Epaper_23-08-16 LHR

ECONOMIC REFORM CARETAKER GOVT’S TOP PRIORIT Y, SAYS PM K AK AR

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VOWS GOVT WOULD ENSURE PROVISION OF INT ’L QUALITY FACILITIES IN HEALTH, EDUCATION SECTORS

ISLAMABAD

CA R E TA K E R Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar on Tuesday said that the government would ensure bringing in economic reforms continuity of the economic policies, besides further improving them He said that further enhancement of foreign investment under the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) was among the top priorities of the caretaker setup

The prime minister chaired a meeting in which he was given a detailed briefing over the economic situation, PM Office Media Wing said

During the meeting the prime minister said that work on the public welfare projects would continue and the government would ensure provision of international quality facilities in the health and education sectors He also directed for expediting ongoing reforms in the power sector and strict implementation of measures for increasing tax revenues Prime Minister Kakar said that the caretaker government would concentrate on deregulation and responsible autonomy for further improvement of the economy and expressed the resolve to focus their energies on economic reforms during their tenure

The meeting was attended by senior officials including governor State Bank of Pakistan, secretaries Finance Division and Power and chairman Federal Board of

g TO CONCENTRATE ON DEREGULATION, RESPONSIBLE AUTONOMY TO FURTHER IMPROVE ECONOMY

should be strictly followed, he directed The caretaker government will focus on deregulation to improve the

Revenue (FBR) The meeting was briefed over the steps taken for bringing further improvement and stability in the economy

A detailed briefing was also given over the reforms in the power sector The caretaker prime minister directed for submission of detailed reports regarding ongoing reforms in all sectors Kakar took charge as the caretaker prime minister a day earlier after he was administered oath by President Arif Alvi

He was named as the interim PM after his predecessor, Shehbaz Sharif, and former opposition leader in the National Assembly Raja Riaz agreed to propose Kakar for the coveted slot

The officials briefed Kakar in detail about the measures being taken to bring about stability and a further improvement

CJP stresses ECP should conduct delimitations transparently

Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial said on Tuesday that the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) should conduct the process of delimitations transparently, stressing that it was a “matter of public interest” The top judge passed these remarks as a twomember Supreme Court (SC) bench comprising Justice Bandial and Justice Sayyed Mazahar Ali Akbar Naqvi took up a petition pertaining to errors and illegalities in the delimitation for PS-07 PS-08 and PS-09 of Sindh s Shikarpur district

After the final results of the first-ever digital census were approved earlier this month, the ECP is now expected to conduct fresh delimitation of constituencies However the electoral body had recently declared that conducting polls on fresh delimitation was not possible and that the exercise would require four to six months, making it almost certain that general elections may not be held this year Meanwhile, a Dawn report published today said a huge mismatch in the otherwise increased and decreased share of districts across the country would make the upcoming exercise to re-draw boundaries for provincial assemblies elections a complex one

The report highlighted that a thorough analysis of population figures showed that unlike for National Assembly seats, fresh delimitation for the provincial assembly seats can affect dozens of districts

The delimitation issue was also brought up during the SC hearing today as the CJP remarked that the matter had come to the top court several times

If the tapedar (revenue official) modifies the dotted circles during the delimitation [process], it would affect votes of the candidates contesting from the constituencies he said “This is a matter of public interest ” The ECP Justice Bandial stressed should conduct delimitations transparently There is a lot of sensitivity on delimitations in Sindh he highlighted adding that grievances regarding incorrect delimitations often came from the province

in the country’s economy, the ongoing reforms in the power sector Will maintain continuity in country s economic policies and bring more economic improvement he assured Interim PM Kakar added that public welfare projects will continue uninterrupted during his government and directed that international standard facilities should be ensured in the health and education sectors

The caretaker premier also added that his government would prioritise steps to increase foreign investment via the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) Kakar also added that his government would accelerate the implementation of ongoing reforms in the power sector While measures to increase tax revenue

Sindh Chief Minister-designate, Justice (Retd) Maqbool Baqar on Tuesday asserted that the primary duty of a caretaker government upon taking office was to ensure elections were conducted in a timely and transparent manner

“As I take on the role of head of the provincial government the primary focus of the caretaker setup will be to facilitate prompt elections providing the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) with any necessary assistance they require for this purpose,” Baqar told Dawn News Baqar a former judge of the Supreme Court became the interim Sindh chief minister earlier today after Governor Kamran Tessori signed a summary for his appointment

In a social media post on X (previously Twitter) in the early hours of the day Tessori shared a picture of the summary sent to him by former Sindh chief minister Murad Ali Shah, which he had signed, thereby approving the latter ’s advice

The summary stated that after a “series of meetings” were held between Shah and the outgoing Leader of the Opposition in the now-dissolved Sindh Assembly, Rana Ansar, it had been agreed that Baqar would be designated the role of the caretaker chief minister

It requested that Baqar ’s notification for the role be approved under Article 224(1a) (time of

Even though Kakar has given a hint of what lies on the economic front, his first task is to assemble a cabinet Official sources told today that Kakar has sped up the consultation for the formation of the cabinet They added that the interim PM has decided to form a small cabinet and personally review the profiles of all possible candidates “I don’t want to put more burden on the country suffering from economic problems the caretaker prime minister told his friends according to the sources He further expressly wished that his protocol be kept to a minimum, adding that he did not want to incur unnecessary expenses nor make people suffer

Moreover former information minister Muhammad Ali Durrani is likely to be given the portfolio of the Ministry of Information, the sources said

The sources also said that the names of caretaker ministers under consideration include former foreign secretary Jalil Abbas Jilani former civil servant Shoaib Suddle former Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) president Ahsan Bhoon former senator Sarfaraz Ahmed Bugti, and former police IG and acclaimed columnist Zulfiqar Ahmad Cheema

election and by-election) of the

Constitution

Sharing the signed summary, Tessori stated: I have signed the summary for appointing justice (retired) Maqbool Baqir as the caretaker chief minister I have approved for justice (retired) Maqbool Baqir to be made Sindh province s caretaker chief minister under Article 224 (1a) of the Constitution ” MQM-P had confirmed a consensus was reached on the name of Baqar whose name was primarily proposed by the treasury and it was agreed upon by the opposition after a lengthy discussion within the party and with its allies

Speaking with Dawn News today Baqar underscored the significant responsibility that comes with holding public office expressing his dedication to fulfilling it effectively

Justice (r) Maqbool Baqar speaks to Dawn News

When asked about the possibility of the caretaker government conducting an accountability drive Baqar clarified that the assumption that his office would be solely accountable-focused was unfounded “Such reports are not true ”

Nevertheless he emphasised that a chief minister held the obligation to ensure all endeavours were conducted with integrity, encompassing both political and moral honesty “While there’s no specific agenda to target individuals corruption must be curbed in all forms

Gap between interbank and open market narrows as rupee dips

The rupee fell against the US dollar in the interbank market on Tuesday, slightly bridging the gap between the rates in the interbank and open markets the difference between which should not be more than 1 25 percent according to the country s agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF)

The former chief justice of the SHC asserted that he would never condone any form of misappropriation or corruption My entire approach is grounded in upholding the principles of law and justice ”

Responding to a query regarding the cooperation of provincial governments with accountability institutions, the CM-designate stated that any provincial government not aiding accountability bodies would be tantamount to negligence in duty

Asked about his potential choices for members of the caretaker cabinet, Baqar noted that individuals in such positions would naturally desire individuals of integrity dedication and commitment who possess a genuine concern for the public s welfare I am earnestly desirous [of having such individuals], and with the support of people s prayers, I remain hopeful that we can achieve this ” the former SHC CJ added

Inquired about his approach in the event of election delays Baqar stated that he had not received indications of such delays thus far He, however, stressed that decisions regarding election scheduling fell under the purview of the ECP, emphasising that the caretaker government lacked the authority to make such determinations

Before the formal announcement from any side, Justice Baqar, who retired from the Supreme Court last year, appeared on a private TV channel to confirm his appointment

The fall in the value of the rupee came on the first day of the new interim government The sudden fall coming immediately after Anwarul Haq Kakar took over as caretaker prime minister has raised questions regarding whether the interbank rate of the rupee was still being managed by the outgoing PDM government

Data provided by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) showed that the rupee lost Rs 3 02 per dollar to close at Rs 291 51 in the interbank market down 1 05 percent from the previous close of Rs 288 49

According to Arif Habib Limited this is the secondlowest level the rupee has fallen to since a record low of Rs 298 93 reached on May 11, 2023

Meanwhile, the rupee continued to trade above Rs 300 in the open market This equates to a difference of Rs 8 49 or 2 91 percent Under the terms of an agreement reached with the IMF for an economic bailout in June the government has to adhere to a single market-determined rate in both the interbank and open markets, with a maximum difference of 1 25 percent

As the coalition government bowed out last week without the name of an interim prime minister being finalised the rupee fell to Rs 302 per dollar in the open market which analysts attributed to political uncertainty At the same time the rate in the interbank market on August 11 was Rs 288 49 a difference of Rs 13 51 So, the rupee’s fall in the interbank market is an attempt to narrow that gap Ismail Iqbal Securities’ Head of Research Fahad Rauf explained that the interbank market had come under pressure because of the open market being on the higher side as the IMF had stipulated the difference in rates could not exceed 1 25 percent for five consecutive business days

Besides this the IMF also wanted the exchange rate to be market-determined which means the government could not intervene to manage the rupee by imposing trade restrictions

Therefore, import restrictions had been lifted leading to a higher demand for the greenback, Sana Tawfik, a senior analyst at Arif Habib Limited, said Rauf also said the increase in import payments after restrictions were lifted and the resulting rise in demand put pressure on the rupee

Pakistan’s Large Scale Industr y witnesses 10.26% overall decline in FY23

g IMPORT CURBS, DEVALUATION OF RUPEE, MONETARY TIGHTENING AND ECONOMIC SLOWDOWN SERVE A S MAIN REA SONS

wearing apparel

g RATES DIFFERENCE NARROWED TO RS8 49, WHICH IS STILL HIGHER THAN IMF'S STIPULATION

Timely, transparent polls ‘only ’ top priority: Sindh CM-designate

P R E S I D E N T A LV I S I G N S P E M R A A M E N D

B I L L I N T O L AW

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M E N T

KP anti-corruption watchdog summons

Shaukat Yousafzai in corruption case on 18th

PESHAWAR S ta f f R e p o R t

Hassaan Niazi handed over to Quetta police

Aurangzeb hailed the bill and said that it was a collective effort of media workers and media houses

Earlier on Tuesday, President Alvi assured media workers and the journalist community of his support for the Pemra bill, saying that it had brought improvements to the existing media law

President Alvi also appreciated the collective efforts of the media community for introducing amendments to the Pemra law, especially to protect the rights of media workers

He said that the linking of government advertisements with the payment of dues to electronic media employees would help address their issues while also discussing various aspects of the bill with the visiting delegation He also added that the

“The transfer of powers from Pemra chairman to Council of Complaints has become law she said adding that the inclusion of the representatives of the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) and Pakistan Broadcasters Association (PBA) in the council has become lawamendment bill had brought improvements to the existing media law

Last week the bill was approved by the upper and lower houses of parliament after the federal government withdrew it following journalist associations concerns

The then-information minister, Marriyum Aurangzeb tabled the bill in the Senate which was later introduced in the National Assembly saying that amendments to the bill had been included with the input of all stakeholders

The bill said a parliamentary committee will be formed for the appointment of the Pemra chairman and the Ministry of Information will propose five names for the media regulatory body chief

The parliamentary body will comprise four National Assembly members and two members of the Senate with equal representation from the treasury and opposition benches

The committee will send a name for the Pemra chief to the president for appointment according to the amended law

If the parliamentary committee could not agree on the name within 30 days, then the

information ministry panel will send the bill to the prime minister who will then propose a suitable name for the post and forward it to the president, as per the bill

The amended legislation has also replaced the word salary for media workers with dues Addressing the Senate session the information minister said earlier there was no platform for media workers to resolve their issues

“Three clauses have been inserted in the amendment bill There was room for change and improvement in the bill

Aurangzeb said the definition of misinformation and disinformation has been redefined in the amended bill

C o n s u l t a t i o n s w e r e h e l d w i t h v a r i o u s j o u r n a l i s t i c o rg a n i s a t i o n s b e f o r e t h e p a s s a g e o f t h e b i l l t h e m i n i s t e r s a i d a d d i n g t h a t m e d i a h o u s e s w i l l n o t g e t g o v e r n m e n t a d s i f t h e y d o p a y m i n i m u m wage to their workers Moreover, the media houses violating laws related to wages can be imposed a fine of Rs10 million Earlier the bill was withdrawn after journalist associations expressed concerns over the legislation

Delay in elec tions to bring ‘serious consequences’ for federation: R abbani

ISLAMABAD S ta f f R e p o R t

Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Senator Raza Rabbani said on Tuesday that despite passage of six days after dissolution of National Assembly the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has not yet announced any schedule for the general elections

The Senator said, Time passes rapidly over the 90 days’ constitutional deadline for elections but regretfully the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has yet to issue a comprehensive statement on the election

The ECP should inform about the time limit it required for fixing boundaries of constituencies after approval of the digital population census results,” Raza Rabani maintained

He emphasized The election commission should not treat the issue as a routine matter The delay in holding elections within the period allowed by the constitution, will bring serious consequences for the federation,” he cautioned Senator Raza Rabbani had earlier also warned that delay in elections would prove

to be dangerous for the federation T h e P P P S e n a t o r h a d c o m m e n t e d after the CCI unanimously approved the 7 t h P o p u l a t i o n a n d H o u s i n g C e n s u s , making it almost certain that the general e l e c t i o n s w o u l d n o t b e h e l d w i t h i n t h e c o n s t i t u t i o n a l p e r i o d a n d d u r i n g t h e current year as the election commission w i l l b e n e e d e d t i m e f o r f r e s h d e l i m i t a t i o n o f t h e c o n s t i t u e n c i e s according to the new census figures

APPREHENSIONS ABOUT DELAY IN ELECTIONS

The Constitution provides that if the assembly completes its tenure, elections are to be held in 60 days but in case of premature dissolution which will be the case here this period is extended to 90 days

However a few days ago former opposition leader in the National Assembly Raja Riaz said that general elections would be held in February

Railways upgrading infrastruc ture for better connec tivity with regional countries

ISLAMABAD

S ta f f R e p o R t

Apart from $6 683 billion Main Line-I project being negotiated with Chinese side Pakistan Railways is spending millions of rupees on the improvement and revamp of its infrastructure including tracks bridges stations, and rolling stock

According to railways documents, Pakistan

Railways is planning to upgrade 11 stations under PSDP projects that include Peshawar Hassan Abdal Rawalpindi Gujranwala Lahore Narowal Nankana

Sahib Raiwind Okara Sahiwal and Bahawalpur

PESHAWAR S ta f f R e p o R t

The Abbottabad Police on Tuesday handed over Hassaan Khan Niazi, the nephew of Chairman PTI Imran Khan to Quetta Police According to police a communiqué has been dispatched to Balochistan home department for bringing Hassaan Niazi to Lahore and under legal procedure the Lahore Police will take him to Quetta The detainee was wanted by Lahore Police in case regarding May 9, mayhem and attack on Jinnah House He was arrested from Abbottabad on Monday over allegations of attack on Corps Commander ’s House and provoking workers for rebellion

Another major project that Pakistan Railways plans to undertake is the rehabilitation of 518 kilometers track between Kotri and Khanpur This project will cost Rs1862 84 million Other projects include the rehabilitation of Karachi Port tracks, the upgrading of Railway Dry Ports and the rehabilitation of track machinery

Pakistan Railways is also taking steps to improve maintenance of its assets These measures include increasing fiscal space for maintenance through transfer of pension, reducing utility bills through solarization, improving procurement management through prioritized procurement and an efficient fuel management system

among the top priorities R e g i o n a l c o n n e c t i v i t y i s a n i m p o r t a n t a s p e c t o f t h e P a k i s t a n R a i l w a y d e v e l o p m e n t f r a m e w o r k P r es en tly P akis tan Railw ay h as plan n ed to imp r ove its functional links with regional countries including I

The department is also gradually shifting from manual to a mechanized track maintenance regime for enhanced productivity and quality Improved governance of the maintenance system through the introduction of IT-related interventions (ERP, etc) and provision of professional human resources is also n d i a a n d I r a n F u r t h e r m o r e s o m e n e w r a i l l i n k s w o u l d b e e s t a b l i s h e d a s U z b e k i s t a n - A f g h a n i s t a nPakistan (UAP) Railway connectivity project through K o h a t - K h a r l a c h i , P a k i s t a n - C h i n a R a i l w a

three months later than the constitutionally allowed limit of 90 days that falls in November Recent statements by former interior minister Rana Sanaullah and former defence minister Khawaja Asif both PML-N leaders have also consolidated the likelihood that polls will be delayed beyond the 90-day timeframe When asked in a Geo News programme if 2023 was the year when elections would be held Sanaullah had said, It is an absolutely straightforward answer no He had stated the same while speaking in another programme: “I cannot predict the future but if 90 days have turned into 120 days there is a clear constitutional argument present for it Separately in an interview with CNN Asif had noted that elections were due in November but had also acknowledged: “There is a possibility of a delay but not more than a couple of months on technical grounds and no ulterior motive in that ” After the Council of Common Interests had approved the 2023 census results on August 5 a Dawn report also cited a senior ECP official as saying that the commission was now legally bound to go for fresh delimitation, which would take at least four months”

Woman raped inside BB Hospital’s x-ray room in Rawalpindi

RAWALPINDI S ta f f R e p o R t

A woman mother of two was allegedly raped in the xray room of the government-run Benazir Bhutto Hospital in Rawalpindi, a police official said on Tuesday The police registered a case yesterday under section 376 (punishment for rape) of the Pakistan Penal Code after the woman s medical examination confirmed that she was raped Waris Khan Police Station SHO Inspector Javaid Iqbal told the media that an employee of the hospital was currently in police custody He added that an investigation had started from all angles and the main culprit would soon be caught According to the first information report (FIR) the complainant stated was called to the Benazir Bhutto Hospital on Murree Road by the main suspect on Saturday, who took her inside the x-ray room where his friend the hospital employee was present The main suspect blackmailed her with her indecent videos and then raped her inside the computer room The complainant said in the FIR that she was divorced and her two children were living with their father She stated she was in a relationship with the culprit for three years, who had been promising her marriage Meanwhile, CCTV footage of a woman’s alleged rape in the x-ray room of government-run Benazir Bhutto Hospital in Rawalpindi has emerged As per details, the CCTV footage shows the victim woman entering into hospital with the accused Faizan She entered the hospital on August 12 at 02:58 pm and then went into a room on the direction of the accused

FY 2023 ends with roughl y Rs2.31tr in circ ular debt

FIGURE SHOWS AN INCREASE FROM END OF FY 2022, B UT A CONTR AC TION FROM APRIL 2023 ISLAMABAD S ta f f R e p o R t

CPPA does not make prompt payments to other power entities in the supply chain, namely state-owned generation companies (GENCOs), the IPPs, and the National Transmission and Dispatch Company (NTDC) GENCOs renounce their liabilities to fuel suppliers due to delayed payments from CPPA Likewise, IPPs, owing to the government s sluggishness in clearing their invoices, fail to pay their fuel suppliers The fuel suppliers, unit in June 2022 a modest 50 paisa per unit in February 2023, and, most recently, a whopping Rs 7 5 in July 2023 the debt continues to mount inexorably What are these hikes even achieving then? “With the recent escalation in tariffs revenues may experience a fleeting surge but losses are poised to intensify as paying customers gravitate towards solar or curtail their consumption, cautions Zaheer Ghanghro, Chief Executive Officer at Halmore Power Generation and Director at Lalpir & Pakgen Power The consumers will be the ones who bear the brunt in the entire value chain The IPPs will persist in their operations by resorting to borrowing from banks, which means that banks will emerge as the ultimate beneficiaries,” Ghanghro adds

P T I S T R O N G LY C O N D E M N S ‘ I L L - T R E AT M E N T,

P O L I T I C A L V I C T I M I S AT I O N ’ O F I M R A N K H A N

ISLAMABAD

S ta f f R e p o R t

PAKISTAN Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) core committee strongly condemned the “brutal treatment and political victimization” of PTI

Chairman Imran Khan demanding the Supreme Court (SC) to take immediate notice of non-provision of fundamental and constitutional facilities as a former prime minister

The PTI Core Committee in its meeting held here on Tuesday expressed serious concerns about the ill-treatment being meted out with the former prime minister and leader of the Ummah says an official statement

They revealed that the PTI Chairman was being kept in the worst form in solitary

confinement and even his lawyers and personal physician were being given access to him which were condemnable and sheer violations of his constitutional and fundamental rights as well as the court s decisions

The participants expressed anguish that after being jailed as a result of a controversial court decision unnecessary obstacles were being created in the meetings of lawyers and family members

The PTI core committee said that the laws and rights were being flouted to target Chairman Imran Khan of the worst political revenge, adding that a dark history of brutality was being created in the country to keep him in solitary confinement after being put in jail through a most contentious court trial

They stated that all attempts were being made to break the morale of Chairman PTI

by depriving him of very basic facilities in the light of the prison manual and being subjected to such ill-treatment

The participants went on to say that no person including jail staff was allowed to come near their cell or talk to him They said that the unjust delay in the hearing of his bail application after conducting speedy trial to put him in the jail was the worst example of oppression and fascism

They demanded that the SC should take notice of the brutal violation of the fundamental and constitutional rights of the national hero and the former prime minister

The PTI Core Committee demanded that the chairman of the country’s largest party and the nation’s most popular leader should be provided all legal and constitutional rights he was entitled to as a former prime minister of the country without any further delay

US never asked Pakistan to leave CPEC: Masood Khan

MIRPUR ag e n c i e S K a s h m i r i s l i v i n g i n A z a d J a m m u & K a s h m i r a n d I n d i a n I l l e g a l l y o c c u p i e d J a m m u a n d K a s h m i r o n Tu e s d a y o b s e r v e d I n d i a s I n d e p e n d e n c e D a y a s a b l a c k d a y t o m a r k p r o t e s t a g a i n s t l o n g f o r c e d a n d i l l e g a l o c c u p a t i o n o f a large part of Jammu and Kashmir State b y I n d i a

According to the report in district

Mirpur a protest rally was staged to observe the black day, through a unanimously passed resolution warning India to abstain from launching any aggression against Pakistan or Azad Jammu & Kashmir

Every individual of AJK is fully prepared to make a defense of inch after inch of the motherland – shoulder to shoulder with valiant armed forces of Pakistan if India dared to launch any attack against Pakistan or AJK”, the rally declared The rally thanked and paid rich tributes to the people of Pakistan for their unequivocal full support of Kashmiri s struggle for right self-determination

The Indian independence day was marked with mass anti-India protest rallies and demonstrations in all small and major towns in the liberated territory including the capital city of Muzaffarabad Mirpur

Kotli Bhimbher

Rawalakot Bagh Palandri Neelam

Valley, Jhelum valley, Havaili and other towns and villages

People from diverse segments of civil society including social political and other public representative organization attended the rallies holding black flags and wearing black bands around their arms to mark Indian Independence Day as black day

In Mirpur elders of the city representing all segments of life including social and political workers employees of private and public sector organizations besides senior officials led the rally which marched through major city streets including Quid e Azam Chowk Mian Muhammad Road Allama Iqbal Road and central Shaheed chowk

raising zindabad slogans for Pakistan and the valiant armed forces of the country

The rally expressed grave concern over the fast-deteriorating conditions of the people in strife-torn and fully-locked indefinite curfew-riddled Indian held Jammu and Kashmir for the past 10 days India, it said, has latterly turned the occupied J&K state into the world’s largest jail and garrison

The rally through another resolution called upon the international community especially the United Nations to immediately move for getting the special status of the disputed Jammu & Kashmir state restored – for onward early peaceful settlement of the Kashmir issue in line with the UN resolutions

It urged the world body to take immediate notice of history s worst Indian act of state terrorism and aggression let loose against the innocent people in occupied Jammu Kashmir by forcibly revoking the special status of the disputed state

Through another unanimously passed resolution, the rally called upon the world body – UNO, international human rights organizations including Amnesty International Red Cross Human Rights Watch and others to immediately move for ensuring the supply of food and medicines to save the lives of the housedetained people in curfew-riddled occupied Jammu & Kashmir state in general and the Muslim-majority areas of the troubled valley in particular

The rally warned the international community through another resolution that since India was moving for committing the world s largest phased massacre of the freedom-loving population of the Muslim-majority occupied Jammu Kashmir state, it was enjoined upon the United Nations and the United States like super powers besides another civilized world to immediately move for keeping extremist Indian Prime Minister Modi to abstain from this act of state terrorism Otherwise entire world in general and South Asia, in particular, may suffer with the unending global war” it underlined

ISLAMABAD S ta f f R e p o R t

A sessions court in Islamabad on Tuesday dismissed Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief s bail in six cases related to May 9 riots and fake slips of Toshakhana gifts

The courts in Islamabad dismissed overall nine bail pleas in different case of the PTI chief on Tuesday

During the hearing, PTI chairman’s lawyer Mirza Asim Baig appeared before the sessions court

The sessions court judge Muhammad Sohail announced the verdict on the PTI chief s bail plea in six cases which were registered at the Karachi Company Ramna, Kohsar, Tarnol and Secretariat police stations

Judge Muhammad Sohail remarked that it would be better to see the PTI chairman’s appearance in the probe into the said cases He ruled that the pleas seeking an extension in bail cannot be accepted in light of the Supreme Court s (SC) ruling

Earlier in the day an anti-terrorism court (ATC) in Islamabad rejected bail petitions of Pakistan Tehreek-eInsaf (PTI) chairman Imran Khan, who is incarcerated in Attock Jail, in three cases after he could not appear before the court

AT C J u d g e A b u l H a s s a n a n n o u n c e d t h e r e s e r v e d d e c i s i o n i n t h r e e c a s e s a n d r e j e c t e d h i s b a i l p e t i t i o n s a f t e r t h e f o r m e r p r i m e m i n i s t e r f a i l e d t o s h o w u p b e f o r e t h e c o u r t O n F r i d a y, t h e a n t it e r r o r i s m c o u r t i n L a h o r e d i s m i s s e d i n t e r i m b a i l o f t h e P a k i s t a n Te h r e e k - e - I n s a f ( P T I ) c h i e f i n s e v e n c a s e s o v e r n o - s h o w

2 billion, respectively A c a s c a d i n g e ff e c t o f a l l o w a n c e s i n u n d a t e s t h e r e p o r t w i t h o t h e r d e p a r t m e n t s s u c h a s G e n e r a l A d m i n i s t r a t i o n F i n a n c e A u d i t a n d

P l a n n i n g & D e v e l o

currently in jail and cannot appear before the court for bail extension Safdar pleaded with the court not to reject the plea on the technical grounds on which the judge remarked that already your client has been given numerous chances Later, the court dismissed the interim bail pleas of former prime minister and PTI chairman in seven cases I t i s p e r t i n e n t t o m e n t i o n h e r e t h a t P T I C h a i r m a n K h a n w a s a r r e s t e d f r o m h i s L a h o r e r e s i d e n c e o n A u g u s t 5 after he was slapped with a five-year disqualification a n d a t h r e e - y e a r p r i s o n t e r m i n t h e To s h a k h a n a criminal case

ISLAMABAD S ta f f R e p o R t

Pakistani Ambassador to the United States (US) Masood Khan said that the US has never asked Pakistan to leave China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) In an interview with ARY News Masood Khan said that the US helped Pakistan during the recent economic crisis He said that the US not only helped the flood affectees but also urged the UK France Japan and Gulf countries to assist Pakistan in tough times The ambassador that the weapons worth $ 7 billion which were left by the US in Afghanistan are now used against Pakistan The modern weapons are now in the hands of TTP and Daesh and Pakistan needs modern and latest weapons to counter these terrorist groups The US has also agreed to provide modern ammunition to Pakistan He warned that the terrorist groups in Afghanistan are not only a threat to Pakistan but to US too and the regional countries could also be affected by the destabilization in the war-torn country Masood Khan said that Pakistan is ready for talks with India on all issues including the Kashmir dispute and the US has to bring India to the negotiation table Solving the Kashmir dispute is the US s responsibility he added Earlier former prime minister Shehbaz Sharif said that the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is not merely a collection of different projects but a symbol of prosperity and shared development He said, “Over the last ten years, the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) had emerged as a bedrock of Pakistan’s socio-economic trajectory helping to end crippling energy shortages building high-quality infrastructure and promoting connectivity and integration not only within the country s various regions but also with the neighboring countries ”

Singer Asad Abbas passes away

KARACHI S ta f f R e p o R t R e n o w n e d s i n g e r A s a d A b b a s k n o w n f o r h i s a c c o l a d e s p a s s e d a w a y h e r e o n Tu e s d a y S u ff e r i n g f r o m k i d n e y c o m p l i c a t i o n s t h e v o c a l i s t f e l l i n t o a c o m a l a s t n i g h t T h e c o n f i r m a t i o n o f s i n g e r A s a d A b b a s d e m i s e w a s p r o v i d e d b y h i s b r o t h e r H a i d e r A b b a s I t ’s w o r t h n o t i n g t h a t i n r e c e n t d a y s , P a k i s t a n i s i n g e r A s a d A b b a s w a s a w a i t i n g g o v e r n m e n t a i d a s h e b a t t l e d k i d n e y i s s u e s D o c t o r s h a d a d v i s e d h i m f o r a k i d n e y t r a n s p l a n t d u e t o h i s k i d n e y a i l m e n t r e q u i r i n g a s u m o f u p t o R s 5 0 m i l l i o n

Timely elections

TH AT Sindh caretaker CM designate Mr Justice (retd) Maqbool Baqir was so emphatic on the need to hold polls on time and that former Senate Chairman Raza Rabbani demanded a clear timeline for the elections from the Election Commission of Pakistan, showed that at least some politicians feared that delimitations were going to be used an excuse for delay It is now for the ECP to do as Senator Rabbani asks which is to make clear that elections will be held on time, and that delimitations will not be used as an excuse to delay elections

It cannot escape notice that the ECP is responsible for conducting the polls as well as delimiting the constituencies according to the latest census but there has been no overt linkage made in the Constitution for these two tasks, and while there has been no time-limit set for delimitation, there is a very clear one for the conduct of elections It is not the purpose to discuss the merits of previous decisions by the ECP but the fact is that the constitutional time-limit was not observed with KP or Punjab What makes this more worrisome is that it was done in defiance of the Supreme Court, which had ordered the polls held Therefore, the concern that is being expressed should not be dismissed as the effusion of overactive imaginations but taken seriously, and as such dealt with seriously

Of the various crises which were mentioned to argue for the putting off of the KP and Punjab Assembly polls none has passed All that seems to have happened is that the country is no longer on the brink of economic default There seems to be no real control over terrorist activity, and the events of June 9 and the consequent implosion of the PTI is an unknown factor The truth is that no country is ever completely at peace never has any problems Indeed that is why elections are held, because a society has problems and must choose a government which can attempt to solve them That solution might lead to other problems arising, which will then be tackled by a government subsequently elected The Constitution provides a timeframe for elections which has to be followed It is not optional, but compulsory It is perhaps a dangerous sign that the body responsible for the conduct of elections, the ECP, has not come out with a clear statement of intent It should not be forgotten that a caretaker government no matter how prolonged, will always remain a caretaker

L e s s o n s f r o m S i n é a d

O ’ C o n n o r ’ s L i f e a n d D e a t h

Not just a pop singer

In the days that passed between the death and burial of Sinéad O’Connor there was an outpouring of praise for the Irish singer news accounts and op-eds in major media in the USA and Ireland made note of her courageous and prophetic voice If there is a lesson to be learned from Sinéad’s life and the reactions to her passing, it is the importance of calling institutions and nations to account for past sins and the benefits that can accrue to future generations when such a reckoning occurs

While the many causes for which Sinéad fiercely advocated had a single common denominator all were borne of her concern with injustice she is best remembered for an appearance on national television ripping up a photo of Pope John Paul II while admonishing the audience “to fight the real enemy ” Some saw her action as unforgivable The incident haunted her and for a time derailed her career but not for her many fans in Ireland

Ireland, a largely Catholic country, understood Sinéad s anger My wife Eileen was deeply attached to her Irish heritage and her Catholic faith We were frequent visitors to the Emerald Isle and were there in the early 1990s when the newspapers were filled with stories about the Magdalene laundries the homes to which delinquent children and pregnant unwed women were sent and subjected to abuse and forced servitude The expectant mothers worked until their babies were born and taken from them

The Irish press carried pages of photos and interviews with women detailing the abuse they endured and the pain of their loss Also revealed were stories of mothers who died in childbirth and babies who perished (6 000 in all) and were interred in mass graves These reports were compounded by extensive reports of sexual abuse by clergy

Because Sinéad, at the age of 14, had been charged with theft and sentenced to a year and a half in a Magdalene laundry she knew firsthand the indignity of this

incarceration As the Irish media and political leaders would not let the matter rest posting stories and editorials and statements by elected officials many Catholics came to share her rage The Catholic Church in Ireland was held accountable for its past and continues to be humbled by this reckoning

While Sinéad’s legacy of demanding accountability for past injustices was being honored one could not help contrasting it with recent news stories in the USA showing American politicians and US Catholic bishops not only refusing to acknowledge their country s and church s past, but also seeking to erase it

For example, Republican governors and other elected officials in Florida, Texas, and Virginia are demanding changes in the way the USA’s deplorable history of slavery and racism is taught in schools In a crass effort to whitewash slavery that institution is being portrayed as a time in which some blacks learned skills that benefited them post-slavery Eliminated are a detailed accounting of the horrors of Jim Crow segregation and the mass lynchings that took thousands of lives They want a guilt-free past with no accountability nor is sexual abuse a stranger to the US Catholic Church (or for that matter US Protestant denominations or Jewish institutions) Shocking stories of widespread abuse continue to be reported, in dribs and drabs, and soon forgotten, because religious leaders coalesce to sweep their problems away to “protect their institutions ” Or they work to change the subject by asserting that the “real problems” are abortion or gay marriage

While Ireland and its church have been forced to come to terms with the past the USA and its institutions have never fully come to terms with their sins and are moving in the opposite direction

Contrast the shameful coverups of the US bishops with Pope Francis’ apology to Canada’s indigenous peoples for the church’s role in erasing their history and culture or Pope Francis recent meeting with victims of clergy abuse in Portugal

Compare this acknowledgment and apology with America s failure to own up to its crimes of genocide and slavery This refusal to acknowledge and accept responsibility for the injustices of our past has led my compatriots and co-religionists to insist on our collective innocence while making delusional claims of virtue It s become a habit we can t break with con-

Truman, Stalin and the Bir th of the Atomic Age

Lessons for Pakistan and India?

On 6 A u g u s t 1 9 4 5 t h e U S A u nl e a s h e d a p i v o t a l e v e n t i n h u m a n history by dropping an atomic bomb on the Japanese city of Hiroshima forever altering the course of warf a r e T h r e e d a y s l a t e r, a n o t h e r a t o m i c b o m b w a s d e p l o y e d o v e r n a g a s a k i T h e a f t e r m a t h of these devastating explosions resulted in the loss of over 100 000 lives The primary aim of t h e U S A w a s t o e x p e d i t e J a p a n s s u r r e n d e r bring an end to World War II and prevent further casualties among the Allied forces Addit i o n a l l y, t h e U S A s o u g h t t o d e m o n s t r a t e t h e sheer destructive power of its newfound nuclear technology to the world, particularly to the USSR

During the Potsdam Conference in July 1945 shortly after Truman the President of the USA received news of the successful detonation of the world s first nuclear device during the Trinity Test in the remote region of new Mexico, he communicated with the Soviet Premier, Joseph Stalin Truman, along with British Prime Minister Winston Churchill (soon to be succeeded by Clement Attlee) formed the Big Three to decide the future of Germany after World War II

At the Conference, Truman casually informed Stalin about the existence of a new weapon possessing extraordinary destructive capabilities However Stalin appeared relatively disinterested expressing his contentment with the news and hoping for its effective use against Japan In his memoir A Year of Decisions, Truman recounted this encounter For Truman, the successful Trinity Test presented a significant decision: whether to employ this world’s first weapon of mass destruction It also relieved the USA from the necessity of relying on an increasingly hostile USSR to engage in the war against Japan

notably Truman refrained from using the words atomic or nuclear while communicating with Stalin, and it was assumed that the Soviet leader remained unaware of the precise nature of this new weapon However in reality Soviet intelligence had already learned about the US nuclear development programme as early as September 1941 Despite not viewing the nuclear threat with the same gravity as some of his spies due to the pressing issues posed by the German invasion and occupation, Stalin’s reaction to Truman’s words in Potsdam was pivotal Upon hearing the news he promptly instructed his subordinates to accel-

erate their efforts with the physicist Igor Kurchatov leading the Soviet atomic bomb project analogous to J Robert Oppenheimer s role in the Manhattan Project On 6 August 1945, shortly after the conclusion of the Potsdam Conference, the Ameri c a n a i r c r a f t E n o l a G a y c a r r i e d o u t a m o m e n t o u s m i s s i o n r e l e a s i n g t h e u r a n i u m bomb codenamed Little Boy over the city of H i r o s h i m a J a p a n T h i s a c t i o n h a d p r o f o u n d and devastating consequences Contrary to the U S A s e x p e c t a t i o n s , J a p a n d i d n o t i m m e d iately surrender unconditionally Subsequently, on August 8, Soviet forces launched an invasion of Japanese-occupied Manchuria which violated a previously agreed non-aggression pact with Japan Harkin contends that the Sov i e t o ff e n s i v e w o u l d h a v e h a d a n i m p a c t o n Japanese morale comparable to that of the initial atomic bomb He explains, The Japanese government’s last hope, the peace faction, relied on the Soviet Union to mediate peace negotiations with the United States as a neutral i n t e r m e d i a r y H o w e v e r t h e i n v a s i o n o f M a n c h u r i a b y t h e S o v i e t U n i o n d a s h e d t h i s

hope definitively

On August 9, the USA deployed the Fat

Man” plutonium bomb on the city of nagasaki

The combined destructive force of these two bombs caused the deaths of over 300 000 people including both immediate casualties and those who succumbed later to radiation exposure and other lasting effects of the explosions

After that, Emperor Hirohito announced Japan’s unconditional surrender through a radio address on August 15, effectively bringing an end to World War II

The peace discussions at Yalta like those at Potsdam highlighted the deepening ideological divide between the USSR and its Western allies, particularly concerning the fate of E a s t e r n E u r o p e E v e n t o t h i s d a y, h i s t o r i a n s continue to debate the motivation behind the Truman Administration’s decision to employ atomic weapons Some argue that it may have

By 1949, any prospects of cooperation had evaporated. On August 29, the USSR successfully conducted its own nuclear test, causing a 20kiloton explosion, similar in magnitude to the Trinity test

b e e n i n f l u e n c e d b y p o l i t i c a l c o n s i d e r a t i o n s s u c h a s a t t e m p t i n g t o i n t i m i d a t e t h e U S A r a t h e r t h a n s o l e l y f o r m i l i t a r y p u r p o s e s A s Professor Campbell-Craig, an expert in Intern a t i o n a l R e l a t i o n s a t C a r d i ff U n i v e r s i t y S c h o o l o f L a w a n d P o l i t i c s a n d c o - a u t h o r o f T h e A t o m i c B o m b a n d t h e O r i g i n s o f t h e C o l d Wa r points out the secretive nature of the bomb s development led to a lack of formal discussions and a multitude of interpretat i o n s o n t h e s u b j e c t R e g a r d l e s s o f t h e intentions behind the bombings of Hiroshima and nagasaki, Stalin perceived the US possess i o n o f a t o m i c w e a p o n s a s a d i r e c t t h r e a t t o t h e U S S R a n d i t s p o s i t i o n i n t h e p o s t w a r g l o b a l o r d e r C o n s e q u e n t l y h e s o u g h t t o a c h i e v e a b a l a n c e o f p o w e r C o n c u r r e n t l y t h r o u g h n u c l e a r e s p i o n a g e S o v i e t s c i e n t i s t s made significant progress towards developing their own atomic bomb In The Truman Administration, there were p r o p o n e n t s o f c o o p e r a t i o n w i t h t h e U S S R viewing it as the sole means to avert a nuclear arms race However as early as 1946 an opp o s i n g p e r s p e c t i v e a r t i c u l a t e d b y G e o rg e Cannon, an official in the State Department, i n h i s r e n o w n e d L o n g Te l e g r a m , s i g n i f icantly influenced the formulation of the Trum a n D o c t r i n e a n d t h e p o l i c y o f “containment” toward Soviet and communist expansionism worldwide deeming it a more e ff e c t i v e a p p r o a c h S u b s e q u e n t l y i n 1 9 4 6 during the inaugural gathering of the United n a t i o n s A t o m i c E n e rg y C o m m i s s i o n ( U n A E C ) , t h e U S A i n t r o d u c e d t h e B a r u c h Plan This plan called upon the USSR to divulge comprehensive details of its nuclear ene rg y p r o g r a m m e a n d s u b j e c t i t s f a c i l i t

sequences for our present and future behaviour

The USA is the only nation to have used nuclear weapons and we did so without telling the Japanese about the long-term impact of radiation on civilians who years later continued to suffer from radioactive poisoning We dropped millions of tons of bombs on Vietnam and Afghanistan and Iraq, making victims of millions of innocents And as late as the last decade we freely used gross forms of torture as a weapon to extract information from prisoners and tried to justify this practice with shockingly detailed legal memos written by Bush Administration officials

Despite this sordid history, we continue to maintain our claims of innocence and our right to be the standard-bearers of virtue This sense of impunity is what comes from never being forced to reckon with our past as the Irish and the Irish Catholic Church were forced to reckon with theirs

This, then, is the lesson from Sinéad O Connor s life and death: the importance of calling nations and institutions to accept responsibility for their pasts, and the humility and the possibility of changed behaviour that can accompany this acknowledgment

The writer is President of the Arab American Institute

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

Gov t vehicles and their misuse

J U S T take a look at the parking area of any federal government building in any city An official vehicle stops and the driver opens the door and drops off some gentleman before going back to the latter ’s official home where the lady of the house will be waiting to go for picking up their children from educational institutions Besides the driver takes the lady to the shopping centre beauty parlour and to her friend for lunch at a restaurant as part of daily routine

There is a high tendency amongst government officials and their families to use official vehicles for their personal purposes This kind of scenes can be easily seen in front of any government office and in its parking area where imported automatic expensive vehicles of latest models bearing official number plates can be seen parked All of them are naturally purchased by the public exchequer Their drivers also keep these vehicles chilled by keeping the air-conditioner on much before the gentleman returns This is a common practice by most government officials and their families who use official vehicles for their personal purposes and activities, without any sense of moral obligations and accountability The use of official vehicles can be observed in any city during working days, weekends and holidays on the roads around shopping areas at wedding receptions and other ceremonies and at picnic spots

Sometimes during the personal use for a long journey out of the municipal limits these official vehicles often get involved in road accidents for which the departments bear heavy expenses on repairs

We are already facing an economic crisis and the country is under heavy foreign debts This has made it economically dependent on the International Monetary Fund (IMF) But despite this alarming situation the country’s bureaucracy has refused to change its lavish lifestyle

Due to the current financial crisis petrol has gone beyond the reach of the common man as well as low-cadre government employees The government should introduce a car-sharing scheme and pick-and-drop facility for government officials by utilising large buses and vans, like private-sector industrial enterprises do

Besides, the name of the department and its logo must be put on both sides of official vehicles so that they can be identified easily There should be a ban on unnecessary use of official vehicles and in an emergency situation pool cars/staff cars should be used by the officials ISRAR AYOUBI KARACHI

Solar energy

T H E importance of adopting rooftop solar panels to cut individual’s electricity costs while supplying excess energy to the national grid However thinking on national scale we have to invest in larger solar power plants to reduce dependence on imported fossil fuel-powered plants at high speed in the country

Already, we have wasted a lot of precious time by ignoring this seriously inexpensive source of abundant renewable energy, which at the moment only contributes 1 6 per cent to the total energy mix

By merely relying on rooftop solar panels, we cannot increase the share of renewables to 30pc by 2030 as advised by the World Bank We should have moved quickly towards solarisation on a bulk scale particularly when recently its prices have come down internationally Many other countries seized this opportunity and their solar energy penetration in the total energy mix stands between 10pc and 40pc We should do the same Why shouldn t we?

This, then, is the lesson from Sinéad OÊConnorÊs life and death: the impor tance of calling nations and institutions to accept responsibility for their pasts, and the humility and the possibility of chang ed behaviour that can accompany this acknowledgment

Dr MuhaMMaD akraM Zaheer

IT was due to the selfless unity among the Muslims under the leadership of Quaid-i-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah that Pakistan became a tangible reality on 14 August 1947 But, that unity started declining after passing through various crises, and the result was separation of East Pakistan in 1971, as India manipulated differences between East Pakistan and West Pakistan

Although August 14 is celebrated every year as the Independence Day this year it has come at a time when Pakistan is facing multiple threats of grave nature externally and internally, which are worrying all the citizens

In fact, Pakistan is facing a hybrid war which needs special attention

According to a definition hybrid war is a military strategy in which conventional warfare is integrated with tactics such as covert operations and cyber-attacks the use of a range of different methods to attack an enemy

In April 2018 the then COAS, Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa, had said that hybrid war had been “imposed on Pakistan to internally weaken it ”

Besides some US-led western countries including Israel and particularly India are waging a hybrid war against Pakistan owing to its being the only nuclear country in the Islamic world However during the partition of the Sub-continent, the people of the state of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) which comprised a Muslim majority, decided to join Pakistan But, Dogra Raja, Sir Hari Singh a Hindu who was ruling over the J&K in collusion with the Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal nehru and Governor General Lord Mountbatten joined India

The Radcliffe Boundary Award gave the Gurdaspur District a majority Muslim area to India to provide a land route to the Indian forces to move into Kashmir Indian forces invaded Srinagar on 27 October 1947 and forcibly occupied Kashmir in utter violation of the partition plan When Pakistan responded militarily on 31 December 1947 India made an appeal to the Un Security Council to intervene and a ceasefire ultimately came into effect on 1 January 1949 following Un resolutions calling for a plebiscite in Kashmir

On 5 February 1964, India backed out of its commitment of holding a plebiscite Instead, the Indian Parliament declared Kashmir-an integral part of the Indian

P a k i s t a n f a c e s H y b r i d W a r

union

It is notable that this year August 5 was the fourth anniversary of India s revocation of the special status of the disputed territory of the Indian Occupied Kashmir

On 5 August 2019, prejudiced Indian Prime Minister and leader of the BJP-led extremist government narendra Modi abrogated articles 35A and 370 of the Indian Constitution which gave a special status to the disputed territory of Indian Occupied Kashmir The Indian government bifurcated Jammu and Kashmir into two union territories Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh, to be ruled by the federal government On the same day, strict military lockdown was imposed in the Indian Occupied Kashmir which continues unabated new Delhi also issued an infamous map on 31 October 2019 which displayed this split and identifies the Pakistani side of Azad Kashmir as well as certain areas of Gilgit-Baltistan as Indian territory

Apart from Pakistan, China also rejected the Indian malicious acts as “unlawful and void”, saying that India’s decision to “include” some of China’s territory into its administrative jurisdiction “challenged” Beijing’s sovereignty The border dispute between India and China which remains unsettled has increased tension between the two countries

And the deployment of more than 900,000 military troops in the Indian Occupied Kashmir, who have martyred tens of thousands of the Kashmiris, including women and children through brutal tactics and fake en-

A t t h i s c r i t i c a l m o m e n t , t h e fo r m e r g ov e r n m e n t o f t h e P D M , t h e P T I , c i v i l s o c i e t y b o d i e s a n d m e d i a ow n e rs , t h e A r my, a n d a l l o t h e r s e g m e n t s o f s o c i e t y mu s t s h ow s e l f l e s s n a t i o n a l u n i t y p r a c t i c a l ly, w h i c h i s v e r y e s s e n t i a l t o p u l l t h e c o u n t r y o u t o f t h e o n g o i n g s e r i o u s c r i s e s a n d t o s u c c e s s f u l ly c o p e w i t h t h e hy b r i d w a r, a n d t o m e e t t h e I n d i a n w a r- m o n g e r i n g d e s i g n s

The Afghan Independent Human R ights Commission has been dissolved and the countr y ’s 2004 constitution repealed, while legislation guaranteeing gender equalit y has been invalidated

CONVERSATION

V r n Da n a r a i n

TH E second anniversary of the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan is fast approaching Since then Afghan women have been denied the most basic human rights in what can only be described as gender apartheid

Only by labelling it as such and making clear the situation in Afghanistan is a crime against humanity can the international community legally fight the systematic discrimination against the country s women and girls

Erasing women from the public sphere is central to Taliban ideology Women’s rights institutions in Afghanistan, notably the Ministry of Women’s Affairs have been dismantled while the dreaded Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice has been resurrected The Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission has been dissolved and the country s 2004 constitution repealed, while legislation guaranteeing gender equality has been invalidated Today Afghan women are denied a post-secondary education they cannot leave the house without a male chaperone they cannot work except in health care and some private businesses and they are barred from parks, gyms and beauty salons

WOMEN TARGETED: Of the approximately 80 edicts issued by the Taliban, 54 specifically target women severely restricting their rights and violating Afghanistan s international obligations and its previous constitutional and domestic laws

The Taliban appear undeterred, continuing where they left off 20 years ago when they first held power The results of their ambitions are nearly apocalyptic Afghanistan is facing one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises About 19 million people are suffering from acute food insecurity while more than 90 per cent of Afghans are experiencing some form of food insecurity, with female-headed households and children most impacted

Gender-based violence has increased exponentially with corresponding impunity for the perpetrators and lack of support for the victims while ethnic religious and sexual minorities are suffering intense persecution This grim reality underscores the urgent need to address how civil, political, socioeconomic and genderbased harms are interconnected

INTERNATIONAL CRIME: Karima Bennoune an Algerian-American international law scholar has advocated recognizing gender apartheid as a crime under international law Such recognition would stem from states international legal commitments to gender equality and the United nations’ Sustainable Development Goal 5 aimed at achieving global gender equality by 2030

Criminalizing gender apartheid would provide the international community with a powerful legal framework to effectively respond to Taliban abuses While the Un has already labelled the situation in Afghanistan gender apartheid, the term is not currently recognized under the Rome

Statute of the International Criminal Court as being among the worst international crimes Presenting his report at the Un Human Rights Council, Richard Bennett the Un Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Afghanistan stated: A grave systematic and institutionalized discrimination against women and girls is at the heart of Taliban ideology and rule, which also gives rise to concerns that they may be responsible for gender apartheid ” Criminalizing gender apartheid globally would allow the international community to fulfil its obligation to respond effectively and try to eradicate it permanently It would provide the necessary legal tools to ensure that international commitments to women s rights in all aspects of life are upheld

Shaharzad Akbar, head of the Rawadari human rights group and former chair of the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission has urged the Human Rights Council to acknowledge the situation in Afghanistan as gender apartheid She s noted that the Taliban have turned Afghanistan to a mass graveyard of Afghan women and girls ambitions, dreams and potential ”

SOUTH AFRICAN SUPPORT: A number of Afghan women’s rights defenders have also called for the inclusion of gender apartheid in the Un s Draft Convention on Crimes Against Humanity Most remarkably, Bronwen Levy, South Africa s representative at the Security Council, has urged the international community to “take action against what (Bennett’s) report describes as gender apartheid much like it did in support of South Africa s struggle against racial apartheid

Elsewhere the chair of the European Parliament s Committee on Women s Rights and Gender Equality, as well as the head of its Delegation for Relations with Afghanistan, have described the “unacceptable” situation in Afghanistan as one of gender apartheid

Whenever and wherever apartheid systems emerge it represents a failure of the international community The situation in Afghanistan must compel it to respond effectively to the persecution of women

Recognizing Taliban rule as gender apartheid is not only critical for Afghans it is equally critical for the credibility of the entire Un system As Afghan human rights activist

Zubaida Akbar told the Security Council: If you do not defend women s rights here, you have no credibility to do so anywhere else

The Taliban’s brutal two years in power in Afghanistan have taught us that ordinary human rights initiatives while important are insufficient for addressing gender apartheid

The world needs resolute collective international action to end the war on women not in two months not in two years But now

counters while closure of mosques shortage of foods medicines for the patients have further increased the suffering of the Kashmiris

In order to hide human rights violations, communication services have been cut off from the world and foreign journalists are not allowed to enter the Kashmir region

Under a well-planned hidden agenda the Modi-led regime has intensified bringing ethno- demographic changes in Indian Occupied Kashmir

In this context

various Indian moves such as introduction of new laws, amendment of the laws to facilitate non-Kashmiris and outsiders in order to usurp the rights of the Muslim Kashmiris issuance of domicile certificates to more than 800 000 non-Kashmiris registration of almost 2 5 million new non-local voters in Indian Occupied Kashmir the failure of fake drama to host G-20 summit on May 22-24 there, from time to time, violations of the Line of Control by shelling inside the Pakistani side of Kashmir, in violation of the ceasefire agreement of 2003, might be cited as instances

Tension escalated rapidly between India and Pakistan in the aftermath of the false flag Pulwama terror attack in Indian Occupied Kashmir when on 27 February 2018 in response to the Indian so-called pre-emptive air strike near the town of Balakot, close to the border with Pakistan s sector of Kashmir, which resulted into no casualties, Pakistan Air Force shot down two Indian Air Force fighter jets and launched aerial strikes at six targets in Indian Occupied Kashmir Pakistan also captured Indian pilot Wg Cdr Abhinandan Varthaman who was released as a gesture of peace and handed over to the Indian authorities It resulted in the diplomatic victory of Islamabad over new Delhi notably, Indian Prime Minister Modi’s party BJP won by a landslide in the 2014 nD 2019 elections During the campaign the Hindu majority was mobilized on hate-Muslim and anti-Pakistan slogans Hence Modi continues anti-Muslim policies In this context Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh s recent threat to cross the LoC, Indian cross-border terrorism in Pakistan and backing of militant outfits to destabilize this country show the Indian unfinished agenda of partition Under Modi’s fanatic regime led by biased Hindu parties India has become a fascist country In this respect The New York Times wrote on 9 August: In Manipur Christians are bearing the brunt as the state s B J P government stokes the insecurities of the majority ethnic Meitei, who are predominantly Hindu State leaders have blamed the Kuki tribes who are mostly Christian, for poppy cultivation intended for the drug trade and evicted some of them from their forest habitats The specific trigger for the current violence was a court ruling in the state in favor of granting the Meitei affirmative action provisions and other benefits that have long been enjoyed by the Kuki and other tribes, which sparked a protest by

tribal communities opposed to the ruling Emboldened by the state government s rhetoric Meitei militias in Manipur have gone on a rampage of raping, pillaging, looting police armories and burning villages More than 250 churches have been burned down”

Indian authorities imposed a curfew in various parts of northern Haryana state after the violence began on July 31 nevertheless a Manipur-like bloody game is being played by the biased Hindus against the Muslims Regrettably under the cover of so-called democracy some irresponsible leaders of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and recently-ruling alliance of the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) have changed their political differences into political enmity These rival entities also blamed each other regarding this year ’s May 9 events attacks on the military and civil installations which have been condemned by every segment of society now, instead of decreasing, political unrest in Pakistan is rapidly increasing, taking the country towards lawlessness At this critical juncture, Pakistan is facing multi-faceted crises and challenges like corruption, inflation soaring prices of commodities energy-shortage lack of investment upsurge of the US dollar increase in oil prices load shedding inability of the importers to open letters of credit due to lack of dollars etc and continued dependence upon the US-led developed countries, IMF and World Bank for financial aid and decline in the foreign exchange reserves of the State Bank of Pakistan

As regards the Independence Day 23 March 1940 was a watershed in the history of the Subcontinent when the All India Muslim League passed the Resolution in Lahore for the creation of an independent state Earlier in his address to the Muslim League at Allahabad in 1930, the idea of a homeland for Muslims in their majority areas had been envisioned by the poet Allama Sir Muhammad Iqbal, and had become the aspiration of Indian Muslims

Prior to the Lahore session of Muslim League Muhammad Ali Jinnah had specified to this historical congregation of the Muslims the watchwords of Faith Unity and Discipline which were not only necessary for waging the battle for an independent homeland, but also for present Pakistan The essence of these watchwords is unity

Therefore, at this critical moment, the former government of the PDM the PTI civil society bodies and media owners the Army and all other segments of society must show selfless national unity practically which is very essential to pull the country out of the ongoing serious crises and to successfully cope with the hybrid war, and to meet the Indian war-mongering designs

Undoubtedly, the country’s security agencies, especially the Pakistan Army, have been successfully coping with hybrid war or fifth-generation warfare But the rest of the country must join in

Sajjad Shaukat writes on international affairs and is author of the book: US vs Islamic Militants Invisible

Balance of Power: Dangerous Shift in International Relations and can be reached at: sajjad logic@yahoo com

K a z a k h s t a n , t h e l a rg e s t co u nt r y i n Ce nt ra l A s i a , b o t h g e o g ra p h i c a l l y a n d e co n o m i c a l l y, i s re a d y to wo r k w i t h t h e U n i te d St ate s to s u p p o r t Af g h a n i s t a n’s d e ve l o p m e nt a n d re g i o n a l i nte g rat i o n

AF G H A n I S TA n ’ S situation has worsened since the U Sled coalition withdrew from the country in 2021 According to the United nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan, the country remains the world’s largest humanitarian crisis in 2023 Almost half of its population 23 million people received assistance from the World Food Programme last year Two-thirds of the country s population is food insecure including 875,000 children facing acute malnutrition The security situation is not much better According to a U S military assessment Afghanistan has once again become a significant coordination site for radical militants There has been a rise in terrorist groups such as ISIS-K and Al Qaeda which threaten stability in Afghanistan and create concern that terrorist activity may soon spread beyond its borders

Despite these threats Afghanistan has largely disappeared from the media and is no longer considered a major priority for the United States and its allies

However, disengaging from the issue of Afghanistan would be a mistake Instead, Washington and its allies in the West should cooperate with Central Asian countries to reintegrate Afghanistan into regional economic and security structures and ensure the country s stability and development In the medium to long term, this would support the interests of the United States There are several reasons for this

Firstly stability in Afghanistan will reduce the spread of terrorism and extremism The United States knows all too well the destruction that terrorist organizations can cause around the world and the financial burden of combatting their threat Brown University’s Cost of War Project estimated that the United States spent over $8 trillion on the War on Terror The global terrorism threat has largely subsided recently particularly in Western countries, yet an unstable Afghanistan could lead to a resurgence of terrorist activity Organizations such as Al Qaeda and ISIL have yet to regenerate formidable external attack capabilities but they have been growing in strength in some areas of Afghanistan It is therefore paramount to stamp out this threat before it expands The economic development of Afghanistan, which would create legitimate job opportunities and take millions out of poverty would also stem the influence of terrorist organizations over the Afghan population

Secondly an economically secure and viable Afghanistan would facilitate

the war on drugs in the country This issue impacts the whole world as most of Afghanistan’s illicit drugs are exported abroad with some reaching American shores When the Taliban took over in 2021 Afghanistan produced 85 percent of the world s opium However, the de facto government has proved exceptionally successful in its own war on drugs Afghan poppy production has plummeted by an estimated 80 percent in the last year

This is welcome news However given the state of Afghanistan s economy and the country s humanitarian situation, a successful war on drugs could create new problems The total value of Afghanistan’s opium production in 2021 lay between $1 8 to $2 7 billion up to 14 percent of the country s GDP Unless the government can find other means of sustaining its economy, the temptation to restart drug production and trade will be high In addition, unless the narcotics industry workforce can find alternative job opportunities they will likely return to the illicit sector This would harm every country where Afghan narcotics flow including the United States Furthermore, the Taliban s ban on poppy farming could stimulate an outflow of refugees looking for work Europe, which is already struggling to deal with a refugee crisis would certainly be a viable destination In the short term humanitarian aid can prevent this situation But in the long term emphasis should be placed on rural development and growing an economy that can generate lawful jobs and opportunities

Kazakhstan the largest country in Central Asia both geographically and economically is ready to work with the United States to support Afghanistan s development and regional integration Most Central Asian countries have pursued a strategy based on the assumption that cooperation and engagement with Afghanistan particularly in the economic sphere will promote stability That s why Kazakhstan has provided humanitarian aid to the Afghan people and developed bilateral trade and economic links

Afghanistan and Kazakhstan achieved a trade turnover of nearly $1 billion over the past year a two-fold increase compared to the year before Kazakh exports to Afghanistan make up $978 million of that amount We aim to reach $3 billion in mutual trade within several years Such progress in bilateral trade can contribute to increased regional connectivity, as well as the improvement of supply chains and energy routes While the Central Asian region stands to gain the

most from this, the United States and its allies would benefit as well Last year, the Biden administration launched the Economic Resilience Initiative in Central Asia to catalyze economic growth across the region expand alternative trade routes, increase shipping capacity and enhance infrastructure along TransCaspian trade routes Afghanistan can play a key role here A glance at the map shows that Afghanistan is a bridge connecting Central Asia India and the Persian Gulf enabling access to Pakistan s seaports of Karachi and Gwadar, then to India, the Middle East, and Africa T h a t ’s w h y K a z a k h s t a n h a s s u pported the initiative to build the Mazari - S h a r i f - K a b u l - P e s h a w a r R a i l w a y facilitating uninterrupted interregional c o o p e r a t i o n b e t w e e n C e n t r a l A s i a S o u t h A s i a a n d t h e M i d d l e E a s t J u s t recently, Kazakhstan sent several trucks o n a n e w t r a d e r o u t e t o P a k i s t a n t h r o u g h A f g h a n i s t a n , c o v e r i n g a d i st a n c e o f 4 0 0 0 k i l o m e t e r s T h e U n i t e d States has an interest in the creation of n e w s u p p l y c h a i n s a n d t r a d e r o u t e s c r i s s c r o s s i n g E u r a s i a I n t e g r a t i o n o f A f g h a n i s t a n w o u l d s i g n i f i c a n t l y a dvance this process

Importantly, the Taliban have confirmed Afghanistan’s readiness to act as a trade corridor and become a participant in international and regional business dealings Their senior government representatives voiced this during the recent Kazakh-Afghan business forum in Astana, Kazakhstan s capital The United States should make use of this window of opportunity

During recent talks with the Taliban Washington representatives confirmed that the United States is open to discussions on economic stability and continued dialogue on counternarcotics This is a move in the right direction We also welcome the fact that the United States raised the issue of women’s rights with the Taliban as Kazakhstan supports the protection of the rights and freedoms of women in Afghanistan The next step should be for the United States to work with Kazakhstan and other Central Asian countries to reintegrate Afghanistan into the regional economic structures This will reduce the threat of extremism and terrorism limit the spread of narcotics and expand alternative trade routes objectives that are in the common interest of Central Asia and the United States

Ta l g a t K a l i y e v i s A m b a s s a d o r- a t -

at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs

The Taliban’s war on women in Afghanistan must be formally recognized as gender apar theid

The US should welcome regional engagement with Afghanistan

HOW MUCH WORSE CAN CHINA’S ECONOMIC SLOWDOWN GET?

PR OFIT

r e u t e r S

CHINA’S economic activity data for July, including retail sales, industrial output and investment failed to match expectations fuelling concern over a deeper longer-lasting slowdown in growth

THE DEMISE OF CHINA’S GROWTH HAS BEEN MISTAKENLY FORECAST BEFORE IS THIS TIME DIFFERENT?

Activity data has been missing forecasts since the beginning of the second quarter with the weakness raising worries that China s economy is coming closer to a crunch point

It would not be for the first time

Alarm bells over growth rang during the global financial crisis in 2008-09 and during a capital outflow scare in 2015 China came out of those with a shock boost to infrastructure investment and by encouraging property market speculation, among other

measures

But infrastructure upgrades have created too much debt and the property bubble has already burst posing risks to financial stability

Given China s debt-fuelled investment in infrastructure and property has peaked, and as exports are slowing in line with the global economy China only has one other source of demand to tinker with: household consumption In that sense this slowdown is different

Whether China bounces back largely depends on whether it can convince households to spend more and save less, and whether they will do so to such an extent that consumer demand compensates for weaknesses elsewhere in the economy

WHY ARE ECONOMISTS FOCUSING ON HOUSEHOLD DEMAND?

Unlike consumers in the West, Chinese people were left largely to fend for themselves during the COVID-19 pandemic and the revenge spending spree that some economists expected after China re-opened

Oil Dips Amidst Concerns About China’s Faltering Economic Recover y

never took place But household consumption as a percentage of gross domestic product (GDP) was among the lowest in the world even before COVID with economists identifying it as a key structural imbalance in an economy relying too heavily on debtfuelled investment conomists blame weak domestic demand for subdued investment appetite in the private sector and for China sliding into deflation in July If it persists deflation could exacerbate the economic slowdown and deepen debt problems

The imbalance between consumption and investment is deeper than Japan’s before it entered its “lost decade” of stagnation in the 1990s

HOW BAD CAN THE SLOWDOWN GET?

The July activity data has prompted some economists to flag risks that China may struggle to meet its growth target of about 5% for the year without more fiscal stimulus

That is still much higher growth than

many other major economies will see but for one that invests roughly 40% of its GDP every year – about twice as much as the United States invests – it remains a disappointing result

There is also uncertainty about China s appetite for large fiscal stimulus, given the high levels of municipal debt Stress in the property market which accounts for about a quarter of economic activity raises further concern about the ability of policymakers to arrest the decline in growth

Some economists warn that investors will have to get used to much lower growth

A minority of them even raise the prospect of Japan-like stagnation

But other economists say many consumers and small businesses may already feel economic pain as deep as during a recession, given youth unemployment rates above 21% and deflationary pressures weighing on profit margins

WILL INTEREST RATE CUTS HELP?

China s central bank surprised markets

On National Ecology Day, Xi urges to raise awareness, commitment

BEIJING S ta f f C o r r e S P o n d e n t

Verdant villages prospering in eastern China’s Zhejiang Province, Yangtze finless porpoise, also called the “panda in the water” for its rarity being spotted more often in rivers scientific expedition team members seeing lakes on the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau with clearer water all these significant changes over the past decades have marked China’s continuous efforts to achieve a core concept that “lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets ” which gave inspiration to the country s first National Ecology Day

On August 15 China s first National Ecology Day, Chinese President Xi Jinping has urged the whole society to vigorously promote and act as role models in practicing the concept that lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets Ecological conservation is of vital importance for the sustainable development of the Chinese nation, Xi said On the new journey of building a modern socialist country in all aspects, efforts should be made to maintain strategic resolve in advancing ecological progress and promote h i g h - q u a lity development in sync with h i g h - s t a n -

dard protection, Xi said

With a focus on carbon peaking and carbon neutrality the country should facilitate the gradual transition from dual control over the amount and intensity of energy consumption to dual control over the amount and intensity of carbon emissions, Xi noted The country has already set ambitious goals of peaking carbon emissions by 2030 and achieving carbon neutrality by 2060

Observers believe that the National Ecology Day will not only help raise ecological awareness across society, but also provide an opportunity to share China’s story of ecological civilization construction with the international community allowing better participation in global environmental and climate governance

Today marks the inaugural National Ecology Day, a pioneering and symbolic commemoration, reflecting the significant position of ecological civilization construction in the new era Wang Wenbin spokesperson of the Chinese Foreign Ministry said at a press conference on Tuesday It embodies the steadfast determination to promote the construction of a Beautiful China and also demonstrates China’s firm stance in actively participating in global environmental and climate governance as well as its commitment to fostering a shared future for humanity

VIGOROUS EFFORTS

According to a bluebook on China s

Jamaat-e-Islami leader buried after violent protests in Bangladesh

DHAKA: Around 50,000 people attended Tuesday’s funeral Jamaat-e-Islami leader in Bangladesh police said after news of his death while he was in prison for war crimes prompted violent anti-government protests Delwar Hossain Sayedee, 83, was sentenced to death in 2013 for rape murder and the persecution of Hindu Bangladeshis during the country s independence war decades earlier He died on Monday after suffering a heart attack in a prison outside Dhaka prompting protests in the capital that turned violent when police moved in to disperse them a f P

ecological conservation red lines released by the Ministry of Natural Resources on Tuesday the red line of ecological conservation is approximately 3 19 million square kilometers covering all 35 priority areas for biodiversity conservation in China and over 90 percent of typical ecological system types

The ecological conservation red line refers to areas within an ecological space that have particularly important ecological functions and must be strictly protected on a mandatory basis, including water conservation, biodiversity maintenance, soil and water conservation, windbreak and sand fixation, and coastal ecological stability as well as environmentally sensitive and fragile areas prone to soil erosion land desertification rock desertification and salinization

China is a mega-diverse country in terms of biodiversity The protection of biodiversity has been elevated to a national strategy and has become a consensus and action for the entire society Ma

Jun director of the Beijing-based Institute of Public and Environmental Affairs told on Tuesday

Over the past years, China has actively promoted biodiversity conservation, taking a series of robust measures, including the innovative establishment of the ecological conservation red line system Ma said

Based on what we have observed

by cutting interest rates on Tuesday

But economists warn the cuts are too small to make a meaningful difference their primary role being to send a signal to markets that authorities are ready to stimulate the economy Deeper cuts may also create risks of yuan depreciation and capital outflows which China will be keen to avoid WHAT WOULD HELP?

conomists want to see measures that would boost the household consumption share of the GDP

O p t i o n s i n c l u d e g o v e r n m e n t - f u n d e d c o n s u m e r v o u c h e r s , s i g n i f i c a n t t a x c u t s , e n c o u r a g i n g f a s t e r w a g e g r o w t h b u i l di n g a s o c i a l s a f e t y n e t w i t h h i g h e r p e ns i o n s u n e m p l o y m e n t b e n e f i t s a n d b e t t e r a n d m o r e w i d e l y a v a i l a b l e p u bl i c s e r v i c e s No such steps have been flagged at a recent Communist Party leadership meeting, but economists are looking to a key party conference in December for more profound structural reforms

the demarcation of the ecological red line has been essentially completed across the entire country,” he added Besides drawing the red lines Chin e s e a u t h o r i t i e s m a k e f u l l u s e o f r es o u r c e s s u c h a s s a t e l l i t e s m a n n e d a n d u n m a n n e d a i r c r a f t f i x e d g r o u n d a n d mobile patrol monitoring to construct an integrated ecological quality monitoring network from “sky to ground,” according to the Ministry of Ecology and Environment Those monitoring measures f o c u s o n n a t u r a l r e s e r v e s e c o l o g i c a l conservation red lines and key ecological function areas Huang Runqiu head of the ministry, told a press conference on July 27

More than over 5,000 key issues were identified in national nature reserves and 79 ecological damage issues were found in five pilot provinces with ecological conservation red lines up to July 27

Currently, China has over 30 laws on ecological and environmental protection, more than 100 administrative regulations, and over 1,000 local regulations, the National People’s Congress said in a post on Tuesday They lay a solid foundation for establishing and improving the system of ecological civilization Chinese authorities released a guideline on Tuesday to enhance the integration of law enforcement and administering justice in forestry and grassland affairs

Jointly issued by the Supreme People s Procuratorate and the National Forestry and Grassland Administration the guideline is centered on building a coordination mechanism for administrative law enforcement and prosecutorial public interest litigation in forestry and grassland affairs

CORPORATE CORNER

S C d i S m i S S e S C o n t e m p t C a S e a g a i n S t

ISLAMABAD S TA F F R E P O R T

tH E Supreme Court (SC) of Pakistan on Tuesday dismissed a contempt petition against Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader and former federal minister Ahsan Iqbal

Hameed

A two-member bench headed by the CJP Umar Atta Bandial heard the case and dismissed contempt proceedings against PML-N general secretary

During the hearing the CJP said that he finds no ground to continue contempt proceedings against the PML-N in A five-

year-old case Ahsan Iqbal is a decent man and he might have said something in emotions,” remarked CJP Bandial

The CJP said that no one is above the law and under Article 204 of the constitution contempt of court action against individuals rests with the top court

On May 2, 2018, a contempt of court petition was filed against the then federal interior minister Ahsan Iqbal In the petition, contempt of court action was requested against the interior minister for making an anti-judiciary statement

The petitioner urged the court to disqualify Ahsan under Articles 63 and 62 of the Constitution

Dollar East Exchange, UBL sign MoU to strengthening of strategic par tnership

PARC Chairman Dr Ghulam Muhammad Ali hoists national flag at National Agricultural Research Centre Islamabad to mark Independence Day PR

IESCO power suspension schedule for today

below mentioned feeders/areas will be temporary suspended as per given schedule:

On 16th August 2023 From 07:00 AM to 12:00

Noon Rawalpindi City Circle F-17/1 & 2 Nogzi

Lakho Road, Officer Colony, HPT Radio Pak, Ameer Hamza, Foreign Office, I-14/4 , Noon, I-14/3, Pindhoon, Medina Colony, Bajniyal, Zafarul Haq, Committee Chowk, Arya Mohalla, Dhok Khaba

Feeders Islamabad Circle Comsat Chhata

Bakhtawar Park Enclave Lahtrar Tramiri ISI

Rahara PHA Kuri Road CM Pak Zong Isolation Hospital, Anguri, NCP, Mangyal, Shahdara, Shahpur, Khayaban Iqbal, Pir Suhawah, Quaid-e-Azam University, Punjab House, Bri Imam, Mandala, Athal, NIH, Highway, Service Road East, Zia Masjid, Iqbal Town, Fazahiya Feeders, Rawalpindi Cantt Circle Morgah Park View Pindi Board FFH IST

New Rawat Syed Kasran Old Rawat New Rawat CWO AOWHS Sparco Feeders Attock Circle Dhirak, Kamra Rural, Mansar, Gondal, Haji Shah, Hameed, Wesa, Qutbal, Murt PR

People of all ages participated and appreciated the event PR

TwentyO ne launches

Turkish-style shopping mall in Pakistan

KARACHI: TwentyOne Builders and Developers one of the emerging real estate companies in Pakistan has Launched Turkish-Style retail and wholesale mall in Pakistan (Karachi) for the first time The mall The Grand Bazaar has been famous in Istanbul and the same model has been replicated in Karachi, Pakistan The mall is designed to facilitate business and economic activities while giving a unique experience to the customers as similar to the retail and wholesale shopping mall of Turkey We are introducing the wholesale market in the country s commercial capital, which will be the hub of supplies of significant goods and commodities all over the country, said Mussamir Arif Siddiqui Chief Operating Officer TwentyOne Builders and Developers The location had been strategically chosen on Northern Bypass to facilitate wholesale businesses considering the convenience of logistics and supply chains to the whole country In developed countries, the wholesale markets are located on the outskirts of the city, which is why our project has exclusivity to provide a model to Karachi and significant cities to transform cities as similar to metropolises of developed countries PR

Ispaghol

M Rashid Hashmi, Chairman of Hashmi Group received an award in recognition of Hashmi's services as the best Ispaghol Brand of Pakistan 2022-23 at the 76th Independence Day celebration in Karachi In the picture Mr Hashmi is awarded by the Chief Guest Mr Iqbal Imam who is the Commissioner of Karachi Muhammad Umar Shah Chairman and Kalim Farooqi Patron in Chief of Diplomatic Business Club are also seen standing along PR

Independence D ay celebration 2023 by NIMA

National Institute of Maritime Affairs (NIMA) organized an event to commemorate Pakistan's 76 years of independence

both Dollar East Exchange and United Bank Limited highlighted the shared vision of the institutions and their dedication to fostering a cooperative environment in the future PR Jashn- e -A zadi c ycling race, heav y bike rally arranged by DHAI-R Jashn e Azadi cycling race and Heavy Bike rally was arranged by DHAI-R to engage residents for independence day celebrations and community gathering The event featured captivating activities like cycling race, heavy bike rally and exhilarating mili songs The event was graced by Lt Gen Masood Aslam Lt Gen Muzammil Hussain and Major Gen Shakeel Ahmad

The event was chaired by Director General NIMA Vice Admiral (Retd) Ahmed Saeed HI(M) moderated by Ms Saba Zeenat and graced by the presence of esteemed guests including Dr Abid Ali Coordinator of Iqbal Chair at Bahria University DG NIMA expressed that this day reminds us about the struggle of our forefathers for a separate homeland, our efforts towards national cause and revitalizes our national pledge through unity faith and discipline He reiterated NIMA s commitment to contribute towards advancing Pakistan s maritime agenda PR

Healthx Pakistan, K-Elec tric par tner for preventative healthc are management of KE staffers

K a r a c h i: Healthx Pakistan, a prominent multinational healthcare management company, has recently unveiled a strategic partnership with K-Electric, the country's premier energy company This collaboration marks a significant milestone in corporate wellness and aims to alleviate disease burden and enhance the health outcomes of KE employees Healthx s signature Disease Management Program PR

PSB celebrates 76th I-D ay with spor ts display

ECP URGES INTERIM GOVT TO ENSURE ‘LEVEL PL AYING FIELD FOR ALL POLITICAL PARTIES’ IN NEXT POLLS

ISLAMABAD S TA F F R E P O R T

TH E Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Tuesday instructed caretaker governments in the Centre and all the provinces to provide a level playing field to all contesting candidates and political parties during the upcoming general elections in the country

In a statement, the election watchdog said that the National Assembly and provincial assemblies in Sindh and Balochistan stand dissolved on August 9, 11 and 12 respectively

Senator Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar a lawmaker belonging to Balochistan Awami Party (BAP) has been selected as caretaker prime minister The decision came after the second round of consultations between then prime minister Shehbaz Sharif and Leader of the Opposition in the dissolved NA Raja Riaz and a summary to this effect had been approved by President Arif Alvi under Ar-

ticle 224 1A

In Sindh, Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah and Leader of the Opposition in the dissolved provincial assembly Rana Ansar on Monday night reached a consensus on the appointment of Justice (retd) Maqbool Baqar as the interim CM

The selection for the name of caretaker chief minister in Balochistan remains in limbo, as incumbent CM Mir Abdul Quddus Bizenjo and Leader of the Opposition Malik Sikandar Khan could not reach a consensus on any name so far

The ECP said that it was mandated with the constitutional duty to organise and conduct elections in terms of Article 218(3) of the Constitution and to make such arrangements as are necessary to ensure that the elections are conducted honestly justly fairly and in accordance with the law

It has become imperative that the ECP shall take all necessary steps under the Constitution and prevalent law for the smooth conduct of general elections,” it added

After rearrest , PTI’s Per vaiz Elahi remanded in NAB’s custody till Aug 21 in bribes case

An Accountability Court in Lahore on Tuesday remanded

PTI President Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi in the National

Accountability Bureau s (NAB) custody till August 21 in a case taking bribe in the contracts of development project Yesterday, the NAB had arrested the former Punjab chief minister shortly after he was released from Adiala jail upon completion of his 30-day detention under the Maintenance of Public Order (MPO) ordinance

A team of anti-corruption watchdog headed by Deputy Director Najamul Hassan arrested the PTI president as soon as he walked out of Adiala jail s gate

Later, the police obtained a daylong transitory remand of the PTI leader from a court in Rawalpindi

The NAB alleges that Elahi received bribes/kickbacks in exchange for getting the “contracts of road schemes of Gujrat Highways Division awarded to favourite/hand-picked contractors

His son Moonis Elahi Mahr Azmat Hayat and others are also accused in the case The case claims that the coaccused were involved in causing loss to the government exchequer to the tune of millions of rupees against receipt of commission/kickbacks and committed offences of corruption and corrupt practices” under Section 9(a) of the NAB ordinance 1999

Earlier today a frail-looking Elahi was presented before the accountability court of Additional District and Sessions Judge Zubair Shahzad Kiyani

T H E H E A R I N G: At the outset of the hearing today, Elahi s lawyer Amjad Pervaiz requested the court to grant him five minutes to talk to his client

When the proceedings commenced NAB counsel

Waris Ali Janjua said four suspects had previously been arrested in the said case

As the chief minister of Punjab Pervaiz Elahi announced development packages worth Rs72 billion for Gujrat alone, he contended, adding that the accountability bureau had prepared a list of 200 such projects Elahi, Janjua claimed, violated the law and gave “fast track approval” for the aforementioned projects adding that the PTI president s son Moonis Elahi had also held several meetings on kickbacks of the shares Money was released even before work on the development projects commenced, the NAB lawyer went on to say, adding that this was a violation under the law and the accountability bureau had evidence pertaining to these charges

For his part Elahi’s laywer Pervaiz said cases against his client s arrests were currently being heard in the Supreme Court and Lahore High Court

The court may approve Elahi s physical remand till Monday (Aug 21) as by then the SC and LHC verdict will also be announced,” he suggested Janjua, however, interjected here and said NAB was seeking Elahi’s physical remand for 14 days However ADSJ Kiyani remarked that the matter would be decided by the court Subsequently the judge handed Elahi in NAB custody till Aug 21

A R R E S T A N D R E A R R E S T S: Elahi is among several PTI leaders and workers who have been arrested amid the state’s crackdown on the PTI leadership following the May 9 riots during protests over party chief Imran Khan being whisked away by the Rangers at the Islamabad High Court premises

He was first arrested on June 1 from outside his Lahore residence by the Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) for allegedly taking kickbacks in development projects

The next day, he was discharged by a Lahore court but was rearrested by the ACE in a similar case registered in its Gujranwala region However a Gujranwala court had then discharged him on June 3 in two corruption cases pertaining to the embezzlement of funds

The electoral watchdog directed the caretaker governments at the federal and provincial levels to assist the ECP in holding elections in accordance with the law and ensure the compliance of all the notifications directives and provisions as laid down in Section 230 of the Act ibid

The ECP also placed a ban on transfers and postings of public officers to ensure transparent elections

“Not to post or transfer any public official after the issuance of this notification under the federal and the provincial governments without prior approval in writing of the ECP as laid down in Clause 2(f) of Section 230 of the Elections Act, 2017, it added

The election body also banned all kinds of recruitment in any ministry division department or institution under the federal provincial and local governments with immediate effect except with the prior approval of the Commission

The ECP also refrained the interim government from announcing or executing any kind of development schemes at

federal and provincial levels except those which are ongoing or approved before the issuance of the notification

All development funds relating to local government institutions in the provinces and cantonment boards for the new schemes throughout the country, will stand frozen after the announcement of the election schedule with immediate effect till the announcement of the results of the general elections read the notification

It further said the caretaker governments shall perform their functions and attend to day-to-day matters which are necessary to run the affairs of the fede r a t i o n a n d p r o v i n c e s i n a c c o r d a n c e with the law

In order to ensure free fair and impartial general elections to the national and provincial assemblies the ECP has directed the secretary Establishment Division to reshuffle the federal secretaries in the federal government and other important position holders who can influence the upcoming polls

Inside Fast Cables IPO g COMPANY LOOKING TO RAISE RS3B IN SECONDARY MARKET

PR OFIT

Z A I N N A E E M

Fast Cables one of Pakistan s most well-known electrical cable manufacturers is looking to raise Rs 3 billion on the secondary market through an Initial Public Offering (IPO) Fast Cable s IPO comes during a time when a number of companies are looking to capitalise on the positive sentiment that is prevailing in the stock market

Established in 1985 Fast Cables quickly emerged as a large player in the electrical wiring market by targeting both domestic and commercial customers directly Up until this point there were very few companies that directly sold electrical cables to consumers who relied on contractors and wholesalers to get unbranded electrical wiring Fast Cables shook things up in the country’s cable industry and soon bagged a number of large clients particularly in the oil gas and telecommunications sectors

The company went public in December 2008 and is now finally looking to list itself on the stock exchange

The company has manufactured electric wires, conductors and cables with two manufacturing plants being operational Their main plant is in Lahore Revenue and cost breakdown

The question is why is the company going for an IPO in the first place and why now? To understand this we must look closely at their business model The core business of the company is to produce a mix of low voltage cables, medium voltage cables and bare conductors Around 70 percent of the revenue is derived from low voltage cables The company saw a rise in sales of around 70 percent across the board between FY 2021 and FY 2022 as revenues increased to Rs 23 billion from Rs 14 2 billion

In terms of the major costs for the company, raw material used in the production contributes to around 90 76 percent of the total cost of production for the company The main raw material it uses is copper and aluminum which it imports from foreign vendors

Technical aspects of the IPO

The company is looking to issue 83 5 million ordinary shares which will make up around 25 percent of the post-IPO paid capital of the company The issue will be carried out with a book building method with a floor price of Rs 36 per share and a maximum price of Rs 50 4 per share

The issue will be broken down as 75 percent of the

PTA to block unregistered mobile devices in GB, A JK after Sept 1st

The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has announced plans to launch Device Integration, Registration, and Blocking System (DIRBS) in Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit Baltistan to ensure the usage of genuine mobile devices compliant to DIRBS and FBR regulations

According to the PTA to have uninterrupted access to local networks will require registration with the authority The message has been circulated across the region so that the people of these regions can get their devices registered in time

issue will be given to the bidders while 25 percent will be offered to the retail investors The manager and underwriter of the issue will be Arif Habib Limited The date of book building still has to be released by the company after their prospectus has passed the stage of public comments being gathered by the PSX which ends on 17th of August 2023

Sponsors of the company

Currently, the sponsors of the company are Mian Ghulam Murtaza Shaukat Ms Rubina Shaukat Mr Kamal Mahmood Amjad Mian and Ms Mahlaqa Shaukat The current shareholding of each of the sponsors is given below both pre and post IPO subscription

Purpose of the Issue

The company is carrying out an IPO in order to acquire capital to utilize in acquisition of new land, construction of state of the art building, installation of new plant and machinery and repayment of debt In case the company is able to get a strike price higher than Rs 36 they will utilize these funds in working capital requirements

Financial Performance of the company

The most recent financial performance of the company shows that revenues have increased steadily from Rs 5 4 billion in 2018 to 23 billion in 2022 and 9 month unaudited performance has already reached the same levels of revenues for FY 2022-2023 Based on gross margin of 18 5 percent and operating margin of 13 5 percent the company saw a profit of Rs 1 3 billion for the most recent 9 months ended The earnings per share (EPS) of the company was Rs 4 1/share for the year 2022 and was seen to be around Rs 5 1/share for the 9 months ended 2023 The breakup value of the share stands at Rs 29 as at 9 months ended for FY 2022-2023 The price being quoted for the share means that it is expected that the investors will invest in the company at a PE ratio of 8 78 based on EPS of 2022 Competitor analysis

A competitor for Fast Cables Limited is Pakistan Cables (PCAL) which is already listed in the stock exchange The revenue for FY 2021-22 for PCL was Rs 21 billion which is similar to Rs 23 billion earned by Fast Cables The profit for PCAL for the last year was 828 million while for Fast Cables it was Rs 1 billion EPS for PCAL came to around Rs 23 27 per share while for Fast Cables it was Rs 4 1/share Based on market price at June end, the PE ratio for PCAL was around 6 while for Fast Cables it is around 8 78

PSQC A staff member declines promotion to retain position amid controversy

A peculiar incident has emerged within the Pakistan Standards and Quality Control Authority (PSQCA) a subsidiary of the Ministry of Science and Technology where a staff member s request to decline a promotion has raised eyebrows Abdul Hafeez Qambrani, a Field Officer (BS-17) at the PSQCA, has chosen not to pursue a higher-grade promotion purportedly in order to retain his current post Official documents reveal that Qambrani, based in Karachi, submitted a written request dated April 7, 2023, addressed to the Director of the Standard Center In the letter, Qambrani cites personal reasons and a desire to willingly forgo his eligibility for the upcoming Departmental Promotion Committee (DPC) assessment in the year 2023

Insider sources, however, suggest a different motive behind Qambrani s decision It is believed that he wishes to safeguard his role as a field officer a position considered lucrative within the Authority The field officer role holds considerable importance, as it involves inspecting selected imports and locally manufactured non-food and food items to ensure compliance with quality and standards set by the PSQCA

This development comes in the wake of allegations of corruption against Qambrani He had previously faced significant penalties in 2011 for engaging in corrupt practices Importers and exporters lodged complaints about his activities, further tarnishing his image and credibility

Notably, Qambrani’s choice to decline a promotion stands in contrast to the conventional trend ob-

served in government institutions Historically individuals in revenue departments such as Patwaris have been known to resist higher posts and promotions This pattern is often attributed to their interest in continuing to receive additional, illicit income through unfair means PSQCA officials have confirmed the receipt of Qambrani’s letter acknowledging his decision to avoid promotion However they assert that Qambrani has since been removed from his post due to allegations of corruption and malpractice This action was taken in response to numerous complaints received from both importers and exporters regarding his activities I n c o n c l u s i o n t h e i n c i d e n t h i g h l i g h t s a n u n u s u a l s c e n a r i o where a staff member at PSQCA h a s o p t e d t o f o rg o a p r o m o t i o n , ostensibly to maintain his current position

Since 2018 Pakistanis have been paying an additional tax on the registration of their mobile phones with the PTA often referred to as PTA tax These taxes were put in place to curb the smuggling of smartphones More recently the FBR has imposed a tier-wise tax on imported smartphones, which in turn discourages people from buying imported phones thereby reducing the import bill and outflow of dollars However in the regions outside the direct purview of the FBR such as Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit Baltistan The use of smuggled phones was rampant Another reason for this was that the state owned Special Communications Organisation (SCO), the primary network provider in these areas could be operated on phones that were not registered with PTA Not only that the partnership of SCO with Ufone made it possible to use the sim outside of the AJK and GB reason allowing people to use nonregistered phones all over the country

However, the FBR and SCO are both reported to have resolved the legal problems surrounding this issue to launch DIRBS in the region

IHC issues show-cause notices to Islamabad IG, others on PTI leaders’ pleas against detention

The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Tuesday issued show-cause notices to the city police chief, chief commissioner deputy commissioner (DC) and other officials on pleas filed by PTI leaders Shehryar Afridi and Shandana Gulzar Khan against their ongoing detentions under the Maintenance of Public Order (MPO) Afridi was first arrested on May 16 from his Islamabad residence under Section 3 of the MPO Ordinance, 1960 Since then, he has been rearrested 11 times after getting bails on various pretext by authorities

On August 3 Afridi was granted bail by the Lahore High Court s Rawalpindi bench but was later picked up by the Rawalpindi police soon after his release from Adiala jail A petition was subsequently filed by his lawyer in the IHC calling for Afridi’s release and for the MPO order to be set aside Meanwhile Shandana Gulzar was allegedly abducted by the Islamabad police on August 9 A petition was later filed by her mother in the IHC on the grounds of illegal arrest and violation of Articles 4, 9, 10A and 14 of the Constitution, calling for the police to produce her daughter in court

IHC Justice Babar Sattar took up petitions filed by Afridi and Gulzar on Tuesday Advocate Sher Afzal Khan Marwat presented the case for the two detained PTI leaders

During the hearing on Afridi s petition as the state counsel read out the detention order for the PTI leader, the judge inquired about the instances where Afridi incited people

“You have to give reasons if you have to detain a citizen ” Justice Sattar pointed out

Later in a court order Justice Sattar noted that from perusing the case record it appeared that the Islamabad district magistrate had passed the impugned order for the PTI leader s detention on the basis of extraneous considerations

“The requests initiated by police officials that the learned state counsel has read out are bald allegations with no details and including no material on the basis of which jurisdiction could be exercised under Section 3 of MPO

On the basis of such material alone no reasonable person can be satisfied that it is necessary to detain the petitioner while curbing his fundamental rights, it reads

The impugned order the court went on to say “itself states that the petitioner is liable for inciting general public and has been found planning an attack on District Courts Islamabad

Ex-lawmakers, leaders among 1,500 PTI ac tivists booked for taking out Independence Day rally

The Mingora Police have registered a case against 22 named and 1400 to 1500 unidentified persons including City Mayor Shahid Ali and former MPA Fazal Hakeem for chanting slogans against institutions carrying PTI flags and blocking road during a rally on Independence Day in Swat

According to the FIR lodged on the complaint of Banar (Mingora) Police Station SHO Jahan Alam Khan under the leadership of City Mayor Shahid Ali and former MPA Fazal Hakeem about 1 400 to 1 500 people took out a rally and hoisted flags of Tehreeke-Insaf in Mingora while chanting slogans against institutions

In the FIR former Nazim Banar former lady councilor Naseem Akhtar former councilor Shaukat Ali, chairman Ziaul Haq Tajik, Hakeem Sardar Ali, Aamir Amankot, PTI division spokesperson Salahuddin Yousafzai, PTI’s district general secretary Akhtar Khan Iqbal Kakaji Fazal Subhan Ajmal Khan Jahanzeb Saad Khan Aftab Alam former Nazim Farooq Ahmed former councilor Ibn Amin Akbar Hussain, Khurshid Dada, Muhammad Rehman alias Spain have been nominated The 14 namely accused in the FIR have obtained pre-arrest bail from the court of the District and Sessions Judge on Tuesday On the other hand the police have arrested three persons while raids are being conducted for more arrests across the district TWO MINOR DIE IN WALL COL-

LAPSE: Two minor children died when dilapidated wall of Ladies Park collapsed on them while playing in Saidu Sharif

According to police, six-year-old Muhammad Zubair, son of Hyder Ali, an employee of Saidu Teaching Hospital and seven-year-old Sher Said who came to his maternal uncle s house from Buner district were playing in the back of Saidu Ladies Park, when the wall collapsed on them

As a result, the two children were buried under the debris and died Rescue personnel and local people reached the spot and started rescue operation and took out the bodies The local people have strongly protested against the incident and demanded the higher authorities to take action against the park officials

g MOVE LIKELY TO CURB USE OF SMUGGLED SMARTPHONES IN REGION