Epaper – May 30 ISB 2021

CMYK

30 May, 2021 I 18 Shawwal, 1442 I Rs 25.00 I Vol XI No 329 I 32 Pages I Islamabad Edition

PDM announces fresh Protests, rejects govt's election reforM ProPosals g

OppOsitiOn alliance fails tO decide On return Of ppp, anp

ISLAMABAD Mian abrar

t

He pakistan democratic Movement (pdM) has rejected the use of electronic voting machines (eVMs) in elections, and decided to launch a fresh phase of protests to send the government packing. the alliance decided that on July 4, a massive anti-government protest will be held in swat, followed by another one in Karachi on July 29, said pdM chief Maulana fazlur rehman while addressing a press conference flanked by pakistan Muslim leaguenawaz (pMl-n) leaders shehbaz sharif and Maryam nawaz on saturday. fazl further said that on the occasion of independence day, a massive protest will be held in islamabad, with pdM showing solidarity to Kashmiris and palestinians.

He said the pdM constituent parties with consensus have rejected the government’s suggestion of holding next elections through electronic voting machines (eVMs). “ecp [election commission of pakistan] which is the

poll supervisory body should summon a meeting of all political parties and formulate a joint plan on election reforms,” he added. the meeting termed eVMs a plot of pre-poll rigging, said the pdM chief, adding that the opposition alliance has also rejected the presidential ordinance issued in this connection. fazl demanded the government on behalf of pdM parties to summon a joint session of parliament, in which authorities concerned would brief the lawmakers of the country about the developments in afghanistan and rumours that pakistan is allowing the us to use its military bases.

RETURN OF PPP, ANP WAS NOT A TOPIC: during the pdM meeting before the press conference, the top leaders of the alliance failed to agree on the return of the pakistan people’s party (ppp) and awami national party (anp) to the alliance, deciding to empower fazl for making a final decision in this regard. shehbaz, Maryam, shahid Khaqan abbasi, ahsan iqbal, aftab sherpao, Mahmood Khan achakzai, Mir Kabir shahi and tahir Bazbjo also attended the pdM meeting. abbasi briefed the meeting about the is-

coronavirus in

Pakistan

CONFIRMED CASES:

916,239

LAST UPDATED AT 8:48 AM ON MAY 29, 2021

DAY'S DEATH TOLL:

NEW CASES:

73

2,455

RECOVERED:

DEATHS:

SINDH:

PUNJAB:

836,702 20,680 315,410

338,377

KP:

BALOCHISTAN:

131,775

25,001

AJK/GB: ISLAMABAD: 19,108/5,561 81,007

sues hindering the return of ppp and anp to the alliance and the contacts made with both the parties. abbasi, while briefing about the show cause notices issued to ppp and anp, said that both the parties mocked the pdM and fazl instead of responding to the notices. fazl asked both the parties to reconsider their decisions, but they have not responded yet, he added. during the meeting, detailed consultations were held regarding the return of the ppp and anp. However, the sources said that no decision could be made in the meeting and all the participants agreed to empower fazl for taking a final decision after consultation with the leadership of ppp and anp. the sources said that the pMl-n suggested not to include ppp and anp in the pdM until both the parties apologise for their rude behaviour. However, shehbaz was of the view that since ppp and anp are opposition parties, they should be included in the united opposition group in the parliament. it was decided in the meeting that all the opposition parties in the senate and the national assembly would play a joint political role and oppose the upcoming budget in the parliament. talking to media, fazl skipped the questions regarding the return of the ppp and anp to the alliance. the pdM chief, meanwhile, made it clear that the return of the ppp and anp to the opposition alliance was not a topic in the meeting, and said that it would take time to discuss this matter.

“We did not consider the return of ppp and anp to the opposition alliance in today’s meeting,” he said in response to the questions. a journalist asked, “are the ppp and anp part of the pdM?” On this, fazl clarified that both the parties are not a part of the pdM and that is the reason the meeting did not consider them. But still they have time, if they want to return,” he added.

US-Pakistan alliance to remain on track after Afghanistan pullout: Qureshi ISLAMABAD staff report

foreign Minister shah Mahmood Qureshi said the united states cannot afford to ignore pakistan given the historical relationship between Washington and islamabad. speaking with shihab rattansi of al Jazeera, Qureshi, when asked to comment in the backdrop of the us withdrawing from afghanistan, said pakistan’s geostrategic location, its unique position among the Muslim countries and the history of bilateral ties between the two countries lessen the probability of a breakup. independent political observers believe the us withdrawal from afghanistan offers pakistan an opportunity to reorient its international image by playing a key role in encouraging regional cooperation to ensure stability in afghanistan. “they [the american establishment] could not lose pakistan […] it would be a big political mistake,” Qureshi told rattansi.

Bill criminalising criticism of military won’t curb online speech: Fawad ISLAMABAD staff report

Minister for information and Broadcasting fawad chaudhry rejected the impression that the proposal to amend the laws to take action on complaints of ridiculing of the military was introduced to curb online speech. the national assembly standing committee on interior in april passed the bill proposing that anyone found guilty of such an offence be handed up to two years of imprisonment and a fine of up to rs500,000, or both.

“Hate speech is a universally recognised fact that has to be curbed […] all the states and organisations are duty-bound not to allow hate speeches,” he told host stephen sackur during an interview for his programme Hardtalk which was broadcast on BBc World on late on friday. fawad said he respected and admired tech giants — including Google and facebook — for their work. “i want them to come to pakistan […] open their offices, we want to do business with them, we acknowledge their contribution to the world,” he said. to another question, he said, as information minister of the fifth most populous country in

president Joe Biden in april announced to withdraw the remaining 2,500 troops from the war-torn country by september 11, 20 years to the day after the al Qaeda attacks that triggered america’s longest war. the announcement coincided with the american intelligence community releasing a gloomy outlook for afghanistan, forecasting “low” chances of a peace deal this year and warning that its government would struggle to hold the taliban insurgency at bay if the us-led coalition withdraws support.

Washington, Qureshi asserted, has realised the importance of pakistan, especially in the peace and reconciliation process of afghanistan. pakistan has always maintained that peace and stability in afghanistan was a shared responsibility of the international community, he said.

However, the foreign minister cautioned islamabad could not be blamed if the situation in afghanistan goes south.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 05

more inside

PM expresses confidence in Pakistan’s nuclear capabilities STORY ON BACK PAGE

pti Mps urge Opp to assist govt in introducing electronic voting the world, he exercised complete authority to make decisions about the affairs coming under his domain. fawad said that prime Minister imran Khan remains the most popular leader in pakistan as the people, who voted him to power, are his “ardent fans”. even in the next general elections, imran would get the majority votes and be the prime minister for another tenure, he declared. responding to a question, the minister cautioned sackur not to “undermine” the elected government of prime Minister imran which he said received millions of votes in the 2018 general elections. “imran Khan is the prime

minister of a nuclear state […] he and the cabinet take collective decisions,” he asserted. the government had due respect for the opinion of institutions but the decisions rested with the prime minister, he added. sharing the achievements of the government, fawad said at present the country’s growth rate target was set at 3.94 percent, despite the covid-19 pandemic. about rs1,100 billion, he said, had been shifted from the urban economy to the rural economy. “this year, pakistan has got four bumper crops”, he said, adding a record number of tractors had been purchased by farmers.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 05

STORY ON PAGE 02

Students stage protest in Islamabad against in-person exams STORY ON PAGE 02 in today’s issue

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Sunday, 30 may, 2021

ISlamabad

newS

PTI MPS urge OPP TO ASSIST gOvT In InTrOducIng elecTrOnIc vOTIng Islamabad

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app

AKISTAN Tehreek-e-Insaf MPs on Saturday urged opposition parties to set aside political differences and sit with the government for early installation of electronic voting machines to replace the paper ballots and increase the efficiency of the elections and ensure their transparency.

Prime Minister Imran Khan is determined and making all-out efforts to bring transparency in the electoral process, parliamentarians said while speaking to Pakistan Television.

The latest technology and use of EVMs is the only way to reclaiming the credibility of polls, Parliamentary Secretary for Law and Justice Maleeka Bokhari said.

Bokhari also invited the opposition to sit with the government and select from the various EVM models available.

Senator Faisal Javed Khan said the government has repeatedly invited the opposition parties for bringing EVMs’ use in the election process as it was only determined to bring about reforms in the electoral system through the use of

technology.

He hoped that voting machines would be made functional ahead of the next general elections with the support of opposition as this model was successful in many other developing countries and we can also adopt this technology to assist our traditional system.

Tareen group MPA booked on Shahzad’s complaint

MP Sadaqat Abbasi stressed that the use of modern technology was the need of the hour for economic growth and for transparent and free and fair elections.

There is no harm if we adopt EVM technology use in elections, he said.

He said the government only wanted to bring a new political culture in

Pakistan through which the election process can be made clean and fair.

MP Javeria Zafar said if we want a clean, transparent and fair system, we have to take the path of science and technology.

She said all political parties should support the government in this process and added we all should jointly talk on electoral reforms and electronic voting machines which are the best options to avail to hold a fair and transparent election.

MP Zain Qureshi said it was high time for the opposition to sit together with the government and discuss the matter of electoral reforms seriously for the great interest of the public.

A computer-based system of voting is the need of the hour, he said. A biometric system for voters was essential to verify thumb impressions, following which, they can then proceed to the polling booth to cast vote by pressing a button. The entire process would eliminate the chance of rigging.

MP Riaz Fatyana said that PTI wanted to introduce new technology and electronic voting machines which could deliver results in half an hour. This would help increase the trust of the people, political parties and intelligentsia in the electoral process, he said.

A case was lodged against Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf lawmaker from Punjab Nazir Chohan on Saturday on the complaint of Minister of State for Accountability Mirza Shahzad Akbar. The case against Chohan, an active member of Jahangir Tareen posse, was registered at Race Course police station in Lahore under sections 506, 258, 189 and 153 of the Pakistan Penal Code. Akbar claimed Chohan levelled baseless allegations against him in a television program. In a tweet, he said some ignorant people were spreading misinformation on social media. Minister for Information Fawad Chaudhry tweeted: “Using religion card for personal vendetta is despicable. Lahore Police must take strict action against Nazeer Chohan MPA for using third-rated tactics against @ShazadAkbar.

Shahzad is doing his job. The state cannot function if it fails to safeguard its officials against such attacks.”

Responding to the development, Chohan accused Akbar of running a “planned campaign” against him. He said he is a law-abiding citizen and will surrender to the police at 2:00 PM outside Data Darbar in Lahore.

KaRaCHI INp

Pakistan Peoples Party chief Bilawal BhuttoZardari Saturday said his party will not let the “PTIMF” budget approve by the parliament as he claimed an anti-public government cannot make a people-friendly budget. In a statement, he said the passing of the budget prepared by “International Monetary Fund employees” will be an attack on the country’s sovereignty. He said Prime Minister Imran Khan announces before every budget that this will be the year of progress. Bilawal also bashed the government for taking loans on tough conditions and imposing unbearable taxes on the public. He said the only parameter of progress in civilised societies is the prosperity of the poor. He went on to say that PTI’s economic policies revolve around capitalists and only PPP’s policies represent the public interest.

Students stage protest in Islamabad against in-person exams

laHORE staff RepoRt

Won’t let budget get approval from Parliament, says Bilawal

NCOC ALLOWS EXAMS FOR CLASSES 10, 12 FROM JUNE 23

Islamabad News Desk

Students on Saturday staged a protest at Islamabad’s Faizabad Interchange against the government’s decision to hold in-person exams of classes 10 and 12

from June 23.

Students took to the streets soon after the National Command and Operations Centre (NCOC) said that examinations for classes 10 and 12 will be held between June 23 and July 29.

The protesting students urged the federal and

provincial education ministers to reconsider their decision in light of the ongoing coronavirus situation.

“If classes were held online, then the examinations should also be conducted online,” the students argued.

The protest affected the flow of traffic, following which a minor clash took place between the police and the students.

The students pelted stones at the police after which the police used batons and tear gas to disperse them.

Earlier in the day, The NCOC, in its meeting chaired by Federal Minister for Planning, Development, and Special Initiatives Asad Umar, expressed satisfaction over the current coronavirus situation in the country.

The forum said that the provinces can start preparation classes for classes 10 and 12 from May 31, but those should be conducted with coronavirus SOPs intact — on alternate days.

The NCOC, making vaccination mandatory for teachers and other staff of educational institutions, said the inoculation should be completed by June 10 in a bid to curb the spread of the disease during examinations.

The forum has opened walk-in vaccinations for teachers and other staff above 18 years of age, who can get themselves inoculated from the nearest medical facility.

“The forum expressed general satisfaction on the overall situation in the country. However, it cautioned regarding high disease prevalence in Sindh,” a postmeeting statement said.

India interfering with water flow of Chenab at baglihar: Irsa Islamabad INp

The Indus River System Authority revealed India is interfering with the water flow of Chenab at the point of Baglihar, reducing the inflow from the neighbouring country, reports citing sources said on Saturday.

The authority said the flow of water in the river should be 40,000 cusecs these days. But contrary to the usual water inflow, the water authority said: “Inflow and outflow of water in the Chenab River at Head Marala is 25,000 cusecs and 5,000 cusecs merely.”

Under the 1960 Indus Water Treaty, both Pakistan and India control more than three rivers draining into the Indus river basin.

The IRSA also revealed that Tarbela Dam is still at the dead level while Mangla

Dam has water storage of 475,000-acre-feet.

The total flow of water in the rivers is 172,000 cusecs and discharge of water from dams is 168,000 cusecs.

The water inflow of the Indus River at Tarbela is 63,000 cusecs and the outflow is 60,000 cusecs. The flow of water in the Kabul River at Nowshera is 32,000 cusecs.

On the other hand, the inflow and outflow of water in the Jhelum River at Mangla is 50,000 cusecs and there is an extraordinary decrease in water flow in Chenab River.

“The water situation in the rivers is likely to improve in the next 72 hours,” Irsa said in a statement released on Saturday.

It further said that the temperature in Skardu and northern areas is 29 degrees Celsius.

Sunday, 30 May, 2021

ISLAMABAD

NEWS

03

PAkisTAn, iRAq AgRee To sTRengThen CooPeRATion in mulTiPle AReAs baGHdad

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TLTP

AKISTAN and Iraq have agreed that the two countries need to strengthen bilateral cooperation in mutually beneficial areas.

This understanding was developed when Foreign Minister Makhdoom Shah Mahmood Qureshi called on Iraqi President Dr Barham Salih on Saturday, according to a press statement issued in Islamabad by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The foreign minister conveyed warm wishes to President Salih from Pakistan’s leadership. He extended an invitation to Iraqi PM Mustafa Al-Kadhimi to visit Pakistan.

He affirmed Pakistan’s support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Iraq.

Acknowledging the unyielding efforts and sacrifices of Iraq and its people in the fight against terrorism, the foreign minister wished peace, progress and prosperity for the brotherly people of Iraq.

Qureshi briefed the president on Pakistan’s transformed vision

centred around economic security, shifting focus from geopolitics to geoeconomics.

He outlined Pakistan’s desire to offer itself as an economic hub through peace, development, partnerships and connectivity.

Reaffirming Pakistan’s longstanding and friendly ties with Iraq, Foreign Minister Qureshi expressed Pakistan’s desire to further enhance existing bilateral ties in all spheres of cooperation. He offered Pakistan’s support and cooperation for Iraq’s efforts toward rebuilding and strengthening the country.

President Salih warmly welcomed the foreign minister and reciprocated the feelings expressed on behalf of Pakistan’s leadership. He thanked the foreign minister for Pakistan’s understanding and support.

The president agreed that the two countries need to strengthen bilateral cooperation in mutually beneficial areas. Appreciating Prime Minister Imran Khan's environmental initiatives, he hoped for greater cooperation in this field.

The foreign minister and the president also discussed regional and global issues of mutual interest.

Qureshi briefed the president on the situation in South Asia, in particular Pakistan's approach towards the issues and disputes with India, Pakistan’s consistent support for the Afghan peace process, and Pakistan’s steadfast diplomatic support for the just cause of Palestine. He also highlighted Pakistan’s efforts to promote solidarity among the Muslim

Ummah. Separately, talking to his Iraqi counterpart Fuad Hussein in Baghdad on Saturday, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said that Pakistan greatly values its relations with Iraq. He said the fraternal relations between the two countries are deep rooted in common history, religion and cultural values.

The foreign minister stressed there

are vast opportunities of cooperation between the two countries in the areas of trade, investment, education, technology and infrastructure development. He said both Pakistan and Iraq can share their experiences in the fight against terrorism.

Qureshi said resolution of the Palestine dispute is imperative for peace in the Middle East and Jammu and Kashmir dispute for peace in

Walk-in Covid-19 vaccination for citizens above 30, teachers starts Islamabad STAFF REPORT

The National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) has opened up walk-in coronavirus vaccinations for people aged 30 and above and teachers over 18 years old from Saturday. The developments had been announced by Minister for Planning and Development Asad Umar and the NCOC on Twitter on Friday.

Umar had requested people who are 30 years or older to get registered and go to any vaccination centre to get a jab against coronavirus.

“Walk-in vaccination for teachers above 18 years of age is open. Teachers can walk-in to any vaccination centre with CNIC, stamped letter from head of institution / teachers’ ID card and get themselves vaccinated,” the NCOC tweeted later

on the same day. More than 5 million people have been vaccinated against the coronavirus infection in

Pakistan so far, according to the federal planning minister. Umar encouraged the public to get themselves registered for vaccination at the earliest.

Earlier on May 16, Pakistan opened registrations for citizens aged 19 and above for coronavirus vaccination.

In a tweet, Umar had said now registration will be open for the entire national population which is approved by health experts for the vaccine.

Umar had explained that the government was opening up registrations for more age groups as Pakistan's vaccine supply continues to improve and the country's vaccination capacity gets enhanced day by day. On May 3, Pakistan opened registration for the vaccination of people aged between 40 to 49 years across the country and, subsequently, began walk-in vaccinations for people of the same age group.

Challenge Fashion to introduce poverty alleviation system Islamabad PR

Challenge Fashion, as per its commitment with Prime Minister Imran Khan and beautiful province GilgitBaltistan, has promised to introduce a poverty alleviation system like China, which will give jobs and introduce people from less developed areas with the modern manufacturing techniques by providing them jobs and opportunities to earn income to support their families in the respective areas of Pakistan.

It has been proven that this is a sustainable way of

benefiting the citizens of Pakistan without the use of government funds. Challenge fashion is proud to introduce the policy and committed to provide employment and technical opportunities to the citizen of Pakistan from less developed cities.

As a model, 150 employees will be joining Challenge Fashion from Gilgit-Baltistan and in near future, this figure will go up to 2000 employees.

The company felt honoured and grateful after Chief Minister Gilgit-Baltistan Khalid Khurshid took some time out from his busy schedule and visited its factory at Multan Road.

PR

The Islamabad district management has declared OGDCL F-8 Medical Centre as a vaccination centre of Covid-19 for employees and their family members.

The Islamabad deputy commissioner has established this facility on the request of OGDCL management to facilitate the process of Covid-19 vaccination of OGDCL employees and their families. This facility not only will reduce the burden on national health system but will also facilitate the vaccination process of OGDCL employees and their families in a congenial environment and it will diminish their waiting time in long queues. This all was made possible due

to the untiring efforts of OGDCL management, which is always committed to providing maximum facilities to its employees.

In this context, the management established a call centre for employees to take appointments before coming for vaccination and the response has been overwhelming. Not only the OGDCL employees and their families but the general public as well were inoculated at the facility on Saturday. Everyone appreciated the efforts of OGDCL management for this noble cause. The process is registered with NIMS and after inoculation of second dose, the employees shall be issued certificate from NADRA. This is the only such facility by any E&P company in Pakistan. Like many

other initiatives by the OGDCL management in combating the Covid-19 pandemic, establishment of this centre is a first in the E&P sector in Pakistan. This

Pfizer seeks approval for Covid vaccine from DRAP ISLAMABAD: American pharmaceutical company Pfizer has requested the Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP) to issue an emergency use authorisation to its Covid-19 vaccine in the country.

According to sources, Pfizer’s officials have formally submitted an application and relevant documents to the DRAP and sought permission for emergency use of its coronavirus vaccine in the country. Sources privy to the matter said that DRAP’s expert committee was satisfied with the documents submitted by the US pharmaceutical company, adding that Pfizer is likely to get emergency use authorization next week.

Meanwhile, DRAP’s registration board meeting has been scheduled for 1st of June. After the DRAP’s approval, Pfizer could import and sale the coronavirus vaccine in the country. Earlier on May 28, the EU’s drug watchdog had approved the Pfizer/BioNTech coronavirus jab for 12- to 15-year-olds, the first vaccine to get the green light for children in the bloc.

The vaccine was “well tolerated” in children and there were no “major concerns” in terms of side effects, the Amsterdam-based European Medicines Agency had said. Germany had said it will start vaccinating children over the age of 12 from June 7 following the authorisation by the EMA. The United States and Canada had both already authorised the vaccine for children of the same age. STAFF REPORT

TTP commander killed in Afghanistan

OGDCL establishes Covid-19 vaccination centre in Islamabad Islamabad

South Asia.

The two foreign ministers agreed to enhance mutual cooperation at the international forums including the United Nations and the Organisation of the Islamic Cooperation (OIC). They also emphasised the need for collective efforts at the international level to curb the spread of Covid-19.

Later addressing a joint news conference along with the Iraqi foreign minister, Qureshi said that Pakistan wants peace in the South Asian region as it is important to lift the people out of poverty. He said the Afghan peace process must go forward. The foreign minister said during talks with the Iraqi counterpart, he apprised him of the role played by Pakistan to facilitate the peace process. Qureshi said that Pakistan is taking a number of steps to facilitate Zaireen visiting Iraq.

Qureshi is undertaking a threeday bilateral visit to Iraq, at the invitation of his Iraqi counterpart.

During the visit, he will hold extensive discussions with important dignitaries in Iraq on bilateral cooperation and important regional and global issues.

is also a testament to the unflinching resolve of the OGDCL management towards facilitating their employees in the best possible manner.

ISLAMABAD: Mufti Khalid, a central commander of the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), has been reportedly found murdered in the Kunar province of Afghanistan. Mufti Khalid, a TTP council member, was killed by unidentified person(s) while he was travelling, sources quoted the police as saying. He belonged to Buner and was a close associate of TTP chief Mullah Fazlullah, the sources said. He was believed to be the mastermind behind the suicide bombing of an election rally in 2008, sources said. He was also wanted for facilitating and planning the attacks on Army Public School in Peshawar and the Bacha Khan University. TLTP

Sunday, 30 May, 2021

04

ISLAMABAD

NEWS

EconoMy on solid growth Path as PEr EarliEr PrEdiction: asad ISLAMABAD tLtp

F

EDERAL Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives, Asad Umar has claimed that the economy is back on the path of growth as he had predicted two years ago in April 2019.

In a tweet on Saturday, the federal minister responded to criticism against the government on the "sudden, accelerated" growth in the economy. He shared a video clip with the post, saying that he had predicted that it would take the economy two years to return on the growth path and the current growth rate has proven that prediction.

“Those who are asking how economic

growth could have suddenly accelerated should watch my video clip where I had said that it will take two years,” the minister wrote while sharing the clip from April 3, 2019.

The federal minister said it was the clear policy of the government of Prime Minister Imran Khan to put the economy on a sustainable growth path, instead of taking a deci-

sion that might have immediate acceptance but would not be good for the economy in the long run.

Economy is in ruins: PmLn's muhammad Zubair: However, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Muhammad Zubair disagreed with his brother and quickly responded on Twitter, saying that the "economy is in ruins."

"But even if we agree, what does it say of your kaptaan [Imran Khan] who had no clue. Just 15 days after this event, the kaptaan removed you. Surely he does not understand. That is why we insist he must go," Zubair said in a reference to PM Khan's move to remove Asad from the post of finance minister shortly after the video clip in question was recorded.

9 killed, 16 injured after van falls into ditch in Kashmir ISLAMABAD Staff RepoRt

At least nine people were killed and 16 others injured after a passenger van fell into a ditch in Muzaffarabad of Azad Kashmir, media reported on Saturday. Police told media that the dead, including three children, and the injured have been shifted to the hospital. The illfated van was heading towards the Chakothi sector of Kashmir from Rawalpindi district, according to the reports. Road accidents are quite frequent in Pakistan mainly due to poor roads, badly maintained vehicles and unprofessional driving.

Policeman laid to rest in Mardan MARDAN app

The funeral of a head constable who was killed in a terrorist attack on a police mobile in the Babuzai town of Mardan district Friday night was offered at police lines on Saturday. He was laid to rest in his native town of Lund Khwar. Two other policemen and a girl were also injured in the attack. In response, police shot dead the terrorist and after the incident, a heavy contingent of police cordoned off the locality.

HYDERABAD: Women workers of Jamaat-i-Islami hold a protest rally against Israel’s brutal use of force against Palestinians. oNLINe

Gang posing as NAB officials busted KARACHI INp

National Accountability Bureau on Saturday began a probe against government officials and businessmen who paid money to ring members impersonating officials of the watchdog in order to prevent progress in graft cases against them.

The dirty money watchdog busted a gang operated by one Khalid Solangi who blackmailed businessmen and government officials in the name of the agency.

“He minted money from them and the National Accountability Bureau is now investigating it,” reports said, adding Solangi’s son Aamir Hussain was also arrested from Lahore and they have recovered 400 SIM cards that were used to blackmail people from his possession.

It said that those who paid money to the group included Special Secretary Home Amir Khursheed who

fled to the United States when issued a call-up notice over the matter.

Allegedly Khursheed paid an amount of Rs8 million to the gang to stop investigation against him in a case pertaining to misappropriation in Lyari Development Authority funds.

Solangi and his son also received money from a district food inspector in Badin Munawar Mirani. He allegedly paid Rs5 million to the blackmailers and promised to pay Rs3 million more.

National Accountability Bureau on May 3 arrested Hussain for his alleged involvement in looting people by masquerading as the chairman and director-general of the watchdog.

While Solangi blackmailed people from Dubai and was involved in extortion activities.

The National Accountability Bureau has written a letter to the Ministry of Interior to cancel Solangi’s passport. The letter further demands that Interpol be approached to bring the accused back to the country.

Pakistani girl feared dead in Italy after refusing arranged marriage ROME ageNcIeS

Police in Italy are searching for the body of an 18-year-old girl suspected to have been killed by her Pakistani family after refusing an arranged marriage.

The girl’s parents, an uncle and two cousins are under investigation for murder, lieutenant colonel Stefano Bove of the Carabinieri police said on Saturday. All “are supposed to have taken part in the crime”, he told reporters, while officers were

combing through farmland to find the missing girl, Saman Abbas. Bove said Carabinieri were inspecting “wells, irrigation canals and greenhouses”.

Saman Abbas, who lived in the northern town of Novellara, last year rebelled against her family’s plan to have her wedded to a cousin in their home country.

While still a minor, she turned to social services and in November was moved into a shelter home. She also reported her parents to police, but on April 11 returned to them.

Police has been searching for her since May 5, when officers visited her house and found nobody, triggering an investigation.

Officers then discovered that the girl’s parents had left for Pak-

istan without her, and found images from a nearby security camera that made them fear the worst. Late on April 29, five people can be seen walking off from the house holding shovels, a

crowbar and a bucket, and returning after about two-and-a-half hours. The Carabinieri have identified the five as the family members suspected of murder. All are believed to have left Italy for Pakistan. Meanwhile, hundreds of people took part in a solidarity rally for the missing girl organised on Friday night by the town hall of Novellara.

“Saman, tonight you are not alone and you will never again be alone,” Mayor Elena Carletti said in a video posted on local news website Reggioonline.

Sunday, 30 may, 2021

ISlAmAbAd

Virus Fails to deter hundreds oF climBers on mount eVerest KatHmandu

a

agencieS

year after Mount Everest was closed to climbers as the pandemic swept across the globe, hundreds are making the final push to the summit with only a few more days left in the season, saying they are undeterred by a coronavirus outbreak in base camp.

Three expedition teams to Everest cancelled their climb this month following reports of people getting sick. But the remaining 41 teams decided to continue with hundreds of climbers and their guides scaling the 8,849-metre top in the season that

ends in May, before bad weather sets in.

“Even though the coronavirus has reached the Everest base camp, it has not made any huge effect like what is being believed outside of the mountain,” said Mingma Sherpa of Seven Summit Treks, the biggest expedition operator on Everest. “No one has really fallen seriously sick because of Covid or died like the rumours that have been spreading.”

With 122 clients from 10 teams on Everest, the company led the biggest group but there were no serious illnesses among them, he said.

Nepalese officials have downplayed reports of coronavirus cases on Mount Everest, apparently out of concern of cre-

ating chaos and confusion in the base camp. After a gap year of no income from climbers, Nepal has been eager to cash in on this year’s season.

“Many people made it to the base camp and it is possible that the people who went there from here could have been infected,” Prime Minister Khadga Prasad Oli said. “But that does not mean that it (coronavirus) has reached the entire mountain, maybe a part of the base camp or the area below that.” In April, a Norwegian climber became the first to test positive at the Everest base camp. He was flown by helicopter to Kathmandu, where he was treated and later returned home.

Prominent guide Lukas Furtenbach of

Austria decided to halt his expedition this month and pull out his clients because of an outbreak among team members.

After returning from the mountain, Furtenbach estimated more than 100 climbers and support staff have been infected. He said in an interview last week that it was obvious there were many cases at the base camp because he could see people were sick and could hear them coughing in their tents.

“I think with all the confirmed cases we know now — confirmed from (rescue) pilots, from insurance, from doctors, from expedition leaders — I have the positive tests so we can prove this,” Furtenbach told The Associated Press.

US-Pakistan alliance to remain on track after Afghanistan pullout: Qureshi continued from page 01 Pakistan, he said, has played its part in ensuring peace and stability in Afghanistan and would continue to do so. But “we cannot be held responsible if there were internal squabbling inside Afghanistan”, he added.

The foreign minister said Pakistan would be the net beneficiary of peace in the neighbouring country since it had been making sincere efforts to bring peace there.

Qureshi observed US Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad publicly acknowledged the positive and constructive role Pakistan played in getting the Taliban and Afghans to negotiating table, facilitating the peace agreement between Washington and the Taliban and pushing the intraAfghan dialogue forward.

“We are still trying to break the stalemate that existed there,” the minister added. Pakistan always acted as a facilitator between the Taliban and the Kabul regime, he said.

Qureshi said Pakistan could not be more irrelevant in the region due to the security picture and the changing global scenarios.

When asked, the foreign minister said Afghanistan was a sovereign country and could maintain ties with India. Islamabad has no objections to the ties and New Delhi’s reconstruction efforts in the country.

“But, they [India] have their limitations […] with regard to the peace negotiations as they were not the immediate neighbours of Afghanistan and did not host millions of Afghan refugees [for decades],” he observed.

Qureshi said all big countries shared consensus over Afghanistan and convergence of opinion including China, Russia and the European Union.

About China’s role in Afghanistan, he said China was “its neighbour and their interest in peace and stability in the country was natural. They can help Kabul in reconstruction”.

“Moreover, China is building an economic corridor [Belt and Road Initiative] and the Gwadar port would facilitate the landlocked Central Asian countries who are part of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, so their interest is natural,” he said.

With regard to Pakistan’s role in the US-China relationship, the foreign minsiter said Islamabad has, historically, acted as a bridge-builder between the two powers.

A working relationship between the two counties would have been naturally beneficial, he said.

He, however, said Pakistan is a friend to both countries. “Beijing stood with us through thick and thin and its support has been consistent,” he recalled.

The foreign minister also said that Pakistan was not looking for a post-Cold War camp situation. They realised the significance of ties with the US and valued its strategic cooperation with China.

“We want to be at peace with [our] neighbours,” he said, adding: “It was India that shied away from resolving disputes […] it ran away from composite and comprehensive dialogue, vitiated the atmosphere [for talks] and violated bilateral agreements.”

He said unilateral and illegal Indian steps in Kash-

mir had boomeranged, as there were voices inside the BJP government and throughout the country that such an approach would not work well for India.

To a question, he said Pakistan was pursuing policies of geo-economy and promoting regional activity, besides, ensuring peace and stability in the region. “Our interests lie in peace with India and peace in Afghanistan,” he said.

About ties between regional foes Saudi Arabia and Iran and the role of Pakistan in improving it, Qureshi said if there was an improvement in their ties, both countries would gain from it.

He further said the world cannot shove the Palestine question under the carpet for long as it will continue resurfacing and simmering.

“I think, you cannot shove the Palestinians question under the carpet for too long. It will continue resurfacing, the way you look the other way, it will continue simmering,” he said.

He condemned Israel’s aggression in Gaza as “barbaric, inhuman and uncalled for”, saying that the excessive use of force on the holiest night of Ramadan 27 was unacceptable [for Muslims in Palestine] which triggered the violence.

He said that he was happy about the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas and hoped it would hold. Following the deadly 2014 violence, the ceasefire did not hold longer but it would hold now, he added.

He said that international law and humanitarian laws were violated in the week-long war. “The democracies in the West will not overlook the human issue,” he stressed.

newS

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Bill criminalising criticism of military won’t curb online speech: Fawad continued from page 01 He said Pakistan’s response to Covid-19 had been one of the best in the world. Quoting United Nations General Assembly President Volkan Bozkir, he said: “Pakistan has been a good example for the world with its pandemic related policies; Pakistan has done better than any other country.” “These words speak volumes of our successful strategy to deal with the Covid-19 situation,” he added. In response to another question, the minister said 5.5 million people had been vaccinated in the country to date. Pakistan was among the top 34 countries in terms of vaccinating its people. “The way we are doing, [we will] achieve the targets of vaccination soon,” he added. He further reiterated that Pakistan was a great success story as far as dealing with the pandemic was concerned. “The partial [targeted restrictions] lockdown strategy worked well […] in Pakistan, the situation is far better than any other country in the region.” He further said the media in Pakistan enjoyed absolute freedom. Freedom of expression was a fundamental and democratic right enshrined in the Constitution of Pakistan, he observed. He said: “Pakistan is one of the freest states as far as media is concerned.” “There are 43 international channels, including BBC, 112 private channels, 258 radio channels, and 1,569 print publications, and in the presence of such kind of mass media, how could the state be accused of intimidating the media,” he further questioned. Responding to the claim of the government restricting a local channel, Aaj television, from airing BBC Urdu news service, Fawad said the British network was the mostwatched international channel in Pakistan and the government had never obstructed its transmission.

The BBC Urdu, he added, would be allowed to telecast its programmes subject to following the relevant media laws. When asked as to the reported thrashing of vlogger Asad Toor, Fawad said he immediately took cognisance of the matter. A senior police officer was investigating it and those responsible for the act would be apprehended, he told Sackur. He said there was no justification in accusing any state institution (of attacking journalists) without concrete evidence. Such lone incidents happen everywhere in the world and Pakistan was no exception, he said. To another question, he said Pakistan had been fighting the scourge of terrorism as a front line state. A number of people lost their lives in the war on terror. “This is not something limited to journalists, former prime minister Benazir Bhutto was also martyred in a terrorist attack,” he said, adding: “About 70,000 people had been killed in the war against terrorism.”

However, the incidents of attacking journalists, he said, had reduced after the incumbent government assumed office.

NEWS ANALYSIS

Ahead of budget, is the FPCCI off tangent?

On 25th May 2021, four of the country’s leading newspapers carried an appeal to the Honorable Prime Minister. Unlike the annual pre-budget industry lobbying, this time a faction of Karachi based industrialists raised a different matter. Among other claims, the statement decried discrimination for a handful of consumers at the hands of NEPRA, the National Regulator, and accused them of favoring K-Electric by allowing exorbitant transmission and distribution losses while claiming that the authority had unfairly awarded billions in government subsidies.

The statement was spearheaded by the Federation of Pakistan Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the country’s premier industrial forum. Of the 220 trade bodies that the Federation claims to represent, only a small interest group extended their support.

As of the writing of this article, at least 2 out of these participants have disassociated themselves from the contents of the appeal.

Given the timing and mismatched content, the publication of this advertisement suggests a different, larger ‘developing’ story.

The apex body’s latest faux pas also reveals a crack in an otherwise pristine façade, revealing glimpses of a potential motive to shift the trends of national investment.

Uncharacteristic inconsistencies: On 26th May 2021, K-Electric responded with a full-page advertisement delinking the individual claims in the appeal and clarifying that the issues raised had no bearing on the consumers of electricity in Karachi, Dhabeji, Hub or anywhere in Pakistan. The arguments in the KE version were supplemented with evidence from different

sources including the NEPRA’s State of Industry Report.

The seriousness of the appeal quickly fizzled out as industry experts began to discuss and then question the validity of the claims and their applicability on the average consumers of electricity.

The FPCCI appeal further accused the Government of discriminating against consumers in Sindh whereas those based in Punjab were being preferential treatment by Government and NEPRA. It was also surprising to note that the appeal to the Prime Minister claimed that KE had been receiving billions in subsidies when it is generally understood that the benefit of these subsidies is fully and directly passed to the end customers with no involvement of the individual distribution company. a rift in the ranks or power play? While K-Electric issued its own formal response, a dissenting voice against the Chamber was also raised from within and industrial forums were abuzz with messages of distancing from the contents and questioning the motive behind it. The Pakistan Leather Garments Manufacturers and Exporters Association even issued a formal statement denouncing the appeal and stated that the use of its logo to imply support was unauthorized. The statement clearly mentioned that the PLGMEA had expressed its concerns over the validity of the content and communicated that they be excluded. In an uncharacteristic move, the FPCCI had appeared to push the statement through, nonetheless.

Such a split within the ranks is unprecedented within FPCCI. Established since

1950, the chamber commanded an authority and influence across the Government which was respected by all. For the past several years, the Chamber had grown owing to the patronage of industrial magnate SM Muneer.

Between him and the late Siraj Teli of the Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (which is now represented by Zubair Motiwala), every businessman was assured that their interests and voices were being highlighted at the top echelons of the country.

The changes in leadership seem to be bringing a change in the way of doing business, much to the chagrin of the broader business community. Whether this rift is a result of the vacuum created by Mr. Teli’s departure persisting or a power play to shake the defacto incumbents is yet to be known. changing tides of investment: Curiously, a central feature of the appeal published on 25th May was the demand that the Prime Minister and the Federal Cabinet issue a set of instructions to the Ministry of Power and NEPRA “before they allow the change of ownership of K-Electric.”

Whether this was intentional or not, this one line seems to be the driving motive behind the ad as well as the subsequent proposals. Demands made in the appeal included disassembling KE’s vertically integrated infrastructure, putting its transmission network under the National Grid and others and for the territory’s Distribution network to be treated ‘at par’ with state-owned DISCOs. Unfortunately, these demands ignored the crippling impact of circular debt of PKR 2.6 trillion which is currently gripping the power sector, that the state-owned DISCOs

cmYK

inflict year upon year on the national exchequer. This is also a regressive approach and in direct contradiction of Government’s desire to privatize the sector. In a next day statement, NEPRA was seen calling for state-owned distribution companies to be privatized, citing their failure to curb line losses as a contributing factor towards the national circular debt.

Ironically, FPCCI – headquartered in Islamabad with a presence in every nook and cranny of the country – has nothing to say on how to improve the 11 state-owned DISCOs, which are well within the purview of the Government and whose issues can be resolved far swiftly.

Such a move follows on the heels of, and in contradiction to, the significant progress that the Government of Pakistan has achieved in bringing respite to the people of Karachi. News reports reflect a positive and cordial working relationship which is addressing long-standing matters of payables and receivables and formalization of the agreements for the purchase of additional power from the National Grid as well as the supply of gas for KE’s power plants. stalling progress of sep transaction real motive?

This is not the first time that lobbies have become active to stall the acquisition by Shanghai Electric. News of breakthroughs in negotiations and conversations with the Government are quickly negated with contradictory reports and negative statements from different angles. The pattern is uncanny. This begs the question – who stands to benefit from dismantling a performing

utility and distributing its parts. There seems to be some ulterior motive at play – dismantling will certainly make it easier to acquire it in bits and pieces by someone who lacks the investment capability of a giant like SEP. Some sources in Islamabad claim that there was significant interest from local investors in KE and its affairs. According to them, Amongst many names that came up were a delegation of investors reportedly from the Far East, particularly Korean. This delegation according to the source was jointly led by two individuals. The first operates one of the most popular Intercity bus services across Pakistan, while the second is the owner of the Pakistani conglomerate which has recently set up an auto manufacturing unit for a renowned Korean brand.

Other market rumors also share a name on background who is heavily involved in the Pakistan Stock Exchange. There is also a growing suspicion within the market, according to a source, about the link between the FPCCI consortium and the Special Adviser to the Prime Minister on Power and Petroleum, Tabish Gauhar, and his influence in driving this narrative from the background. Source claim that meetings were held in Islamabad and among other items, these foreign and local investors discussed entering the national power market. No interest was seen by them in rescuing any of the state-owned DISCOs however.

Underlying the reservations in the ongoing transfer of 66.4% shares of K-Electric to Shanghai Electric Power Company, seems to be a desire to contend for the acquisition of the company. Staff report

Sunday, 30 May, 2021

06 COMMENT

Tiny things that make a big difference

Sindh-Punjab water dispute Required, water conservation technologies

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T is time the government takes the water shortage issue seriously instead of allowing its spokespersons to use it to create differences between provinces. The pTI’s Firdous Ashiq Awan in punjab and Halim Adil Sheikh in Sindh are already involved in the activity. There is no doubt a shortage of water in the country. Consequently both punjab and Sindh will be receiving less water than needed. In Sindh this would badly affect the cotton crop with consequences not only for tens of thousands of growers but also for the country’s textile industry. The IRSA manages the shortages on the basis of a defective 1991 water accord. The accord is based on the faulty assumption of availability of 117.35 MAF of water in the Indus. As this much of water has never been available in the river, the expectations of the provinces cannot be fulfilled. There is a need under the circumstances for parliament to formulate a more realistic accord.

More water reservoirs alone will never resolve the water shortage issue without the implementation of a well thought out plan for the conservation of water. The country wastes almost a medium sized dam full of water every hour a day. Much more water per house is wasted in the cities now than it was in early years of pakistan. Underground potable water was available at less than 20 feet in lahore in 1947 and a decade later, It has now gone down to about 200 feet. Fresh tap water is still used to wash the floors and cars. There is a need to put water meters and make consumers above a defined minimum level pay heavily to reduce wastage.

There is colossal wastage of water in agriculture. A lot of water evaporates or gets absorbed in subsoil during transmission from the canals to the fields through uncemented, uncovered irrigation channels. More water is wasted through primitive methods of flooding the uneven fields.

There is a need to introduce and make compulsory modern leveling techniques combined with drip irrigation or other methods that require minimum use of water. Unless the state concentrates on water conservation agriculture will suffer and provincial disputes will weaken the country.

Rabia ahmed

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eople tend to remember only the dramatic discoveries and inventions, such as penicillin, the telephone and the automobile. These are without a doubt huge inventions/discoveries, crucial ones, and thank the lord for them, but life would be hard indeed without some apparently less spectacular discoveries as well, such as the compass, the flush toilet, matches and anesthesia, to quote just a very few examples. We discovered fire a long time ago, but imagine having to rub two stones together every time you needed a cuppa tea. or having your tonsils removed without anesthesia, let’s not even think of amputations or anything else. I mean come on, life without the flush toilet…doesn’t bear thinking, right? Yet there are many millions of people today who live without toilets.

It may come as a relief however to know that this write-up will not be focusing on flushes, although it has drawn attention, hopefully, to how miserable life would be without them. Instead, let’s go with the pacemaker, the little gadget that connects to the heart and ensures that the heart beats at a regular, safe rate. pacemakers have come a long way and are very

A less-than-impressive defence The Minister should have taken his appearance more seriously

Kashmir dispute– no bargaining chip

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eDeRAl Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry was interviewed on the BBC’s Hard Talk programme, and the kindest thing that can be said about him was that he might have done better had he prepared more. The basic question he faced, about military support for the government, Mr Chaudhry tried to fob off by saying that Imran Khan had been elected by the majority of pakistanis. This is technically incorrect, for while the pTI did not receive a majority of the vote in 2018, it failed to achieve a simple majority of seats and needed the support of smaller parties and independents to form governments at the centre and in punjab. How the government has ceded space, and to whom, is increasingly open.

Another area where Mr Chaudhry’s answer was not entirely accurate was on his ministerial responsibility, press freedom. When asked about concerns about press freedom, he merely parroted his leader Imran Khan’s response, that the press is not freer anywhere in the world. That is hardly accurate; the perception has developed that certain institutions are reported on at the peril of the reporter, with the recent attack on an Islamabad-based reporter is the latest example of the disturbing trend of things happening without any legal action. This descent from misuse of the law to outright thuggery is a development on Mr Chaudhry’s watch.

Mr Chaudhry also showed a similar attitude to the issue of missing persons. His fulsome praise of one of the parties to the issue does not raise hopes for a fair adjudication of the issue, or of impartial executive action. However, Mr Chaudhry managed to come across as unprepared, which was not exactly the best approach to such an opportunity of defending the government, which is Mr Chaudhry’s task.

Not just he and his leader, but the whole party, should be asking itself why these issues keep recurring. They are not the result of some awesome conspiracy against the government, but reflect what is happening. The government should realise that if any institution bursts out of its constitutionally set boundaries, it will be inevitably noticed.

While it might be possible to silence voices at home, those abroad are not amenable to such control.

attiya munaweR

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AKISTAN'S position on Kashmir is clear and unequivocal. If anyone wants to have a dialogue in a respectful manner, it will respond, but there will be no bargaining. Reiterating pakistan's permanent position on the Kashmir dispute, Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi has clarified that pakistan's principled position on Kashmir is unwavering. This position cannot be changed by any offer of a transaction.

However, we are ready for talks for a just solution to the Kashmir issue. our doors are still open for peace in the region.

It is clear that the Modi government has practically kept the whole of occupied Kashmir a prison since the 5 August 2019 move. one million Indian troops have been given free rein to carry out every oppression on Kashmiri Muslims. The entire Kashmiri leadership is facing the worst conditions in jails.

The international community has not been able to play any role in stopping the whims of the Indian government and no effective strategy has been adopted by pakistan alone. prime Minister Imran Khan has become the ambassador of Kashmir to the entire international com-

Dedicated to the legacy of the late Hameed Nizami

Arif Nizami Editor Yousaf Nizami Aziz-ud-Din Ahmad Managing Editor

Joint Editor

powers almost everything today, from spacecraft to phones, tracking systems, televisions, bank cards, the above-mentioned pacemakers, other medical demuch in use now since they were first invented in the vices, and of course once again the ubiquitous toilet.

1960s by the Canadian John Hopps. The first one was Yes, there is a toilet that contains a microchip which used in 1962 to help 72-year-old Mr Hintzman with shuts off water in the commode if it threatens to his erratic heart, one that would beat either too slowly overflow, and hear this, there is now another one developed in Japan that makes intelligent deductions or stop altogether.

That first pacemaker looked like a small radio, based on the user’s daily contributions to the bowl was about 30cm long and it was powered by a spe- and automatically sends information to the person’s cific household current. patients hooked onto this Gp. So if your doctor knows you have diabetes you would not last half a day in pakistan, if that, given know who’s been talking.

If we’re grateful for the telephone today, rememour erratic power supply. pacemakers matured to implantable ones in the ber it too has come a long way from the telephones made of Bakelite that were 1970s, but they could only plugged into a certain spot be set to one heart rate, and could not be used anylasted just a couple of years where but at that spot. No after which the four lithium Google, folks, no GpS, no batteries had to be replaced, using it in the car and defiToday people go about their and they could not store data nitely no placing one in which meant that if the heart daily lives with pacemakers your pocket or bag. All became better or worse those changes came about, there was no easy way to inside them, there are no tubes, thanks to microchips. find out. people go about Today’s pacemakers are wires or anything else to tell that theirToday daily lives with paceabout the size of a small there is one there. Other delicate makers inside them, there pencil sharpener, the battery are no tubes, wires or anylasts six to ten years, it also surgery too is performed with thing else to tell that there is stores data and it is adone there. other delicate justable to the required heart the aid of instruments using surgery too is performed rate as indicated thanks to with the aid of instruments that data. microchips and patients are using microchips and paWhat makes these new tients are able to lead a able to lead a much more pacemakers and many other much more normal lives things which are indispensanormal lives subsequently subsequently thanks to ble to life today possible is a them. little thing called a mithanks to them Most lately in Canada a crochip, the real hero today. chip has been developed Think a little gizmo that once it is installed in the about the size of your finbrain, can interact with gernail, that is a microchip. brain cells, detect seizures That pert little thing is one and treat people with neurological diseases. The two of the most important inventions in the world today.

An article in ThoughtCo. by Mary Bellis tells you people involved in this research have been Colin Dalton of Canada and Naveed Syed, also Canadian but about the microchip.

The people who invented the microchip were originally from pakistan. It’s people like these, and two Americans, Jack Kilby and Robert Noyce. Kilby, Noyce and Bill Gates who have made all this They’re built layer by layer on a wafer of semicon- possible. The world would have been a much harder ductor material, like silicon. Chemicals, gas and light place without them. are used to build the layers. Delicate computer cirRabia Ahmed is a freelance columnist. Read more cuitry called an integrated circuit is etched upon these layers. It is this tiny piece of something that by her at http://rabia-ahmed.blogspot.com

Microchips have revolutionized our lives

Umar Aziz Executive Editor

Lahore – Ph: 042-36300938, 042-36375965

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Karachi – Ph: 021-35381208-9

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munity. The promises made to bring the case of Kashmir before the international community are still awaiting fulfillment. even in the organization of Islamic Cooperation (oIC), there is no sign that the Kashmir issue has been raised fruitfully, and no allparty conference on the issue has been convened in the country. In this situation, just by saying that we will not make any deal on Kashmir, but are ready for dialogue, how will pakistan persuade the hard-shelled Indian rulers to talk and how will Kashmiris get their due? only the Foreign Minister can answer this important question.

It is good that the Foreign Minister himself has made it clear that prime Minister Imran Khan is neither a businessman nor is any deal going to be struck on Kashmir. Until India withdraws its 5 August 2019 move, there will be no talks. The prime Minister had said the same thing a few days ago, so no one had any doubt that such talks with India were going to take place in the near future, but the Foreign Minister's statement in New York that if anyone wants to talk, we will do it, needs clarification, because opponents can make out that pakistan is signaling some kind of concession to India for negotiations. pakistan is not ready to make any concessions to India on the Kashmir issue. pakistan has always been in favor of giving Kashmiris the right to self-determination in accordance with UN resolutions, so that the Kashmiri people can decide for themselves what they want. If that happened then it would be a very ideal situation, but the continued denial of the right to self-determination by

Islamabad – Ph: 051-2204545

India has led to the fact that the sovereignty of Kashmir has been taken away by the Modi government.

Apparently in this whole situation, it seems that the issue of Kashmir has come to a standstill and there is no way forward, but it is not; because there is still a way forward, it just takes a lot of patience and perseverance.

The notion that pakistan and India cannot resolve the Kashmir issue through bilateral dialogue is completely wrong. If pakistan and India are serious about negotiating a solution to the Kashmir issue, it will not be difficult, but it will have to be driven by other world powers without which no negotiation process can succeed, as both pakistan and India are subject to the interests of others. However, the pakistani and Kashmiri people welcome the Foreign Minister's announcement that there will be no deal on Kashmir.

This issue is so delicate that no ruler can even think of bargaining. Imran Khan is not a bargainer anyway, but if what is happening is not a bargain, then there must be compulsion. In recent days, Saudi Arabia’s Crown prince Muhammad bin Salman threatened to overthrow the government in two weeks, General pervez Musharraf was also pressured by questioning friend or foe, now it can also be told to Imran Khan that your majority is artificial, so you have to stay within your limits. The opposition may make as many accusations as it wants, but Imran Khan will never make any bargain on Kashmir for power.

It is good that the Foreign Minister himself has made it clear that Prime Minister Imran Khan is neither a businessman nor is any deal going to be struck on Kashmir. Until India withdraws its 5 August 2019 move, there will be no talks.

The Prime Minister had said the same thing a few days ago, so no one had any doubt that such talks with India were going to take place in the near future, but the Foreign Minister's statement in New York that if anyone wants to talk

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Web: www.pakistantoday.com.pk

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The writer tweets @AttiyaMunawer

Email: editorial@pakistantoday.com.pk

Sunday, 30 May, 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

Detriments of unemployment UNeMPloYMeNT is a very serious issue not only in Pakistan but in the whole world. In Pakistan hundreds and thousands of people out there who do not have employment. Besides, the problem of unemployment are very severe in Pakistan because of the growing population and demand for jobs. Moreover, if we neglect this problem then it will be going to become the reason for the doom of the nation. The causes of high rate of unemployment are lack of capital, lack of proper skill, poverty and high rate of population growth in Pakistan. Unemployment is obviously the root of many evil and crimes. It spell starvation, disease and death on its victims. The young people who do not have any job or any source of income ultimately become indifferent to right and wrong, good and evil, corruption and vice of all kinds are the natural out come of unemployment. The first thing to do to reduce unemployment in Pakistan is the proper planning by the government of Pakistan. The education system of Pakistan should be equal and well managed. Well recognized training and technical institutions are need to be established where skills programs are offered.

Besides, the problem of unemployment are very severe in Pakistan because of the growing population and demand for jobs. Moreover, if we neglect this problem then it will be going to become the reason for the doom of the nation. The causes of high rate of unemployment are lack of capital, lack of proper skill, poverty and high rate of population growth in Pakistan.

Unemployment is obviously the root of many evil and crimes.

MEHLUB MUHAMMAD AKRAM KARACHI

The cross we bear The wobbly and crumbling edifice of justice needs a serious overhaul

Candid Corner Raoof Hasan “’The Prince’ was written by Machiavelli for the haves on how to hold power. ‘Rules for the Radicals’ is written for the have-nots on how to take it away”.

–Saul Alinsky

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o say that the world has been witness to the unfurling of an incessant struggle between the haves and the have-nots would not be untrue. Indeed, this is a struggle that dates back to the beginning of history and, in all probability, shall go on till the end of time.

There are books compiled on the human temptation to acquire more which has only become more pronounced with the passage of time. It is Niccolò Machiavelli who put it thus: “To wish to acquire more is admittedly a very natural and common thing. And when men succeed in this, they are always praised rather than condemned. But when they lack the ability to do so and yet want to acquire more at all costs, they deserve condemnation for their mistakes”.

While there is no limit put on this human ambition to acquire more, there are certainly checks put on the means to indulge this penchant. There are the right ways and there are the ones not so right. There is no constraint on one’s ambition to acquire more by using the lawful means, but doing so by resorting to unlawful practices has been looked upon with disapproval.

With time, the distinction between what is lawful and what is not has also become hazy, even disappearing completely in certain domains. This has not only further broadened the divide between the haves and the have-nots; it has also cultivated a level of legitimisation of the methods and means employed to satiate the ambition. In fact, acquisitions become law unto themselves, thus transiting beyond the ambit of any legal or ethical enquiry. We see this happening in Pakistan on an incessant basis with virtually no checks placed either on the quantum of acquisitions, or the methods used to accumulate them.

These germs have penetrated the institutions which have the power to keep checks in place and hold the transgressors to account through a process of quick and transparent action. Instead of being the custodians of the authority they are endowed with and using it judiciously against those who cross the bounds of the law, they have become partners with a broad spread of criminal syndicates operating in the country. This is the albatross that we have worn around our necks.

It is a situation which does not only cause disaffection among a large majority of the people; it also paves the way for illegality and immorality to become a norm in the country by stifling the voices of reason and equity.

It is difficult to trace the origins of this grave malady which the country is afflicted with. It is difficult to cite one or a set of reasons for the ailment to have caught on. It is also difficult to evaluate its genesis and see whether something was done to remedy the disease in the past. It is even more difficult to pile them all into a chart with a curative trajectory drawn alongside which clearly delineates the prescription to be administered and how. In the absence of all this, and with the affliction digging its poisonous tentacles deeper, the future seems bleak, more for those who belong to the weaker and the marginalised communities and who have suffered at the hands of those who have had the levers of power and their administration clutched in their grip.

Yet, opinions and suggestions would come aplenty.

Some would suggest the adoption of stricter measures to curb the spread of crime. others would advocate reforming the system in a way that it becomes more amenable to the needs of the underprivileged. Some would attribute it to a tradition of disparities which has been endemic in the country since its inception while others would link it with the predominantly feudalistic mindset that cultivates and perpetuates a system of oppression and inequality. But, there is a common thread that one can trace from all these symptoms: it is the absence of a fair, transparent and just system of justice that could be dubbed as the principal cause of widespread polarity and the urgent need for it to be remodelled to address the challenges that the country faces at this juncture.

There is no society which is completely free of crime, inequity and exploitation. Such indulgences come naturally to human beings.

But the saving grace of these other societies comes by way of their justice system which addresses these inequalities strictly by the law contained in the statute book. That, unfortunately, is not the case in our country. Here, like so many other commodities, justice is also up for sale. It is marketed in numerous hues and forms. Sometimes it dawns in the shape of administering judicial murders, or coinage of escapades like the doctrine of necessity. It also comes by advancing absurdities like the Qayyums and Tarars of the land who take dictation on phone, or go with bags full of money to buy those entrusted with the task of dispensing justice. It even comes by way of attacks on the courts. It is, therefore, little wonder that, in the international rankings for provision of justice, our judiciary is languishing at a miserly 118th position among a total of 128.

The lure of money and the fear of the powerful make the most deadly package which is

hard to resist. Notwithstanding its lethal content, the hemlock remains a favourite drink for frequent consumption which has caused the demise of the entire justice system. In fact, it has been dead for long, completely unresponsive to desperate attempts to shake it to life. of late, judgements have been announced which bear not a semblance of justice. Irrevocable evidence was overlooked to render some chosen ones beyond the pale of the law, thus setting a tradition which has inflicted grievous damage to an already wobbly and tumbling edifice. It continues to be administered unkind blows and may crumble further with time. Giving it an injection of health seems to be a forlorn call. But there is no escaping the reality that this structure needs some serious repair work to commence urgently.

For the state to progress and prosper, its justice system would need to be revived. It is not an easy task. It relates to both the contents of the statute book and the judges who interpret them to adjudicate for the people. It may be easier to redraft the book of the law, but improving the stock of what the judges are made of would be an extremely challenging task to undertake. one will have to go to the basics to begin the corrective process which, if at all, may take years to complete. It is the inbetween time that would be crucial in terms of retaining the trust of the people for whom this entire exercise is being conducted.

Their faith is already at an abysmally low level and asking them to continue suffering the excesses of a faulty system would be a bit much for their consumption.

We have been at the brink for long. We are tantalisingly close to falling over. We cannot see that happen. So, alongside undertaking the time-consuming processes of remedying the justice system, it may have become imperative to introduce some interim measures whereby the provision of justice could at least become a possibility for the impoverished communities of the country who toil the most, suffer under the harshest conditions and are recipients of the worst treatment at the hands of everybody who is anybody, including the ones who have been anointed to administer justice.

Absence of justice is the cross that we have borne for long. Casting it off should be a priority concern of the state.

Alongside undertaking the time-consuming processes of remedying the justice system, it may have become imperative to introduce some interim measures whereby the provision of justice could at least become a possibility for the impoverished communities of the country who toil the most, suffer under the harshest conditions and are recipients of the worst treatment at the hands of everybody who is anybody, including the ones who have been anointed to administer justice

The writer is a political and security strategist, and heads the Regional Peace Institute – an Islamabad-based think tank. Email: raoofhasan@hotmail.com.

Twitter: @RaoofHasan

NCOC workings ACCordING to the National Command and operation Center ( NCoC) announcement ‘stay Home Stay Safe’ strategy to control mobility from May 8 to 16 including eid holidays. Actually it was a correct decision since we can observe the current spike of coronavirus in the country which requires effective measures to contain it’s further spread. It also underscored issuance of comprehensive SoPs and guidelines for Youm-eAli (AS), itekaf, Night of Qadr, Jumma-tul-Wida and Namaz-e- eid. And NCoC announced that all markets, businesses and shops will remain closed except essential services that are grocery shops, pharmacies and medical stores, medical facilities and vaccination centres, vegetables, fruits, chickens, meat shops, bakeries, petrol pumps, good takeaways, utility stores, electricity, natural gas, internet, cellular networks/telecommunication call centres and media. However, the ban has been busy imposed on Chand raat Bazars including mehndi, jewelry, ornaments and clothing stalls. There would also be complete ban on tourism for both local and outsiders. All tourists resorts, both formal and informal picnic spots, shopping malls and hotels and restaurants will get closed too. And travel nodes which lead the tourists to visit places like Murree, Galyat, Swat Kalam, Sea view, beaches and Northern areas and other tourists destinations. I hope the all given SoPs will be followed with no comprises.

BARKAtULLAH tURBAt

Black night eleCTrICITY is one of the most needed requirements in today’s world, but, unfortunately, Tehsil Tump (Balochistan) is devoid of this basic necessity of life. It is unbelievable that in the 21st century, people of Tump are living like the ones who lived centuries ago in caves without having electricity. No one can think about living without having electricity, but, unfortunately, the people of Tump have no choice. It is requested to the government to take strong actions to solve this issue and let the people of Tump also have this basic necessity of life.

HAMMAL ZAHID KoLAHoo

Former FATA region PrIMe MINISTer Imran Khan on Wednesday said that the present government was committed to the development and progress of merged areas (erstwhile FATA). The provision of record rs. 48 billion development funds for the merged areas by the federal government in current fiscal year despite difficult economic conditions and coronavirus demonstrated that commitment, he added. The Prime Minister was presiding over a meeting here to the review the progress of development projects in the merged areas of Khyber Pakhtoonkhwa (KP). Minister for Planning Asad Umar, Minister for religious Affairs Pir Noor-ul-Haq Qadri, Chief Minister KP Mahmood Khan, Minister of State for Information Farrukh Habib, Provincial Finance Minister Taimur Khan Jhagra, Members of National Assembly (MNAs) Gul dad Khan, Gul Zafar Khan, Sajid Khan, Muhammad Iqbal Afridi, Malik Fakhar Zaman and senior officers of the federal and provincial governments were in attendance. The meeting was told that 117 development projects have so far been approved for the merged areas which included the projects relating to education, health, communication, irrigations, sports, law and justice, agriculture, energy and clean drinking water. It was also briefed in detail about the funds released by the federal government and spent on the development projects in merged areas. Prime Minister directed to accord priority to such projects for merged areas in the next budget, in consultation with local leaders and public representatives, which besides catering to the immediate needs of people would prove beneficial for the people directly and in minimum duration. He also directed for the constitution of committee comprising representatives of the federal and provincial governments to monitor the progress of development projects and for timely realization of the set targets. Prime Minister directed the public representative present in the meeting to involve the people regarding the process of ongoing development projects in the merged areas so that the development progress move forward with the support of masses.

About the provision of justice in the merged areas, he directed that special attention should be given to that aspect.

SoHAIL KHAn ISLAMABAD

Sunday, 30 May, 2021

08 WORLD VIEW

Why is EuropE on a WiTch hunT againsT 'poliTical islam'?

GERMANY IS FOLLOWING IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF FRANCE AND AUSTRIA, WITH INCREASINGLY OPPRESSIVE PROPOSALS TO TARGET MUSLIM COMMUNITIES

middle eaSt eye

a

FARid HAFEz

SpeCTRe is haunting europe: the spectre of political islam. From France’s fight against “islamo-leftism” to austria’s battle against “political islam”, Muslims and Muslim anti-racist civil society groups are coming under more and more pressure from state authorities. in both countries, governments have shut down NGOs and mosques, limited freedom of expression, and raided homes and institutions under the pretext of the “war on terror”. Such measures intensified after terrorist attacks were carried out last year. in Germany, Chancellor angela Merkel’s Christian Democratic Union (CDU) appears set to follow in the footsteps of French president emmanuel Macron and austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz. While Macron was met with harsh international criticism for his anti-Muslim legislation, Kurz’s initiatives went nearly unnoticed. But they all seem to follow the same playbook, claiming to protect the majority of peaceful and law-abiding Muslims while targeting only the “dangerous” Muslims. in reality, they are dramatically widening the group of potentially "dangerous Muslims".

according to a recent publication by the CDU/CSU alliance in the German parliament: “islamism is not confined to a certain number of violent menaces. The ideology behind it is poison for our liberal society. it endangers integration and social cohesion by inciting Muslims against our democracy.”

This crusader rhetoric does not come out of thin air. Statements like these build on a long and problematic history of “countering violent extremism” and “deradicalisation programmes”, which emerged after the “war on terror” was initiated two decades ago.

STATE SURVEILLANCE: a more recent development has been the broadening of the notion of “countering violent extremism” to include the targeting of “non-violent extremism”. The latter term implies that non-violent Muslim groups share the same goals as violent ones, and differ only in methodology, as noted in a Bavarian intelligence report.

This term is used to exclude Muslim organisations from civil society by targeting Muslim associations that work within the western democratic political order and reject violence. according to the report, these legal, non-violent means include operating “cultural associations and mosques, which

serve to recruit members on the one hand and to spread their ideology on the other hand. Through their umbrella organisations, they try to offer themselves to the state as the mouthpiece of Muslims.”

This concept targets mainstream Muslim groups, rather than subversive movements hiding in the shadows. Most mainstream Muslim associations have been subjected to state surveillance for years in Germany. a general suspicion underlies this discourse, treating Muslims with mistrust and cynically questioning their integrity. The term being applied broadly is “political islam”, but not in the way academics would use it to differentiate between diverse manifestations of the intersection of politics and religion. The problem with the vague term “political islam” in countries such as austria is that the government uses it to criminalise Muslim practices and to silence Muslims who express political opinions critical of the government. in a sense, it has become the intellectual foundation upon which to institutionalise a general demonisation of Muslims, reminiscent of Joseph McCarthy’s witch hunt in the 1950s against Black and leftist groups under the banner of anti-communism.

The US-India relationship has a new top priority

HARDLINE POSITIONS: The growing hardline positions of european countries such as austria, France and Germany seem to be coming in tandem. Last October, a group of well-known authors and politicians from Germany’s CDU/CSU signed an open letter that proposed five recommendations for “strengthening the free democratic basic order in the face of political islam”. The letter noted: “it is high time to face the problems of the immigrant society openly and not to be intimidated by unfounded accusations of alleged islamophobia.”

Similar to France’s culture war against gender, postcolonial and racism studies, these scholars were trying to immunise the status quo against any critique. Did this letter gain traction because of the attacks in France and austria last year? Not really, for the claim is that “political islam” is much more dangerous than militant violence stemming from Muslims. The five recommendations include establishing a “documentation centre” based on the austrian model, in which “the structures, strategies and financing of political islam are analysed and disclosed”; the establishment of 10 university chairs dedicated to analysing the structures of “po-

ForeigN Policy

T

MiCHAEl KugElMAn

He U.S.-india relationship is back on track after hitting some unexpected turbulence last month, when Washington was slow to respond to New Delhi’s catastrophic coronavirus surge. The White House has since more than made up for the delay. Senior officials, starting with U.S. president Joe Biden, have issued statements of support and solidarity.

The administration signed off on large COViD-19 relief packages to india, and it intends to send vaccines as well. indian Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar is visiting the United States this week, where he has highlighted how easing the coronavirus surge is for now the top priority for U.S.-india relations, displacing the threat posed by China’s rise. While in Washington, Jaishankar is scheduled to meet with top U.S. officials, including Secretary of State antony Blinken, Defense Secretary Lloyd austin, National Security advisor Jake Sullivan, and indo-pacific Coordinator Kurt Campbell. in addition to COViD-19, these discussions are expected to cover defense ties and multilateral cooperation.

Jaishankar’s meetings in New York and Washington have so far mostly revolved around increasing vaccine production and distribution, emphasizing an agreement reached during the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue leaders’ summit in March. Jaishankar is also pushing for an intellectual property rights waiver on vaccines—endorsed by Biden—and on other products such as medical devices and personal protective equipment. The foreign minister has met with corporate interlocutors, in-

cluding a new global task force mobilizing donations for india.

The laserlike focus on the pandemic is understandable. The virus is still spreading widely in india’s rural areas, and only 3 percent of the population is fully vaccinated. The surge has also spawned a new public health crisis: an outbreak of rare black fungus, which affects the respiratory tract. experts say people have been exposed while being treated for the coronavirus, particularly when using steroid treatments. The government has tallied nearly 9,000 cases in recent weeks, with more than 250 deaths—mostly among people who have or had COViD-19. But amid these pandemic discussions, China still looms large for the U.S.-india relationship. There is a broader strategy behind the pandemic cooperation, even if the immediate goal is to get india’s surge under control. efforts by the United States and india—in collaboration with the Quad partners, South Korea, and the european Union—to develop a robust global vaccine supply would push back against competing efforts by China (and increasingly, Russia). as the world’s top vaccine producer under ordinary circumstances, india has a comparative advantage. earlier this year, india exported millions of COViD-19 vaccines, while China’s own export program was slow to take shape. But Beijing eventually picked up the pace: By the end of March, it had exported 115 million vaccines, compared with New Delhi’s 63 million. China now has produced 230 million doses—more than all other countries combined. india hadn’t even exported 70 million doses before its alarming second wave obliged it to suspend exports and focus on domestic demand.

Contemplating how vaccine exports fit into strategic competition with China may be putting the cart before the horse. But when both New Delhi’s and Washington’s relationships with Beijing are the coldest in decades, it’s only natural that officials may be thinking about how to get an upper hand over their common rival.

WASHINGTON-ISLAMABAD DIPLOMACY: The U.S. and pakistani national security advisors met in

Geneva on Monday—one of the only known in-person, high-level meetings between the countries under the Biden administration. each side’s readout of the meeting used the same language, an unusual development that suggests a desire to coordinate messaging. Both statements described discussions on a “range of bilateral, regional, and global issues of mutual interest.”

The meeting likely explored counterterrorism cooperation options following the U.S. withdrawal from afghanistan. Washington is trying to figure out how to maintain a counterterrorism capacity from outside the country, and it is looking into housing military personnel and assets on bases in neighboring countries. pakistan is, on one level, a logical candidate: it borders afghanistan and has agreed to U.S. basing arrangements in the past.

But islamabad has repeatedly rejected the possibility, including several times this week. The move would not be popular among the public, and for islamabad to even consider granting Washington’s request, it would insist on major U.S. concessions—such as the restoration of security assistance suspended since 2018. But with the pentagon indicating that nothing has been ruled out, islamabad’s public denials shouldn’t necessarily be taken at face value.

The scholars Katharine adeney and Filippo Boni have published a fascinating new paper for the Carnegie endowment on the China-pakistan economic Corridor (CpeC), the pakistan component of Beijing’s Belt and Road initiative. They argue that, contrary to popular belief, decisions regarding CpeC have not been wholly dictated by Beijing but are often guided by islamabad’s own priorities. “examining the domestic contours of the CpeC shows that pakistani actors have wielded agency in important ways throughout the process, while Chinese actors have at times accommodated key pakistani demands,” adeney and Boni write.

Michael Kugelman is the writer of Foreign Policy’s weekly South Asia Brief. He is the Asia Program deputy director and senior associate for South Asia at the Wilson Center in Washington.

Farid Hafez is a political scientist based in Vienna. He is also a research scholar at Georgetown University’s The Bridge Initiative. He is editor of the Islamophobia Studies Yearbook and co-editor of the European Islamophobia Report.

Why is Covid-19 resurging across Asia?

SLUGGLISH VACCINATION RATES AND COMPLACENT SOCIETIES ARE UNDERMINING THE CONTINENT’S PANDEMIC SUCCESS New StateSmaN

CONTRARY TO POPULAR BELIEF, DECISIONS REGARDING CPEC HAVE NOT BEEN WHOLLY DICTATED BY BEIJING BUT ARE OFTEN GUIDED BY ISLAMABAD’S OWN PRIORITIES

litical islam” in Germany; and the establishment of an expert group within the interior ministry to make recommendations in the fight against political islam.

Such ideas raise serious questions. austria’s Documentation Centre is largely run by hawkish law-and-order figures who have a long history of supporting anti-Muslim legislation, including people like Mouhanad Khorchide, Susanne Schroter and Lorenzo Vidino. The recent CDU/CSU position paper also argues that state authorities should stop supporting associations that fall under the category of “political islam”, and proposes creating a "German imam", designed to be a Germany-trained student who is attached first and foremost to German national identity and thus reproduces the existing power structures.

The paper also calls for stricter financial controls on Muslim groups. The goal is to surveil Muslims as much as possible, violating secular notions of separating state powers and religious communities. as similar measures have not been enacted against other religious communities, it seems that Muslims are being singled out as targets yet again.

T

JAMES CHATER

aipei was strangely quiet last Sunday morning. as the city entered its first full day of near-lockdown restrictions, residents awoke to images of a pandemic long felt to be happening elsewhere: deserted city centre streets, empty subway stations and shuttered restaurants. Taiwan, which has received international praise for its apparently airtight pandemic prevention, is currently contending with its first significant wave of domestically-transmitted coronavirus cases. after recording more than 250 days without a single local case, more than 3,500 local cases have been recorded since the new wave began.

The outbreak encapsulates a trend emerging across asia. Countries initially lauded for their success in pandemic prevention are now either seeing cases creep up, or are battling stubborn third or fourth waves. in Japan, May has seen cases most days surpass 5,000, with seven-day averages matching its previous peak; in South Korea, a lengthy fourth wave has seen daily cases stagnate in the hundreds; and across Vietnam and Thailand and Singapore, infection rates are climbing after previous periods of stability. experts in the region are now questioning whether the early successes of these countries have produced publics complacent to vaccines and basic preventative measures. a majority of current cases in Taiwan have been linked back to a breach in quarantine by a China airlines pilot. Numbers rose toward midMay, before spiking to 180 last Saturday. The government responded by placing the capital Taipei and neighbouring New Taipei City – where most cases continue to be concentrated – under tier-three of four restrictions; indoor gatherings or more than five were banned, non-essential shops were to close and restaurants could only offer dine-in if strict social distancing measures were implemented. By Wednesday, as infections spread beyond original hotspots to cities in the south, health minister Chen Shi-chung announced all regions would be moving up to tier-three. On Tuesday, Chen confirmed those nationwide restrictions would be extended until mid-June as daily cases remain in the hundreds. Chunhuei Chi, professor of global health at Oregon State University, explained that Taiwan’s long period without domestic transmission could now prove detrimental. Relative stability in Taiwan had meant its vaccination program was less urgent and a lag had developed in up-to-date knowledge about the virus and its variants. Chi said that quick suppression of the odd local case earlier in the pandemic had “contributed to some complacency”. Now, he continued: “Taiwan has become a victim of its own success.” in South Korea, Japan and Vietnam as well – all of which were last year praised for their prevention methods – vaccination rates are slow; to date, the three countries have jabbed less than 8 per cent, 6 per cent and 2 per cent of their populations respectively. Mike Toole, a technical adviser to the Know Covid-19 Hub at the Burnet institute in Mel-

bourne, said that the likely reason for the slow rollout was that, “asian countries have largely been spared from the worst of the pandemic”. in place of fast vaccine roll-outs, Toole explained that South Korea and Japan had been relying more on contacttracing systems that were initially effective, but which now looked “overwhelmed”.

For both, administering the jabs – and not their supply – appears to be the key stumbling block. in late april, South Korea’s Disease Control and prevention agency announced it had agreed a deal with pfizer for 40 million doses. That brought the country’s total number of doses to 192 million, enough to vaccinate almost the whole country twice, but vaccine rates still plateaued. Reports from Japan earlier this month revealed the country had tens of millions of unused doses.

This contrasts starkly with China where, despite a similarly sluggish start, vaccine rates have soared in recent weeks. On Monday, China administered more than 15 million doses, the sixth consecutive day it had delivered more than 10 million jabs. When the recent wave in Taiwan began, around 180,000 of its population – less than 1 per cent – had been vaccinated. Last Wednesday, 400,000 more astraZeneca doses arrived in Taipei, purchased through the COVaX scheme. The pace of jabs has accelerated since the new wave began but, due to the time lag required for vaccines to become effective, Taiwan will have to rely on traditional measures of masks and social distancing to stop transmission in this wave from spiralling. alexandra Martiniuk, a professor of epidemiology at the University of Sydney, outlined the danger of complacency around vaccinations in places experiencing low rates of community transmission.

She emphasised that once the virus is in the community it becomes very difficult to eradicate it completely; from that point on, Markiniuk continued, “you need a high [vaccine] coverage in your population to be stopping Covid in its tracks”.

Developments in the region will be watched closely by countries currently enjoying lower rates of infection. Toole said australia – where low rates of domestic transmission have accompanied a lethargic vaccine roll-out – is watching asia “with trepidation”. Still, despite the upticks, claims of a total collapse of the region’s pandemic strategies are exaggerated. The implementation of tier-four restrictions in Taiwan would require 14 consecutive days of 100 cases with at least 50 per cent of unclear origin. at a press conference on Friday, health minister Chen Shih-chung responded forcefully to questions concerning the heightening of restrictions, saying that Taiwan was “absolutely not yet at tier four”. He elaborated that of Friday’s 312 local cases, only 72 cases had unclear origin, less than 25 per cent. professor Chi meanwhile, despite being optimistic about Taiwan’s capacity to bring this wave under control, also believes the outbreak holds an important wider lesson: “no matter how well a country protects its society from this pandemic, as long as the world is not safe, no country is safe.”

James Chater is a Taipei-based freelance writer.

Sunday, 30 May, 2021

BUSINESS 09

ISLAMABAD regional exports post meager 1.8pc growth Pakistan’s exports to nine regional countries posted a growth of 1.818 per cent while imports from the region grew by nearly 31pc in first 10 months of the ongoing fiscal year (10MFY21) from a year ago, latest data released by the State Bank of Pakistan showed. The country’s exports to Afgha¬nistan, China, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, India, Iran, Nepal, Bhutan and the Maldives account for a small amount of $3.191 billion — just 15.26pc of Pakistan’s total global exports of $20.906bn in 10MFY21. China tops the list of countries in terms of Pakistan’s exports to its neighbours, leaving other populous countries India and Bangladesh behind. Pakistan carried out its border trade with the farther neighbour Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bhutan, Bangla¬desh and Maldives via sea only. On the other hand, imports from these countries edged up to $10.754bn in 10MFY21 against $7.638bn over the corresponding period last year, showing an increase of 30.97pc. As a result of huge imports, Pakistan’s trade deficit with the region expanded during the period under review. MONITOPRING REPORT

BOK wOrKing withOut permanent mD fOr last three years

Ogra moves to bring lpg bowsers into regulatory regime PESHAWAR

ISLAMABAD STAFF REPORT

The Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) has moved forward to bring LPG bowsers for transportation of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) into the regulatory regime and issued an adequate number of licenses to carry/transport the LPG. According to OGRA, the list of licensed LPG Bowsers along-with licensing mechanism has been placed at OGRA’s website i.e. www.ogra.org.pk.

Only licensed bowsers will be allowed to carry and transport LPG within the country in the near future and the bulk sellers are anticipated to be prudent for the safety of both public and material. They are also expected to be vigilant to undertake due diligence of the Bowsers before moving the LPG. OGRA has resolved to ensure public safety and seeks cooperation of all stakeholders for safe handling of LPG supply chain by ensuring international safety standards, said OGRA.

fBr accelerates action against non-duty paid cigarettes ISLAMABAD TLTP

The Inland Revenue Enforcement Network (IREN) of the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has accelerated action against non-duty paid cigarettes. According to a statement issued on Saturday, IREN’s Directorate of Intelligent and Investigation’s (I&I) Faisalabad unit conducted a raid at Samanabad and discovered 201 cartons of non-duty paid cigarettes (2,000,000 cigarettes). The confiscated cigarettes of various local brands such as Gold Mark, Cricket and Grace were moved to the warehouse of the directorate. Similarly, the IREN’s Karachi unit intercepted a vehicle and found 119 cartons of non-duty paid cigarettes. Those were detained on account of nonproduction of valid documents. The value of federal excise duty and sales tax of confiscated cigarettes was calculated around 6 million. Further investigation were underway. A team of Hyderabad unit visited a warehouse of a transport company at Tando Mohammad Khan and found 121 cartons (1,210,000 sticks) of different brands of cigarettes. The person present there failed to produce any documentary evidence regarding payment of applicable duties and taxes in respect of those cartons.

Hence, the stock of 121 cartons, involving duty and taxes of Rs2.634 million, were detained for further investigation, said the statement.

K

AZIZ BUNERI

HYBER Pakhtunkhwa’s (KP) largest financial institution, the Bank of Khyber (BoK), has been working without managing director for several years as the bank is being run without permanent group head, company secretary and managing director since 2018.

The bank sources said that in the absence of a permanent MD, group head and company secretary has also allegedly affected financial transactions.

A senior official of the bank said that after removing senior and founding officials and shareholders’ nominees from Karachi on higher posts, the bank is facing continuous loss.

“Covering a loss of Rs600 million in the last quarter, the bank has shown a profit of Rs1 billion,” said a high official, “By making false financial report, the authorities have tarnished bank’s image.”

According to sources, on one hand, the non-deployment of permanent officers on senior positions in the bank has affected the financial affairs of the bank, on the other hand, the board of directors has been

asked by three private directors to extend their terms but the refusal of the Finance Ministry to make further appointments under the Banking Companies Act has started a new legal issues.

According to sources, three members of Ismail Industry were elected as members of the Board of Directors (BoD) of BoK in 2018, after which the company secretary had applied to the State bank of Pakistan for Fit and Proper Test (FPT) for the three private directors.

The SBP had sent a letter to federal ministry of finance to stop further expansion of the elected private director in the Bank of Khyber, due to which the application of the private director for FPT application was rejected by the SBP. According to the sources, due to the rejection of FPT by the State Bank of Pakistan, from 2018 to 2020, the decisions of the Board of Directors of the Bank did not allow the private director to take all the decisions and Payment will be considered “illegal”. According to sources, the private board of directors has approached the court through a lawyer present on the bank’s panel, which is in conflict of interest.

According to sources, under the Banking Companies Act, the appointment of private director in gov-

ernment financial institutions can be made for not more than two times while the board of directors of BoK has been extended the tenure of a member of Candyland Group for fifth time.

Finance Ministry and State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) have taken a stay order from the Sindh High Court after objections were raised against the re-election of a private member.

Sources said that the provincial government is making amendment regarding handing over of the government bank to private sector which will soon be placed before the finance department. The officials said that after this amendment, more facilities will be created for the private shareholders of the bank and further opportunities for the private sector.

According to sources, Pakistan Muslim LeagueNawaz (PML-N) and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) have joined hands to expand the private director.

Amendments to the Act will pave the way for the private director to have control over all matters of the bank.

According to BoK Annual Report, the state bank of has raised observation on the independence status of nominee directors.

The bank maintains independence status of nominee directors on the basis of clearance received from the SBP under Fit and proper Test (FPT) criteria and also that these appointments are made under Section 11 of the Bank of Khyber Act 1991.

Three directors namely Maqsood Ismail, Asad Muhammad Iqbal and Javed Akhtar were elected in EOGM held on June 1, 2018 and the FPT documents were duly submitted to the SBP. Approval of the said directors was delayed since the directors being in their third term required exemption from Section 15 (B) (1) of the Banking Companies Ordinance, 1962 which was to be granted by the Finance Division.

Moreover, Ismail Industries Limited, a sponsor shareholder, filed a suit Sindh High Court (SHC) to challenge the refusal of the Finance Division to grant exemption under said section.

The high court has passed a stay order in the suit whereby operation of the SBP letter was suspended and the nominee directors were ordered to remain directors till expiry of their terms.

Efforts were made to contact the KP additional chief secretary along with the acting MD of the bank but they were not available for comments.

PM lauds FBR over ‘historic’ tax collection of over Rs4,000bn NEWS DESK Prime Minister Imran Khan on Saturday commended efforts of the Federal Bureau of Revenue (FBR) over crossing tax collection of Rs4, 000 billion in a fiscal year for the first time ever in Pakistan’s history.

Taking to Twitter to laud the FBR, the prime minister apprised that the tax collections have reached Rs4, 143 billion during a period of 11 months.

“During [July]-May our collections reached Rs4143 billion & still counting – 18% higher than the same period last year,” Imran Khan said in his message adding that it reflects broad-based economic revival spurred by government policies.

The prime minister in another tweet earlier said that Pakistan’s gross domestic product (GDP) growth for this fiscal year was estimated at 3.94 per cent.

The PM said, “National Accounts Committee has finalised GDP growth estimate and GDP growth is estimated at 3.94 per cent.” He maintained that it reflects the success of his government’s economic policies while managing Covid-

19 pandemic.

“Our V-shaped recovery is balanced between

three major sectors – agriculture, industry and services, the prime minister added.

G7 criticises nations who undermine global trade in rallying cry for reform LONDON AGENCIES

Trade ministers from the Group of Seven (G7) wealthy nations criticised countries who undermine the global trading system and called for democratic states to rally behind reforms of the international trade rulebook.

Following a virtual meeting, the G7 members said they were concerned about “increased use of non-market policies and practices” and took aim at those who use heavy subsidies, mask the state’s involvement in the economy, and steal technology.

“These distort competition and reduce fairness and trust in the system,” they said in a communique issued by Britain, which holds the rotating presidency of the G7 this year.

“Fundamentally, we note that they are a threat to the integrity and sustainability of the rules-based multilateral trading system.”

The communique did not refer to China directly, but members like Britain have accused Beijing of undermining the system by using all the policies mentioned.

China, a World Trade Organization member since 2001,

CMYK

has denied criticism that it steals intellectual property, unfairly hurts the environment or improperly trades goods made with forced labour.

In another indirect reference to China, the communique also called on countries which use World Trade Organization rules designed for developing economies to their advantage, and called for the rules to be changed to prevent that.

Britain and other WTO members have previously argued that China benefits from exceptions to the rules which were made decades ago and no longer reflect its status as an economic superpower.

“We call on advanced WTO Members claiming developing country status to undertake full commitments in ongoing and future WTO negotiations,” the communique said.

The group held “frank and constructive” discussions regarding reform of the WTO dispute resolution system – parts of which were paralysed in recent years by former U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration.

They said those discussion would continue at a further meeting in October, and more broadly expressed support for WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala’s efforts to reform the organisation.

Sunday, 30 May, 2021

10 FOREIGN NEWS

ISLAMABAD

Remains of 215 childRen found neaR indigenous school in canada

2

NEWS DESk

15 bodies of children have been found at a school in British Columbia, Canada, that closed down in 1978.

The children were students at the Kamloops Indian Residential School in British Columbia that closed in 1978.

In a tweet, Canadian PM Justin Trudeau said that “it is The children were students at the Kamloops Indian Residential School in British Columbia that closed in 1978”.T The cause of death and the timing are still unknow. Experts from the Frist Nation and museum specialists and the coroner’s office are working currently to figure these details out.

Canada’s residential schools were compulsory boarding schools run by the government and religious authorities during the 19th and 20th Centuries with the aim of forcibly

assimilating indigenous youth.

The school in question was the largest in the residential system.

Opened under Roman Catholic administration in 1890, the school had as many as 500 students when enrolment peaked in the 1950s.

The remains were found with the help of a ground-penetrating radar during a survey of the school.

“To our knowledge, these missing children are undocumented deaths,” Ms Casimir said. “Some were as young as three years old”, Rosanne Casimir, the chief of the community in British Columbia’s city of Kamloops said.

Canada’s minister of indigenous relations, Carolyn Bennett, said residential schools were part of a “shameful” colonial policy. The government was committed to “memorializing those lost innocent souls”, she said.

“That this situation exists is sadly not a surprise and illustrates

ex-premier’s graft case a test of justice in oil-rich Kuwait DUBAI Agencies

Where is Sheikh Jaber? Kuwait was abuzz with the question as citizens on social media demanded to know the whereabouts of their 79-year-old former prime minister. He’d been ordered detained pending trial in an unprecedented move last month over the alleged embezzlement of millions of dollars from a military aid fund. When the scandal involving the sheikh and another royal family member erupted into public view nearly two years ago, it unleashed a rare wave of street protests. It prompted the Cabinet’s resignation and forced a reckoning in the Gulf Arab state about endemic corruption that has entrapped ministers and stained the country’s sprawling bureaucracy for generations. Activists believe corruption runs rampant through the region of oil-rich Gulf Arab sheikhdoms, but public criminal cases against senior officials and royal family members remain rare, typically playing out behind palace doors. That may be changing, however, with recent explosive feuds over money laundering in Kuwait, a major corruption sweep in Saudi Arabia and last week’s arrest of Qatar’s powerful finance minister in an embezzlement probe. Now, Kuwait’s justice system is testing government pledges to hold ministers accountable for $790 million gone missing from the Defense Ministry fund years ago. The ministerial court ordered two former ministers and royal family members, Sheikh Jaber al-Mubarak Al Sabah and his ally, former Defense and Interior Minister Sheikh Khalid al-Jarrah Al Sabah, detained last month in Kuwait’s Central Prison over their suspected misuse of the ministry’s funds. The court also sent lower-ranking officials to jail pending trial and imposed a travel ban on Sheikh Jaber, according to a statement widely published in Kuwaiti media.

But Sheikh Jaber has not been spotted in public since the criminal prosecution began, and speculation has swirled about his fate. Many doubt the former prime minister is, in fact, languishing at the notorious prison on the dusty outskirts of Kuwait City riddled with reported coronavirus outbreaks. That doubt reveals the deep-rooted distrust among Kuwaitis that authorities are pursuing the case in earnest. Social media has been ablaze in rumors in recent weeks even after the court accepted the defense team’s request to ban news and social media from publishing details about the trial sessions. Kuwaiti newspapers — still reporting despite the court order — said the defense team maintained the former prime minister’s innocence during the most recent hearings. Sheikh Jaber’s legal team did not respond to repeated requests for comment amid the gag rule. Kuwait’s Information Ministry declined to comment on the case, citing the court’s secret investigation. Soon, WhatsApp groups crackled with leaks that while other officials remained in detention, Sheikh Jaber’s version of state custody was a special hospital wing decorated like a palace with hotel service. A doctor at Kuwait’s state-run al-Amiri Hospital confirmed to The Associated Press that Sheikh Jaber, who skipped the last court session due to reported health problems, was receiving treatment there. The doctor declined to give details and spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals, like most people interviewed. “It wouldn’t be the first time,” a Kuwaiti anti-corruption activist said. “We are waiting and watching to see if this case ends up like the rest.” The case of the missing military money is one of several scandals that have surfaced in Kuwait in recent years, damaging public confidence in its political establishment.

the damaging and lasting impacts that the residential school system continues to have on First Nations people, their families and communities,” its CEO Richard Jock wrote in a statement.

History of residential schools Around 150,000 indigenous children were taken from their families and put in these schools from 1863 to 1998.

The Canadian government formally apologized for this system in 2008.

To date, more than 4,100 children who died while attending a residential school have been identified under the Missing Children Project that documents the deaths and the burial places of children who died while attending the schools.

The Truth and Reconciliation Report (TRC), released in 2015 as part of the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement termed the practice “Cultural Genocide”.

Biden’s defence budget aims to curb China, gives troops 2.7pc raise WASHINGTON Agencies

US President Joe Biden’s $715 billion Department of Defense budget includes a 2.7 percent pay raise for troops and shifts billions in spending from old systems to help pay to modernise the nuclear arsenal to deter China. The defense spending request for fiscal 2022, which was sent to Congress on Friday, invests in troop readiness, space, the Pacific Deterrence Initiative aimed at countering China’s military build-up in Asia and nuclear weapons technology.

The budget request would buy warships and jets, and pay for maintenance and salaries. An additional $38 billion is earmarked for defense-related programs at the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Department of Energy and other agencies, bringing the national security budget to $753 billion, a 1.7 percent increase over the 2021 figure. There is also money to further develop and test hypersonic weapons and other “next generation” systems as the military aims to build capabilities to counter Russia and China.

Presidential budget requests, including those for the military, are commonly a starting point for negotiations with Congress, which ultimately decides how funds are spent. The proposed pay raise for military and civilian Defense Department workers follows a 3 percent raise for the 2021 fiscal year, which ends September 30.

More than $5 billion will be spent on the Pacific Deterrence Initiative, created to counter China and focusing on competition in the Indo-Pacific with an aim to boost US preparedness in the region through funding radars, satellites and missile systems.

Specifically, the Pentagon plans to increase investment in missiles like the Raytheon Technologies-made Tomahawk and Standard Missile 6 to keep China at bay.

Tensions with an increasingly assertive China are on the minds of US military planners. Beijing accused the United States last week of threatening the peace and stability of the Taiwan Strait after a US warship again sailed through the sensitive waterway.

To pay for this shift and things like a $112 billion

research budget, the Pentagon is seeking to divest some of its older equipment with higher maintenance costs.

Divestment from the Army, Navy and Air Force will total $2.8 billion in fiscal 2022.

The retirements include four Littoral Combat Ships, 42 A-10 aircraft, which provide close air support to ground troops, as well as 14 KC-10 and 18 KC-135 planes in the mid-air refueling fleets.

Fewer M1 Abrams tanks made by General Dynamics will be purchased, dropping to 70 from 102 in fiscal 2021. Among the Pentagon’s competing priorities, the Biden administration requested 85 stealthy F-35 fighter jets made by Lockheed Martin. The 2021 and 2020 presidential budgets requested 79 and 78 of the jets respectively, but ultimately Congress authorized additional fighters. Senators and governors have come out to support the jet, which has a huge industrial base.

The request increases funding for the US Space Force by $2 billion to $17.4 billion, but the US Navy’s shipbuilding request was eight new warships versus a plan for 12 under former president Donald Trump.

Despite shaving numbers from older systems, the Biden administration will invest $27.7 billion in modernizing the US nuclear triad of land-launched nuclear missiles, nuclear missile-armed submarines and aircraft with nuclear bombs and missiles. The budget includes $617 million to prepare for, adapt to and mitigate climate change.

Blinken says US, India united in tackling Covid-19 NEW DELHI Agencies

Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Friday (early Saturday in Pakistan) the United States and India are united in trying to tackle the Covid-19 pandemic together and Washington is determined to help India with its coronavirus crisis.

Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, who has spent the past week in the United States seeking help amid a devastating second wave of infections at home, told reporters while standing with Blinken at a State Department meeting that India is grateful to Washington for strong support and solidarity.

“In the earlier days of Covid, India was there for the United States – something we will never forget,” Blinken said. “And now we want to make sure that we’re there for India as well.”

Blinken said the partnership between the two countries is “vital,” “strong” and “increasingly productive.”

“We’re united in confronting Covid-19 together,” Blinken said.

He said the two countries were also united in addressing climate change, and were partnered together directly through the Quad — a four-country group that also includes Japan and Australia — and through UN institutions “in dealing with many of the challenges we face in the region and around the world.”

India, the world’s second mostpopulous country, this month has recorded its highest Covid-19 death toll since the pandemic began last year.

Only about 3 percent of India’s 1.3 billion people have been fully vaccinated, the lowest rate among the 10 countries with the most cases.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government has faced mounting criticism for its failure to secure Covid-19 vaccines for its people, even though India is one of the world’s biggest producers of vaccines. Indian officials have said Jaishankar has been seeking supplies while in the United States.

Jaishankar said India was appreciative to Washington for its “strong support and solidarity at a moment of great difficulty for us.”

US Acting Assistant Secretary for South Asia Dean Thompson later told a briefing hosted by the State Department’s Foreign Press Center that vaccine manufacturing, procurement and delivery were discussed with Jaishankar, but declined to give details.

He said final decisions were still pending as to where up to 80 million vaccine doses President Joe Biden has promised to send abroad would go.

Thomson said the US Government,

state governments, US companies, and private citizens had provided over $500 million in Covid-19 relief supplies to India.

He said the assistance had included redirecting a US order of critical vaccine manufacturing supplies that would allow India to make over 20 million additional doses of the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine.

India pledged last month to fasttrack vaccine imports. Its insistence on local trials and a dispute over indemnity stalled discussions with US firm Pfizer. India scrapped local trials for “well-established” foreign vaccines on Thursday and a government official said Pfizer shots could arrive by July.

Jaishankar met with UN SecretaryGeneral Antonio Guterres in New York on Tuesday. Guterres’ spokesman said they had a “very good discussion” on “Covid‑19, the issue of vaccines and also a number of other peace and security issues in general.”

US-India ties have grown closer in recent years amid shared concerns about China’s rise and they have increased cooperation through the Quad.

US President Joe Biden’s Indo-Pacific policy coordinator, Kurt Campbell, said on Wednesday that the United States is looking to convene an in-person summit of leaders of the Quad in the fall, with a focus on infrastructure.

The Quad held a first virtual summit in March and pledged to work closely on Covid-19 vaccines, climate and security.

Sunday, 30 May, 2021

ISLAMABAD

SuSpended IpL to Be fInIShed In uAe New DeLhI

t

Agencies

He Indian Premier League, suspended as a new coronavirus wave hit India, will be finished in the United Arab emirates in September and October, India’s national cricket board said Saturday.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India also said it would ask the global governing body for more time to make a decision on whether the T20 World Cup should be held in India in October and November.

The IPL, the world’s richest cricket tournament, was half finished when it was halted on May 4 after a number of players and team officials caught coronavirus despite being in bio-secure bubbles.

The board has since been in tough negotiations with other countries and the International Cricket Council on when to squeeze the remaining matches into the crowded international calendar.

About 160,000 people have died since April 1 in a devastating wave that has seen hospitals overwhelmed.

There are also fears that India could be hit by yet another surge in cases later this year.

The BCCI said that it was moving the remaining matches to the UAe — which staged all of last year’s IPL — because of the monsoon season and did not mention the pandemic.

The board said a special general meeting

Agencies

The Pakistan Cricket Board has apparently compromised on its Covid-19 protocols and allowed fast bowler Naseem Shah to re-enter the bio-secure bubble before returning to play in the Pakistan Super League.

The 18-year-old Shah was expelled last Monday from the remainder of the league after arriving at a team hotel in Lahore with an outdated negative test for Covid-19. The last 20 games of the postponed tournament are being played in the United Arab emirates.

The PCB’s protocols required all players travelling to Abu Dhabi to present a negative test taken not more than 48 hours prior to arrival at the team hotel. Shah presented a report on Monday from a test that was conducted on May 18.

Spieth leads as Mickelson misses cut at Charles Schwab Challenge News Desk

had “unanimously agreed” for the remaining matches to be held in the UAe “considering the monsoon season in India in the months of September-October this year.”

The monsoon season is generally con-

sidered to run from June to mid-September.

The World Cup is also due to be held in India from October but it is also at risk from the pandemic. The tournament is due to be discussed by the ICC next Tuesday.

The BCCI said that the general meeting “authorised the office bearers to seek an extension of time from the ICC to take an appropriate call on the hosting of ICC T20 World Cup 2021.”

Naseem Shah set to join bio-secure bubble for PSL IsLAMABAD

SPORTS 11

But after meeting with franchise owners, the PCB allowed Shah to return to the team hotel after returning another negative test Covid-19. Shah will then have to clear two more Covid-19 tests before boarding the last charter flight to Abu Dhabi for the tournament.

Shah is supposed to be the key player for Quetta Gladiators in the PSL. He rose to fame with his pace when he made his test debut against Australia in November 2019 and then grabbed a hat trick in a test match against Bangladesh at Rawalpindi last year. He has played in nine test matches and grabbed 20 wickets.

The PCB has not yet announced the schedule of the remaining 20 PSL games in Abu Dhabi. The league was postponed in March when several players and support staff among the six franchises tested positive for Covid-19.

Jordan Spieth takes a one-shot lead into the weekend at a weather-affected Charles Schwab Challenge, as Phil Mickelson suffered an early exit in Texas. He followed an opening-round 63 with a four-under 66 on Friday at Colonial Country Club to continue his bogey-free start to the week and reach 11 under. Spieth converted from 12 feet at the sixth and posted a 20-foot birdie at the 14th to move into the solo lead, with the former world No 1 then holing a 15footer from the fringe to save par at the last and maintain his blemish-free scorecard. “I came out of the rain delay and I made a nice putt on 3, and really felt like I had a chance to birdie almost every hole on that front nine and even into the back nine,” Spieth said. “I didn’t swing it as well. I wasn’t really completing it and it wasn’t feeling great. I knew I was going to kind of have to manage my way around the golf course a little bit, and fortunately did a really great job of that.” World No 2 Justin Thomas battled back from his opening-round 72 to card a bogey-free 66 and making it through to the weekend, while Mickelson – making his first start since become the oldest major champion in history – bogeyed two of his last three holes to miss the cut by a shot.

MLS hits Beckhamowned Inter Miami with $2 million fine MIAMI Agencies

Inter Miami, the club co-owned by David Beckham, have been fined a record $2 million by Major League Soccer over salary budget breaches following an investigation into last year’s signing of former France international midfielder Blaise Matuidi.

The 2018 World Cup winner, who joined Inter Miami following a three-season spell in Italy with Juventus, and Andres Reyes should have occupied designated player slots, the MLS said in announcing their verdict on Friday. Inter Miami were also punished for having undisclosed agreements that resulted in the underreporting of salaries to Leandro Gonzalez Pirez, Nicolas Figal and Julian Carranza. Managing owner Jorge Mas was fined $250,000 while Paul McDonough, the club’s chief operating officer and sporting director at the time, has been suspended until the end of the 2022 MLS season. In addition, Inter Miami’s allocation of dollars has been reduced by $2,271,250 for the 2022 and 2023 seasons while the league found that none of the club’s owners or players were guilty of wrongdoing. The MLS pointed out that the players’ contracts remain in force and would not be affected.

Bednarek wins 200m, Kenyans shine at Doha Diamond League DohA Agencies

American Kenneth Bednarek edged Canadian André De Grasse in a scintillating 200 metres race at the Doha Diamond League meeting on Friday as Kenyans dominated the middle-distance competitions.

Bednarek won in 19.88, one hundredth of a second ahead of De Grasse whose compatriot Aaron Brown was third (20.25) on a hot and humid night in the Qatari capital.

Bednarek was delighted with the win even though he said he was "a bit nervous.

But I am excited that I got in the first place.

I'll try to be even better again the next time."

Justin Gatlin, the 39-year old 2004 100m Olympic gold medallist, finished fifth in a season's best 20.49.

Jamaica's Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, the double Olympic champion, won the 100m, putting behind her a disappointing fourthplace finish in Gateshead last Sunday.

Fraser-Pryce, 34, ran 10.84 seconds ahead of Nigeria's Blessing Okagbare (10.90) with America's Javianne Oliver finishing third (11.03).

Fraser-Pryce is hoping to become the first female athlete to win three Olympic 100m titles after taking gold in 2008 and

CMYK

2012 in Beijing and London respectively after a silver at Rio 2016.

"I am happy that I won, because its far away from the fourth place that I did the last time," she said.

"It's going to be the final Olympic appearance (for me) so I hope it will be good.

The last three Olympics I went to I was able to stand on the podium and I'm hoping to be able to make it there again God willing."

KENYANS DOMINATE: Kenyans dominated the middle-distance races on a night when athletes competed without a crowd due to Covid-19 restrictions, although music from the loudspeakers provided some atmosphere. Men's 1,500m world and three-time Diamond League champion Timothy Cheruiyot ran a patient race to win in a world leading time of 3:30.48 to kickstart his season.

In the women's 800m, Kenya's Faith Kipyegon nudged through on the inside to secure an impressive win in a time of 1:58.26 for the 1,500m Olympic champion and world silver medallist.

"I did my personal best here in Doha, so it's really, really great to be here," Kipyegon said. "I am training so hard and hoping to do my best, so I am putting all my mind on it. The pandemic wasn't easy but we al-

ways try to be great."

Another Kenyan, 21-year-old Beatrice Chebet, won the 3,000m with a world leading time of 8:27.49 sprinting ahead of Hellen Obiri, the twice world 5,000m champion, who faded towards the end of the race and finished a disappointing fourth.

"It's my first time winning in the Diamond League and here in Doha," Chebet said. "I didn't expect to win. I did well today and now I am preparing for the Olympics."

Chebet said she hoped to run the 5,000m in Tokyo. In the men's 400m, Michael Norman ran a world leading 44.27 to continue his winning 2021, while in the women's pole vault American Katie Nageotte won on the countback by clearing 4.84m.

She defeated compatriot and Olympic silver medallist Sandi Morris, who finished second and Greek Olympic champion Katerina Stefanidi (4.74) who was fourth.

Another standout performance came from Venezuela's Olympic triple jump silver medallist Yulimar Rojas who won with 15.15m.

"I am happy to leave a footprint here in Doha," she said. "I enjoy this path, when it will be Tokyo's turn I'll be prepared and I'll try to win the gold medal."

Sunday, 30 May, 2021

PrAyer Timings

NEWS

FAJR SUNRISE

ZUHR

ASR MAGHRIB ISHA

3:54

12:00

4:44

5:21

6:39

8:07

PM exPresses confidence in Pakistan’s nuclear caPabilities ISLAMABAD

P

sTAff rePorT

RIME Minister Imran Khan has expressed full confidence in Pakistan’s nuclear capability and protection to strengthen the national defence.

During his visit to a National Command Authority (NCA) nuclear facility of the Strategic Forces Command, the prime minister expressed full confidence in the country’s nuclear capability and protection to strengthen the national defence.

During the visit, the prime minister was apprised of various facets of Pakistan’s Strategic Programme, according to an official statement.

The prime minister appreciated and acknowledged the untiring efforts of all the scientists and personnel associated with Pakistan’s Strategic Programme and expressed full confidence in Pakistan’s nuclear capability and protection to strengthen the national defence.

The prime minister was received by Chairman JCSC General Nadeem Raza, and Director General Strategic Plans Division Lieutenant General Nadeem Zaki Manj upon his arrival at the facility.

The visit came a day after the nation celebrated Youme-Takbeer to commemorate historic nuclear tests the country conducted on May 28 in 1998. On the occasion of the 23rd nuclear tests ceremony, the nation reaffirmed its resolve to safeguard Pakistan’s sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence against any form of aggression.

Pakistan is committed to continue working towards the promotion of an environment of peace and stability at the re-

gional and global levels, according to the official statement.

Pakistan has been actively contributing to international efforts for strengthening global norms on arms con-

trol, non-proliferation and disarmament and follows latest international standards on export controls, nuclear safety and security at the national level.

saudi arabia lifts ban from travellers arriving from 11 countries, excluding Pakistan RIYADH Agencies

Akram lauds dedication, service of UN peacekeepers NEW YORK APP

Pakistan ambassador to the United Nations Munir Akram paid tribute to all the peacekeepers, uniformed and civilians, who lost their lives while rendering services for various missions of the world body.

In a statement marking International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers on Saturday, Akram pointed out that among those who made the ultimate sacrifice under the UN flag were 160 Pakistan nationals, including three who died only last year.

“They are indeed a symbol of Pakistan’s unwavering commitment to international peace and stability,” he said.

“Through their ultimate sacrifice, they demonstrated our country’s innate spirit of honour and courage. These brave souls will always remain in our thoughts and prayers,” the ambassador said.

“Today,” he said, “over 4400 Pakistani peacekeepers, including young men and

women, are deployed in 9 UN Missions around the world.”

“Despite facing unprecedented threats and challenges, they continue to serve with

distinction. They support the United Nations in protecting civilians, including women and youth, engaging with communities and building infrastructure to lay the

foundations for sustainable peace and development.”

“We acknowledge and salute their bravery and dedication,” he added.

Pakistan is the sixth largest contributor of uniformed personnel to UN peacekeeping, deploying more than 4,400 military and police personnel to the peace operations in Abyei, the Central African Republic, Cyprus, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Mali, Somalia, Sudan, South Sudan, and the Western Sahara.

The International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers was established by the General Assembly in 2002 to pay tribute to all men and women serving in peacekeeping, and to honour the memory of those who have lost their lives in the cause of peace.

The UNGA designated 29 May as the International Day of UN Peacekeepers in commemoration of the day in 1948 when the first peacekeeping mission, the UN Truce Supervision Organisation, began operations in Palestine.

Pakistan condemns Houthi attacks on Saudi airbase ISLAMABAD TLTP

Pakistan has strongly condemned the attacks launched towards King Khalid Airbase in Saudi Arabia by Houthi militia.

In a statement on Saturday, Foreign Office Spokesperson Zahid Hafeez Chaudhri said that it is commendable that coalition forces intercepted and destroyed all of them.

He said such attacks seeking to cause fear and terror in the region are reprehensible.

The spokesperson said Pakistan reaffirms its full support and solidarity with the brotherly Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

against any threat to its security and territorial integrity.

He said that Pakistan is committed to ensuring that peacekeeping remains an effective mechanism for maintaining peace, security and stability in the world.

In connection with the International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers, which was observed on Saturday, he said as one of the top troop-contributing countries, Pakistan deeply values the vital role played by blue helmets in maintaining security and stability in many conflict-ridden areas around the world.

He said, “We salute the services and sacrifices rendered by UN peacekeepers and reiterate our commitment to continue working with the United Nations for advanc-

ing the shared ideals of peace, stability and cooperation.”

Chaudri said that Pakistan is proud of its long-standing and consistent contributions to UN peacekeeping spanning over six decades. Since 1960, over 200,000 of our servicemen have served with honour and valour in 46 UN missions in 26 countries in almost all continents of the world.

The spokesperson said through their professionalism and dedication, our peacekeepers have always distinguished themselves in every mission where they have participated.

“One hundred and fifty-seven of our bravest peacekeepers have made the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty for the cause of international peace and security,” he said.

Vietnam detects hybrid of Indian and UK Covid-19 variants HANOI Agencies

Vietnam Health Minister Nguyen Thanh Long said on Saturday the country has detected a new variant of the coronavirus, a mix of the Indian and UK Covid-19 variants that spreads quickly by air, online newspaper VnExpress reported.

After successfully containing the coronavirus for most of last year, Vietnam is now battling an outbreak that is spreading more quickly.

Nearly 3,600 people have been infected in 31 of its 63 cities and provinces since late April, accounting for more than half of the country’s total infections.

“After running gene sequencing on newly detected patients, we have discovered a new variant that is a mix of India and UK ones,” Long was quoted as saying.

“More specifically, it is an Indian variant with mutations that originally belong to the UK variant,” he said. VnExpress quoted Long as saying Vietnam would announce the newly discovered variant to the world soon.

Vietnam had previously reported seven virus variants: B.1.222, B.1.619, D614G, B.1.1.7 (the UK variant), B.1.351, A.23.1 and B.1.617.2 (the Indian variant).

Laboratory cultures of the new variant, which is much more transmissible than the previously known types, revealed that the virus replicated itself very quickly, explaining why so many new cases appeared in different locations in a short period, Long was quoted as saying.

The Southeast Asian country has registered 6,396 coronavirus cases so far, with 47 deaths.

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

Saudi Arabia is lifting a ban on travellers arriving from 11 countries that it had imposed to curb the spread of the coronavirus, the Saudi state news agency said on Saturday.

However, Pakistan is not among those countries.

Despite the ban being lifted, Saudi Arabia will still require quarantine procedures.

Travellers from the United Arab Emirates, Germany, the United States, Ireland, Italy, Portugal, the United Kingdom, Sweden, Switzerland, France and Japan, will be allowed entry from Sunday, state-run agency SPA reported, quoting an Interior Ministry source.

It added that the source said the decision was based on the “Public Health Authority’s report regarding the epidemiological situation in a number of declared countries, which showed stability and effectiveness in controlling the pandemic in some of these countries.”

Saudi Arabia had previously suspended entry to the kingdom from 20 countries on February 3, including Pakistan, with the exception of diplomats, Saudi citizens, medical practitioners and their families, to help curb the spread of the coronavirus.

The ban had been placed on Egypt, UAE, Lebanon, Turkey, UK, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Portugal, Sweden, Switzerland, US, Argentina, Brazil, Pakistan, India, Indonesia, Japan, Pakistan and South Africa.

The Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia had also written a letter to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on the issue.

“This includes those coming from other countries, if they passed through any of the above-mentioned states within 14 days before requesting entry to the kingdom. However, the kingdom would like to ensure uninterrupted supply chains and shipping movement between the kingdom and these countries in accordance with the precautionary measures determined by the Saudi Ministry of Health,” the letter had said.