Epaper – July 6 LHR 2021

Tuesday, 6 July, 2021 I 25 Dhul-Qadah, 1442 I Rs 15.00 I Vol XII No 7 I 12 Pages I Lahore Edition

Govt considerinG talks with insurGents in Balochistan, says imran g

premier says future belongs to gwadar as ‘ focal point of development ’

GWADAR staff RepoRt

P

rime minister imran khan has said that the government is planning to reach out to the estranged Baloch youth for the sake of peace in Balochistan. Addressing elders and notables of gwadar on monday, he said that foes of pakistan had used these elements in the past, but now the situation has entirely changed. pm imran said that the development of Balochistan is the top priority of the government and it has announced historical package for the area.

The premier said that rs10 billion have been allocated as loan for upgradation of fishing boats and other tools to safeguard fishermen’s rights. He said that illegal fishing has now been strictly banned. pm imran said that 4,000 applications have so far been received from gwadar for low-cost housing scheme and the govern-

ment will construct 2,500 housing units on 200 acres of land. He said that 4,698 youth will be given scholarships under ehsaas programme.

He announced to provide 3g and 4g internet connectivity across the province as communication plays a vital role in the development process. earlier, prime minister imran, while addressing a ceremony in gwadar, said that development of Balochistan is one of the top priorities of the government which was neglected in the past.

He said that several projects under chinapakistan economic corridor will bring development and prosperity to the province.

He said that pakistan is poised to become a great regional pivot as it had been a role model for development in 60s.

The premier said that practical work on development projects has begun in gwadar to uplift the living standard of the local people.

He said that these projects are being established by utilising 2,200 acres of land and

coronavirus in

Pakistan

CONFIRMED CASES:

963,660

LAST UPDATED AT 7:14 AM ON JULY 5, 2021

DAY'S DEATH TOLL:

NEW CASES:

19

1,347

RECOVERED:

DEATHS:

907,934 22,427 SINDH:

PUNJAB:

340,902

346,852

KPK:

BALOCHISTAN:

138,533 AJK/GB:

82,969 ISLAMABAD:

20,558 / 6,427

82,916

the government is initiating one-window operation facility at gwadar to facilitate foreign investors in these projects. He also said that after completion of the international Airport, gwadar will directly connect with the world.

The prime minister said that “we have to focus on enhancing exports, which is vital for pakistan’s economic sovereignty”.

He said that issue of water, electricity and gas to gwadar will be addressed on priority basis. He also said that 500-bed hospital will provide modern health facilities to the locals. pm imran said that connectivity is imperative for the development of Balochistan and 730 billion rupees will be spent on infrastructure for this purpose. He said that gwadar will become focal point for pakistan and will be beneficial for the people of the Balochistan.

The premier said that the government has initiated several mega projects for the welfare of the common people, including ehsaas programme and housing scheme for low-income segments. He said that “we should also get benefit of the geographical importance and chinese experience”. referring to pakistan’s efforts to establish peace in Afghanistan, the prime minister said that islamabad is playing its due role for a successful peace talks in Afghanistan by engaging regional countries and all stakeholders. He said that peace in Afghanistan is vital for a stable and prosperous pakistan and we are also trying to contact with Taliban for this purpose.

Addressing the event, Balochistan chief minister Jam kamal said that projects under cpec are milestone for the development of the province and to change its destiny.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 05

iran’s trade through gwadar port to start soon: Asim Bajwa STORY ON BACK PAGE

Govt warns of strict sanctions if Covid-19 SOPs not implemented ISLAMABAD Mian abRaR

minister for planning, Development and Special initiatives Asad Umar on monday warned against massive violations of covid-19 Standard Operating procedures (SOps), saying that strict sanctions may be imposed if these SOps are not implemented in letter and spirit. The warning was issued following increase in the covid-19 cases for the consecutive past five days. chairing a meeting of the National command Operations centre (NcOc) here, Asad Umar expressed grave concerns over the violations of the covid-19 SOps. These violations were seen in restaurants, indoor gymnasiums, wedding halls, transport, markets, tourism and other sectors. All the chief Secretaries attended the meeting to review the violations of SOps. in this regard, a strict mechanism for the implementation of SOps and measures to expedite the vaccination process in all units will also be reviewed. The meeting was informed that vaccination verification portal has been launched and the purpose of this portal is to make the verification process possible in places where vaccination is required for admission. “All vaccinating staff and the public are urged to ensure that their vaccination record is recorded in the National immunization management System (NimS) when vaccinating. The NcOc, in consultation with all units, has increased the number of vaccinated vaccination centers where moderna vaccines will be administered,” a handout said. Out of the total 59 centers, fifteen are in punjab, ten in Sindh, 14 in khyber pakhtunkhwa, four in Balochistan, five in icT and AJk, five and six in the gilgit-Baltistan (gB). “Arrival of 3,000 Afghan students begins. These students are studying in different educational institutions of pakistan. effective coronavirus testing has been arranged on the arrival of students,” the meeting was informed. The students with positive cases will be sent back, while the rest of the students will be kept in compulsory quarantine for 10 days. At the end of this quarantine, students will be vaccinated.

All foreign troops must leave Afghanistan by deadline: Taliban LONDON news Desk

Any foreign troops left in Afghanistan after NATO’s September withdrawal deadline will be at risk as occupiers, the Taliban has told the BBc. it comes amid reports that 1,000 mainly US troops could remain on the ground to protect diplomatic missions and kabul’s international airport.

NATO’s 20-year military mission in Afghanistan has all but ended. But violence in the country continues to rise, with the Taliban taking more territory.

Under a deal with the militant group, the US and its NATO allies agreed to withdraw all troops in return for a commitment by the Taliban not to allow al-Qaeda or any other extremist group to operate in the areas they control. president Joe Biden set a deadline of September 11 — the 20-year anniversary of the 9/11 attacks on the US — for American troops to fully withdraw, but reports suggest the pullout may be complete within days. As Afghan forces prepare to take charge of security alone, the concern is growing for the future of kabul.

Taliban spokesman Suhail

Taliban to propose written peace plan to Afghan government g

SpOkeSperSON ZABiHUllAH SAyS peAce TAlkS Will Be AccelerATeD iN THe cOmiNg DAyS KABUL ReuteRs

The Taliban plan to present a written peace proposal to the Afghan government side as soon as next month, a spokesperson for the insurgents said even as they make major territorial gains in the breach left by departing foreign forces. Hundreds of Afghan security force members have fled into neighbouring Tajikistan in the face of Taliban advances since the United States vacated its main Afghan base, centrepiece of US and NATO might for almost two decades in the country, as part of a plan to withdraw all foreign troops by Sept 11. While the transfer of Bagram Air Base to the Afghan army added momentum to a Taliban drive to seize control over new districts, Taliban leaders renewed the long stalled talks with Afghan government envoys in Qatar’s capital Doha last week.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 05 Shaheen said seizing kabul militarily was “not Taliban policy”.

But speaking to the BBc from the group’s office in Qatar, he said no foreign forces — includ-

ing military contractors — should remain in the city after the withdrawal was complete.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 05

MORE INSIDE

Top leadership hints at Indian involvement in terror wave STORY ON BACK PAGE

pakistan, Turkey vow to further enhance military ties STORY ON PAGE 03

Zardari seeks pre-arrest bail in New York apartment case STORY ON PAGE 02

FO rejects reports of putin’s pakistan visit STORY ON PAGE 03

02

Tuesday, 6 July, 2021

LAHORE

NEWS

ZARDARi SeekS PRe-ARReSt BAil iN New yORk APARtMeNt CASe ISLAMABAD

f

Staff RePoRt

ORMER president Asif Ali Zardari on Monday filed a petition in the Islamabad High Court seeking prearrest bail in a National Accountability Bureau case involving an apartment in an upscale New York neighbourhood purportedly owned by him.

The Pakistan Peoples Party cochairperson submitted the request in response to a notice served on him by the dirty money watchdog inquiring about details of the unit.

Belaire Condominiums in Manhattan, New York City. The 42-storey building is located at 524 East 72nd Street.

The watchdog had issued a notice, along with a questionnaire, to the former president on June 15, seeking details of the apartment in Belaire Condominiums — a high-rise condominium apartment building in Manhattan — located at 524 East 72nd Street.

In the petition, Zardari insisted that the notice is “baseless and the allegations made therein are based on malafide intentions so as to malign” him.

“It is respectfully submitted that the

petitioner is not in the ownership of any property in New York including [the] apartment as of the date mentioned in the notice,” the petition read.

The petition further said the agency had issued several call-up notices to the PPP cochief in different matters “to politically damage his reputation”, and added that all those notices were assailed at different forums including at the high court.

Zardari, it mentioned, was suffering from several ailments and his earlier confinement had made his medical condition worse and said that he was currently under the special care of doctors who were

monitoring his health.

The petition nominated NAB chief retired Justice Javed Iqbal, director general and three others as respondents.

In December 2018, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf filed an application before the Election Commission of Pakistan in Karachi seeking Zardari’s disqualification for “concealing” the apartment. In a complaint, a PTI MP from Karachi, Khurram Sher Zaman, alleged Zardari owned the apartment but had not declared it in his nomination for the 2018 general elections in which he returned to the National Assembly.

“Because of this act of his, Mr Asif Ali

Pakistan still facing consequences of 1977 coup: Bilawal KARACHI Staff RePoRt

Pakistan People’s Party Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari on Monday said that July 5, 1977, will always be remembered as a black day in the country’s history when a coup under the leadership of then-army chief Gen Ziaul Haq made an impudent attack on the democratic aspirations of the nation.

Bilawal said that on that fateful day — July 5 — the coup had toppled the elected government of former prime minister Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto.

“It was Shaheed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto who had united the broken nation of Pakistan after the fall of Dhaka.

Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto had united these broken people under the bonds of the democratic system and strong economic institutions,” he said.

ABiD SheR Ali’S wife PASSeS AwAy

Bilawal said Bhutto supervised the approval of the unanimously adopted Constitution. Bhutto had laid the foundations of the macroeconomy and gave the right of nationality and passport to every person.

Bhutto had snatched the claim to governance from selected people and devolved the power to the people and made them powerful, Bilawal declared.

He was of the view that martial law was the worst attack in the country’s history, the consequences of which the country was still facing after the passage of five decades.

The coup sowed the seeds of intolerance, extremism and terrorism in the country and let these negative notions seeped deep into our society.

Bilawal said that Bhutto had united the Ummah and led the Muslim world through his farsighted political acumen. He said the late prime minister confronted two

SHC adjourns disqualification case against Murad KARACHI

LAHORE

INP

Staff RePoRt

The Sindh High Court on Monday took up a petition of Haleem Adil Sheikh, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf lawmaker and opposition leader in the Sindh Assembly, seeking disqualification of Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah.

The petition submitted that in 2012 the Supreme Court had disqualified Shah and directed the Election Commission of Pakistan to initiate legal proceedings against him for filing misdeclaration.

However, he further submitted that Shah had managed to get himself elected in a by-election in 2014 allegedly by defying the judgement of the apex court.

Therefore, he be declared ineligible for holding membership of the provincial assembly by declaring the notification of the ECP as null and void.

Justice Muhammad Shafi Siddiqui observed that the

The wife of former minister and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz leader Abid Sher Ali has passed away, he announced on Monday. Fatima Ali was suffering from a heart ailment that claimed her life, rescue officials said. The deceased was shifted to a hospital after suffering a heart attack. She passed away during the operation. Ali took to Twitter to announce the news. “My wife passed away,” he tweeted.

UNDP assures of financing for SDGs achievement NEWS DESK The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has assured its support to the government to achieve 17 goals of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

The assurance was given when UNDP Resident Representative Knut Ostby called on Federal Minister for Economic Affairs Omar Ayub Khan on Monday.

Knut Ostby briefed the minister on UNDP’s intervention in Pakistan. Under the Country Programme Document (CPD), UNDP is working in Pakistan in the areas of democratic governance, development policy, crisis prevention and recovery, and environment & climate change. Both the sides also discussed and finalised the way forward on UN Sustainable Development Goals investments in the country. Omar Ayub Khan appreciated the contribution made by UNDP towards the attainment of the SDGs and highlighted that fruitful results can only be achieved through greater collaboration, increased communication and proactive measures undertaken to tackle issues faced. He assured the UNDP of the highest cooperation in this regard. He remarked that the involvement of the private sector is important for achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Govt debt surges to Rs37.997tr in May: SBP NEWS DESK The total debt of the federal government during the month of May 2021 surged to Rs37.997 trillion from Rs34.489 trillion in May 2020, showing an increase of Rs3.508 trillion or around 10.17 percent on a year-onyear (YoY) basis. According to the data released by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), on a monthly basis, the central government debt increased by 2.48 percent against Rs37.078 trillion reported in April 2021. The data released by the SBP shows that the larger portion of the debt was domestic, whereas the remaining was external. The central government domestic debt amounted to Rs26.065 trillion during the month, signifying a growth of around 10.86 percent YoY, comprising Rs19.378 trillion long-term debt and Rs6.662 trillion short term debt.

dictators and fought a battle for the rights of the people.

He accepted gallows but refused to budge from his stance, he said.

His daughter, slain prime minister Benazir Bhutto, had fought bravely against the dictatorship after him. He said that Bhuttos’ followers and supporters were made subject to every kind of inhuman torture including lashes, solitary confinement and hanging.

He said the war was still going on between democratic and despotic forces. He stated that Bhutto had warned that give the power to the people, otherwise everything would be destroyed.

Bilawal was of the opinion that these words were true even today as we still were fighting for the survival of democracy in the country. He said the name of Bhutto was still alive while those who inflicted pain and suffering on him were part of the trash of history.

Supreme Court of Pakistan has recently given its decision over the matter.

He directed the petitioner to convince the court on the maintainability of the petition. He also refused the plea of issuing notices to Shah and other respondents. The court then adjourned the hearing for an indefinite period.

It may be recalled that an identical petition was already pending before the SHC against the chief minister.

Petitioner Mehmood Akhtar Naqvi, a regular litigant, in his petition submitted that the apex court had disqualified Shah and others in a dual nationality case, but with the purported help/connivance of the ECP, he contested the by-election in 2014 and general elections of 2018. The petitioner sought disqualification of the chief minister for holding dual nationality while filing nomination papers for the seat of a provincial assembly during the general elections in 2013.

Son of soil Capt Sher Khan remembered on martyrdom anniversary NEWS DESK The 22nd martyrdom anniversary of Kargil war hero, Captain Karnal Sher Khan Shaheed, was observed on Monday. The prayer ceremony in this regard was held on the grave of the Kargil war hero in Swabi. A floral wreath was placed on the grave of Karnal Sher Khan Shaheed from Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa.

Higher officials of the Pakistan Army attended the ceremony and prayed for higher ranks of the national hero in heaven.

Meanwhile, Director General ISPR Major General Babar Iftikhar also paid glorious tributes to Captain Karnal Sher Khan Shaheed on his 22nd martyrdom anniversary.

In a tweet, he said the national hero from Swabi wrote history with his blood during Kargil war. He

added that Karnal Sher Khan displayed utmost valour, commitment and unwavering allegiance to defend the country against all odds. The DG ISPR said the nation is proud of its hero.

Captain Karnal Sher Khan was born in district Swabi of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in 1970. He is one of the ten recipients of country’s highest military award, Nishan-e-Haider.

During the Kargil conflict on the Line of Control in 1999, he emerged as the symbol of courage and inflicted heavy losses on the Indian forces while defending the five strategic posts at the height of 17,000 feet in Gultray.

Captain Khan held a vital position during the war and courageously fought against the enemy in Kargil. He died by machine-gun fire on July 5, 1999 after successfully reclaiming a lost check post from Indian forces.

Sindh says not in position to host potential influx of Afghan refugees KARACHI Staff RePoRt

The Sindh government on Monday demanded the federal government set up camps in Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and former tribal areas to deal with a potential fresh influx of refugees from Afghanistan given the uncertainty in the war-battered country following the withdrawal of US forces.

Minister for Agriculture and Supply and Prices Muhammad Ismail Rahoo also asked the Centre to seal the border with Afghanistan due to a situation akin to a civil war in that country.

He further said that lest the exodus of refugees becomes inevitable, they be accommodated in camps set up just close to the Afghanistan border. “Sindh,

particularly Karachi, is already grappling with the issue of overpopulation,” he said, adding: “That’s why the provincial capital is facing the issues of unemployment, lawlessness, load shedding and water shortage.”

“We in Sindh cannot afford to host millions of refugees once again since the refugees who had migrated to Pakistan during the Zia regime are still here,” he pointed out.

About 2.5 million Afghans, many of whom fled their homeland after it was invaded by the Soviet Union in 1979, live in Pakistan, home to the world’s second-largest refugee population.

In addition, the provincial government is already facing financial strain due to the non-provision of funds by the federal government. “And we are not in a position to sustain more [financial] pressure,” he said.

Zardari under the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and Rules of the Election Commission of Pakistan, […] as per the past precedent, should be disqualified from holding public office under Article 62 (1)(f), as in my opinion, he ceases to be truthful and sagacious,” the application stated.

“This serious violation of the law needs to be examined by you since Mr Zardari is a former president of Pakistan and co-chairs one of the major political parties of this country.” Another document that surfaced at the time showed one Mehreen Shah was granted the power of attorney for the condo unit by the former president.

Nadia Jamil left stranded on heathrow after British Airways staff ‘abandons’ her NEWS DESK Actor Nadia Jamil, who recently defeated breast cancer after battling the disease for a year, has complained about the British Airways staff after experiencing a mistreatment post-flight. In a series of tweets, Nadia explained how she was taken off the flight and was told by the airline’s staff to go home. She also shared how she had never felt so “humiliated, intimidated and helpless” in her life, Tribune reported. Jamil said the airline’s staff left her sleeping alone in a terminal of the Heathrow Airport in London, despite knowing that she was wheelchair-bound and was unable to carry herself and her luggage.

“It takes a lot to drain positivity out of me @British_Airways,” she tweeted. “I’ve never been so intimidated, humiliated and helpless in my life. Your staff left me sleeping alone on terminal 5. How did you expect me to wheelchair myself and 3 suitcases back to Cambridge from Heathrow? Kindness counts!”

Following this, the actor also shared a video to show her fans how she had in fact been abandoned. “My nose is red because I’ve been howling and crying,” she said.

Govt launches vaccine verification portal: NCOC NEWS DESK The government has launched a vaccine verification portal to allow people's entry to specific areas to prevent spread of the Covid-19 pandemic. This was stated by the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) which met with Planning Minister Asad Umar in the chair on Monday. A coronavirus vaccination verification portal has been established in a bid to facilitate people who want to enter the places where Covid-19 inoculation is necessary. "All vaccinating staff and the public are urged to ensure that their vaccination record is entered into the National Immunization Management System (NIMS) when vaccinating," the statement said. The forum appealed to the public to ensure they register their vaccination in the National Immunisation Management System.

Govt negotiating with social media giants for representative offices in Pakistan LAHORE Staff RePoRt

Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting Farrukh Habib has said that the government is negotiating with international social media giants to convince them to set up representative offices in Pakistan, without which it is increasingly difficult to monitor harmful and offensive content online.

“Experience has shown that on a number of occasions social media has been used to propagate anti-Pakistan as well as anti-Muslim agenda - mostly from artificial accounts set up in India and it becomes difficult to interact with those platforms until they have representation inside the country,” a Council of Newspaper Editors (CPNE) press release quoted him as saying. "Our efforts are aimed at facilitating flow of genuine news while rooting out fake and false propaganda in the shortest possible time," he said, adding that it was because of lack of proper communication between interest groups and stakeholders that certain members of the press got the impression that the government wanted to "control" it. That, according to him, is precisely why the government felt it was necessary to have a platform like PMDA, and Farrukh has taken it upon himself to personally interact with all stakeholders and explain the official position.

Tuesday, 6 July, 2021

LAHORE

PAkiStAN, tURkey vOw tO fURtheR eNhANCe MilitARy tieS

C

NEWS DESK

OMMANDER Turkish Land Forces General Umit Dundar on Monday called on Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa at the General Headquarters (GHQ) in Rawalpindi and discussed bilateral military cooperation.

“During the meeting, matters of

mutual and professional interest with special emphasis on defence and security collaboration between the two brotherly countries were discussed,” the InterServices Public Relations (ISPR) said in a statement.

Pakistan “highly values” its brotherly relations with Turkey which are deeply rooted in history and entrenched in our cultural and religious affinities, the communique quoted Gen

SC seeks NAB’s progress report on Sindh police recruitment ISLAMABAD tLtP

While adjudicating a bail matter on Monday, the Supreme Court sought a progress report from the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) over reference against illegal recruitment in Sindh Police. Ex- police chief of Sindh Ghulam Haider Jamali and other senior police officers facing corruption charges in the case. Jamali, then AIG Finance Fida Hussain Shah and other senior police officers were named in a reference of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) for allegedly causing a loss of more than Rs500 million to the national kitty during the course of misusing their powers. A two-member bench of the Justice Umar Ata Bandial and Justice Aminud Din Khan was hearing the post arrest bail applications of Ghulam Raza and others who were apprehended in response to complaint regarding illegal recruitment/appointments of constables in Sindh Police During the course of hearing, Justice Umar Ata Bandial observed saying, “It is a matter of violation of rules in recruitment,”. Counsel for accused persons argued that his client was behind the bars for last two years in spite of the court directions for conclusion of the reference within two months. Substantiating his arguments for bail the counsel cited that main accused in the case including former IG Police have already been granted bail in the matter. Responding to the court query as to why reference proceedings were not concluded despite the court directions in the matter, the NAB prosecutor submitted that testimonies from NAB have been completed and it didn’t cause any delay in hearing. To which Justice Banidal said the court has to summon a report to examine whether reference proceedings have been completed. It is pertinent to mention that it has been alleged in the reference that Jamali and other police officers misused their authority and circumvented required procedure to make illegal appointments in Sindh Reserve Police. The NAB had carried out an investigation into the matter in the light of a report of the three-member fact-finding committee which was appointed by the Supreme Court to inquire about irregularities in recruitment in the Sindh Police department. Later, the bench sought a report from the accountability court Karachi within two weeks and adjourned the hearing of the matter.

Qamar as saying.

Both sides agreed to further optimise military to military ties particularly in training and counter-terrorism domains, it added.

The Turkish general appreciated Pakistan Army’s role for regional peace and stability and contributions towards defeating terrorism.

Upon arrival, the visiting commander was also presented with a

guard of honour by a smartly turned out military contingent, said the ISPR. Earlier, Gen Umit called on President Arif Alvi and discussed the matters of mutual interest.

President Alvi reiterated Pakistan’s resolve to further intensify bilateral cooperation with Turkey in the areas of trade, defence and culture.

Talking to the visiting commander, he underlined the need for increasing cooperation with Turkey in various fields for the mutual benefits of the two brotherly countries.

Expressing satisfaction over the existing level of bilateral relations, the president said that both countries enjoyed exemplary ties which needed to be further cemented in the areas of trade and defence. He expressed the hope that the agreement on military training cooperation between the two countries would further boost military ties.

General Umit said that Pakistan and Turkey are inseparable as they have a long history of cooperation based on common faith, values and historical linkages. He further said that the people of Turkey views Pakistanis as their brothers and emphasised the need to promote cooperation in all aspects, particularly defence.

He thanked the president for the conferment of the Award of “Nishan-eImtiaz (Military)” on him.

After removing Maryam from Swat rally, Shehbaz decides to jump into AJK campaign ISLAMABAD MIaN abRaR

Power struggle within the Pakistan Muslim LeagueNawaz (PML-N) has intensified as the party president Shehbaz Sharif has decided to join the party’s campaign in the upcoming elections of Azad Jammu and Kashmir.

According to PML-N sources, Shehbaz Sharif would soon be joining PML-N Vice President Maryam Nawaz who has been campaigning in Azad Kashmir since July 8. After the entry of Shehbaz, the sources said, the Maryam Nawaz camp in the PML-N has started to worry about Shehbaz’s entry. According to PML-N sources, Shehbaz will address public gatherings in different constituencies of Kashmir from next week. In this regard, the sources said, the PML-N has started preparing a schedule for Shehbaz’s visit to Azad Kashmir. The schedule of Shehbaz’s visit to Kashmir will be announced in the next two to three days.

The sources said that Maryam is feeling discomfort as party leader Nawaz Sharif had decided that Maryam would be campaigning in the AJK polls while Shehbaz would look after the campaigning in across country under the platform of Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM).

However, the sources said, Shehbaz’s entry would be a clear violation of Nawaz’s decision which is making Maryam uncomfortable.

Earlier, PML-N Vice President Maryam’s meetings were scheduled for the Azad Kashmir election campaign.

Under the PML-N plan, Maryam will visit Azad Jammu and Kashmir from July 8 to 19. During her visit to Azad Kashmir, Maryam will address meetings in Muzaffarabad on July 8, Neelam on July 9 and 10, Kohatian on July 11, Kotli on July 13 and public gatherings in Hajira and Rawalpindi on July 14.

According to the schedule, Maryam will hold rallies in Bagh on July 18, Haveli on July 19, Baloch and Palandri on July 15, Bhimber and Mirpur on July 17.

According to the PML-N sources, Nawaz had fielded Maryam along for Azad Kashmir election campaign.

Former prime minister Nawaz had a telephone conversation with opposition leader Shehbaz and made consultations regarding Azad Kashmir elections.

During the conversation, the sources said, the two leaders agreed to hand over the election campaign of Azad Kashmir elections to Maryam. However, now Shahbaz will also take part in the election campaign with Maryam.

SBP reintroduces incentive scheme for banks to attract remittances KARACHI tLtP

The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on Monday reintroduced the incentive scheme for banks to attract home remittances through formal channels.

The SBP said that in order to further encourage promotion of home remittances through formal channels, the government of Pakistan has approved reintroduction of subject schemes effective from July 01, 2021 to June 30, 2022 to cover home remittance performance for FY 2021-22 compared to that of FY 2020-21.

The SBP said that home remittances exceeding 5 percent growth in FY22 (July 01, 2021 to June 30, 2022)

compared with the levels achieved in FY21 (July 1, 2020 to June 30, 2021): the incentive shall be Rs0.50 pereach incremental USD mobilized over 5 per cent growth.

The SBP said that home remittances exceeding 10 per cent growth in FY22 (July 01, 2021 to June 30, 2022) compared with the levels achieved in FY21 (July 1, 2020 to June 30, 2021): As per (1) above, plus, Rs0.75 per each incremental USD mobilized over 10 percent growth.

The SBP said that home remittances exceeding 15 percent growth in FY22 (July 01, 2021 to June 30, 2022) compared with the levels achieved in FY21 (July 1, 2020 to June 30, 2021): As per (b) above, plus, Rs1 per each incremental USD mobilized over 15 per cent growth.

FO rejects reports of Putin’s Pakistan visit NEWS DESK The Foreign Office on Monday denied media reports claiming Russian President Vladimir Putin would visit Pakistan in July.

In a statement, FO spokesperson Zahid Hafeez Chaudhri said some media reports were making rounds regarding the Russian president’s visit to Pakistan this month. He clarified that while “invitations for visits at the summit level have been extended by both sides”, no visit by the Russian president had been scheduled yet.

Chaudhri emphasised that Pakistan and Russia were close partners and friends. “The two sides are committed to building a strong multi-dimensional relationship that not only serves their respective national interests but also contributes to regional as well as global peace and security,” he said.

The spokesperson said exchange of high-level visits was an important part of the growing Pakistan-Russia relations.

Chaudhri recalled that Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov paid a successful visit to Islamabad in

NEWS

03

PiA brings back 155 stranded nationals from Doha ISLAMABAD Staff RePoRt

A special Pakistan International Airlines plane brought home on Monday 155 nationals stranded in Doha, Qatar due to a wave of coronavirus-related flight cancelations in recent days. Thousands of nationals have been unable to return home due to flight cancelations by Middle Eastern operators inlcuding Emirates following a wave of travel bans in their countries. The Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority announced on Saturday that the flagcarrier would operate special flights to bring home over 6,100 people stranded in sheikhdoms.

“PIA’s relief operation to bring Pakistanis who got stranded because of cancelation of flights of other airlines is underway, and our first flight arrived this morning [on Monday] with 155 passengers from Doha,” Arab News quoted PIA spokesperson Abdullah Hafeez Khan as saying. “We have allocated eight special flights for Qatar, two for Bahrain and added 2,000 additional seats from the UAE to Pakistan,” he explained, adding “PIA is ready to add more flights” if the need arises. “We have more flights from Middle East countries tomorrow [Tuesday]” “PIA flights were upgraded from Airbus to 777 (as per existing schedule) to take approximately 6132 passengers from Dubai, Shariah, Doha and Bahrain on 18 PIA flights,” the PCAA said in a statement issued Saturday. Ten flights would depart from the United Arab Emirates, bringing home 3,394 passengers between July 5 and July 16. Another 2,016 people would be brought from Qatar between July 6 to July 18 and 722 from Bahrain from July 9 to July 11. PIA will use Boeing 777 aircraft from its fleet as the wide-body airliner can accommodate more passengers than regular Airbus planes operated on these routes.

NCOC daily update: lowest Covid-19 deaths in five months ISLAMABAD Staff RePoRt

Pakistan recorded 19 deaths from coronavirus over the past 24 hours, the lowest single-day toll since February, the Health Ministry said on Monday. The country registered 16 fatalities on February 21, the lowest this year, while 201 deaths were recorded on April 27, the highest since a third virus wave hit the country in March. The government portal on Sunday registered 1,347 new Covid-19 cases, the National Command and Operation Centre data showed. The NCOC said that the number of overall cases had risen to 963,660, including 907,934 recoveries. The number of active cases has risen to 33,299 who are under treatment across the country, including 1,894 critical patients admitted to intensive care units in different hospitals. According to the NCOC, the pandemic killed 19 people on Sunday, taking the overall death toll to 22,427. Punjab is the most affected province of the country with 346,852 infections and 10,776 deaths, followed by Sindh which has reported 340,902 cases and 5,520 deaths so far. The NCOC said on its website that Pakistan has administered 17,390,346 Covid-19 vaccine doses across the country, with 3,363,490 persons fully vaccinated so far.

April this year and last year Pakistan’s foreign minister and defence minister visited the Russian Federation.

Lavrov’s visit to Pakistan two months ago came as Moscow sought to increase its stature in the region, particularly in Afghanistan, where it looks to inject itself as a key player in accelerated efforts to find a peaceful end to decades of war. His two-day trip to Pakistan was the first visit by a Russian foreign minister in nine years, part of a warming in once frosty relations.

During his trip to Islamabad, the Russian foreign minister had remarked in a statement: “We stand ready to strengthen the anti-terrorist potential of Pakistan, including by supplying Pakistan with special military equipment.”

Tuesday, 6 July, 2021

04 NEWS

LAHORE

Exports to Us Cross $5Bn mark for first timE in last fisCal yEar: DawooD

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NEWS DESK

DvISER to the Prime Minister on Trade and Commerce, Abdul Razak Dawood has said that Pakistan’s exports to the United States increased by 39 percent in the last fiscal year 2020-

21 to cross the $5 billion mark for the first time in history.

In a series of tweets on Monday, the advisor said that Pakistan’s exports to the United States during the last fiscal year surged 39 percent to $5.2 billion as compared to $3.7 billion during the fiscal year 2019-20, showing an increase

Cryptos in retreat as Bitcoin falls to $33,525 NEWS DESK The prices of major cryptocurrencies retreated on Monday amid crackdown on cryptocurrency mining in different countries and the market cap dropped to $1.45 trillion with a decrease of 4.9 percent as of 13:00 GMT. The price of Bitcoin (BTC), the largest cryptocurrency, decreased to $33,525 after shedding 5.45 percent. With this decrease in price, the market capitalisation of the BTC has reached $628.5 billion. Likewise, ethereum (ETH) price dipped 4.67 percent to reach $2,213. With this decrease in price, the market capitalisation of ETH has reached $258 billion. Similarly, XRP shed 6.13 percent to reach $0.652. The market capitalisation of XRP stands at $65.1 billion after this decrease. On the other hand, Cardano (ADA) price reached $1.39 with a 3.17 percent decrease in its price. Its market capitalisation has reached $44.8 billion with this increase. Likewise, Dogecoin (Doge) faced decrease of 6.58 percent to reach $0.232. With this decrease in price, the market capitalisation of Doge reached $30.1 billion.

Meanwhile, Bitcoin recorded its largest difficulty drop in history, following China’s recent crackdown on cryptocurrency mining. On July 3, mining difficulty dropped by nearly 28 percent at block 689,471. The mining difficulty of Bitcoin measures the computational power needed to validate BTC transactions. The network adjusts the difficulty level every two weeks to reflect the amount of competition between miners. The recent plunge in difficulty suggests that there is less competition. On May 29 and June 13, mining difficulty slumped by 16% and 5%, respectively, according to BTC.com. The recent difficulty adjustment marks the third straight decline since December 2018.

In May, China announced that it would be getting tough on crypto mining and trading because of the financial risks that the new asset class poses.

of around $1.45 billion.

“This is the first time in history that exports to the US have crossed the $5 billion mark,” Dawood said. He commended the efforts of exporters and trade & investment officers in the US. He urges the trade & investment officers to provide all possible facilitation to ex-

porters for enhancing the country’s exports further.

Last week, Abdul Razak Dawood said that Pakistan’s exports to the United Kingdom increased by 33 percent to $2.025 billion during the just concluded fiscal year 2020-21 as compared to $1.526 billion during the financial year 2019-20. Pakistan’s exports of goods grew by 18.11 percent to $25.268 billion during the fiscal year 2020-21. The exports of services for the year are projected to be $5.9 billion. The cumulative exports of goods and services during the fiscal year 2020-21 will, therefore, cross the $31 billion mark.

Export of goods grew by 18 percent to $25.3 billion during the fiscal year 2020-21, according to the data shared by the Ministry of Commerce on Thursday last, adding the exports in June 2021 were also the highest in any month in the past and remained at $2.7 billion.

PSX turns bearish, sheds 257 points

KARACHI TLTP

The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) turned bearish on Monday, with the benchmark KSE-100 Index shedding 257.06 (-0.54 points) to close at 47,429.12 points.

The market opened on a positive note; however, it turned red soon due to consistent profit booking activity. The Index traded in a range of 364.4 points, showing an intraday high of 47,739.5 and a low of 47,375.1 points.

Among other indices, the KSE All Share Index shed 168.52 points (-0.51 percent) to close at 32,555.72 points, while All Share Islamic Index shed 103.98 points (-0.44 percent) to close at 23,275.51 points.

A total of 380 companies traded shares in the stock exchange, out of them shares of 134 closed up, shares of 238 closed down while shares of 8 companies remained unchanged.

The overall market volumes decreased by 69.28 million to 494.53 million shares. The number of total trades decreased by 24,774 to 146,156, while value traded decreased by Rs0.96 billion to Rs15.37 billion. The market cap decreased by Rs43.05 billion.

Among scrips, WTL led the table with 55.5 mil-

CMYK

lion shares, followed by HASCOL (39.6 million) and KEL (29.4 million). Stocks that contributed significantly to the volumes include WTL, HASCOL, KEL, BYCO and TPL, which formed 36 per cent of total volumes.

Sector wise, the index was let down by cement with 76 points, technology & communication with 23 points, oil & gas exploration companies with 23 points, tobacco with 21 points and food & personal care products with 18 points. The most points taken off the index were by LUCK which stripped the index of 39 points followed by PAKT with 21 points, ENGRO with 17 points, HBL with 17 points and PPL with 15 points.

The sectors propping up the index were power generation & distribution with 25 points and automobile parts & accessories with one point. The most points added to the index were by HUBC which contributed 27 points followed by SNGP with 12 points, EFERT with 11 points, SCBPL with 10 points and BAFL with 9 points.

Lack of an obvious near-term trigger caused the lacklustre activity in the market whereby investors were concerned about the beginning of earnings season, which is due to start August end, a report by Arif Habib cited. Regional political worries also weigh down on investors’ sentiments as sudden withdrawal of US forces from Afghanistan in absence of strategic pull-out raises security concerns for bordering nations, said the report.

It said the selling pressure was evident across the board, with focus on cement, steel, technology, refinery and E&P sectors. OGDC became an exception to the selling and saw active trading with rangebound price uptick. SNGP posted its results with a dividend payout that attracted investors to build position and realise price gain. The report said that post closure of the financial year end, the market began receding, resulting in a loss of 311 points during the session and closed -257 points.

Tuesday, 6 July, 2021

LAHORE

FIre rAGes, mAss evACuATIOn AFTer ThAI FACTOry BlAsT BAnGKoK

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REUTERS

HOUSANDS of people on the outskirts of Thailand's capital were being evacuated on Monday as firefighters battled blazes for hours after a factory explosion that killed a rescue worker and wounded 29 people, officials said. Disaster authorities said 70 houses were damaged and fires were still being fought 15 hours after the explosion in Samut Prakan province in the early hours of Monday.

Israeli forces assault Palestinian detainees in Ofer prison RAMALLAH: Israeli forces on Monday stormed prison cells in the Ofer military prison in western Ramallah in the occupied West Bank, and assaulted Palestinian detainees.

In a statement, the Palestine Liberation Organisation's detainees committee condemned "the barbaric assault the (Palestinian) detainees in Ofer (prison) experienced this (Monday) morning." The statement said the Israeli special prison guards stormed unit 21 of the prison, assaulted the detainees, smashed their belongings, and then moved them to another unit. The statement added that the unit that was attacked includes 120 Palestinian detainees. The committee held the Israeli authorities fully responsible for what happened in the Ofer prison, urging international rights groups to "immediately intervene to stop Israeli crimes against Palestinian detainees." ANADOLU AGENCY

The cause of the blast at the Taiwanese-owned factory had yet to be determined. The nearby Suvarnabhumi international airport, Thailand's main gateway, said its operations were not affected.

A large cloud of black smoke could be seen from Bangkok and the city's water authority warned people against drinking potentially contaminated rainwater.

Samut Prakan residents living within five kilometres (3.1 miles) of the factory were being moved away as a precaution.

"At first it felt like lightning. After that, I heard something drop loudly, and for a while the house started

shaking like there was an earthquake," said Baitong Nisarat, a resident.

The industry ministry said as much as 700 million baht ($21.79 million) of assets could be lost in the fire.

Reuters could not reach the factory's operator and its parent company in Taiwan did not immediately respond to a request by email for comment.

The 32-year-old factory makes expandable polystyrene foam. According to the department of industrial works, styrene monomer, a base chemical needed to make foam, is highly flammable and polystyrene releases toxic chemicals when heated.

Rockets hit Iraqi base housing US forces BAGHDAD REUTERS

At least three rockets landed on Monday on the Ain alAsad air base, which hosts US and other international forces in western Iraq, but caused no casualties, a coalition spokesman said.

US Army Colonel Wayne Marotto, spokesman for the US-led international military coalition, tweeted that initial reports suggested the attack took place at 2:45pm.

He said the damage was being assessed.

The United States accuses militia groups of launching regular rocket attacks against its troops in Iraq.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for Monday's attack. US interests in Iraq have come under

Govt considering talks with insurgents in Balochistan, says Imran ContinueD from pAGe 01 He said that work on western route is underway and huge amount are being spent on development projects in Balochistan including establishment of technical colleges and university for the first time in Gwadar. Chinese Ambassador Nong Rong said that relations between Pakistan and China is rapidly strengthening day by day in the leadership of Prime Minister Imran and President Xi. He also that CPEC will change the economic fate of the region as billion dollars are being spent under this mega project. CPEC Authority Chairman Lt Gen (r) Asim Saleem Bajwa briefed the prime minister about ongoing projects at Gwadar. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Imran in Gwadar on Monday inaugurated Gwadar Free Zone, Expo Centre, Agriculture Industrial Park and three factories. The prime minister also witnessed signing of various MOUs aimed at constructing a stateof-the-art hospital, airport, and a vocational institute as well as addressing the water and power problems of Gwadar. It is pertinent to mention here that these projects will be established on 2,200 acres of land. Seven regional countries including Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman, United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Kenya and Qatar have expressed their commitment for cooperation on development of Gwadar. With their respective ambassadors present at the ceremony attended by Prime Minister Imran in Gwadar on Monday, the regional countries showed their support for development of the port city. Chinese investors on the occasion through video-link from Shanghai showed the ‘Expression of Commitment for Investment’ in Gwadar.

repeated attack since October 2019, including with rockets, with Washington routinely blaming them on Iran-backed factions.

Since the beginning of the year, a total of 43 attacks have targeted the US embassy in Baghdad, Iraqi bases housing US troops or Iraqi convoys carrying logistical support. Pro-Iran groups in Iraq are campaigning for the departure of the remaining 2,500 US troops deployed in the country as part of an international coalition to fight the Islamic State group. The Iraqi government declared that fight won in late 2017.

On 10 June, the US Department of State's Rewards for Justice programme urged Iraqis with any information concerning anti-American attacks to come forward.

Taliban to propose written peace plan to Afghan government ContinueD from pAGe 01 “The peace talks and process will be accelerated in the coming days…and they are expected to enter an important stage, naturally it will be about peace plans,” Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid told Reuters on Monday.

“Possibly it will take a month to reach that stage when both sides will share their written peace plan,” he said, adding that the latest round of talks were at a critical juncture.

“Although we (Taliban) have the upper hand on the battlefield, we are very serious about talks and dialogue.” The upsurge in fighting and the flight of thousands of members of the tattered Afghan security forces have raised grave doubt about the US-backed peace negotiations, which began last year under the thenpresident Donald Trump’s administration.

TALIBAN ADVANCES ON THE GROUND: Western security officials said insurgent forces have captured more than 100 districts but the Taliban say they have control of more than 200 districts in 34 provinces comprising over half the Central Asian country.

On Sunday, more than 1,000 Afghan secu-

rity personnel retreated across the northern border into Tajikistan after Taliban advances, the Tajik border guard service said, while dozens of others were captured by the insurgents.

Diplomats overseeing the intra-Afghan talks have repeatedly sought neighbouring Pakistan’s help to convince Taliban leaders to offer a written peace plan even if it took a maximalist line, such as the restoration of hardline Islamist rule reminiscent of the group’s 1996-2001 period in power.

Last month the European Union’s special envoy for Afghanistan, Tomas Niklasson, said time was running out and that a written proposal would be a sign of successful Pakistani leverage over the Taliban.

Najia Anwari, spokesperson for Afghanistan’s Ministry for Peace Affairs, confirmed that intra-Afghan talks had resumed and said its representatives were “very happy” that Taliban envoys were rejecting the process outright.

“It is difficult to anticipate that the Taliban will provide us with their written document of a peace plan in a month but let’s be positive.

We hope they present (it) so as to understand what they want,” said Anwari.

NEWS

05

All foreign troops must leave Afghanistan by deadline: Taliban ContinueD from pAGe 01 “If they leave behind their forces against the Doha agreement then in that case it will be the decision of our leadership how we proceed,” Shaheen told the BBC. “We would react and the final decision is with our leadership,” he added.

Diplomats, NGOs and other foreign civilians would not be targeted by the Taliban, he insisted, and no ongoing protection force for them was needed. “We are against the foreign military forces, not diplomats, NGOs and workers and NGOs functioning and embassies functioning — that is something our people need. We will not pose any threat to them,” he said. Shaheen described last week’s withdrawal from Bagram Airfield — once the largest US military base in Afghanistan — as a “historic moment”. But Farzana Kochai, a female MP, said the withdrawal was being carried out irresponsibly.

Afghan government spokesman Razwan Murad told the BBC that the government was ready for talks and a ceasefire and the Taliban should now prove that they were committed to peace. Shaheen denied that the militant group had played any part in the recent uptick in violence. He insisted that many districts had fallen to the Taliban through mediation after Afghan soldiers refused to fight. On Sunday, the Taliban captured another key district in southern Kandahar province. The militants say they now control about a quarter of the country’s nearly 400 districts. The Taliban spokesman described the current government as “moribund” and referred to the country as the “Islamic emirate” — an indication that the group envisaged a theocratic basis for governing the country and were unlikely to agree to Afghan government demands for elections. Shaheen said elections had so far not been raised in negotiations between the Taliban and the Afghan government. US-led forces ousted the Taliban from power in Afghanistan in October 2001. The group had been harbouring Osama Bin Laden and other al-Qaeda figures linked to the 9/11 attacks in the US. President Biden has said the American pull-out is justified as US forces have made sure Afghanistan cannot become a base for foreign jihadists to plot against the West again.

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, meanwhile, insists that the country’s security forces are fully capable of keeping insurgents at bay, but many believe the withdrawal risks casting the country back into the grip of the Taliban.

British royal Kate self-isolating after Covid-19 contact LonDon REUTERS

British royal Kate, the Duchess of Cambridge, is self-isolating and has cancelled her engagements after someone she came into contact with subsequently tested positive for Covid-19, her office said on Monday. "Last week the Duchess of Cambridge came into contact with someone who has subsequently tested positive for Covid-19," a spokesperson for Kensington Palace said. "Her Royal Highness is not experiencing any symptoms, but is following all relevant government guidelines and is self-isolating at home." Kate, wife of Queen Elizabeth's grandson Prince William, attended a number of events last week, most prominently the Wimbledon tennis championships on Friday.

Peru's indigenous hope for a voice, at last, under new president CArAtA REUTERS

Maxima Ccalla, 60, an indigenous Quechua woman, has spent her life tilling the harsh soil in Peru's Andean highlands, resigned to a fate far removed from the vast riches buried deep beneath her feet in seams of copper, zinc and gold. The Andean communities in Ccalla's home region of Puno and beyond have long clashed with the mining companies that dig mineral wealth out from the ground.

In recent interviews, many said they felt discriminated against and marginalized, and accused mining companies of polluting their water and soil.

But in a country still under the shadow of a colonial past, the rise of an outsider politician, the son of peasant farmers, is sparking hopes of change. It has also thrown a spotlight on stark divides between the rural Andean highlands and remote Amazon settlements, and the wealthier - and whiter - coastal cities.

Pedro Castillo, who wears a straw farmers hat and plays up his humble village roots, has pledged to give a voice to Peru's "forgotten" rural groups and redistribute mineral wealth in the world's second largest producer of

copper. "The looting is over, the theft is over, the assault is over, the discrimination against the Peruvian people is over," he said at a speech in Cuzco.

The socially conservative leftist is on the cusp of being confirmed president after firing up the rural and indigenous vote, including in mineral-rich regions like Puno. "So long, governments have promised to solve our problems but nothing has changed," Ccalla said in Quechua through a translator while working in the fields surrounding her home in the community of Carata.

"Now, hopefully, he will fulfil his promises."

Ccalla is one of millions of mostly poor, rural Peruvians who voted for Castillo in the June 6 run-off election. Wearing a colourful, traditional Montera hat against the sun, Ccalla's demands are simple: she wants safe drinking water.

'ONE OF US': Castillo holds a slim lead, which is being scrutinized after legal pressure from his right-wing rival Keiko Fujimori who has alleged fraud and wants to disqualify some votes from rural areas.

Election observers said the vote was carried out cleanly. The tension over the count has exposed a racial and socio-economic divide in the country.

More than a dozen leaders and activists from Quechua and Aymara communities, scattered across the Andes, and others deep in the Amazon rainforest hundreds of miles north, spoke to Reuters candidly about the discrimination they face.

In Puno, the region where Carata is located, Castillo scored some 90 percent of the total vote count. His party logo, a yellow pencil on red background, had been painted on walls of lone houses - the only splashes of bright colour for miles around.

Though Castillo does not identify as a member of an indigenous community, those who spoke to Reuters overwhelmingly said they could relate to him "as one of us" because of his humble upbringing and his background as a farmer. As with Bolivia's Evo Morales a decade ago, they hoped he would give greater representation to marginalized groups, and a more state-led approach to mining to drive higher social spending.

"Now we see a lot of possibilities for the future - he'll be a good president," said Rene Belizario, 34, a Quechua. But, he added, "this is our opportunity and if he doesn't deliver, the people will rise. There'll be protests." Belizario, a father of three young boys, said he

hoped Castillo would "recover" mines in the area operated by private companies to redistribute profits and generate jobs.

Mining is a key driver of Peru's economy. Metals are the country's largest export and Castillo, even with his plans to shake things up, will need to negotiate his way forward. And what farming-based indigenous communities want in development terms rarely tallies with the ideas of the government in distant Lima, said Vito Calderon, an Aymara who took part in a 2011 protest against a mining project.

'OUR LAND HAS BEEN STOLEN': Castillo is not Peru's first indigenous leader. Alejandro Toledo, a Quechua who was president in the early 2000s, had sparked hopes among Andean groups that he would give them more profile, though left them largely disappointed.

More recently, leftist president Ollanta Humala also promised dialogue with indigenous groups but was criticized for pushing oil interests over preserving their land rights. Indigenous leaders told Reuters that they had decided to support Castillo after he met with them to hear their demands and pledged to protect indigenous lands and push for a new constitution.

Tuesday, 6 July, 2021

06 COMMENT

Why do good?

PDM’s future With PML-N having one foot in sea and one on land

On motives for moral decisions

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DM’s public meeting in Swat drew a respectable gathering with political workers from all over Malakand division reaching the venue in rallies.

Eight months back PTI vice president Maryam Nawaz had delivered a fiery speech in a well-attended public meeting in Swat. This time she was replaced, reportedly by the party supremo himself, with PML-N President Shahbaz Sharif who is known to be a moderate. While PDM chief Fazlur Rehman cirticised “certain institutions” for providing support to Imran Khan’s unconstitutional government, Shahbaz Sharif maintained full focus on the PTI government’s lack of competence in running the affairs of the country and the suffering consequently faced by the people.

After having raised expectations to fever pitch through three months of rallies and public events across the country, and after having claimed time and again that the PTI government would be nowhere in sight by January, the opposition got mired in rivalries between the PPP and PML-N leading the PPP and ANP to leave the alliance.

There were dissenting voices within the PML-N also with a number of legislators opposing the policy of confrontation with the establishment. With party president Mian Shahbaz Sharif’s release on bail, the PML-N’s soft liners rallied around him. PML-N vice president and hard liner Maryam Nawaz was meanwhile recalled from the frontline.

While both the PPP and PTI leaders have already been canvassing in AJK for their respective candidates in the forthcoming elections, Maryam is yet to visit AJK. With former President Zardari once again taking over the role of PPP’s chief strategist, there is little possibility of the party rejoining the PDM anytime in near future. Mr Zardari is opposed to agitation and depends solely on wheeling dealing and winning over the electables. The PPP would however be collaborating with the rest of the opposition including the PML-N inside Parliament. Unlike the PPP, the PML-N still has a stake in the PDM. In case the establishment fails to heed to the party’s major concerns, it retains the option to take recourse to street power. The PML-N meanwhile needs to reconcile its idealistic goals of reforming the power equation in the system with its mundane concerns of getting its exiled leaders back.

HASAN AFTAB SAEED

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popular position on this issue, held by altruistic moralists (for want of a better description), is this: One must be selfless; and therefore, doing good and shunning evil should be done for their own sake. A man ought to feel good doing the right, and that should be motivation enough for him. Selfish concerns like reward (Paradise) and punishment (Hell) at best take the sheen off one’s good acts. At worst, they spoil good deeds completely.

As lofty-sounding philosophies go, this ranks right up there with Marxism. Like Marxism it also suffers from the grave defect that it cannot be lived.

Our lives are all based on rewards and punishments, provided one considers both in their broader meaning, which makes the above philosophy untenable.

For if a good deed assuages one’s conscience or makes one feel wonderful, that is itself a reward, which renders the altruistic moralist’s case against any utilitarian basis for morality inconsistent. Nobody does anything just for the heck of it. Especially good, which takes a lot of doing, is never done for its own sake. There is always a motivation behind it. Any philosophy that suggests otherwise is impossible to live, no matter how impressive it may sound.

Companionship, sexual gratification, monetary comforts, aesthetic fulfilment, and the various fruits – in the literal as well as the figurative sense – are not trivial considerations for man. They are important for him on account of his very nature. Of

Another assault on media FIA summons to journalist should be withdrawn

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ECENT events involving the state, its various institutions and the media points towards a deteriorating situation where room for free speech, continues to shrink. Incidents of physical assault, attempted murder and temporary kidnapping of journalists have made the profession of reporting and critical analysis dangerous. Efforts are also afoot to pass a draconian and arbitrary set of laws and regulations that would not only allow the government to control the editorial policies of media outlets but also fine them and jail individuals for noncompliance. In what can only be described as another assault on free media, a prominent working journalist Mr Nadeem Malik has been summoned to appear in front of the FIA’s (Federal Investigation Agency) Counter Terrorism Wing (CTW) today to present ‘all relevant information, documents and evidence’ related to a revelatory report he did on his talk show regarding the Arshad Malik case. While Mr Nadeem Malik has made no direct allegations against any particular person in his report, it seems even his vague insinuation of the involvement of a sensitive state agency has caused such an overreaction. As it is, the late Judge Arshad Malik and the investigation surrounding allegations that he was coerced into giving a guilty verdict against former deposed PM Nawaz Sharif, is a controversial matter, one that highlights the systemic problems of judicial corruption and extra constitutional efforts made by certain elements to bring about desired political changes.

Why exactly the matter has gone to the CTW remains unknown as none of the details related to the case that are available suggest the involvement of any terrorist organization or threat to national security. If the FIA has spotted a potential lead in the reporting of Mr Nadeem Malik, perhaps it would be best that they explored it in a more informal way, without issuing a summons that is a clear intimidation tactic and is being condemned by members of the journalist community and opposition political parties alike. There is no legal cover available in Pakistan with regards to source protection but there is a more rational, less threatening way the FIA can conduct this investigation. The withdrawal of the summons and perusal of a less public investigation, one where the environment is made less hostile, would be a good start.

Much needs to be done SANiA AriF

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HE annual State of Human Rights in Pakistan report released by the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan for the year 2020 has once again painted a concerning picture of the women’s rights situation in the country. While the HRCP report highlights an array of issues impacting the marginalised communities in Pakistan, there has been special emphasis on the plight of women, with gender discrimination prevalent across the country.

The gender disparity is witnessed even in subcategories of crimes, including, for instance, persecution of religious minorities, with issues such as forced conversions being witnessed. Other human rights abuses to target women include child marriage and honour killings, which even though impact men as well, are largely centered on controlling and subjugating women according to experts.

“We must change our mindset on what the fate of young women should be in our society,” said Kishwar Enam, a paediatrician and member of Kasur Hamara Hai, a child welfare initiative. “Instead of committing them to marriages, let’s send them to school so they can grow up to be healthy, successful and independent individuals; this will help the generations they raise to prosper,” she added.

The HRCP has highlighted other forms of violence against women, which includes sexual assault and domestic violence prevalent across the country. While the HRCP report highlights certain issues in accordance with provincial division, marginalisation of women was witnessed across Pakistan even if certain stats varied in different parts of the country.

The HRCP report reiterated Pakistan’s concerning standing on the Global Gender Gap Index of the World Economic Forum, where the country is placed third from bottom, i.e. 151 out of 153 countries. The report also reiterates that the HRCP has registered an increase in domestic violence and even digital versions of such cases, which according to the report underlines “the increased vulnerability of women during the [covid-19] pandemic.”

Arif Nizami Editor Managing Editor

Joint Editor

Umar Aziz Executive Editor

Lahore – Ph: 042-36300938, 042-36375965

The start of wisdom is knowing one’s limitations, including the level of selflessness one is capable of. A successful life can only be built on the foundation of an appreciation of realities about the universe and about one’s own self; never on delusions, however magnificent sounding.

The writer is a connoisseur of music, literature, and food (but not drinks). He can be reached at www.facebook.com/hasanaftabsaeed

Alarm bells ringing over women’s rights

Dedicated to the legacy of the late Hameed Nizami

Yousaf Nizami Aziz-ud-Din Ahmad

course, there are limits of permissible behaviour regarding each, but there is nothing shameful or ignoble about any of them. Any philosophy that does not take this fact into consideration is bound to be a non-starter. Man depends on God for each breath of air he draws, the food he eats, the water he drinks, and the comfort that he derives from a healthy life, along with all his other bodily and psychological needs and wants. Man’s whole life is governed by attraction for these and aversion to hunger, thirst, loneliness, discomfort, and ugliness. Looking forward to similar blessings from God in the next life is merely an extension of it.

How can somebody in his right mind have contempt for Paradise when it stands for everything that he desires? Doing good in anticipation of rewards from God or out of fear of retribution from Him, far from being unworthy of man as claimed by some, is in fact indicative of his appreciation of his proper place in the scheme of things.

Another way this thought could be expressed is that one should do good deeds for the love of God. It should be noted however that by his very nature, man cannot have a selfless relationship with God. God is Absolute and Independent; man is needy and dependent. Therefore, he cannot be indifferent to rewards and punishments from God. Being altruistic is a desirable quality, and he should be as selfless as he can when it comes to his dealings with fellow human beings. However, when he pretends to be selfless in his relationship with God, it is a form of arrogance on his part. What is more, it is a pretence, because man can be anything but indifferent to how God deals with him.

Broadly speaking there are two approaches to life. One, that bases itself on how things should be (wishful thoughts); and two, that bases itself on how things are (reality). The Quran deals solely with the latter. That is why it treats none of the topics of women, sex, money, or food with contempt – a tendency in many religious systems, and the reason

why many ‘enlightened’ souls accuse the Quran to be animalistic or sensuous. The Quran talks about all these things as legitimate aspects of man’s life unless a person violates the bounds of proper behaviour regarding them, in which case he is condemned.

Knowing man’s nature, the Quran promises the same things in Paradise as well.

The Quran condemns man’s tendency of reaching for heights that are unattainable as much as it forbids stooping to lows unworthy of him. Where philosophies like Hedonism barely distinguish human beings from animals, treating man essentially as an accident of evolution; the altruistic moralist believes man to be capable of going against his very nature, ignoring his bodily needs altogether.

The Quran characteristically shows the way to a balanced stance: one that takes into consideration both the spiritual as well as the corporeal side of man – scoffing at neither, sweeping neither under the carpet. Those with an eye on the history of man know that the consequences of celibacy and self-denying abstemiousness have scarcely been less catastrophic than those of Hedonism and such. The Quran reminds man not to pretend to be pure [53:32]. One must act in the best possible manner, but it is not a good idea for him to aim for the kind of nobility that is impossible to achieve on account of his nature. In the conflict between human nature and lofty slogans, there can only be one winner, no points for guessing which one.

The Quran explicitly describes people who have the right attitude: that they are never arrogant, and they call upon their Lord in fear and in aspiration [32:15-16]. This (fear and aspiration) is the ideal attitude, not merely an acceptable one. God’s prophets as well as their followers are all expected to have it.

It is futile for man to pretend that he is not interested in God’s blessings – in this life or in the next.

The start of wisdom is knowing one’s limitations, including the level of selflessness one is capable of.

A successful life can only be built on the foundation of an appreciation of realities about the universe and about one’s own self; never on delusions, however magnificent sounding.

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Karachi – Ph: 021-35381208-9

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“Many families realize too late that a divorced daughter is better than a dead daughter,” exclaimed Khadija Siddiqi, a women’s rights activist and gender-based violence survivor.

In the year 2020, the HRCP noted 430 cases of honour killings, which saw 363 women and 148 men being killed. The report highlights that sexual violence against women continued with impunity across the country. It specifically highlighted the case of the gang rape on the LahoreSialkot Motorway in September 2020, when a woman was sexually assaulted in front of her children. The case sparked shockwaves across the country.

“The shock and outrage compounded when the capital city police officer in Lahore callously suggested that she should have ‘chosen her route more carefully,’” noted the HRCP report, highlighting the prevalence of victim-blaming, which Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan has also been accused of in recent months. Twice in the year 2021, PM Khan has asserted that vulgarity or women wearing “few clothes” is linked to rape cases in Pakistan. “[Imran Khan is] a person who validates rape and holds the victim responsible. Pakistan needs to be rid of this mindset of rape apologists,” said Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Vice President Maryam Nawaz.

Other forms of violence against women were also witnessed during 2020, with targeted killings also reporting a rise in the year. The report highlights a case in Turbat, where three gunmen killed a

Islamabad – Ph: 051-2204545

women at her place, and even injured her four-yearold daughter, in what was reported to be an armed robbery. Reports further surfaced that the gunmen had been tasked by a local leader who runs a ‘death squad’ in the region, highlighting not just the vulnerability of women to violence, but also how women in Balochistan are even more impacted given the volatility of the province.

However, the HRCP celebrated an “important victory” lauding women’s rights activists for challenging the “the archaic and demeaning” virginity test, also known as the two-finger test, in the Lahore High Court. The HRCP also quotes the Election Commission of Pakistan, which confirmed that the gender disparity in voting is decreasing, with the number of women being prominent in the new voters being added.

Among other matters, the HRCP also highlights that the chairperson of the National Commission on the Status of Women is yet to be hired, with the position being vacant since November 2019.

The HRCP report cites that last year Pakistan completed the review of Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) in line with its fifth periodic report. The report handed over in February this year, at CEDAW’s 75th session, put forth its wide-ranging recommendation that underlined the need for a national machinery dedicated to gender equality and upholding women’s rights.

The HRCP report reiterated Pakistan’s concerning standing on the Global Gender Gap Index of the World Economic Forum, where the country is placed third from bottom, i.e. 151 out of 153 countries. The report also reiterates that the HRCP has registered an increase in domestic violence and even digital versions of such cases, which according to the report underlines “the increased vulnerability of women during the [covid-19] pandemic.”

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Web: www.pakistantoday.com.pk

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The writer is a freelance columnist

Email: editorial@pakistantoday.com.pk

Tuesday, 6 July, 2021

COMMENT 07 Editor’s mail Send your letters to: Letters to Editor, Pakistan Today, 4-Shaarey Fatima Jinnah, Lahore, Pakistan.

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

Water supply issue?

I write to you to express my concern and worries about the water supply issue and I believe that you will help me in waking up the sleeping officers of Municipal corporation authorities! Our locality is facing drastic undersupply of water.

The complication of the issue is quite synthetic. The people of our sector (G13-Islamabad) are facing this problem for many years. I’m not familiar with the thing that why this issue is taking place but people from our locality noticed that the houses with a little higher ramp in front of their houses are facing this problem but the houses on the surface are also facing it.

So, people are helpless and they’re being mistreated by the government because the tanker committee is not writing down the complaints of people and if they do, they do it once in two weeks and because of that people have to order the private tanker and they are paying double amount for this.

We requested the Municipal Commissioner to provide a new water facility in our locality but to no avail. The Municipal committees have quite an uninterested attitude towards providing public facilities to people.

People have been facing this difficulty for many years now.

Izza EEman ISlamaBad

Benefits of yoga

Empowering Local Governments A legal perspective and reference to case law

rAjA HAmzA ANwAr

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tragedy that befalls the political system of many developing countries, including Pakistan, is the political intolerance towards a meaningful devolution of power and an acceptance for greater centralisation of power at federal and provincial levels. Pakistan’s history sets out a lamentable tale of occasions where local governments have been throttled with impunity. It is even more striking to observe that the last effective local government was installed by the military-led Musharraf regime, while the democratic government have so far consolidated powers either in the federal government or the provincial governments.

In an attempt to turn the tide away from a monopolistic federal-provincial power-sharing duo, the Eighteenth amendment has validated the Musharraf era’s Article 140-A. As manifested in Article 32 of the Principles of Policy, the framers of our Constitution had aspired for a flourishing local government system long ago in 1973. These principles, though not a part of the Constitution upon which an individual may challenge the validity of the laws; nevertheless, they serve as a crucial vantage point from which the entire theme of the Constitution can be envisaged. However, Article 140-A is revolutionary as it legally mandates the establishment of local governments in all of the Provinces. What was before a mere dream of the framers was given a constitutional robe of its own, at par with the federal and provincial governments.

Article 140-A reads as follows: “Each Province shall, by law, establish a local government system and devolve political, administrative and financial responsibility and authority to the elected representatives of the local governments.”

Just as Pakistan was entering the phase of federalism, based on a power-sharing formula involving the federal government, provincial governments and the local governments, a public interest litigation emanating from the honourable Lahore High Court made its way to the

honourable Supreme Court of Pakistan. The judgment of the latter court in the case of Imrana Tiwana v Province of Punjab, which has come to define the ambit of Article 140-A, boldly re-asserts the dominance of the provincial government that was momentarily taken away by the honourable Lahore High Court. The catalyst that led to the determination of the scope of Article 140-A was the question as to whether, the Lahore Development Authority, a department of the Provincial government could carry out the construction of a large signal-free corridor or, conversely, it could exclusively be carried out by the local government.

The honourable Supreme Court held that the provincial assembly has an unimpeachable power to alter the functions allotted to the local government. The court stated that if the provincial governments found it necessary, they must have the power to divest the local governments of any of their functions.

By doing so, they rejected the view of the honourable high court, which had barred the provincial government from abdicating certain core functions of the local government. The Supreme court’s legal premise was based on the stand-point that legislative power of the provincial assembly cannot be limited. The deficiency of this view is, if the Constitution has limited the authority of the provincial assembly from assuming the functions of the Parliament and vice versa, then it stands to question why the provincial assembly has been given unlimited legislative power over another independent third-tier of government? It becomes a paradox that on one occasion the Supreme court is advocating a system of coequals while equipping the provincial government with the mighty power to denude the local government of any of its core functions under any circumstances.

Secondly, the honourable court does not go far enough to lay the circumstances under which the curtailment of functions of a local government will be justified by the provincial government. Without defining the proper scope for the curtailment of its powers, it may have re-invigorated the historic paternalistic attitude of the provincial governments against local governments.

Even more troublesome is another view of the Supreme Court that, the apportionment of functions between the local and provincial governments should be solely defined by them

through political processes. Meanwhile, the court ought to show deference to the political process by refraining from interfering. The theoretical problem this observation presents is that the insertion of Article 140-A itself represents a blatant acceptance of the failure of our political system to execute our framers vision through political compromise, deal-making and dialogue. Had the preferred political settlement been solely sufficient for establishing a robust local government, there would not have been the need to establish local government a constitutional obligation after three decades. Furthermore, had political dialogue been adequate, the Punjab Government would not have belligerently proceeded to dissolve the elected local government in 2018.

Though the Supreme Court stressed the complementary nature of governance between the local and provincial governments. In reality with the great centralisation of power granted to the provincial governments, the weight has shifted in their favour. A fatal blow to the independence of local government is the autonomy granted to the Provinces to usurp the functions of their local governments to undertake development works if the public interest demands. This potentially means that the role of the local governments has been reduced to that of an elected advisory body, rather than as a self-governing institution.

The Lahore High Court founded a minimum regulatory framework within which provincial and local governments would co-operate. The honourable court provided a sound blueprint for balancing the interests of these intra-provincial governments. Even though it permits the need for intervention by the provincial government under limited circumstances, it discouraged routine intrusion, thereby grasping the real reason for the insertion of Article 140-A. Imrana Tiwana must be re-visited by the honourable Supreme Court to usher a more robust and independent local government system into the political horizon of Pakistan. Until then, we must be mindful that the subservience of the local government comes at an abysmal cost of wavering the trust of the people in its democracy.

The honourable Supreme Court held that the provincial assembly has an unimpeachable power to alter the functions allotted to the local government. The court stated that if the provincial governments found it necessary, they must have the power to divest the local governments of any of their functions.

The writer is a Barrister and Practices law in Pakistan. He can be reached at rajahamzaanwar786@hotmail.com

YOGA is a very safe, easy and healthy way to get fit your whole life without any problems. It just needs regular practice in the right way of body movements and breathing. It regularizes the connection between three components of our body such as body, mind and soul. It regularizes the functioning of the all body organs and prevents the body and mind to get disturbed because of some bad situations and unhealthy lifestyle. It helps in maintaining the health, knowledge and inner peace. By providing a good health it fulfills our physical needs, through knowledge it fulfills our psychological needs and through inner peace is fulfills the spiritual need thus it helps in maintaining the harmony among all.

Regular practice of the yoga in the morning provides outer and inner relief by keeping away from the countless ailments at the physical and mental level. Practicing postures or asanas strengthens the body and mind as well as creates the feeling of well being. It sharpens the human mind, improves intelligence and help in high level of concentration by steadying the emotions and feelings. The feeling of well being creates helping nature within us and thus enhances the social well being. Improved concentration level helps in meditating and provides calming effect and inner peace to the mind. Yoga is like a practical philosophy which develops self-discipline and self awareness within us through regular practice.

Yoga can be practiced by anyone as it is irrespective of age, religion, or health circumstances. It improves the discipline and sense of power as well as provides a chance to life healthy life without physical and mental problems. To enhance its awareness about all benefits all over the world, the Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi has suggested to the United Nations General Assembly to declare the 21st of June as an International Day of Yoga so that each and every may know about yoga and can been benefited. Yoga is an ancient Indian tradition which was originated in India and practiced regularly by the yogis to get fit and meditate. By seeing the benefits of implementing the yoga in daily life, United Nations General Assembly has declared the International Day of Yoga to be celebrated every year on 21st of June.

We cannot count the benefits of yoga, we can understand it only a miracle which has been gifted to the human fraternity by the God. It maintains physical fitness, reduces stress, control on emotions, feelings, controls negative thoughts, feeling of general well being, improves mental clarity, enhances self-understanding, connects to the nature and many more. m Irfan HuB

Over speeding takes lives THIS is to draw the concerned authorities to the severe issue of over speeding and taking over. On Saturday 19th June 2021, a trailer ran over a motorcycle killing two people out of one is reported to be a child. This matter is getting an increment as the days go by. As a result, many people are either killed or severely injured for life. While the reckless drivers are allowed to flee from the spot. The police officials take matters in hand for a few days but then it becomes a dusty file leaving the responsible criminal with no charges. I would humbly request the higher authorities to set out strict rules on over speeding as well as taking over as they can cause major loss to the innocent citizens’ lives. they should set speed limits and make sure that every individual driving a truck, or a car must follow them so as to prevent any major loss of life. marIa GHulam muHammad KaraCHI

Digital detox WHILE there’s no doubt technology has made our lives simpler from multiple points of view, research proposes that our dependence on it is also real. All the time we spend online means we have less time to spend doing real-world activities. Also, we have less time to spend with our loved ones. As a result, our relationships suffer. Besides, digital media utilization influences both mental and physical health. Many researchers have reported a relationship between digital media consumption and numerous psychological maladies like depression and anxiety.

Furthermore, excessive utilization of technology brings about sedentary behaviour. We end up sitting for extensive periods of time before a screen or looking at a cell phone. Therefore, limiting screen time is fundamental to secure our well-being. Everyone needs to find a way to create a digital detox. A habit of regularly unplugging will reap a multitude of benefits. maryum Sardar ISlamaBad

Tuesday, 6 July, 2021

08 WORLD VIEW

BIden needs To end The TaRIff waR wITh ChIna

east asia forum

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yaN LiaNg

S President Joe Biden wasted no time reversing many of the damaging policies introduced during the Trump presidency, with exception to trade. US Trade Representative Katherine Tai is expected to meet her Chinese counterpart to review the Phase One trade deal, but expectations for the talks are low.

Biden lacks the political will to reverse course on Trump’s trade policies, with bipartisan support for ‘being tough’ on China and using the tariff war as leverage to demand structural change in China. nonetheless, keeping the Trump tariffs is a mistake.

First, the tariff war is based on a flawed economic rationale. The Trump administration imposed tariffs in response to the bilateral trade imbalance, according to which the United States ran a large and persistent trade deficit. Donald Trump believed that trade deficits are bad for the US economy. But the bilateral trade balance is meaningless when supply chains are globally structured and trade is multilaterally constructed. Consider, for instance, the iPhone X: when imported from China, each unit adds US$409.25 to the balance, even though China accounts for only 10.4 per cent of the value added.

Second, the United States runs a trade deficit with over 100 countries. This is not the product of unfair practices but of the United States’ own internal deficit, with pri-

vate and public spending outpacing income.

It is also caused by the US dollar’s ‘exorbitant privilege’ — trade deficits do not depreciate the US dollar to bring about trade adjustment because insatiable demand for the US dollar boosts its value.

Third, Trump’s tariffs did not achieve their intended goals — the US trade deficit with China continues to widen, while US consumers foot the bill for the tariffs, paying US$1277 more a year on average for consumer goods. Manufacturing jobs were not re-shored, with an estimated loss of 320,000 jobs now predicted by 2025. Continuing the tariff war undermines Biden’s own domestic priority of economic recovery.

The tariff war was a convenient political contrivance for Trump’s populist ‘America first’ agenda that served to amass political support for his presidency. Biden’s unwillingness to depart from Trump’s legacy undermines the prospects of the United States re-joining the multilateral system and resuming global economic leadership. The unilateral imposition of tariffs on China is a clear deviation from a multilateral approach.

Under Trump, trade restrictions were often carried out through executive orders in the name of broadly and vaguely defined national security concerns. But protecting sensitive technologies could follow the approach of ‘small yard, high fence’ through legislation instead of imposing a blanket, punitive tariff scheme. If the United States is to resume global leadership, it needs to resist the temptation of unilateralism and instead rebuild and reinforce a credible multilateral rules-based system.

It is clear that the US tariff war has failed to force China to budge on any structural reforms that are not aligned with its own longterm interests. China sees some of its economic policies — such as supporting state-owned enterprises (SOes) — as unique to its economic system and critical to its success. From Beijing’s perspective, US demands for changes to SOe policies amounts to interference. The United States needs to understand China’s developmental objec-

Regulating e-commerce should not involve spying on consumers Hindustan times Namrata maheshwari aNd ramaN Jit siNgh Chima

tives and approaches and work multilaterally to formulate and update international rules.

While the tariff war is demonstrably counterproductive, phasing out tariffs without any major Chinese concessions is politically challenging. Waging the tariff war may temporarily deflect attention away from structural problems in the US economy. To bypass the partisan stalemate on trade issues, Biden could extend the presidential Trade Promotion Authority.

And China has made efforts to implement the Phase One trade deal. While COVID-19 has dampened Chinese demand and disrupted US supply, post-pandemic demand combined with the continued strengthening of the renminbi will help China fulfil the purchase agreement. China has also made progress in curbing forced technology transfers and easing market restrictions.

To solidify economic recovery and sustain long-term growth, China must continue economic reform and foster positive international relations. It is in China’s long-term interest to ease market access, protect intellectual property rights, reform SOes and promote tech innovation in a constructive and competitive international environment.

The ongoing US tariff war against China fails to address trade imbalances and undermines Biden’s domestic priorities, hindering a US return to multilateralism. While the United States and China share profound differences in ideology and geopolitical interest, trade is a fertile ground for partnership. Multilateral rules-based trade would allow both countries to enjoy the benefits of extensive global supply chains and improve production efficiency derived from specialisation and economies of scale.

Trade could provide an opportunity for both countries to rebuild trust and communication, and collaborate towards a multilateral system that speaks to their common interests. ending the tariff war is the first step.

Yan Liang is Professor and Chair of International Studies at Willamette University, Oregon.

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he proposed amendments to the Consumer Protection (e-Commerce) Rules, 2020, have proved controversial, with new statements of concern coming in every day. however, one issue that has garnered less attention is how it would expand the government’s powers to access data of consumers, raising fears regarding expanded surveillance intruding into consumer data and the right to privacy.

Rule 5(18) in the amendments would require any e-commerce entity to provide information under its control or possession to a requesting government agency within 72 hours of receipt of an order. Agencies can make this demand for over-broad purposes devoid of any limitations. The proposed grounds include the prevention, detection, investigation, or prosecution of any offence, or identity verification, or cybersecurity.

The information under the “control or possession” of many e-commerce platforms is not merely information that is willingly submitted in the form of names, addresses, payment details and order histories. It includes data gleaned by tracking our browsing habits, even beyond the ecommerce website itself, and data inferred about personal characteristics and preferences based on what we search for, click on or purchase and when, where and how we do it.

Under the rules, the definition of “ecommerce entities” is broad and includes entities engaged for fulfilment of orders.

This could mean payment portals, delivery agents or even social media applications over which orders and payments are processed. Therefore, consumers’ data with any of the wide range of entities that fall in this broad bucket would be up for grabs.

This proposed amendment fails to meet the standards of legality, necessity and proportionality recognised by the Indian Supreme Court’s right to privacy judgments. The relevant section in the consumer protection Act empowers the

government to make rules to prevent unfair trade practices and direct selling. This objective has no nexus with what is sought to be done through the amendment, i.e. amplifying the government’s powers to acquire data for broad purposes beyond specific consumer law grievance redressal. It reflects executive overreach and fails the legality test, not to mention contempt for parliamentary scrutiny.

It is far from clear that this intrusive measure of mandating disclosure of consumers’ data to the government by e-commerce entities is necessary to achieve any legitimate aim. The provision fails to limit the nature of the information that may be sought, nor does it require that the consumer be notified and provided an opportunity to be heard. The absence of any safeguards against arbitrary government action (for example, requiring judicial oversight of orders) raises a red flag of unwarranted surveillance.

These developments are made worse by the context within which they are triggered. India does not have a data protection law; the Personal Data Protection Bill is pending and requires significant improvements in order to make it an effective law. At present, more needs to be done to restrict the collection and retention of data, including by e-commerce entities. however, the proposed amendment serves to further open channels for unchecked flows of personal data in a way that is detrimental to privacy and unduly expands the surveillance powers of the government.

To enact a provision enabling untrammelled government access to data before the country has a data protection law in place is to place the cart before the horse.

The government appears keen on securing access to the data that e-commerce players have on Indians, rather than regulating the data obsession in this sector. The provision does not lawfully belong in the proposed amendments to the e-commerce rules, and should be withdrawn.

Namrata Maheshwari is policy fellow and Raman Jit Singh Chima is Asia Pacific policy director, Access Now.

Cuba’s vaccine & the five monopolies that rule the world CUBA HAS ALREADY PLANNED TO EXPORT ITS VACCINES TO COUNTRIES AROUND THE WORLD AND HAS NOW PRODUCED FIVE VACCINE CANDIDATES, INCLUDING SOBERANA 02 AND THE NEEDLE-FREE INTRANASAL VACCINE, MAMBISA

tricontinental institute for social researcH

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ViJay Prashad

n 1869, at the age of 15, José Martí and his young friends published a magazine in Cuba called La Patria Libre (The Free homeland), which adopted a strong position against Spanish imperialism. The first and only issue of the magazine carried Martí’s poem, “Abdala.” The poem is about a young man, Abdala, who goes off to fight against all odds to free his native land, which Martí calls nubia. “neither laurels nor crowns are needed for those who breathe courage,” Martí wrote. “Let us run to the fight … to war, valiant ones.”

And in the rousing address by Abdala, comes these lyrical words: Let the warlike valour of our souls Serve you, my homeland, as a shield.

Martí was arrested and sentenced to six years of hard labor. eventually, the Spanish imperial government sent the young Cuban into exile in 1871. he spent this time — much of it in new York — writing patriotic poems, producing political essays and commentary, and organizing the resistance to Spanish imperialism. he returned home in 1895, only to be killed shortly afterwards in a skirmish, his legacy cemented in the war against the Spanish in 1898 and in the Cuban Revolution that began in 1959.

The lines from Martí about the “warlike valour” serving as the country’s “shield” form the basis for the name of the new Cuban vaccine, Abdala. This vaccine, the fifth to be produced in Cuba, was developed by the Centre for Genetic engineering and Biotechnology (CIGB) in havana.

In announcing the results of their trials, BioCubaFarma, the country’s leading biotechnology and pharmaceutical institution, noted that it had an efficacy rate of 92.28 percent, almost as high as the efficacy rate of the vaccines by Pfizer (95 percent) and Moderna (94.1 percent). The vaccine is administered in three doses, each

given with a two-week gap.

The Cuban authorities plan to vaccinate three quarters of the population by September. Already, more than 2.23 million vaccines have been administered to the 11 million Cubans on the island, 1.346 million people have been vaccinated with at least one dose, 770,390 with the second dose, and 148,738 with the third dose.

Cuba has already planned to export its vaccines to countries around the world and has now produced five vaccine candidates, including Soberana 02 and the needle-free intranasal vaccine, Mambisa. The latter, which holds great promise for vaccine administration in lowresource countries, is named after guerrilla soldiers who fought in the Ten Year War (1868-1878) for independence from Spain. each of these vaccines has been developed under conditions of duress imposed by the illegal U.S. blockade. Since 1992, the Un General Assembly has voted annually against the U.S. blockade, except for 2020, when, due to the pandemic, there was no vote.

On June 23, 184 member states of the United nations again voted to end this blockade. In the context of the coronavirus pandemic, Cuba’s foreign minister, Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla, said, “Like the virus, the blockade asphyxiates and kills. It must stop.”

VENTILATORS & SYRINGES: One of the casualties of the blockade has been Cuba’s inability to buy ventilators to treat critically ill patients, since the two Swiss companies (IMT Medical AG and Acutronic) who made them were purchased by a U.S. company (Vyaire Medical, Inc.) in April 2020. Cuba has now developed its own ventilator in response.

At the same time, Cuba suffers from a shortage of syringes. Syringe manufacturers are entangled in one way or another with the U.S. pharmaceutical industry. Terumo (Japan) and nipro (Japan) have operations in the United States, while B. Braun Melsungen AG (Germany) is in a partnership with Concordance healthcare Solutions (U.S.). An Indian syringe firm, hindustan Syringes & Medical Devices Ltd., is linked to envigo (U.S.), which brings U.S. government scrutiny to the Indian firm. In an act of concrete solidarity, a campaign is underway to raise funds towards the purchase of syringes for Cuba.

The Our World in Data project calculates that, as of June 29, just over 3 billion doses have been administered worldwide, which amount to less than 1 billion people out of the 7.7 billion in the world who have been vaccinated. Just over 23 percent of the world population has had their first vaccine shot. But the data shows that vaccination drives have been predictably uneven. In low-income countries, only 0.9 percent of the population has received at least one dose of the vaccine. In April 2021, WhO chief Tedros Adhanom Gheybreysus said, “There remains a shocking imbalance in the global distribution of vaccines. On average in high-income countries, almost 1-in-4 people has received a vaccine. In low-income countries, it’s 1-in- 500. Let me repeat that: 1-in-4 versus 1-in-500.” By May 2021, Ghebreyesus said that the world was in a situation of “vaccine apartheid.” In February 2021, in one of our newsletters, Tricontinental: Institute of Social Research noted that we lived in a time of “three apartheids.” These apartheids include that of food, money and medicine.

At the heart of the medical apartheid is vaccine nationalism, vaccine hoarding, and, as Ghebreyesus put it, vaccine apartheid. Matters are quite grave. The COVAX vaccine alliance has seen vaccines move out of its reach both because of bilateral deals being made between the richer countries and the vaccine makers and because of the lack of financial support from the richer states to the poorer ones. The trends show that many countries will not see significant enough numbers of their population vaccinated before 2023, “if it happens at all,” says the economist Intelligence Unit.

What is the cause of these three apartheids? The control that a handful of companies exercise over the global economy, driven by five types of monopolies, as our friend, the late Samir Amin, laid out: The monopoly over science and technology The monopoly over financial systems The monopoly over access to resources The monopoly over weaponry The monopoly over communications We are looking closely at this list and the relationship between each of these elements, analyzing it to see if anything has been left out. Amin argued that it is not the lack of industrialization alone that impacts the sub-

ordination of countries; what has kept the world in a situation of great inequality, he suggested, were these five monopolies. After all, many countries in the world have developed industries over the past 50 years but remain unable to advance the social agenda of their populations.

Central to the discussion about vaccine apartheid are at least two of these monopolies: the monopoly over finance and the monopoly over science and technology. A lack of finances in hand draws many of the world’s states to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), to various public investors (the Paris Club), or to commercial capital (the London Club). These financiers take their lead from the IMF, which has demanded that countries cut back on several crucial areas of human life — education and health care, for instance.

Cutting funds for education drains countries’ potential to develop sufficient numbers of scientists as well as the scientific temper necessary to create essential technologies such as vaccine candidates. Cutting funds for health care systems and adopting intellectual property rules that block the transfer of technology leaves countries disarmed from being able to appropriately deal with the pandemic.

A lack of funds has driven many states to surrender the possibility that they could advance the well-being of their populations (as of April 2020, 64 countries spend more to service their debt than on healthcare). It is not enough to demand the transfer of technology to states in the midst of a pandemic so that they can make the vaccine. Technology is yesterday’s science; science is tomorrow’s technology.

To use the social wealth of a population, to teach science, and to establish a basic norm of scientific literacy are essential lessons of the pandemic. These are lessons well-learnt by the Cubans. This is why Cuba has, against all odds, developed five different vaccines. Abdala and Cuba’s four other vaccines stand as a shield against Covid-19. These vaccines emerge out of the social productivity of socialist Cuba, which has not surrendered to the ugliness of the five monopolies.

Vijay Prashad, an Indian historian, journalist and commentator, is the executive director of Tricontinental: Institute for Social Research and the chief editor of Left Word Books.

Tuesday, 6 July, 2021

businEss 09

LAHORE NAB cell to counter terror financing, money laundering MONITORING REPORT The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has established the Anti-Money Laundering and Combating the Financing of Terrorism (AML&CFT) cell to check financial crimes and illegal transfer of resources. “In order to discourage money laundering, NAB established the Anti-Money Laundering and Combating the Financing of Terrorism (AML&CFT) Cell. This shows the bureau’s commitment and compliance towards the resolution of the international community,” an official press release issued by anti-graft watchdog said. According to a report by Dawn, the AML&CFT cell would coordinate with the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Secretariat and stakeholders concerned to curb money laundering and terror financing. Moreover, the press release stated that “China has also signed an MoU with it to oversee CPEC projects being undertaken in Pakistan”.

Brent oil may retest resistance at $76.89 SINGAPORE AGENCIES

Brent oil may retest a resistance at $76.89 per barrel, a break above could lead to a gain at $78.35. Even though oil failed twice to break the resistance, the uptrend looks steady within a rising channel, which suggests a target at $78.35. There is no convincing signal of a double-top around this barrier. Support is at $75.24, a break below which could cause a fall into $73.84-$74.54 range. On the daily chart, the trend is extending towards $77.96.

Given that the uptrend from the May 21 low of $64.57 has not been disrupted by any decent correction, the resistance at $77.96 may trigger a deep one. Each reader should consult his or her own professional or other advisers for business, financial or legal advice regarding the products mentioned in the analyses.

Annual inflation surges 3.8pc in OECD area in May ISLAMABAD

GAs supply rEsTOrED FOr All sECTOrs: HAMMAD AzHAr SINDH CNG STATIONS REOPEN AFTER TWO WEEKS ISLAMABAD

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STAFF REPORT

EDERAL Minister for Energy Hammad Azhar on Monday announced that there has been no forced load shedding in the country from Friday and normal supply has been restored for all sectors.

HAMBURG AGENCIES

Pakistan’s state trading agency TCP has purchased 100,000 tonnes of white sugar in a tender for the same volume which closed last week, European traders said on Monday.

It was all bought at $526.80 tonne c&f from Al Khaleej Sugar (AKS), which was the lowest offer submitted in the tender.

Rapid shipment was sought in the tender with shipment of the first 25,000 tonnes being undertaken in only 15 days plus voyage time after contract award and the rest following weekly in stages.

The sugar was sought from worldwide origins packed in bags.

Pakistan’s government in 2020 approved sugar imports to meet a shortage and cool local prices as production fell below consumption levels.

No improvement in hydel power generation on YoY basis ISLAMABAD

Consumer prices inflation in the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) area surged 3.8 percent on a year-on-year basis in May. This was stated by the OECD in a statement issued on Monday. According to the OECD, the inflation figure in April was 3.3 percent. Energy prices rose by 18.6 percent in May -- the highest rate since September 2008 -compared to 16.3 percent in April, while food price inflation continued to slow down to 1.4 percent, from 1.6 percent in April. "Developments in energy and food prices are largely related to base year effects and to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic a year ago," the global organisation noted. Annual OECD inflation excluding food and energy also rose significantly to 2.9 percent in May, compared to 2.4 percent in April. The May figure was the highest since August 2002.

TLTP

ISLAMABAD

He admitted that electricity shortfall was witnessed due to shortage of water in Tarbela Dam; however, power production will be increased within two days. Meanwhile, Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) stations in Sindh reopened on Sunday midnight across the province after remaining closed for two weeks whereas all LNG stations also resumed services on Monday.

Pakistan buys 100,000 tonnes white sugar in tender

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Tax regime on profit from govt securities amended

Taking to Twitter to make the announcement, the energy minister said that forced load shedding was eliminated on Friday evening and they are restoring normal gas supply and pressures to all sectors. Regasified liquefied natural gas (RLNG) supplies have also been restored to 100 per cent capacity. While addressing a press conference earlier in the day, Azhar said that Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC) was not facing a gas shortage.

The hydel power stations of the Water and Power Development Authority (Wapda) cumulatively generated 37.147 billion units of lowcost and environment-friendly electricity during the fiscal year 2020-21.

According to a statement issued on Monday, the hydel generation by Wapda is almost equal to that of fiscal year 2019-20 and 3.08 billion units more if compared with the average annual hydel generation during the last 10 years.

According to data of WAPDA hydel power generation in 2020-21, Tarbela Hydel Power Station generated 12.61 billion units, Tarbela 4th Extension 3.42 billion units, Ghazi Barotha 6.89 billion units, Mangla 5.40 billion units, and Neelum-Jhelum Hydel Power Station generated 4.79 billion units. The rest of the generation i.e.

4.03 billion units - was contributed by other hydel power stations of Wapda.

It is worth mentioning here that hydel generation is the cheapest electricity produced in the country.

That is why it plays a pivotal role for de-

velopment in economic and social sectors by stabilizing the overall power tariff for the consumers. The impact of hydel electricity on the national economy can be gauged from the fact that generation cost of hydel electricity by Wapda stands at merely Rs2.82 per unit, while generation cost from thermal sources remains Rs13.14 per unit on the average during fiscal year 2020-21.

At present, Wapda owns and operates 22 hydel power stations, including Neelum Jhelum with cumulative installed generation capacity of 9406 megawatt (MW). It is pertinent to mention that WAPDA is vigorously implementing a least-cost energy generation plan to enhance the share of hydel electricity in the national grid.

A number of mega projects are being constructed in hydropower sector scheduled to be completed from 2023 to 2028-29. The Wapda projects will double the installed hydel power generation capacity from 9406 MW to 20591 MW. Likewise, Wapda’s contribution of green and clean hydel electricity to the National Gird will also increase from the existing 37 billion units to more than 81 billion units per annum.

Food commodity prices to ease this decade, says report PARIS AGENCIES

Prices of major food commodities are expected to ease in the coming decade after a surge in the past year, helped by higher farm productivity and slowing demand from China, the U.N. food agency and the OECD said. But emissions from agriculture are projected to climb, mostly from livestock production, the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) said in a report. Agricultural commodity prices have surged since last year due to booming Chinese imports and tightening crop inventories, leading the FAO to forecast record costs in 2021 for food importers.

But prices of most main agricultural commodities should fall slightly in real terms in the decade ahead, reverting to a long-term trend of improving production meeting rising demand from a growing world population, the FAO and OECD said in their Agricultural Outlook 2021-2030 report on Monday. Chinese demand would remain a driver of global agricultural markets, particularly for consumption of meat and fish, but rising at a slower pace than the past decade, the report said. Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from agriculture were projected to increase by 4% over the next 10 years, with livestock accounting for more than 80% of the rise.

"Thus, additional policy effort will be needed for the agricultural sector to effectively contribute to the global reduction in GHG emissions as set in the Paris Agreement," the FAO and OECD said, adding that productivity gains would cut emissions per unit of output.

TLTP

In order to facilitate banking companies on payment of additional tax on earnings arising from investment in government securities, the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has introduced a new regime. The FBR said that the income of banking companies earned from additional investment in the federal government securities for tax year 2020 and onwards was taxable at the rate of 37.5 percent instead of rates provided in Division II of Part I of the First Schedule. This provision has been further streamlined for prospective application. For the tax year 2022 and onwards, the income arising from federal government securities shall be taxable on the basis of advances to deposit ratios of banks as under: (a) 40 percent instead of rate provided in Division II of Part I of the First schedule if advances to deposit ratio as on last day of the tax year is up to 40 percent; (b) 37.5 percent instead of rate provided in Division II of Part I of the First schedule if the advances to deposit ratio as on last day of the tax year exceed 40 percent but do not exceed 50 percent; (c) and at the rates provided in Division II of Part I of the First schedule if advances to deposit ratio as on last day of the tax year exceed 50 percent. The FBR said the amendments would reduce disputes regarding the calculation of additional investment and additional earnings. Furthermore, the cut off rate to calculate advances to deposit ratio has been specified as the last day of tax year. These changes have been incorporated by amending Rule 6C of the Seventh Schedule, said the FBR.

OPEC+ members meet again to try to settle differences LONDON AGENCIES

After failing last week, the 23 members of the OPEC+ group of oil producers will try again Monday to reach agreement on how much crude to put on the market.

Since May, the group has raised oil output little by little, after slashing it more than a year ago when the coronavirus pandemic crushed demand.

The current proposal is to increase output each month from August to December by 400,000 barrels per day, providing oil markets with an additional two million bpd by the end of the year.

But it is the suggestion of extending the agreement on incremental increases until the end of 2022 that has caused a hitch. The hold-out is the United Arab Emirates, which on Sunday criticised that extension as unjust.

A video conference between OPEC members and their 10 allies has been scheduled for 1300 GMT to try and resolve the impasse.

UAE pushing back In April 2020, as the coronavirus pandemic took hold, OPEC+ decided to withdraw 9.7 million bpd from the market and to gradually re-introduce it by the end of April 2022.

The strategy has worked fairly well, and the two leading oil contracts, for North Sea Brent and for West Texas Intermediate (WTI) have been bobbing at around $75 a barrel, an increase of 50 percent since the beginning of the year.

The last time oil prices were that high was in October 2018.

But reintroduction has stalled several times because of developments in the Covid-19 crisis, and at present, the alliance is still not pumping 5.8 million

bpd of the initial figure.

Consequently the April 2022 deadline now seems too close, and some members want to extend the reintroduction period until December 2022 — which is what Abu Dhabi objects to.

The United Arab Emirates is prepared to extend the agreement if necessary, its Energy Minister Suhail Mohamed Al-Mazrouei told the WAM news agency. But it wants the reference output levels raised to ensure they are fair. The UAE’s level, established in October 2018, is 3.17 million bpd, well below its effective potential output level of 3.8 million in April 2020, just before the sharp output cuts took effect.

No-deal prospects It was this question that caused last week’s OPEC talks to break down.

The meetings, more used to big hitters Russia and Saudi Arabia setting the

agenda, were confronted with the UAE’s refusal to toe the line.

“What was expected to be a relatively peaceful OPEC+ meeting has become a very lengthy and uncertain one,” said commodity analysts Kpler.

“The prospect of a no-deal outcome — as well as a UAE OPEC exit — has risen materially, even if it has not yet fully entered into firm base-case territory,” she wrote.

“The White House may need to work the phones over the weekend to help bridge the gap and prevent a breakdown scenario on Monday that could send prices spiralling higher.”

But the OPEC alliance is used to disputes between its members.

At the beginning of the year it managed to negotiate its way through a brief, but intense spat between Russia and Saudi Arabia over oil prices.

Tuesday, 6 July, 2021

10 fOREiGN NEws

LAHORE

ResCueRs fIght tIme, weatheR In Japan landslIde; some 80 mIssIng TOKYO

m

ReuteRs

orE than a thousand Japanese rescuers combed through crumbled houses and buried roads on Monday two days after landslides tore through a seaside city, fighting time and poor weather to search for some 80 people believed missing.

At least three people have been killed in Atami after torrential rain at the weekend — more than a usual July’s worth in 24 hours in some areas — touched off a succession of landslides, sending torrents of mud and rock ripping through streets.

The landslides are a reminder of the natural disasters — including earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and tsunami — that haunt Japan, where the capital of Tokyo is to host the summer olympics beginning this month.

“My mother is still missing,” one man told NHK public television. “I never imag-

ined something like this could happen here.” one 75-year-old evacuee said the house across from his had been swept away and the couple that lived there was unaccounted for.

“This is hell,” he said.

By Monday, the number of rescuers at the site had risen to 1,500, officials said, and could increase.

“We want to rescue as many victims [… ] buried in the rubble as soon as possible,” Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga told reporters, adding that police, firefighters and members of the military were doing all they could to aid the search.

There are 113 people believed missing in Atami, a city of almost 36,000 people situated 90 km (60 miles) southwest of Tokyo, spokesperson Hiroki onuma told reuters, confirming the third death. That fatality was a woman, Japanese media said By noon, though, that number of missing had dropped to around 80, Kyodo said.

“We’re in touch with various groups

and pushing forward with the searches,” onuma said. over the weekend some 20 people were said to be unaccounted for, but the number rose sharply on Monday as officials began working from residential registers rather than phone calls from people unable to reach family and friends, he said.

Around 130 buildings were affected on Saturday morning when landslides ripped through Atami, a hot springs resort set on a steep slope that leads down to a bay.

The water, mud and debris are thought to have flowed along a river for about 2 kolometres (1.2 miles) to the sea, local media said.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Katsunobu Kato called on residents to remain vigilant, noting that the saturated earth has been weakened and even light rain could prove dangerous.

Though onuma said rain had stopped in Atami for now, more is forecast, raising the possibility of further landslides. “The situation is unpredictable,” he said.

Gunmen kidnap students in northwest Nigeria, school official says ABUJA AFP

Gunmen have kidnapped 140 students from a boarding school in northwestern Nigeria, a school official said on Monday, the latest in a wave of mass abductions targetting schoolchildren and students.

Heavily-armed criminal gangs often attack villages to loot, steal cattle and abduct for ransom in northwest and central Nigeria, but since the start of the year they have increasingly targeted schools and colleges.

Gunmen scaled a fence to break into

‘Call of duty’: Indonesian bikers brave Covid-19 surge to escort ambulances DEPOK ReuteRs

the Bethel Baptist High School in Kaduna state in the early hours of Monday, taking away most of the 165 pupils boarding overnight.

“The kidnappers took away 140 students, only 25 students escaped. We still have no idea where the students were taken,” Emmanuel Paul, a teacher at the school told AFP. Kaduna state police spokesman Mohammed Jalige confirmed the early Monday morning attack, but could not give details on the number of pupils taken.

“Tactical police teams went after the kidnappers,” he said.

UK PM Johnson looks to end England’s virus restrictions LONDON ReuteRs

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson was due on Monday to set out plans to end social and economic Covid-19 restrictions in England, in a test of whether a rapid vaccine rollout offers enough protection from the highly contagious Delta variant.

Johnson’s announcement at 1600 GMT is expected to confirm that he aims to end restrictive measures on July 19, and will include guidance on social distancing, face coverings and working from home.

After imposing the most onerous constraints on behaviour in Britain’s peacetime history to battle the novel coronavirus, Johnson is betting that the vaccination programme, which has weakened the link between infections and hospital admissions, can prevent the health service being overwhelmed by a new wave that has already begun.

Johnson is expected to say that people will learn to live with Covid as they do already with flu.

“I must stress that the pandemic is not over and that cases will continue to rise over the coming weeks,” he said in a statement. “As we begin to learn to live with this virus, we must all continue to carefully manage the risks from Covid and exercise judgement when going about our lives.”

Johnson sets health policy for England, but not for Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland.

Britain has suffered the seventh highest global death toll from Covid19, and Johnson has been accused of being too slow to implement each of England’s three lockdowns.

But the take-up of vaccines in Britain has been strong, with 86% of adults receiving a first dose and 64 per-

cent receiving two doses as of Sunday, according to government data.

Meanwhile countries such as Australia, where case numbers are lower but vaccination has been much slower, are tightening restrictions.

OPEN UP BRITAIN: Cases of Covid19 have risen sharply in Britain in recent weeks, driven by the now-dominant Delta variant, and the final easing of restrictions was delayed by four weeks to enable more people to be vaccinated.

Public Health England figures indicate that the vaccines are highly effective in preventing the Delta variant leading to severe illness or hospital admission. “The NHS (health service) will be able to cope with any increase that we see in admissions,” Stephen Powis, NHS England’s National Medical Director, told Sky News.

Housing minister robert Jenrick said on Sunday that face masks would no longer be mandatory after the final easing, but many doctors and scientists urged more caution.

“It makes no sense to stop wearing face masks amongst the public in closed public settings such as public transport,” Chaand Nagpaul, Chair of the Council of the British Medical Association trade union, told BBC radio, adding their main purpose was to protect others, not the wearer.

In a weekend newspaper article, Health minister Sajid Javid flagged both the economic and health costs of continuing restrictions, a view also cited on the streets of London.

“There’s still cases, but … not very many people seem to be suffering with it so much,” said Mandy Suiter, 50, a secretary. “I think the economy and everyone’s mental health is suffering a lot more. So open up Britain, Boris.”

Indonesian volunteer biker Sebastian Dwiyantoro and his team have been particularly busy helping ambulances navigate heavy traffic in Jakarta’s satellite city of Depok to get Covid-19 patients to hospital as infections soar in the country. The volunteers ride motorbikes in front of the ambulances, the deafening noise of the sirens behind them, freeing up space and stopping other cars to make way for ambulances carrying the sick to medical facilities or corpses to graveyards. Twenty-four-year-old Sebastian, who has worked for volunteer group Indonesia Escorting Ambulance for four years in his spare time, says his team now makes up to 20 trips a day versus three or four daily trips before the latest surge in cases. “Nowadays, we feel scared of (getting infected) with Covid-19 honestly, but I always think this is our call of duty from our heart to help and at the same time we also have to avoid getting infected with Covid-19,” said Sebastian, who normally works as a security guard, wearing a biker jacket and a face mask. Indonesia has been reporting more than 20,000 new cases and over 400 deaths per day over the past week as the spread of the more contagious Delta variant accelerated infections and strained the country’s healthcare sector.

Tuesday, 6 July, 2021

SPORTS 11

LAHORE Spain’s Enrique out to settle old scores

Djokovic rollS into WimblEDon quartErS With Garin thraShinG

LONDON

LONDON

AFP

Luis Enrique's belligerent self-belief has led Spain to the semi-finals of Euro 2020, but the former Barcelona boss has another personal score to settle in Tuesday's (today’s) last four against Italy. His playing career at major tournaments is best remembered for the vicious elbow from Mauro Tassotti that left blood flowing from his burst nose over his white Spain shirt at the 1994 World Cup. Tassotti escaped without punishment at the time - Spain denied a stoppage time penalty and the chance to take the game to extra-time as the Azzurri ran out 2-1 winners. The Italy defender was subsequently banned for eight games by FIFA, but the damage was already done for Spain as they exited at the quarter-finals. That was a familiar story for Spanish football at the time as generations of talented players came and went without leaving a trace at major competitions.

All that changed in 2008 as a last eight win over Italy on penalties opened the door for Luis Aragones's side to win the European Championship. Vicente del Bosque then took over to win the 2010 World Cup and Euro 2012. But by the time Luis Enrique got the call, Spain had fallen rapidly from grace. In the previous three major tournaments, they failed to even reach the quarter-finals as the generation of a glorious era grew old together. Luis Enrique's contentious call to leave out former captain Sergio Ramos for Euro 2020 broke the last remaining link to the 2008 team. Without Ramos, or any other Real Madrid player for the first time in Spain's history at a major tournament, the Madrid press cried foul, claiming La FuriaRoja would lack leadership. "I am one of the leaders, like all coaches," said Luis Enrique in response. "If that is not the case, it is a bad signal." It has not been a totally smooth ride. A case of coronavirus for Sergio Busquets in the days before the tournament began meant the coach's decision not to take his full complement of 26 players was further questioned. Spain have also only won one of their five games in 90 minutes. Yet, a number of Luis Enrique's biggest calls have come through for him when it mattered most. Alvaro Morata had to listen to his own fans chant "how bad are you" in a pre-tournament friendly against Portugal. After a host of missed chances, including a penalty, in the group stages, the Juventus striker produced a stunning finish in extra-time to turn the last 16 tie against Croatia back in his side's favour. Unai Simon's comical own goal in that game to open the scoring when he failed to control a simple back pass from Pedri reopened the debate over who should be Spain's number one. But the Athletic Bilbao goalkeeper made two penalty saves in the shootout win over Switzerland in the quarter-finals. Nationalised just weeks before Euro 2020 kicked off, centre-back Aymeric Laporte has made vital contributions in both boxes as has Cesar Azpilicueta on his international recall after three years. Further forward, Paris Saint-Germain winger Pablo Sarabia has more than justified his surprise place in the squad with goals against Slovakia and Croatia, while Ferran Torres, Dani Olmo and Mikel Oyarzabal have all made telling contributions when introduced as substitutes. "I always said we were one of the eight candidates to win the European Championship and now we are among the four best," said Luis Enrique. "It would be ridiculous to be in the semi-finals and not think about taking one step more.

This is the objective." A familiar foe stands in his way at Wembley, but win or lose, Luis Enrique will do it his own way.

n

the AssociAted PRess

OVAK Djokovic reached his 12th Wimbledon quarterfinal Monday to pull even with Arthur Gore, who had a 117-year head start, while a parade of newcomers also made the final eight.

First-timers on the men’s side included Canadian Denis Shapovalov, Italian Matteo Berrettini, Marton Fucsovics of Hungary and Russian Karen Khachanov, who won a bizarre fifth set to beat American Sebastian Korda on his 21st birthday.

Women advancing to their first Wimbledon quarterfinal included No. 1-seeded Ash Barty, No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus, Tunisian Ons Jabeur and Karolína Plíšková of the Czech Republic.

Djokovic, the two-time defending champion, held every service game to tie Gore and beat No. 17 Cristian Garín, 6-2, 6-4, 6-2.

Gore first played Wimbledon in 1888.

Djokovic made his debut in 2005, and they share third place on the men’s all-time list for most men’s quarterfinal berths, behind

Roger Federer’s 18 and Jimmy Connors’ 14. Khachanov, seeded No. 25, outlasted Korda 3-6, 6-4, 6-3, 5-7, 10-8. With both players battling fatigue and nerves, there were 13 services breaks in the final set, and for Korda, it was a disappointing end to an otherwise impressive Wimbledon debut.

Khachanov will next face the No. 10seeded Shapovalov, who hit 15 aces and beat No. 8 Roberto Bautista Agut 6-1, 6-3,

7-5. The No. 7-seeded Berrettini became the first Italian man in 23 years to reach the Wimbledon quarterfinals by ousting Ilya Ivashka 6-4, 6-3, 6-1.

The unseeded, 29-year-old Fucsovics became the first Hungarian to reach the Wimbledon men’s quarterfinals since 1948 by upsetting No. 5 Andrey Rublev 6-3, 46, 4-6, 6-0, 6-3.

Jabeur became the first Arab woman to

reach the quarters by rallying past 2020 French Open champion Iga Świątek 5-7, 6-1, 6-1. Jabeur, seeded 21st, converted all seven-break point chances.

Barty was troubled again by a shaky serve but saved eight of 10 break points and did manage an ace on match point to end French Open champion Barbora Krejčíková’s 15-match win streak, 7-5, 63. Barty has yet to play her best in the tournament but is the favorite to claim her second Grand Slam title. The Australian won the 2019 French Open and was the Wimbledon girls singles champion in 2011.

“I love coming out here and test myself against the best in the world,” Barty told the crowd. “And there’s certainly no place I’d rather be at the moment.”

Sabalenka earned her first berth in a Grand Slam quarterfinal by beating Rybakina 6-3, 4-6, 6-3. Plíšková, seeded eighth, has now reached the final eight at every major after hitting 10 aces and eliminating Liudmila Samsonova 6-2, 6-3. No. 19 Karolína Muchová made Wimbledon’s quarters for the second year in a row by beating No. 30 Paula Badosa 7-6 (6), 6-4.

Amir needs domestic success for international return: Younis ISLAMABAD the AssociAted PRess

Bowling coach Waqar Younis feels it will be tough for paceman Mohammad Amir to make a comeback to international cricket without first impressing domestically.

Amir retired from international play last December, claiming he was mentally tortured by his teammates and coaches. The left-arm fast bowler played in the recent Pakistan Super League with minimal success.

He reportedly met with Pakistan Cricket Board chief executive Wasim Khan earlier this year, leading to speculation of a return before the T20 World Cup in October.

“No doubt he’s a fine cricketer, but if he doesn’t want to take his retirement back and impress selectors by playing cricket, it will be hard,” Younis told reporters via videoconference from England on Monday.

“It’s Pakistan cricket, it’s not yours or my cricket [team], you have to do the right things to play for your country. This is not a franchise cricket and one got to remember that.” Younis said he was not aware of any meeting between Khan and Amir.

“To be honest I didn’t know about this [meeting],” he said. “He [Khan] is head of the cricket and he has every right to meet whosoever he wants to see […] he went there in his personal capacity and we did not know about it.”

Amir played for Karachi Kings in the PSL but could take only five wickets in 11 matches at an average of 69.80. Karachi was knocked out after losing both of their playoffs. Amir took 259 wickets across 36 tests, 61 oneday internationals and 50 T20s.

He was 18 when he was banned in 2010 for five years and jailed for three months for spot-fixing in a Test series in England. He was allowed to return to cricket a few

months early and recalled by Pakistan in 2016.

In 2019, he no longer wanted to play Tests, to focus on white-ball cricket and prolong his international career.

Amir’s last international was in August 2020 in a T20 against England.

Japan selects basketball player Hachimura, wrestler Susaki as flagbearers TOKYO ReuteRs

Japan has selected basketball player Rui Hachimura and wrestler Yui Susaki as joint flagbearers for the Tokyo Olympics, organisers said on Monday, placing representatives of a younger, more diverse generation of Japanese at the head of its national team.

Hachimura, 23, was raised in Japan as the child of a Japanese mother and Beninese father and plays for the NBA’s Washington Wizards.

He joins female wrestling medal hope Susaki, 22, as flagbearers leading the host nation’s team at the opening ceremony on July 23, the Japanese Olympic Committee announced.

The joint flagbearer role for Japan and other teams is a break with tradition after the International Olympic Committee changed the rules to send a message of gender parity.

Hachimura, one of a growing number

of mixed-race Japanese as international marriages increase, has commented publicly about his experience of racist abuse.

In May his younger brother Allen, who plays basketball at university,

posted a screenshot of a racist message he had received.

“People say Japan is not a racist country,” Allen said in the Twitter post. “I want everyone to care about the problem of

racism,” he added.

“I get messages like this almost every day,” Rui Hachimura wrote in a reply to his brother’s post.

Tokyo 2020’s efforts to showcase Japan as a modern and open nation — the Games uses the slogan “unity in diversity” in its messaging — have been overshadowed by the Covid-19 pandemic with organisers scrambling to hold the event without increasing cases.

Already delayed by a year because of the pandemic, the Games are proceeding amid concern that the influx of thousands of people from around the world could unleash another wave of infections in the country.

A member of Serbia’s Olympic rowing team tested positive for the novel coronavirus on arrival in Japan, an official said on Sunday, the third Covid-19 infection confirmed among Olympic team members.

Infection rates are trending higher in the capital, with 716 cases reported on Saturday – the most since late May.

Kosovan youngsters have high hopes for their most famous judoka at Olympics PEJA ReuteRs

Hundreds of youngsters in the Kosovan town of Peja are looking forward to watching the 2021 Tokyo Olympics and hoping that their hero Majlinda Kelmendi will win the country's second Olympics gold medal in judo.

Kelmendi, aged 30, became an inspiration for many in Kosovo, which has suffered years of warfare, when she started to bring back trophies to her hometown. After becoming the best world judo player in her 52 kg category she won the gold medal in Rio 2016 Olympics. Last year a statue of her was erected by municipality authorities in central Peja.

The country of 1.8 million people now has more

than 20 Judo clubs compared to just six before Kelmendi won Kosovo's first Olympic gold medal. Kosovo declared independence in 2008 and was allowed to participate in the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro in 2016. "She made the whole world turn their eyes towards Kosovo and it made possible to be accepted into the Olympic Games," said Driton Kuka, Kelmendi’s coach. She had many offers to compete for different countries before Kosovo was allowed to take part in the Olympics.

"We knew it that those millions that were offered to us (by other countries) we would never get them in Kosovo," said Kelmendi after a tough 90-minute training session. "But the emotions that I have experienced from the people in Kosovo is something that money cannot buy."

Tuesday, 6 July, 2021

PRAYER TimiNGS

NEWS

FAJR SUNRISE

ZUHR

ASR MAGHRIB ISHA

3:25

12:07

5:03

5:03

7:11

8:49

Iran’s trade thrOugh gwadar pOrt tO start sOOn: asIm Bajwa ISLAMABAD

C

APP

HAIRMAN China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) Authority Lt. Gen. (retd) Asim Saleem Bajwa Monday said that work for Iran’s trade through the Gwadar Port (in and out) was in progress and the trade would start soon through the port.

“The Ramadan-Gabd crossing point near Gwadar is active and fully functional now, fencing work with Pakistan-Iran border is going on rapidly and new border markets are being established at the crossing points,” he said adding the smuggling to and from Iran is decreasing due to increase in regulated trade.

In his video message here, the Chairman said after completion of development works of Gwadar Port and first phase of Gwadar Free Zone, Prime Minister Imran Khan was going to perform the ground breaking of second phase of the Zone.

He said as compared to the first phase which comprised of 60 acres of land, the second phase would be a huge project comprising of 2200 acres of land.

Chairman Bajwa said around 7 to 8 big Chinese investors from Shanghai would also participate in the ground breaking ceremony where they

would make commitments in Gwadar Zone and inform about their future plans in Pakistan.

He said some 46 enterprises were engaged in the Free Zone phase-I while 12 factories were being established out of them three were completed. He informed that the traffic at the port was increasing everyday and last year the trade volume increased by hundreds of times as 60,000 MT of cargo was transported during the year 2020-21 compared to only 1300 MT in the preceding year.

Besides, he said five LPG vessels were berthed at the Gwadar Port.

In future, he said the cargo volume would increase with even higher pace as interest for transshipment and industrialization was increasing with every passing day.

He said the Prime Minister would also sign an accord for installation of desalination plant in the city with capacity of 1.2 million gallons per day.

He said the project would complete within a year and this would be a gift from the Chinese government. Furthermore, he said another water desalination plant with capacity of five million gallons per day was also included in the Prime Minister South Balochistan package.

Provision of basic facilities including electricity, water and health was the prime focus of Prime Minister Imran Khan, he added.

Top leadership hints at Indian involvement in terror wave ISLAMABAD STAFF REPORT

The top civilian leadership has hinted at possible Indian involvement in the reemergence of terrorist attacks in the country — in particular the recent blast in a Lahore neighbourhood.

On June 23, a powerful blast near the residence of proscribed Jamaatud Dawa chief Hafiz Saeed in Johar Town killed three people and injured 24 others, including a police constable.

Minister for Interior Sheikh Rashid Ahmed and Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi, in separate statements, while pointing to an organised “international scheme” said New Delhi was trying to divert attention from its internal affairs by stoking terrorism inside Pakistan.

Speaking to a television programme, Qureshi said Islamabad will expose New Delhi before the international community and will inform them how India was sponsoring militancy in other states.

“We will raise this issue at international forums,” he stressed.

His statement came a day after National Security Advisor Dr Moeed Yusuf said that initial investigations into the attack in Lahore have provided concrete evidence of Indian involvement in terrorist activities in the country.

Yusuf, while addressing a joint press conference along with Minister for Information and Broadcasting Fawad Chaudhry and Inspector General of Police Punjab Inam Ghani, said the mastermind and handlers of the blast have been identified through forensic analysis of the electronic equipment recovered from the terrorists involved in the incident. “We have absolutely no doubt that the main mastermind of the blast is an Indian national, who belongs to the Indian intelligence agency RAW,” he said.

When asked about the Kashmir policy of the Bharatiya Janata Party government and the recent meeting of Prime Minister Narendra Modi with pro-India politicians from the held region, Qureshi said that New Delhi had failed the people of the Muslim-majority

Over 3.2bn coronavirus vaccine shots administered worldwide ANKARA: More than 3.2 billion doses of coronavirus vaccines have been administered worldwide, according to figures on Monday compiled by Our World in Data, a tracking website affiliated with Oxford University. China leads the global count with more than 1.3 billion jabs, followed by India with 347.38 million. The list continued with mostly Western countries, with the US having administered 330.6 million shots, Brazil 105.3 million, the UK 78.89 million, Germany 77.33 million, France 54.48 million, and Italy 53.6 million. Turkey came ninth on the list with over 53.53 million doses given, followed by Japan, Mexico and Indonesia.

The country with the most doses administered by population is the United Arab Emirates (UAE), with 157.06 doses per 100 people. The island nation of Malta followed the UAE with 154.63 doses per 100 people, as did Seychelles with 140.92, San Marino with 131.58, Bahrain with 126.19, Israel with 125.05, Chile with 119.99, Uruguay with 116.9, Mongolia with 116.75, the UK with 116.21, Qatar with 112.78, and Hungary with 101.86. Most Covid-19 vaccines were administered in two doses, so the number of shots given is not the same as the number of individuals fully vaccinated. ANADOLU AGENCY

region and the political elite that met him had expressed anger over the situation in the valley.

“India is experiencing a financial strain, unemployment has soared there [in held Kashmir] and to divert attention from their internal affairs, they are doing this [sponsoring terrorism],” he said.

In Afghanistan, Qureshi said, Islamabad had served its “brothers” in their difficult time and now, it is time for the refugees living in Pakistan to return to their homeland.

‘INTERNATIONAL SCHEME’: Seperately, Rasheed said that there was an “international scheme” underway to carry out terror activities in major cities and urged strict measures to counter it.

In an interview with a private broadcaster, the minister, when questioned if he had seen evidence linking New Delhi with the Lahore blast and if Indian involvement could be conclusively determined, said: “No doubt [on her involvement].”

People released from prisons abroad were brought to Pakistan and “there is an international scheme to carry out events of terrorism in major cities such as Karachi, Lahore, and Islamabad”, Rasheed said. “India isn’t aware that how well trained our agencies and police are now — these are not institutions from 1978 [or] 1979 — they are employing advanced technology […] we were expecting an attack in Lahore.”

The minister further recalled that “some people among us were talking of resuming trade with India”. “How can we resume trade with them [in such a situation]” he wondered.

He stressed that Pakistan needed to play a “strict, forceful and responsible role” because nothing was more important than her security. He also pointed out the Indian presence in Afghanistan and observed it was becoming a major problem with “a lot of venom being spewed” and allegations made against Pakistan.

He also pointed out that the blast in Lahore was carried out a couple of days before the decision of the Financial Action Task Force on grey list status and “we were already expecting an incident in Lahore or Karachi.”

Over 1000 Afghan troops flee into Tajikistan as Taliban advance in northern Afghanistan REUTERS More than 1,000 Afghan security personnel fled across the border into Tajikistan on Sunday following Taliban advances in northern Afghanistan, the Tajik border guard service said.

The crossings underscore a rapidly deteriorating situation in the country as foreign troops near a complete withdrawal after 20 years of war in Afghanistan.

Hundreds of Afghan security force members have fled swift Taliban advances in the north, but Sunday’s retreats were the largest confirmed, coming just two days after the United States officially vacated its main base in Afghanistan as part of a plan to withdraw all foreign troops by September 11.

The Taliban took over six key districts in the northern province of Badakshan, which borders both Tajikistan and China, following which 1,037 Afghan servicemen fled across the border with Tajikistan’s permission, the border guard service said.

On Sunday, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani spoke to his Tajik counterpart, President Emomali Rakhmon, over the phone

to discuss the developments.

“Special attention was paid to the escalation of the situation in Afghanistan’s northern areas adjacent to Tajikistan,” a statement from the Tajik president’s office said.

It added that Rakhmon expressed concern about the “forced crossings” by the Afghan security force members.

A senior Afghan official confirmed there had been hundreds of crossings into Tajikistan but did not know the exact number. “The Taliban cut off all the roads and these people had nowhere to go but to cross the border,” he told Reuters on Monday.

Last week, the United States vacated Bagram Airbase — bringing an effective end to the longest war in its history — as part of an understanding with the Taliban, against whom it has fought for two decades.

The Taliban has ceased attacks on Western forces, but continues to target Afghan government and security installations as it makes rapid territorial advances across the country.

Peace talks between the two sides remain inconclusive.

Analysis: US reaches out to Central Asian states on Afghanistan US DISCUSSES BACKUP PLAN FOR AFGHANISTAN WITH FOREIGN MINISTERS OF UZBEKISTAN AND TAJIKISTAN LONDON ANADOLU AGENCY

The situation unfolding in Afghanistan in the wake of the withdrawal of US-led NATO forces has prompted several powers to realign their relationship to thwart common threats and strive together to stabilize the region. The Central Asian and South Asian countries are keenly observing the evolving situation.

There are rising concerns in Uzbekistan and Tajikistan which have contiguous borders with Afghanistan. Russia is extending reassurances and military assistance to these two Central Asian countries and also to Kyrgyzstan.

Tajikistan’s border security forces reported on Monday that the Taliban have taken full control of five counties in Ishkashim district of Badakhshan province bordering their country. This led Afghan

troops who were guarding the border to take refuge in Tajikistan. Over the past fortnight 1,500 Afghan troops have escaped and taken refuge in Tajikistan, Tajik news sources reported.

In the opinion of retired American Gen. David Petraeus, who commanded troops in Afghanistan in 2010-11, the hasty withdrawal of US forces has seriously compromised the psychological assurances that every Afghan soldier counted on to carry out defending duties. Consequently, they will doubt if they could have a reliable backup to augment their survival, support, and evacuation prospects.

Meanwhile, Nikolai Patrushev, secretary of Russia’s National Security Council voiced concerns that the situation in Afghanistan would degrade further after the US and NATO troops completely leave the country. This, he feared could contribute to “an in-

crease in the terrorist activity of ISIS/Daesh and alQaeda” elements in the region.

Foreign Ministers of Uzbekistan and Tajikistan were recently invited to Washington for consultations to formulate backup plans that could allow the US to bank upon these two countries in the wake of any emergency. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken held separate meetings with Uzbek Foreign Minister Abdul Aziz Komilov and Tajik counterpart Sirojiddin Muhriddin.

The center of the discussion was to explore elements of active cooperation to address the situation in Afghanistan after the complete withdrawal of troops.

Muhriddin described Afghanistan as the most important issue, which he directly linked with fighting against terrorism, extremism, drug trafficking, and other crucial regional challenges.

Published by Arif Nizami at Qandeel Printing Press, 4 Queens Road, Lahore, for PT Print (Pvt) Limited. Ph: 042-36300938, 042-36375965. Email: newsroom@pakistantoday.com.pk