E-Paper PDF 11th December (ISB)

CMYK

Wednesday, 11 December, 2019 I 13 Rabi-ul-Sani, 1441 I Rs 19.00 I Vol X No 161 I 16 Pages I Islamabad Edition

PTI govT In no mood To remove maryam’s name from eCL g

PM ANd MiNiSterS eNdorSe FAiSAl VAwdA’S StANce oN keePiNg PMl-N leAder oN No-Fly liSt ISLAMABAD

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STAFF REPORT

day after the lahore high court referred Pakistan Muslim league-Nawaz (PMl-N) leader Maryam Nawaz’s plea for removal of her name from the no-fly list to the federal government, the prevailing view –endorsed by Prime Minister imran khan — during the meeting of the federal cabinet was that the government should not allow her to go to london.

Maryam, daughter of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, had moved the lhc for the removal of her name from the exit control list (ecl) so she could stay with her father in london, who is undergoing treatment in a hospital. during the weekly meeting of the cabinet, water resources Minister Faisal Vawda “strongly opposed the departure of Maryam Nawaz”: a view supported by many of the members as well as the PM. the reluctance in the

PM Imran urges global intervention in IOK on Human Rights Day STORY ON BACK PAGE

NAB going soft on Zulfi Bukhari STORY ON BACK PAGE

Supreme Court says its observations won’t impact IHC proceedings in videogate STORY ON PAGE 02

US commission seeks sanctions against BJP leaders over controversial citizenship bill STORY ON BACK PAGE

Democrats lay out impeachment case against Trump STORY ON BACK PAGE

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iMrAN orderS UNiNterrUPted gAS SUPPly to doMeStic coNSUMerS dUriNg wiNter MoNthS

government ranks could be linked to a controversy surrounding the departure of Nawaz Sharif, who left the country on health grounds after giving a guarantee to the court. however, after his departure, the PM had cast doubts on the veracity of Nawaz’s sickness claims, saying there was a disparity between his demeanour and the medical reports.

MAX RELIEF TO PEOPLE: According to PM’s Special Assistant on Media Firdous Ashiq Awan, the federal cabinet deliberated on various suggestions to remove

obstacles to provide maximum relief to people as envisioned by PM imran. in a press conference following the meeting, Firdous said the meeting took stock of the 15-month performance of the government. it also considered the relief measures to the public, public interest legislation and various initiatives of the government, including subsidy on the prices of gas and electricity, she added.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 02

CMYK Wednesday, 11 December, 2019

02 ISLAMABAD

SC SAyS ITS oBSErvATIoNS woN’T IMPACT IHC ProCEEdINGS IN vIdEoGATE ISLAMABAD

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STAFF REPORT

HE Supreme Court (SC) on Tuesday made it clear that its earlier observations in the video leak scandal involving former accountability court judge Arshad Malik — wherein it held that the controversial recording will only benefit former premier Nawaz Sharif if its authenticity is established — will not influence high court proceedings.

The apex court made the statement while hearing Nawaz’s review petition against the observations made by the top court in its Aug 23 verdict which declared that the alleged video will only benefit the former prime minister if it was properly produced before the Islamabad High Court (IHC) in a pending appeal against his con-

viction. A three-member bench of the Supreme Court, comprising Chief Justice Asif Saeed Khosa, Justice Sardar Tariq Masood and Justice Syed Mansoor Shah, wrapped up the review petition filed by Nawaz’s counsel Khawaja Haris. The review petition pleaded that the aforementioned verdict of the apex court was per incuriam since it was passed without jurisdiction and therefore merited to be reviewed.

During the proceedings, the court said its observations will not influence proceedings in the high court. Chief Justice Khosa said the high court was independent in making its decisions, adding that they had written this before and would do so again. On July 6, Maryam opened a Pandora’s box with a startling claim that judge Malik “confessed” he had been “pressurised and blackmailed” to convict her father in the Al-Azizia

IHC dismisses case against Irfan Siddiqui ISLAMABAD STAFF REPORT

The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has dismissed the case against former prime minister Nawaz Sharif’s aide Irfan Siddiqui who was accused of violating the tenancy law. A single-member bench comprising Justice Amir, in a detailed verdict issued in the bail petition filed by Siddiqui, said that the government had itself exonerated Siddiqui leaving the court with no option but to dispose of the case. Justice Amir remarked that the case was being dismissed because the officials representing the government had exonerated Siddiqui. The court added that the objectives of the petition had been achieved and no further action of any kind was required. The court also noted that “the applicant reserves the right to take legal against respondents in the case.” Siddiqui was arrested in Islamabad on July 27 for not informing the police about renting out his house under the tenancy law.

Steel Mills reference. A video containing the judge’s alleged confession during his conversation with a ‘sympathiser’ of the PML-N, Nasir Butt, was screened during a hurriedly called presser at the party’s provincial headquarters in Model Town.

The next day, in a press release, the judge had denied being under any pressure but admitted that Nasir Butt was an acquaintance. In July, the IHC removed judge Malik from his post.

It merits a mention here that the Aug 23 court order also mentioned that the video clip along with its transcripts had never been duly proved in accordance with the law, the order had said.

A miscellaneous petition will be heard in the IHC on December 18 seeking a forensic test of the audio/video in the scandal. The same day Nawaz’s appeal against his conviction in the Al-Azizia

corruption reference and National Accountability Bureau’s (NAB) appeal against the acquittal of Nawaz in the Flagship Investment reference will be heard. Judge Malik, on Dec 4 last year, had handed ousted prime minister Nawaz Sharif seven years in jail in the Al Azizia Steel Mills corruption reference. He, however, acquitted him in a second reference related to Flagship Investments.

VIDEOGATE SCANDAL: Following the release of the video that rocked the domestic political landscape, judge Malik had denied the impression of “being under duress” as claimed by Maryam.

Judge Malik called on then Acting IHC Chief Justice Aamer Farooq twice who had directed him to submit an affidavit to explain his position.

In his affidavit, the accountability judge had said that he had been black-

NAB to indict ex-PM Gilani, accomplices in corruption case on Jan 13 ISLAMABAD STAFF REPORT

An accountability court on Tuesday summoned exprime minister Yousaf Raza Gilani on Jan 13 to indict him in illegal advertisement contracts reference. During the proceedings, accountability judge Azam Khan directed the former premier to appear in the next hearing “at any cost”. It is to be mentioned here that Yousaf Raza Gilani, former secretary of information technology Farooq Awan, ex-press information officer (PIO) Muhammad Saleem, former Universal Service Fund secretary Syed Hasan Sheikh and other individuals are nominated in the said reference. The anti-corruption watchdog officials stated that these accused had misused their positions to illegally grant an advertising contract, inflicting a loss of Rs129.07 million to the national exchequer.

Korea-Pakistan Friendship Forest launched to carry forward billion-tree tsunami ISLAMABAD STAFF REPORT

The Embassy of the Republic of Korea and the provincial government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) officially inaugurated ‘Korea-Pakistan Friendship Forest’ in Haripur on Tuesday. The initiative was launched to support the Federal Government’s ‘10 Billion Tree Programme’ initiated by the government of Pakistan last year.

The Korea-Pakistan joint project in collaboration with Korean business community would be very instrumental in enhancing awareness of the nation-wide movement to plant 10 billion trees built on the success of ‘The Billion Tree Programme’ in KP. Around seven thousand saplings were planted in Haripur, KP Province in the presence of Korean Ambassador Kwak Sung-kyu, Bahramand Khan, Secretary of the KP Public Health Engineering Department, Azhar Ali Khan, Chief Conservator of the KP Forest Department, and Miangul Adnan Aurangzeb, former MNA. “The Korea-Pakistan Friendship Forest not only gives support

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for Pakistan’s nation-wide green growth initiative but also symbolises the close friendship between Korea and Pakistan. Planting trees has been an important national campaign in Korea as Korean people we observe the tree-planting day on April 5, every year. As a result of the sustained efforts over the last 50 years, Korea had a huge success in the reforestation of the entire country, and Korean people came to be proud of having a green homeland.” said Ambassador Kwak.

The project of the Korea-Pakistan Friendship Forest was co-financed by Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA), Korean business community including K-Water, Korea SouthEast Power (KOEN), Lotte E&C and Daelim Industrial, and the Pakistan Global Institute, a Korean educational institute. Several members of KOICA Alumni Association Pakistan (KAAP) also participated in the tree-planting event.

The Korean Embassy hopes to upscale the Friendship Forest over the next few years in partnership with various stakeholders, including the Korean business community in Pakistan.

mailed by PML-N supporters because of an “immoral video” and admitted that he had met Nawaz at his Jati Umra residence and his son, Hussain Nawaz, in Saudi Arabia.

Justice Farooq decided to relieve Malik without conducting an inquiry since he was an official of the subordinate judiciary of the LHC. He directed the registrar office to write a letter to the law ministry regarding relieving judge Malik of his post and repatriating him to the parent department, the LHC. Shortly after this decision was announced, Maryam called for the verdict in the Al Azizia reference against her father to be “declared void”.

Meanwhile, judge Malik lodged a complaint with the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) which arrested an accused on a charge of recording an “immoral video” of the judge.

As the video controversy continued to make news with Maryam releasing two more video clips “in support” of the first one, the IHC removed judge Malik from his post in July. In August, the IHC repatriated him to his parent department, the LHC, so that disciplinary proceedings could be initiated against him.

PTI govt in no mood to remove Maryam’s name from ECL contInueD froM pAge 01 During the meeting, the PM expressed concerns over the role of the Competition Commission of Pakistan and ordered to make it an active institution, said Firdous, adding that the members had been urged to further strengthen competition commission.

Imran directed the Law Ministry to identify the cases which relate to sugar, flour, and other commodities associations that have taken relief from the courts at the expense of public interest. A committee under Dr Ishrat Hussain was set up to bring policy on food laws in consultation with the provinces.

Firdous said the prime minister took detailed briefing from the Ministry of Water and Power and Ministry of Energy. The prime minister was informed how circular debt was brought down to Rs12 bn.

However, according to the Asian Development Bank Report quoted by an English daily last week: “Government’s efforts and timely subsidy payments have slowed down the flow of circular debt from Rs38 billion per month in August 2018 to Rs21 billion in August 2019.” The cabinet was also informed that consumers using less than 300 units of electricity have been given a subsidy of Rs242bn. It was informed that industries have been given a subsidy of Rs29bn. The ministry briefed the cabinet that it inherited a loss of Rs181bn, which was managed by the energy ministry. The prime minister directed the ministry officials to ensure the provision of uninterrupted gas supply to domestic consumers. As per reports, the PM directed to bring reforms in Sui Southern and Sui Northern Gas companies with the introduction of automation. Few members expressed concerns over increased electricity bills and asked the concerned minister for providing relief to the people by taking emergency steps. “A mechanism should also be developed for billing so that in winter months the consumers are not burdened with heavy gas bills,” the PM ordered in a bid to allay the concerns. A summary, which sought holding pre-test before the organisation of Competitive Examination (CSS) for Public Service Commission, was also rejected by the federal cabinet. The cabinet expressed reservations on the issuance of Sukuk Bonds. The PM directed the Finance Ministry to review the process and present it again in the next meeting.

CMYK Wednesday, 11 December, 2019

NEWS

PMl-N’S ABBASi ProteStS NoN-iSSuANCe of SANA’S ProduCtioN orderS ISLAMABAD

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STAFF REPORT

AKISTAN Muslim LeagueNawaz (PML-N) stalwart Shahid Khaqan Abbasi on Tuesday lashed out at National Assembly Asad Qaiser for not issuing production orders of party lawmaker Rana Sanaullah and staged a walkout from the House.

Addressing the lower house, the former prime minister said he would not “beg” for his production orders as it was his duty to issue production orders of each and every member without discrimination at the start of each session.

“Denying production orders means the negation of people’s rights,” said Abbasi, urging the speaker to read a judgement in Qasim Suri case, which

states people of a constituency “could not be denied their right of representation in the assembly”.

“My production order carries the date of December 4 but I have been brought here today. Do you have the courage to take notice of the non-implementation of your orders?”

He said the NA speaker himself said that only he had the power to issue production orders of detained lawmakers.

“I will place your reply in the NA library for the record which you had sent through a section officer telling me that only you have the powers to issue production orders,” he said while addressing the speaker.

“I have seen speakers like Fakhar Imam, Mairaj Khalid and Yousuf Raza Gillani who made no compromises on principles and their powers. If you have

Court reserves verdict on freezing Shehbaz’s immovable assets

pressure from somewhere please say it,” said Abbasi, adding that at least five members of the NA were incarcerated without conviction.

“Issue the production order of Rana Sanaullah and I am going,” Abbasi said and proceeded to walk out.

Federal Minister for Planning and Development Asad Umar defended the speaker and praised him for running the house strictly in accordance with the rules. “If you need any support from the government, we will provide you,” he told Qaiser, accusing the opposition of having “double standards”.

PML-N’s Khawaja Saad Rafique while addressing the house said he had been attending the sessions for the past one year on the basis of production orders. “I know there are people in the ruling party like Pervez Khattak and Amir

Dogar and even you who have always supported our demand for production orders,” he told the speaker.

“We also know those who always oppose the issuance of production orders. We know from where hurdles are created. I don’t want to name the person as it will create more tensions.”

US Treasury imposes sanctions on Pakistan’s ‘killer’ cop Rao Anwar TREASURY DEPT TO BLOCK RAO ANWAR’S PROPERTY IN US, PROHIBITS ALL TRANSACTIONS WITH ‘BLOCKED’ PERSON

LAHore APP

An accountability court on Tuesday reserved its verdict on an application filed by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) for freezing the properties of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) President Shehbaz Sharif, his sons and other family members in connection with an investigation against them in a moneylaundering case. The court observed that the decision would be announced on Wednesday. Accountability Court Judge Ameer Muhammad Khan reserved the verdict after NAB Prosecutor Hafiz Asad Awan concluded his arguments in the case.

The bureau had approached the court for confirmation of its orders issued for freezing of 23 properties owned by Shehbaz’s family in various cities. The bureau had, on December 3, issued six orders, each listing separate properties acquired by Shehbaz, Hamza and Suleman, all three of whom are nominated in corruption cases being probed by NAB.

Corps commanders discuss regional security rAWALpInDI AGENCIES

Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa on Tuesday presided over a Corps Commanders’ conference to take stock of regional security situation. The InterServices Public Relations (ISPR) did not share any details of the meeting which lasted for several hours at the General Headquarters (GHQ). The overall security situation of the country was reviewed at the meeting.The DG ISPR is expected to hold a press conference on Wednesday to talk about the issues that came under discussion during the conference. The Supreme Court of Pakistan, last month, allowed the government to extend General Bajwa’s tenure as army chief by six months and within that time bring necessary legislation to determine the COAS’ appointment under article 243 of the constitution.

The United States has imposed sanctions on infamous Karachi police officer Rao Anwar for his role in “serious human rights abuses” during his tenure as Senior Superintendent Police in the provincial capital of Sindh.

In a statement issued on its website marking the International Human Rights Day, its Deputy Secretary Justin G Muzinich said the action “focuses on those who have killed, or ordered the killing of innocents who stood up for human rights including journalists, opposition members, and lawyers”.

In addition to Anwar, the US blacklisted 17 individuals located in Burma, Libya, Slovakia, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), and South Sudan for their roles in serious human rights abuse, according to the

statement.

“Additionally, six entities have been designated for being owned or controlled by one of the aforementioned individuals,” it added.

‘SERIOUS HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES IN PAKISTAN’: During his tenure as the Senior Superintendent of Police in District Malir, Pakistan, Rao Anwar was reportedly responsible for staging numerous fake police encounters in which individuals were killed by police, and was involved in over 190 police encounters that resulted in the deaths of over 400 people, including the murder of Naqeebullah Mehsud, the US Treasury Department said.

“Anwar helped to lead a network of police and criminal thugs that were allegedly responsible for extortion, land grabbing, narcotics, and

murder. Anwar is designated for being responsible for or complicit in, or having directly or indirectly engaged in, serious human rights abuse,” it read. As a result of the actions of the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), Rao Anwar’s property in the US or in control of US persons is to be “blocked and must be reported to the OFAC”.

“Unless authorized by a general or specific license issued by OFAC or otherwise exempt, OFAC’s regulations generally prohibit all transactions by US persons or within (or transiting) the United States that involve any property or interests in property of designated or otherwise blocked persons,” it added.

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Govt using NAB for political victimisation, Bilawal says KARACHI: Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari on Tuesday said that the use of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) by the government against political opponents, including his own party, amounted to an attack on basic human rights. In his message on the eve of the International Human Rights Day, the PPP chairman, who also heads the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Human Rights, said that human rights violations were increasing in Pakistan since the installation of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government. The PTI government has overseen a campaign of repression of fundamental rights, from freedom of the press to freedom of association, he said.

Bilawal also stressed the importance of the state honouring its contract with its citizens and upholding the human rights of every citizen regardless of gender, creed, caste or ethnicity. He went on to say that any dereliction of this duty by the state would be a deviation from the founding principles of Pakistan and would be tantamount to a betrayal of the ethos of Pakistan. He said that the Punjab government’s recent actions of filing FIRs against student leaders and against the father of Mashal Khan for sedition were a damning indictment of the government’s claims of being Riasat-e-Madina. “Freedom of expression, freedom of religion and belief, women and children’s rights and protection of vulnerable segments has to be ensured for a peaceful and progressive society,” he added. The PPP chairman also added that the economic policies being followed by the government were infringing on the dignity and right to life of the less privileged and were contributing to further marginalisation and erasure of the poor.

Bilawal said that Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and Benazir Bhutto led a struggle for the protection of democratic and human rights of the people, and laid down their lives for this cause. The war between the protectors and violators of human rights is still raging, he said while vowing to carry the mantle and honour of the legacy of his grandfather and mother. The PPP chairman said that his party’s commitment to safeguarding human rights remains unshaken despite undergoing huge suffering and sacrifice. He added that the PTI government’s disregard for due process and its use of NAB as a tool of political victimisation was also an assault on the fundamental rights of Pakistani citizens and that the government is sorely mistaken if it believes that the victimisation of the leadership of the PPP would make it step back from its commitment to the rights of the people. As a torch-bearer of the human rights movement in Pakistan, he said, the PPP will continue to fight vigorously despite facing hurdles and hounding. STAFF REPORT

How does Article 6 apply on imposition of emergency, LHC asks in Musharraf case LAHore STAFF REPORT

The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Tuesday questioned how former military strongman General (r) Pervez Mushar-

raf’s actions in 2007 fall under the ambit of Article 6 of the Constitution, as it resumed hearing of a petition filed by the former president requesting to stay the treason case trial being conducted against him until he recuperates and appears before the court.

Musharraf has maintained that owing to his deteriorating health, multiple life-threatening ailments and of his aged mother, he is unable to return to Pakistan ever since, despite having a strong desire to do so.

According to Article 6, any person who abrogates or subverts or suspends or holds in abeyance, or attempts or conspires to abrogate or subvert or suspend or hold in abeyance, the Constitution by use of force or show of force or by any other unconstitutional means shall be guilty of high treason. A person found guilty of high treason as defined in Article 6 of the Constitution, shall be punishable with death or life imprisonment.

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“Isn’t declaring an emergency and abrogating the Constitution two separate things?” Justice Sayyed Mazahar Ali Akbar Naqvi asked Additional Attorney General Ishtiaq Ahmad Khan.

“Where does the Article 6 apply?

What does the SC judgement say?” Justice Naqvi probed further.

Musharraf’s counsel, however, pleaded that the petition filed in the apex court calls upon the federal government to take action; instead, it was filed on the directives of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif.

The case has been adjourned till December 17, and the court has directed Additional Attorney General Ishtiaq A Khan to discuss the matter with the interior secretary on whether the formal military ruler imposing emergency in 2007 amounts to the abrogation of the Constitution. The court further asked whether the complaint could be withdrawn at this stage and sought the interior secretary’s opinion on how the act

falls under Article 6.

Earlier, Gen (r) Musharraf, who is currently in Dubai for treatment of a ‘rare’ medical condition, recorded a video message from his hospital bed in which he said that he was ready to record his statement in the case.

“A judicial commission can come here and hear me out. It must see my health condition and make a decision.

The commission, with my lawyer, must then be heard in the court,” he added.

On Nov 29, the Islamabad High Court (IHC), while hearing a petition of the interior ministry, had restrained the special court from announcing its verdict in the Musharraf treason case which it was to hand down on November 29.

In a two-page brief order, the IHC asked the special court to hear pleas of all sides and decide the case “in accordance with the law” while directing the government to form a new prosecution team for the case by December 5.

04 LAHORE

Wednesday, 11 December, 2019

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PTI govT flags off shehbaz’s TraIn ProjecT GOVERNMENT WILL PAY RS13.3BN FOR CONSUMING 108MW TRANSPORT MINISTER SAYS PROJECT WILL HELP SAVE RS15BN ANNUALLY LAHORE

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SHAHAB OMER

HE Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government on Tuesday reinaugurated the test run of Orange Line Metro Train but the development came with startling revelations as authorities decided to run the train on electricity instead of the previously-approved locomotive diesel engine.

Power houses have been established on the track. Those near University of Engineering and Technology (UET) station and Multan Road station will be given 54MW electricity each. To provide interruption-free 24/7 power supply, the Lahore Electric Supply Company (LESCO) will install four circuits of 132KV at the power houses.

Interestingly, the 108MW supply which has been approved for the metro train is equal to the supply of over 150,000 consumers in Lahore. This was confirmed by a LESCO official, who himself is an electrical engineer. He told this scribe that this would not only cause an additional burden on the public treasury but would also create an electricity shortfall.

According to figures given out the official, if the train uses the approved load of 108MW then the government will have to pay 13.3 billion to LESCO per year and 1.1 billion per month in line with the

commercial unit rate of Rs13 applied to the project. However, LESCO chief Mujahid Pervaiz Chattha claimed that they have enough electricity to avoid burdening the residents of the city.

The project’s test run was inaugurated

by Punjab Transport Minister Jahanzaib Khan Khichi alongside Punjab Information Minister Fayyazul Hassan Chohan in the presence of ministers and officials of the provincial government.

Addressing the ceremony, Khichi said that the physical infrastructure of the project is complete and the Rs15 billion will be saved annually through cutting down travel time and vehicle operations.

During the test run, the train travelled 27.1km within 45 minutes from Dera Gujjran Terminal and ended at Ali Town station. All metro stations were closed with shutters while the Special Protection Unit (SPU) was also deployed for security.

Out of the total 27.1km of the train’s track, 25.4km (26 stations) is elevated and 1.72km (2 stations) is underground. The stations at Jain Mandir and Shalimar gardens have been established on heritage architectural pattern. The central control room has been set up at Dera Gujran Terminal.

The OLMT is planned to be in operation for 18 hours per day between 05:30 and 23:30 and will be operated as a joint venture of China Railway and Norinco for the first five years and the

Nation reaping fruit of PML-N's hard work, says Marriyum ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Information Secretary Marriyum Aurangzeb, while terming the Orange Line Metro Train (OLMT) as a gift by the PML-N leadership, said on Tuesday that Pakistanis are reaping the fruit of Nawaz Sharif and Shehbaz Sharif’s hard work even when they are not in power. In a statement on the test run of OLMT, Marriyum said that the “imposed rulers” of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) shamelessly put up their name plaques on the mega projects started by the Sharif brothers. “Prime Minister Imran Khan and his failure-in-chief Usman Buzdar were so embarrassed and ashamed of their own performance that they could not even muster up the courage to inaugurate the project,” she said. She also said that the Sharif brothers built five metro projects while the PTI dug up holes worth hundreds of billions of rupees over this time in Peshawar. “Imran should have addressed the nation today and told them whose vision was the OLMT and who built it. STAFF REPORT

Photo: zUBAIR Mehfooz

infrastructure is expected to have a lifespan of approximately 100 years with routine maintenance.

The maximum speed of the train is 80km/h whereas the average speed is set at 34.8km/h and an average of 200,000 people would be able to travel in the train daily. The speed of the train near the heritage sites will be 30 km/h.

Five bogies will be included in one set of train and 50 people can sit in one bogie, however, 250 people would travel easily in one set and 800 people can travel standing. The line through 26 stations will accommodate almost 250,000 passengers

daily and it is estimated that the station will serve 24,520 passengers per hour in the first year of its operations and would rise to 49,550 by the year 2025.

It is expected that the busiest station would be the Anarkali station with an estimated 45,550 daily trips in the first year of its operations, rising to 110,000 trips in 2025. Lakshmi Chowk station is expected to be the second busiest station in the first year of its operations with 23,200 trips, and 41,500 in 2025. Lahore Railways station is expected to be the third busiest station within the line’s first year of operation with 17,500 trips, rising to 44,000 in 2025.

The line passes through several of Lahore’s major thoroughfares which also include the Grand Trunk Road, McLeod Road, Lake Road, Multan Road and Raiwind Road. The OLMT will connect several important points in Lahore, including the Shalimar Gardens, UET, Railways Station, Chuburji Square and Ali Town.

It is worth mentioning here that former Punjab chief minister Shehbaz Sharif had already inaugurated the test run of train on 16 May, 2018, from Islam Park station to Lakshmi Chowk station whereas at that time the test run was made through a diesel locomotive engine.

Govt gives price control powers to magistrates GOVT GIVES APPROVAL TO POLICE RULES 1934 FOR TRIBAL AREAS OF RAJANPUR AND DG KHAN LAHORE APP

The Punjab cabinet, in its 21st meeting at CM Office under the chair of Punjab Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar here on Tuesday, approved an amendment to the code of criminal procedure.

After the amendment, the first-class magistrates could be given the powers of price control.

The meeting gave approval to the establishment of Punjab local

government finance commission and endorsed the decision of setting up sessions courts in Kot Radha Kishan, Kasur, and Kot Momin, Sargodha.

The meeting also gave approval to an amendment to Police Rules, 1934 for tribal areas of Rajanpur and DG Khan.

On this occasion, recommendations with regard to priority utilisation of natural gas under articles 158 and 172 (3) of the constitution were approved, as well. Recommendations for exploration of mineral resources of different blocks of Khuzdar South, Surrah and Musa Khel were endorsed on the request of Balochistan government.

SERVICE DELIVERY MECHANISM TO BE STRENGTHENED, SAYS BUZDAR

The meeting decided to forward recommendations to the federal government with regard to amendments to Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority Ordinance, 2002.

Similarly, the meeting decided to forward the matter of technical assistance of the Asian Development Bank for the training of a skilled workforce to the cabinet committee for finance and development.

The cabinet committee will submit its recommendations after complete review. The cabinet meeting also reviewed the price control situation and endorsed the minutes of 20th cabinet meeting along with the endorsement of decisions made in the 17th meeting of the cabinet standing committee on finance and development.

During the meeting, CM Buzdar said that the service delivery mechanism would be further strengthened for providing facilities to the masses and this im-

provement would be conspicuous at the grassroots.

The chief minister while maintaining that the performance of the Punjab cabinet was better than that of other provinces urged cabinet members to work as a team to ensure better delivery.

He said that line departments should proactively perform to make the anti-polio campaign a success.

Buzdar also announced that he would start visits to different districts from the next week where price control measures, cleanliness, law & order situation, and civic amenities would be inspected by him. Chief Secretary and Inspector General Police (IGP) have also been empowered in this regard, he added.

The genuine problems of the elected representatives would also be resolved on priority by the government, he added.

Meesha moves SC over LHC’s dismissal of sexual harassment complaint Singer Meesha Shafi on Tuesday approached the Supreme Court (SC) over the Lahore High Court’s (LHC) dismissal of her petition challenging the decisions of Punjab governor and provincial ombudsperson, requesting the top court to declare LHC’s decision null and void.

The petition includes singer Ali Zafar, the female ombudsperson, and Punjab governor as parties in the case.

Earlier during the year, Punjab’s ombudsperson for protection of women against harassment at workplaces had set aside Meesha’s sexual harassment complaint against Ali Zafar whereas the governor had upheld the ombudsperson’s decision in July 2018, citing no employee-employer relationship between the two musicians, as did LHC in its October 11, 2019, ruling.

LHC Judge Shahid Karim had at the time remarked that there was no legal error in the ombudsperson’s decision to set aside Meesha’s complaint.

The complainant’s legal team, however, had argued that the ombudsperson, as well as

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the Punjab governor, had illegally dismissed the complaint against Zafar, whom she had accused of sexual harassment back in April 2018 on more than one occasion. They had also argued that the definition of a workplace in the Act — aimed to safeguard women — was not limited to women working day jobs.

It is pertinent to mention here that LHC rejected her appeal on the basis of not being presented at the appropriate forum.

It had earlier been set aside by the Punjab governor and the provincial ombudsperson on technical grounds as there was no employee-employer relationship and, therefore, the matter was said to not be in the jurisdiction of the Protection Against Harassment of Women at Workplace Act, 2010.

Speaking outside the court a day earlier, Meesha said that the defamation case filed by Zafar is an intimidation tactic. “I bore the losses and [was] defamed and, as a woman, I suffered great damage to my reputation, as well as financial loss. It was detrimental to my mental health too,” she concluded. NEWS DESK

Wednesday, 11 December, 2019

NEWS

05

LUMS profeSSor ‘diSappearS’ after StUdentS Lodge SexUaL haraSSMent coMpLaint

a

NEWS DESK

professor at the Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS) has mysteriously “disappeared” after students attempted to register complaints of misconduct and sexual harassment against him with the administration.

According to social media posts, an American-Iranian Professor Dr Hayder Al-Mohammad, who was assigned the “Anthropology of Body” course, allegedly sexually harassed his students, both male and female. One such post by

a LUMS student, Mahnoor Nadeem, told her account of the incident.

According to the post, Al-Mohammad – who was “seriously unwell” and “not fit to be around students” – made “extremely inappropriate sexual remarks very regularly”. In one such instance, Mahnoor wrote, he talked about his zipper being open on campus because he wanted to “get air down there”. The post went on to claim that the professor even made remarks about having coitus in “an SDSB [Suleman Dawood School of Business] discussion room”.

The sexual harassment, she said, was

not limited to the classrooms only. “He also targetted several female students outside the classroom on campus as well,” she said, adding that the instructor told one of his female students: “I don’t want to imagine what parts of your body you’ll be rubbing.” Al-Mohammad’s actions were not restricted to alleged sexual harassment but, according to Mahnoor, he also made “racist and xenophobic comments” at an institution that proudly a “culture of respect” on its campus.

According to the student, when a group of students contacted the university administration to lodge a complaint

LHC approached to regulate use of CCTV cameras LAHORE STAFF REPORT

Citizens and lawyers have approached the Lahore High Court to protect the privacy of individuals and to ensure that security cameras are used responsibly in public places.

A joint petition filed by Salman Sufi, an activist and gender reform specialist, with the AGHS Legal Aid Cell and the Digital Rights Foundation, in the Lahore High Court, raises substantial privacy concerns.

It argues that the secret filming, recording and photography of individuals in public and private places is unconstitutional. Furthermore, installing CCTV surveillance cameras without signage, to warn the public that

they are being recorded, is a breach of privacy, which is a fundamental right guaranteed by the Constitution.

The petitioners have urged the court to direct the ministry of law and justice to recommend necessary legislation needed to curb the excessive use of security cameras. They have also asked the court to constitute an investigation team to probe the sale and quality of security equipment being sold as well as the scale of their use.

The activist hopes to criminalise the breach of private data. He began drafting a petition back in September after intimate footage of couples at cinema houses and in their cars in Lahore were recorded on security cameras and leaked to public.

Shujaat says Zardari’s health should not be politicised LAHORE STAFF REPORT

Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) President Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain on Tuesday said that former president and Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Co-Chairman Asif Ali Zardari’s health should not be politicised as it is a serious issue.

Talking to a delegation led by PML-Q leader Tariq Hassan, Shujaat urged the federal government to provide adequate medical

facilities to Zardari, saying the issue could fan provincialism in Sindh.

Earlier on December 4, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) had directed the PIMS hospital to constitute new medical board to examine the ailing former president, who is currently in judicial custody in the face accounts case. A two-member special bench comprising IHC Chief Justice Athar Minhallah and Justice Aamir Farooq had took up the bail plea of the PPP leader seeking his release on medical grounds.

Court permits NAB to investigate Hamza Shehbaz in jail LAHORE STAFF REPORT

An accountability court on Tuesday permitted the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) to probe Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) senior politician and Leader of the Opposition in the Punjab Assembly Hamza Shehbaz in the money laundering case.

The accountability watchdog has been investigating into money laundering accusations against Hamza, and new evidence has been found in the case after the arrest of Nisar Gul. The investigation team will probe the PML-N leader about benami companies.

On Nov. 28, the court had extended

Hamza Shehbaz’s judicial remand for another 14 days. The court had ordered the NAB prosecutor to file reference of the money laundering case.

On April 9, the court had indicted Hamza and his father Shehbaz in the same case.

However, both accused had denied the charges against them, and maintained that they had saved Rs2,300 billion, assuring that the money was not misused.

On June 11, the accountability watchdog had arrested Hamza in the same cases shifted him to the bureau’s headquarter at Thokar Niaz Baig in Lahore as the Lahore High Court (LHC) turned down his applications for extension in his interim bail.

LHC seeks JIT reports in Model Town incident NEWS DESK The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Tuesday summoned reports of both Joint Investigation Teams (JITs) over the 2014 Model Town incident.

LHC was hearing petitions filed against the formation of a new JIT on the incident wherein it gave final chance to concerned authorities to provide complete records. It directed for the production of reports of the two JITs in the next hearing besides a submission of record for the formation of a new investigation team with approval of the Punjab cabinet.

The court has also sought a record of the recommendations forwarded to the advocate general of Punjab for the establishment of the JIT. The government lawyer told the judge that the unavailability of record was made

following major changes made in the Punjab bureaucracy on November 27. The government has sought time from court to provide records related to the case. The high court asked the lawyer to produce the notification of approval from the provincial cabinet which permitted the formation of a new JIT. The LHC judge further said that all particulars must be produced in the next hearing, otherwise, the court will summon the provincial chief secretary and other officers.

The high court later adjourned the hearing till January 14. On June 17, 2014, at least 14 people were killed and 100 others injured when the police opened fire to disperse protesting Pakistan Awami Tehreek workers during an anti-encroachment operation outside the residence of Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) chief Dr Tahirul Qadri.

against the instructor, submitting documentary evidence, they were told to “give him a second chance”. When pressed harder for legal action, the administration informed students that the instructor left the university mid-semester “without informing anyone”. However, the problems of the affectees did not end there. After the sudden departure of the instructor, classes were not held for a whole week.

Substitute professors were provided to the class but, according to students, it brought no relief as they did not have access to students’ grades which constituted 50% of the course work done.

“Our work was completely disregarded and we were told to start from scratch,” Mahnoor Nadeem lamented, adding: “We are not expected to deliver four components within 19 days upon which 100% of our grade will be based.”

The social media users sharing their experience describe it as a “traumatic” experience, criticising the university department responsible for hiring such a person who was so obviously unfit to be around students. Allegedly, the department also demands that the students produce all coursework from scratch in a span of 19 days.

Wednesday, 11 December, 2019

06 WORLD VIEW

Whom does President trumP remind you of?

UNCOUTH HE MAY BE, BUT HE’S NOT UNFAMILIAR

new york tiMeS

L

PhiliP terzian

IKE more than a few Americans, I used to read President Donald Trump’s tweets with trepidation.

No modern president had ever expressed himself publicly in this manner, and the universal reaction seemed to be a mixture of horror and consternation.

Now I find that the tweets I see tend to make me laugh rather than wince. Unlike his stately predecessor’s feed, which read as if drafted by a lucky intern, Mr. Trump’s tweets could not possibly have been composed by anyone but Mr. Trump himself, or by someone with a good ear for Trumpspeak. Best of all, the fury and indignation they inspire are very nearly as entertaining as their memorable content.

Like the old New Yorker cartoons of plutocrats listening in silent rage to F.D.R. on the radio, or inviting their friends to join them at “the Trans-Lux to hiss Roosevelt,” Mr. Trump seems to have the chattering — or in this case, sputtering — classes where he wants them.

Moreover, the president has a genuine gift for this sort of thing. Even his

famous nicknames — “Crooked Hillary” Clinton, “Sleepy Joe” Biden, Stormy “Horseface” Daniels — while occasionally puerile and sometimes cruel, deftly capture something essential in their subjects. And the fact that Mr. Trump takes such evident pleasure in the torment, and his critics respond like Pavlov’s dogs, seems to fortify the bond between Mr. Trump and his enthusiasts. When Franklin Roosevelt exclaimed that his political enemies were “unanimous in their hate for me, and I welcome their hatred,” admirers swooned. Mr. Trump’s admirers are equally enchanted when he declares that Representative Adam “Pencil-Neck” Schiff’s impeachment proceedings are “illegal, invalid and unconstitutional.”

What’s the difference? Less than you might think.

There is no question, of course, that Mr. Trump is a dramatically unconventional commander in chief. He is not our first divorced president (Ronald Reagan) nor the first to have been harried by allegations of a sex scandal (Thomas Jefferson, Andrew Jackson, Grover Cleveland, et al.). He is a “reality-TV star” just as Reagan was a “B-movie actor” and Harry Truman a “failed haberdasher.” Still, he is the only president to have arrived in the White House without experience of public service or political office — the last comparable major-party nominee was Wendell Willkie (1940) — and his manner is a striking departure from one Eng-

lish journalist’s rule that the public prefers its politicians to resemble either clergymen or undertakers.

None of this is altogether a bad thing.

The increasingly monarchical trappings of the presidency are some distance from the founders’ ideal of republican simplicity. We might wish, at times, that Mr. Trump were a little less juvenile, or insensitive, or hypersensitive; but we might also wish that every president achieves perfection. Even the tweets are more likely to be remembered as mastery of new technology — akin to F.D.R.’s “fireside chats” — than the outrage and embarrassment journalists deplore.

Indeed, one of the intriguing things about Mr. Trump is that, in certain significant ways, many of his attitudes and actions are reliably conventional. He wavers between American exceptionalism (Make America Great Again) and skeptical realism (“You think our country’s so innocent?”). Like Calvin Coolidge, he believes that “the business of America is business,” in the sense that a healthy market economy is the guarantor of inclusive prosperity. He presides at ceremonial occasions — memorials, commemorative rituals, official receptions — with a measure of solemnity and switches gears for the lighthearted trappings of office. (See his pardon last month of a Thanksgiving turkey.)

His instincts in domestic and foreign affairs are identifiably conservative, with certain exceptions. It’s not difficult to imagine a President Jeb Bush appointing Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court, or a President Marco Rubio recruiting Elliott Abrams for duty on Venezuela. In his suspicion of foreign

The Tories have already won this election MOST PEOPLE IN THIS COUNTRY CAN BARELY REMEMBER A CONSERVATIVE GOVERNMENT WITH A PARLIAMENTARY MAJORITY BIG ENOUGH FOR THEM TO DO WHATEVER THEY LIKE. THEY WILL BY THE END OF THIS WEEK

independent Sean O’Grady

It is often remarked that generals, the bad ones at any rate, always tend to fight the last war. And then, of course, lose.

I wonder if we – the journalists, the voters, even the politicians – are making the same mistake with the British general election of 2019.

Ever since the get-go, and even now, the word you most often hear (apart from Brexit) about this contest is “unpredictable”. We’re still told that this is the most unpredictable election in years; that anything could happen; the public is volatile and undecided; there will be some wave of tactical voting to transform things; or a wave of tactical campaigning to do the same; or a “youth quake” is going to sweep away our complacent assumptions; that aggressive micro-targeted modern cyber election techniques will transform the parties’ marketing; and, of course, that the polls are all wrong and anyway, a 2017-style Corbyn surge is just around the corner.

Even if any of those things were ever true, or were ever going to be true, they are not true now. It is not 2017 all over again. We are going to get a Tory landslide. Or leastways a very decent majority, large enough for Boris Johnson to disregard not only the opposition parties, but also the European Research Group and any vestigial stirrings of pro-Remain, anti-no deal sentiment that somehow escaped his purge of the candidates’ list.

At the start of this campaign, Johnson and the Conservatives had a

roughly 10-point lead over the Labour Party, and the position has held, with some squeeze on the Farageists and the Lib Dems, bar a few wibbles and wobbles, ever since. We might as well have called off all the tedious “makeor-break” leaders’ debates and photo stunts and fact-checking and just put our feet up. I’m a Celeb was more volatile and unpredictable.

It has been remarkably predictable in fact – or, more accurately, the unpredictable thing about the year 2019 was how boringly predictable it has been. Things are not, as of today, “tight”, as Laura Kuenssberg says they are. I don’t know why she says this, given all the data, but there we are. The Tories, true enough, agree it is touch and go, but that is not because they fear not being the largest party or winning a working majority.

What is touch and go is the Johnson landslide – the thing he most prizes but dare not speak of.

In other words, the Conservatives want to scare people, especially Brexit Party voters and Labour Leavers, into giving them a landslide – a 100 plus majority. Labour also talks up how easily they could deprive the Tories of their majority (as in 2017), for similar reasons – to gather momentum. The Lib Dems try to make out they are still on track to hold the balance of power, as they fantasised when Jo Swinson made her historic blunder of granting Johnson his early election.

The more we look at it, the more the 2017 contest was sui generis, a reflection of Theresa May’s extraordinarily poor campaign, and we are now witnessing a reversion to an older norm. Almost every election since the Second World War has been characterised by two things: that the polls hardly shift during the campaign and, closely connected, that all the noise and tumult is mere background. People make their minds up years before.

The truth, I suppose, is that we have been in a virtual non-stop election campaign ever since the inconclu-

sive 2017 poll. The voters are well aware of the personalities and arguments. Johnson and Sturgeon have been around for years and we are familiar with them; Corbyn is no longer this slightly startling man of principle: the more we have come to know him, the dodgier some of his views have become. Swinson, meantime, has pulled off the remarkable trick of growing less impressive the more the public see of her, whereas Sturgeon, Angela Rayner, Caroline Lucas and Rebecca Long-Bailey have been stars in a lacklustre scene.

Most people in this country can barely remember a Tory government with a parliamentary majority big enough for it to do whatever it liked.

Many were not even born. It was last seen at the 1987 election, when Margaret Thatcher won her third contest with a majority of 102. I predict the same this time, even given all the social changes over the past 30 years. In which case, you should get used to the idea of a Johnson-led government of cronies and toadies.

Among other things they will: preside over a protracted post-Brexit recession; a collapse in sterling; starve local services and the welfare state of funding when the comprehensive spending review comes round; fail to conclude a trade deal with the EU in time; fail to negotiate an advantageous trade deal with anyone else including (especially) Trump’s protectionist America by 2024; dismantle the constitutional checks and balances supplied by the Commons and the courts, as per page 48 of the Tory manifesto; shut down Channel 4; neuter the BBC; cut taxes for the rich; pack the House of Lords with more Tories and appoint placemen and place women to top jobs in the civil service, diplomatic corps, Bank of England and quangos; privatise anything not specifically ruled out by their manifesto.

It is not, then, only the election campaign that is quite stunningly predictable and an easy win for the Tories; but the course of the next five years of the Johnson administration as well.

entanglements Mr. Trump is more like a Taft than an Eisenhower Republican — or more like George Washington, for that matter. His weakness for protectionism, while regrettable in my view, harkens back to an older G.O.P. orthodoxy and, in any case, is consistent with his pledge to speak for industrial workers left behind by decades of free-trade agreements. His approach to reform and refreshment of the Atlantic alliance, while bumptious at times, is a louder, more insistent and, not least, more successful version of what policymakers of both parties have been whispering for years.

It’s useful, as well, to consider Mr. Trump’s opprobrium — as racist, protofascist and aspiring dictator — in light of the history of partisan rhetoric. It’s essentially forgotten now, but the standard enlightened view of Reagan in the Oval Office was as an “amiable dunce” (in Clark Clifford’s memorable phrase) and frontman for a handful of sinister Los Angeles millionaires, whose presidential passion was provoking nuclear war with the Soviet Union. George W. Bush was once considered vulnerable to impeachment for his habit of issuing lengthy “signing statements” when rendering a bill into law. When Franklin Roosevelt ran for re-election in 1936 his most vehement opponent was not the Republican nominee Alf Landon but Al Smith, the 1928 Democratic nominee who considered parts of the New Deal to be as dangerous as Bolshevism and antithetical to his party’s historic values.

Nor is Mr. Trump’s turbulent personality unprecedented. His impulsiveness is very nearly as habitual as Theodore Roosevelt’s, who was never happier than

when picking fights with adversaries great (J. Pierpont Morgan) and small (sentimental author-naturalists he called “nature fakers”) and whose disappointment with his handpicked successor, William Howard Taft, prompted him to split his party, run for a third term on a third-party ticket and deliver the presidency to Woodrow Wilson.

Mr. Trump’s affinity for Andrew Jackson is based on Jackson’s status as our first populist chief executive. But their ways of doing business are equally indistinguishable. Jackson’s determination to destroy the Bank of the United States prompted him to fire his first two Treasury secretaries. He presided over a contentious and ever-changing cabinet, and once lamented that his twin regrets in life were that he had not shot Senator Henry Clay or hanged his own vice president, John C. Calhoun. He was also the only president to have been censured by the Senate, dismissing it as “unauthorized, unprecedented, unconstitutional conduct.”

While unique in his way, Mr. Trump is not a president like no other, nor a threat to democracy or the constitutional order.

He has roots in the American civic tradition, which is considerably more complex, and more fractious in tone, than we care to remember. He’s a politician with a thin skin and a fondness for the limelight and the music of his own voice — sound familiar? — and his political success drives his political adversaries to political apoplexy. That, too, sounds familiar.

Philip Terzian, a contributing writer at The Washington Examiner, is the author of “Architects of Power: Roosevelt, Eisenhower, and the American Century.”

Rules for doctors, pharmacists tightened in new religious discrimination bill Sydney Morning Herald Judith ireland

A pharmacist could refuse to dispense contraception and a doctor could refuse to provide fertility treatment under the government’s proposed new religious discrimination laws, provided they declined to provide that particular service to all patients.

Attorney-General Christian Porter said the second draft of the religious discrimination bill, released on Tuesday, would allow doctors, nurses, midwives, pharmacists and psychologists to conscientiously object as long as it was “to a procedure, not a person”.

Attorney-General Christian Porter released a second draft of the religious discrimination bill on Tuesday.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Mr Porter unveiled 11 key changes to the bill after receiving about 6000 written submissions about the government’s first effort, including criticism from church, business and community groups.

Mr Morrison said Australians held diverse beliefs and this was “a key part of who we are as a country”. “This is a bill for all Australians,” he told reporters in Sydney. “Australia is a country of respect and of tolerance.”

The initial bill, released in August, did not clearly define “conscientious objection” when setting out provisions for health professionals, raising concerns for the Australian Medical Association (AMA). The new version makes it clear health workers will not have the right to discriminate against patients based on gender, sexuality or other characteristics.

Mr Porter used the example of a GP who did not want to “engage in hormone therapies” for a trans person. “That’s fine, but you have to exercise that in a consistent way, so you don’t engage in the procedure at all,” he told The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age. The AMA said it was considering its response to the new draft bill, while Equality Australia warned it “still allows for adverse impact on patient health”. “Laws that privilege religious views over patient health are unacceptable,” chief executive Anna Brown said.

The so-called “Folau clause”, which was heavily criticised by business and LGBTIQ groups, remains in the new bill. This prevents companies with revenue of at least $50 million from imposing restrictions on employees airing their religious views in their spare time unless it would cause the business “unjustifiable financial hardship”.

Mr Porter said the government had now

clarified that people’s spare time meant “other than in the course of their employment”. This meant an office Christmas Party might be classified as work time but a weekend Facebook post was not.

The Attorney-General said the submissions so far from larger businesses, calling for the scrapping of the “Folau clause”, “weren’t terribly persuasive”.

Many church groups had pushed for an expanded definition of “religious bodies”, as they receive protections in the bill including the ability to hire people on the basis of their religion. Religious charities primarily involved in commercial activities were excluded from this definition in the first draft.

The new bill will count religious charities registered as “public benevolent institutions” - such as op-shops - as religious bodies, regardless of their involvement in commercial activities.

The new bill also makes clear that religious camps and conference centres will be able to “take faith into account” when deciding whether they provide accommodation to people. Others changes to the bill include a definition of “vilify” and protections for associates of religious individuals, for example people in inter-faith marriages.

Many religious groups, including Jewish, Christian and Muslim representatives, said they would take their time to digest the new bill before responding. Christian Schools Australia spokesman Mark Spencer said the second draft showed the government “has been listening to the concerns of faith communities, and other groups, and provides much-needed clarity around a number of areas”.

Shadow attorney-general Mark Dreyfus said Labor would do its own consultation on the second draft bill. “We need to ensure any laws aimed at protecting Australians from discrimination based on religious belief do not create legal uncertainty or compromise existing anti-discrimination protections,” he said.

Mr Porter said he planned to introduce the bill to Parliament in early 2020, with public feedback on the second draft due on January 31. He stood by his previous comment that religious discrimination laws were “achievable”.

“More so than ever before,” he said, noting his engagement with church and community groups had been “really constructive”.

“There seems to be a view from all the groups that this is going to happen,” he said.

Judith Ireland is a political reporter for the Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, based at Parliament House.

Wednesday, 11 December, 2019

FOREIGN NEWS 07

Gambia detailS maSS rapeS, killinGS in myanmar aS SUU kyi lookS on THE HAGUE

G

AGENCIES

AMBIA’S legal team described mass rapes, the burning of families in their homes and killing of dozens of Muslim Rohingya children with knives as it set out its genocide case against Myanmar at the u.N.’s International Court of Justice on Tuesday.

Myanmar’s leader Aung San Suu Kyi, a Nobel Peace laureate, looked on impassively as the alleged atrocities were detailed at the beginning of three days of hearings in The Hague instituted by Gambia against Buddhist-majority Myanmar in November. “All that The Gambia asks is that you tell Myanmar to stop these senseless killings,” Gambia’s Justice Minister Abubacarr Tambadou said in opening comments. “To stop these acts of barbarity and brutality that have shocked and continue to shock our collective conscience.

To stop this genocide of its own people.”

Suu Kyi is expected to repeat denials of genocide and argue that military operations launched in August 2017 were a legitimate counterterrorism response to attacks by Rohingya militants on security forces. Detailing events at the village of Min Gyi, lawyer Andrew Loewenstein drew on witness accounts recorded in a report by u.N. investigators, who estimated 750 people were killed there, including more than 100 children under the age of 6.

“I entered the house with four of my

neighbors and three of us had babies,” Loewenstein quoted from one survivor’s testimony to the u.N. fact-finding mission. “There were dead bodies on the floor: young boys from our village. As we entered the house, the soldiers locked the door. One soldier raped me. He stabbed me in the back of my neck and in my abdomen. I was trying to save my baby, who was only 28 days old, but they threw him on the ground and he died.”

More than 730,000 Rohingya fled

Myanmar after the military-led crackdown and were forced into squalid camps across the border in Bangladesh.

The u.N. investigators concluded the military campaign was executed with “genocidal intent”.

Myanmar has previously denied almost all allegations made by refugees against its troops, including of mass rape, killings and arson, and promised to punish any soldiers involved in what it says were isolated cases of wrongdoing.

CALLS FOR JUSTICE: Outside the court, dozens of Rohingya demonstrated to demand justice for victims. Hours earlier in Yangon, Myanmar’s commercial capital, thousands of people had rallied in support of Suu Kyi. “It’s like Mother Suu went to the frontlines for our country,” said 58-yearold Myint Myint Thwin. “Therefore to show our support and that we stand with her we joined this march.”

Once feted in the West, Suu Kyi has

faced mounting international criticism over the Rohingya crisis. But she has remained popular at home since coming to power 2016 as part of the transition to democracy after decades of military rule.

A Suu Kyi supporter in The Hague, Moe Moe Hnin, said people abroad have been “misinformed” about events in Myanmar. “Yes, military dictators have been committing human rights violations in the whole Burma,” she said. “It is not Burma, it is not Burmese people or our religion. We are not racist.” This week’s proceedings, before a panel of 17 judges, will not deal with the core allegation of genocide, but Gambia has requested a court order for Myanmar to halt any activity that may aggravate the dispute.

The tiny, mostly Muslim West African country is arguing that Myanmar’s forces carried out widespread and systematic atrocities that constituted genocide during what the army called “clearance operations” against militants.

The tribunal has no enforcement powers, but its rulings are final and have significant legal weight.

In the Bangladeshi refugee camps on Tuesday, hundreds gathered on a hilltop and chanted, “Gambia! Gambia!”, pumping their fists. Some offered special prayers at mosques in the camps and many others were fasting. “Our people were killed, our children were thrown into fire, our women were raped, our houses were burnt down. All we want is a fair trial,” said Nurul Amin, 30.

Europe's human rights court calls for release of Turkish businessman ISTANBUL AGENCIES

The European Court of Human Rights called on Tuesday for the immediate release of Turkish businessman and activist Osman Kavala, saying there was a lack of reasonable suspicion that he had committed an offense.

Kavala has been in jail for more than two years while on trial on charges of attempting to overthrow the government, based on accusations that he organized and funded nationwide protests in 2013 against then-Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan.

Kavala, who faces life in jail if convicted, denies the allegations.

The indictment cited tapped phone calls in which Kavala discussed sending pastries, milk, juice and gas masks to protesters as evidence that he financed the protests.

“In the absence of facts, information or evidence showing that Mr. Kavala had been involved in criminal

activity, he could not reasonably be suspected of having attempted to overthrow the Government by force or violence,” the court said, calling on authorities to secure his release.

It also said in the ruling that it supported Kavala’s assertion that his detention was aimed at silencing him, adding that it was “likely to have a dissuasive effect on the work of human rights defenders”.

ECHR rulings are legally binding but Turkey has frequently not implemented them. Turkey’s Justice Ministry declined to comment on Tuesday’s ruling.

‘JUST BUT DELAYED’: Three of Kavala’s lawyers said the ECHR’s ruling was a “just but delayed legal achievement.”

“We strongly emphasize the steps needed to be taken without losing time to ensure that our client Osman Kavala returns to freedom at once in line with this ruling,” they said in a statement.

Lawyer Ilkan Koyuncu told Reuters the Turkish court can rule to release Kavala by itself after the ECHR ruling but that the lawyers will also apply for his release.

Critics of Erdogan’s government have questioned the independence of Turkish courts, especially since a crackdown following a failed coup in 2016. Erdogan and his AK Party say the judiciary makes independent decisions.

The demonstrations in 2013 started as a protest against the redevelopment of Gezi Park in Istanbul and quickly spread across the country. Kavala at the time sat on the board of the Turkish branch of financier George Soros’s Open Society Foundation. He has said the charity did not provide financial support to the protests.

The next hearing on his case is set for Dec. 24-25. Fifteen other defendants are on trial along with Kavala, who is currently the only one in jail.

Erdogan says Nobel academy rewarding human rights violations ANKARA: Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan accused the Nobel academy on Tuesday of rewarding human rights violations by awarding the prize for literature to Peter Handke, who has been criticized for backing late Serbian leader Slobodan Milosevic. Turkey has said it is joining Albania and Kosovo in boycotting the Nobel awards ceremony to protest the academy’s choice of Austrian Handke for the prize. “Giving the Nobel Literature Prize to a racist, who denies the genocide in Bosnia and defends war criminals, on December 10, Human Rights Day, will have no meaning other than the rewarding of human rights violations,” Erdogan said. The academy’s choice has been widely criticised. Handke, now 77, expressed support for Milosevic and spoke at the funeral of the former Serbian president in 2006 after he died in detention during his trial at the U.N. war crimes tribunal. Milosevic was charged with war crimes in connection with atrocities and ethnic cleansing committed by Serb forces in Bosnia, Croatia and Kosovo during the 1990s wars triggered by the disintegration of federal Yugoslavia. On Friday, Handke dismissed questions about his support for Milosevic. On Tuesday, he will formally be handed the 9 million crown ($935,000) award and later attend the traditional Nobel banquet. AGENCIES

Qatar sends premier to Gulf summit in prospective thaw in rift RIYADH AGENCIES

Qatar sent its prime minister to a Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) summit in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, its highest level of representation at the annual meeting in two years and the most concrete sign yet of a possible thaw in a regional dispute.

Prime Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser Al Thani’s attendance follows an intensification of efforts to resolve the row among u.S. allies that has seen Riyadh and its partners impose a political and economic boycott against Qatar since June 2017 over allegations Doha backs terrorism. Qatar denies the charges and accuses Saudi Arabia, the united Arab Emirates, Bahrain and non-GCC member Egypt of trying to curtail its sovereignty.

Kuwait and the united States have tried to mediate the rift, which shattered the GCC alliance and undermined Washington’s efforts to form a united front against Iran, which is locked in a

Gulf Arab summit calls for financial and monetary unity by 2025 DUBAI AGENCIES A summit of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries called for finalizing legislation for regional economic integration by 2025, including financial and monetary unity, according to the meeting’s final communique. The statement, read by GCC General Secretary Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani and broadcast live, called also for boosting military and security cooperation to maintain regional security.

struggle for regional supremacy with Saudi Arabia.

A senior regional official told Reuters that Kuwait recently was working “extremely hard to come up with reconciliation … supported by the united States”.

Efforts to end the row, including

talks between Qatar’s foreign minister and Saudi officials in October, appeared to intensify after attacks in September on Saudi oil plants that initially halved the kingdom’s output and heightened regional tensions.

Riyadh and Washington blame Iran for the assault as well as earlier strikes

this year on tankers in Gulf waters.

Tehran denies involvement.

Two sources familiar with Saudi thinking said Riyadh has softened its stance on a list of 13 demands to lift the embargo, including that Doha cut links to the Muslim Brotherhood, close Al Jazeera TV, shutter a Turkish military base and reduce ties with Iran, with whom Qatar shares a giant gas field.

But little is known about the current state of negotiations, and the uAE and Egypt may still refuse to yield.

“The onus lies with the one that caused the crisis, to reconsider erroneous policies that led to its isolation,” senior Emirati official Anwar Gargash tweeted on Monday.

A Western diplomat said the summit could be a step forward in resolving the dispute but was unlikely to see an immediate end to it.

The Qatari premier last visited Saudi Arabia in May for an emergency summit to discuss regional security following an attack on tankers in Gulf waters.

France presses Lebanon to form govt quickly PARIS AGENCIES

French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian on Tuesday urged the Lebanese to form a new government swiftly or risk a financial crisis worsening and threatening the country’s stability. “(They should) form a government quickly because any delay will continue to worsen the situation,” Le Drian told a news conference.

Six weeks since Saad al-Hariri resigned as prime minister, prompted by protests against the ruling elite, the financial crisis is generating concerns for Lebanon’s stability: banks are enforcing capital controls, dollars are scarce, and the Lebanese pound has lost a third of its value on a black market. France hosts on Wednesday a meeting of the International Lebanon Support Group, which includes Gulf Arab donors such as the Saudi Arabia, major European powers and the united States.

Wednesday, 11 December, 2019

08 COMMENT

Ambivalence......

PTI has to avoid Russian Roulette

An Overseas Pakistani’s view

Dangerous because it involves taking unpredictable risks

HAider meHdi

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OMe of the slogans raised by protestors aligned with the PTI outside the Avenfield apartments were provocative. These were also highly condemnable because they invited the protesters to physically attack former PM Nawaz Sharif. The anger on the part of the PML(N) leadership is therefore quite understandable.

MNA Khwaja Asif was spot-on when he told the house that if this sort of activity was not discouraged, it had the potential to become infectious, leaving no political leader safe irrespective of whether he is in the opposition or the government. There is also a need on the part of the Prime Minister to discipline some of the PTI’s loose guns in the National Assembly who are always itching to pour oil over fire irrespective of its consequences.

This said, many would have reservations about the PML-N boycotting parliamentary proceedings, attending which is a task assigned to them by their voters. The appointment of the Chief election Commissioner and two members of the election Commission is currently on the agenda. Unless Parliament resolves the issue by fresh appointments, the election Commission will remain dysfunctional. It is not clear if Kh Asif, who was justifiably incensed over the affair, was speaking for himself or on behalf of the PML-N when he made the announcement.

While PPP leader Raja Pervez Ashraf endorsed Khawaja Asif’s viewpoint, saying “it is impossible that you attack Nawaz Sharif’s house and we will cooperate with you”, he made no commitment on the part of his party about the boycott of the National Assembly proceedings.

Prime Minister Imran Khan needs to take action against the reckless PTI activists who raised irresponsible slogans during the protest because he is not only the chairman of the PTI but also the Prime Minster of the country. he has to ensure that a few short-sighted and immature persons are not allowed to endanger the country’s peace and harmony. Political differences and rivalries must not be allowed to degenerate into personal enmities. The PTI needs also to consider if it makes sense to continue spewing venom against opponents while simultaneously seeking their cooperation.

Getting into the thick of things Why is the NAB chairman making political statements?

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he National Accountability Bureau (NAB), due to its hyperactivity, perpetually remains in the headlines, for launching high-profile investigations that usually progress quickly towards politicians, bureaucrats and businessmen having to visit the bureau’s head offices, not knowing if they will be arrested on the spot or at a later date. That fear, in addition to the draconian laws set out in its Ordinance of 1999 make NAB a very powerful institution that is fuelled by the PTI government’s ‘corruption’ mantra. It is no wonder therefore why a disproportionately large number of those behind bars in yet-to-be decided corruption cases, are from opposition parties. The perception therefore is that NAB works on the direction of the PTI government. This is consistently denied by the NAB chairman who insists that he runs an independent institution that picks cases on the basis of merit. In an address on International Corruption Day, the NAB chairman said, “The winds have started blowing from a different direction”. This is a purely political statement that Mr Justice (retd) Javed Iqbal had no business making. Does he mean to say that the tilt towards opposition party leaders is about to shift towards the PTI government? It would make sense since he followed up his ‘changing winds’ statement with a commitment to take up the BRT Peshawar and Malam Jabba resort cases very soon, both PTI-centric cases.

On one hand, the NAB chairman wants the institution he leads to be free from politics and do its job of fighting corruption diligently and effectively, yet on the other he deliberately makes statements that drag the Bureau into the political discourse. It would be best if NAB does its mandated job quietly, free from controversy and scandal in order to improve on its unimpressive conviction rate as well. Short of that; the accountability watchdog will remain in the headlines for all the wrong reasons.

Dedicated to the legacy of the late Hameed Nizami

Arif Nizami Editor Aziz-ud-Din Ahmad

Umar Aziz

Asher John

Joint Editor

Executive Editor

Deputy Editor

Lahore – Ph: 042-36300938, 042-36375965

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ot sure if there’s such a phrase as positive ambivalence. Something bordering on lack of clarity with some glimmers of hope. Or negative ambivalence with confusion wrapped in pessimism!

Been back a week and a very busy week it was seeking insights, views, opinions, perspectives from a wide array of people.

Politicians from across the spectrum, members of our rich, corrupt & spoilt elite, comrades in khaki, businesspeople, social activists, technology gurus, serving and retired bureaucrats and that most important stakeholder, the salt of the earth, the person on the street.

So has anything changed for the better since I was here 6 months ago?

And that’s where the “ambivalence” comes in as I attempted to seek answers. has PM Imran, finally come of age?

Does he now understand the science and art of governance enough to provide the kind of leadership expected from a PM? The kind of leadership that goes beyond long lectures and motivational talks during cabinet meetings?

Is he less stubborn around issues which bedevil even his closest advisors and confidantes?

Buzdar and Firdaus Awan being two such enigmas.

Buzdar, in whose hands lies the political fate of Imran and may I daresay the future of what may be our best fighting chance for our country.

Or Firdaus, a face that “turns off a million TV sets”. Somebody who does an outstanding job, much superior to anything Ahsan Iqbal and Maryum Aurangzeb can ever do, in destroying Imran’s and his Government’s image.

Is he beginning to make the right people choices in appointing quality people, at least in positions over which he has total discretionary powers? Or is the cronyism we’ve seen in some cases of appointing friends to head crucial government bodies coming to an end with horror stories of one such crony usually found inebriated night and day?

Or putting square pegs in round holes.

Will his flagship programs like ehsas for poverty alleviation, Naya Pakistan housing, Kamyab Jawan, and the most recent one on Digital Pakistan be game changers, or flashes in the pan?

I attended the last event and expected a bit more, beyond the rhetoric of a digital economy, which for the last decade or so is fairly common knowledge.

When are we going to move beyond the “what is the problem” to “here is how we’ll fix

it” or better “here’s how we’ve fixed it”* has Imran seriously begun to look at the negative impact many of his Cabinet members have on his and his Government’s image?

Is he serious in bringing sweeping changes and better people from his party into the Cabinet?

Is he becoming more statesmanlike or is he still stuck in Dharna mode?

Are we seeing a tapering off in the angry, harsh, conflict-laden rhetoric of his various speeches or is it becoming more shrill, negative and counterproductive, which he thinks plays to his constituents?

Are we seeing any signs of green shoots after 16 months in power?

Are the economic and business indicators of reduction in the current account deficit, fiscal deficit, increase in exports, a rocketing stock market, Moody’s outlook change from negative to stable, Internationally a “buy” advice on the Pakistani rupee with anticipations of a stronger rupee in the forthcoming quarters, harbingers of a genuine recovery based on strong fundamentals, or flashes in the pan? has governance in Punjab and KP improved?

In 16 months have we seen any structural changes and improvements in health care delivery, in the manner in which the police deals with people, in quality of education, in the judicial system, especially the lower judiciary?

Is any improvement in government processes resulting in more efficient and effective delivery of public services?

Does the common person feel any change?

Any change, at all!

Will Imran’s latest experiment in Punjab, of handing over pretty much all administrative and executive powers to the new Chief Secretary and IGP, be successful in improving good governance in Punjab?

And will he continue in his stubbornness to impose Buzdar on a hapless, Punjab?

Is the tax reform resulting in behaviour change, in people paying more taxes? The evidence says, yes! has political interference stopped or significantly reduced in the functioning of the police and bureaucracy? has the Zardari-Nawaz culture of friends and family members accompanying state delegations on foreign visits stopped, especially to China? I’ve seen disturbing evidence of such people accompanying the PM to China. Perhaps without his knowledge or perhaps with!

Do we see conflict of interest involving his Cabinet members diminishing or do foreign firms find partnering with commercial concerns

owned by advisors and people close to him, the easiest means to land lucrative contracts?

Will the new NAB Ordinance change the way people are arrested, investigated, or forced to plea bargain?

I’ve personally witnessed a horror story of a man arrested without any complainant, who is being forced to plea bargain, because there’s no case which will stand up in court, and because of the very large percentage of the plea bargain amount, which officially goes to NAB staff.

Will we see more genuine accountability and less victimization?

Will we see less doublespeak from the Government’s anti-corruption point person, as we saw in the recent £190 million transfer from the UK, where he desperately tried to whitewash “Angel” Malik Riaz? how will the recent run-in with the superior judiciary over the COAS’ extension, pan out? how has this impacted civil military relations and Imran’s ability to govern effectively? how badly has the COAS’s reputation and office been affected by this?

Is the entire military leadership on the same page with their current Chief?

Is it more of the same, with an odd good thing here and there or are we seeing a weakening of the status quo?

Finally the universal messages I received. he’s working incredibly hard. harder than any other person in his team! excellent!

The question is. Is that enough?

The bigger question is. Does he have a team that can deliver?

In my humble view, Pakistan’s and Imran’s biggest challenge is still “Governance”.

We have to get the right people, make correct policies, fix processes.

But as one senior government functionary told me, “it’s easy to write analytical articles sitting comfortably on the sidelines and something entirely different to be in the arena!”

There’s much merit in what he says and perhaps also some merit in an armchair analyst, like me, asking questions to gain insights.

I also agree that the entire system is polluted and changing it is a herculean task! And that Imran has limited choices!

But having said that, there’s nothing stopping Imran to up his own game and even more importantly bring in a much better team, to give Pakistan a fighting chance! All we wanted and still want from him were and are two things.

Meritocracy and appointing the right people in the right places to deliver good governance.

For this ask from him I don’t have to be in the arena. All I have to do is look at the people he’s surrounded himself with!

For these two things, he alone is responsible!

Meritocracy and the right person in the right role!

This is what he promised. This is what he must deliver.

How India’s attitude delayed solution of disputes?

Not just Pakistan, but Nepal too Amjed jAAved

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he Indian government has quietly released new maps of disputed Jammu and Kashmir State. These maps show the disputed state as converted into an Indian `union territory’. The UT includes Azad Kashmir and Gilgit Baltistan. It appears that India thinks Pakistan is too weak to defend itself. The Indian attitude reflects the Kautliyan template: bheda (sowing seeds of discord) to achieve yana (victory) through danda (force) for weak states. It appears India is enjoying fruition of compliance with its foreign-secretary Shyam Saran’s advice: `India must seek to align with other powerful states to countervail the main adversary [Pakistan].This would mean closer relations with the US, Japan, Australia, Indonesia, and Vietnam, all of which share India’s concern over China’s unilateral assertions of power in Asia’ (How India Sees the World: Kautliya to the 21st Century). Now, even the USA has backed up India’s opposition to the China’s One Belt One Road (OBOR) initiative.

Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia Alice Wells said on November 22 at the Woodrow Wilson International Centre for Scholars, “We share India’s concerns over projects that don’t have any economic basis and that leads to country ceding sovereignty.” India is the only major country in the world opposed to the OBOR on grounds of `territorial sovereignty.

It claims the China-Pakistan economic Corridor (CPeC), passes through Azad Kashmir and GilgitBaltistan that are `India’s territory’. Kashmiri leader Farooq Abdullah had taunted Indian PM Narendra Modi “to go and occupy these areas.”

After Kashmir, India annexed Nepalese territory in maps: In blatant violation of mutual treaties, India annexed Kalapani area on the India-Nepal Karachi – Ph: 021-35381208-9

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border. In a press release, Nepal’s government termed the “unilateral action” as “unacceptable”.

India has already occupied over 14,000 hectares (140 km2) Nepalese territory of Susta in Tribenisusta, Lumbini Zone, near Nichlaul, UP. Saran (ibid. pp. 88-93) says India itself created the Siachen problem. Saran reminisces, in 1970s, US maps began to show 23,000 km of Siachen area under Pakistan’s control. Thereupon, `Indian forces were sent to occupy the glacier in a pre-emptive strike, named Operation Meghdoot. Pakistani attempts to dislodge them did not succeed. But they did manage to occupy and fortify the lower reaches’. he recalls how Siachen Glacier and Sir Creek agreements could not fructify because of foot dragging. he says ‘NN Vohra, who was the defence secretary at the time, confirmed in a newspaper interview that an agreement on Siachen had been reached. At the last moment, however, a political decision was taken by the Narasimha Rao government to defer its signing to the next round of talks scheduled for January the following year.

But, this did not happen…My defence of the deal became a voice in the wilderness’.

Similarly, demarcation of Sir Creek maritime boundary was unnecessarily delayed. Saran tells ` if we accepted the Pakistani alignment, with the east bank of the creek as the boundary, then Pakistan would get only 40 per cent of the triangle.

If our alignment according to the Thalweg principle was accepted, Pakistan would get 60 per cent. There was a keen interest in Pakistan to follow this approach but we were unable to explore this further when the Siachen deal fell through.

Pakistan was no longer interested in a stand-alone Sir Creek agreement’ (The Thalweg principle places the dividing line mid-channel in the river).

Kashmir dispute: Kashmir dispute was almost settled but delayed by India. In his memoirs In the line of fire, President Pervez Musharraf proposed `a personal solution of the Kashmir issue’. This solution, in essence, envisions self-

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rule in demilitarised regions of Kashmir under a joint-management mechanism. The solution presupposes reciprocal flexibility. The out-of-box Musharraf Kashmir solution is in fact a regurgitation of India’s former foreign secretary Jagat S. Mehta’s proposals. he understood a plebiscite was the real solution. But, India was not willing to talk about it. So, he spelled out ‘requirements prelusive to a solution’. he presented his ideas in his article, ‘Resolving Kashmir in the International Context of the 1990s’. Some points of Mehta’s quasi-solution are: (a) Conversion of the LoC into “a soft border permitting free movement and facilitating free exchanges...” (b) Immediate demilitarisation of the LoC to a depth of five to 10 miles with agreed methods of verifying compliance (c) Pending final settlement, there must be no continuing insistence by Pakistan “on internationalisation, and for the implementation of a parallel or statewide plebiscite to be imposed under the peacekeeping auspices of the United Nations” (d) Final settlement of the dispute between India and Pakistan can be suspended (kept in a ‘cold freeze’) for an agreed period (e) Conducting parallel democratic elections in both Pakistani and Indian sectors of Kashmir (f) Restoration of an autonomous Kashmiriyat (g) Pacification of the Valley until a political solution is reached.

India should heed advice by another of its own foreign secretary J.N. Dixit. he says it is no use splitting legal hairs. “everybody who has a sense of history knows that legality only has relevance up to the threshold of transcending political realities. And especially in inter-state relations… so to quibble about points of law and hope that by proving a legal point you can reverse the process of history is living in a somewhat contrived utopia. It won’t work.” honesty, not legal rigmarole, will solve the Kashmir tangle. Without sincerity, the only Kashmir solution is a nuclear Armageddon. Or perhaps divine intervention.

Email: editorial@pakistantoday.com.pk

Wednesday, 11 December, 2019

COMMENT 09 Editor’s mail

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

E-mail: letters@pakistantoday.com.pk Letters should be addressed to Pakistan Today exclusively

Umrah banned in ‘State of Madina’?

Hindutva at work The BJP’s biases reflect Savarkar’s hate ideology

mAlik muHAmmAd AsHrAf

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TANDING true to the philosophy of ‘hindutava’ the Modi government over the past six year has vigorously practiced communal politics with Muslim minority being its main target. The Citizenship Amendment Bill approved by the Indian Cabinet last Wednesday is a clear proof of the anti-Muslim bias of the BJP government. The bill is again being tabled by BJP after it failed to get the nod of the previous Parliament as even the allies of the BJP government had bitterly opposed it. It specifically excludes Muslims from citizenship by stating that all persecuted people and refugees including hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Christians and Paris from India’s neighbouring countries are welcome to the country except Muslims.

The bill is outrageous and contravenes the UN human Rights Charter as well as the globally recognized principles of democracy and justice. It also constitutes a blatant violation of the Indian Constitution itself besides decimating the secular disposition of India. Coming on the heels of the National Register of Citizenship which deprived nearly 4 million Bengalis Muslims in Assam, it is an unmistakable pointer to the impending disaster that the supremacist and anti-Muslim ideology of hindutva is likely to unfurl.

The Bill is yet to be passed by the upper house of the Indian Parliament where the BJP does not have a majority. But in all probability the BJP will employ all tactics at its command to get it through, like it did in case of criminalizing triple talaq and the revocation of the special status of Jammu and Kashmir. Though some conscientious voices in India among the political parties, intelligentsia and media have expressed strong disapproval of the course being pursued by the BJP government, their voices are effectively muzzled by the overall xenophobic disposition of the Indian media.

The scrapping of Articles 370 and 35A of the Indian Constitution to end the special status of Kashmir was also a sequel to the hate philosophy of the BJP and the RSS against Muslims. The Indian security forces have killed more than 1031 Kashmiri Muslims since 1989 and 100 since July 2016. The tally of injured and maimed with pellet guns also runs into the

thousands. In the aftermath of the revocation campaign in Maharashtra had promised to conof Article 370 since August 5, more than 40 fer the highest Indian honour of ‘Bharat Ratna’ people have lost their lives. The Modi govern- on Vinayak Damodar Savarkar. he is the same ment also continues to keep the LoC hot by vi- man who was also arrested on the accusations olating the ceasefire agreement on daily basis, of being a mastermind behind the assassination targeting te civilian population. It almost cre- of Mahatma Gandhi. Sardar Vallabhai Patel in ated a situation of an armed conflict between his correspondence with Pandit Jawaharlal the two nuclear neighbours when in February Nehru had mentioned his strong links with the in the aftermath of the Pulwama incident, In- assassin, Nathuram Godse, and the commisdian planes crossed over to Pakistan, ending in sion formed to investigate the murder had also shooting down of the intruding birds and the alluded to the same connectivity between him capture of an Indian pilot. Pakistan showed ut- and Godse but the court released him for lack most restraint in the face of this grave provoca- of concrete corroborative evidence. Bestowing the highest honour on the tive act and returned the author of hindutva indipilot as a good will gescates how faithfully the ture. The friendly counBJP and Narendra Modi tries also played a role in The situation in Indianare trying to implement it defusing the situation. in letter and spirit, irreThe author of the hate Occupied Kashmir is an spective of its disastrous philosophy against Muslims was Vinayak affront to the conscience fallout as manifested by the adoption of the Damodar Savarkar, the founder of the hindu Maof the global community, abovementioned antiMuslim pieces of legislahasaba who authored the particularly the powers tion, the ending of the pamphlet Hindutva durspecial status of Kashmir ing his incarceration in who relish to announce and continued aggressive jail in the Andaman and posture towards PakNicobar Islands during their humanitarian istan. It will surely have 1910-1921, wherein he credentials and respect for serious repercussions in expounded the racial suregards to peace and seperiority of hindus. That the internationally curity in the region and ideology led to the beyond. launching of the RSS by recognized right to selfPrime Minister Keshav Baliram hedgedetermination from every Imran Khan was right on war in 1925. The initial money in his address objective of the RSS was convenient rooftop, as well the to the UN General Asto provide character trainsembly warning the ing through hindu discias the UN, which is world about the threat pline and to unite the hindu community to responsible for promoting that the supremacist philosophy posed to the form a hindu Rashtra peace in the world and peace and security in the (nation). It promoted the region and the humaniideals of upholding Inhelping the subjugated tarian crisis likely to undian culture and the values and the spread of and persecuted people to fold. he also warned the world about the consehindutva ideology. hinwin their freedom through quences of the two nudutva means strengthenclear states standing face ing the hindu the exercise of their to face with each other community. It drew inspiand seeking their interration from european fundamental right of selfference before it was too right-wing parties during late. The world has seen World War II, particularly determination. the tragic outcome of the the leaders like Benito supremacist philosophy Mussolini and Adolf of hitler and cannot afhitler and their philosoford a similar mayhem to phy of racial purity.

French Political scientist Christophe Jaf- hit the world again.

The situation in Indian-Occupied Kashmir frelot, specializing in South Asian affairs, particularly India and Pakistan, points out that the is an affront to the conscience of the global ideology of the RSS along with other hindu community, particularly the powers who relish nationalist movements such as the Arya Samaj to announce their humanitarian credentials and and the hindu Mahasabha, thought of Mus- respect for the internationally recognized right lims, Christians and the British as “foreign to self-determination from every convenient bodies” implanted in the hindu nation, who rooftop, as well as the UN, which is responsible were able to exploit the disunity and absence for promoting peace in the world and helping of valour among the hindus in order to subdue the subjugated and persecuted people to win them. however, the majority of scholars be- their freedom through the exercise of their funlieve that RSS was actually formed to fight the damental right of self-determination.

Indian Muslims.

Malik Muhammad Ashraf is an academic.

It is pertinent to mention that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the elections He can be contacted at: ashpak10@gmail.com

ThROUGh the pages of your prestigious newspaper, I want to draw the attention of higher authorities towards the unjustified and illegal ban imposed on federal government teachers who intend to perform Umrah. Federal Directorate of education (FDe) is responsible for supervision of nearly 422 educational institutes in Federal Capital and works under the aegis of Federal of Ministry of education and Professional Training. This week, my sister, who is a teacher in one of the institutions under FDe, applied for a No Objection Certificate (NOC), which is a pre-requisite for all government servants travelling abroad. The family is travelling in the form of a group and all members, including my sister, have got visas stamped and tickets confirmed. Yet she got the surprise of her life when staff of Director General (DG) FDe office informed her that a ban has been imposed on all teachers for performing Umrah throughout the year except summer vacation period.

The Director hR, also confirmed that the DG, who is himself on a foreign visit, has issued strict instructions not to entertain any request from Federal Government teachers for issuance of NOC for performing Umrah.

The move seems to be motivated by Punjab government’s recent decision to bar all teaching and non-teaching staff of public schools across the province from undertaking foreign trips. A circular by the Schools education Secretary Irum Bukhari issued on October 20 was sent to heads of educational institutions in all 36 districts of the province. however, it clarified that teaching and non-teaching staff would be granted an exemption if the foreign travel involves performing pilgrimage such as Umrah, hajj, etc or if it was to seek medical treatment.

The DG FDe seems to have read the news and decided to blindly follow suit but instead went a step further and banned Umrah also. Performing hajj and Umrah is the greatest wish of every Muslim and there is no precedence in the country’s history that any department or ministry in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan has ever thought of banning the religious obligation under any pretext whatsoever. Rather many departments in both public and private sector hold a lucky draw annually to send the deserving employees on Umrah and hajj.

FDe is known for its poor administration and such illogical and unconstitutional orders as allowing Umrah only in summer vacation speak volumes about the mindset of those running the helm of affairs. Moreover, during previous summer vacation period, teachers were not allowed to leave stations and proceed to home towns under the pretext that FDe had arranged teacher-training programmes, and the coming years would be no exemption. The honourable President, Prime Minister of Pakistan, and Federal Minister of education and Professional Training are requested to intervene and save my sister and dozens of others belonging to teaching fraternity who may be facing imminent danger of incurring monetary loss besides receiving a serious blow to their basic human and fundamental constitutional right i.e. right to exercise religion.

In the context of Prime Minister’s recent statements of his vision to transform Pakistan into the ideological role model of the State of Madina, banning the holy journey to sacred cities of Makkah and Madina is strange. While the big-hearted move of incumbent government to facilitate Sikhs by opening the Kartarpur Corridor deserves appreciation, Road to Makkah for Muslims should not closed. – A concerned brother.

M A ALAM Islamabad

Honey please!

KhAIRPUR Mirs is well-known for its pulchritudinous and paramount architecture. It is only city of Sindh where there is production Date Palm fruits. The orchards of Date Palm trees are habitats of many living organisms. Such as, Squirrels, Crows, honey Bees, Parrots and Mynas. The honey bee is only, which is on the verge of extinction because of the use of pesticides on Date palm fruits.

There are two types of honey bees in Khairpur Mirs. 1, Apis florea which is commonly known by the name, Nandhi Makhi (dwarf honey bee) or ‘Desi Makhi’ by the laymen of these areas people. 2, Apis dorsata which is commonly known by name Wadi Makhi( giant honey bee) or ‘Angrezi Makhi’. Apis florea and Apis dorsata are distinct in characteristics. Apis florea formed their colonies in Data palm trees, Azadirachta indica (Neem tree), and Mangoes orchards. Whereas, Apis dorsata makes their colonies in Mangoes orchards, Azadirachta indica (Neem tree) and have rarely been seen their hives in Data Palm trees due to their giant beehive and sometimes on buildings as well.

Apis florea is good pollinator and its honey is delicious in taste as compare to Apis dorsata. As eye witness, I have seen Apis dorsata sitting in man feces and filthy water. I am not entomologist but I need suitable justification regarding this statement from entomologists? According to research, “Pollinators affect 35 per cent of global agricultural land, supporting the production of 87 of the leading food crops worldwide.” As prominent scientist Albert einstein states, “if the bee disappear from the surface of the earth, man would have no more than four years to live.” In fact, seventy to ninety per cent eatable plant is rely on pollinators. Definitely if there would be no bee then there will be no food, if no food, there will be no life.

All types of bees are essential for our ecosystem, but the Apis florea is on verge of extinction. To save the honey bees from extinction all the relevant organisations such as, Pakistan Agriculture Research Council, should promote awareness among people against the use of pesticide and DDT on Data palm trees and agriculture fields to protect and enhance honeybees and their habitats, as well as, to improve their abundance and diversity, and support the sustainable development of beekeeping.

NAIMAtuLLAH GAdHI Khairpur Mirs

Wednesday, 11 December, 2019

10 FOREIGN NEWS

US defence policy bill reqUireS nUclear power inSpectionS for SaUdi arabia: report

WASHINGTON

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AGENCIES

AuDI Arabia and other countries seeking to use u.S. technology to develop nuclear power plants must agree to comprehensive u.N. inspections under legislation to be included in the defense policy bill expected to be announced as soon as early this week, two Democratic congressional aides said on Monday.

The measure, spearheaded by Democratic u.S. Representative Bradley Sherman, requires countries to sign the so-called Ad-

Finland's parliament approves world's youngest prime minister HELSINKI AGENCIES

Finland’s parliament approved the nomination on Tuesday of 34-year-old Social Democrat Sanna Marin as the world’s youngest serving prime minister. Out of the parliament’s 200 members, 99 voted in favor and 70 against her nomination.

Thirty deputies were absent. “Within four years we won’t complete Finland but it can become better… I want to build a society in which every child can become anything and in which every human being can live and grow old with dignity,” Marin wrote on Twitter. Finland’s government resigned last week after the Centre Party said it had lost confidence in Social Democrat Prime Minister Antti Rinne over his handling of a postal strike. After parliament’s approval, Finland’s president was expected to nominate Marin’s fiveparty coalition cabinet, consisting of 12 female and 7 male ministers. But behind the festivities, deep divisions remained between the main coalition partners, Marin’s Social Democrats and the Centre Party.

Marin will struggle to defend her leftist views against the Centre Party, which wants action to boost Finnish employment to pay for the costly welfare state. Strikes continued as she took office.

ditional Protocol. The measure requires the International Atomic Energy Agency, the u.N.’s nuclear watchdog, to conduct snap inspections of nuclear power facilities to ensure countries are not developing materials for nuclear weapons.

The language is included in the annual National Defense Authorization Act, one of the few pieces of legislation that Congress must pass every year, the two aides said. The $700 billion NDAA bill could be announced in coming days after months of negotiations.

President Donald Trump’s administration has long held quiet talks with Saudi Arabia,

which wants to build two nuclear power plants and could use u.S. technology to do so.

Lawmakers have been seeking more oversight over any deal with Saudi Arabia after Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman said last year his country does not want nuclear weapons but will pursue them if rival Iran develops them. Concern in Congress about Saudi Arabia’s quest for nuclear power increased after the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul last year.

Nonproliferation experts said including the measure in the bill was a good step, but that Congress needs to do more. “The bad news is it took Saudi misbehavior to get this legislation; the good news is we finally have it,” said Henry Sokolski, head of the nonprofit group the Nonproliferation Policy Education Center.

In September, former u.S. Energy Secretary Rick Perry sent a letter to Saudi officials saying any deal on nuclear power must also contain a so-called 123 commitment to forgo enrichment of uranium or reprocessing, two pathways to making fissile material for nuclear weapons.

Separately, a Republican congressional aide said legislation by Senator Ted Cruz to impose sanctions on companies building Nord Stream 2, a natural gas pipeline from Russia to Germany under the Baltic Sea, will also be included in the NDAA bill.

Hong Kong cabinet reshuffle not an 'immediate task', Lam says HONG KONG AGENCIES

A reshuffle of Hong Kong’s cabinet is not an “immediate task”, the city’s Beijingbacked leader Carrie Lam said on Tuesday, as she prepared to visit the Chinese capital for the first time since her government’s humiliation at local polls last month.

On Sunday, pro-democracy protesters participated in the largest mass rally since their candidates scored a landslide victory in the district elections, raising further doubts over how long Beijing is prepared to back Lam. Declaring her priority was to restore law and order after more than six months of often violent protests, Lam said at a weekly media address that she would depart on Saturday for a regular visit to Beijing, where she would brief officials on Hong Kong’s biggest political crisis in decades.With pressure mounting on her government, the Apple Daily newspaper, owned by pro-democracy publishing tycoon Jimmy Lai, reported China was considering a Hong Kong cabinet reshuffle by the end of the year. Since the protests began until now, Lam has avoided mention of the prospects of changes to her team.

“My first priority now is really to re-

store law and order in Hong Kong and to ensure that Hong Kong could continue to move ahead, both economically and socially,” Lam said during her weekly media address. “This is not an immediate task that I would accord a lot of attention to,” she said, when asked about a potential reshuffle.

Pro-democracy protests have rocked the Asian financial hub and former British colony almost daily for months.

Sparked by a now-withdrawn bill allowing extradition to China, the protests have widened into calls for greater democratic freedoms and have have posed the starkest popular challenge to Chinese President Xi Jinping since he came to power in 2012.

ECONOMIC IMPACT: The protests are also taking an economic toll, pushing Hong Kong into recession and hitting the tourism and retail industries particularly hard. Nearly 11% of licensed retailers in the semi-autonomous southern Chinese territory say they will have to close in the next six months, the Hong Kong Retail Management Association said on Monday.

Lam said she took comfort from the relatively peaceful protest on Sunday, although she condemned an arson attack on the city’s courts.

Chile’s military plane goes missing with 38 on board SANTIAGO: Chile’s air force lost radio contact with a transport plane carrying 38 people on a flight on Monday evening to the country’s base in Antarctica, and authorities indicated several hours later that they were not optimistic about the aircraft’s fate. The military said earlier that it had declared an alert and activated search and rescue teams. The C-130 Hercules carried 17 crew members and 21 passengers, including three civilians. The personnel were to check on a floating fuel supply line and other equipment at the Chilean base.

President Sebastin Piera said via Twitter that he was with his defense and interior ministers at the air force headquarters monitoring developments. In a statement on Tuesday, the air force said the plane had not been heard from in more than seven hours and likely would have run out of fuel around 12:40 am. The air force “continues the search in the sector where communication with the aircraft was lost, in order to rescue potential survivors,” the statement said. The plane took off at 4:53 pm from the southern city of Punta Arenas, which is more than 3,000 kilometers from the capital of Santiago.

Contact was lost at 6:13 pm, the initial announcement said. Drake’s Passage, where the plane was missing, is infamous for severe weather conditions, including freezing temperatures and ferocious storms. But the air force said on Monday that the weather was good when the plane began its flight, or the mission would not have been carried out.

Gunman kills six in Czech hospital before shooting himself OSTRAVA: A 42-year-old gunman killed six people on Tuesday at a hospital waiting room in the eastern Czech city of Ostrava before fleeing and fatally shooting himself in the head, police said. It was the worst shooting in the Czech Republic, where gun crime is relatively rare, since a man shot eight people dead and then killed himself at a restaurant in Uhersky Brod in 2015. It was unclear what motivated the shooting, which happened in the early morning at the outpatient clinic of the University Hospital in Ostrava, 350 km (217 miles) east of the capital Prague and near the border with Poland. Prime Minister Andrej Babis told reporters it was an “individual act”. The shooter fled the hospital after the attack, prompting a manhunt involving hundreds of officers. He later shot himself in the head at his car with a police helicopter flying overhead. He died about a half an hour later after police failed to resuscitate him, Interior Minister Jan Hamacek said outside the hospital. “The perpetrator of this horrendous act is dead.” Czech Radio, citing the director of the firm where he worked, identified the suspect as a local construction technician and said he had been on medical leave. Reuters could not immediately confirm that. Police said they received calls at 7:19 a.m. (0619 GMT) and officers were on the scene five minutes later. AGENCIES

Former Japanese defence minister shot near home TOKYO: A former Japanese defense minister has been shot in the leg near his home in northern Japan, Sankei newspaper reported on Tuesday citing police sources. Tokuichiro Tamazawa, who is 81 years old, served as defense minister in the government of Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama. His injuries are not life-threatening, Sankei said.

A man thought to be aged in his eighties has been apprehended, national broadcaster NHK said. A police spokesman said he could not immediately comment. AGENCIES

Malaysia's Mahathir pledges to step down for Anwar, but not before November KUALA LUMPUR AGENCIES

Malaysia’s Mahathir Mohamad, the world’s oldest prime minister, promised on Tuesday to hand over power to anointed successor Anwar Ibrahim in spite of new sexual assault allegations against him.

Mahathir, 94, told Reuters in an interview that he would not hand over before a summit of Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) countries that Malaysia is to host in November but could be ready after that. “I made a promise to hand over and I will, accepting that I thought that a change immediately before the APEC summit would be disruptive,” Mahathir said.

“As far I’m concerned, I’m stepping

down and I’m handing the baton to him. If people don’t want him, that is their business, but I will do my part of the promise… irrespective of whatever allegation.

I made my promise, I keep my promise.”

Asked if a handover could come in December 2020, Mahathir said: “We’ll look at that when the time comes.” The turbulent relationship between the two men – allies turned fierce rivals who later reunited to win power – has shaped politics in the Southeast Asian country for decades.

Mahathir was unexpectedly elected in 2018 as the head of a coalition government whose largest party is led by Anwar, 72, who has been jailed twice on separate counts of sodomy and for corruption – charges he says were political.

Last week, Anwar denied fresh allegations by a former aide that he had tried

to force him to have sex – describing the accusations as “politics at its worst”.

It is Mahathir’s second stint as Malaysia’s premier, a post he previously

held for 22 years from 1981 to 2003.

Anwar was his deputy from 1993 to 1998, when the two fell out. Anwar was jailed the following year.

NOT TIRED: Firing back responses to questions from his perch on a sofa in his palatial office at Putrajaya on the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur, Mahathir said he did not feel tired despite his age because he was satisfied by his work. “I try to do some minor exercise, but mainly I keep my weight stable,” he said. “I’ve been 62 kilos for the past 30 or 40 years, it doesn’t change. I don’t eat very much, and I don’t eat… when food tastes nice. I don’t overeat.”

As well as planning to be the first leader in the world to host the APEC summit twice, Mahathir has been pushing to cement his legacy as a leader in the Muslim world.

Wednesday, 11 December, 2019

BUSINESS 11 CORPORATE CORNER

IMC ChIef sees auto seCtor growth In next quarter ISLAMABAD

KARACHI: As K-Electric plans to issue Pakistan’s largest-ever retail-listed Sukuk worth Rs25 billion, members of the Transactional Shariah Advisory Board sign the ‘Shariah Procurement’ for the issue at KE head office. PR

u

GHULAM ABBAS

NLIKE the impression that the drop in car sales was mainly because of the recent price hike and slowdown in the economy, the auto sector claims it was more affected by the government’s drive towards documentation of economy, particularly the condition to become tax filers.

“The [sales] outlook for the coming quarter seems promising,” said Ali Asghar Jamali, Chief Executive Officer Indus Motor Company (IMC). “Last five months were very tough due to rupee depreciation, reduction in auto financing, increase in federal excise duties (FED) and higher input costs, but we are witnessing signs of improvement and, for this reason, non-production days (NDPs) planned in November were cancelled.” He said that the auto industry appreciates the government’s

‘SALES HAD SUFFERED OWING TO GOVT’S DRIVE FOR DOCUMENTATION OF INDUSTRY’ efforts to expand the tax net.

“But there should be a way that could lead to a win-win situation; there should be no harm to the industry while people are encouraged to become filers,” Jamali said.

He said that previously, non-filers contributed to more than 50pc car sales, which have been impacted lately. He recommended the government to stick to the auto policy so that the sector could help uplift the national economy.

“Adhoc decisions create unpredictability and uncertainty which is bad for the industry and investments,” Jamali reasoned. “‘Make in Pakistan’ approach is needed to boost the economy and the auto sector could play a pivotal role in this regard.” He lauded the government for its commitment towards inclu-

sive growth. “In the last meeting with the Engineering Development Board, the focus was on the production of electric vehicles in Pakistan rather than importing them.”

Jamali said that the policy on electric vehicles should include the import of EV and HEV-specific parts only at concessionary duties so that manufacturing was encouraged instead of duty-free imports of EV. “Government’s support is required to promote CKD operation and discourage CBU imports.” Commenting on the recent news allowing expats to import 3,000cc hybrid cars duty-free, he said the government should incentivise them to buy local cars duty-free. “We have to prefer manufacturing over trade to boost the economy, create jobs and increase exports,” he added.

Saudi Arabia projects higher 2020 budget deficit ISLAMABAD: Emerging as the market leader for the third consecutive year, JazzCash has announced an active base that now stands at over 7 million users. PR

LAHORE: A Descon Technical Institute (DTI) student has secured “distinction” in NEBOSH exam. Shahbaz Ahmad Khan’s outstanding accomplishment was made even more impressive as it was made by someone with no background in Health, Safety & Environment (HSE). PR

LAHORE: Unique Group of Institutions (UGI) Chairman Prof Abdul Mannan Khuram poses for a group photo with the attendees of a seminar organised by UGI. PR

RIYADH AGENCIES

Saudi Arabia passed its 2020 budget on Monday, projecting a widening deficit in the face of tumbling oil prices and production cuts that have hit the top crude producer’s revenues.

The kingdom projected a shortfall of $50 billion for the year, up $15 billion its 2019 budget, according to an official statement read out on state TV. It predicted next year’s deficit would grow to 6.4pc of GDP, up from 4.7pc in 2019. The statement released after a cabinet meeting chaired by King Salman said Riyadh would also cut spending for next year in a rare belt-tightening measure.

Spending was set at $272 billion, down 7.8pc on 2019 estimates, while revenues were estimated at $222 billion, also lower by 14.6pc.

Income from oil was projected at $136.8 billion, down from $160.5 billion in 2019, the finance ministry said. Oil prices have remained sluggish at around $64 a barrel, despite additional production cuts agreed by producers’

cartel OPEC and its allies last week.

Oil income accounts for about two-thirds of Saudi public revenues. However, King Salman said his government is adamant on diversifying the sources of income to shift away from reliance on oil.

The finance ministry reported that the kingdom spent $279.5 billion and had revenues of $244.5 billion in 2019, both lower than projections, leaving the shortfall at $35 billion.

Saudi Arabia, which pumps just under 10 million barrels per day, has posted a budget shortfall since 2014 when oil prices crashed, accumulating $358 billion in deficits up to the end of 2019, official figures show. The finance ministry has projected that spending will continue to contract until 2022 as a result of weak oil prices and production cuts.

In order to plug the growing budget shortfall, Saudi Arabia withdrew from its reserves, borrowed from domestic and international markets and last month, floated 1.5pc of state energy giant Aramco which generated some $25.6 billion in the world’s biggest ever IPO.

New York judge sides with Exxon Mobil in climate fraud case NEW YORK: A New York judge sided with Exxon Mobil Tuesday in a closely watched environmental case, concluding the oil giant did not mislead investors in its climate change disclosures. The ruling by Barry Ostrager, a judge in the New York state court, rejected arguments by the state’s attorney general that the company duped investors by downplaying the costs of mitigating climate change. “The court finds that the Office of the Attorney General failed to prove by a preponderance of the evidence that ExxonMobil made any material misrepresentation” of significance, Ostrager wrote. The decision came after a trial that included testimony from former Exxon Mobil CEO Rex Tillerson. Tillerson, who served as US President Donald Trump’s first secretary of state, testified that the company’s use of two different forecasts for greenhouse gas costs was for planning purposes and not intended to deceive investors. Prosecutors argued that Exxon Mobil’s use of the lower of the two forecasts misled investors about the cost of climate mitigation. Ostrager, who called the New York claims “hyperbolic,” said his decision turned on questions of securities law rather than the environment. “Nothing in this opinion is intended to absolve ExxonMobil from responsibility for contributing to climate change through the emission of greenhouse gases in the production of fossil fuel products,” Ostrager wrote. “ExxonMobil does not dispute either that its operations produce greenhouse gases or that greenhouse gases contribute to climate change,” he said. “But this is a securities fraud case, not a climate change case.” AGENCIES

The IMC chief said the government should look to restrict the import of used cars, which was damaging to the environment, local auto sector, as well as the national economy. The government should also support localization, as that could ultimately lead to employment opportunities and transfer of technology, he added. Jamali said for oversees Pakistanis, the government could offer incentives on taxation and duties to promote the flow of remittances into the country.

“The auto industry is home to 2.5 million direct and indirect labourers and the government must ensure that investment and localization achieved by the auto industry for the past many decades should be safeguarded so that existing players and new entrants were motivated to invest more,” he stated. “Hence, the current situation requires that the government and policymakers not to digress from their commitment to promote the local industry.”

SCCI, SMEDA to expedite work on business facilitation centre PESHAWAR: The Sarhad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI) and the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Authority (SMEDA) have expedited their efforts to establish the proposed Business Facilitation Centre in order to “resolve issues pertaining to the business community through one-window operation”. A meeting in this regard was held on Wednesday under the chairmanship of SCCI President Engr Maqsod Anwar Pervaiz. The meeting reviewed the progress on the proposed Business Facilitation Centre (BFC) and suggested to launch of a web portal that was connected to all relevant government departments. It was informed that a total of 32 departments (21 provincial and 11 federal) have so far been nominated as focal persons for the proposed BFC. The meeting agreed to further approach relevant government authorities for the nomination of focal persons in order to make the BFC a successful initiative. It was decided that a comprehensive presentation would be given to the nominated focal persons (FPs) of the government departments to apprise them about the prime objectives of the BFC. Speaking on the occasion, Engr Maqood Pervaiz said that the proposed BFC was a joint venture of SCCI and SMEDA, which would play a pivotal role in attracting investment, promoting industrialisation and resolving business community’s woes. The SCCI chief said the all relevant governments and regional authorities have been taken on board in order to make the joint initiative a successful one. He claimed that the BFC would be one-of-a-kind in nature where issues related to the business community would be resolved in an effective way, and where ease of doing business would be ensured. Pervaiz said the idea of setting up the BFC was widely appreciated at government level. He hailed the government for taking appropriate steps that would ensure the facilitation of businesses. ONLINE

HBL to increase focus on digitisation; hopes to lower cost-income ratio KARACHI MEIRYUM ALI

Habib Bank Ltd (HBL) on Tuesday gave an update on its recent financials and bank outlook in a corporate briefing to investors.

Leading the presentation was HBL President and CEO Muhammad Aurangzeb and Chief Financial Officer Rayowond Kotwal.

HBL currently has Rs844 billion in current account deposits and says it expects to be the first Pakistani bank to cross the Rs1 trillion mark.

The return on equity is also

expected to grow next year due to double-digit growth in revenue.

A little less positive, however, is the cost to income ratio, which currently stands at 76.8pc in 2019 (at the 9-month mark). According to HBL, this figure should have been at 58.3pc, were it not for one-offs. These include New York costs, business transformation consultancy costs, revaluation loss, and impairment reversal netted off against capital loss.

The bank said that in the long term, a more sustainable level should be around 50pc. Much of the discussion around future initiatives

was centred around what Aurangzeb referred to as both the ‘bottom of the pyramid’ and ‘the top of the pyramid’ ie: the rural banking community, and the millenials.

To that end, HBL’s management said they had a renewed focus on digitisation. Currently, HBL said it was serving 1.1 million customers on mobile and internet, and around 2 to 3 million customers are expected annually.

“We are the first bank to use QR payments at both ends of the spectrum,” says Aurangzeb. “You have Visa-enabled QR payments at [high-end store] Sana Safinaz,

but also QR capability with the Rickshaw Union in Lahore.”

To reach its rural customers, HBL has partnered with the Punjab Land Revenue Department for geotagging of farms, and for computerized land records for loan applications. HBL is hoping to do something similar with the Sindh Land Revenue Department soon.

On the importance of banking in rural communities, Aurangzeb said, “We have to reduce the role do the aarti, or middleman, in this economy.” The bank’s ‘New York incident’ still weighed on people present in the room, with several

asking management about what steps HBL had taken after their branch in New York was closed in 2015. HBL said that the incident was due to ‘operational lapses’, and improvements were made in processes, technology and key management. Pivoting away from the US, HBL instead stressed its close ties with China. The management said that they were working closely with both the Pakistani and Chinese government on the Panda bond, which would mark the first time Pakistan has access to China’s capital market.

As part of the BRI, HBL said

China also looks to the bank to help do business in other markets such as Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and the Maldives. Currently, 16 Chinese nationals work at HBL. Separately, the bank also stressed its renewed focus on diversity, stating it had set up a diversity council, and implemented gender sensitization training for employees across Pakistan. The bank’s goal is for 20pc of all employees to be women by 2020, up from the current 16.6pc. Currently, there is only one woman, company secretary Neelofar Hameed, in the 18-member executive team.

Wednesday, 11 December, 2019

12 BUSINESS

govt approves Merger of 19 soes, dIssolutIon of fIve ISLAMABAD

Car sales plunge 44pc in november ISLAMABAD: The sale of cars in November 2019 plunged by 44.4pc to 8,524 units, as against the sale of 15,334 units in the same month of last year.

According to details, the sale of Honda cars (Civic and City) fell to 477 units in November 2019 from 3,353 units in November 2018, showing a decline of 86pc. Likewise, the sale of Toyota Corolla witnessed a decline of 66pc, as it went down from 5,325 units in the corresponding month of last year to 1,806 units in November 2019. Meanwhile, the sale of newly launched Suzuki Alto stood at 3,213 units in November 2019, as against the sale of 4,945 units during the preceding month (October 2019). WagonR sales plummeted to 291 units during the month under review from 3,232 units in November last year, showing a decline of 91pc. The sale of Suzuki Cultus also witnessed a sharp decline of 68.12pc, as it dropped from 2,287 units in November last year to 729 units in November this year.

The overall auto sales during the first five months (July-Nov) of FY20 declined by 44.12pc, from 87,897 units in 5MFY19 to 49,110 units in 5MFY20. During the period, the sale of Toyota Corolla cars declined from 24,119 units to 10,090 units, while that of Honda cars went down from 20,094 units to 5,885 units. APP

weekly inflation falls 0.83per cent ISLAMABAD: The Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI)-based weekly inflation for the combined consumption group (as on December 5) decreased by 0.83pc as compared to the previous week. The SPI for the week under review in the abovementioned group was recorded at 135.18 points as against 136.80 points registered in the previous week, according to data released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS). The weekly SPI was collected with base 2015-16=100, covering 17 urban centers and 51 essential items for all expenditure groups.

The SPI for the lowest consumption group, up to Rs17,732, witnessed 0.18pc decrease, as it went down from 136.80 points in the last week to 136.18 points during the week under review. As compared to the corresponding week of last year, the SPI for the combined consumption group in the week under review witnessed an increase of 18.57pc, while for the lowest group, it increased by 18.99pc. Meanwhile, the SPI for the consumption groups from Rs17,733 to Rs22,888, from Rs22,889 to Rs29,517, Rs29,518 to Rs44,175 and above Rs44,175 per month also decreased by 1.10pc, 1.00pc, 0.96pc and 0.72pc, respectively.

During the week under review, average prices of 12 items registered a decrease, prices of 14 items increased while that of 25 items remained unchanged. APP

I

AHMAD AHMADANI

N an apparent bid to introduce institutional reforms and to reorganise various institutions/organisations, the government has approved the merger of 19 stateowned entities (SOEs) and winding up/liquidation of five SOEs after obtaining due consent of their administrative ministries/divisions.

According to documents available with this scribe, the government has approved the merger of 19 SOEs belonging to seven ministries/divisions, besides the merger of Textile Division with Com-

merce Division and Postal Division with the Ministry of Communication. It also approved winding up/liquidation of five SOEs belonging to three ministries/divisions. Similarly, the government has approved to transfer nine SOEs belonging to five ministries/divisions to other ministries/divisions, provinces, GilgitBaltistan and Islamabad Capital Territory.

Sources privy to the matter informed that the Establishment Division had prepared a summary in the light of recommendations forwarded by a committee led by Advisor to Prime Minister on Institutional Reforms & Austerity Ishrat Husain. Sources said owing to expected criticism from the opposition parties, the

government has kept secret the names of those five institutions which have been dissolved. Although the Ishrat Husainled committee had recommended the government to dissolve five institutions, it had not forwarded recommendations regarding the fate/future of the employees of these five institutes, sources added.

It is pertinent to mention that on 15th July 2019, the federal government had formed an implementation committee for ‘restructuring of government departments.’ The mandate of the committee was to work out an implementation strategy/work plan in consultation with the PM’s Task Force on Austerity and Institutional Reforms. The committee

was directed to complete the task within six months and present monthly implementation progress to the cabinet.

On 17th September 2019, the Ishrat Husain-led committee had presented before federal cabinet its report for the months of July and August 2019. The report consisted of recommendations on executive departments and autonomous bodies. The federal cabinet, after analysing the contents of the report, decided to immediately implement those committee recommendations which had the consents of concerned ministries/divisions. It also called for consultation on recommendations that were opposed by the concerned ministries/divisions.

MARKET DAILY

KSE-100 rises 221 points in volatile session KARACHI STAFF REPORT

The battle between bulls and bears continued for the second consecutive session on Tuesday, with the former managing to close on top.

Foreign investors ended the session on Monday as net buyers. A net inflow of $0.824 million was recorded.

Losing 183.78 points, the benchmark KSE-100 Index recorded its intraday low at 40,259.03. The index then oscillated in both directions, reaching its intraday high at 40,704.22 after gaining 261.41 points. It ended higher by 221.79 points at 40,664.60. The KMI-30

Index clenched 513.14 points to close at 64,518.18, while the KSE All Share Index gained 184.30 points, closing at 28,967.89. The overall trading volumes declined from 320.04 million in the preceding session to 254.62 million. Unity Foods Limited (UNITY +5.72pc), Fauji Foods Limited (FFL +1.25pc) and K-Electric Limited (KEL +1.31pc) remained the volume leaders of the day. The scripts had exchanged 30.54 million, 19.29 million and 15.85 million shares, respectively.

Sectors that helped the index accumulate gains included cement (+51.27 points), pharmaceutical (+27.16 points) and banking (+25.39 points). Among the companies, Lucky Cement Limited (LUCK +29.32

Oil prices drop as trade war concerns haunt market LONDON/SINGAPORE AGENCIES

Oil prices slipped for a second straight day on Tuesday as a slowing global demand outlook outweighed OPEC’s deal with associated producers last week to deepen output cuts in 2020.

Brent crude was down 11 cents, or 0.2pc, at $64.14 per barrel by 1445 GMT, and West Texas Intermediate oil was 14 cents, or 0.2pc, lower at $58.88 a barrel. The benchmarks fell 0.2pc and 0.3pc respectively on Monday.

Last week, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and associated producers like Russia agreed to deepen output cuts from 1.2 million barrels per day (bpd) to 1.7 million bpd to support prices.

However, crude prices have fallen this week as a Dec 15 deadline for the next round of US tariffs on Chinese imports loomed over markets.

“Now with OPEC+ meetings out of the way, the market will likely focus back to trade talk developments, particularly with the 15 December deadline fast approaching,” ING analyst Warren Patterson said.

US President Donald Trump does not want to implement the next round of tariffs, US Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue said on Monday but he wants “movement” from China to avoid

them. Tamas Varga of oil broker PVM said further US tariffs on Chinese goods “will have a tangible impact both on commodities and equities, at least in the immediate future.”

The Wall Street Journal reported that officials from both sides were laying the groundwork for a delay of a fresh round of tariffs.

Also, the growth rate of China’s imports of major commodities has accelerated in recent months, indicating Beijing’s stimulus efforts may be bearing fruit and that the impact of a trade war may not be as bad as feared.

But investors remained on edge ahead of other events this week, with the British election on Thursday and US and European Central Bank meetings. Gazprom Neft CEO Alexander Dyukov said on Tuesday a decision by OPEC and its allies to cut output would help support oil prices at $55-65 per barrel in the first quarter.

US crude oil inventories were expected to have dipped last week, while stocks of refined products were seen higher with gasoline stocks set to rise for the fifth straight week, a preliminary Reuters poll showed.

The American Petroleum Institute (API), an industry group, is scheduled to release its data for the latest week at 4:30 p.m. EST (2130 GMT) on Tuesday, and the weekly EIA report is due at 10:30 a.m. on Wednesday.

points), Pakistan Oilfields Limited (POL +27.26 points) and United Bank Limited (UBL +20.70 points) added maximum points to the benchmark index.

According to a notification sent to the exchange, Millat Tractors Limited (MTL -0.97pc) announced that the company would halt its production for remaining month until January 3, 2020. The company would resume its activities from January 6, 2020.

Meanwhile, the cement sector added +1.98pc to its cumulative market capitalization. D G Khan Cement Company Limited (DGKC +2.05pc), Lucky Cement Limited (LUCK +2.44pc) and Maple Leaf Cement Factory Limited (MLCF +1.77pc) closed with decent gains.

Customs team confiscates pomegranates shipment worth millions ISLAMABAD SHAHZAD PARACHA

A Customs Intelligence team has confiscated a huge quantity of smuggled pomegranates at Torkham customs-station.

According to details, Customs Intelligence-Peshawar seized 14.11 metric tonnes of smuggled pomegranates at Torkham customs-station and an FIR has accordingly been lodged against the truck driver and a customs official posted in the area. As per Customs Intelligence, the Peshawar office had intercepted a vehicle number ‘KBL-3813’ carrying pomegranates to Peshawar on 19th November 2019. When asked about import documents, the driver of the vehicle provided GD number ‘TLCS-11C-18146’, which upon verification from the WeBOC system, turned out to be fake, as the system showed original GD was of grapes.

The preliminary inquiry revealed that after crossing the border through routine import point, an entry pass was issued to the driver and the vehicle was weighed at NLC Bridge Torkham. Thereafter, however, the vehicle came out of the import yard; the driver was handed a gate pass as well as a fake GD by another person (who has been nominated in the FIR) without examination and other required processes. Documents stated that this gross violation of prescribed procedures would not have been possible without the active connivance of customs staff deputed at the Torkham customs-station. The vehicle and import documents of the goods were also not checked at any of the three check posts manned by the Customs’ preventive staff.

NEPRA imposes Rs50m fine on KE over ‘failure to maintain safety standards’ BUSINESS DESK A fine of Rs50 million has been imposed on Karachi Electric Limited (KE) after the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) found that 19 deaths had occurred because of electrocution “due to lack of earthing of LT/HT poles and leakage of current from the distribution facilities of KEL”, a press release said on Wednesday.

NEPRA said that the power provider had failed to fulfil “its statutory obligation to maintain safety standards” in addition to violating the terms and conditions of its license as well as NEPRA laws.

In addition to the fine, K-Electric has

also been directed to “complete earthing and grounding of its distribution network

by April 2020 and carry out third-party verification of its distribution system”. The power distributor has also been ordered to complete an internal inquiry and “fix the responsibility on its employees/management and submit its final report” to NEPRA. The press statement added that the regulatory authority had also considered KE’s offer to pay compensation money to the families of the vicitms “in good faith” and had directed that the details of the compensation be shared with NEPRA at the earliest.

“Design of distribution network of KEL does not meet the design requirements as

laid down in the relevant Code and Manual.

Moreover, KE allowed telephone/TV/internet cable operators to use its distribution network in a hazardous manner for their purposes,” NEPRA noted in its order.

“Further, KE failed to report fatalities immediately after occurrence to the Authority in a prescribed manner and also failed to restore supply of electricity within the prescribed time limits.”

The statement was an announcement of NEPRA’s decision following a probe into the deaths of multiple people who had died in Karachi during the monsoon rains in July and August this year.

NEPRA had launched a probe against K-

Electric in August and in September had concluded that the power company was responsible for 19 out of 35 deaths.

K-Electric was served with a showcause notice by NEPRA and the regulatory authority had directed the company to submit a response in the matter.

KE MAINTAINS INNOCENCE: Meanwhile, KE has stated it would submit a review with NEPRA regarding the recent decision on the unfortunate incidents in Karachi. “The power utility will review the [NEPRA] report in detail and submit an appropriate reply,” KE said in a statement on Tuesday. “KE is a lawabiding and responsible organization

which ensures compliance with all respective regulations and guidelines and is committed to providing safe and reliable power supply to its customers.”

According to the power utility, there are a number of primary and underlying external factors which compromise the integrity of the power infrastructure.

These include illegal hooks, unauthorized use of power infrastructure by cable TV & internet service providers and stagnant water around electricity infrastructure.

“These factors bypass electrical safety mechanisms, thus creating public safety hazards,” KE stated. “KE feels that these factors warrant serious attention.”

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Of course! To me passion by definition is something that is directly linked to your goals; and my goal has always been to learn and understand the way food affects us. I’ve always been extremely vigilant about what I ate and what it did to me. The nutritional value of food has so much to do with the way our body functions and the science behind it is utterly fascinating.

2

What made you decide to start providing food to your clients I feel as a Nutritionist or dietitian is isn’t enough to just provide expensive diet plans to produce the optimum results. People usually have to pay separately for both consultancy and meal plans.

So I thought why not launch a venture where I could provide meals with an exact calorie count along with consultancy; while making a direct connection with clients. Initially I wasn’t sure if it’d pay off and only time could tell but Alhumdulillah we’ve been successful so far.

3

What are some of the key elements and features of a healthy diet for weight loss?

The first step to starting a healthy diet is to be truly aware of what it means. Curating a diet plan is a science with so many factors that have to be taken into account.

It is extremely important for the diet plan to be feasible, to fit into your lifestyle; every meal should make you feel energized and satisfied. If you cannot keep up with your diet you will crash.

SHARMEEN OBAID-CHINOY’S “SITARA: LET GIRLS DREAM” WINS BIG AT THE LOS ANGELES ANIMATION FESTIVAL 2019

4

What are some of the things a person should keep in mind when trying to make a healthy meal?

Making a meal and also being mindful of your health is often difficult. I always recommend my clients to take up portion dieting for this reason. Once you are aware of the basic food groups and their uses then portioning them out really does help.

An 8 portioned diet plan is a sign of healthy eating and helps to keep track of your calorie intake. It regulates the amount of nourishment your body receives.

5

What is the number one tip you can offer to patients who have issues with diabetes, PCOS, thyroid prob-

lems?

I usually always recommend that patients with such problems especially PCOS take up a gluten free diet and always make sure to provide them with gluten free food. In addition to this it’s very important for these patients to have a good water intake to keep their systems active and hydrated. Omega 3 can also be very helpful in curing and curbing the symptoms of these diseases as well.

What makes Nourish and Flourish stand apart from other meal kit deliveries?

If you wanted a regular meal then there are a hundred different meal delivery services out there. Nourish and Flourish stands apart because of the extra amenities it offers. To begin with we only deal with organic produce. Our chicken, eggs and all our greens come from a reliable and all natural source. Moreover, we provide regular consultancy absolutely free. By building a bond with our customers, keeping a check on them and altering their plans for their needs; we are able to ensure that our clients can see the results that they pay for.

7

What are some of the most challenging obstacles you’ve had to face in setting up this business?

As you know everyone has to face obstacles to set up a business.

Since I’m the mother of 3 kids I have liabilities. I also wanted to do something that was related to my education. I faced many issues when I started to deal with people and tried to convince them about healthy eating and its effects on us. I realized, and still feel that people don’t know the true benefits a healthy diet can bring. We will often follow popular diets without the proper research of its effects on our bodies.

8

What are some of the most common mistakes people make when trying to switch to a healthier diet?

Switching over to a healthy diet is a lifestyle change. It isn’t something you can do for a short period of time. If you leave your diet and go back to bad eating habits you will regain the weight. You also can’t expect to lose weight by just maintaining good eating habits. They definitely help, but diet and exercise go hand in hand. So to see results clients must also work out.

Two-time Academy and three-time Emmy Award-winning director Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy’s latest animation short film, SITARA: LET GIRLS DREAM has won three awards at the Los Angeles Animation Festival 2019 in North Hollywood on 8th December 2019 in the categories of Best Produced Screenplay, Best Music Score and the Humanitarian Award. Indeed it is the only animation film from Pakistan to have won three awards at LAAF 2019.

“We at Waadi Animations are delighted to be able to represent Pakistan on a global stage and honored that our film SITARA: LET GIRLS DREAM is being recognized - our artists and animators have worked very hard to create this special film and we are excited to share it with the world.” said Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy.

Written and directed Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy, SITARA: LET GIRLS DREAM takes the audience on a journey through the old city of Lahore, where a fourteen-year-old girl named Pari, dreams of becoming a pilot. Her story is told from the perspective of her younger sister, Mehr, and portrays the impact of a culture and the burdens of a family where girls still struggle to fully realize their dreams. SITARA is a silent film [no dialogues] which embodies this conflict.

SITARA: LET GIRLS DREAM is also the first Pakistani Animated Film to be released and distributed by NETFLIX USA. The film is scheduled for release on 8th March 2020, and will be available to stream in over 190 countries.

Chinoy had earlier launched a campaign with GUCCI’s social impact initiative Chime for Change to #LetGirlsDream by encouraging girls

around the world to share their dreams and gain inspiration from one another. A robust school outreach program is already underway across the world, to inspire and encourage girls to hold meaningful conversations about their dreams and how to best achieve them.

The website for the campaign is www.LetGirlsDream.org The music for SITARA has been composed by Grammy and Emmy Award-Winning composer Laura Karpman. Produced by VICE Studios, the film’s Executive Producers include Gloria Steinem, the iconic women’s rights activist, Darla Anderson, the Academy Award-winning producer of Coco and Toy Story 3, VICE Media Group’s CEO Nancy Dubuc, and Emmy-nominated Ariel Wengroff as well as Chinoy’s own animation production studio, Waadi Animations with Imke Fehrmann as the producer of SITARA: LET GIRLS DREAM. In Pakistan, the Waadi Animations Team is spearheaded by Art Director Salman Nasir, Animation Director Kamran Khan, CG Lighting Supervisor Adnan Saeed, Director of Photography Faizan Ali, Editor Husain Qaizer, Sound Editor Sameer Khan, co-producer Eleyna Sara Haroun and Associate Producer Syed Ayub - with Salman Iqbal, Jerjees Seja, Imke Fehrmann and Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy as the producers.

Founded in 2007, the Los Angeles Animation Festival is LA’s only international film festival and symposium which has featured and honored notable animation personalities such as include Brad Bird, Sean Lennon (also Artistic Director), Bill Plympton, ‎Peter Chung, Chris Prynoski, Tom Kenny and Will Vinton - to name a few.

Aries: The first step in obtaining more money, influence, or free time today is to precisely define what it is that you want.

Taurus: Narrowed concentration focused like a laser beam makes some amazing things happen.

Gemini: Big energy is generated when coworkers, teammates, or family members bounce ideas around today.

Cancer: Your creativity may be put to the test and having an extra pair of eyes in the back of your head can come in handy today.

Leo: Your moods may be changing so quickly today that it takes extra time to get your bearings.

Virgo: You may be called in voices loud and clear today to perform several duties simultaneously.

Libra: Confidence surges when you are buoyed by the knowledge that many others believe in the same high ideals as you.

Scorpio: The compulsion to ferret out a guarantee can cause you to look long and hard at another’s motivations today.

Sagittarius: Imagination thrives when you are free to mix and match ideas as you go along. If your creativity feels stifled now, it could be your thinking is too closely aligned with that of a corporation, organization, or social body to which you belong.

Capricorn: Chasing your dreams requires a substantial amount of faith in your own abilities.

Aquarius: Expressing yourself within the warm circle of a congenial group is the most natural thing in the world today.

Pisces: There are countless paths leading to the same destination. It’s useful to study or observe the methods of others who are striving to reach a similar goal.

CMYK

Wednesday, 11 December, 2019

14 SPORTS

ArsenAl relieved As worst winless run since 1977 ends At west HAm London

A

Agencies

RSENAL caretaker manager Freddie Ljungberg believes a weight has been lifted off his players’ shoulders after a threegoal blitz in nine second-half minutes beat West Ham 3-1 on Monday to end the Gunners’ worst winless run in 42 years.

Another miserable night for the Swede seemed in store when the visitors trailed at half-time to Angelo Ogbonna’s deflected header. However, Arsenal suddenly sparked into life after Gabriel Martinelli scored his first Premier League goal as Nicolas Pepe finally started to deliver on his club record £72 million fee by curling home a brilliant second, before crossing for Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to secure all three points.

“It means so much for the players.

They have been living under enormous pressure and you see it in their performances,” said Ljungberg.

“You can see the players have been a bit low and you see in the dressing room the relief and how happy they are.”

A first win in 10 games in all competitions lifts Arsenal up to ninth and cuts the gap on fourth-placed Chelsea to seven points in the battle for Champions League qualification next season.

Ljungberg reacted to taking just one point from his opening two games in temporary charge against lowly Norwich and Brighton by making five changes with Martinelli and Pepe among those coming into the side.

Pepe’s inability to make an impact has been one of the major reasons for Arsenal’s struggles, but the Ivorian looked a new player after curling home his first Premier League goal from open play 24 minutes from time.

“Nicolas is an amazing football player, but it is not easy to come from the French league into the Premier League and adjust straight away,” added Ljungberg. “It was an amazing goal and he’ll get better and better.”

Not much had improved in Ljungberg’s first two games since replacing the sacked Unai Emery and it was the same tame and lifeless Arsenal for the first hour against a West Ham side that have won just once in their last 11 games.

“I think we dominated the game for 60 minutes and after that in 10 minutes we lose the game,” said West Ham manager Manuel Pellegrini, who is under increasing pressure as his side sit just one point above the relegation zone.

Another home defeat means the Hammers have taken just one point from their last five games at the London Stadium and the home side were booed off at full-time.

“You understand the boos because the last five games we played here we didn’t win,” added Pellegrini. “You cannot concede three goals in every game.”

In a first half of precious little good football it was fitting the opener arrived in scrappy fashion as Ogbonna’s attempted header came off his shoulder and deflected off Martinelli to wrong-foot Bernd Leno in the Arsenal goal.

But one moment changed the course of the game when Sead Kolasinac burst down the left and crossed low for Martinelli to slot home his eighth goal of the season after impressing in the League Cup and Europa League.

Suddenly the confidence which Emery and Ljungberg bemoaned had drained away from their players in recent times was restored, none more so than in Pepe, who cut inside onto his favoured left foot and curled into the top corner.

Pepe then turned provider for Aubameyang to slide in for his 13th goal of the campaign.

“At half-time, Freddie told us to play with a higher tempo,” said Aubameyang.

“We have the quality in the squad, and if we believe in ourselves, we can go forward and win games. We will take this second half as an example for the rest of the season.”

Revving up to a new speed record in the Kalahari

Kanye Agencies

A loud hiss rips through the stillness of southern Africa’s Kalahari Desert.

It sounds like a fighter jet flying low over the Hakskeen Pan, an isolated dry lake bed in South Africa’s Northern Cape province, near the Namibian border. Then a thick cloud of sand appears on the horizon, growing steadily as it draws near.

In the blink of an eye, a racing car shoots by with a deafening screech and pelts towards the opposite end of the salt pan. The “Bloodhound” is gearing up to try to break the current land speed record, which stands at 760 miles per hour (1,223.657 kilometres per hour).

There’s still a way to go before the super racer is ready for that attempt, but today driver Andy Green is pleased.

“We have reached 904 kph (561.72 mph),” he says, beaming as he lifts himself out of the cockpit, helmet in hand. “First thing in the morning, plenty of thrust, nice calm wind, so the car ran absolutely straight.” The British-built Bloodhound stands sleekly behind him, dust still hovering in its wake. The white parachute that helps it brake lies crumpled on the cracked ochre soil. “Good parachute deployment,” adds the Briton, as the vehicle is towed into a large air-conditioned tent nearby. “That’s pretty much the perfect run,” he says.

JET ENGINE WITH WHEELS: The Bloodhound was designed exclusively for speed — the team hopes, if possible, to get up to 1,000 mph. The vehicle resembles a wingless jet on aluminium wheels, with a long white body topped by an engine and

a stabiliser. Its design is miles ahead of the bullet-shaped electric car in which French aristocrat Gaston de Chasseloup-Laubat set the first land speed record on December 18, 1898 — pushing the vehicle’s spoke wheels to 63.15 kph.

“You can call it that, a jet engine with wheels, but it’s far more sophisticated than that,” said Stuart Edmondson, head of Bloodhound operations. Chief engineer Mark Chapman described the racer as “part Formula 1” and “part jet fighter”.

“The car, as it is a car, has a steering wheel, has a throttle pedal, has a brake pedal,” he told AFP. The engine, built by Rolls Royce, once powered a Royal Air Force (RAF) Eurofighter Typhoon fighter jet. It was recycled from three decommissioned versions of the Typhoon’s engine, released by Britain’s defence ministry, “without the handbooks”, chuckles a Bloodhound team member.

“It’s a car designed to go at 1,600 kph,” said Chapman, adding that at top speed it would be almost 400 kph faster than a Typhoon at the same altitude. “The big issues were aerodynamics, keeping it on the ground,” he said. “You don’t want it to be a plane.” As the engine’s nine tons of thrust are still unable to break the sound barrier, Chapman and his team plan to give it a boost with... a rocket engine.

Green is not intimidated by the prospect.

The 57-year RAF pilot has held the current land speed record since 1997.

SKATING: “It’s a very different sensation,” to flying a fighter jet, Green told AFP. “A very different environment... (and) vehicle.” But the skills and the “second by second” decisions needed to stay

in control are like flying a jet fighter “at the limits of its performance”, he added.

Green said the main difficulty was keeping the land vehicle steady.

“The car starts to move around at about 300 kph, at 350 kph it starts to almost skate on the surface,” he said.

“It’s like driving on hard packed snow in a normal car.” At such high speed, the slightest mistake or technical glitch can be fatal. In August, the American professional racer Jessi Combs was killed during a test-run for a land-speed record attempt in Oregon’s Alvord Desert in the United States. In the Kalahari, safety is managed by the Bloodhound team’s only female member, Jessica Kinsman. The 39-yearold air traffic controller makes sure to minimise any source of danger along the 16-kilometre (9.9-mile) desert track.

Nothing escapes her eagle eyes, be it the wind factor, obstacles or a slight anomaly in the vehicle’s motion. “Here, it’s almost an airfield, there is a runway, there is an aircraft, more or less,” said Kinsman comparing the car to a plane, from her viewpoint overlooking the desert in the elevated glass-faced control station.“We have the final say on a number of things,” she added, with a smile.

Meanwhile, a man discreetly oversees the mechanics as the team busies itself around the Bloodhound in the cool-aired tent. Ian Warhurst is the racer’s proud owner. He saved the failing project last year by buying the Bloodhound, which was on the verge of being dismantled and sold as spare parts.

INSPIRATION: “I have certainly spent sums of seven figures (in pounds) to get here,” Warhurst told AFP. Ex-owner of a turbocharger manufacturer in Britain, he said that amount was “nothing” compared to money “you need to spend for projects like, say, Formula 1 teams”.

Warhurst, 50, who retired last year after making his fortune, defended his new carbon-intensive hobby as a source of “inspiration”. Breaking the record “would obviously be an amazing thing”, he said. “But it’s the journey to get there that is really exciting.” And he said that he hoped the team’s work would inspire others to advance new technologies, especially in becoming carbon neutral. “So if we can help to inspire engineers to do that, then we’re doing our part,” Warhurst said.

The millionaire said that he hoped the tests in South Africa would help attract other investors. This desert tryout, which took place between late October and midNovember, has seen the Bloodhound’s speedometer needle creep up to 1,010 kph.

CMYK

Russia reacts with anger after doping ban from Olympics, World Cup Moscow Agencies

The World Anti-Doping Agency on Monday banned Russia for four years from major global sporting events including the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and the 2022 World Cup in Qatar over manipulated doping data, prompting an angry response from President Vladimir Putin.

WADA’s executive committee, meeting in Lausanne, handed Russia the “robust” four-year suspension after accusing Moscow of falsifying data from a doping testing laboratory that was handed over to investigators earlier this year.

The toughest ever sanctions imposed on Russian state authorities will see government officials barred from attending any major events, while the country will lose the right to host or bid for tournaments.

“For too long, Russian doping has detracted from clean sport,” WADA president Craig Reedie said.

“Russia was afforded every opportunity to get its house in order and rejoin the global anti-doping community for the good of its athletes and of the integrity of sport, but it chose instead to continue in its stance of deception and denial.”

Under the sanctions, Russian sportsmen and women will still be al-

lowed to compete at the Olympics next year and the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, but only as neutrals and if they can demonstrate that they were not part of what WADA believes was a state-sponsored system of doping.

Russia will still be allowed to compete in qualifiers for the 2022 football World Cup, but WADA director general Olivier Niggli added that should they progress to the finals in Qatar, “the team there will not be representing the Russian federation”.

Russia’s participation in Euro 2020 — and Saint Petersburg’s hosting of four matches — is not affected by the ban because it is not defined as a “major event” for antidoping purposes.

Speaking in Paris, Putin slammed the decision as a “politically motivated” ruling that “contradicted” the Olympic Charter.

“There is nothing to reproach the Russian Olympic Committee for and if there is no reproach towards this committee, the country should take part in competitions under its own flag,” Putin said.

Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev also said the ban was politically motivated. “This is the continuation of this anti-Russian hysteria that has already become chronic,” Medvedev told domestic news agencies.

Wednesday, 11 December, 2019

SPORTS 15

‘Bringing test cricket Home our Biggest AccomplisHment’

Lahore

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Agencies

OR a man usually so measured with his words, couldn’t help repeating himself. Looking ahead to the first Test against Sri Lanka in Rawalpindi - Pakistan’s first at home in over a decade Masood stressed on the value of cricketers playing regularly at home, and the benefits he was sure it would bring for Pakistan cricket in both the short- and long-term.

“If you look at the best players in Test cricket, their home records are superior to away records,” Masood said.

“You are more familiar with the atmosphere, the pitches, and enjoy crowd support, and that was one thing that was missing from Pakistan cricket.

“Bringing Test cricket here is our biggest accomplishment. Test cricket as a whole suffered around the world, and in Pakistan, we’ve dedicated more to white-ball cricket. This is an opportunity for children in Pakistan to have a proper look at Test cricket. They’ll look at people like Azhar Ali, who scored a 300 and a double-century in Australia.

They’ll look at Asad Shafiq, who has scored hundreds all around the world.

We’ve got exciting pacers like Naseem Shah and Shaheen Shah Afridi. We’ve got Mohammad Abbas, who has been ranked No. 1 in the world, and Yasir Shah, who has been the No. 1 spinner in the world. Babar Azam is climbing up the Test rankings as well.

“This is a chance for our young generation to finally watch their heroes and it was unfortunate that legends like Misbah-ul-Haq and Younis Khan couldn’t play in their home grounds in the peak of their careers. So I’m really excited, because I feel this will propel Pakistan as a generation and the future generations of this country to take up cricket.

It’s almost going to be like everyone is making their debuts, because we’re all playing in Pakistan for the first time.”

He didn’t shy away from admitting that the recent tour of Australia was very disappointing, as Pakistan were swept

2-0, losing both games by an innings.

“We played well in patches, but in this format you have to play well consistently over five days,” Masood, who was one of the better performers with the bat, said. “It’s a great time, but we have to ensure we don’t repeat the mistakes we made in Australia and nurture a winning culture. The tour to Australia was difficult. We all accept that. Our performances weren’t as good as we were expecting.

“Australia have the experience of playing at home a lot, and we don’t play many Test matches as it is. If you look over the past few years, we’ve played no more than seven-eight Test matches in any year; Australia play closer to 15.

Frequency of tours matters also. India visited Australia in 2014, last year and again next year. So if they’re going three times in five years, they become more accustomed to conditions. Let’s be patient. I feel when we play at home, we’ll see different performances, and the confidence of those performances will be reflected in away tours as well.”

Masood may speak and sound like a senior player, and having made his debut

six years ago, that shouldn’t be especially striking. But a glance at his record tells you the 29-year-old opener has only played 17 Test matches, with this being his sixth - and longest - stint. Before he played the first Test in Centurion last year, he had played 12 Test matches in five different spells. That security he appears to enjoy now has long been unfamiliar to him, and Masood feels his personal game is beginning to benefit.

“When you play continuously, you learn from your mistakes. This year, I’ve played five Test matches on the trot,” he said. “While my career average is 27 [27.90], my average these past five Test matches is around 39 [38.40], so there has been an improvement. I’ll put my hand up and admit I had opportunities in South Africa and Australia where I didn’t capitalise on good starts.

I want to perform where and when I get the opportunity. “When we don’t perform, I know how much it hurts our families, and the nation, since that’s who we’re representing. It is my job to take my average up to a level that top batsman should have.”

In these last ten innings, Masood has only once been dismissed without reaching double figures, and has scored over 40% of his career Test runs these past 12 months. Note that these recent games have all come away from home against South Africa and Australia, arguably the two best bowling attacks in the world, and the prospect of Masood playing a leading role on the more familiar surfaces in Rawalpindi and Karachi begins to look likely. Masood, however, is taking nothing for granted.

“No opposition is easy. Test cricket is played between the top 10-12 teams in the world. The added pressure or incentive is we’re playing for points in the World Test Championship,” he said.

rAin mAy disrupt first test Rain may play a spoilsport in the first Test between Pakistan and Sri Lanka starting tomorrow at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium. The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) has forecast rain in the city from Thursday to Saturday, meaning the second, third and fourth day of the Test is likely to be affected by rain. It is interesting to note here that the first one-day international between the two teams in September in Karachi was called off after heavy rain brought the city to a standstill. Pakistan will stage its first home Test in a decade on Wednesday, when they take on the Islanders in Rawalpindi, since the 2009 attack on Sri Lanka’s team bus in Lahore. That attack left six security personnel and two civilians dead and six players injured and saw Pakistan spend the next decade in the Test wilderness as teams refused to play there. Pakistan, who were forced to play their “home” Tests at neutral venues, will look to use the series as an opportunity to bounce back after being swept 2-0 in Australia, suffering innings defeats both in Brisbane and Adelaide. Sri Lanka will be playing under new head coach Mickey Arthur, who only took charge last Thursday and will start his tenure against his former employers Pakistan. The series is part of the World Test Championship, which sees the top nine test nations face-off over a twoyear period, scoring points based on their success and culminating in a final at Lord’s in June 2021. sports Desk

NZ brace for ‘most extreme’ test in 40-degree heat Perth Agencies

New Zealand are ready to embrace the “most extreme” conditions they could encounter in Australia, but don’t believe the pink ball will be toughest element of their challenge in the Perth Test.

The forecast is for temperatures to top 40 degrees Celsius over the weekend, and while that is not unusual for cricketers around the world, New Zealand have only three days to prepare for the opening Test.

Add to that the pace and bounce the Perth Stadium pitch is expected to produce, plus a chance of cracks opening up as the heat takes it effect. It doesn’t end there. There is the floodlight element, but with the game starting a 1pm local time there will only be a short window played in darkness, although the lights will start to have an effect around 5pm as shadows come across the ground.

“Coming to Perth is probably the most extreme [conditions] we will face, perhaps if it was Melbourne or Sydney it would be a little more like home, so good on them for bringing us over here first,” New Zealand coach said. “This is a different challenge than we have had for a while, we’ve had a lot of success at home and we play well there generally, but Australia also came and beat us there a few years ago.

“We’ve got to be careful that we don’t overstate what the pink ball might do at night. We start an hour earlier than most pink-ball Tests, so that’s an hour less in darkness, so perhaps a bigger factor may be the heat that we are going to face over the next four or five days and making sure we are aware of that. We’ve played in many different conditions so it’s not a surprise.”

The Australians are taking the conditions in their stride and coach said they would “hopefully” have an advantage from it, but acknowledged that all players would be tested. “We are talking about elite athletes so they’ll be well prepared for it but there’s no doubt it will have an effect. If you’re a fast bowler or batting in a helmet for hopefully a long period of time being in 40 is like being in a sauna,” Langer said. “It will be a battle of endurance, fitness and skill and, again, that’s why we love Test cricket.”

New Zealand are ranked second compared to Australia’s fifth but do not have history on their side as they aim for just

their second series win in Australia following the 1985-86 victory. Asked whether he believed New Zealand had earned enough kudos for their climb up the rankings, Stead said the outcome of this series and the one to follow against India were important in making a judgement.

“I think after this summer you’ll probably know a lot more,” he said.

“When you look at the programme we have - England, Australia and then India - you’d argue they are up there with the best teams in the world. When we get to end of the summer I think it’s probably an easier time for me to answer that.”

New Zealand had a daytime training session at Perth Stadium on Tuesday [they will train under lights again on Wednesday] and there was a scare when took a nasty blow on the right hand from a throwdown. He immediately dropped his bat, ripped off the glove and left the net with the physio but he appeared to have escaped serious damage. An NZC spokesman said initial assessment suggested no fracture and there were no immediate plans to get it x-rayed.

There was already going on with having his first bowl since arriving in Australia as he aimed to overcome a side strain. He sent down two spells during the session at decent pace, between them having a lengthy conversation with captain Kane Williamson, Stead and bowling coach Shane Jurgensen.

“We’ve got to be really careful how we manage the next couple of days if we do think he’s going to start,” Stead said of Boult. “I don’t think [today] you’ll see him bowling 15 overs or anything, but he does need to be able to prove that he can get the intensity we want.”On some lively net pitches, looked a handful, but he might need Boult to be ruled out in order to make his debut despite the attraction of his pace on the Perth Stadium pitch.

“I think most wickets will suit Lockie,” Stead said. “He’s certainly got pace and we are acutely aware of that and he’s got a very good red-ball record. The hard thing for us is how he fits into the team, we’ve had some success with guys who have been consistently there.

“The pace would suit him, no doubt about it, people want to see the ball flying around - look at Australia’s attack, they are built around [Mitchell] Starc, [Pat] Cummins and [Josh] Hazlewood - so if he gets a go it will be exciting.”

Back at home, Azhar Ali wants Pakistan to 'quickly return to our groove' sPorts desK Along with ending the long break from playing Test cricket at home, Pakistan would be looking to end a winless - indeed, losing - streak in the format when the first Test against Sri Lanka begins in Rawalpindi tomorrow. It is a fresh start in so many ways - almost like making a debut, as Shan Masood put it - and captain Azhar Ali is very aware that Pakistan have lost all their five Tests in the past 12 months, in South Africa and Australia.

"Test cricket's return to Pakistan after ten years is an opportunity for us to get back on the winning track," Ali said. "We had a tough series in Australia and it's very unfortunate the way we lost there. It was disappointing. But moving forward, we see this home series as an opportunity and advantage to turn things around.

"We are excited to be back at home

and our grounds are alive again. Cricket is our pride and we will have to quickly return to our groove to give our nation and the team confidence. It's a moment of joy for not only the players but the nation.

We will try our best to rectify the mistakes we made recently, and will improve wherever we have been lacking. We have outstanding talent in our squad. They have potential, and if we implement it, our results will be stable."

Pakistan last 'home' series against Sri Lanka was in the UAE in 2017, which they lost 2-0 to bring an end to their blemishless record there. Since moving to the UAE, Pakistan were the only team to not lose a home Test series. They played nine series in the UAE between 2010 and 2017, won five of them and drew four.

"You can never take Sri Lanka easy, they have always been a tough opponent regardless of whether they are playing at

home or away," Ali said. "Their bowling and batting is very disciplined and if you have to challenge them, you really have to come hard and be disciplined. We were lacking both with bat and ball in our previous series in Australia, but we have to come back quickly. Test cricket demands discipline, and you have be consistent as well. You can't win in one session but lose in another session."

In Australia, Pakistan picked up just 13 wickets over two Test matches, losing both by an innings. Against Sri Lanka in Rawalpindi, they are likely to field three fast bowlers - Mohammad Abbas, Naseem Shah and Usman Shinwari alongside Yasir Shah.

"In Australia, we struggled to take 20 wickets, and it has been like this in our last few outings. But obviously we have a new attack, and we cannot write the new fast bowlers off straightaway. They

CMYK

are young, but experience is something they can get by playing more cricket, and we can't buy it," Ali said. "It is a home venue this time, and these boys have been bowling on these tracks in first-class cricket and this will prove the difference in lifting their performance.

"We feel this is the best bowling attack we have, and they have to take wickets with the new ball. Yasir Shah, our ace spinner, has struggled in Australia. That is because we weren't able to get wickets up front with the new ball."

Adding a dash of spice to the proceedings will be the fact that Mickey Arthur, Pakistan's coach till recently, is now in the opposition camp. Arthur's intimate knowledge of Pakistani cricketers could make a difference, Ali acknowledged. "Definitely, if someone is with you for so long, he does have a lot of information about you. But in cricket these

days, we all have a lot of knowledge about each other's strengths and weaknesses, but yet players score runs. Like David Warner recently.

"Good players cope because they also know that they will be attacked on their weaker points, so they work with counterattack. Yes, Mickey does have a lot of insight about us, but we are also ready and believe that whatever the challenge he will throw at us, we will counter."

His own batting hasn't been at its best in recent times. Ali's career average is still a healthy 42.45, but in the last two years, he has gone at 24.08, tallying just 602 runs in 13 Tests. "Whoever is the captain obviously have a playing role as well, and it is really important for me to perform," he said. "I realise that I am unfortunately not making runs, but I am trying to revive my form. My form is good, unfortunately I am not able to transform it into runs.

Wednesday, 11 December, 2019

NEWS

pm imrAN urges gloBAl iNterveNtioN iN ioK oN humAN rights dAy

p

NEWS DESK

RIME Minister Imran Khan – in his message on global Human Rights Day, appealed to the international community to act against the “illegal annexation” of occupied Kashmir by the Bharatiya Janata Party-led nationalist Indian government.

“On Human Rights Day, we must appeal to the world’s conscience, to upholders of international law [and] to the UNSC to act against the illegal annexation of IOJK by the Indian occupation government,” he said in a tweet.

The premier condemned the Indian government’s “siege” of over four months and demanded an end to the “gross abuse and atrocities being inflicted on Kashmiri men, women and children by Indian occupation forces in violation of all international humanitarian and human rights laws”.

“We salute and stand resolutely with the brave Kashmiris struggling for their right of self-determination,” he added.

In a move that attracted aggressive response from Pakistan, the Indian government, on August 5, imposed a lockdown in occupied Kashmir after the ruling BJP stripped the Valley of the special autonomy it had for seven decades through a rushed presidential order.

The security and communication clampdown is now in its fifth month.

Since the revocation of Article 370, Prime Minister Imran has repeatedly raised a concern about the situa-

tion in occupied Kashmir both domestically and at international forums. The highlight of his more than 45-minutelong speech at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in September was intense criticism of India for its annexation of occupied Kashmir and the continued restrictions imposed in the region.

In another tweet, the premier said that on the international day for human rights, “Muslims need to remember the message of equality, justice and protec-

tion of human rights for all” that Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) had given over 1,400 years ago.

“This embodied the cardinal principles of respect for human rights and human dignity,” he said.

The premier added that inspired by the ideals preached by the Prophet, particularly his last sermon, as well as the duties enshrined in the Constitution, his government is “committed to the protection of human rights for all its citizens without discrimination”.

95,471 KAshmiris mArtyred siNce 1989 ISLAMABAD: In occupied Kashmir, Indian troops – in their unabated acts of state terrorism – martyred 95,471 innocent Kashmiris including 7,135 in custody with no present whereabouts since January 1989 till date. A report released by the Kashmir Media Service on the occasion of the World Human Rights Day revealed that these killings rendered 22,910 women widowed and 107,780 children orphaned. The report said that the troops molested or disgraced 11,175 women and damaged 109,451 residential houses and other structures. It maintained that Indian troops and police subjected at least 8,000 people to custodial disappearance in the period. Resistance leaders including Muhammad Yasin Malik, Shabbir Ahmad Shah, Nayeem Ahmad Khan, Syeda Aasiya Andrabi, Fehmeeda Sofi, Nahida Nasreen, Altaf Ahmed Shah, Aiyaz Muhammad Akbar and Peer Saifullah continue to remain in detention in Delhi’s Tihar jail in fake cases while thousands of people including Hurriyat leaders Masarrat Aalam Butt, Bar President Mian Abdul Qayoom, Bar General Secretary Muhammad Ashraf Bhat, Jamaat-e-Islami head, Dr Hameed Fayaz and Advocate Zahid Ali remained in different jails of IOK and in Indian jails under the controversial Jammu and Kashmir Public Safety Act, 1978. STAFF REPORT

tAliBAN ABduct 45 people from AfghAN govt employee’s fuNerAl

Democrats lay out impeachment case against Trump

KABUL: The Afghan Taliban abducted as many as 45 elderly family members of a late Afghan government employee who were attending his funeral, officials said on Tuesday. The Taliban singled out the old men from a funeral procession carrying the deceased employee’s coffin to a graveyard, according to interior ministry spokesman Nasrat Rahimi. The young men in the group were not taken, he said. The Taliban have consistently warned people not to attend the funerals of anyone working with the Kabul government, according to Payghambarpul Khuram, the head of intelligence in Jawzjan province, where the kidnappings took place.

Khuram disputed the number of people who were kidnapped, saying only six family members were taken and that other local elders were negotiating with the Taliban for their release. The Taliban did not immediately comment on the abduction. The insurgent group controls or holds sway over nearly half of Afghanistan, staging near-daily attacks that target Afghan security forces and government officials but also kill scores of civilians. A suicide car bomb attack on Monday killed at least five Afghan soldiers and wounded four others in the southern Helmand province, ministry of defence spokesman Fawad Aman said. He said the attacker was shot and killed before reaching his intended target a checkpoint for an Afghan national army compound at which point the vehicle exploded. The Taliban immediately claimed responsibility for the attack. United States peace envoy Zalmay Khalilzad on Saturday held the first official talks with Afghan Taliban since President Donald Trump declared a near-certain peace deal with the insurgents dead in September. AGENCIES

WASHINGTON AGENCIES

Democrats laid out their case Monday for the impeachment of Donald Trump, branding the US president a “clear and present danger” to national security as they prepared to issue formal charges against him.

Four months after a whistleblower sparked the investigation of Trump for seeking illicit political favours from Ukraine, Democrats said there was abundant evidence that he had committed bribery, abused his power and obstructed the investigation. “President Trump’s persistent and continuing effort to coerce a foreign country to help him cheat to win an election is a clear and present danger to our free and fair elections and to our national security,” said Daniel Goldman, counsel for the Democrats.

Facing an almost certain vote in the coming weeks to make Trump the third American leader impeached and placed on trial, top Republican Doug Collins countered that the effort was simply “a good PR move” for Democrats ahead of next year’s presidential elections.

“It’s all political,” Collins said.

“Where’s the impeachable offense?

Why are we here?”

The allegations came in a contentious House Judiciary Committee hearing in which Republicans repeatedly punched back, while Trump himself denounced the in-

quiry as a “disgrace” and “hoax.”

Fueling the partisan divisions in Washington, the Republicans marshalled a Department of Justice report released Monday as ammunition for a counteroffensive.

The DoJ’s inspector general said its review of investigations into four Trump aides did not find evidence of “political bias” in the decisions to open the probes. The report effectively rebutted Trump’s repeated claims that the FBI illegally spied on his campaign — but Republicans seized on its findings that the bureau committed “numerous serious factual errors” related to the investigations.

TEMPERS ERUPT:Tempers flared as Republicans tried to derail the hearing with procedural moves.

A lone protester was ejected after shouting in the president’s defense — the first time such an outburst has occurred over the last month of public impeachment hearings. “We voted for Donald Trump (and) Americans are sick of your impeachment scam,” he shouted as he was removed by police. “Trump is

innocent!” The president is accused of abusing his powers by pressuring Ukraine to announce an investigation into former vice president Joe Biden, his potential challenger in the 2020 election.

Trump also pressed Kiev to investigate a widely-dismissed allegation that the Ukraine government helped the Democrats in the 2016 election. Barry Berke, an attorney for the Democrats, said there was “significant proof” of wrongdoing as he laid out the evidence collected by the House Intelligence Committee in a 10-week investigation.

“In the scheme to pressure Ukraine… the person at the center of that scheme was President Donald Trump,” he told the hearing. Berke played videos of testimony by top US diplomats involved with Ukraine supporting the charges, and footage of Trump claiming he has “the right to do whatever I want as president.” Witnesses produced documents “that provide uncontroverted, clear and overwhelming evidence that President Trump did this scheme,” Berke said.

BALONEY: Republican attorney Stephen Castor, tasked with disputing the evidence, said Democrats were simply attacking Trump for policies they do not agree with.

“Democrats are obsessed with impeaching the president,” he said, calling evidence from the transcript of a July 25 phone call between Trump and Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky “baloney.”

NAB going soft on Zulfi Bukhari Almost two years on, NAB fails to file reference against PM’s close friend for owning offshore companies ISLAMABAD: Amid claims of acrossthe-board accountability and holding the opposition lawmakers answerable for their ‘disproportionate assets’, the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has failed to bring cases against cabinet members, especially Zulfi Bukhari for allegedly owning off-shore companies and involvement in money laundering, to a logical end. In 2016, Panama Papers revealed that Zulfi, and his sisters Masouma and Sakina were the owners of K-Factor Limited, Bradbury Resources Limited, Baytek Limited off-shore companies based in the Virgin Islands.

Subsequently, NAB started an inquiry and sought a money trail for properties and businesses in the UK and Pakistan from the Bukharis. The bureau also questioned some “suspicious transactions amounting to millions of pounds in the two UK companies of Zulfi Bukhari”. However, Zulfi resigned from the companies within six months of the inquiry.

‘BUKHARI FAMILY GOT RICH BY SMUGGLING PEOPLE’: Zulfi Bukhari’s father and uncle were involved in human smuggling of Pakistanis to Libya through Al-Murtaza Associates, through which they accumulated their vast fortunes, claimed Brig (r) AI Tirmzi in a book titled ‘Profiles of Intelligence’. The smuggling ring came to the fore after some Pakistanis mysteriously died in Libya, prompting an inquiry by the state.

After the killing of the Pakistanis, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Passport Cell in Rawalpindi registered a human smuggling case — FIR No. 161/82 dated 3/11/1982 under sections 420, 468,471, 277 MLO and Military Court No 32 of Rawalpindi in 1984– and issued orders for confiscation of movable and immovable property of Zulfi Bukhari’s father, Syed Wajid Hussain Bukhari and uncle Syed Manzoor Hussain Bukhari.

However, the Bukhari family, led by Wajid Bukhari, transferred the money to the UK and bought expensive properties in London in 1981-1984. Similarly, Wajid formed at least two companies, Masouma Investment Company Limited and Sakina Investment Limited, with the ‘ill-gotten’ wealth. In spite of all these allegations, NAB has failed to act against Zulfi even after the passage of 21 months in violation of its standard operating procedures. Usually, NAB is expected to complete inquiry and investigations within nine months and file a reference before a court within 10 months as per the revised SOPs. Zulfi was also allowed to leave the country in Oct last year even though his name was on the ECL at the time. Talking to Pakistan Today, Zulfi rejected the money laundering charges against his family. “I have provided the money trail to NAB eight months ago,” he added. The NAB spokesperson remained unreachable despite several attempts.

Pakistan Today also sent a questionnaire to the official on WhatsApp but failed to get any response by the time this report was compiled. STAFF REPORT

US commission seeks sanctions against BJP leaders over controversial citizenship bill WASHINGTON AGENCIES

The United States Commission on International Religion Freedom (USCIRF) has sought sanctions against Indian Home Minister Amit Shah and other Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leadership if the controversial Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2019, is passed by the parliament, reported Indian media on Tuesday.

Home Minister Amit Shah introduced the Citizenship Amendment Bill in India’s lower house on Monday amid raucous debate. Opposition parties stood against the proposed law that would, for the first time, create a legal pathway to grant Indian nationality on the basis of religion. The bill was originally introduced in 2016 during the Modi government’s first term but lapsed after protests and an

alliance partner’s withdrawal. If the bill is passed by the upper house, citizenship will be granted to select groups — including Hindus, Christians and Sikhs — who moved from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan before 2015 and who have lived in India for at least six years.

Since news of the bill has broken, hundreds have taken to the streets in India in protest. In a statement issued, the USCIRF stated that it was “deeply troubled” by the passage of the Citizenship Amendment Bill in Lok Sabha. It called the bill “a dangerous turn in the wrong direction”.

“It runs counter to India’s rich history of secular pluralism and the Indian Constitution, which guarantees equality before the law regardless of faith,” the statement added. The statement maintained that implementing a register documenting India’s citizens would “strip

citizenship from millions of Muslims”.

However, the Indian home minister refuted claims that the bill is anti-Muslim.

“We will have to differentiate between intruders and refugees,” he was quoted as saying. In a tweet posted on Tuesday, Prime Minister Imran Khan also condemned the proposed bill and said the legislation “violates all norms of international human rights law and bilateral agreements with Pakistan”.

Meanwhile, in a statement issued by the Foreign Office, Pakistan condemned the move and said it was in “complete violation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other international covenants on the elimination of all forms of discrimination based on religion or belief”.

“The latest legislation is another major step towards the realisation of the concept of ‘Hindu Rashtra’, idealised and relent-

lessly pursued by the right-wing Hindu leaders for several decades. It is driven by a toxic mix of an extremist ‘Hindutva’ ideology and hegemonic ambitions in the re-

Published by Arif Nizami at Plot # 7, Al-Baber Centre, F/8 Markaz, Islamabad. Ph: 051-2204545. Email: newsroom@pakistantoday.com.pk

CMYK

gion. “It is also a clear manifestation of interference in the internal matters of neighboring countries based on religion, which we reject completely,” added the statement.