Tuesday, 23 February, 2021
KARACHI
NEWS
05
Political Parties across world oPPose interference in other countries’ internal affairs under human rights Pretext
i
ISLAMABAD Mian abrar
n a major show of defiance, over 310 leaders and prominent personages representing more than 190 political parties and organisations from 80 plus countries on Monday expressed their resolve to oppose the western interference into the affairs of sovereign countries in the name of ‘human rights’. The pledge was made by the leaders of 190 political parties and organisations from 80 plus countries, among which over 100 are from Islamic countries, at an online conclave held under the aegis of the International Department of the CPC Central Committee (IDCPC) and the Communist Party of China (CPC) Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Regional Committee who co-hosted the event titled ‘Stories of CPC’ Thematic Briefing on Xinjiang in Urumqi. As the event took place, the parties who have been involved in an in-depth discussion on the theme of “A Better Life for All” reached broader consensus. All parties were
of the view that it is the common goal and responsibility of political parties of all countries to work towards a better life for the overwhelming majority of the people. Political parties of all countries vowed to take the improvement of people’s wellbeing as their mission and strive to uplift the sense of fulfilment, happiness, and security thereof. They also noted that Covid-19 has hit over 200 countries and regions, affected more than seven billion people around the world and claimed over two million lives. They called on all countries to continue to put the lives, safety and health of the people above everything else by deploying medical expertise and critical supplies to places where they are needed the most, saving lives with all might and main, and further promoting global joint epidemic response so that the pandemic is brought under control at an earliest possible date and the vision of building a global community of health for all appears on the horizon. They also stressed that Covid-19 has plunged over 200 million people globally
into extreme poverty and inflicted serious impact on the economic and social development of most countries, casting a dark shadow on the prospects of the United nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. They called on all countries to continue to strengthen coordination on macroeconomic policies, remain steadfast in maintaining the stability of the global financial market as well as that of industrial and supply chains, and to take measures to reduce debts and boost the flow of trade, so that the world economy could soon recover and grow, which will help bring global poverty reduction back on the right track as speedily as possible. While subscribing to the protection and development of human rights, the meeting pointed out that the right to subsistence and the right to development are principal and fundamental. “Poverty constitutes the chief obstacle to the realisation of human rights. The interests of the people should be placed in the paramount position and development should de-
liver greater benefit to the entire population in a more equitable manner,” said the joint communique. They also emphasised that as there is no one-size-fits-all model to advance and protect human rights, the diversity in the path of human rights development should be respected and any attempt to politicise human rights, apply double standards thereof, or to interfere in the internal affairs of other countries under the pretext of human rights should be opposed. They called for the concerted efforts of all countries to promote the establishment of a global governance architecture on human rights that is more equitable, just and inclusive. They also acknowledged that the Thematic Briefing has enabled them to acquire a comprehensive and in-depth understanding of China’s system of regional ethnic autonomy and the development of areas with large ethnic minority populations, including the actual situation in Xinjiang, where social stability as well as equality and unity among various ethnic groups prevail, people’s liveli-
hood keeps improving and the economy develops constantly. They also expressed appreciation of what the Chinese government has done to promote economic and social development of areas with large ethnic minority populations, and to respect and protect the right of people of all ethnic groups to freedom of religious belief and to use their own spoken and written languages. They expressed opposition to the odious behaviour of a crumb of individuals from certain countries in misleading the international perception and smearing other countries with distorted and fabricated facts and disinformation of cooked-up rumours of socalled China’s “ethnic cleansing” in Xinjiang. Extending their best wishes to the CPC and the Chinese people on the eve of the centenary of the CPC, they applauded the CPC for its commitment to the original aspiration and founding mission of seeking happiness for the people and rejuvenation for the nation, for its leadership under which the Chinese people have created the miracle.
Gillani believes the establishment is ‘totally neutral’ ContInueD froM pAge 01 Gillani told the media that he was indebted to the PDM leadership for putting its trust in him and that he would try to meet their expectations. The ex-PM recalled that he had been elected unopposed in 2008 to the nA, adding that even today he had kicked off his campaign with the same unanimous support from the PDM. He said that his win would be a victory of the democratic forces. He said that he had amassed 264 votes while his opponent received 42, following which the opposition agreed to cast a vote of confidence in Gillani’s favour. “I want to say that every member of the parliament is getting respect because of my candidacy. I would go to each and every PDM leader who are supporting me more than myself,” he said on the occasion. PTI last week challenged the nomination of the former premier for Senate. Fareed Rehman, a PTI Senate hopeful from Islamabad, had accused Gillani of concealing the
facts in the papers. Gillani, he had said, failed to mention his conviction in a contempt of court case back in 2012. His petition had noted that Gillani doesn’t fulfill the requirements of Article62 of the Constitution. The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Thursday last had rejected the objection raised by the ruling PTI on the nomination of the former prime minister and had accepted his papers for the March 3 elections. Returning Officer (RO) Zafar Iqbal had announced the verdict reserved earlier after both sides completed their arguments. The verdict had observed while Gillani was convicted — in 2012 — under Article 63(1)(g) of the Constitution and “a period of five years has elapsed since his conviction”, he “stands qualified” for contesting election to the Senate from Islamabad. “All the cases against the candidate are pending adjudication and in the absence of conviction, the candidate cannot be barred from contesting the election,” it had read. “Keeping these facts in view, the nomination
papers Gillani are hereby accepted,” it had added. Embroiled in controversy over the presidential ordinance on open voting, the ECP is set to hold elections on March 3. A total of 52 senators in the House of 104 are set to retire on March 11 on completion of their six-year term. The number includes four of the eight senators from the erstwhile Federally Adminis¬tered Tribal Areas (FATA). As the seats representing FATA will not be filled due to the merger of the tribal areas with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) in May 2018, the Senate strength will shrink to 100. Polling will, therefore, be held to elect 48 members: 12 each from KP and Balochistan, 11 each from Punjab and Sindh, and two from Islamabad. The legislators will also vote to elect seven members on general seats including two women and two technocrats in the four provinces. Besides, the election on one minority seat each in KP and Balochistan will also be conducted. More than 65 per cent of the senators due to retire belong to the opposition parties.
RAWALPINDI: Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa and Qatar’s Minister for Foreign Afairs Dr Mutlaq Bin Majed Al Qahtani met during the latter’s visit to the General Headquarters in Rawalpindi. Both sides discussed matters of mutual interest, including the Afghan. peace process
LAHORE: PSO CEO and Managing Director Syed Muhammad Taha presents a cheque sponsoring the higher education of five students to Karachi IBA Corporate Relations and Communications Director Alumni Malahat Awan. The agreement was signed by PSO CSR Trust Chairperson Babar H. Chaudhry and IBA Executive Director Dr Syed Akbar Zaidi. press release
significant achievements made in all domains of operation raddul fasaad: isPr dg ContInueD froM pAge 01 The military’s spokesperson said that the city’s position on Crime Index has dropped from sixth in 2014 to 106 today. He said that socio-economic dividends of the operation have been witnessed in the tribal districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP). “In these four years, more than 5,000 threat alerts were issued and the majority of them were neutralised before they materialised. During Raddul Fasaad, the Khyber-IV operation was also carried out, which was aimed at clearing the Rajgal valley and making the Afghan border safe,” he stressed on the occasion. He said that 831 development projects worth over Rs31 billion are being carried out there. He said several development projects are also being implemented in Balochistan. He added sports activities have also been restored across the country. The ISPR DG said that 23rd March will be celebrated with zeal and zest. He said that a national parade will be organized on the day to disseminate the message of “one nation, one destination”. To a question, he said that the country’s peace is directly linked with peace in Afghanistan. He also said that Pakistan wishes to see peace beyond borders especially in Afghanistan. He further said that Pakistan will continue its support in this regard. He added that Pakistan’s “grand strategy” in its war against terrorism was based on four concepts: “Clear, hold, build and transfer.” “One thing is clear that an ideology can be countered can only be countered by a superior ideology or superior argument as we say.” The ISPR DG said that “our enemy is engaged in a massive campaign of fifth-generation warfare to obstruct Pakistan’s road to prosperity”. Expressing satisfaction over the governmental measure to deal with new hybrid warfare, he called for national unity and cohesion in defeating the enemy’s designs in this regard.
Strong political parties necessary for good democracy: SC ContInueD froM pAge 01 Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Senator Raza Rabbani, in reply, said that the Senate was for the protection of federal units, not for political parties. If the right to a secret ballot was taken away, the members of the assembly would be in trouble at the hands of the deep state, he maintained. The CJP remarked that Article 63-A also applied to the election of the prime minister and chief ministers. The Constitution of Pakistan was similar to the Constitution of Ireland and according to the Irish court, the state owned the cast votes, he added. Justice Bandial said that individualistic dislikes did not dominate the majority opinion in a democracy. Addressing Raza Rabbani, he asked how could he say that a system that strengthened individuality should work in a democratic sense. He inquired if the system that violated discipline should be allowed to run. Rabbani replied that Article 226 had discussed at three different forums as the bill was called for amendment in the assembly. He said that examples of Indian law were given in the Pakistani Supreme Court. The Constitution and law of India could not determine the limits of Article 226 of the Constitution of Pakistan, he stressed.
The PPP Senator said that the office of the prime minister and the chief ministers was considered as the leaders of the relevant houses. He said that secret elections were a different matter. Votes were cast beyond party policy in Senate elections, therefore, the Constitution provided protection under Article 226. He added that the Senate was the house of the federation and it protected federal units. The Senate represented the federation, not the political parties, he stressed. The national Assembly (nA) and the provincial assemblies were direct forums for political parties, he further said. Rabbani maintained that the Senate’s concept was radically different. The nA represented the majority of the population, while federal units were proportionally represented in the Senate, he explained. There was no provision in Article 63 for disqualification of a member of the assembly in a Senate election, he added. He further stated that Hafeez Pirzada’s speech on proportional representation in the Senate was actually related to the nA. The late minister of law Abdul Hafeez Pirzada spoke about the representation of political parties in the national Assembly, not of proportional representation in the Senate, he
added. Addressing Rabbani, CJP Gulzar said that, according to his argument, proportional representation was only about counting votes. In this regard, he asked that if political parties were divided, how would the seats of the provincial assembly be represented in the Senate. Justice Ijaz, citing the example of how Party A, which could get six seats but only got two, asked how the law would deal with the matter of proportional representation. He inquired into what was the given wisdom of the framers of the Constitution about proportional representation. Rabbani replied that this was not a math question, nor was it a matter of A, B or C parties. It was a matter of Senate and federation, he said. Justice Bandial remarked that the attorney general of Pakistan (AGP) in his arguments said that the law did not have a complete election code. He reiterated that democracy strengthened the masses and it spoke about collectivism. The hearing of the case was adjourned till Tuesday wherein Raza Rabbani would continue his arguments. Speaking on the matter, Minister for Information and Broadcasting Senator Shibli Faraz said that emphasis on secret vote balloting in Senate elections by PPP counsel
Raza Rabbani was incompatible with the Charter of Democracy (CoD) and ideology of former Prime Ministers Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto. Talking to media outside the SC, he said Senator Raza Rabbani, representing the PPP, took the plea which was repugnant to the CoD clauses that had been inked by Shaheed Benazir Bhutto, adding it tantamount to throwing the agreement in a dustbin. He maintained it was evident that both parties were opposing people-friendly legislation and had now retracted the CoD. He took leadership of Pakistan Muslim League-nawaz (PML-n) and the PPP to task for their inclination to continue past dirty practice of sale and purchase of votes in Senate elections. He said the PPP leadership had already initiated the bidding process for vote purchase by making open offers of money despite lacking requisite numbers to sail through their candidates in Senate elections. The federal minister added that the PPP had even claimed a preemptive victory of former premier Yousaf Raza Gilani in the Senate despite not having the required numbers. He said the public money plundered by both parties during their respective tenures was being utilized in purchasing loyalties of other parties. The sale and purchase of votes
had an adverse effect on national politics, he added. He stated that specific people, who have gained entry to parliament with the influence of money, could not be considered as the real representatives of the people. Accusing public representatives in the sale and purchase of votes don’t augur well for future generations, he added. The minister said Pakistan Tehreek-eInsaf (PTI) had laid foundations of clean politics in the country and was still making efforts to rid the country of the menace of corruption. He said the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) was independent in real terms for the first time in the country’s history. Responding to a question, he said the PPP and PML-n had retained their seats in by-elections. Prime Minister Imran Khan and his cabinet members had no link to any business, he said, adding cabinet members were not allowed to involve any business activity. He reiterated that PTI, in an unprecedented move, had expelled its 20 MPs in 2018 on allegations of vote sale and purchase. He said the corrupt system could not be rectified with a magic wand in a short span of time, adding PTI firmly stood for its stance.
