Epaper_23-05-12 KHI

ISLAMABAD S TA F F R E P O R T

TH E Supreme Court of Pakistan on Thursday declared former prime minister and Pakistan Tehreek-eInsaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan’s arrest as illegal and ordered his immediate release in the Al-Qadir Trust case The apex court advised the PTI chief to approach the Islamabad High Court again in the matter on Friday (today) The court further directed that Imran be housed at the Police Lines guesthouse until Friday (today), and during this time he will be permitted to meet with up to 10 individuals Imran who was arrested from inside the high court in Islamabad on Tuesday was present in the apex court when the order to provide relief to the former prime minister was issued by a three-judge bench, headed by Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial, and also included Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar and Justice Athar Minallah

T h e h e a r i n g o n T h u r s d a y w a s i n r esponse to Khan s plea against his arrest in a land dispute involving a property tycoon The former prime minister is facing allegations of using allegedly illegal funds to build a university on land belonging to the t r u s t T h e c a s e h a s b e e n u n d e r i n v e s t i g at i o n b y t h e N A B a n a n t i - c o r r u p t i o n watchdog agency Khan was taken into custody by paramilitary Rangers from the Islamabad High Court (IHC) where he was attending the hearing of his bail application “He has been arrested after being manhandled his spokesman Iftikhar Durrani confirmed to Anadolu Agency

The opposition party alleged the former cricket star turned politician was abducted from the court premises

T h e d e v e l o p m e n t c o m e s d a y s a f t e r

K h a n a c c u s e d a s e n i o r i n t e l l i g e n c e o ff ic e r, M a j G e n F a i s a l N a s e e r, o f c o n s p i ri n g w i t h t h e g o v e r n m e n t o f S h e h b a z

S h a r i f t o k i l l h i m

The security outside the Supreme Court has been strengthened with the Rangers and police contingents as well as bomb disposal squads being summoned ahead of a hearing set to take place in courtroom number one

Only lawyers and journalists who are already present in the room will be granted entry

An official of the Islamabad police has arrived at the court to assess the security situation

Media outlets have also reported that the opposition party has urged its supporters to refrain from visiting the Supreme Court during the hearing

T h e p e t i t i o n w a s f i l e d a f t e r t h e c a p ital’s high court declared his arrest legal on M a y 9 ( t h e d a y h e w a s a r r e s t e d ) d e s p i t e expressing dissatisfaction over the manner of the arrest

It is good seeing you, CJP Bandial told Khan when he was presented before the three-member bench, and also asked him to “condemn” the violent protests that took place as a result of the arrest I just want free and fair elections: Imran tells court

In response the PTI chief through the m e d i a p r e s e n t i n t h e c o u r t r o o m , f o rw a r d e d a m e s s a g e t o h i s s u p p o r t e r s t h a t t h e y s h o u l d r e f r a i n f r o m d a m a g i n g p u b l i c a n d p r i v a t e p r o p e r t y

I don t want any damage to the country s infrastructure nor do I wish for people

SC verdict attracts mix reactions

ISLAMABAD

S TA F F R E P O R T

The Supreme Court of Pakistan on Thursday declared former prime minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan’s arrest as illegal and ordered his immediate release in the Al-Qadir Trust case The verdict garnered opposing reactions from both the government and the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)

The elated supporters of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) poured into the streets soon after the Supreme Court’s verdict Ex-special assistant to the prime minister on youth affairs Usman Dar called on the party supporters to take to the streets to express solidarity and gratitude to the top

PM Shehbaz

summons NSC meeting today

ISLAMABAD S TA F F R E P O R T P r i m e M i n i s t e r S h e h b a z S h a r i f o n T h u r s d a y s u mm o n e d a n e m e rg e n c y m e e t i n g o f t h e N a t i o n a l S e c ur i t y C o m m i t t e e o n F r i d a y ( t o d a y ) T h e m e e t i n g s c h e d u l e d t o b e h e l d a t t h e P r i m e M i n i s t e r H o u s e i n I s l a m a b a d w i l l b e a t t e n d e d b y t h e m i l i t a r y a n d c i v i l l e a d e r s h i p t o d i s c u s s c r i t i c a l n a t i o n a l s e c u r i t y i s s u e s T h e P M h i m s e l f w i l l p r e s i d e o v e r t h e m e e t i n g a n d r ev i e w t h e c u r r e n t s e c u r i t y s i t u a t i o n i n t h e c o u n t r y T h i s h i g h - l e v e l m e e t i n g c o m e s a t a t i m e w h e n P a ki s t a n f a c e s a r a n g e o f s e c u r i t y c h a l l e n g e s i n c l u d i n g t e r r o r i s m , b o r d e r c o n f l i c t s , a n d r e g i o n a l i n s t a b i l i t y Wi t h t e n s i o n s o n t h e r i s e , t h e N a t i o n a l S e c u r i t y C o mm i t t e e i s t a k i n g a c t i o n t o e n s u r e t h e s a f e t y a n d s e c ur i t y o f t h e c o u n t r y a n d i t s c i t i z e n s s a i d a s t a t e m e n t i s s u e d b y t h e P r i m e M i n i s t e r s H o u s e

The ruling PML-N took exception on Thursday to, what it described, as “double standards of justice” after the Supreme Court declared PTI Chairman Imran’s Khan arrest two days ago unlawful Imran was arrested in the AlQadir Trust case, in which he has been accused of corruption, from the Islamabad High Court premises on Tuesday afternoon before he was due to attend the hearings of two other cases The former prime minister s arrest sparked violent protests across the country, during which at least eight people were killed, several injured and thousands rounded up amid police action There were many incidents of arson

Meanwhile the IHC deemed his arrest within legal parameters, but the Supreme Court ruled today that Imran’s arrest was “unlawful” and directed authorities to retain him at the Police Lines Guest House in Islamabad but under the

court’s supervision as a “guest” until his appearance before the IHC tomorrow

Reacting to the development PML-N leader Khawaja Asif addressed a press conference in Islamabad, highlighting the “double standards of justice”

He began by recalling that PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif and several other party leaders and workers were arrested in the past

But why were they not treaed in this kind manner by the court? Is this good treatment reserved only for Imran Khan on a selective basis? he asked They never thought of [ ] keeping us in a rest house Why are there double standards in this country?

In this connection, the defence minster also referred to a video of Imran released prior to his arrest

In his video message published prior to his arrest [ ] did Imran not incite and preach violence in it?

“And what was the result of that violence?”

The PML-N leader accused

court “All Pakistanis wherever they are should come out to express solidarity and gratitude to the Supreme Court in their respective areas the PTI leader tweeted

PTI leader Imran Ismail was also overjoyed at the SC s verdict Imran Khan released by Supreme Court Pakistan zindabad,” he wrote on the popular microblogging site Pakistani actress Mishi Khan thanked the top court and Chief Justice of Pakistan Umar Ata Bandial for giving a fair and right verdict Imran Khan s ex-wife, Jemima Goldsmith, also celebrated the SC’s decision

Taking to Twitter, Goldsmith wrote:

“Finally sense has prevailed ”

The PML-N on the other hand took exception to the double standards of justice

PTI protesters of attacking martyrs graves and military installations Those graves were defaced and the army s installations and corps commander s residence in Lahore were attacked

He asserted that the court should have taken suo motu notice of these matters

But no suo motu was taken and the judiciary was not concerned However, an individual (Imran) has been respectfully transferred to a rest house

“The Supreme Court has ensured that he is provided all facilities and allowed to meet 10 people [at the guest house]

My only question is: why these double standards?

In this respect, he also referred to audio clips allegedly featuring PTI leaders during the protests

You all saw and heard [ ] what PTI leaders were telling their supporters and the language they used and how they burned [properties]

“Was it not an attack on national security? Was it not enmity towards the country? Shouldn t this be taken notice of? Did it not move the court?

Prior to Asif and the SC ruling on Imran’s arrest, one of the defence minister ’s peers from the PML-N Marriyum Aurangzeb also addressed a press conference in Islamabad expressing similar views as him She began by speaking about the protests, alleging that a few hundred armed protesters and terrorists have been attacking” the country and state properties

after the Supreme Court declared PTI Chairman Imran’s Khan arrest two days ago “unlawful PML-N leader Khawaja Asif addressed a press conference in Islamabad highlighting the double standards of justice

He began by recalling that PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif and several other party leaders and workers were arrested in the past But why were they not treated in this k i n d m a n n e r b y t h e c o u r t ? I s t h i s g o o d t r e a t m e n t r e s e r v e d o n l y f o r I m r a n K h a n o n a s e l e c t i v e b a s i s ? h e a s k e d T h e y never thought of [ ] keeping us in a rest house Why are there double standards in this country?”

ECP seeks repor t on prohibited funding of all par ties

ISLAMABAD

S TA F F R E P O R T

The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) ordered an internal scrutiny committee to present a report on the prohibited funding received by all political parties within 15 days as it took several important decisions in a meeting chaired by Chief Election Commissioner Sikander Sultan Raja In addition, the ECP has announced that by-elections for three National Assembly seats, NA-108 in Faisalabad, NA-118 in Nankana Sahib, and NA-239 in Korangi will be held on May 28 The meeting also discussed the complaints of Jamaat-e-Islami regarding the local government elections in Hyderabad To address the irregularities in Union Council-119 of Hyderabad during the by-elections, the ECP has scheduled a hearing on May 15 The commission has requested a report from the provincial election commissioner, returning officer (RO) district returning officer (DRO) and district police officer (DPO) within three days Notices have also been issued to candidates ROs DROs relevant officials and district police officers to appear before the commission on May 15 An ECP spokesperson said the actions demonstrate its commitment to ensuring fair and transparent elections and addressing any irregularities or complaints that arise The scrutiny committee s report on banned funding of political parties will provide valuable information for the Commission s ongoing efforts to promote transparency and accountability in the political process, he said The byelections for three National Assembly seats and the investigation into irregularities in Hyderabad are important steps towards upholding the integrity of Pakistan s democratic institutions

I m r a n a m o n g P T I l e a d e r s c h a r g e d u n d e r t e r r o r l a w f o r G H Q p r o t e s t

minister Hammad Azhar and 80 other suspects have been booked under the terrorism law based on a complaint lodged by Station House Officer (SHO) Aftab Nawaz

The report indicates that Azhar led a mob that attacked the area surrounding Club Chowk, hurling abuses against the army, judiciary, and sensitive institutions Another FIR was registered at the Sarwar Road police station concerning the protests in the Cantonment neighbourhood on the complaint of Deputy Superintendent (DSP) Rana Ashfaq The case includes murder, attempted murder, and 20 other sections of the PPC

PML-N ministers take exception to ‘double standards of justice’

POLIO-FREE PAKISTAN PRIME GOAL OF GOVT, COMMITTED TO ACHIEVE TARGETS: PM

PR I M E M I N I S T E R Shehbaz Sharif has said that polio-free Pakistan is prime goal of the government and it is committed to achieve the targets in this regard

Speaking during a meeting with a delegation of Rotary Foundation headed by Chairman of International PolioPlus Com-

PESHAWAR S ta f f R e p o R t

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf ’s (PTI) Khyber

Pakhtunkhwa leadership has gone underground amid a crackdown on party workers and leaders over violent protests, it was reported on Thursday

All PTI office-holders’ mobile phones appeared switched off, and they were also non-responsive on social media platforms

It may be noted that PTI K-P chapter incharge Pervez Khattak had called for peaceful protests on a daily basis earlier in the day

The news comes two days after violent protests followed former PM Imran Khan’s arrest by the Rangers paramilitary force from the Islamabad High Court (IHC) over corruption allegations A day earlier an accountability court granted the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) his eight-day physical remand

mittee Michael McGovern which called on him here on Thursday, the PM said that he would continue to personally monitor the efforts for elimination of polio from the country Premier Shehbaz Sharif highly appreciated the services of the Rotary Foundation and Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation for the polio-free Pakistan

t

h e R o

He instructed the authorities concerned to devise a comprehensive strategy for the upcoming polio vaccination drive Premier Shehbaz Sharif was told that this year, the Rotary International and other partner organisations had allocated $15 million for anti-polio drives Apprising the prime minister of the cur-

rent status of anti-polio campaigns, the relevant authorities told that a special drive would be launched in Southern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

The prime minister instructed the law enforcement agencies to ensure foolproof security for the polio workers

He also directed the officers of the Ministry of National Health to make full preparations for the success of upcoming polio vaccination drive

cer of plotting to kill him Since Imran s arrest, in the two provinces, Punjab and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P), at least six people have died of the violence that ensued Authorities have arrested nearly 1,500 PTI workers and leaders in Lahore Islamabad Peshawar and other parts of the country Government buildings and assets were attacked and set ablaze by protesters in many cities in the two days The authorities said that scores of policemen were severely injured in clashes with the protesters

The officer bearers of Rotary International including Aziz Memon Faiz Kidwai Adnan Rohela and officers of the relevant ministries attended the meeting

Pakistan to release 500 Indian prisoners, who completed jail term

He was accused of looting Rs50 billion of the national treasury along with a property tycoon, and getting the Al-Qadir University Trust registered on 450-kanal Hours after Imran’s arrest, the IHC declared that his arrest from the court’s prem-

ises was carried out legally while the PTI alleges political persecution Notably, the PTI chief s arrest also came a day after the military warned him against making “baseless allegations” after he again accused a senior intelligence offi-

In view of the unrest the federal cabinet approved the deployment of Pakistan Army under Article 245 of the Constitution in Punjab K-P and the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) on the recommendation of the interior ministry Earlier this morning, the ICT said that PTI leaders, including its vice president Shah Mehmood Qureshi were arrested for “inciting arson and violent protests under a plan for threatening peace

LHC seeks replies on plea to restore internet

LAHORE S ta f f R e p o R t

e p o R t

S ta f f R

Balochistan Home Depar tment seeks army’s development

e p o

S ta f f R

According to details the Additional Secretary Balochistan Home Department has forwarded a summary to Chief Minister Abdul Qudus Bienjo to call in Army troops in the province for maintaining law and order “Pakistan Army troops were needed in the province to maintain law and order following the arrest of the former prime minister and PTI chief Imran Khan the summary read The deployment of the Army should be approved as per Article 245, the summary requested by the Balochistan CM On Wednesday, federal government approved the deployment of the Army in Punjab on the request of the Provincial Home Department According to a notification issued by the Interior Ministry in this regard the services of ten companies of the Pakistan Army have been handed over to Punjab government

The Army will assist the district administrations to maintain law and order across the province

The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Thursday sought replies from the federal government and the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) in a plea to restore cellular internet service and social media platforms which were disrupted after protests broke out following the arrest of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief Imran Khan

Directing the government and PTA to submit a reply by May 22, Justice Abid Aziz Sheikh turned down the petitioner s request to grant interim relief by immediately passing directions to restore the internet service A day earlier, the petitioner requested the LHC to declare the impugned blockage as arbitrary, illegal unlawful and unconstitutional which is tantamount to depriving the public of their basic right As proceedings commenced today the petitioner s counsel argued that people s life has been ruined by blocking the internet service

To this the lawyer representing the federal government argued that blocking internet service had become a requirement keeping in view the prevailing situation Justice Sheikh then asked if the internet service could be blocked if an issue pertains to national security To this, the petitioner s lawyer argued that the internet service could not be blocked even if there is a national security issue The petition was filed by petitioner Abuzar Salman Khan Niazi

who made respondents the Federation of Pakistan through secretary ministry of information technology and telecommunication, Pakistan Telecommunication through its chairman CM Pak Limited through its CEO Pakistan Telecom Mobile Limited and others He contended in the petition that on May 9, the PTI chief was arrested but soon after his arrest, countrywide protests started as a result of which the internet service was blocked

Elated PTI supporters celebrate SC’s decision to release Imran Khan

ISLAMABAD S ta f f R e p o R t

Elated supporters of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) poured into the streets soon after the Supreme Court’s verdict to release party chairman Imran Khan in the AlQadir Trust case The apex court on Tuesday announced that the former prime minister s arrest was illegal and directed authorities to release him immediately

Soon after that, the supporters and party workers championed the court’s decision

Ex-special assistant to the prime minister on youth affairs Usman Dar called on the party supporters to take

to the streets to express solidarity and gratitude to the top court “All Pakistanis wherever they are should come out to express solidarity and gratitude to the Supreme Court in their respective areas the PTI leader tweeted Ecstatic PTI supporters celebrate top courts decision to release Imran Khan PTI leader Imran Ismail was also overjoyed at the SC’s verdict “Imran Khan released by Supreme Court Pakistan zindabad,” he wrote on the popular microblogging site Pakistani actress Mishi Khan thanked the top court and Chief Justice of Pakistan Umar Ata Bandial for giving a fair and right verdict Imran Khan s ex-wife Jemima Goldsmith also celebrated the SC s decision Taking to Twitter, Goldsmith wrote: Finally sense has prevailed

KARACHI

S ta f f R e p o R t

Pakistani authorities have decided to release 500 Indian prisoners 499 of them fishermen who have completed their jail terms Indian prisoners will be released from jails in phases Two hundred prisoners will be released from Malir District Jail today and will be sent to Lahore Edhi Foundation will facilitate travel of the released Indian prisoners to Lahore by train which will be handed over to Indian authorities at the Wagah border on Friday (tomorrow)

Another batch of 200 Indian fishermen will be released from Karachi jails on June 02 for repatriation to India Third batch of 100 Indian prisoners will be released from jails on July 03 for repatriation to their home country The fishermen end up to jails of two neighboring countries after being arrested for allegedly violating the marine borders of Pakistan and India Pakistan and India regularly arrest each other s fishermen for violating the maritime boundary, which is poorly marked

Imran Khan gets NAB questionnaire in Al-Qadir trust case

ISLAMABAD

S ta f f R e p o R t

The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) on Thursday inducted former prime minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman

Imran Khan in Al-Qadir Trust investigation

Former prime minister and Pakistan Tehreeke-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan was arrested by National Accountability Bureau (NAB) in the Al-Qadir Trust case The combined Investigation Team of NAB handed over the questionnaire to Imran Khan

The former prime minister has been asked to respond to the questions of the graft-buster body Khan has been asked to respond to the following questions by NAB Former prime minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman was arrested by National Accountability Bureau (NAB) in the Al-Qadir Trust case on Tuesday The PTI chief was taken into custody by Rangers personnel, who were acting on the National Accountability Bureau’s (NAB) warrant from the premises of Islamabad High Court where the former premier had gone to seek bail in multiple cases registered against him

r n m e n t s t r e n g t h e n i n g s o c i a l s a f e t y n e t t o s u p p o r t v u l n e r a b l e s e g m e n t s , s ay s I s h a q D a r

G o ve

economic challenges

ISLAMABAD S ta f f R e p o R t

Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue Senator Muhammad Ishaq Dar here on Thursday said that the government was determined for promoting social welfare, poverty alleviation and implement targeted social safety net programs to support vulnerable segments of the society

Addressing the ‘Islamabad Security

Dialogue-2023 organized by the National Security Division and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, he said the government had also initiated cash transfer program for health and education sectors to strengthen the social safety net

The minister said that all these measures aimed at developing and creating more inclusive and equitable society where everyone had an opportunity to thrive, adding that in this regard the allocation for Benazir Income Support Program was enhanced to Rs400 billion with 25 percent increase in stipends Besides the government had also

initiated youth skill development program in order to encourage the entrepreneurship skills among the youth to get the maximum dividend of large bulge of youth as well as to enhance employment opportunities, he added He said that government had also started short, medium and long term programs for all the sectors of national economy in order to enhance the competitiveness of national economy to strengthen local footprints in regional and global economies The minister said that incumbent government had inherited a bleak economy, which was the result of incompetence and bad governance of last government of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf that also declined the international commitments and pushed the country into a serious economic positions Due to poor economic policies of the last government, he said that trade deficit swelled to $ 39 7 billion in fiscal year 2022 adding that current account deficit was recorded at $17 4 billion

whereas foreign direct investment plunged to $1 9 billion

On fiscal side the minister informed that the deficit was recorded at 17 9 percent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), whereas during the period 201822 huge amount was borrowed and the circular debt grew to Rs2,446 billion and public sector debt ballooned from Rs25 trillion to Rs44 5 trillion

Besides the minister said that the unprecedented floods of 2022 affected all sectors of the national economy and inflicted losses to the tune of over $31 billion, adding that the United Nation Agencies and other development partners including Asian Development Bank and European Union estimated that Pakistan would require about $16 3 billion for reconstruction and rehabilitation

Under such circumstances when the challenges like high inflation, increasing trend of commodity in global markets and shrinking fiscal space the government has devised future road map to protect the masses form tough

CAPITAL POLICE PUT GB CM UNDER HOUSE ARREST FOR ‘SHELTERING PTI LEADERS’

ISLAMABAD

S ta f f R e p o R t

IN an unprecedented move the Islamabad Capital Police on Wednesday raided Gilgit Baltistan House in Islamabad to, what sources claim, arrest Chief Minister of Gilgit Baltistan (GB) Khalid Khurshid under Maintenance of Public Order [MPO] Section 16

However the chief minister ’s security and a few ministers who were residing in the House opposed the arrest attempt saying that the police cannot take the chief minister of a province that too on the premise of provincial government, insiders informed this scribe adding that the negotiation and talks with police continued for hours

The capital police and law enforcement agencies had also raided the House for sheltering Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) leaders which included Vice Chairman Shah Mehmood Qureshi Malika Bukhari and Musrat Cheema, who after dialogue with the administration had handed over to police outside the GB house early hours of Thursday However no official remand for arrest or any notification of placing the CM under house arrest was issued by the police or law enforcement agencies so far

A minister of GB residing in the house, when contacted informed that the capital police intended to arrest the chief minister under section 16 MPO

However we resisted the move saying that a chief minister of a province cannot be arrested in the capital under the law and

CONTINUED FROM BACK PAGE

keeping the sensitive position/status of GB no such step should be taken, he said, adding that the GB House is Gilgit Baltistan’s identity in the federation According to him the forces should not have violate the sanctity of privacy of GB House by raiding the residences of families of public representatives and other guests in the house

Later, it was decided to keep the chief minister under house arrest at GB House

During a visit to the house it was observed that large numbers of police personnel were deployed inside and outside the GB House whereas no outside including media persons were not being allowed to visit the CM or other ministers and guests in the house Even those intending to come out of the House were disallowed or strictly restricted

He added that the heightened political turmoil has come at a time when the economy has been in the doldrums for months, largely due to an acute balance of payment crisis, with falling State Bank of Pakistan reserves barely covering a month of highly controlled imports However some financial experts believe that the political situation will improve in the coming days, stabilizing the currency or partially recovering its value against the dollar Despite this, others are concerned that continuing political instability will negatively affect market sentiment and contribute to further economic problems in Pakistan In conclusion the depreciation of the Pakistani rupee has caused concern among experts, who worry about the impact of the currency s devaluation on the country’s already struggling economy The political turmoil and shortage of US dollars in the interbank market are among the key factors contributing to the rupee s devaluation

Bilawal urges Parliament , masses to safeguard Constitution

ISLAMABAD

S ta f f R e p o R t

Foreign Minister and Chairman Pakistan

Peoples Party Parliamentarians (PPPP) Bilawal Bhutto Zardari Thursday said political parties and masses should all act together to safeguard the constitution in all times either good or bad to ensure freedom of the nation and democracy He was addressing the closing session of a two-day international convention held to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Constitution of 1973 of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan Bilawal said the country did not define itself by the challenges being faced by it rather how it faced the challenges The country and the nation faced abrogation of the Constitution by the dictators and the people of Pakistan resisted every single usurper and dictator The foreign minister accorded credit for the restoration of democracy and the constitution to the masses He added that the people of Pakistan had faced all forms of dictatorship and defeated all of them The foreign minister apprised the convention that his family fought against dictatorship for three generations and never took law in their hands He added that after losing Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto who was not only the nation s leader but also his mother; he urged his supporters not to take revenge rather uphold democracy

Bilawal Bhutto said his party faced the worst form of authoritarianism and suppression but never transcended the constitutional limits in response People of Pakistan have faced every dictator heads on I believe that they will confront every dictator and suppressor again

We all must act together to protect the constitution and have firm belief in the Parliamentarians and the people that you will preserve it” he added

Declaring arrest 'unlaw ful', SC orders Imran to appear before IHC today

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 01

A senior police officer is sitting next to the Chief Minister s office at GB House to monitor activities and movement of the chief minister ” an insider said It was earlier reported that the house had been declared a sub-jail and a contingent of police and rangers was also deployed outside it Sources also reported that the role of Khurshid is being evaluated for sheltering the leaders, who were wanted by the police in the G-B house Moreover it was further reported that strict action is not being taken against the CM due to his post however it has been decided to keep an eye on his activities in the future They maintained that if the CM wants to go to G-B for official duties, the Interior Ministry will consider it, but he will not be allowed to do any activities in Islamabad

Through its official Twitter handle the PTI condemned the move and questioned What message does the imposed mafia on the country want to convey at the global level?”

“Placing an elected Chief Minister under house arrest cannot be a greater argument for dictatorship it added

Another minister of GB, who was outside the GB House, claimed that concerned quarters have discussed the safe passage to CM Khalid Khurshid keeping the sensitivity of the region “CM would hopefully fly back to Gilgit soon he claimed Earlier in the day it was reported that PTI leaders including its Vice President Shah Mehmood Qureshi, were arrested for “inciting arson and violent protests under a plan for threatening peace”

Qureshi was arrested in the wee hours of Thursday As of now PTI leaders Asad Umar Fawad Chaudhry Jamshed Iqbal Cheema Falknaz Chitrali Musrat Jamsheed Cheema and Malika Bukhari have been arrested A day earlier, PTI leader Fawad Chaudhry and Asad Umar were also taken into custody

The crackdown on the PTI leadership comes after the arrest of PTI chairman and deposed premier Imran Khan who was arrested in the Al-Qadir Trust case from the premises of the IHC, where he was present for two hearings The PTI chief ’s arrest triggered protests in many cities of the country by his party activists and supporters as they clashed with the police and destroyed public properties

SC verdic t attrac ts mix reac tions

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 01

In this connection, the defence minister also referred to a video of Imran released prior to his arrest “In his video message published prior to his arrest [ ] did Imran not incite and preach violence in it? And what was the result of that violence? The PML-N leader accused PTI protesters of attacking martyrs graves and military installations “Those graves were defaced and the army’s installations and corps commander ’s residence in Lahore were attacked

He asserted that the court should have taken suo motu notice of these matters But no suo motu was taken and the judiciary was not concerned

However, an individual (Imran) has been respectfully transferred to a rest house The Supreme Court has ensured that he is provided all facilities and allowed to meet 10 people [at the guest house] My only question is: why these double standards? In this respect, he also referred to audio clips allegedly featuring PTI leaders during the protests “You all saw and heard [ ] what PTI leaders were telling their supporters and the language they used and how they burned [properties] Was it not an attack on national security? Was it not enmity towards the country? Shouldn’t this be taken notice of? Did it not move the court?”

Prior to Asif and the SC ruling on Imran s arrest one of the defence minister s peers from the PML-N Marriyum Aurangzeb also addressed a press conference in Islamabad, expressing similar

views as him She began by speaking about the protests alleging that a few hundred armed protesters and terrorists have been attacking the country and state properties She maintained that these groups were “installed” at specific spots as part of a plan and that they were “launched soon after the news of the arrest To lend strength to her claim she referred to audio clips purportedly featuring the voices of PTI leaders instigating party workers to attack properties

“You all saw how PTI leaders incited violence and gave orders for attacks on Imran Khan’s directives ” she alleged Moreover she cited the IHC order stressing that Imran s arrest was carried out in a legal manner But the impression of the Supreme Court giving relief to a criminal, terrorist, and a gangster leading armed groups it amounts to backing a terrorist ” she decried She further said several PML-N leaders faced arrests and raids in the past but no one raised any question Because all of this was done in support of the ladla (a favourite child) who disrespected the SC Directly addressing the chief justice of Pakistan she said “Had this love affair ended back then then chief justice sahib the court would not have been disrespected the way it is being today

The court is disrespected when they become shelters for criminals, terrorists and armed groups The courts, Constitution and justice are disrespected then The courts are disrespected when their decisions support criminals She contended that if the court would

back “terrorists” and “armed groups” that set my country on fire then all others deserve this relief as well Aurangzeb further warned that if an individual standing against the people of Pakistan, policemen and army officers who pick up weapons for the sake of the country state and nation is given relief then this country would burn” She added It has been running on the media on social media that a man has held the country hostage for the past three days he is inciting violence and you are asking how could he be arrested?

“You are taking up the matter of his arrest but not his corruption case ” Aurangzeb questioned when Nawaz and his family were held accountable why couldn t Imran What is this love affair and favouritism? She said the court should let Imran be answerable to the National Accountability Bureau in whose custody Imran was remanded in the Al Qadir Trust case instead of summoning him This is the perception that results in the disrespect of courts and positions

Senior vice president of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N)

Maryam Nawaz has also strongly criticised Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial over the release of Imran Khan suggesting that the chief justice should resign from his position and join the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) In a scathing critique on Twitter, Maryam claimed that the chief justice seemed exceedingly pleased with meeting an individual accused of embezzling Rs 60 billion from the national treasury and was even more delighted in releasing this alleged criminal

Freelancers suffer with broadband outage

a welcome solution An Oxford Internet Institute (OII) report ranks Pakistan 4th in the global digital gig marketplace, with about 8% of the total freelance work in 2017

Then the PTI chief requested the CJP to send him home but the top judge said he was not going to do that and assured him that he would remain at peace at the Police Lines Guest House You can stay there, talk, rest, and then present yourself before the Islamabad High Court tomorrow,” CJP told Khan The CJP then directed authorities to allow Khan to meet as many as 10 people including his lawyers friends and family members

The CJP then told the deposed prime minister to begin a dialogue with his opponents which will lead to peace in the society This will be a good move as you have been entrusted with the people’s rights ” The chief justice noted that Khan should start talks with his political opponents even though he does not like them adding that there is a need to do this as the narratives on both political sides have taken to the extreme ends 230 million people are awaiting for their leader to move the boat forward,” he said, also noting that the political divide has become so extreme that his friend informed him that during the ongoing protests the next house that could be targeted could be of the CJP The CJP told Khan that numerous cases have been lodged against him, to which, the PTI chief said that “there are many” CJP Bandial, without naming anyone, also told the PTI chief that “they have registered many cases against you [ ] you know who I am talking about Again without naming the individual or group the CJP said: Even they have rendered many sacrifices In the backdrop of the chaos, Khan then told the bench that a reaction was bound to happen in response to the treatment meted out to him At this Justice Minallah reminded him not to utter such words and be cautious about what he says in the presence of the media

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 01

Troops were deployed in Islamabad on Thursday after the arrest of former prime minister Khan triggered two days of violent protests by his supporters

TROOPS DEPLOYED: Khan was remanded in custody for eight days on corruption charges on Wednesday, following months of a political crisis that saw the ousted leader wage a campaign of defiance against the powerful military Khan s arrest has enraged supporters of his party who have clashed with security forces in several cities and marched up to the headquarters of the army The party accuses the military of having orchestrated Khan’s ouster in April last year The military denies any involvement “If they think that the arrest of Imran Khan will demoralise us then they are hugely mistaken said protester Niaz Ali on Wednesday in Peshawar where several monuments and government buildings were torched We stand with Imran Khan and will support him till death” At least seven officials from PTI’s central leadership were arrested and detained accused of orchestrating the protests Islamabad police said early Thursday The government on Wednesday approved the deployment of the army in Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Islamabad to restore peace Islamabad police said troops had already entered the capital’s sensitive “red zone” where government buildings are housed

Educational institutions in Punjab closed till Friday

is a small firm or company in and of themselves They search for clients, do the work, submit it, collect the money and move on to the next project or next client

The gig-economy is an emerging sector in Pakistan Freelancers in the country earned around $400 million in both 2021 and in 2022 which accounts for about 15% of Pakistan s total $2 6 billion ICT (information-communication-technology) exports As a report in The News International pointed out last year for a developing country like Pakistan with unemployment being a concern and with 64 percent of its population under the age of 30 (the youth, aged 15-29 make up 41 6 percent of the country’s total labour force, according to the Pakistan National Human Development Report (NHDR) by the UNDP) the gig economy model may be

The same report points out how in 2021, Pakistan generated an amount of $500 million entirely from freelancing and has ranked as the 4th fastest growing markets in the world for freelancers Pakistan generated $1 billion in revenues entirely from freelancing gigs as early as 2017 and contributed to over 8% of the global gig economy

Yet there are many problems that afflict freelancers The lack of access to payment gateways such as PayPal have made life difficult for freelancers for example, who find it difficult to collect their earnings On top of this, the banking system also incentivises this kind of work when it should in fact be doing the opposite The data from the past 4-6 years is reflective of the immense potential of the gig economy in Pakistan

In fact, with the right policies and encouragement the gig economy and services could very well become Pakistan’s next big export sector However, given the uncertain and rather chaotic political situation the gig economy is prone to deep and perhaps irrecoverable shocks

LAHORE S ta f f R e p o R t

The Punjab Higher Education Department (PHED) has announced the closure of all schools, colleges, and universities until Friday (tomorrow) The annual secondary school examinations that were scheduled for May 11 and 12 have also been postponed until further notice The Bahawalpur region has suspended academic activities including examinations for two days from May 11-12, in response to the recent situation in Punjab province According to officials, some educational institutions have also postponed their examinations for two or more days and a new examination schedule will be issued soon However the offices of the Education Department and educational institutions will remain open on May 11 and 12

Staff members of the education department will continue to participate in professional training for election duties under the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) The closure of educational institutions and the postponement of examinations have been initiated to ensure the safety and well-being of students and staff members amidst the current situation, the department said

ministers take exception to ‘double standards of justice’

CONTINUED FR OM PAGE 01

She

but no one raised any question Because all of this was done in support of the ladla (a favourite child)” who disrespected the SC

Directly addressing the chief justice of Pakistan she said Had this love affair ended back then, then chief justice sahib, the court would not have been disrespected the way it is being today “The court is disrespected when they become shelters for criminals terrorists and armed groups The courts Constitution and justice are disrespected then The courts are disrespected when their decisions support criminals She contended that if the court would back “terrorists” and “armed groups” that

set my country on fire then all others deserve this relief as well Aurangzeb further warned that if an individual standing against the people of Pakistan, policemen and army officers who pick up weapons for the sake of the country state and nation is given relief then this country would burn

She added

It has been running on the media, on social media, that a man has held the country hostage for the past three days he is inciting violence and you are ask-

ing how could he be arrested?

You are taking up the matter of his arrest but not his corruption case Aurangzeb questioned when Nawaz and his family were held accountable, why couldn’t Imran “What is this love affair and favouritism?” She said the court should let Imran be answerable to the National Accountability Bureau in whose custody Imran was remanded in the Al Qadir Trust case instead of summoning him This is the perception that results in the disrespect of courts and positions ”

BY giving PTI chief Imran Khan relief from arrest and ordering that the Islamabad High Court should hear whether the arrest on May 9 was legal or not The Supreme Court had thus stepped into area of remand where it is more usual to leave the subordinate courts to issue warrants grant or deny remands or bail, and to supervise arrests This is an area where, as any criminal defence lawyer will testify, the police and other arresting or investigating agencies exploit the law the most However, the Supreme Court seems to have realised that an appeal from the decision of the court granting remand did not lie straight to the Supreme Court but should go to a lower forum so that there would be a forum where an appeal could lie The Supreme Court may take up the matter again, but this time as an appeal from whatever decision the IHC makes The IHC had already ruled the arrest legal, and thus was virtually being asked to revisit its judgement

The Chief Justice of Pakistan also asked Mr Khan to condemn the violence which had been committed by PTI supporters protesting Mr Khan’s arrest on Tuesday and Wednesday, but he did not do so, while one of his lawyers said that the PTI was not a violent party If the IHC does not spring Mr Khan, PTI supporters will gather on Friday, and protests are anticipated If it does, the workers will celebrate The way has been opened for Mr Khan to build a narrative claiming any number of attempts on his life using the most extravagant means which he miraculously survived While his fate is clearly important it should not conceal that his release by the IHC would signal a further turn in the confrontation between the judiciary and the executive which has caused so much instability That confrontation will merely intensify, and it is possible that the establishment’s dim view of the recent mayhem which was expressed in the last ISPR press statement will remain changed

If, as is being widely anticipated, the IHC does release Mr Khan, it is not beyond the bounds of possibility that he might be re-arrested in some other case Any re-arrest would indicate how unforgiving the executive can be Whatever happens the only safe prediction is that there will only be further confusion and that a solution is not yet in sight

Dedicated to the legac y of late Hameed Nizami

Arif Nizami (Late)

Founding Editor

Yousaf Nizami Editor

M A Niazi Joint Editor Umar Aziz Executive Editor

Taking stock of the region

TH E holding of the meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization in Goa gained attention from the presence there of Pakistani Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari mainly because it was the first visit to India by a senior official since Mian Nawaz Sharif as Prime Minister attended the first swearing-in of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi Bilawal acquitted himself creditably, as he fought Pakistan’s corner manfully at the SCO meeting itself, as well as in his press interviews that he gave There was no breakthrough as none should have been expected at the multilateral forum At the same time the failure of Bilawal to meet even his host Indian counterpart L Jaishankar, reflected that the BJP government, which has kept Pakistan at arms length ever since the 2019 Pulwama incident, which it used to whip up nationalist sentiment as India re-elected Modi still does not want to engage Pakistan

Interestingly enough the Shanghai Cooperation Organization did not include either India or Pakistan when it was founded It was envisaged essentially as a security organization, and was the product of the US occupation of Afghanistan It came into being as the Shanghai Five in 1996, with Russia, China, Kazakhstan Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan as members In 2001 it became the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation with the addition of Uzbekistan India and Pakistan both joined in 2017

It is the world s largest regional organization in terms of geographic scope and population, covering approximately 60% of the area of Eurasia, 40% of the world population Its combined GDP is around 20% of global GDP

T h o u g h e s s e n t i a l l y m e a n t t o d e a l w i t h Afghanistan the SCO is now an anti-terrorist org a n i z a t i o n m o r e g e n e r a l l y, s o m e t h i n g t h e I n d i a n Foreign Minister exploited, mouthing India s tired old accusations about interference in Kashmir and o t h e r i n s u rg e n c i e s , w h i l e k e e p i n g q u i e t a b o u t India’s role through RAW in fanning the flames of terrorism or of the role of captured RAW operative Kulbhushan Jhadav India has more or less torpedoed SAARC which was not just a regional association, but was supposed to provide a forum at which Pakistan and India could interact The model mentioned most around the time it was formed was that of Germany and France perennial enemies who had fought three wars but who had begun to cooperate in the European Economic Community which then became the European Union However, it does not suit India to be on good terms with its neighbours, especially in trade relations

India wants to exploit the smaller countries in the region economically, and the exploitative non-tariff trade barriers it has erected during the era of Nehruvian socialism are evidence of that India has shown itself as overbearing and bullying to all its smaller

neighbours with Pakistan the main standard-bearer for the rights of smaller powers SAARC threatened India with a more equitable path to regional development in which no country was another s colony Apart from the BJP s visceral hatred for Pakistan, which it also finds useful to whip up an anti-Muslim frenzy against, the BJP also wishes to avoid trade because it has links with the business community That business community has been cocooned by governments whose party coffers they filled and fears the ide idea of direct competition with Pakistan A lot of Pakistani businessmen have developed relationships with Indian businessmen presently dormant but ready to spring into action if there is economic liberalisation Such businessmen are the ones most enthusiastic about liberalization, and the ‘patriots’ are the ones without such assurances That accounts for Indian footdragging on SAARC However it now seems the SCO is to suffer the same fate Ostensibly, the SCO is not about Kashmir But India is only too ready to bring the issue there almost as if to pre-empt Pakistan from using the forum The presence of India in the SCO may not totally sink the organization, because apart from it, Russia and China are also there, intent on making the SCO work The primary purpose of the SCO is to ensure t h a t t h e r e i s n o i n t e r v e n t i o n i n E u r a s i a l i k e t h e

U S A c a r r i e d o u t i n A f g h a n i s t a n T h i s a p p a r e n t l y sits ill with India s currying favour with the USA w h i c h m a k e s a f u r t h e r r e a s o n w h y I n d i a a n d t h e

SCO are not a good fit However, the SCO can also be seen as the body that China would prefer for the B e l t a n d R o a d I n i a t i v e A s a m a t t e r o f f a c t , t h e

B R I a s w e l l a s t h e m o d e r n S i l k R o a d p a s s e s through the SCO members India is not yet part of the BRI but it forms part of the greater plan What does come in the way is India s desire to

Child marriage, a devastating issue

SAdIA

CH I L D marriage which is not less than abuse of rights is prevalent in almost every corner of the world which has been eroding thousands of little souls’ lives who so far reach in half enjoyment of their life There are various factors that have been a cause for promoting child marriage and one among them is the parents Whenever a child is born they directly do their engagement with their relatives promising to marry them later on when they reach at 14 or nearby However, some cruel parents force their children to an early marriage with their own relatives so that their relatives would be happy Child marriage is recorded as the biggest reason to end a girl s childhood and affects the child s educational process and then may end up with their committing suicide Even if a child does not come to the age of 13, the family thinks about their marriage The children are so far unable to be responsible for themselves how will they take the responsibility of another young one? It is hard to deal with such unwanted circumstances for the children

In fact this not only breaches their basic rights but also their future plans will be disturbed badly The life of early married children with the involvement of the community will make them suffer hard to spend their lives ahead Similarly about 40 millions girls worldw i d e w e r e n e w l y m a r r i e d f o r c e f u l l y f r o m 2 0 2 2 t o 2 0 2 3 a n d i n s o m e c u r r e n t r e p o r t s s t a t e d t h a t f r o m 2 0 2 2 t o 2 0 2 5 , a n e s t i m a e d 150 million girls would marry Child marriage

changes the mind set of young girls to distract i o n s I t n o t o n l y d i s t u r b s g i r l s e d u c a t i o n a l process rather it can be the source of different hard diseases which girls have to be involved i n a f t e r g e t t i n g m a r r i e d a n d t h e i r p r e g n a n c i e s are likely to be difficult

It was very hard for me when I got married at 13 The man I was married, was twice my age Says 15-year-old Aisha She is one of the victims of early marriage She elaborates further I was scared when the news came to me and I even could not know how to behave well with my family members and was totally far from wellmannered in speaking but I was given the responsibility of a house So dealing with this situation was out of my capacity and I was depressed since I found no right person to listen to my grumble and grievances ”

A c c o rd i n g t o t h e c u r r e n t r e c o rd s , Pa k i s t a n h a s a n e m b a r r a s s i n g r e c o rd , e s p e c i a l ly i n S i n d h a n d B a l o ch i s t a n p rov i n c e s S i n c e , ev e r y d ay t h e p ro p o r t i o n o f ch i l d m a r r i ag e i s i n c r e a s i n g r a p i d ly

Pakistan Penal code s section number 498B strictly prohibits a child Marriage and announces this act as illegal throughout the country There are sanctions of seven years imprisonment and Rs 50,000 if one promotes this Aisha is not the only unheard story, there are millions of unheard stories like Aisha who have no voice to raise According to the current records Pakistan

has an embarrassing record especially in Sindh and Balochistan provinces Since, everyday the proportion of child marriage is increasing rapidly A research based upon child marriage said that in most of the societies, girls, 16 or lower than it are married to the men who are 25 to 27 years old Child marriage is likely to develop negative thoughts violence and bad relations with the people since it creates troubles for girl in the pregnancy While giving birth to a child most of them die O n t h e o t h e r h a n d covid-19 has affected the families of low income, d u e t o w h i c h p a r e n t s p u s h e d t h e i r y o u n g d a u g h t e r s t o w a r d s m a rr i a g e I n t h a t t i m e t h e p o v e r t y w a s t h e m a i n reason for child marriage since they were hit by fin a n c i a l p r o b l e m s F r o m 2 0 2 0 t o 2 0 2 2 , p e o p l e s u ff e r e d f r o m i n f l a t i o n and poverty during these t w o y e a r s a g r e a t n u mb e r o f c h i l d m a r r i a g e s were reported Thus, the government has to fix strict rules for saving the new generation and should produce a TV ad to provide information Everyone’s children are abnormal, they are dependent as well An abnormal child cannot control this situation Apart from this parents should have the concept that getting their children married early is not the solution to their problems

The writer is a freelance columnist

b e a h e g e m o n i c p o w e r o n i t s o w n i n r i v a l r y t o C h i n a T h i s d e s i r e i s d e s p i t e t h e f a c t o f t h e d e e p economic relations between the two reflected not just in the $100-billion-plus annual trade volume but the billions of dollar s w orth of inves tment in e a c h o t h e r, a n d i n j o i n t v e n t u r e T h i s e c o n o m i c closeness is going to be more significant for Pakistan in time to come, and is behind China prodding Pakistan to go easy whenever there is a confrontation between the two

The USA has got two large countries to its north and south Canada and Mexico However neither is an aspirant to similarly global status China has Russia to its West as a kind of Canada, and India to the South as a kind of Mexico Both Russia and India think of themselves as emerging superpowers in no way willing to accept Chinese superiority Pakistan s moment of truth will come when India and China resolve their issues It must not be forgotten that the basis of the Pakistan-China relationship was laid in Indo-Chinese conflict That conflict is by no means over, but if ever it is (and it should be, considering the geoeconomic imperatives of the situation) then China might want to examine why it is still friends with Pakistan The converse is true: any IndoPak rapprochement would inevitably have effects on the Pak-China relationship CPEC, and the BRI, should thus be seen as a guarantee of a prolonged Pak-China engagement independent of any antipathy to India

It is thus significant that Bilawal s sideline interaction was limited to a meeting with the Russian Foreign Minister His interaction with the Chinese Foreign Minister came in Pakistan While the former provided a chance to review the growing relationship, in which Russia has become more interested after being abandoned by India for the USA the latter was more important China wants to invest a large sum in Pakistan with the figure of $58 billion being spoken of That might offer Pakistan some relief, but it does not take it out of the debt trap, as a similiar sum was invested under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor but did not stop Pakistan getting into its present situation Related to this is the Saudi Arabian desire to raise investment in Pakistan to $10 billion (Saudi Arabia long considered a US ally) is now diversifying, as witness the deal with Iran that China brokered ) The SCO was shown to be too valuable a forum for Pakistan to let it develop into a mere battlefield in the Indo-Pak bickering Paradoxically the best way of ensuring that would be to maintain as combative a stance as Bilawal did

The writer is a member of staff

E d i t o r ’ s m a i l

S e n d y o u r l e t t e r s t o : L e t t e r s t o E d i t o r Pakistan Today 4 - S h a a re y F a t i m a J i n n a h L a h o re P a k i s t a n E - m a i l : l e t t e r s @ p a k i s t a n t o d a y c o m p k L e t t e r s s h o u l d b e a d d re s s e d t o Pakistan Today e x c l u s i v e l y

Students’ safet y

T H E R E has been a rise in incidents of mugging and robbery in area around the International Islamic University Islamabad (IIUI) in H-10 Sector of the capital Many students are targeted by armed muggers who snatch their belongings and some- times use violence

Needless to say these incidents have created an atmosphere of fear and have raised security concerns among them Students should feel safe and secure while pursuing their studies, but incidents of mugging and robbery disrupt their academic pursuits Such incidents are clearly in violation of their basic rights It is the responsibility of the relevant authorities to ensure the safety of students in and around the university This can be done by increasing police patrol in the area and deploying officials in plainclothes to monitor suspicious activity

In addition the university administration should also take steps to improve security on the campus and provide support to students who have been victims of such incidents It is essential that these measures are taken promptly to prevent further incidents which will reassure one and all that their safety and security are being taken seriously SHAHZAD

HASEEBULLAH ISLAMABAD

Selective empathy

IT is good to see that voices against animal abuse are being raised on multiple forums in Pakistan

However I regret that people are selective in kindness towards animals While most of us are affectionate towards some animals, we do not show the same compassion towards others, especially stray dogs

Recently, a stray dog was shot to death by someone in our neighbourhood who wanted to get rid of the poor creature This horrible incident left me upset and wondering about the selective empathy we show towards animals While it is true that stray dogs can be harmful to humans they certainly do not deserve to be killed this way In fact no animal deserves this cruel treatment The humane way to get rid of stray animals is to relocate them to a place where they may have access to food, safety and shelter I urge the government as well as the general public to speak up against this cruel treatment, and ensure that stray animals are not killed or tortured mercilessly If required, animal care centres should be contacted for taking them away There are a few of them around but we surely need more such centres in Pakistan SYED ZOHAIB RIZVI

Vicious system

I N Pakistan, we can see a wave of various literary festivals, seminars and conferences held in multiple cities People from different walks of life show their presence either as hosts, guests or participants to get insight on a wide range of topics Earlier such a trend was limited to the big cities of the country but today we can see literary festivals and seminars in numerous cities The essence of such events is to discuss matters with the intent to mitigate the issues faced by people on various fronts These events are usually sponsored by provincial governments, non-governmental organisations (NGOs), embassies and profit-oriented companies, including multinational organisations Ironically, the entities that sponsor such programmes are the basic exploiters or the ones responsible at least partly for the issues that are discussed on these very platforms For instance a fertiliser-producing company sponsors the conference on climate change which should be in fact held accountable for the destruction of the environment There can be many examples added to exhibit this irony This paints a positive picture of the capitalist vicious structure that creates financial constraints and shows the hypocritical behaviour of the system

The SCO was shown to be too valuable a forum for Pakistan to let it develop into a mere battlefield in the Indo-Pak bickering Paradoxically, the best way of ensuring that would be to maintain as combative a stance as Bilawal did

Imran Khan: Riding the Wave of Populism

Imran’s appeal was populist

Another key factor that has made Imran Khan a champion of populism is his focus on addressing the needs of the common people Throughout his political career Khan has been a vocal advocate for social justice and he has campaigned for better education healthcare and job opportunities for ordinary Pakistanis He has also spoken out against corruption and political nepotism which are issues that have long plagued Pakistani society By positioning himself as a champion of the people, Khan has been able to win over the support of the masses and build a broad-based coalition of supporters

tary s role in politics While there have been successful leaders who made progress on democracy and development, controversies persist

According to a survey titled Public Pulse Report, Imran Khan was the most highly rated politician in Pakistan with a positive rating from 61 percent of the population and a negative rating from 37 percent Nawaz Sharif and Bilawal Bhutto shared the second position with a positive rating of 36 percent The survey was conducted in February 2023 and covered 2,000 respondents from urban and rural areas in all four provinces of Pakistan

TH E term populism refers to a political ideology that prioritizes the needs and interests of the common people over those of the elite or the establishment Populist movements typically focus on issues such as economic inequality, political corruption, and social injustice and often reject the political establishment in favour of more direct democracy Populism can manifest in various ways across the political spectrum and may be associated with authoritarianism nationalism and a disregard for the rule of law Populist leaders may appeal to emotions rather than reasoned debate, and may be willing to violate democratic norms to maintain power Pakistan has a history of populism in its politics, with populist leaders appealing to the common people by positioning themselves as champions of their needs and interests and criticizing the elites Imran Khan s personal charisma and celebrity status have played a significant role in his success Prior to entering politics, Khan was a well-known cricket player, and his achievements in the sport made him a household name in Pakistan This gave him a platform from which to launch his political career and his popularity with the masses has only grown since then Khan is known for his eloquence and ability to connect with people which has helped him to win the hearts and minds of the Pakistani people Imran Khan s rise to power as the leader of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party in the 2018 general election is one example of populism in Pakistan

The PTI campaigned on an anti-corruption platform vowing to fight against the country s entrenched political and economic elites and provide social services to the poor However while populism can drive positive change it can also be associated with authoritarianism and disregard for democratic norms, as some have criticized the PTI s approach to governance, including its use of military courts and crackdowns on political opposition and media freedom

With his focus on social justice Imran Khan has also been a vocal critic of Western imperialism and globalization He has argued that Western powers have exploited developing countries like Pakistan for their own benefit and that globalization has led to the erosion of traditional values and cultures This stance has resonated with many Pakistanis who feel that their country has been neglected and marginalized by the global community Khan’s antiimperialist rhetoric has helped to cement his position as a populist leader who is willing to take on powerful interests on behalf of the common people

Imran s vision of nationalism and Islamic populism garnered support from the military He spoke passionately in both Urdu and English and urged the people to dream of a Pakistan where both the rich and the poor were treated equally He envisioned a country that would not be subservient to Western powers and referred to Medina as a just society He used the term jihad to encourage citizens to pay taxes and vowed to fight for Pakistan s sovereignty He challenged the USA in the War on Terror and pledged to make Pakistan economically strong by holding corrupt politicians accountable, taxing the wealthy and establishing a welfare state

Another notable leader in Pakistan’s recent history is Benazir Bhutto the country s first female Prime Minister in the 1980s and 1990s Bhutto advocated for democracy human rights, and social justice, but her leadership was plagued by corruption allegations and political instability, ultimately leading to her assassination in 2007

Imran Khan came to power on an anti-corruption and pro-reform platform positioning himself as a champion of the people and opponent of the traditional political elite However his leadership has also been criticized for its authoritarian tendencies including crackdowns on the media and political opposition, leading many to associate his politics with populism Despite resonating with marginalized Pakistanis, it is crucial to ensure his leadership does not undermine democratic institutions or exclude certain groups The political leadership in Pakistan is influenced by personal charisma party loyalty and institutional factors such as the mili-

Nawaz Sharif received a negative rating from 59 percent of the respondents, while Bilawal Bhutto received a negative rating from 57 percent Maryam Nawaz Asif Ali Zardari and Maulana Fazlur Rehman all received negative ratings of 61 percent 67 percent and 57 percent respectively Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif received a negative rating from 65 percent of the respondents

The survey report noted that Imran Khan received

ImranÊs arrest and the governmentÊs actions may be seen as an attempt to rein in Imran KhanÊs populism Many obser vers saw the arrest as par t of a broader pattern of repression and intimidation of opposition voices by the Sharif government, which had been accused of using state institutions to suppress dissent and criticism Imran KhanÊs arrest is a pivotal moment in Pakistani politics that reflected the growing polarization and repression of opposition voices in the countr y.

For Pakistan, many opportunities, questions in China’s Iran-Saudi deal

get along well enough not to be overly bothered by Pakistan s good relations with both the expert added Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian stated that the agreement provided major opportunities for “the two countries”, the region, and the Muslim world ” Apparently joint ventures between Iran Saudi Arabia and Pakistan may be possible if the Chinese mediation efforts prove to be sustainable

HAV I N G agreed to exchange ambassadors and reopen their embassies within two months

bitter rivals Saudi Arabia and Iran issued a trilateral statement March 10 after a decisive round of talks facilitated by China While the deal will have repercussions throughout the Middle East another major player that stands to gain is Pakistan Iran s immediate neighbor and a close strategic ally of Riyadh

Since breaking diplomatic ties in 2016, Iran and Saudi Arabia have remained on opposite sides of nearly every regional conflict from Syria to Iraq to Yemen Iraq and Oman had also worked to engage the two rivals but it was Beijing that finally managed this geopolitical shift

Pakistan attempted to resolve the regional rift as soon as it happened and continued mediation efforts over the years

Being home to the second largest Shiite population after Iran (though it is a majority Sunni state) Islamabad had to deal with religious and sectarian violence by extremist groups from both sides whenever the matter intensified

“ONE OF BIGGEST WINNERS”

FROM DEAL: Adopting a nuanced approach Islamabad tried to maintain balance in its dealings with both the countries

A statement by the Pakistan Foreign Office called the normalization an important diplomatic breakthrough made possible by “China’s visionary leadership ”

Michael Kugelman South Asia Director at The Wilson Center in Washington told Al-Monitor that Pakistan would be one of the biggest winners if the deal works Few countries are more vulnerable to Iran-Saudi Arabia rivalry than Pakistan It has a military alliance with the Saudis it borders Iran it has a Shia population of 20% it is pressured to help Saudi Arabia militarily and it is periodically targeted by militants based in Iran Kugelman said He added that Islamabad has sought to be neutral in the rivalry, but that its alliance with Saudi Arabia makes that difficult “It’s easier to be neutral meaning to pursue warm relations with both countries if Saudi Arabia and Iran

Having had dependable ties with neighbor China, Pakistan was one of the first participants of President Xi Jinping’s mega-project, the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) In 2015 the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) flagship corridor of the BRI was launched Ultimately worth around $65 billion it is also the only corridor nearing completion from the six corridors of the BRI

Nearly $26 billion have been invested by China up till now and the project has entered the second phase Both Saudi Arabia and Iran were invited to join this trade connectivity project but their involvement remained negligible With their bilateral differences set aside, both China and Pakistan can benefit as the two rivals can participate or invest in various CPEC projects

As per Kugelman The sustainability of the deal is the fundamental issue at play The key signpost will be whether each country changes, or at least adjusts, the policies that have most upset the other In particular, would each side draw down their support for violent proxy groups that target the other and the other s interests?

For example if we start seeing less Saudi and Iranian involvement in the war in Yemen, that would be a very strong and encouraging data point

Zeeshan Shah, a financial analyst at FINRA in Washington told Al-Monitor

“Saudi pressure has reportedly been behind Pakistan s calculation in not expanding trade with Iran and not completing the gas pipeline on top of the nuclear sanctions on Iran Shah added, Pakistan s external security had been under increased pressure from Riyadh to choose a side

The Iran-Saudi rivalry narrowed Pakistan s economic and political maneuverability and reduced its strategic options

MUCH NEEDED ECONOMIC

BOOST: Considering the economic crisis that Pakistan is going through due to political instability and catastrophic flooding Islamabad would welcome a rapid increase in cross-border trade with Iran and investment from the Kingdom along with possible joint ventures with Tehran and Riyadh However, a European diplomat posted in Islamabad told AlMonitor on condition of anonymity that this development would help Pakistan only in the medium to long term unless

Iran

he

added that reduced regional tensions can reduce the recruitment capacity of jihadi groups and Pakistan can avoid being entangled in the zero-sum game of the two regional rivals Beijing stands to be the main beneficiary, since it already had long-term comprehensive strategic partnerships with Tehran as well as Riyadh Since Beijing had to meticulously balance both the allies ending their differences may have become necessary Trying to maintain the positive tempo, China now plans to host an Iran-GCC summit soon

Meanwhile, China is the largest trading partner of both the rivals representing almost 30% of Iran s total international trade and Saudi Arabia s largest oil export market with bilateral trade up 33 1% on a yearly basis

At the Financial Sector Conference in Riyadh, Saudi Finance Minister Mohammed Al-Jadaan mentioned that Saudi investments into Iran can happen very quickly after the agreement to restore diplomatic ties

In another fresh development, the Export-Import Bank of China announced that it would provide Saudi National Bank loan cooperation in yuan Dong Dengxin director of the Finance and Securities Institute of the Wuhan University of Science and Technology stated that this facilitation could become a good template for deals with other countries Apparently, Tehran and Beijing have also discussed increasing yuan-based trade Most of all Beijing can now accelerate its mega-connectivity project the Belt and Road Initiative In addition Riyadh can join the China-led Shanghai Cooperation Organization, of which Iran is also a member

Nevertheless, many details remain unresolved Soon after the announcement Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan said It does not mean that an agreement has been reached to resolve all pending disputes Hard-line segments of Iranian army or establishment could have some objections The truce also may have no immediate impact on the Yemen war as the Houthis have made it clear that they are not subordinate to Tehran

According to the diplomat There is a high degree of symbolism due to the involvement of Beijing, though only in the last phase of the talks It was a remarkable achievement as the two old rivals reached the conclusion that as the old saying goes: you can eat soup with your enemy though with a longer spoon

In the past, Beijing restricted itself to being just an economic partner and investor in the Middle East Being directly involved with this agreement, China may also have to play the role of a guarantor and accept responsibility for the actions of both its allies and possibly even maintain the peace in the oil-rich volatile region

the most positive ratings from Punjab, Sindh, and K-P provinces Bilawal Bhutto received the most positive ratings from Sindh while Maryam Nawaz was viewed positively by people in Punjab Asif Ali Zardari received the most negative ratings from Punjab followed by K-P and Sindh provinces

Imran Khan s success as a populist leader can be attributed to his use of social media and other digital platforms to communicate with the masses Khan has been active on Twitter and Facebook where he has built a large following of supporters He has also used online platforms to mobilize his supporters and to spread his message of social justice and anti-imperialism By leveraging the power of social media, Khan has been able to bypass traditional media outlets and communicate directly with the people, which have helped to build his popularity and strengthen his populist credentials

Imran Khan continues to cultivate his image as a champion of the people focusing on access to education and healthcare social justice and empowering the marginalized His government had taken steps to address corruption and inefficiency in the public sector, but his policies and actions had also faced criticism for being undemocratic and closely tied to the military establishment While Khan enjoys some degree of popular support in Pakistan the long-term implications of his populist approach remain to be seen Imran s arrest and the government s actions may be seen as an attempt to rein in Imran Khan s populism Many observers saw the arrest as part of a broader pattern of repression and intimidation of opposition voices by the Sharif government, which had been accused of using state institutions to suppress dissent and criticism Imran Khan s arrest is a pivotal moment in Pakistani politics that reflected the growing polarization and repression of opposition voices in the country The arrest serves as a reminder of the fragility of democracy and the importance of protecting freedom of speech and expression, even in the face of political opposition and criticism

The writer has a PhD in Political Science and can be reached at akramzaheer86@yahoo com

TH E U S intelligence community s annual threat assessment for 2023 certainly cannot be faulted for having a narrow focus or Pollyanna perspective

From a rising China Russian aggression and Iran’s nuclear ambitions to climate change future pandemics and the growing reach of international organized crime the IC s analysis is as comprehensive as it is worrying

Inaugurated two decades ago as a gesture of transparency and to inform Congress and the American public, the annual threat assessment offers the intelligence agencies’ top-line conclusions about the country s leading nationalsecurity threats though always in ways that will not compromise sources and methods

As in the past, America s spies and intelligence analysts have stayed in their lane and avoided policy questions or any suggestion that some problems are more important than others

Yet when testifying to the Senate Intelligence Committee on March 8 U S National Intelligence Director Avril Haines was not as constrained She made it abundantly clear that the Biden administration regards China as our unparalleled challenge,” and as America’s leading national-security threat If the annual threat assessment was less categorical that is because it represents a harmonized view Differences of expert opinion and bureaucratic battles across 18 intelligence agencies come with the territory requiring compromises on both wording and substance Having chaired scores of meetings to coordinate IC assessments as a member of the National Intelligence Council I can attest to the heated debates that are involved Forging a consensus among such an animated crowd is a true art

But as important as it is to argue over evidence and language, it all ultimately takes a backseat to the first step in any analysis: figuring out what questions the final product should address Part of the answer, of course, depends on the president and other key policymakers

With a $67 billion budget the IC owes its paymasters that much at least But the task also calls for a sober examination of the facts and their implications, regardless of whether these align with the administration s views Here, this year ’s threat assessment fell short

Like the White House the IC’s assessment emphasizes the threats represented by Chinese President Xi Jinping s confrontational approach and advances in China s military economic and technological capabilities But there is less insight into China s domestic problems and what those could mean for Xi’s regime As threat assessments go, this omission may be justifiable But when it comes to improving policymakers’ and ordinary Americans understanding of their country s foremost global competitor Xi s domestic difficulties should not get such short shrift Consider Xi s effort to restructure the Chinese

property sector following decades of massive investment According to Michael Pettis of the Carnegie Endowment this sector accounts for as much as one-third of China s gross domestic product, but it is extraordinarily bloated and thus underperforming Two years ago, Chinese authorities tried to crack down on borrowing by overleveraged developers sparking multibillion-dollar defaults and leaving scores of cities littered with abandoned projects and faced with long construction delays Many of the big developers are still struggling, as are local governments that have racked up massive debts financing their work

Even China’s own dodgy official economic statistics reveal a massive festering problem China s 31 provinces have racked up $5 1 trillion in debt to fund development and that figure does not even include all of the additional local government financing vehicles (LGFVs) These offthe-books entities serve as backdoors for municipal governments to tap banks for loans and sell bonds after they have borrowed heavily to finance property and infrastructure projects

According to the International Monetary Fund the total debt associated with LGFVs has exploded to almost $10 trillion

This red ink is as much a political problem as a financial one Chinese LGFVs have $790 billion worth of bonds coming due this year and another $70 billion of offshore debt will have matured by 2025 Land sales to developers have long been local governments principal revenue source But with these tanking officials are being forced to slash salaries, pensions, services and health care in order to service debts These cuts have provoked demonstrations in several cities and it isn’t only workers and pensioners who are upset China’s burgeoning middle class bet big on real estate in recent years giving the country a homeownership rate of nearly 90% But now the property sector s turmoil is hitting them hard With 70% of Chinese household wealth tied up in property, owners have seen their nest eggs shrink

In response the Chinese government once again eased credit to stimulate the real-estate market last November and by January home prices had ended a 16-month decline But potential buyers remain wary There is still a massive backlog of unfinished projects and everyone remembers the large protests last year by wouldbe homeowners who had taken out up-front mortgages on homes that may never be built

More stalled projects and flagging sales already bode ill for 2023 To be sure like other short- and long-term domestic challenges facing China from growing youth unemployment to a shrinking labor force property-sector woes are not an immediate threat to Xi’s rule or the Communist Party of China’s power But they do obviously pose problems for his agenda both foreign and domestic Following the massive protests against the zero-COVID policy late last year Chinese officials are well aware of the political risks Under Xi, the CCP is expanding its presence in China s government ministries as well as business boardrooms and a raft of reforms has tightened access to officials and information

In short the IC s otherwise well-presented unclassified annual assessment should have dug deeper Congress and the public deserve to hear its best insights into the problems facing Xi s regime As we all know by now, what happens in China does not stay in China

Kent Harrington a former senior CIA analyst served as national intelligence officer for East Asia chief of station in Asia and the CIA s director of public affairs

dR MuHAMMAd AKRAM ZAHEER

U S D E B T S TA N D O F F O V E R S H A D O W S G 7

F I N A N C E L E A D E R S ’ M E ET I N G

PR OFIT r e u t e r S

Astandoff over raising the U S debt ceiling overshadowed a meeting of Group of Seven (G7) finance leaders starting on Thursday heightening U S recession fears as central banks seek a soft landing for the global economy President Joe Biden piled pressure on Republican lawmakers on Wednesday to move quickly to raise the limit on the government’s permitted borrowing from the current $31 4 trillion or risk throwing the world s biggest economy into recession

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen was expected to face questions from her G7 counterparts, meeting in the Japanese city of Niigata, on how Washington intends to prevent turbulence in financial markets, already jittery after the recent failure of three U S regional banks

A default would threaten the gains that we ve worked so hard to make over the past few years in our pandemic recovery And it would spark a global downturn that would

set us back much further ” Yellen said in Niigata on Thursday

The U S debt crisis is a headache for Japan which is this year s G7 chair and the world s biggest holder of U S debt Japan s top financial diplomat, Masato Kanda, said on Tuesday the G7 finance leaders might discuss the U S debt ceiling but likely would not explicitly mention it in a joint statement at the end of the meeting on Saturday

The G7 won t be able to come up with a solution for what is a purely domestic and political U S problem, though the group could reaffirm its resolve to cooperate in stablising markets in the worse-case scenario ” said Takahide Kiuchi an analyst at Nomura Research Institute Washington is solely responsible to get this fixed But when things go wrong all the other countries bear the brunt GLOBAL OUTLOOK DAMPENS Global economic risks, including stubbornly high inflation and the fallout from aggressive U S and European interest rate increases will likely be among key topics of debate for the G7 finance ministers and

Biden denies any wrongdoing regarding son’s deals

Republicans in the House Oversight Committee accused President Joe Biden’s family of having earned over $10 million through questionable business deals while he was vice president

The committee claimed that Biden s son Hunter had received $1 million linked to a business agreement with a Romanian tycoon while the former vice president was managing relations with the country The deal was reportedly organised by Rob Walker one of Hunter Biden’s business partners

Committee Republicans released a detailed report indicating that Walker began receiving funds from Gabriel Popoviciu, the Romanian tycoon, soon after Joe Biden welcomed Romanian President Klaus Iohannis to the White House in 2015 Popoviciu’s company in Cyprus Bladon Enterprises paid Walker s private company more than $3 million from November 2015 to May

2017

The Republicans claimed that after receiving money from Bladon, Walker ’s company deposited over $1 million into accounts belonging to Hunter Biden Hallie Biden (Hunter s sister-in-law) and James Gilliar (another business partner of Hunter) The committee contended that this pattern mirrors that of a previous business deal that Hunter Biden and Walker had with a Chinese energy firm

After receiving money from that

company in 2017, Walker paid more than $1 million to Gilliar and the Bidens, the Republicans said James Comer the Oversight Committe Chair alleged that the Romanian funds were part of over $10 million that Hunter Biden, his family, and business associates received from dealings with foreign entities in China, Ukraine, and other places during Joe Biden’s vice presidency between 2009 and 2017 Comer held a press conference saying Hunter Biden and his associates pursued business in countries that directly correlate with Joe Biden s work as vice president This is not normal, and it is not ethical ”

The Republicans failed to present any evidence that Joe Biden directly benefitted from or knew about the business deals and money transfers However, they believed that he must have been aware of all the companies established by Hunter and his associates to conduct business

Republican Representative Byron Reynolds stated Nobody in this room can logically sit here and say that the president of the United States had no idea that these companies were being formed while he was vice president of the United States ” Biden has repeatedly rejected any wrongdoing regarding his son s dealings and defended Hunter s business tactics My son has done nothing wrong I trust him I have faith in him, he said last week

central bankers

Ye l l e n s a i d t h e g l o b a l e c o n o m y w a s i n a “ b e t t e r p l a c e t h a n m a n y h a d p r ed i c t e d s i x m o n t h s a g o ” , w i t h i n f l a t i o n m o d e r a t i n g i n m a n y G 7 c o u n t r i e s i n c l u di n g t h e U n i t e d S t a t e

A p r i l w h i l e f a c t o r y g a t e d e f l a t i o n d e e pe n e d d a t a s h o w e d o n T h u r s d a y d a s h i n g policymakers hopes that a rebound in the c o u n t r y s d e m a n d w o u l d u n d e r p i n g l o b a l growth Other key themes to be discussed a t t h e G 7 f i n a n c e g a t h e r i n g i n c l u d e w a y s t o s t r e n g t h e n t h e g l o b a l f i n a n c i a l s y s t e m , s t e p s t o p r e v e n t R u s s i a f r o m c i r c u m v e n ti n g s a n c t i o n s o v e r i t s i n v a s i o n o f U k r a i n e a n d d i v e r s i f y i n g s u p p l y c h a i n s a w a y f r o m c o u n t r i e s l i k e C h i n a t h r o u g h p a r t n e r s h i p s w i t h l o w - a n d m i d d l e - i nc o m e n a t i o n s

Vast C hina-Russia resources trade shif ts to yuan from dollars in Ukraine fallout

PR OFIT

e u t e r S

r

China has dramatically increased use of the yuan to buy Russian commodities over the past year, with nearly all of its purchases of oil, coal and some metals from its neighbor now settled in the Chinese currency instead of dollars multiple trading executives with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters The switch to yuan to pay for much of a roughly $88 billion commodities trade in the wake of the Ukraine war accelerates China s efforts to internationalize its currency at the expense of the dollar, although strict capital controls are expected to limit its global role in the near term

In March, the yuan – also known as the renminbi – became the most widely-used currency for cross-border transactions in China overtaking the dollar for the first time, official data showed, although its share as a global payments currency remains small at 2 5% according to SWIFT compared with 39 4% for the dollar and 35 8% for the euro

Chi Lo senior investment strategist at BNP Paribas Asset Management in Hong Kong, predicts a long-term “snowball effect” as more countries join the “RMB bloc” to reduce risks of dollar exposure especially after they ve seen what the U S -led sanctions against Russia have done, he said

This is a very long term development stretching into the coming one or two even three decades ” he said “For now and for the foreseeable next few years I think the trade using RMB will predominantly be used for commodity and energy trade ”

Despite Beijing’s push beginning over a decade ago to internationalize the yuan the currency had only been used sporadically in big Chinese commodities purchases given that most global trading of oil, gas, copper and coal is priced off dol-

lar-based benchmarks That began changing last year as western buyers shunned purchases of Russian goods in the face of mounting sanctions following Moscow s invasion of Ukraine Chinese buyers stepped in to snap up discounted crude oil, coal and aluminum, boosting 2022 commodities imports from Moscow by 52% in value terms That helped save China billions of dollars as its economy reeled from COVID lockdowns, with purchases poised to grow this year as China’s economy recovers To t a l s e t t l e m e n t s o n C r o s sB o r d e r I n t e r b a n k P a y m e n t S y s t e m ( C I P S ) C h i n a s a l t e rn a t i v e t o t h e S W I F T i n t e r n at i o n a l p a y m e n t s y s t e m , r o s e 2 1 5 % y e a r- o n - y e a r t o 9 6 7 t r i l l i o n y u a n ( $ 1 4 0 2 t r i l l i o n ) i n 2 0 2 2 , C h i n e s e c e n t r a l b a n k d a t a s h o w e d Nearly all of China s oil imports from Russia mostly crude but also smaller volumes of fuel oil, are now settled in yuan, five trading executives with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters China imported a combined $60 3 billion worth of crude oil and fuel oil from Russia last year according to Chinese customs None of the executives wanted to be identified given the sensitivity of the matter

The People’s Bank of China did not immediately respond to a request for comment G l o b a l l y , yuan use has been gaining momentum Argentina last month said it will start paying for Chinese imports in yuan to ease pressure on its dollar reserves while in March France s TotalEnergies sold China the first yuan-set-

China and US vow to make good use of communication level

Wang Yi, Director of the Office of the Foreign Affairs Commission of the Communist Party

tled LNG cargo

The shift began in April 2022 after key Russian banks were removed from SWIFT following Russia s Feb 24 invasion of Ukraine which Moscow calls a special military operation

Initially, some of the Chinese buyers struggled to obtain trade financing in dollars as banks banned the business forcing the use of telegraphic transfer –equivalent to cash pre-payment –which posed a challenge in particular to cash-strapped independent refiners, traders said Yuan settlement surged after the U S -imposed import ban and as Europe stepped up restrictions on Russian exporters before eventually slapping a trade embargo with a Western price cap imposed on Dec 5 on Russian crude exports

“All seaborne Russian oil sales to China are now settled in renminbi since the price cap sidelining the last small number of banks that were handling U S dollars said one trading executive It becomes tremendously complicated dealing in USD under the price cap regime It means a lot more compliance work for the banks ” the person said China opposes unilateral sanctions but is also wary of itself being exposed to so-called secondary sanctions

The share of yuan in Russia’s

import settlements in 2022 jumped to 23% from 4%, Russia’s central bank said in March

Last month Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said that Moscow will continue to accept more payments for energy exports in roubles and yuan as it seeks to move away from the dollar and euro

Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that two-thirds of trade between Beijing and Moscow is now settled in roubles or yuan Surging commodity imports pushed China s trade deficit with Russia to $38 billion last year, although the gap has narrowed in the first four months of 2023 HICCUPS

The transition to yuan payments has not always been smooth State energy giant CNPC was worried for months last year that its piped gas imports from Russia’s Gazprom could be cut as Chinese lenders ICBC and Bank of China fearful of secondary sanctions looked to exit the business, said a senior source who closely follows the trade ICBC and Bank of China didn’t respond to requests for comment

For nearly half a year CNPC was unable to pay Gazprom in dollars, before Bank of Communications took over and shifted to pay in renminbi, the source said

CORPORATE CORNER

CPNE delegation visits

MQM Rabita Committee

Bahadurabad Secretariat

KARACHI S TA F F R E P O R T

A delegation of the "Council of Pakistan Newspaper Editors (CPNE) led by Secretary General Amir

Mehmood met with Convener MQM Pakistan Dr

Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui Sr Deputy Convener Syed

Mustafa Kamal, Mr Farooq Sattar and Members of Rabita Committee at Bahadurabad Secretariat On this occasion Dr Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui said that MQM has severe reservations over the recent census He added that the population of Urban Sindh was not counted with its true figure and around 1 million houses were left uncounted On the other side the Journalist Community also expressed their reservations on various issues In the response MQM assured them every possible cooperation in that regard Members of both sides also reviewed the current political, economic situation of the country as well as challenges of Media Organizations CPNE delegation was comprised on Secretary General Aamir Mehmood Vice Presidents Dr Jabbar Khattak and Arif Baloch Members Aijaz ul Haq Hamid Hussain Abidi, Ghulam Nabi Chandio, Saeed Khawar, Abdul Khaliq Ali, Maqsood Yosufi, Muddasar Alam, Mehmood Alam Khalid, Sher Muhammad Khahwar, Syed Mudassar and Abdul Sami Mangrio

PAKISTAN Tehreek-e-Insaf

(PTI) leaders, including Vice Chairman Shah Mehmood Qureshi, Ali Muhammad Khan Qasim Suri and Senator Ejaz Chaudhry were arrested from Islamabad on Thursday

As of now the party leaders – Shah Mehmood Qureshi, Ejaz Ch, Ali Muhammad Khan, Asad Umar, Fawad Ch, Qasim Suri, Jamshed Iqbal Cheema Falknaz Chitrali Musrat Jamsheed Cheema and Malika Bukhari have been arrested Shah Mehmood Qureshi was arrested in the wee hours of Thursday while former federal minister Ali Muhammad Khan was arrested by the Secretariat Police SHO from Serena Gate while Senator Ejaz Chaudhry was also been arrested from the capital

According to the ICT Police the PTI leaders have been arrested under the Section 3 MPO (Maintenance of Public Order)

The ICT Police said that the PTI leaders were arrested for “inciting arson and violent protests under a plan for threatening peace

The ICT statement added that the arrests were made in compliance with legal requirements, warning that more arrests are expected” “Avoid spreading rumors and incitement in public ” the capital police stated

A day earlier Fawad Chaudhry was apprehended by the police as he

350 ‘miscreants ’ held in K arachi

KARACHI

S TA

Following the protest call of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) at least 350

Former Punjab governor Omar Sarfaraz Cheema was arrested during the wee hours of Wednesday morning in a raid at his house by the Anti-Corruption

Establishment (ACE) Punjab

The crackdown on the PTI leadership comes after the arrest of PTI chairman and deposed premier Imran Khan who was arrested in the Al-Qadir Trust case from the premises of the IHC where he was present for two hearings

A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) has been signed between ORIC Riphah International University and Rawalpindi Chamber of Commerce and industry

The signing ceremony took place at Rawalpindi Chamber of Commerce and Industry Rawalpindi and the MOU has been signed by President Rawalpindi Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Saqib Rafiq, and Deputy Vice-Chancellor Academics RIPHAH, Prof Dr Yawar Hayat Khan The ceremony was attended by Director ORIC RIPHAH and her team and Vice Presidents of Rawalpindi Chamber of Commerce and Industry The MOU outlines the collaboration between RIPHAH and the Chamber of Commerce and Industry in promoting entrepreneurship and innovation conducting joint research projects and workshops, providing internships and employment for students, and organizing joint events to enhance the local business community s knowledge and skills

NCHR campaign leads to release of 199 Indian fishermen

ISLAMABAD

A campaign led by the National Commission for Human Rights (NCHR), in collaboration with Legal Aid Society, has resulted in the Pakistan government’s decision to repatriate in the first instance 199 Indian fishermen from Pakistani prisons today In a notification issued by the Home Department Government of Sindh on May 4 2023 Pakistan government had ordered the repatriation of 199 Indian fishermen, whose national status had been confirmed by the Indian government Today, in compliance to the above order, the Malir Jail commenced the arrangements for the release and shifting of the prisoners Member of the National Commission of Human Rights Sindh Ms Anis Haroon was present at the jail to oversee the arrangements and spoke to many of the jubilant returnees It was a moment of joy and relief for the Indian fishermen who had been incarcerated for years simply because they had accidently crossed the maritime border As they gathered their belongings the fishermen spoke in anticipation about meeting their loved ones; parents and children The decision to release the fishermen is a goodwill gesture by the Government of Pakistan especially since it also plans to release a second batch of 200 Indian in June fishermen nnd the last batch of 100 prisoners in July this year In a press statement issued on Wednesday Chairperson NCHR Rabiya Javeri Agha welcomed the decision and has appreciated the Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and Secretary Ministry of Foreign Affairs for their effort on this crucial human rights issue

Pre-budget seminar 2023-24 held at ICMA

The Lahore Branch Council (LBC) of ICMA organized a Pre-Budget seminar 2023-24 on 5th May 2023 Mr Zahid Pervaiz President Lahore Tax Bar Association was the Chief Guest and Mr Zia ul Mustafa FCMA Chairman Strategic Board ICMA was the Guest of Honor at the occasion Mr Abdul Razzaq, Chairman LBC opened the house for discussion The speakers stated that: Pakistan currently faces an unprecedented economic crisis however structural reforms and proper budgeting can steer us out of the difficult situation The main objective of the national budget is to ensure stable levels of growth and employment in order to effectively tackle the challenges posed by the global economy and to address the fundamental structural issues regarding fiscal and trade deficits, to promote economic stability, to control inflation, and to improve the human development index of the country

after identification, but the authorities are working tirelessly to arrest the perpetrators He said that the recent strike called by the PTI after the former prime minister Imran Khan arrest in Islamabad, the entire city remained open and operated as usual

emerged from the Supreme Court building where he had sought refuge for over 12 hours in an attempt to evade his impending arrest

PTI Secretary General Asad Umar

was also arrested from the premises of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Wednesday Umar was reportedly arrested by the Islamabad police from the gate near the IHC s writ branch

Government urged to strategic ally adopt domestic coal against impor ted coal

As Pakistan prepares for another tough summer season of power outages and load shedding, the government is under pressure to find solutions to the ongoing energy crisis One potential remedy being proposed is the promotion of local coal particularly Thar coal which could offer an affordable and abundant source of electricity

However, with heavy imports of coal continuing to pose a significant challenge, the government is being urged to impose both tariff and nontariff barriers to restrict imports and incentivize Thar coal projects By

doing so, the country could reduce its reliance on imported coal and provide much-needed relief to its citizens

"This will help the national economy so imports of coal should either be stopped or discouraged according to economist Shahid Sattar He recommends that the government incentivize Thar coal projects by providing tax reliefs and implementing structural changes with a broader vision Sattar believes that three things are necessary to make the Thar coal project a success: implementing a carbon tax on coal imports, properly marketing Thar coal, and giving tax incentives to Thar coal projects As a result the cost per unit of

energy generated from Thar Coal remains around Rs 7 to 9/kWh during FY 2021-2022, making it one of the cheapest baseload fuels available locally In comparison power generation from plants using imported fuel coal costs around Rs 16 to Rs 35/kWh Therefore, Thar Coal is critical in providing affordable electricity to the country During March 2023, the total power generation from Thar Coal was 1 060 GWH which accounted for 12% of the total power generated in the country Thar Coal is one of the cheapest baseload fuels of energy," says Syed Saifullah Kazmi, Head of Investment Banking at Intermarket Securities Limited

Bank Alfalah offers first- ever Young Islamic Professionals Internships in Islamic Banking

KARACHI S TA F F R E P O R T

Bank Alfalah Islamic becomes the first bank in the industry to offer internships in partnership with State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) under their initiative titled, "Young Islamic Banking Professionals Program (Y-IBP)" Young Islamic Banking Professionals (Y-IBP) Program is a first of its kind initiative taken by the State Bank of Pakistan to link academia with the industry to amplify the influx of quality professionals Under the program SBP has joined hands with Islamic banking institutions and various universities across Pakistan for creating awareness on fundamentals of Islamic Banking and choose potential candidates to transform them into quality professionals through internships and Islamic banking certifications by National Institute of Banking & Finance Bank Alfalah Islamic has taken the lead in offering internships to the students of Iqra University under Y-IBP

In this regard, an event was held at Bank Alfalah Islamic Learning Centre Karachi which was attended by several senior officials from SBP and Bank Alfalah, including Mr Abdul Basir Khan (Additional Director Islamic Finance Development Department SBP) Mr Imran Ahmad (Additional Director Development Finance

Support Department, SBP), Mr Shoaib Siddiqui (Head Talent Acquisition, Bank Alfalah), Mr Ahsan Raza Mankee (Head of Learning & Development Bank Alfalah)

Mr Salman Ghaffar (Head of Product and Sales Management Bank Alfalah-Islamic Banking Group) and Mr Muhammad Rizwanullah (Lecturer Iqra University)

T h e Y- I B P p r o g r a m i s o p e n t o y o u n g i n d i v i d u a l s w h o a r e i n t h e p r o c e s s o f c o m p l e t i n g t h e i r e d u c a t i o n a n d a r e s e e k i n g t o d e v e l o p t h e i r c a r e e r s i n t h e I sl a m i c b a n k i n g s e c t o r T h r o u g h t h i s p r o g r a m p a r t i ci p a n t s w i l l g a i n e x p o s u r e t o v a r i o u s a s p e c t s o f

I s l a m i c b a n k i n g i n c l u d i n g S h a r i a h - c o m p l i a n t p r o du c t s s e r v i c e s a n d o p e r a t i o n s P a r t i c i p a n t s w i l l a l s o h a v e t h e o p p o r t u n i t y t o w o r k w i t h e x p e r i e n c e d p r of e s s i o n a l s i n t h e I s l a m i c b a n k i n g s e c t o r, e n a b l i n g t h e m t o d e v e l o p t h e s k i l l s a n d k n o w l e d g e n e c e s s a r y t o s u c c e e d i n t h e i n d u s t r y

It is worth mentioning here that Section 3 MPO mentioned that the government, if satisfied that with a view to preventing any person from acting in any manner prejudicial to public safety or the maintenance of public order it is necessary to do may by an order in writing direct the arrest and detention in such custody Power to arrest and detain suspected persons

QASIM SURI FROM FEDERAL CAPITAL

Meanwhile PTI leader and former deputy speaker of National Assembly Qasim Suri was arrested from the capital on Thursday

Emirates Group announces 2022-23 results

The Emirates Group today released its 2022-23 Annual Report reporting its most profitable year ever on the back of strong demand across its businesses Emirates achieved new record profits, a complete turnaround from its loss position last year Both Emirates and dnata saw significant revenue increases in 2022-23 as the Group expanded its air transport and travel-related operations following the removal of nearly all pandemic-related restrictions around the world For the financial year ended 31 March 2023 the Emirates Group posted a record profit of AED 10 9 billion (US$ 3 0 billion) compared with an AED 3 8 billion (US$ 1 0 billion) loss for last year The Group’s revenue was AED 119 8 billion (US$ 32 6 billion) an increase of 81% over last year s results The Group s cash balance was AED 42 5 billion (US$ 11 6 billion), the highest ever reported, up 65% from last year mainly due to strong demand across its core business divisions and markets HH Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Chairman and Chief Executive, Emirates airline and Group, said:

“We’re proud of our 2022-23 performance which is not only a full recovery but also a record result This achievement would not have been possible without HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice President and Prime Minister, and Ruler of Dubai whose leadership has been critical to our success today and through the years The architect of Dubai s progressive economic policies, HH Sheikh Mohammed is also the engine behind the Emirates Group’s trajectory Without his drive and support Emirates will be half the size of what we are today Commenting on the Group s 2022-23 turnaround performance, Sheikh Ahmed said: “We had anticipated the strong return of travel and as the last travel restrictions lifted and triggered a tide of demand we were ready to expand our operations quickly and safely to serve our customers Our ongoing investments in our brand and in our products and services helped drive customer preference and position us favourably in the market

C hinese FM takes G7 countries to task over 'international rules violation'

CHINA S TA F F C O R R E S P O n d E n T

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin denied that China is a breaker of international rules and criticized the Group of Seven (G7) countries for willfully violating and violating international regulations He made the remarks days before the upcoming three-day G7 Summit which will take place in Hiroshima on May 19 The seven industrial countries will discuss the global economy, the Ukraine crisis, the Indo-Pacific region situation, food security, supply chain and

ests of few countries such as the G7 rather than the common interests of the international community,” he said Wang said the G7 countries are asking China to abide by international rules while they re actually busting international rules He referred to the U S withdrawal from the Paris Agreement, mass espionage and spying on other countries, including its allies, and its invasion of Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria which left tens of millions of people dead or homeless Wang urged the G7 countries especially the U S and Japan to pay the UN dues withdraw the military from Syria, stop the discharging plan of nuclear-contaminated water and stop hegemony under the pretext of international rules

The G7 is an intergovernmental political forum consisting of Canada France Germany Italy Japan the UK and the U S

PA K I S

TA N C A N N O T

TA K E H A R S H D E C I S I O N S O N I M F I N S T R U C T I O N S , S AY S I S H A Q D A R

talk about the default “A global rating agency has also commented on the possible default of Pakistan but the country with or without IMF would not default he vowed

agreement Finance Minister Ishaq Dar said that State is more important than politics and the government is aware of the problems faced by the society

FI N A N C E Minister Ishaq Dar said on Thursday that Pakistan cannot take harsh decisions on the instruction of the International Monetary Fund (IMF)

Talking to a media person after speaking at 3rd Islamabad Security Dialogue the Finance Minister said that the country is required to make a payment of $3 7 billion in May and June 2023 which would be done in time

He said that payments will be arranged before the due date and financing commitments made by friendly countries would materialize soon Ishaq Dar said that he does not want to

The Finance Minister said that there are $10 billion foreign exchange reserves in the county He said that technical negotiations with the IMF were concluded on February 9, 2023 but there was a gap with regard to the external account He said that some friendly countries have promised financing for Pakistan and the Fund is looking forward to their implementation Dar refused to comment about his predecessor Miftah

Ismail s statements He said that Pakistan has fulfilled all conditions of the IMF and taken measures for the agreement in accordance with the terms of the IMF He said that the IMF wants more time for staff level

Freelancers suffer with broadband outage

PR OFIT B A K H T N O O R Pakistan s economy is absolutely devastated Inflation continues to skyrocket, rumours of default circulate, and many salaried employees suffer According to the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) approximately four million young people enter the working age in Pakistan every year However only one million are able to secure employment In this abysmal environment where many young individuals are not able to meet their needs from the job market in Pakistan, a rising group of young Pakistanis find themselves as an integral part of the global ‘gig’ economy Through platforms such as Upwork and Fivver they have built lucrative careers for themselves gaining more pay and security than most salaried positions in Pakistan You have heard of these people as freelancers Yes, the ones that have developed skills in diversified fields, exclusively work for foreign clients, earn money in dollars and as a result remain unaffected by the inflation There is yet again another crisis for freelancers in Pakistan perhaps more profound than any obstacle that they have faced in the past The only match for Pakistan s turbulent economy is its (more) turbulent political situation, and this has severe repercussions for freelancers Alongside inciting countrywide protests, road blockages and the attack on the Corp Commander House the arrest of the ex Prime Minister Imran Khan has also led to a suspension of telecommunication services across the country Social media sites and services such as Twitter Facebook and YouTube have been indefinitely blocked, with many people resorting to VPNs to meet their needs Only social media addicts are not suffering however

Alleged audio leak reveals how Imran accuses IHC CJ of ‘taking orders’

An alleged audio call recording between Pakistan

Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan and party leader Musarrat Javed Cheema has surfaced online in which the PTI chief can purportedly be heard accusing the Islamabad High Court (IHC) Chief Justice of ‘taking orders’ The former prime minister can allegedly be heard giving instructions to PTI leader Musarrat Javed Cheema in the alleged phone conversation Transcript of the alleged phone conversation between Imran Khan and Musarrat Javed Cheema: Imran: So Musarrat, what s the situation? Did they get the message? Musarrat: Sir, I have conveyed the message We are sitting here in the high court and we are saying that we will not go under any circumstances to produce Khan sb Imran: But is Khawaja Haris there? Musarrat: Khawaja Haris and Salman Safdar both are here with me I am sitting with them If you want to speak, you can Imran: No, I just wanted to ask them that they should talk to Azam Swati that he should do it in Supreme Court as well as what they have done is malafide Musarrat: Yes, absolutely Don’t worry about it sir Imran: What is this chief justice doing? Who takes orders from them? Musarrat: Whether NAB people come or someone else [it doesn t matter] I am standing right in front of Salman Safdar I told him to say that produce [Imran] in court I am sitting next to Khawaja Haris and him We cannot leave like that We will remain in court Where your case is being heard with chief justice

He added that the government has taken difficult decisions at political cost Dar said that Pakistan wants to take CPEC forward and regretted that Special Economic Zones are pending for five years He wanted Chinese industry to be relocated in Pakistan

He said that FBR’s tax revenue increased by 18% current account deficit was surplus in March 2023 and is also expected to surplus in April as well

The government has introduced reforms to remove structural imbalances adding that he said that the priority of the government is to increase exports as it would help reduce trade deficit He also recounted that BISP

stipend has been increased for beneficiaries and the Prime Minister announced austerity measures to reduce expenses He also said that the PDM government will present the budget on June 9 2023 and we will announce relief measures in this budget

Meanwhile, Julie Kozack, IMF spokeswoman said in a scheduled press conference on Thursday that Pakistan needs significant additional financing for a successful completion of the long-stalled ninth review of the International Monetary Fund s bailout package Obtaining commitments of significant additional financing is essential before the IMF approves the release of pending bailout funds that are crucial for Pakistan to resolve an acute balance of payments crisis Julie Kozack said that financing already

‘D igital Pakistan’ in a coma: What is cost of broadband shutdown?

lancers depend on broadband data to get their work done On top of this, the freelancing world is brutal

committed by Pakistan’s external partners was welcomed

The United Arab Emirates Saudi Arabia and China came to Pakistan’s assistance in March and April with pledges that would cover some of the funding deficit Our team is very heavily engaged of course with the Pakistani authorities, because Pakistan indeed faces a very challenging situation,” said Kozack

She added that the large South Asian economy was facing stagflation and had also been battered by a series of shocks including severe floods Bloomberg on Thursday quoting IMF reported that Pakistan has committed not to implement a cross-subsidy programme The government also will not introduce new tax exemptions and will “durably allow” a market-based exchange rate for the rupee currency

PKR plummets below 300, making histor y with its record low value

ISLAMABAD S TA F F R E P O R T

The country has been burning for the past three days

With rioting in major urban centres and Pakistan’s political system in tatters an environment of fear has gripped the nation Amidst all this was also the senseless decision to shut down mobile broadband data and social media sites like Twitter and Youtube

Ostensibly, the government s explanation has been that the shut-down of these essential services were a necessary step to stop protestors from organising In reality regular cell services were still available and people were able to bypass social media bans through VPNs As a result the broadband shutdown in particular only really affected a small group of people whose bread and butter are tied to mobile data

One of the immediate groups that were affected were gig workers These are daily workers that earn their money on platforms such as Careem Foodpanda and Indrive These people require stable internet access through mobile phone data to do their jobs Over these days, Foodpanda and services such as Careem were out of service because their captains and riders had no way of accepting rides/orders or of following maps To put things in context, there are over 13000 foodpanda and Bykea riders 30 000 Uber and Careem captains and around 12 000 Foodpanda home chefs whose daily wages are dependent on broadband data

Similarly, the shut down also had a serious impact on freelancers A large number of Pakistanis work for foreign clients remotely on platforms such as Fivver and Upwork providing services ranging from coding to content writing and search engine optimization

The gig-economy is an emerging sector in Pakistan

Freelancers in the country earned around $400 million in both 2021 and in 2022 which accounts for about 15% of Pakistan s total $2 6 billion ICT (information-communication-technology) exports Almost immediately after the shutdown, both platforms put up signs next to the profiles of Pakistani users saying that the service providers belonged to a country that was experiencing internet outages which could delay their projects The warning sign was not an exaggeration A lot of these free-

Clients are very picky and small interruptions can very quickly sour client relationships that take years to build sometimes If this were not enough the dream of a Digital Pakistan took another blow in the form of the Pointof-Sale machines also being out of service A lot of the terminals you see at stores that are used to accept card payments come with in-built sims that connect them to the internet As a result, Pakistan s retail and grocery sector was operating entirely on cash Even the country’s Federal Board of Revenue uses the data from these machines for tax calculation purposes

Point of Sale (POS) machines often known as debit/credit card machines use sims to establish a network connection and make digital payments The severance of mobile internet signals has rendered these machines temporarily obsolete, limiting everyone to cash payments only Reuters reported that Pakistan s main digital payment systems fell by around 50% the day after former Prime Minister Imran Khan s arrest Data shared with Reuters by 1LINK on POS through its platform showed international payment card transactions were down on Wednesday by 45% in volume, from a daily average of 127,000 during the week of May 1 to 7 to approximately 68 000 on May 10 Ali Habib spokesperson at HBL Pakistan s largest bank said that it had seen a decline of 60% in the throughput of the POS machines

Articulating the gravity of the situation, Jazz CEO Aamir Ibrahim, told the media that he denounces the act of severing the internet as a poor solution to the current crisis Ibrahim told propakistani that “For an agonising span of nearly 24 hours 125 million Pakistanis have been severed from the tether of mobile internet a lifeline crucial in emergencies and productivity According to Ibrahim, the devastation inflicted upon the economy can be quantified, however, the plight of the people during this time is beyond numerical measurement

At the same time telecom operators estimated the extent of the damages to be Rs 820 million On the other hand the government has incurred a loss of approximately Rs 287 million in tax revenue

S e ve n m o r e d i e a s v i o l e n t p r o t e s t s c o n t i n u e f o r t h i r d c o n s e c u t i ve d ay

PESHAWAR/LAHORE/ISLAMABAD

S TA F F R E P O R T

At least seven people died and hundreds were injured in the violent protests continued being held by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf supporters across the country against the arrest of party chief Imran Khan Violent protests against the arrest of former premier Imran Khan continued in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab, Islamabad and other parts of the country for t h e t h i r d c o n s e c u t i v e d a y o n T h u r s d a y, c l a i m i n g

seven lives According to the KP police spokesperson seven people were killed in clashes between the PTI workers and police while over 106 people also injured

The injured also include cops and police officers he said The deaths were reported in Peshawar, Kohat, and Dir, said police spokesperson

The Peshawar police claimed that two superintendents of police, one deputy superintendent of police,

four station house officers and four constables suffered injuries during violence in Peshawar

P E S H AWA R O N T H E B O I L:

Hundreds of violent protesters Wednesday attacked the Radio Pakistan building in Peshawar Director General of Radio Pakistan Tahir Hussian told media that the building of the state media in Peshawar was attacked by violent PTI protesters

He said that the protesters wreaked havoc in the n e w s r o o m a n d v a r i o u s o t h e r s e c t i o n s o f t h e r a d i o s t a t i o n T h e m i s c r e a n t s e n t e r e d t h e n e w s r o o m a n d r a d i o a u d i o r o o m a n d s e t f i r e t o t h e f u r n i t u r e i ns i d e ” h e s a i d a d d i n g t h a t m o b a l s o a t t a c k e d t h e s t a ff a t t h e o ff i c e Vehicles parked in the building of Radio Pakistan were also set on fire while the miscreants damaged and looted government property including cameras, microphones and other office equipment

The violent protesters attacked the Radio Pakistan building on Tuesday also

The Pakistani rupee has experienced a sharp decline hitting a record low of 298 against the US dollar due to political tumult in the country This has caused concern among financial analysts and experts who worry about the impact of the currency s devaluation on Pakistan’s already struggling economy The rupee fell by 3 02% against the dollar on Thursday trading at 299 in the interbank market at 1:17 pm This is just one rupee away from the much-anticipated rate of Rs300 per dollar The drop in the value of the currency has piled up foreign debt, making imports further expensive for Pakistan This has worsened the country’s economic situation, which already faced a six-decade high inflation reading at 36 4% in April 2023 Financial experts believe that the rupee’s depreciation is due to political and social unrest caused by the arrests of senior leaders of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party The political turmoil has had a significant impact on market sentiment, causing the rupee to reach a record low Furthermore, the demand-supply gap of the US dollar in the interbank market has widened, causing the rupee’s devaluation Exporters have stopped selling US currency on speculations that the rupee would depreciate further versus the greenback In contrast importers are seen rushing to buy dollars which has led to a shortage of dollars in the interbank market Dr Khaqan Najeeb, a former finance ministry adviser, said that continuing political instability has taken a toll on market sentiment pushing the Pakistani rupee to hit a record low

Mobile Internet ban costs Mobile Operators Rs820m, gov t Rs287m

The nationwide suspension of mobile broadband service has caused an estimated revenue loss of Rs820 million while the government has lost around Rs287 million in shape of tax revenue Various Telecom industry leaders have also voiced their concerns on internet suspension In a tweet CEO Jazz Aamir Ibrahim said that shutting down the internet is not a solution to anything It creates more problems than it solves For almost 24 hours, 125 million Pakistanis have been without mobile internet – a critical tool in emergencies & productivity ” he said Aamir stressed that the devastating effect on the economy is quantifiable but the inconvenience to people is incalculable Similarly Muhammad Zohaib Khan Chairman of Pakistan Software Houses Association (P@SHA) said, Internet is our lifeline, our office, our communications infrastructure and the IT industry can’t operate without it IT & ITeS services are already under a lot of pressure on account of stagnation and experiencing a probable decline in the exports of IT services due to the bad governmental policies & an utter lack of continuity in policies; and now the political turmoil has completely stopped the IT industry s operations

P@SHA Chief has vociferously and categorically demanded the immediate resumption of internet services to the IT industry He also maintained that internet service quality in the country has already been shrinking capacity particularly those of data services Meanwhile ridehailing and online food delivery businesses in Pakistan stated that their operations got drastically affected

President Alvi urges PM to look for politic al options to resolve situation

ISLAMABAD

S TA F F R E P O R T

President Dr Arif Alvi Thursday urged the country s political and military leadership to review and re-think the situation and look for political solutions, rather than resorting to coercion and arrests

“I have conveyed my concerns to the political and military leadership and I am hopeful that the situation can improve I strongly appeal to all citizens of the country to remain peaceful, he added

In a letter addressed to the PM on Imran Khan’s arrest, he said, “Please do ensure that constitutional rights of Imran Khan are not violated and his life is fully secured ”

Alvi said the Prime Minister is obliged under the Constitution and Rules of Business 1973 to keep him informed about the current state of affairs in the country

He wrote Your attention is drawn towards the arrest of Mr Imran Khan on 9th May, 2023 from the premises of Islamabad High Court, the manner in which it was done and the consequences thereof I and the people of Pakistan were shocked to see the video images of the incident which reflect manhandling of a former Prime Minister who is a popular leader and head of a political party substantially supported by the people of Pakistan The law enforcement agencies forcibly entered the office where Mr Imran Khan was seated while his biometrics were under

process, inside the building of Islamabad High Court ”

“The clumsy hubris in which his arrest was carried out has tarnished the image of Pakistan in the international community and the enemies of Pakistan are given an opportunity to mock and portray Pakistan as a country having little respect for rights of its citizens ”

“All kind of incident should not happen with anybody and the justification that such episodes have happened before does not make them right today The already tottering economy is badly affected and polarization in society is further exacerbated due to such ill-conceived and unwarranted incidents as above Of course he has a large

number of followers who were emotionally charged after watching such scenes of his arrest and dragging of their leader by the security officials despite his injured leg due to an assassination attempt on him

The painful event led to attacks by mobs on public assets including buildings of the Armed Forces I believe that the people have a right to protest but they should remain peaceful and within the bounds of the law ”

President Alvi said all are shocked because of the heart-wrenching unfortunate and regrettable loss of lives which are highly condemnable Besides the above, the rapidly polarizing body politic must be stabilized by reducing political temperature rather than the tit for tat kneejerk reactions including the

wave of arrests subsequently, that is continuously making the situation worst “I am distressed over the damages to public assets and unlawful actions of miscreants As the upholder of the Constitution and Law I condemn such incidents My country is passing through a difficult phase let s take a deep breath and salvage our destiny, he added

Strongly condemning the “violent” protests after arrest of Chairman Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Imran Khan in AlQadir Trust Case and devastating of government and military installations by miscreants has urged the protestors to remain peaceful Taking to his social media handler twitter on Thursday, the President said that he was deeply shocked over the prevailing situation in the country and manhandling of the former prime minister

g SAYS SOME FRIENDLY COUNTRIES PROMISED FINANCING AND FUND LOOKING FORWARD TO THEIR IMPLEMENTATION

g OXFORD INTERNET INSTITUTE RANKS PAKISTAN 4TH IN GLOBAL DIGITAL GIG MARKETPLACE g EXPERTS FEAR FURTHER ECONOMIC PROBLEMS