra Modi… announced his plan to scrap 86 per cent of its banknotes.”

The unrealistic governmental expectation that the ‘black money problem’ can be solved, or largely removed, by demonetisation soon became clear even to the government. Then the initially trumpeted objective of getting rid of black money through demonetisation was suddenly changed into a very different objective — to leap rapidly into a cashless society. However, for such a structural change, much more time is needed, and the draconian measures — penalties installed in the hope of catching black money — are particularly ill-suited. The result has been a combination of chaos and widespread suffering rather than an orderly transition to a cashless society.

Q: Do you think there are political reasons behind the demonetisation move? The elections are coming up, so that may have been one?

I don’t really know. Since economic reasoning could not have sensibly led to such a hamhanded policy, it is natural for people to suspect an explanation in terms of political advantages that the ruling parties were expecting to get. It has certainly given, at least for the time being, a great political image to the Prime Minister of being a huge fighter against corruption, even though the policy has done very little to achieve anything on that front.

Q: If it is a bad policy, why do you think there haven’t been protests against demonetisation yet?

The government’s publicity surrounding this inept move has been very strong. People have been told again and again that if you are against demonetisation, you must be in favour of black money. This is a ridiculous analysis, but a readily exploitable political slogan. The persistent crisis created by demonetisation is only slowly becoming clear in terms of hard statistics as well as in public perception.

THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN RIGHT AND LEFT-WING POPULISM Al JAzeerA Santiago ZaBala

We will remember 2016 not only for the return of populism throughout the West, but also for the blindness of those who could not see the difference between right-wing and leftist populism.

This distinction is vital, and overlooking it further contributes to the degradation of a public discourse that is already in trouble. The rise of both kinds of populism is the result of the long-term failure of neo-liberal policies, as many already know, but it is also “a necessary dimension of democratic politics” as the political philosopher Chantal Mouffe explains.

But to understand why so many people in the world’s “advanced” democracies have turned to both far-right and leftist populism, it is necessary to understand how harmful for traditional parties and voting habits throughout the West has been the moralisation of politics, which took place in the second part the 20th century.

With the victory of the “free world” over communism, the universalisation of liberal democracy, and the globalisation of trade agreements, traditional parties began to believe that partisan conflicts could be overcome through compromise. Democratic elections became all about establishing a discourse beyond “sovereignty” and “opposition”, “left” and “right”.

But aren’t these necessary components of a healthy democratic society? Societal debates arise not simply because we are conflictual beings with diverse values, traditions and beliefs but also because we are suspicious of the possibility of universal rational compromises. The problem with these compromises, as we are now experiencing in the European Union, is that the deliberations they embody are always framed; that is, they do not involve real choices among alternatives.

Anthony Giddens’ “third-way” political theory in the 1990s was among the first to represent this modern frame, as its implementation through Tony Blair’s New Labour policies demonstrated. The British scholar explained that the goal of his idea was to create “one-nation politics” where there is “no authority without democracy”.

This is framed democracy, where the submission of laws to the “consensus at the centre” is the only democratic, that is, acceptable outcome of politics. This framing claimed that it overcame traditional oppositional politics, but instead it substituted moral categories - “good” and “evil,” “right” and “wrong” - for the language of competing political ideas, giving rise to the moralisation of politics.

As the third way embraced neo-liberalism and hid the language of debate behind curtains of political correctness, it not only obstructed democratic channels

of expression for diverse political stances, but also delegitimised them. This moralising vocabulary, together with the thirdway imperative of bipartisan consensus, has led to further shrinking of the difference between the parties of the left and the right and, as choices disappeared, popular interest in politics withered.

According to Mouffe and her fellow political philosopher Ernesto Laclau, whose investigations of populism have now become central among political scientist, if democracy wants to preserve its superiority among other political systems, it must return to the people.

And this is what populism does. It is “a way of constructing the political on the basis of interpellating the underdog to mobilise against the existing status quo”.

It brings together different demands in opposition to a common enemy. Laclau and Mouffe do not consider populism an ideology but rather a political form capable of articulating identities, interests, and needs that have been delegitimised by centre-right and centre-left parties.

Contrary to others political analysts, Laclau and Mouffe do not believe that this strategy as it is applied by populist politicians is designed exclusively to obtain power; it is also a necessary effort to overcome the lack of alternatives embodied by the traditional parties of the past decades.

As a consequence of framed democra-

cies, populism has become the only productive form to take into account the demands of the people and to promote collective participation. But just as there was once a substantial difference between right and left-wing policies, there is also a difference between rightist and leftist populism.

Although both apply the same principle - bringing together a crowd around a political idea in order to shape an “us” against a “them” - the concepts used to define these groups are radically different. This is also evident in the emotions each side uses to mobilise voters: fear of the foreigner on the right and hope for a better future on the left. The former is rooted in hatred and indifference, and the latter, in justice and equality.

The right-wing populism of Donald Trump and Nigel Farage, expressed in their “Make America Great Again” and “Leave” campaigns, restricts the national identity of “the people”, excluding immigrants, refugees, and any Other definable as “foreign” to a sentimental ideal.

Although exclusion is also present in the left-wing populism of Bernie Sanders and Pablo Iglesias, they do not exclude categories of people but rather those sectors of the establishment in the service of neo-liberal global corporations.

For Sanders, this meant “breaking up the big banks” and, for Iglesias, defeating the Spanish “caste” which includes the two

major political parties, the right-wing People’s Party (PP) and the Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party (PSOE). These parties, like the Republican and Democratic parties in the United States as well as the Tories and Labour in the UK, have also lost much of their popular support through their acceptance of the demands of financial capitalism.

The problem today goes deeper than the victory of the right-wing populism of Trump and Farage, though the xenophobic nature of their regimes are profoundly troubling.

The failure of left-wing populism leaves democracy in an even more desperate state.

Sanders did not manage to win the primaries, an exercise in corporate governance designed to defang populist ideas.

And Iglesias’s Podemos, which now governs in a number of regions and cities, has proved unable to bring substantial social changes - such as the “basic universal income” - to the level of national politics.

Yet it is right-wing populism, now elected to positions of power, that is not compatible with a pluralist conception of democracy in the 21st century. The leftwing populism of Sanders and Iglesias represents the only chance that the parties of the framed democracies have to defeat the populist monster they have unleashed.

Santiago Zabala is ICREA research professor of philosophy at the PompeuFabra University in Barcelona.

Wednesday, 18 January, 2017

ARTS

13

InDIan MovIes May soon ReTuRn To PaKIsTanI TheaTRes Mahira Khan upset about not being able to promote Raees Pakistani actor Mahira Khan says she is sad about not being able to promote her debut Bollywood flick Raees in India. In a recent interview to BBC Urdu, Mahira opened up about what she loved, feared and her forthcoming film. When asked if she was dejected about not promoting the film across the border, the actor said, “Of course, I feel bad. When you put so much effort and hard work in a project, you wish to see the results. I work with same dedication and zeal in all my projects, but Raees is very special.” Talking about how Fawad’s role in Ae Dil Hai Mushkil was reportedly cut short due to India-Pakistan tension, Mahira said, “I’m not privy to that but I am content with my part in Raees.”

Mahira also reiterated how she absolutely loved her job.

“I love my job! There is nothing that I do not love about it. Hope people like my work as much as I do. I want to live and die as an actor,” the star said. Speaking about her fears, she said, “I’m scared about saying what I feel.

I believe I’ll end up causing offence. It is unfortunate, though.” Mahira revealed that she was on set when ‘Zaalima’ was released. The actor said everyone there had gotten glued to it and liked what they saw. Raees is slated to release on January 25. ENTERTAINMENT DESK

P

RIMe Minister Nawaz Sharif has formed a special committee headed by Minister of State for Information Marriyum Aurangzeb for the clearance of Indian movies to be screened in Pakistan. The move came a month after cinema owners in Pakistan resumed screening of Indian films, lifting a self-imposed two-month ban. Officials

said the panel would also include advisor to the Prime Minister Irfan Siddiqui, Film Censor Board Chairman Mubashir Hasan and a representative from an intelligence agency. Secretary commerce Azmat Ranjha would serve as the secretary of the committee. The panel will be responsible for clearing the films to be screened in the country. The screening of Indian movies in

Channing Tatum having 'big fight' with wife

Green Day gives Trump a reality check in latest song

Punk rockers Green Day renewed their attack on President-elect Donald Trump on Monday in a video that celebrates Martin Luther King Jr’s legacy. The video of Troubled Times released on the US holiday marking the slain rights leader’s birthday and begins with footage of historic equality marches. It then cuts to recent protests against Trump’s proposals to ban Muslim visitors and raise a wall along the Mexican border. Filmed by Spanish director Manu Viqueira largely in black-and-white with splashes of red, the video also features a dancing Trump wearing a suit but with his face represented by billowing smoke underneath a “Make America Great Again” cap. It ends with the mushroom cloud of a nuclear bomb. AGENCIES

Rishi talks about his meeting with India’s most wanted Dawood Ibrahim In his biography Khullam Khulla: Rishi Kapoor Uncensored, the actor has opened up about meeting with India’s most wanted man Dawood Ibrahim, Deccan Chronicle reported.

While he was vacationing with friends, Rishi was approached by a man associated with the Dawood. The individual had been tasked with keeping an eye on celebrities frequenting Dubai. The actor and his friend were then invited to have tea with Dawood at his home.

The actor said that the meeting happened in 1988, years before the 1993 Mumbai bombings. ENTERTAINMENT DESK

Dangal girl Zaira Wasim’s ‘apology’ for meeting Mehbooba: I’m just 16 Kashmir’s diminutive Dangal star, the 16year-old Zaira Wasim, stirred a debate on Monday with a cryptic post that she called an “open confession/apology” after she met chief minister Mehbooba Mufti, according to Hindustan Times. The girl, who played the younger wrestling champ Geeta Phogat in the top-grossing Bollywood movie, posted on Facebook and Twitter that she apologises for offending people by “my recent actions”.

“I hope people remember that I’m a just a 16-year-old girl and I hope you treat me accordingly. I’m sorry for what I did but it was not a deliberate decision and I really hope people can forgive me,” she wrote.

The Jammu and Kashmir government recently released photographs of Zaira with Mehbooba. “...I understand the sentiments behind it especially considering what had happened over the past 6 months,” Zaira posted.

The Kashmir Valley has recorded unprecedented unrest since the July 8 killing of a militant commander, whose death triggered anti-India protests in which more than 90 people have been killed. People’s anger has also been directed towards Mehbooba, the PDP chief who runs a coalition government with the BJP. Zaira objected to being

called a role model in the Valley. “I’m not proud of what I’m doing and I want everyone, especially the youth to know that there are real role models...” Later, she removed her posts and wondered “why this has become such a big issue”. Former chief minister Omar Abdullah came to Zaira’s defence. He tweeted that a “16 year old should not be forced to apologise for allegedly meeting @mehboobamufti”.

But, at the same time, he criticised the chief minister “for using other people’s success to cover her failures”. Before Zaira, several IAS officers from the state, including Shah Faisal, who was the first Kashmiri to top the civil services, had objected to being hailed as an icon by media during the months of unrest. Zaira plays the wrestler-daughter of actor Aamir Khan in Dangal. Based on the Phogat sisters, the movie has broken all previous records at the box office, making more than Rs 300 crore. Her character as young Geeta has been appreciated by cineastes and critics alike. Phogat is the first woman wrestler from India to have won gold in the 55kg freestyle category at the 2010 Commonwealth Games. ENTERTAINMENT DESK

AMIR KHAN’S ‘X-RATED’ VIDEO LEAKED ONLINE A sex tape featuring PakistaniBriton boxer Amir Khan has reportedly been leaked to a major US porn site, according to Daily Mail.

The X-rated video allegedly shows the 30-year-old British-Pakistani boxer carrying out a sexual act while speaking to a female model from Arizona in US on Skype. It is believed the woman from the footage first met the boxer in 2010 and that the video was made shortly after Amir married wife Faryal Makhdoom in 2013. However, the accusations have not been confirmed or denied by Amir’s representatives.

There are also reports that three other X-rated videos of the boxer were being offered to porn websites, at the time. “This is a mortifying moment for Amir. He’s a Muslim boxer and his personal life is under the microscope right now, so the

Pakistani cinemas was blocked in October last year following the escalation of tensions with India over the latter’s unprovoked ceasefire violation along the Line of Control. The ban was imposed by the Film exhibitors Association of Pakistan. Now the government is expected to shortly allow screening of Bollywood films in local cinemas. ENTERTAINMENT DESK

timing couldn’t be worse,” a source told the Sun. “There had been rumours about these videos for years but now anyone who wants to view them on the internet for free can do so.” The videos have been leaked at

a time when Amir’s personal life is in turmoil. His wife, Faryal Makhdoom, recently took to Snapchat and spoke out against her in-laws and domestic abuse she had been facing after her marriage. The

mother of the Olympic silver medalist rejected the allegations. In November, Amir was the victim of a failed blackmail attempt, with an extortionist claiming to possess a video of the 29-year-old with a woman.

According to Daily Mail, Hamza Din, who emailed the Brit’s management team, stated earlier that the video showed the 29-year-old boxer with a woman in a hotel room in Newcastle.

However, after the blackmail attempt failed, Din said that the footage did not exist and was given a suspended sentence by the Bolton Crown Court. Previously, Din claimed that the footage was “100 per cent real” and threatened to release it if he heard no response from Khan or his management team.

He demanded money and said he would release the clip to the media unless they ‘matched the price’ it could fetch. ENTERTAINMENT DESK

Actor Channing Tatum’s wife Jenna Dewan is not happy with him after he shared a nude photograph of her on social media. This has caused a “big fight” between the couple. Channing shared the photograph last week over Instagram. Jenna was reportedly surprised that her husband would post such intimate image and according to a source, she is not at all happy about it, reports AceShowbiz reported. The black and white featured Jenna laying in bed completely nude with the white sheet only covering half of her body. “Nap time=The Best Time,” Channing captioned the image. According to entertainment website Celeb Dirty Laundry, the image caused a “big fight” between the duo. AGENCIES

OMAR R QURAISHI Islamabad Airport is nothing more than a glorified bus stand

MAHESH BHATT I am for truth, no matter who tells it. -Malcolm X

RANTING PAKISTANI A gentle reminder that all your tweets, posts and articles are pretty much useless and the crazy are winning in this country.

ASAD To be fair not PTI per se but their faithful being happy with bloggers being arrested.

In fact some saying it's not enough punishment.

PAUL BERNAL So the leak of Theresa May’s speech was to ensure that the pound fell *before* it not after it, was it? Then they can claim everything’s OK!

14 LEISURE

Wednesday, 18 January, 2017

ARIES

TAURUS

GEMINI

A creative pulse washes over you early in the day and helps push you along through what promises to be an exciting time. It's easier than ever for you to get people to see things your way, too.

Your selfconfidence may come across as something a bit darker today -- but try not to let go of it! If the wrong person thinks you're arrogant, just show them how wrong they are tomorrow.

Try not to let your peers have it with both barrels -- though your opinions are definitely firm, they may feel just as strongly that you're wrong. This is a better time for gentle diplomacy.

CANCER

LEO

VIRGO

Something new appears that could be a major blessing. In fact, it could even be the next major chapter of your life, so look sharp! It's a great time to reach out to less fortunate friends.

Something just clicks early in the day and leads you to a new understanding of what needs to happen next. In fact, this burst of self-confidence could be the leading edge of the next big thing!

It may feel as if you're a punching bag early in the day -- but things can get better! It's not your fault, of course.

People are just surlier than usual, so if you can shut them off, you should be fi.

LIBRA

SCORPIO

SAGITTARIUS

You need to be more socially active today -- so make sure that you're dealing with people on their level. Things should start to get really interesting once you've met three new people.

Your ego is a definite player in today's activities -- and why shouldn't it be? It's a really good time for you to step up your game and make sure that everyone knows what you really think.

Good fortune is smiling upon you today -- so be sure that you're making the most of it. Note that this doesn't have anything to do with gambling, just with little life events that add up to something.

CAPRICORN

AQUARIUS

PISCES

You may find that people are disturbingly hard to pin down today -- but that can be a good thing! If they don't have to answer questions, neither do you. Stand by your decisions!

Your deepest ideas may turn out to be in need of revision, so get ready to rethink almost anything. Your energy is just right for making changes that others find surprising or even shocking.

Other people are having enough trouble without adding your advice into the mix. Now is a good time to mind your own business and focus on your own problems -- but make sure you're there if you're need.

cRosswoRd

ACROSS 1 Barmy (4) 3 Aghast (8) 8 Italian salutation (4) 9 Veracious (8) 11 Needlework (10) 14 Rivets (anag) (6) 15 Playing a part (6) 17 Sloe-bearing bush (10) 20 Part of a wicket (3,5) 21 fourth rock from the Sun (4) 22 Imploring (8) 23 Regular pattern of horizontal and vertical lines (4)

woRd sEaRcH

DOwn 1 diminish (8) 2 Madame Bovary author (8) 4 Satirical imitation (6) 5 hard coal (10) 6 Elevator (4) 7 Unemployment benefit (4) 10 Intricate — tortuous (10) 12 Cretan labyrinth resident (8) 13 San diego (anag) (8) 16 Good judgment (6) 18 Somersault — glib — hot drink (4) 19 Look at lecherously (4)

HaGaR tHE HoRRIblE

dIlbERt

GaRFIEld

baldo

cHEss AROUNd AUTOMOBILE BOwL BRICk ChEddAR CLANk CLOSE CRACk dINER dRAGS EASILy ELIMINATE ENOUGh fAMILIAR fREAk fRET GROOM hEIGhT ISSUE

LORE NEEd PERSPIRE PhONE RACE REALLy RELEASES ROBIN ROUGh SAfELy ShORE SLIdE SQUEAL SORE SUNShINE TORN wALLET whEAT

white tO PLAY AND MAte iN twO MOVes 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

A

B

C

D

E

F

G

H

Today’s soluTions

bRIdGE losInG appRoacH

sUdokU crossword solution sudoku solution

1.Qg8+ Rxg8 2.Nf7# 1-0 chess solution

How to play 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.

Wednesday, 18 January, 2017

TWo PaK BaTsmen in ToP Ten of iCC ranKings T

SPORTS 15

SpoRTS DeSK

WO Pakistani players ODI Skipper Azhar Ali and Younus Khan are included in the top ten of the latest MRF Tyres ICC Player Rankings for Test Batsmen, released on Tuesday.

Azhar is ranked 7th with 779 points while Younus is on 8th position with 772 points, said an ICC press release issued on Tuesday South Africa’s Hashim Amla, who while scoring 134 became the eighth batsman to score a century in his 100th Test, has jumped four places to claim sixth position, while JP Duminy, who scored 155 and added 292 runs for the third wicket with Amla, has vaulted nine places to secure a career-high 33rd position. Captain Faf du Plessis and Dean Elgar, who won the player of the series award, finished in joint-21st position.

South Africa’s fast bowler Kagiso Rabada, has earned a rise of three places which has puts him in fifth position in the MRF Tyres ICC Player Rankings for Test Bowlers.

Radaba is now South Africa’s highest-ranked bowler, one place ahead of Dale Steyn who missed the series due to an injury. Rabada leads Steyn by two points and trails Sri Lanka’s fourth-ranked spinner Rangana Herath by six points.

For Sri Lanka, fast bowler Nuwan Pradeep, has leaped six places to a ca-

Brazilian football coach arrives in Karachi to train youngsters MonIToRInG DeSK

reer-best 33rd spot.

South Africa defeated Sri Lanka by an innings and 118 runs in Johannesburg, which gave it a 3-0 series win. The result means third-ranked South Africa has gained four points and has moved up to 107 points, two behind Australia, while seventh-

Australian Open: Djokovic, Rafael through to second round

Eight sports begin appeal process over UK Sport funding for Tokyo 2020 ToKYo AgENcIEs

Eight sports will challenge UK Sport's funding decisions for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Seven - including badminton were due to receive no investment for the fouryear cycle leading into the Tokyo Games.

Powerlifting is also challenging its award of £1.3m as it believes it deserves greater financial support. All sports have until Tuesday, 17 January to notify UK Sport of their intent to

MelbouRne AgENcIEs

Defending champion Novak Djokovic reached the second round of the Australian Open by beating Spain's Fernando Verdasco in straight sets.

The 12-time Grand Slam champion secured a 6-1 7-6 (7-4) 6-2 victory in an entertaining match in Melbourne.

World number nine Rafael Nadal earlier reached the second round with a commanding display.

The injury-hit Spaniard, who lost in the first round last year, beat Germany's Florian Mayer 6-3 6-4 6-4.

World number two Djokovic will next face Denis Istomin or Ivan Dodig while Nadal, attempting to win his first Grand Slam title since 2014, will play Marcos Baghdatis. 'melBourne feelS like home': Djokovic, 29, was hardly stretched as he took the first set inside 31 minutes as Verdasco, who received warm support from the crowd, badly mistimed several shots.

But Verdasco broke straight away in the second set, putting Djokovic under

pressure. He eventually forced a tie-break despite a slew of unforced errors.

However, his inconsistency meant he could not capitalise on Djokovic's errors and the Serb went on to secure his place in the second round.

"It feels like home," said Djokovic. "It feels like coming to the place where I have an amazing number of incredible memories. "When I saw the draw I thought to myself, this is going to be the only match I could focus on."

Nadal, 30, had played just four matches since September's US Open after struggling last year with a wrist injury.

He dominated Mayer from the start, taking just over two hours to secure a straightset victory in 39 degree heat. raonic and dimitrov make Second round Third seed Milos Raonic went through with a comfortable 6-3 6-4 6-2 victory over Germany's Dustin Brown.

The 26-year-old Canadian, a semi-finalist last year, hit 18 aces and 46 winners, and will next face either Luxembourg's Gilles Muller or American Taylor Fritz.

159 and put on 359 runs for the fifth wicket with Shakib, has risen 10 places to claim 35th position.

New Zealand’s opener Tom Latham has climbed five places to 31st. After New Zealand was set a victory target of 217 runs, captain Kane Williamson has earned 29 points.

ranked Sri Lanka has dropped four points to finish on 92 points.

Shakib Al Hasan, who scored 217 (highest individual score by a Bangladesh batsman in Test cricket) has achieved a career-high ranking of 23rd after jumping eight places, while captain Mushfiqur Rahim, who scored

Brazilian football coach Romildo Sanchez arrived on Sunday to train young Pakistani footballers for a few days. The US-based Brazilian has been invited by the Foundation United Soccer Academy, which works under the Foundation Public School. After arriving in Pakistan, Sanchez visited different schools in Karachi where he gave tips to young footballers about shooting techniques and to keep control over the ball. Speaking to a private news channel, Sanchez said Pakistanis and Brazilians were very similar. "Pakistan has a lot of talent for football. It’s like my own country. People here are just like us, only the language is different," he said. During his visit, Sanchez – who is the Director Players Club of Tampa Bay, FloridaUSA – will impart training to students of different schools, five district associations of the provincial metropolis. He is also expected to hold training sessions for the youth of Lyari — where football is a popular sport. Sanchez has been helping children in the US develop their skills by teaching them the fundamental and technical aspects of the game. In 1993, he had the opportunity to be a part of two important events in the United States.

challenge the decision.

In addition to badminton, goalball, table tennis, archery, fencing, weightlifting and wheelchair rugby complete the group of seven challenging the removal of their funding.

The decision to cut all funding for badminton came as a surprise after Chris Langridge and Marcus Ellis won bronze in Rio and helped GB better the target set by UK Sport.

Although proof of correct governance and 'talent pathways' for young athletes form part of the decision-making process, the most impor-

Wasim reaches out-of-court settlement with car shooting suspect

SECOND SEED SERENA WILLIAMS BEATS BELINDA BENCIC

KARACHI ONLINE

Former Pakistan skipper and left-arm fast bowler, Wasim Akram has reached an out-of-court settlement with the suspect who allegedly shot at his car in a road-rage incident in Karachi’s Karsaz area in August last year.

Wasim Akram’s manager appeared before the court on Tuesday in the case and told the Judicial Magistrate-East that the former cricketer had reached an out-of-court settlement with the suspect and decided to withdraw the case.

The court, however, ordered that Wasim Akram be presented in person, failing which investigation officers would be dispatched to arrest him and bring him to the court. Shortly after that, Akram appeared before the court and submitted the settlement he reached with the car shooting suspect.

The court accepted the settlement and approved Akram’s request to terminate the case. Last week, Judicial Magistrate East had issued warrant for arrest for Wasim Akram over his continuous absence from testifying in case filed by him at Bahadurabad police station.

tant element of any pitch for funding is to prove they have genuine medal prospects for the next Games. "We've got a really strong case," Badminton England chief executive Adrian Christy told BBC Sport.

"Our understanding is that UK Sport doubt our Olympic medal credentials.

"However, we have players who have not only won Olympic medals but also won world tour titles and super-series titles and these are the biggest events in our sport and we are regularly beating the best in the world."

MelbouRne AgENcIEs

Six-time Australian Open champion Serena Williams progressed to the second round with a straight-set win over Swiss teenager Belinda Bencic. The American, 35, beat her 19-year-old opponent 6-4 6-3 in 79 minutes in scorching conditions in Melbourne.

The world number two, attempting to win a record 23rd Grand Slam singles title, said she "has nothing to lose". "Every match I'm playing for fun. I get to travel the world and do what I do best - play tennis," she added. Williams lost the Australian Open final last year to Angelique Kerber but won Wimbledon to equal Steffi Graf's Open era record of 22 Grand Slam singles titles.

She has barely played since the US Open last September because of injury, and lost in the second round of this month's Auckland Classic.

But she eased doubts about her form and fitness with a typically powerful performance

CMYK

in temperatures of about 35C. Safarova SaveS nine match pointS: Williams will face Lucie Safarova in the second round after the 29-year-old Czech saved nine match points before beating Belgium's Yanina Wickmayer 3-6 7-6 (97) 6-1. Safarova saved five match points on her own serve in the second set and another four in the tie-break.

"It's not fun," said a stunned Wickmayer. "I think she served very well on certain points and other points I didn't go for enough.

"But it's normal when you have match point and you want to play it a little bit safe.

Then after, you realise it's not the best option."

BeSt of the reSt: Fifth seed Karolina Pliskova, who beat Williams in last year's US Open semi-finals, went through thanks to a 6-2 6-0 victory over Spain's Sara Sorribes Tormo. "Even when you're not playing your best, somehow you have to win," said the 24-year-old.

SPORTS Wednesday, 18 January, 2017

Josh hAzlewood prAises MohAMMAd AMir, pAkistAn SYdNeY

A

AgEnciES

uSTRALIA right-arm paceman Josh Hazlewood on Tuesday said that Pakistan bowled well in the first two ODIs, especially their left-arm fast-bowler Mohammad Amir.

Australia’s top-order suffered collapses in both ODIs in Sydney and Melbourne, losing early wickets which prevented the hosts from setting mammoth targets.

“I think it’s just good bowling first of all,” said Hazlewood. “The two left-armers at the top have bowled pretty well in both games, especially Amir in the first game.

Then they’ve tightened the screws with their spinners.”

The 26-year-old added that Australia are coming up with a plan to

We won’t just roll over, Imad warns Australia Pakistan all-rounder Imad Wasim has sent a stern warning to the hosts ahead of the third ODI, which is to be played at WACA, Perth on Thursday. Imad was quoted a cricket website, as he was talking to the media on Tuesday. “Our team combination is very good,” he said. “I personally believed before coming to this tour that we could beat any team in the world in shorter formats. “If you don’t believe that you can beat any opposition, there’s no point coming here. We are here to beat them [Australia], we are here to play good cricket and we are here to fight.” The 28-yearold further said that the absence of star fast-bowler Mitchell Starc and allrounder Mitchel Marsh is a good thing for the visitors.

“Starc is a world-class bowler and Mitchell Marsh is a great all-rounder,” he said. “He’s [Marsh] been a match-winner for Australia and Starc as we all know, he’s the best bowler in the world in all the formats. “It’s a good thing for us, but Australia has got good backup bowlers. SPORTS DESK

end Pakistan’s dominance of their top-order.

“We’ve been working on that and coming up with a plan,” he said.

“Each batter is a little bit different with their own plans. They’ll definitely be looking to rectify the first two games on Thursday.”

The New South Wales bowler also talked about the third game in Perth, which he said would offer more bounce and pace to the Australian quicks.

“We always love playing over here in Perth,” said Hazlewood.

“The guys said it wasn’t a traditional Gabba wicket. They said it didn’t have as its usual pace. It will be good to get out there and see the ball fly through.”

Hazlewood knows Pakistan batsmen aren’t usually comfortable with extra bounce and pace. “We know they’ve got a couple of good quicks,” he said. “But we know their batters don’t like that extra bounce and pace. Hopefully it’s nice and quick.”

Azhar Ali unlikely to play third ODI against Australia SportS deSk Pakistan captain Azhar Ali is unlikely to play in the third ODI against Australia in Perth on Thursday.

According to a team official, although Azhar is recovering, he is unlikely to attain fitness in time to return to the playing eleven for the third ODI. However, there are chances that he will be fit for the final two games of the series to be played in Sydney and Adelaide. Azhar suffered a hamstring injury in the opening ODI in Brisbane and had to miss the second ODI at MCG. In his absence, veteran all-rounder Mohammad Hafeez captained the side and top-scored to help Pakistan record their first victory on Australian soil in 12 years. Pakistan cricket team arrived in Perth on Monday and trained at the W.A.C.A. ground on Tuesday morning.

Sehwag trolls Pakistan team once again India batting great Virender Sehwag on Monday celebrated the 11thanniversary of his double-century against Pakistan in a tweet where he called it a ‘privilege’ to reach the iconic 200-run mark in Lahore in 2006.

Sehwag, whose 309 against Pakistan in 2004 earned him the title of ‘Sultan of Multan’, reached the 200run mark in just 182 balls — the fourth fastest double-century in Test history — to help his side draw the match against Pakistan after the hosts had racked up a whopping 679 in the first innings courtesy centuries from Younus Khan, Mohammad Yousuf, Shahid Afridi and Kamran Akmal. SPORTS DESK Published by Arif Nizami at Plot # 7, Al-Baber Centre, F/8 Markaz, Islamabad.

CMYK

De Villiers rules himself out of NZ Tests; scoffs at retirement talk

New ZealaNd: Batsman AB de Villiers has ruled himself out of South Africa’s three-Test series in New Zealand in March but insists he is not retiring from the longest format of the game. De Villiers has recovered from an elbow injury which kept him out of the recent home Test series wins over New Zealand and Sri Lanka, as well as the away victory in Australia in November. He has handed over the captaincy of the five-day format to Faf du Plessis and admits that playing at the 2019 50-over World Cup in England and Wales remains his career priority. “I’ve made [myself] unavailable for the Test series in New Zealand,” De Villiers told reporters on Tuesday. “I’m not there yet. I need a bit of time just to settle things in my head, and for me, the goal is the 2019 World Cup; I want to lift that trophy.” But with an away Test series in England to come in July and August, as well as high-profile home series in the next South African summer against India and Australia, De Villiers said he would make a Test return at some stage. “I’m not retiring out of any format, that’s for sure. I am not prepared to do that,” he told South Africa’s Radio 702. De Villiers, who turns 33 next month, has played 106 Tests averaging 50.46 but feels the need to manage his workload across all three formats of the game. “My main aim is to get to that 2019 World Cup and I am going to do everything possible to get there,” he said. “It’s important to play the other formats but mentally and physically I need to be in a good space come to the 2019 World Cup and that’s what I am aiming for. “I am going to have to make certain choices.

It’s not easy for me. I have always been the go-ahead guy, the team man, never want to miss a game for South Africa and I still do, but the schedules these days, it’s really tough to play all formats.” AgEnciES