EpaperLHR_21-06-25

Friday, 25 June, 2021 I 14 Dhul-Qadah, 1442 I Rs 15.00 I Vol XI No 355 I 12 Pages I Lahore Edition

IHC dIsmIsses Nawaz’s appeals agaINst aveNfIeld, al-azIzIa verdICts g

Court says Nawaz has ‘lost his right of audieNCe’ due to his ‘fugitive’ status

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he islamabad high Court on thursday dismissed Pakistan Muslim leagueNawaz supreme leader and former prime minister Nawaz sharif’s appeals against the accountability court’s verdicts in avenfield and al-azizia references. the three-time prime minister was sentenced to 10 years in prison in 2018 for owning assets beyond known income and one year for not cooperating with the National accountability Bureau in the avenfield reference while his daughter, Maryam Nawaz, was handed seven years imprisonment for abetment. in the same year, he was sentenced to seven years imprisonment in the al-azizia steel Mills corruption reference with two fines — rs1.5 billion and $25 million. the former prime minister flew to london in November 2019 after the incumbent Pakistan tehreek-e-insaf government removed his name from the exit Control list. he has remained in london since. the decision was reserved by an ihC division bench comprising Justice aamer farooq and Justice Mohsin akhtar Kayani a day earlier after the court heard the NaB’s additional Prosecutor general Jahanzeb Khan Bharwana and amici azam Nazir tarrar and Makhdoom hussain.

on thursday, Justice aamer farooq and Justice Mohsin akhtar Kayani announced the verdict. according to dawn, during wednesday’s hearing, Bharwana had cited the supreme Court’s 1985 judgement on hayat Khan in which the bench observed that an absconder loses rights guaranteed in the Constitution including the right of audience. in its nine-page judgement released on thursday, the ihC stated that since Nawaz was a “fugitive from law hence has lost his right of audience before this court and we are left with no choice except to dismiss his appeal”. “there is nothing in the Constitution or the rules to compel the court to decide on merits an appeal filed by an accused person who has chosen to be fugitive from justice and while remaining so decides to disobey or frustrate the orders, directions and process of the court from which he seeks justice,” it added. the judgement noted that Nawaz had been provided with a “fair trial” and he was convicted only after the trial court had provided him with the opportunity to plead his case and cross-examine the prosecution witnesses. “[Nawaz] proceeded abroad and did not appear before this court despite [being] on bail and without any justification or basis, re-

CoroNavIrus IN

pakIstaN

CONFIRMED CASES:

951,865

LAST UPDATED AT 7:25 AM ON JUNE 24, 2021

DAY'S DEATH TOLL:

NEW CASES:

38

1,097

RECOVERED:

DEATHS:

896,821 22,108 SINDH:

PUNJAB:

333,194

345,449

KP:

BALOCHISTAN:

137,370 AJK/GB: 20,020/5,869

26,845 ISLAMABAD:

82,470

mained absent on a number of dates of hearing, hence this court was left with no option but to follow the procedure … and declared him as fugitive from law,” the judgement further said. on wednesday, the hearing on sharif, his daughter and PMl-N vice President Maryam and her husband Capt (r) safdar awan’s pleas was conducted by the ihC, the express tribune reported. during the proceedings, senator Barrister azam Nazir tarar, who was assisting the court, argued that the right to a hearing was protected under the Constitution. “as per my experience, pleas of people, who were not present for their hearing, were rejected without arguing the case’s merits,” he added. tarar further contended that a window was left open for the accused so that in case they surrendered before the court, their plea could be taken up again. to this, Justice Kayani responded that an accused’s rights were not affected even if their plea was rejected.

“Pleas rejected on the basis of merit can still be moved in the apex court,” the judge maintained. ustice farooq reminded tarar that he was not representing sharif but assisting the court so he should “strike a balance”. tarar replied that he was assisting the court with arguments. the bench told tarar that it did not matter who the appellant was as it had to follow the law. the NaB, on the other hand, called for rejecting sharif’s plea against the avenfield and al-azizia references. however, NaB prosecutor Jahanzeb Bharwana argued that hearing of Maryam and safdar’s pleas was up to the court. the ihC, after hearing the arguments reserved its ruling on whether or not it should hear the former premier’s plea in his absence. on June 9, the ihC had given more time to tarar to assist it in how to proceed further with sharif’s appeal against the avenfield case judgment as he was abroad. News Desk

CONTINUED ON PAGE 05

As Delhi talks to Delhi on Kashmir, no mention of revoking illegal annexation ISLAMABAD MiaN abrar

finally, indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi thursday broke his silence over the rumours of restoration of statehood of indian occupied Kashmir, hinting at a phased restoration of statehood for Jammu and Kashmir – a measure largely being seen as an artificial move to coverup the illegal annexation of Jammu and Kashmir at the barrel of gun.

Modi posted a series of tweets after a meeting with some pro-india Kashmiri politicians, largely seen as ‘puppets of delhi’ in Jammu and Kashmir. Narendra Modi, in his tweets, called the meeting held at his residence in New delhi with politicians an important step in the ongoing efforts towards a developed and progressive J&K, where all-round growth is furthered. however, Pakistan promptly reacted to the move as chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Kashmir, shehryar afridi, said that such exercises of indian government of engaging “their own puppets” cannot be a substitute to the aspirations of the Kashmiri people demanding

Multan Sultans thrash Peshawar Zalmi to win maiden HBL PSL title Multan sultans triumphed over Peshawar zalmi in the final to win their maiden Pakistan super league in a see-saw kind of game at the sheikh zayed Cricket stadium in abu dhabi. according to geo News, at the start of the innings, zalmi made a blistering start courtesy Kamran akmal's 36. the zalmi needed a herculean effort by one of their batsmen to chase the recordbreaking target in the Psl final and akmal gave hope to his team till the fifth over. zalmi were 36 for the loss of no wickets at that point and all those runs were scored by the veteran wicketkeeper. hazraullah zazai, the other opener, was looking to join the party when he hit Blessing Muzarabani for a six from the first ball of the sixth over. however, the very next ball zazai was removed by the zimbabwean to give Multan their first wicket. imran Khan then bowled a wicket-taking maiden sixth over to put zalmi further under pressure. the bowler in the over removed the dangerous akmal from the very first delivery. then rilee rossouw, who had started with the bat for Mul-

right to self-determination. according to indian media, the puppet Kashmiri leaders gave tough time to Modi during the meeting and some made bold statements and criticised Modi’s move to strip Jammu and Kashmir of its provincial status. in a series of tweets after the meeting, the indian prime minister said that thursday’s meeting with political leaders from Jammu and Kashmir was an important step in the ongoing efforts towards a developed and progressive J&K, where all-round growth is furthered. “our priority is to strengthen grassroots democracy in J&K. delimitation has to happen at a quick pace so that polls can happen and J&K gets an elected government that gives strength to J&K’s development trajectory,” he said.

Modi said india’s democracy’s biggest strength is the ability to sit across a table and exchange views. “i told the leaders of J&K that it is the people, especially the youth who have to provide political leadership to J&K, and ensure their aspirations are duly fulfilled.”

CONTINUED ON PAGE 05

more inside

IMF says Pakistan talks ongoing, more work needed on structural reforms STORY ON BACK PAGE

tan, removed Jonathan wells with a run out during the 10th over to tilt the final in Multan's favour. in the 11th over, imran Khan removed shoaib Malik but the decision was overturned after replays showed that the pacer had overstepped. the mistake proved to be too costly for the Multan as Malik then made the sultans pay for their mistake. west indian rovman Powell was giving good company to Malik but he was removed by Muzarabani during the 15th over. while Multan knew that Malik was key for them if they wanted to lay their hands on their first Psl trophy.

and it was the experienced sohail tanvir who removed the veteran all-rounder from the first ball of the 16th over. But Malik had taken his side far enough to make zalmi dream at the point. they needed 70 runs from the last 29 balls at that point. after Malik's dismissal, sherfane rutherford decided to charge the Multan bowlers. once again, it was the experience that counted in the situation. imran tahir, during the 17th over, removed the dangerous rutherford, wahab riaz and Mohammad imran to end the little hope that zalmi had of clinching their second Psl title. News Desk

CONTINUED ON PAGE 05

Police arrest key suspect in lahore blast: official STORY ON PAGE 02

PM for just distribution of provincial funds by Sindh govt STORY ON PAGE 03

28 civilians killed in afghan province as fighting intensifies STORY ON BACK PAGE

02

Friday, 25 June, 2021

LAHORE

NEWS

PoLice ArresT key susPecT iN LAHore bLAsT: officiAL ISLAMABAD

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Staff rePort

AHORE police hunting the perpetrators behind Wednesday’s blast in a residential neighbourhood arrested one of the suspects, Counter-Terrorism Department confirmed Thursday.

A powerful explosion went off near the residence of Hafiz Saeed, the jailed chief of proscribed Jamatud Dawa organisation, killing at least three people and wounding 25 others.

The development was confirmed hours after Minister for Interior Sheikh Rasheed Ahmed announced that security forces were on the verge of making an arrest.

The man was arrested from Allama Iqbal Airport in Lahore as he was trying to leave the country, said Suhail Ahmad, a security official who is familiar with the investigations. He identified the man as David Peter.

Ahmad refused to share any further details. He said the government will issue a statement about a breakthrough that was achieved by the CTD with the help of the

Two killed, 11 injured as vehicle falls in gorge in Abbottabad

intelligence agencies.

In his video statement, Rasheed said that officials had achieved “great success” during the initial investigation. “Punjab police will soon arrest the suspects and give good news to the people,” he assured.

In a video shared alongside the tweet, the interior minister said: “During the tenure of Prime Minister Imran Khan, the country has achieved political and economic stability,” adding that Islamabad’s enemies could not “tolerate” this.

The enemy had resorted to terrorist routes, he said but assured that they would

be defeated. “We have completed 86 percent of fencing work on the Afghanistan border and 46 percent of the work on the border with Iran,” he said.

The fencing of the Afghanistan border would be completed in a month and a half, Rasheed further said. While the fencing of the Iran border will be completed this year, he added.

IG CONFIRMS BLAST HAPPENED NEAR SAEED’S RESIDENCE: Punjab police chief Inam Ghani told had reporters that authorities were still trying to determine whether it was a suicide bombing or the

bomb was remotely detonated. “It was a car bomb, but we are still trying to confirm whether it was a suicide bombing,” he said.

He also confirmed that the bombing happened near Saeed’s residence. Saeed has been designated a terrorist by the US Justice Department and has a $10 million bounty on his head. Television footage showed badly damaged homes, and many residents spoke of a bomb attack. Doctors say some of the wounded were in critical condition.

Ghani said police were guarding Saeed’s house at the time of the attack. He said the attackers might have succeeded in targeting Saeed’s home had police not set up a security post in the street where the bombing happened.

In November, an anti-terrorism court in Lahore sentenced Saeed to 15 years in jail on two charges of terrorism financing.

Saeed has been arrested and released several times over the past decade. He denies any involvement with militancy, including the 2008 Mumbai siege in which 160 people were killed, including Americans.

Qureshi highlights importance of multilateral cooperation to combat Covid-19

ABBOTTABAD inP

At least two people including driver and a student were killed and 11 others injured when a vehicle fell into a gorge here on Thursday. DSP Galiyat Jamilur Rehman said that an Abbottabad bound hiace coming from Sialkot skidded off road due to over speeding and plunged into a gorge in Beeran Gali area, in suburbs of Abbottabad. Two people, a driver and student, were killed in the accident while eight students among 11 others were injured.

The local people on self-help basis pulled up the bodies, injured from the gorge and shifted them to Benazir Bhutto Teaching Hospital.

Local PML-N leader killed in Haripur attack HARIPUR inP

A local leader of Pakistan Muslim LeagueNawaz was killed on Thursday in a gun attack in the Haripur district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

The police have registered the case and launched an investigation into the killing of Zia Abbasi. Earlier this week, a local leader of the Awami National Party was killed and three others, including his son, sustained injuries when unidentified motorcyclists opened fire at their vehicle at Haji Lawang area in Khar tehsil.

Reports said that Malik Abdul Ghani Khan and his son Shah Khalid Khan were on their way back home in Matashah in Salarzai tehsil after attending a meeting of the party.

ASAD SAYS DECISIONS ABOUT VACCINE ACCEPTABILITY MUST BE TAKEN BY GLOBAL INSTITUTIONS NEwS DESk Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi participated in the Asia and Pacific High-Level Video Conference on Belt and Road Cooperation, hosted by China on Thursday. Wang Yi, state councilor and foreign minister of China, chaired the conference in which foreign ministers of a large number of BRI partner countries participated.

Speaking at the conference, Foreign Minister Qureshi highlighted the importance of multilateral cooperation in combating Covid-19. He said that fruitful cooperation in combating Covid-19 for timely economic rebound would require sharing experiences and best practices; enhancing the availability, accessibility and affordability of vaccines through joint research and production; and calling for preferential financing from multilateral development institutions for developing countries.

The foreign minister further said that “the challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic are a great opportunity not only to rebuild better, but also greener”.

He stressed that “we must seize this opportunity to transform our economies into ones that are

development-oriented and environmentally sustainable.

The developed countries must fulfill their commitments under the Paris Agreement to support developing countries in their climate action and to mobilise 100 billion US Dollars annually in climate finance as they have promised”.

The foreign minister underlined that Pakistan followed a ‘smart lockdowns’ policy and adopted the three–pronged strategy focused on ‘Saving Lives, Securing Livelihoods, and Stimulating the Economy’ to successfully fight the pandemic. To target the vulnerable segments of the population, the government disbursed Rs203 billion to 15 million families through its ‘Ehsas Emergency Cash Programme’. He also underlined that Pakistan has launched a vaccination drive that will cover 70 million people by December 2021. Pakistan has also launched the ‘Green Economic Stimulus Initiative’.

This stimulus has already generated 85,000 green jobs and it is planned to increase by another 100,000 by the end of this year. This reflects our commitment to counter environmental degradation and reversing biodiversity loss.

The foreign minister emphasized Pakistan’s shift of

focus from geo-politics to geo-economics. He added that China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, the flagship project of the Belt and Road Initiative, complements Pakistan’s efforts of geo-economic shift with emphasis on economic integration and regional connectivity.

Moreover, in line with Prime Minister Imran Khan’s ‘Green Vision’, which aligns perfectly with President Xi Jinping’s vision for Green China, turning CPEC into Green CPEC, is a priority for Pakistan.

The thematic focus of the conference was on underscoring the imperative of global cooperation in combating the pandemic to support economic resilience; and promoting a Green Silk Road for sustainable development. The conference was attended by ministers of 30 countries and representatives of six international organisations. Meanwhile, Minister for Planning Asad Umar said that decisions about vaccine acceptability must be taken by global institutions. “vaccine acceptability decisions have to be taken by a global institution like WHO. Each country deciding which vaccine is acceptable for travel to that country is creating chaos. The health & well being of world citizens cannot become hostage to global geo strategic rivalries,” he tweeted.

Metrobus service suspended after bus catches fire

Khawaja Asif dejected for being ignored by Sharifs ISLAMABAD Mian abrar

Senior leader of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, Khawaja Mohammad Asif, after his release from jail, complained to the party workers against party’s top leadership for what he called its ‘cold shoulder’ and of ‘being ignored’.

Soon after being released from jail, Asif told the PMLN workers that while he was in jail, neither Shehbaz Sharif nor Hamza Shehbaz would come to see him despite being present in Lahore. He said that he was hugely disappointed with the attitude of the PML-N leadership.

According to sources in the PML-N, Asif was released from prison but no senior PML-N leader reached to meet him at the hospital where he was admitted following his release. He said that he was hugely disappointed with the attitude of the top leadership.

Despite the presence of Shehbaz and Hamza in Lahore, no MPA or MNA reached the hospital. Talking to local activists, he complained that no seniors came to visit him even during his jail days. A high court bench — comprising Justice Aalia Neelum and Justice Syed Shahbaz Ali Rizvi \— announced the verdict on Wednesday. The National Accountability Bureau had

arrested Asif in December last year from outside the Islamabad residence of another PML-N leader, Ahsan Iqbal, on charges of being in possession of wealth beyond his declared sources of income.

In March, he approached the court to secure bail, contending that during his 22-day physical remand with the National Accountability Bureau that he was not confronted with any “direct or circumstantial evidence that would construct the case”. “The application, under section 24(d) of National Accountability Ordinance, 1999, filed by respondent Assistant Director NAB Mohammad Ikram, for seeking physical remand of the petitioner did not disclose any incriminating material supporting the alleged commission of the crime under section 9(a)(v) of NAO,” the petition read. “Mere ownership of property/assets did not constitute an offense under section 9(a)(v). It is the failure to explain the source of funds that points towards the commission of the offense. The inquiry is being conducted on conjectures and surmises with a view to rope the petitioner into baseless and unfounded allegations.

“In the absence of any plausible reason to reject the detailed explanation offered by the petitioner regarding his ownership of assets and source of income, this case is one of further inquiry and post-arrest bail should be granted.”

LAHORE inP

Lahore Metrobus service was temporarily suspended for inspection of its fleet after a bus cau¬ght fire on Thursday. The incident occurred in the morning when a fleet of 26 buses was heading for Shahdara. As the fleet reached near Azadi Chowk, one of the buses caught fire. The driver immediately applied emergency brakes and jumped out of the bus. A Rescue 1122 team rushed to the site and extinguishing the fire. There were no casualties, a rescue official said. After dousing the fire, the bus was first taken to Shahdara and then to the maintenance depot on Ferozepur Road. According to reports, the air conditioners of 90 percent of the buses were not in working condition while the wiring also needed replacement. The fire caused millions of rupees in losses to the Punjab Masstransit Authority which is now left with 51 buses to cover the entire city.

Qureshi, Chinese envoy plant friendship tree ISLAMABAD Mian abrar

Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi and Ambassador of China Nong Rong planted a Friendship Tree on Thursday at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as part of ongoing celebrations to commemorate the 70th Anniversary of the establishment of Pakistan-China diplomatic relations.

Ambassador Rong also presented a Diplomatic Note to the Foreign Minister, regarding donation of 7000

saplings to support the “Clean Green Pakistan Movement” and “Ten Billion Trees Tsunami Programme”, launched by Prime Minister Imran Khan.

On the occasion, the foreign minister highlighted that this year marked the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China (CPC).

He lauded Chinese leadership and the CPC for lifting 800 million people out of extreme poverty in a short span of 40 years and for spearheading the Chinese nation’s efforts for peace and development.

The year 2021 also marks the 70th anniversary of

the establishment of diplomatic relations between Pakistan and China. Unrelenting efforts of the successive generations of the people and leadership has transformed this relationship into ‘All-Weather Strategic Cooperative Partnership’, the foreign minister said.

A wide range of events are being held in Pakistan and China to celebrate the landmark 70th anniversary of diplomatic relations. Foreign Secretary Sohail Mahmood and senior officers from the Ministry of Foreign Officers and diplomats from Embassy of China participated in the ceremony.

Friday, 25 June, 2021

LAHORE

NEWS

PM for jusT disTribuTioN of ProviNciAL fuNds by siNdH govT SOUTH PUNJAB MPS MEET PREMIER; LAUD GOVT’S DEVELOPMENT, WELFARE SCHEMES ISLAMABAD

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aPP

RIME Minister Imran Khan on Thursday said that as the federal government ensured timely release of funds under National Finance Commission, it was also essential

that Sindh government made just distribution of provincial funds.

The prime minister, in a meeting with the parliamentarians of Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan, said that the government was taking all out measures to resolve the issue faced by the Karachi residents.

Federal Planning Minister Asad Umar, MNA Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui and Senator Faisal Sabzwari attended the meeting wherein the prime minister was updated on the progress of ongoing development projects in Karachi.

The prime minister said that the early completion of federal government projects

in Karachi and early launch of newly announced works, were among government’s priorities.

Separately, MNAs from South Punjab Thursday called on Prime Minister Imran and discussed the ongoing development projects and problems faced by the people there.

03

MNAs Muhammad Amjad Farooq Khosa, Niaz Ahmed Jhakkar, Shabbir Qureshi and Rana Qasim Noon were among those who met the prime minister.

The parliamentarians appreciated the government for distribution of Sehat Insaf Cards, ongoing education, health and basic infrastructure projects in Layyah, establishment of South Punjab Secretariat and relief for the common man in the annual budget. Parliamentary Committee on Kashmir Chairman Shehryar Khan Afridi and Minister for Maritime Affairs Syed Ali Haider Zaidi called on Prime Minister Imran on Thursday.

During the meeting, Afridi briefed the prime minister about the performance of Kashmir Committee.

Besides, the progress of ongoing development projects in Kohat and its positive effects on the life of common man were also talked about in the meeting.

PTI govt in GB expands cabinet to historic 28 members ISLAMABAD GhuLaM abbaS

The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, which talked about austerity and cutting administrative costs of the government, has facilitated 28 elected and nonelected members of the party and its allies through granting portfolios with a historic size of cabinet in Gilgit-Baltistan.

According to a notification of the law and prosecution department of GB, the government through amendment in rules of business has facilitated creation of posts of coordinators, under which the number of coordinators to the chief minister has been increased from two to 10. “It is notified for general information and compliance that the Governor GilgitBaltistan has been pleased to further amend rule 29(A)(3) amended in 2017 of the Gilgit-Baltistan Rules of Business, 2009 by inserting a new proviso i.e. after the word two special Coordinators to the Chief Minister GB the word “and ten Coordinators to the Chief Minister,” the notification said.

As per the new rules notified, the coordinators shall be appointed by the chief minister and shall hold the office during his pleasure. They shall be entitled to a salary equal to half of the salary of a special assistant to the chief minister. According to

reliable sources, the regional government, through expanding the cabinet size, would accommodate a coordinator of Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid, as it has appointed a special assistant from Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan though the two parties have no considerable vote banks in GB. The two parties are being given shares in GB by PTI only to please them and get support in the center. Apart from these two parties the PTI government would also accommodate some influential political figures in the region besides including one or two women leaders of the party.

The ruling party which formed government in GB after the election has now enhanced the number of cabinet to 28 consisting 12 ministers, two advisers, three special assistant to chief minister, 10 coordinators and the chief minister. Including the speaker and deputy speaker the total number of public office holders in GB becomes 30, extremely larger than the total number of members of the ruling party and its allies in Gilgit Baltistan Legislative Assembly which is 23.

Interestingly this huge size of cabinet is formed to rule a 1.6 million populated region where only four to five members of the cabinet is enough to handle rule and run government affairs. As per the constitution, the Cabinet can have a maximum of 11 percent of the total

strength of the parliament whereas each cabinet member must be a member of parliament.

If the same criterion is followed in GB, there could hardly be four members of cabinet including the chief minister. However, through the Self Governance Ordinance of GB, 2009, introduced by Pakistan People’s Party in 2009, the size of GB cabinet was suggested to consist of nine members, which included the six ministers, two advisers and chief minister.

This size of cabinet was reasonable keeping in view the population and volume of budget the area is given by the federal government. However, the Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz which formed its government in 2015, expanded the size of cabinet through introducing GB Reform Order 2018 to accommodate more party members. The PML-N government expanded the size of the cabinet to 18 members.

The PTI government in GB set records by expanding the cabinet to at least 28 members including chief minister which is 87 percent of the total number of GBLA (33) against the 11 percent set by the constitution of Pakistan. To accommodate a maximum number of elected members of the assembly the previous ministries were bifurcated into further ministries without any justification. A ministry held by a minister of PPP during 2009 to 2014, was divided into two ministries and two advisers.

Pakistan desires enhanced bilateral ties with Germany: COAS RAwALPINDI tLtP

Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa has said that Pakistan attaches great importance to its relations with Germany and expressed desire for enhanced mutually beneficial bilateral relations.

General Bajwa, who is on an official visit to Germany, called on German Minister for Foreign Affairs Heiko Maas on Thursday, according to a statement issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR). According to ISPR, Special Representative for the Federal Government for Afghanistan and Pakistan Markus Potzel was also present in the meeting.

During the meeting, matters of mutual interest, overall regional security situation including latest developments in Afghan Peace Process and bilateral

cooperation in various fields were discussed. The German dignitaries also acknowledged Pakistan’s continuous efforts for peace and stability in the region and pledged to further enhance bilateral relations between both countries. Later on,

PiA to get four dry leased aircraft ISLAMABAD: Pakistan International Airlines will take four new aircraft on a six-year dry lease in line with a renewed business plan to expand its fleet. The two narrow-body Airbus A320 aircraft will replace the Boeing 777 planes. With their arrival between July and December, the existing fleet will expand to 39.

According to its website, the airline’s fleet currently comprises 37 planes: seven Boeing 777s, nine Airbus320s and 21 ATRs. Dry lease is an aviation term that means the airline will acquire the aircraft without the flight crew. The first plane will arrive by the second week of July, followed by the second aircraft in August.

The third and fourth jets will arrive between October and December. The airline in December last year decided to acquire eight new aircraft to expand its fleet.

The aircraft will have a capacity of over 170 seats — all economy with a soft divider after two rows. The process is part of the business plan the flag carrier had been working on for the past two years which got pushed back due to reduced demand owing to the pandemic, it was reported at the time. Staff rePort

the COAS also visited the Command and Staff College of Germany, where he addressed students and faculty members and shared his views on “Pakistan’s Regional and Internal Security Perspective”.

During the address, the COAS apprised the audience of external and internal security challenges faced by Pakistan and measures taken in the regard to mitigate the threats. He said that the future of enduring peace and stability in the world hinges on the ability to resolve long pending issues within the region.

He said this can only be complemented through meaningful international support to take on challenging regional issues.

Focusing on Covid-19 pandemic, the army chief said that Pakistan’s government along with other state institutions is doing its best to counter the challenges faced by the country. Earlier on his arrival at the Command and Staff College, COAS was received by Major General Oliver Kohl, Commandant Bundeswehr Command and Staff College Hamburg, Germany.

efforts afoot to end polio despite covid-19 challenge: PM ISLAMABAD Staff rePort

Prime Minister Imran Khan on Thursday said earnest efforts were afoot to further amplify the vaccination campaign nationwide to achieve a polio-free Pakistan despite the challenge of Covid-19. In a telephonic conversation with Bill Gates, co-chairman of Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the prime minister reaffirmed that polio eradication remained a key target of his government. Recalling that an additional countrywide vaccination drive was launched earlier this month, during which drops were administered to over 33 million children under five years, Imran expressed his satisfaction over the progress in cutting the transmission of the disease. He hoped that polio will soon be eradicated from Pakistan with the support of all stakeholders. Imran appreciated the work of the foundation for the socio-economic uplift of the disadvantaged people across the globe, especially for promoting universal access to health services and combating contagious diseases. He expressed gratitude, in particular, for the Gates Foundation’s partnership with Pakistan to rid the country of polio.

Gates expressed his appreciation for Imran’s commitment to the cause.

Ncoc daily report: Total caseload at 951,865 after 1,097 new infections ISLAMABAD: Pakistan recorded 1,097 new confirmed cases of Covid-19 on Wednesday, raising the total tally to 951,865, official data showed Thursday. According to the National Command and Operation Centre, the nerve centre in fighting against the pandemic, 38 patients died of Covid-19 on Wednesday, raising the death toll to 22,108. There have been 896,821 people who recovered from Covid19 so far in Pakistan, as well as 32,936 active cases being treated across the country, including 2,084 in critical condition, the NCOC said. Staff rePort

Ministry refutes reports of dress draped human figure sketches in biology books ISLAMABAD aPP

The Ministry of Federal Education and Professional Training has rejected what it termed a concerted campaign by vested groups to discredit its efforts to devise single national curriculum-based education across the country.

Responding to reports which claimed, but were not limited to, the curriculum discriminated against minorities, the ministry issued a statement rejecting as baseless the claims. Reports, it said, were further spreading false information like, “an Ulema Board has decreed that all human figures in biology textbooks of the SNC

be covered with appropriate clothes to protect their modesty. Qaris from madrassahs would be appointed in all schools, public and private, to teach the Holy Quran.”

In its response, the ministry clarified: “The SNC has so far only been approved till grade V. Biology is a subject that is taught from Grade 9 and no textbooks for biology have so far been finalised. The federal government’s approval process for science textbooks does not involve any consultation with the Muttahida Ulema Board and so any claim that the board has prohibited the inclusion of any diagrams or educational material from the biology textbooks is factually inaccurate.”

Science textbooks are being developed in close consultation with renowned local and international experts and will not be approved for publishing until it is determined that they meet the required global benchmarks, the statement further said, adding: “It is, however, true that Punjab Assembly has approved a law whereby an ulema board approves all Islamic content in the curriculum. Punjab government has informed the federal ministry that no change was made in the biology textbooks by the said board.”

The statement said that appointment of a Holy Quran teacher in public and private schools was not ordered. “No such order has been made by the

government at any level. The teaching of Qirat to Muslim students is a part of the Islamiat curriculum and is mandatory to foster their religious learning. This instruction can be provided by the existing Islamiat or religious studies teachers or the school can hire anyone they deem fit.

“The SNC is a historic initiative introduced to eliminate class-based education system and create equal educational standards for all the students of Pakistan, regardless of race, class, gender, and any other arbitrary marker.

It is being developed with expert input from all segments of society and is being designed in line with the pedagogical needs of the 21st century,” it reads, adding Islamic content in the curriculum is strictly according to an act of parliament enacted in 2017, called The Compulsory Teaching of Holy Quran Act 2017 and is mandatory on all federal institutions.

This act was adopted by all the provinces except for Sindh.

Friday, 25 June, 2021

04 NEWS Reliance Industries expects Saudi Aramco deal to formalise this year BENGALURU: Reliance Industries Ltd said on Thursday it hopes to formalise its partnership with Saudi Aramco this year and its Chairman Yasir Al-Rumayyan will join the Indian conglomerate’s board as an independent director. “Al-Rumayyan joining our board is also the beginning of internationalisation of Reliance,” Chairman Mukesh Ambani told shareholders on Thursday. AGENCIES

LAHORE

SECP SPECIFIES FRAmEwoRk FoR ISSuAnCE oF dEBt, hyBRId EtFS

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NEWS DESK

HE Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) has specified the framework for the issuance of debt and hybrid exchange traded funds to create a competitive and conducive playing field and diversify the range of ETFs. According to a press release issued on Thursday, the SECP has specified the

criteria for the issuance of debt and hybrid ETFs through a circular. The circular also updates the existing framework for equity ETFs. According to the statement, just like equity ETFs, debt ETFs are also passively managed and trade on a regular exchange. Debt ETFs allow ordinary investors to gain passive exposure to fixed income securities such as corporate bonds or treasuries in an inexpensive way, while Hybrid ETFs allow invest-

ment in an index that has both debt and equity securities.

The SECP said that investment in debt ETFs is well suited for investors with a low-risk profile, as it provides a strong defensive addition to their investment portfolios. The framework specifies the procedure for listing, trading, clearing and settlement of ETF units, besides the disclosure requirements for asset management companies and the obligations of market makers/ authorised

participants.

The SECP said that internationally, ETFs are among one of the fastest-growing investment products which are being customised to cover specific arrays of sectors, stocks, commodities, bonds, futures and other asset classes. The ETFs provide investors with various benefits such as trading flexibility; diversification of overall portfolio and transparency in terms of publishing underlying holdings on a daily basis.

Govt to release Rs210bn for KP development PESHAWAR STAFF REPORT

The Ministry of Finance and Revenue will release a development fund of Rs210 billion to all departments of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) for new and ongoing projects in the development programme from the next financial year (FY22).

A final decision in this regard will be taken on July 1, however, the provincial government is confident of getting its arrears from the center as the federal government has acknowledged the position of the

province regarding its share in the net hydel profit under the AGN Kazi committee formula.

In this regard, Provincial Minister for Finance and Health Taimur Saleem Jhagra said that talks with the federal government were held in a good atmosphere.

He said that federal government will pay Rs74 billion in terms of net hydel profit and also provide an additional Rs8 billion, which has been recognised by the government for the increase in electricity tariff.

According to Jhagra, at least Rs150 billion will be spent in the

tribal areas for the first time in history. He added that Punjab, Sindh, and Balochistan have been included in the tribal districts’ NFC so that everyone can know how much funds each province has provided for the uplift of the tribal belt.

Jhagra said that Rs150 billion is the province’s own development budget, while Rs60 billion has been set aside by the federation and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa for tribal districts, adding that administrative governments will He said that the money will be released to the administrative departments on July 1.

ICCI for enhanced Pak-Niger trade ties to tap African market ISLAMABAD TLTP

The business class of Pakistan and Niger should focus on exploring business matchmakings and partnerships as both countries have good potential to enhance relations in many fields including agriculture, textile, food products, pharmaceuticals, auto industry and mining.

This was stated by Islamabad Chamber of Commerce & Industry (ICCI) President Sardar Yasir Ilyas Khan while addressing a dinner reception hosted in honour of a business delegation of Niger Republic that visited Pakistan led by their Commerce and Trade Minister Gabo Sabo Moctar, said a statement issued on Thursday.

Niger’s Minister for Investment Zakaria Wergo, Secretary Industry Abdoulaye Boubacar, prominent businessman Saleem Gado Sabo and others were in the delegation.

Abdul Razak Dawood, Advisor on Commerce and Investment, Pir Noor ul Haq Qadri, Federal Minis-

ter for Religious Affairs, Ahmed Ali Sirohey, Pakistan’s Ambassador to Niger, and members of the local business community were also present at the occasion.

Sardar Yasir said that by developing close cooperation with Niger, Pakistan could get better access to the huge African market for trade and exports. He said that Africa is a big market and Pakistani entrepreneurs should get better penetration into Niger’s markets that would enable them to fully tap African region for trade and investment.

He said that Pakistan is producing many quality products including textiles, rice, pharmaceuticals, surgical instruments, IT products, light engineering goods, sports & leather products and emphasised that Niger’s business community should focus on importing these products from Pakistan that would also help in further improving bilateral trade between our two countries. He assured that ICCI would fully cooperate in connecting the entrepreneurs of Niger with right

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partners in Pakistan.

Speaking on the occasion, Niger’s Minister for Commerce and Trade Gabo Sabo Moctar said that his country is eager to attract foreign investment and has taken steps to improve business climate; therefore, Pakistani investors should focus on Niger for JVs and investment.

He said that his government is planning to establish special economic zones (SEZs) for Pakistan to invest in various sectors. He said that the Pakistani investors could invest in Niger in infrastructure development, agriculture, textiles, pharmaceuticals, medical devices and other industries.

He said that promoting trade with Pakistan in multiple sectors was the priority of his government and hoped that their current visit to Pakistan would be helpful in setting up some sustainable business partnerships between the two countries.

The businessmen of Pakistan and Niger interacted with each other at the dinner reception and exchanged views on potential areas of mutual cooperation.

FBR withdraws 17pc sales tax on bran NEWS DESK The federal government has decided to withdraw the proposed 17 per cent sales tax on wheat bran while undoing the decision to abolish one per cent rebate on annual sales of flour mills after flour mills started their protest against the proposed increase in taxes.

According to details, the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) issued a written clarification stating that no change is being made in the existing tax regime. The statement, which was issued late night on Wednesday, clarified that the minimum tax applicable on flour Mills would remain at 0.25pc of the turnover instead of 1.25pc as being generally interpreted. “The words ‘flour mills’ could not be mentioned inadvertently in the table which was an error and had been noted and would be rectified in the amended bill. This would mean that the minimum tax applicable on flour mills would remain at 0.25pc of the turnover instead of 1.25pc as being generally interpreted,” it said. It further stated that in order to boost the government’s drive to keep inflation under control and to give maximum relief to the business community, General Sales Tax (GST) on wheat bran proposed to be enhanced to 17pc in the Finance Bill 2021 is also being taken back. Earlier, the Pakistan Flour Mills Association (PFMA) announced plans to go on a two-day strike from June 24 as a protest against budget measures proposing a hike in income tax on turnover of flour mills and increase the sales tax on bran. At present, flour mills produce about 19kg of bran out of 100kg of wheat, with a current market price of Rs1, 400 per 34kg bag. Due to separate sales of bran, the price of flour is kept low for the consumers.

In particular, the food department takes into account the price of bran while determining the official price of flour in consultation with flour mills. An increase in the sales tax on bran to 17% is expected to increase the 20kg bag of flour by Rs60 to Rs67.

Friday, 25 June, 2021

LAHORE

NEWS

05

InDIa faIls To TaInT sCo proToCol wITh faTf propaganDa agaInsT pakIsTan ISLAMABAD

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APP

NDIA has failed in tainting the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) protocol with its Financial Action Task Force (FATF) propaganda as its effort to incorporate banned organizations in the protocol was turned down at the meeting.

A two-day 16th SCO Secretaries of the Security Council meeting was held in Dushanbe, Tajikistan from June 22, 23, sources in National Security Division told APP. National Security Adviser Dr Moeed Yusuf participated in the meeting and exposed Indian nefarious designs and atrocities inflicted upon innocent Kashmiris in Indian Illegal Occupied Jammu and Kashmir at the forum.

The source said India once again got defeated at

SCO summit as its conspiracy to target Pakistan on terrorism failed.

“India tried to include its FATF propaganda against Pakistan in the SCO declaration but it failed,” he added.

Moreover, India’s nefarious intentions in Afghanistan have also been exposed globally.

Once again, Indian National Security Adviser Ajit Dowal was defeated in the SCO meeting.

As Delhi talks to Delhi on Kashmir, no mention of revoking illegal annexation contInueD froM pAge 01

EDB holds meeting to review Millat Tractors’ performance LAHORE: The EDB Board of Management held its 47th meeting on 18.6.2021 at Millat Tractors Limited Lahore, under the chair of Mr. Almas Haider Chairman EDB, to review the engineering industry performance. The meeting was hosted by Mr. Sikandar Mustafa Khan, Chairman Millat Group. The board also toured Millat Tractors factory to examine its production facilities and appreciated the company’s future plans relating to green engines, new tractor models, energy conservation and export initiatives. The Chairman EDB inaugurated Millat’s one-megawatt solar project besides witnessing the ceremony of delivering 2000th export tractor. It is worth-mentioning that the company has been successful in increasing its exports by 135% over the last year amounting to USD 20 million which comprises of tractors, engines and spare parts. Government officials including Mr. Almas Haider (Chairman EDB), Syed Raza Abbas (CEO EDB), representatives of ministries of Industries & Production, Science & Technology, Defense Production, Federal Board of Revenue and prominent industrialists, including Mr. Saqib H. Sherazi (CEO Atlas Honda), S M Irfan Aqueel (CEO MTL), Syed Nabeel Hashmi (CEO Thermosol Industries), Mr. Khawar Rafiq Sheikh (Chairman Rafiq Engineering), Mr. Muhammad Faisal Afzal (CEO Super Asia) and Engr.

Khawar Anwar Khawaja (CEO Grays) attended the meeting. The Chairman EDB emphasized on the need to explore export opportunities and adored the achievement of Millat Tractors. PR

Home Minister of India Amit Shah said following the meeting that the delimitation exercise and peaceful elections were important milestones in restoring statehood as promised in Parliament.

“We are committed to ensure all round development of J&K,” Amit Shah tweeted.

“The future of Jammu and Kashmir was discussed and the delimitation exercise and peaceful elections are important milestones in restoring statehood as promised in parliament,” he said, adding, “Today’s meeting on Jammu and Kashmir was conducted in a very cordial environment. Everyone expressed their commitment to democracy and the constitution. It was stressed to strengthen the democratic process in Jammu and Kashmir.”

According to various Indian media sources, former chief minister Omar Abdullah sought statehood first elections later. Muzaffar Baig said he asked for article 371 with 35A provision in it till article 370 is decided by the court.

Former chief minister Mehbooba Mufti said she said believed revocation of 370 was morally, legally and constitutionally wrong, and insists on talk to pak, asked for release of detainees, and said she will fight for the restoration of article 370.

Omar Abdullah said that even Indian Prime Minister said bureaucratic government was not good

and makes mistakes. He said his party sought reversal of decisions including that of turning Jammu and Kashmir into a union territory, and described delimitation excercise as suspected move.

Meanwhile, Afridi reacted strongly to the meeting held by Modi with Kashmiri politicians, and reiterated Pakistan’s position on Kashmir dispute.

Afridi said that Indian government is actually talking to its own agents in Kashmir falsely portraying them as “Kashmiri leadership”.

“It is a situation where Delhi is talking to Delhi,” he said.

Speaking to a delegation of All Parties Hurriyat Conference here, Afridi said that Pakistan will not engage with India until it revokes its decision of illegally annexing the disputed territory.

Afridi said that Pakistan is closely monitoring the situation in Kashmir and constantly getting the feedback from the ground in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir about the developments in the region. He said that the new step of the Hindutva government of India of talking with the pro-India politicians of Kashmir is nothing but a facade to hoodwink the international community.

He said that Pakistan has successfully been able to put diplomatic pressure on the Indian state about its violation of the international law and therefore the Indian government wants to befool international community and give a

semblance that it has started some sort of democratic process.

He said that these are the same people who have been playing India’s game in the region, and have been rejected by the majority population. He said the actual representatives of the Kashmiri people including the entire Hurriyat leadership is still behind bars since August 5, 2019.

Afridi said that Pakistan is aware of the gambit and the successive Indian governments have always used these maneuvers to deceive the International community.

He said that the bogey of returning statehood is not a step towards restoring the August 5, 2019 decisions, but, in fact, strengthening the occupational structure in the disputed territory.

“We have defeated the Indian designs since the illegal annexation of the disputed region and will continue to do so and tell the international community that Kashmir is a dispute and continues to burn,” Afridi said. He said these exercises of Indian government of engaging “their own puppets” can’t be a substitute to the aspirations of the Kashmiri people demanding Right to Self Determination. He appealed the international community not to get fooled by these cosmetic steps by India. He said that Pakistan stands committed to the Kashmiri’s right to self-determination and would do anything to ensure that Kashmiris get their birth right of freedom from India’s illegal occupation.

Multan Sultans thrash Peshawar Zalmi to win maiden HBL PSL title contInueD froM pAge 01 In the next over Imran Khan, took Zalmi's ninth wicket to take his side closer to the finish line.

Getting 56 runs in the last 16 balls proved too much for the last two batsmen of the Zalmi.

Multan triumphed over Zalmi by 48 runs to win their first PSL title.

MULTAN SULTANS' INNINGS: Earlier, a 98-run partnership between Sohaib Maqsood and Rilee Rossouw powered Sultans to 206-4 run after their team was asked to bat first by the Zalmi.

The first over of the final was bowled by Sameen Gul and it could have been a maiden had he not bowled a wide off his first ball.

While the first boundary was hit by Mohammad

Rizwan against Mohammad Irfan in the second over.

The Sultans captain was also the one to hit the first six of the final.

The openers Rizwan and Shan Masood were struggling to take off against the Irfan and Sameen duo till the third over of the match. But it was in the fourth over that the openers found some flow and started finding boundaries easily.

However, it was youngster Mohammad Imran who stood up for his team and removed Masood and Rizwan in the 9th and 11th over. Masood departed after making 30 while Rizwan was removed for 30.

The dismissals would have given hopes to Peshawar that their bowlers would stop the flow of runs and take more wickets to put the pressure back on Multan.

Russia warns Britain it will bomb ships next time LonDon REUTERS

Russia warned Britain on Thursday that it would bomb British naval vessels in the Black Sea if there were any further provocative actions by the British navy off the coast of Russia-annexed Crimea.

Russia summoned the British ambassador in Moscow for a formal diplomatic scolding after the warship breached what the Kremlin says are its territorial waters but which Britain and most of the world say belong to Ukraine.

Britain said Russia was giving an inaccurate account of the inci-

dent. No warning shots had been fired and no bombs had been dropped in the path of the Royal Navy destroyer Defender, it said.

In Moscow, Russia summoned Ambassador Deborah Bronnert for a reprimand over what it said were Britain's "dangerous" action in the Black Sea - while foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova accused London of "barefaced lies".

"We can appeal to common sense, demand respect for international law, and if that doesn't work, we can bomb," Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov told Russian news agencies.

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Ryabkov, referring to Moscow's version of events in which a Russian aircraft bombed the path of the British destroyer, said that in future bombs would be sent "not only in its path, but also on target."

The Black Sea, which Russia uses to project its power in the Mediterranean, has for centuries been a flashpoint between Russia and its competitors such as Turkey, France, Britain and the United States.

Russia seized and annexed the Crimea peninsula from Ukraine in 2014 and considers areas around its coast to be Russian waters.

LAHORE: Pakistan Railways Chief Executive Officer Nisar Ahmed Memon listens to the concerns of people through Facebook. PR

IhC dismisses nawaz’s appeals against avenfield, al-azizia verdicts contInueD froM pAge 01 The court inquired as to how could it proceed further in the case in the absence of the appellant. Tarar contended that the case could be heard by the court if the required documents were available. He requested the bench to see him, the lawyer representing Maryam and Safdar and his client in the same way. He added that as per the spirit of the Constitution and the law, the court could make a decision that opened “a clear window”.

Us to add warning about rare heart condition to pfizer, Moderna vaccine labels WASHIngton REUTERS

The US Food and Drug Administration said on Wednesday it plans to move quickly to add a warning about rare cases of heart inflammation in adolescents and young adults to fact sheets for the Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna Covid-19 vaccines.

US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) advisory groups, meeting to discuss reported cases of the heart condition after vaccination, found the inflammation in adolescents and young adults is likely linked to the vaccines, but that the benefits of the shots appeared to clearly outweigh the risk.

Moderna shares closed down 4.2 percent, while Pfizer fell 1.4 percent. Health regulators in several countries have been investigating whether the Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna shots using new mRNA technology present a risk.

Friday, 25 June, 2021

06 COMMENT

Howling down the Opposition Leader

Expectations from NICC Performance will be judged from results

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InALLY, the country has a much-needed body for effective intelligence coordination between several civil and military security agencies operating in Pakistan. national Intelligence Coordination Committee (nICC), the liaison body for the country’s spy agencies, has become functional with the Dg ISI as its convener and a senior official of IB as its secretary. Officers from ISI are expected to initially provide the secretarial support for the new body. However a separate secretariat is expected to be in place soon.

Setting up the nICC is a timely decision.

Till recently only Balochistan and KP’s tribal districts had been under constant attack by terrorist networks.

What is more, there was a gradual increase in these attacks. The terrorist incidents in Janikhel too had underlined the need for an intelligence body capable of collating reports from various security agencies to help the government take timely action against the terrorists.

The Wednesday attack in Lahore is an indication of the terrorists having once again developed the capacity to launch attacks deep inside Punjab. In February, a Un report noted 100 cross-border attacks in Pakistan within three months of the last year. This underlined the seriousness of the threat. Any increased instability in Afghanistan is bound to produce highly dangerous spillover effects including a heightened risk of crossborder terrorism masterminded by TTP, IS and several other networks that act on Indian Intelligence agencies’ behest. A Taliban takeover in Afghanistan would galvanize the already resurgent Pakistani Taliban.

One expects the government to provide the nICC the required funds so that it can set up an independent secretariat and recruit the necessary staff. A section under the nICC needs to work round the clock to collect thousands of excerpts gathered by several intelligence agencies daily and correlate and translate all the information into actionable intelligence. Only if it develops an ethos of its own will departmental infighting be avoided.

The performance of the nICC will be judged not from claims of nipping the conspiracies in the bud. It is not enough to provide collated intelligence input to the prime minister. What people expect from the nICC is the fulfillment of the tasks determined in the national Action Plan, reining in the extremist networks that provide recruits to terrorist organizations, a visible decline in terrorist attacks, and bringing the terrorist leadership to justice.

Is the opposition narrative being proved?

At Penpoint M A NIAZI

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ne of the basic assumptions underlying democracy is that talking to one another, at one another, is the way of moving matters along. That is how the rule of the people is expressed. That is to be seen in the legislature, where speech is the method by which laws are made. It is also how the disposal of tax money is decided.

Thus, the right of two members to speak uninterrupted is held sacred, of the Leader of the House, and of the Leader of the Opposition. The first is the Prime Minister, the other the Prime Minister in waiting.

When either rises to speak and is recognised by the Chair, he or she is not supposed to be interrupted, not even by points of order. That tradition has not been followed in Pakistani Houses, but the recent exhibition of interruption, which began when Mian Shehbaz Sharif, the Leader of the Opposition, arose to speak, to begin, as is traditional, the Budget debate of the national Assembly, was something of a shocker.

It may have been unprecedented in Pakistan, but it was hardly a world-first. Such scenes have been witnessed in assemblies in the Far east. They do introduce the concept of an expanded skill set for your average member: he must not only be concerned about peoples’ problems and be ready to speak about them, but he must also have the skills of an all-in wrestler.

Are MnAs now to have colourful nicknames like ‘The Undertaker’, ‘The Filibuster’ or ‘The Law’?

The episode is reminiscent of the UK of the 19th century when, during the Irish Home Rule crisis, it was the Sunday-afternoon amusement of the London tough to go outside the Prime Minister’s residence at 10 Downing Street and howl. That is what the PTI MnAs were doing when they interrupted Shehbaz’s speech: howl.

It is no excuse, as PTI supporters have tried to plead, that the PML(n) started the whole thing by heckling Imran Khan and preventing him from addressing the House. That was reprehensible, but the desire to take revenge achieves nothing. It should be noted that society may seem to obtain revenge by executing a murderer, but actually it is a deterrent. It signals anyone with a murderous impulse that, if caught, one could also lose one’s life. The prevention of Shahbaz Sharif from speaking did not advance the cause of Imran Khan one whit. neither Mian nawaz Sharif nor Benazir Bhutto were experienced parliamentarians when they took office. Indeed, both became PM in their maiden tenures as MnAs. Mian nawaz became CM as a first-term MPA, On the other hand, Imran became PM after being elected an MnA for the third time. Mian Shah-

Purposeless meeting Why not invite all stakeholders?

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He biggest problem Indian Prime Minister narendra Modi faces after his first meeting with Kashmiri leaders in new Delhi is not that they are forthright demanders of freedom for the people of Kashmir, but that they have only recently been prisoners of his, flung into jail on 5 August 2019 and kept there, even though they are former puppet CMs of the state (as it was). Another problem that he will face going forward is the absence of the leadership of the All-Parties Hurriyet Conference, who press for Kashmiri people to be allowed to exercise their right of self-determination. While their presence would have made his task that much harder, their absence means that any agreement with the puppet leaders attending, might not be worth the paper it is written on.

Mr Modi’s wish is simple: he wants an endorsement of all that his government has done since it got the Indian Parliament to abolish Articles 35A and 370 of the Indian Constitution, which provided Kashmir to have special status within the Indian Union, and preventing nonKashmiris from buying property in Kashmir. This was followed by abolition of the state, and the constitution of two union territories, one of which, that of Ladakh, will have no legislature. There are indications that Mr Modi will hold forth the lollipop of state status for Kashmir Union Territory alone, and here too he wants seven seats added, from the Hindu regions of Jammu, in the hope of wangling a majority. This is a repeat of the old Indian ploy of offering some Kashmiri leaders scraps from the table, so that the larger agenda can be pursued.

Those who set store by Mr Modi’s paying attention to Pakistan’s demand for a rollback of the August 5 action before there is any movement bilaterally should remember that Mr Modi has a larger constituency to satisfy in the Indian Cow Belt, and has used anti-Muslim tropes for electoral purposes. Without all the stakeholders being involved, to wit the Indian and Pakistani governments, pro-Indian Kashmir politicians from Indian-Held Kashmir, anti-Indian politicians from there and politicians from AJK, there will be no solution. Mr Modi and the rest represent only two of these five groups.

WAjeehA BIlAl

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ROWIng up and high with the passage of time, we develop a powerful sense of who we are and where we have come from. Our memories are built with impressionable stories from childhood, that huff and puff in our brains and are never forgotten. The human mind has an incredible and voracious desire to understand one’s ideology through one’s past. The history of religion and culture have long played a role in understanding our individual differences and collective similarities. At the same time, our existence with other cultures and religions, challenges pretty much every preconceived notion of our cultural and religious superiority. The world is a canvas of different religions and their influences, which is big enough for everyone, yet some people feel threatened by the idea of coexisting with those whom they do not understand.

This can lead to a sense of fear amongst a few that goes on to develop the basis of excluding others and leads to an extremist attitude in any society.

People are not born extremists; humans are just people who all want to be valued and respected.

There are many reasons that could be causing an excuse for a hateful outlet. The biggest reason for an extremist attitude cultivates through an extremist ideology that spurs the idea of us AgAInST others.

Editor Joint Editor

Umar Aziz Executive Editor

Lahore – Ph: 042-36300938, 042-36375965

The writer is a member of staff.

We are all human beings first

Arif Nizami

Managing Editor

Another danger is that a precedent has been set. Just as it was once unthinkable to interrupt the President during his annual address to Parliament, but now it has virtually become a tradition, so howling down the Leader of the Opposition might become a norm.

Terrorism has no religion

Dedicated to the legacy of the late Hameed Nizami

Yousaf Nizami Aziz-ud-Din Ahmad

baz, on the other hand had been a legislator since 1988, when he was first elected as an MPA, and from 1990 onwards, he has been elected to both the national Assembly and Punjab Assembly, except when ruled ineligible. His handling of the interruptions was thus very proper, and he kept his temper throughout.

It took him three days, but he did finish his speech.

It is thus a little surprising that Imran has not developed the art of addressing a hostile crowd. It is all the more surprising because he is an international sportsman, who developed (and as a young man) the art of performing before hostile crowds. Also, he did not have the luxury of fielding close-in, more often than not patrolling the boundary.

That is the place at which team-player interactions tend to be the most. That is where wits among the crowd tend to raise silly slogans, meant sometimes to do nothing more than rile the nearby fielder. Imran has had hostile crowds to face, including Indian crowds, as he did in 1987-8. He led Pakistan to victory, which would not have gone down well with the notoriously partisan Indian crowd.

There have been incidents of irate players plunging into the crowd in search of the offending spectator, but there is none reported of Imran. (There was even one batsman who waded into the crowd with pads and gloves. He didn’t find the spectator, which is lucky, for he also had his bat.) However, Imran showed on one occasion that he had as temper, when, after retiring from cricket, before building the cancer hospital, he slapped a reporter at a press conference instead of replying to the question asked (which was rude and tendentious enough). This was the time when sports reporters still covered him, not political.

That Imran needs not just protection but retribution does not speak well for democratic inclination.

This is not a PTI problem, but one shared by all parties. Indeed, it is enough to make one doubt whether democracy is suited to Pakistanis. It was Ayub Khan who first said that ‘democracy is not suited to the genius of the Pakistani people’, and it is usually assumed that democracy will be replaced by military rule.

However, the desire to impose a fifth martial law does not explain why the memories of Shahed Ali Patwary were revived. On 23 September 1958, he presided over a session of the House which consid-

ered the Awami League motion against the Speaker.

While declaring that the Speaker had been removed, a well-aimed paperweight caught him in the head, and he died two days later. Five days after that, Pakistan’s first Martial Law was imposed. Were the disturbances going to lead to such an end? Well, that would have required a similar blood sacrifice.

One thing that may well be happening is the opposition narrative is coming true, that the PTI government is so inexperienced that it cannot run the government.

The ordeal through which Mian Shehbaz had to go through merely proved that the opposition narrative, that the PTI is too incompetent to deliver what its promised and the establishment should turn back to the tried and tested parties, the PML(n) and the PPP. The problem the establishment has is that these two parties are not ready to acknowledge the primacy of the establishment in the way the PTI does. The problem is that the PTI may need more help to win the next election that is feasible. even those who believe that Pakistani elections reflect the will of the establishment, rather than of the people, concede that the winning party has enough public support for it to be competitive in enough deals. Few claim for the establishment the power to make victorious a candidate who does not enter the campaign with the support of several thousand votes.

However, the victory in this massy affair has gone to the Opposition. The question of what Mian Shehbaz was saying about the Budget came to the fore, making the Budget debate the cynosure of national attention in a way it has never been. Interest in the Opposition Leader’s speech has never been as high in previous years. One loss may have been the loss of so many days of debate. It remains to be seen whether the Treasury, which after all controls the flow of House business, allows any days of make-up. It must be remembered that waste of time during the Budget debate benefits the Treasury, as it means that opposition members have less time to speak in what might be their only contribution to the Business of the House in the year.

Another danger is that a precedent has been set.

Just as it was once unthinkable to interrupt the President during his annual address to Parliament, but now it has virtually become a tradition, howling down the Leader of the Opposition might become a norm. The PM should stop that happening, because his office is inextricably linked with the Leader of the Opposition.

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Karachi – Ph: 021-35381208-9

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It develops between two races or religions, either because one feels superior to or victimized by the other.

This type of emotion breeds fear and insecurities that results in an offensive behavior. Another major reason that develops an extremist attitude is politics and poverty when people are frustrated by injustice and discrimination. Biases develop due to fraudulent governments and inequal rights of citizens. Whatever the reason, extremist minds are tuned by frustrated messages that look for excuses to develop hate.

In an exclusive interview with CBC’s political correspondent Rosemary Barton, our Prime Minister discussed Islamophobia and called on the Western countries to take strict action against hate crimes towards the Muslim community. He had stressed that terrorism has no religion as extremists are found in every society. The prime minister said the use of the term “Islamic radicals” indicates there is something wrong with the religion which makes people radical, and the Muslims have suffered due to Islamophobia; he called for closing the gap by improving understanding; ‘Islamophobia needs to be countered holistically’.

In fact, terrorism and extremism have no religion, race, or culture. Humanity is one race that descended from the same ancestors, so what is it that has turned them against each other over time? All the atrocious developments make us wonder if we could ever go back in time and erase the moment or the events that lead to the rising of hate in humanity. Despite its global connection and advancement in technology there is a global platform for the execution of extremist ideology.

The whole world is connected virtually through the network of technology bridging the physical gaps through planes yet there is a vast emptiness and loneliness that people experience around others. This strange, isolated existence marks the reality of the present world, people feel helpless and angry with life in general and others in particular. The message of hate that was found in the cultural and historical teachings of the societies is now visible on social media and global platforms. everyone feels the need to do something, but they are not able to understand

Islamabad – Ph: 051-2204545

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Web: www.pakistantoday.com.pk

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what. This gap between emotional and perceived differences can only be solved through a change in education. This does not mean the compromise of education, rather a change of its message. What does it mean to live with so many people in this world? We all need to look back on the historical idea of why so many races have come to exist here?

You have come to follow a tradition or religion merely because you were born into it. The miracle of human birth is more than just an accident when this life is used to make a difference. You are the most advanced species and being in a position of power you have the duty to elevate your fellow beings. Respect for others is that one bridge that serves strangers in foreign lands; this is the kind of education that is bound to leave a deep impact in one’s life.

The essence of life is not that one race survives on the ashes of the other, but its essence is that we are all together here. Our history has always revealed the differences of human culture, religion, and behaviour, yet each human is individually unique. What it genuinely wants us to understand is the gift of life, that we have come to share here in our own way. each of our experiences of life is unique in its own way.

Our ideology serves the purpose of dignifying our unique entity and our co-existence teaches us to value this uniqueness. With this message we learn where our place in this world is, which is in alliance with the lives of others. It is our centre of the world that we choose to share with others through our words and actions.

In the end we all have come to inherit this fabulous legacy of unique behavior and identity. It is embedded in our very existence that we call humanity, despite all differences. We may not be able to wipe out all the hateful differences but what we can do is give our own message of hope and unity in our own unique way so that no one cares how many racial and religious differences have developed over time.

(Wajeeha is the author of “The Conscious Ego”, “The Beautiful Present”)

Email: editorial@pakistantoday.com.pk

Friday, 25 June, 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

Ending Covid-19

Hybrid warfare: a brand new mode of combat

SANWAl AlI RINd

“Every age has its own kind of war, its own limiting conditions, and its own peculiar preconceptions.”—Carl von Clausewitz

A

MID the very global battle, all countries are straining their every sinew to overcome their adversaries politically, economically, in general, regionally, in particular. every country seems to be hellbent on standing out prominently across the globe.

To achieve these goals, many countries, historically, had employed overt tactics for knocking their regional rivals down peg in order to have their edge over them. But the age of overtly exerting influence, invading through regular military tactics, has gone. The present-day global war is quite unique in nature which includes military strategy that blends conventional warfare, so-called ‘irregular warfare’ and cyber-attacks with other influencing methods, such as fake news, diplomacy and foreign political intervention, and is currently known as “hybrid warfare”.

“Hybrid Warfare”, nicknamed as “grey zone warfare”, is the latest modus operandi in fighting that seems dead common but leaves very deadly effects. Before moving on and discussing the lethality and consequences of this warfare, it is essential to learn a more comprehensive definition.

The 2015 edition of Military Balance provides a very comprehensive definition of the latest manifestation of hybrid warfare, highlighting the methods employed, namely “the use of military and non-military tools in an integrated campaign, designed to achieve surprise, seize the initiative and gain psychological as well as physical advantages utilizing diplomatic means; sophisticated and rapid information, electronic and cyber operations; covert and occasionally overt military and intelligence action; and economic pressure.” Additionally, nATO defined it as: “hybrid threats combine military and non-military as well as covert and overt means, including disinformation, cyberattacks, economic pressure, deployment of irregular armed groups, and use of regular forces. Hybrid methods are used to blur the lines between war and peace, and attempt to sow doubt in the minds of target populations.”

After learning the definition, now, we will now have a glimpse at the chronological perspective in order to see the practical manifestation of also called non-linear war.

During the 2000s, the use of the term “hy-

brid” became a common way to describe contemporary warfare, particularly because of the increasing sophistication and lethality of violent non-state actors and the growing potential of cyber warfare.

Further, in 2006, during the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, this term was frequently used.That was an example of a war that fitted contemporary definitions of hybrid warfare.

Hezbollah, which had been trained and equipped by Iran, surprised Israel with its sophisticated combination of guerrilla and conventional military tactics and employed weaponry and communication systems normally associated with the armed forces of developed states. At the strategic level, Hezbollah made effective use of the Internet and other media for information and propaganda. Its information management proved much more successful than Israel’s in influencing global opinion from the start of the conflict.

More importantly, while discussing the very hybridity of warfare, when this term went on peak, it was tried out elsewhere, as by Russia against Ukraine. Russia can, at no level, be condoned for practicing this lethal mode of fighting in occupying parts of Ukraine and the whole of Crimea. In 2014, Russia, while using asymmetric tactics of war began to spread disinformation, and made intense use of cyber-attacks.

To annex Crimea, the Russian Federation supported separatist groups in eastern Ukraine. Russian techniques included the traditional combination of conventional and irregular combat operations, but also the support and sponsorship of political protests, economic coercion and other such tactics.

The Russian approach to hybrid warfare does not exclude the direct use of military force when necessary. In summer 2014, when Russia had exhausted its use of non-military hybrid methods, military operations in Ukraine took on the character of limited conventional war. Russian battalion tactical groups (BTg) intervened directly in combat against the Ukrainian army.

China’s People’s Liberation Army is also a potential adversary in hybrid warfare. Members of the PLA were recently indicted by the USA for hacking equifax’s computer systems. In that September 2017 attack, the personal information of 145.5 million Americans, 400,000 Britons and 19,000 Canadians was exposed, including credit records, addresses, and credit and debit card numbers.

In October 2019, hackers obtained personal identifiable information from three hospitals in southwestern Ontario: Listowel, Wingham and Michael garron (formerly Toronto east Hospital). At garron, the malware targeted computer systems that collected information, demanding a ransom to retrieve data that had been encrypted by the attack, and causing major disruptions for patients and staff, who had to resort to transcribing patient data by hand onto paper The City of Woodstock fell victim to a

cyber attack. It chose not to pay a ransom, but it spent $1.04 million on recovering and reequipping its system.

On the other hand, the City of Stratford paid $75,000 worth of Bitcoin to obtain encryption keys to unlock its system information after a cyber attack.

Surprisingly, Pakistan’s old-cum-arch foe India has left no stone unturned in this respect to keep Pakistan unstable politically, economically, diplomatically, and especially endogenously, by multi-pronged tactical intrigues.

Arguably, since the CPeC accord, it has been employing techniques of stirring up insurgency in Balochistan; people are divided linguistically and ethnically. They are pitched against their own security institutions and the sense of deprivation is created in them as well.

Let me borrow few lines from an article, published in a Pakistani newspaper, on 3 June 2018 to adduce my viewpoint, ‘a latest book Spy Chronicles, co-authored by Asad Durrani, exISI chief, and his Indian counterpart AS Dulat, ex-head of RAW. While discussing the importance of Balochistan, Asad Durrani writes, “It is an important area for different purposes. Some are there to blow up the pipeline Iran and Pakistan want to build or to sabotage the economic corridor; others because they don’t want to miss out on what the first lot are planning.

The place is crucial for the ‘new great game’.”’

That vividly depicts the techniques of hybrid warfare are used

by India to destabilize Pakistan.

Moreover, nATO policy-makers stated that a new era of conflict has begun. To cope with these indigenous warfare attacks, nATO seems to devise a strategy and is making efforts to collect and evaluate information about hybrid attacks directed against its member states.

It is also developing rapid-reaction cyberdefence teams that can be sent at an ally’s request in a crisis. The cyber teams work on civil emergency planning, critical infrastructure protection, counterterrorism and energy protection. nATO wants to prevent conflicts from escalating and seeks to develop counter-strategies that would improve intelligence sharing. Beyond nATO, more units are being dedicaated to deal with hybrid threats, such as the european Centre of excellence established by Finland. But all this work requires the sharing of confidential information and classified documents, which means significant trust must be built.

Keeping in view the lethality of this latest phenomenon, Pakistan must learn a lesson and devise a strategy by using all required paraphernalia in every arena to counter India and strengthen its cyber-security. In addition, The RCMP urges not to pay any ransom to the hackers, it further stated that after payment there is no surety of the recovery of data but it may bolster to further their such nefarious techniques.

Keeping in view the lethality of this latest phenomenon, Pakistan must learn a lesson and devise a strategy by using all required paraphernalia in every arena to counter India and strengthen its cyber-security.

The writer can be sanwalrind14@gmail.com

reached

at

DOn’T be negligent,” “Don’t drop your guard,” “Don’t be misguided,” “Double down the efforts, “... These have been some of the severe warning signals from the international forums like CDC-Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as against the ongoing corona fight worldwide. Incidentally, most people are not ready to buy into these serious messages. Although there have been encouraging measures and methods in place to reopen economy, schools, colleges, etc, the CDC has been rightly doing its bits and bytes through encouraging people to still wear masks and by warning against letting down guard on the coronavirus. Though I have been in the habit of wearing a mask while out and off to somewhere outside and nearby, there has been the “mix and match” attitude from the people. even then, I usually feel positive seeing others wear masks. As for the mask mandate, I have been trying to cajole friends and others into wearing the masks in my native areas like nagercoil, Kanyakumari, Tirunelveli, Tuticorin, Tiruchendur and Korkai in Tamil nadu. With the mask on and by being ready to buy this fact, they can still make a big difference to the COVID fight. Also, there is no need to get panicked by unnecessary hearsay like “ We have not yet been out of the woods.” Though caught unawares by the new strain out of the blue, the world community has been rigorously fighting this virus through strong strategies and medically proven powerful vaccines.

P SEnThil Saravana Durai MuMBai

It’s the mindset, not the clothes RAPe is never a result of how someone dresses; instead, it’s a power crime. Unfortunately, according to our dear PM Imran Khan, the onus is on women for getting sexually harassed. He thinks that men aren’t robots if they won’t be enticed by how a woman dresses. Women in an abaya, men in shalwar kameez and innocent boys and girls in their regular clothing get groped too. Imran Khan needs to know that his statement hurt the sentiments of women countrywide, and they deserve a long-overdue apology. If a statement about a religious minority was said and if feelings of religious minorities were hurt, there would be a video or tweet apologizing to them the next day. Imran Khan should’ve given a neutral response when asked; moreover, it explicitly looked from the interview that he hadn’t prepared any talking points and was extraordinarily spontaneous and brazen when he made that remark on women’s attire.

He’s a leader of our nation; his words greatly influence a multitude of people. He should be careful about what he utters since his last comment proved he’s a rape apologist.

Vania aLi KaraChi

Forgotten pensioners ACCORDIng to the media reports, the government has increased the pay of government officers by 25%. The decision seems to have been made by the government in haste to appease the protestors. The government should have set up a pay commission to properly assess the amount of raise needed for the government employees and the pensioners. The commission must consider not only the serving employees but the pensioners also. In addition, the government needs to pay special attention to lower cadre employees who bear the brunt of inflation. The high-ranking officers enjoy better salaries and perks. They are less affected by inflation as compared to lower-ranking employees, who have meager salaries with no perks. However, the percentage increase in salaries has quite the opposite effect. While such increases bring a good increase for high-ranking officers, the lower cadre employees end up with increases that are not good at mitigating the effects of rising inflation. raja ShafaaTullah iSlaMaBaD

Insolvable power issues IT is pity that the entire government appears helpless to pinpoint the people resposible for the present electricity turmoil in Karachi which is being subjected to severe load shedding in this extreme hot & humid weather for the last several days while no immediate remedy is in sight .

On Monday , 29th June , a very high level meeting comprising all important ministers, secretaries , Ke management and advisors deliberated on the causes and issues of otherwise avoidable load shedding going on in Karachi , but failed to fix responsibility for the catestrophe. The outcome of the meering was to constitute another inquiry committee to ascertain the causes of the problem without announcing any measure to end the load shedding to which the Karachites are subjected to. Had there been capable and competent participants in the meeting , the responsibility of this catestrophe would have been fixed and many heads should have rolled. As the things are going , the rest of the country should be prepared for another bout of load shedding and power tariff hikes .

Engr riaz BhuTTa lahorE

Legal aid in Pakistan A system which provides free advice about law and helping to the people who are poor or unable to afford it. Majority in Pakistan do not get proper guidance regarding justice, people are not aware of such channels which are working tirelessly to make ease on the path of justice. The legal aid is the substantive right of people under the constitution which makes it obligatory on the state to provide inexpensive justice to eliminate all forms of exploitation, people does not have firm faith in our judicial system so they avoid to go in courts instead they prefer to solve their problems on their own because judicial process is lengthy and takes plenty of time , there are many legal aid provider associations in all over Pakistan for women, children, prisoners, and this concept of legal aid can be traced back in 1944 when in Britain lord chancellor Viscount Simon formed Rushcliffe committee to give legal assistance to people.

Sarfraz ali SooMro Tharu Shah

Friday, 25 June, 2021

08 WORLD VIEW

99% oF people in poor counTries are unvaccinaTed GLOBAL HERD IMMUNITY REMAINS OUT OF REACH BECAUSE OF INEQUITABLE VACCINE DISTRIBUTION

Conversation

i

marIa DE JESuS

N the race between infection and injection, injection has lost. Public health experts estimate that approximately 70% of the world’s 7.9 billion people must be fully vaccinated to end the COVID-19 pandemic. As of June 21, 2021, 10.04% of the global population had been fully vaccinated, nearly all of them in rich countries. Only 0.9% of people in low-income countries have received at least one dose. I am a scholar of global health who specializes in health care inequities. Using a data set on vaccine distribution compiled by the Global health Innovation Center’s Launch and Scale Speedometer at Duke University in the United States, I analyzed what the global vaccine access gap means for the world.

A GLOBAL HEALTH CRISIS: Supply is not the main reason some countries are able to vaccinate their populations while others experience severe disease outbreaks—distribution is.

Many rich countries pursued a strategy

of overbuying COVID-19 vaccine doses in advance. My analyses demonstrate that the U.S., for example, has procured 1.2 billion COVID-19 vaccine doses, or 3.7 doses per person. Canada has ordered 381 million doses; every Canadian could be vaccinated five times over with the two doses needed.

Overall, countries representing just oneseventh of the world’s population had reserved more than half of all vaccines available by June 2021. That has made it very difficult for the remaining countries to procure doses, either directly or through COVAX, the global initiative created to enable low- to middle-income countries equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines.

Benin, for example, has obtained about 203,000 doses of China’s Sinovac vaccine— enough to fully vaccinate 1% of its population. honduras, relying mainly on AstraZeneca, has procured approximately 1.4 million doses. That will fully vaccinate 7% of its population. In these “vaccine deserts,” even front-line health workers aren’t yet inoculated. haiti has received about 461,500 COVID-19 vaccine doses by donations and is grappling with a serious outbreak. even COVAX’s goal—for lower-income countries to “receive enough doses to vaccinate up to 20% of their population”—would not get COVID-19 transmission under control in those places.

THE COST OF NOT COOPERATING: Last year, researchers at Northeastern University modeled two vaccine rollout strategies.

Their numerical simulations found that 61% of deaths worldwide would have been averted if

countries cooperated to implement an equitable global vaccine distribution plan, compared with only 33% if high-income countries got the vaccines first. Put briefly, when countries cooperate, COVID-19 deaths drop by approximately in half. Vaccine access is inequitable within countries, too—especially in countries where severe inequality already exists.

In Latin America, for example, a disproportionate number of the tiny minority of people who’ve been vaccinated are elites: political leaders, business tycoons and those with the means to travel abroad to get vaccinated. This entrenches wider health and social inequities. The result, for now, is two separate and unequal societies in which only the wealthy are protected from a devastating disease that continues to ravage those who are not able to access the vaccine.

A REPEAT OF AIDS MISSTEPS? This is a familiar story from the hIV era. In the 1990s, the development of effective antiretroviral drugs for hIV/AIDS saved millions of lives in high-income countries. however, about 90% of the global poor who were living with hIV had no access to these lifesaving drugs.

Concerned about undercutting their markets in high-income countries, the pharmaceutical companies that produced antiretrovirals, such as Burroughs Wellcome, adopted internationally consistent prices.

Azidothymidine, the first drug to fight hIV, cost about US$8,000 a year – over $19,000 in today’s dollars.

That effectively placed effective hIV/AIDS drugs out of reach for people in

Europe is finally hitting Google where it hurts most

poor nations—including countries in sub-Saharan Africa, the epidemic’s epicenter. By the year 2000, 22 million people in sub-Saharan Africa were living with hIV, and AIDS was the region’s leading cause of death.

The crisis over inequitable access to AIDS treatment began dominating international news headlines, and the rich world’s obligation to respond became too great to ignore. “history will surely judge us harshly if we do not respond with all the energy and resources that we can bring to bear in the fight against hIV/AIDS,” said South African President Nelson Mandela in 2004.

Pharmaceutical companies began donating antiretrovirals to countries in need and allowing local businesses to manufacture generic versions, providing bulk, low-cost access for highly affected poor countries.

New global institutions like the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria were created to finance health programs in poor countries.

Pressured by grassroots activism, the United States and other high-income countries also spent billions of dollars to research, develop and distribute affordable hIV treatments worldwide.

A DOSE OF GLOBAL COOPERATION: It took over a decade after the development of antiretrovirals, and millions of unnecessary deaths, for rich countries to make those lifesaving medicines universally available. Fifteen months into the current pandemic, wealthy, highly vaccinated countries are starting to assume some responsibility for boosting global vaccination rates.

BlooMBerG

F

aLEX WEBB

ORGeT the $9 billion of fines that came before. They barely scratched the surface. For Google, this is the big one. On Tuesday the european Commission announced a formal probe into the search giant’s practices in online advertising. After years of antitrust investigations, this is by a country mile the most important, because it focuses on how Google actually makes most of its money.

Parent company Alphabet Inc. gets 81% of its revenue from online advertising. That amounted to $147 billion last year. In comparison, the earlier investigations into the California-based firm looked at practices that, while important, were merely adjacent to or helped consolidate the dominance of that core business. european Union antitrust chief Margrethe Vestager is now targeting the money spinner itself.

That means the stakes are higher. If found to have abused its dominant position, the changes Google could be forced to make would have a more profound impact. When it was punished by the eU in 2018, for the way it forced smartphone makers to install its search engine and web browser as the default apps on their handsets, the move had little discernible impact on Google’s ongoing operations. After all, it had already squeezed out most of the competition in mobile operating systems, with the notable exception of Apple Inc. Online advertising is different because Google plays such a dominant role across the web. The fact that it owns the biggest search engine, video streaming website and e-mail client isn’t the top cause for concern — it’s that the finances of all three are tied together through the ads that pay for them.

Online ads are a complex landscape, where websites sell advertisers access to their visitors in real time. The best way to think of it is like

Alex Webb is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering Europe’s technology, media and communications industries.

Maria De Jesus is Associate Professor and Research Fellow at the Center on Health, Risk, and Society at American University School of International Service

Words alone will not end anti-Muslim terrorism in Canada

“GOOGLE’S STRONG POSITION AT EACH LEVEL OF THE INTERMEDIATION VALUE CHAIN CREATES CLEAR CONFLICTS OF INTEREST” an auction house where brands constantly bid against each other to show their ads to web users. And Google is the biggest auction house.

So if I’m in the business of selling yellow widgets, for example, I tell Google how much I’m willing to pay for my ad to be shown to someone who searches Google or YouTube for yellow widgets or lands on a website that displays ads from Google’s advertising network.

The next time a visitor appears, my bid is tallied in a split second against what others with a similar product are willing to pay, and Google then serves the ad of the highest bidder.

The problem is that Google holds all of the power. In the auction house analogy, the company is the buyer’s agent, the seller’s agent and often the seller too. It has both the opportunity and incentive to A) overcharge advertisers who have no visibility into the value of competing bids; and B) send more revenue toward its own websites. It can decide to direct my advertising spend towards YouTube, rather than another video site.

The question is whether it employs these advantages, and that’s what the eU is now investigating. The bloc is building on earlier investigations by Britain’s Competition and Markets Authority and Australia’s Competition and Consumer Commission. The U.K.’s CMA determined in 2020 that “Google’s strong position at each level of the intermediation value chain creates clear conflicts of interest.”

Of course, there’s a risk for the eU too. It’s good that a meaningful regulator is finally tackling the most important question as far as Google’s outsize role in the navigation and economics of the internet is concerned. But there’s a chance that the probe ends up either giving Google’s advertising practices a clean bill of health or recommending remedies that are inadequate or ineffective.

So there’s a lot at stake not just for Google but also for the Commission itself. Let battle commence.

Leaders of the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, european Union and Japan recently pledged to donate a total of 1 billion COVID-19 vaccine doses to poorer countries. It is not yet clear how their plan to “vaccinate the world” by the end of 2022 will be implemented and whether recipient countries will receive enough doses to fully vaccinate enough people to control viral spread. And the late 2022 goal will not save people in the developing world who are dying of COVID-19 in record numbers now, from Brazil to India.

The hIV/AIDS epidemic shows that ending the coronavirus pandemic will require, first, prioritizing access to COVID19 vaccines on the global political agenda.

Then wealthy nations will need to work with other countries to build their vaccine manufacturing infrastructure, scaling up production worldwide.

Finally, poorer countries need more money to fund their public health systems and purchase vaccines. Wealthy countries and groups like the G-7 can provide that funding. These actions benefit rich countries, too. As long as the world has unvaccinated populations, COVID-19 will continue to spread and mutate. Additional variants will emerge. As a May 2021 UNICeF statement put it: “In our interdependent world no one is safe until everyone is safe.”

Middle east Monitor

T

Dr ramzy BarouD

he killing of a Muslim family in Ontario, Canada, on 6 June presented another opportunity for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to brand himself as a voice of reason and communal harmony. however, Trudeau’s amiable and reassuring language was designed to veil a sinister reality which has, for many years, hidden the true face of Canadian politics.

“This was a terrorist attack, motivated by hatred, in the heart of one of our communities,” Trudeau told parliament, two days after Nathaniel Veltman deliberately drove his vehicle into a Canadian Muslim family at an intersection in London, Ontario. Only a young boy survived the attack which killed his parents, sister and grandmother. The nine-year-old remains in critical condition in hospital.

Trudeau, whose friendly and progressive liberal facade is often juxtaposed with the rise of conservative, populist politics in much of the Western hemisphere, went on speaking as if he is an activist advocating human rights and equality for all. “If anyone thinks racism and hatred don’t exist in this country, I want to say this: how do we explain such violence to a child in a hospital? how can we look families in the eye and say ‘Islamophobia isn’t real’?”

Ironically, it took years of pressure and concerted lobbying from many civil society organisations, progressives and Muslim groups to finally convince Trudeau to designate 29 January every year as the “National Day of Remembrance and Action on Islamophobia”. This specific date was chosen to commemorate the terrorist attack by a Canadian citizen on a Quebec City mosque in 2017. Six Canadian Muslims were killed and 19 others were injured in that particular hate crime.

That was also an opportunity for Trudeau to rail against terrorism and hate. Ultimately, it was all empty rhetoric, as the Canadian government has done little to curb the dangerous phenomenon. This lack of meaningful action makes the government complicit in rising Islamophobia and hate crimes in Canada.

By way of explaining his reluctance to recognise 29 January as the day of “action on Islamophobia”, Trudeau told Radio Canada that, while it is “important to underline intolerance directed at people of faith,” he wished to “avoid that type of backlash that we’ve seen when we take these kinds of

actions,” since the perpetrators of hate crimes are “still a small intolerant minority”. Jingoism aside, Trudeau was essentially arguing that recognition and action against Islamophobia were unnecessary as they may give too much attention to a “small” and hateful “minority”.

Trudeau is utterly wrong. A report submitted by the UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief in November last year showed that a majority of Canadians — 52 per cent of those polled — believe that Muslims cannot be trusted, while 42 per cent feel that discrimination against Muslims — for which read, racism — is mainly the fault of Muslims themselves.

The UN findings are part of a long trajectory of violence and racism targeting Canadian Muslims. A Gallup Poll published in 2011 debunked the “small minority” of racists claim.

Almost half of all Canadian Muslims — 48 per cent — feel disrespected within society, as do 52 per cent of American Muslims. This “disrespect” manifests itself in numerous ways, much of it unreported, although it occasionally makes news when it translates into outright violence.

There is plenty of that. Official Canadian police reports demonstrate that hate crimes against Canada’s Muslims are on the rise, with 166 such incidents reported in 2018 and 181 in 2019. Violent crimes are becoming more intense and bloodier over time.

Sadly, anti-Muslim terrorism in Canada is likely to increase in the future, not only because hate crime statistics show an upward trajectory, but also because anti-Muslim sentiments often take centre stage in government and the media.

Negative depictions of Islam and Muslims in Canadian media must not be grouped under the designation of “mainstream Western media bias”, because media scaremongering is penetrating the psyche of large sections of Canadian society. Many Canadian politicians, even in Trudeau’s own party, often exploit this alarming phenomenon to feed their political ambitions.

Various Canadian provinces have either passed or drafted laws that specifically target Canada’s Muslim minorities.

Quebec’s Bill 62, for example, restricts the wearing of the niqab in public buildings. Outrageously, the Bill, which was passed by Quebec’s Liberal government in October 2017, followed the bloody attack on the Grand Mosque in Quebec City.

Instead of fighting Islamophobia, Quebec’s officials provided it with legal and moral justification.

While feeding Islamophobia at home, Trudeau persistently rages against human rights violators in China, the Middle east and around the world. As Chinese columnist Mu Lu rightly argued in the Global Times, Canada uses “human rights as a stick to beat others.” While the same claim can also be made regarding the misuse of human rights as a foreign policy tool by other Western leaders, Trudeau is often successful in presenting his human rights concerns as genuine.

If he is indeed genuine in his desire to root out anti-Muslim terrorism from Canada, the prime minister should start by cleansing his own party of hate speech, end all attempts at criminalising Islam and Muslims and ban hate speech against Muslims in the media.

Terrorism will not end as a result of pompous pronouncements, but through real action. Justin Trudeau seems to be responsible for a lot of the former and none of the latter.

Friday, 25 June, 2021

BusIness 09

lahore corporate corner PMIC closes its second advisory & arrangement mandate for Khushhali Microfinance Bank

PAKISTAn’S BASMATI CASe In eU In DAnGer AS IPO reMAInS HeADLeSS ISLAMABAD GHULAM ABBAS

W

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Microfinance Investment Company Limited (PMIC) is a wholesale finance entity and an important pillar of National Financial Inclusion Strategy of Pakistan. PMIC focuses on promoting poverty alleviation initiatives through Microfinance Institutions and Banks (MFIs & MFBs) and improving employment and livelihood opportunities for marginalized segments in the country especially women and youth. Furthering its mission, PMIC has successfully closed its second advisory & arrangement mandate for Khushhali Micro Finance Bank Limited (KMBL). KMBL has issued unsecured, subordinated, privately placed, Tier II Term Finance Certificates of Rs600m, where entire amount is provided by PMIC. The investor agreement was signed by Yasir Ashfaq, Chief Executive Officer PMIC and Ghalib Nishtar, President & Chief Executive Officer KMBL. PRESS RELEASE

Jazz secures telecom sector’s largest credit facility to support 4G network rollout

KARACHI: Jazz has secured a PKR 50 billion syndicated credit facility from a banking consortium led by HBL. This 10-year facility will be used to finance the company’s ongoing 4G network rollouts and technology upgradation. This is the first of its kind facility extended to the telecom sector in terms of the amount and tenor. The facility is fully subscribed by HBL, the consortium’s investment agent and mandated lead arranger. Other banks who are also acting as the mandated lead arrangers and advisors on this deal include: United Bank Limited, National Bank of Pakistan, MCB Bank, Bank Alfalah, Allied Bank Limited, Askari Bank Limited, Bank of Punjab, Meezan Bank Limited and Faysal Bank Limited. PRESS RELEASE

ACCA and P@SHA to join hands in promoting Pakistan as a knowledge economy KARACHI: A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) has been signed between P@SHA (Pakistan Software Houses Association for IT & ITES), Pakistan’s sole representative trade body for the IT & ITES sector, and Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA), the world’s leading body for professional accountants. Both organizations have committed to work together towards accelerating Pakistan’s inclusive economic growth through development of technology eco-system and digital acceleration. Key focus would remain to super connect the innovation value chain for the development of human capital and branding of Pakistan amongst globally recognized knowledge economies. This will amplify our contribution towards a better, fairer, more sustainable future for all.” PRESS RELEASE

KARACHI: Business Deal signed between Habib Oil Mills and Upfield Holdings B.V (L-R seated- Mr. Zahid Hussain (GM operations HOM), Mr. Moidul Hassan (MD HOM) and Ms. Fariha Subhani (Upfield Holdings B.V) with their teams. PR

HIlE Pakistan fights a battle with India for securing the Geographical Indication (GI) tag for its Basmati rice in the European market, the concerned department of Ministry of Commerce (MoC) has been headless for more than 22 days, which may cause damage to the case.

According to insiders, Intellectual Property Organization (IPO) Chairman Mujeeb Ahmed, who being the technical expert in IPR, is leading Pakistan's case against India's application for an exclusive GI rights for Basmati in European Union (EU), completed his term early this month.

Although Adviser to PM on Commerce and Investment, Razak Dawood, has recommended extending Ahmed's tenure, given that the next few months are reportedly crucial for the case in the EU, the concerned ministries are yet to come to make a final decision in this regard.

Razak DawooD RecommeNDs exTeNDiNg chaiRmaN’s TeNuRe uNTil eND of case Rice Exporters Association of Pakistan (REAP) former vice president, Taufiq Ahmed Khan, while talking to this scribe, claimed that any disturbance in the half cooked process of the Basmati case would be harmful for the country.

"The IPO chairman successfully led the entire process of fighting the case in the EU besides, completing the first ever and long awaited GI legislation of the country. His absence at a time when India and Pakistan are actively in talks for the resolution of a major trade-related dispute may damage the case and ultimately the country's economy," he said.

According to sources, consultants and technical experts of both India and Pakistan are currently negotiating over a task given by EU for amicable resolution of the case.

Though the initial time period has

expired without any breakthrough, the two countries, as per sources, have been given additional time till September 2021 to talk and settle the issue of exclusive rights via GI tag to market Basmati rice in the EU. As per an official at the Ministry of Commerce, in case of deadlock on the issue, the matter may be referred to the International Court of Justice. Both the countries have hired international consulting firms to fight the case in the EU. “Since the appointment of a new IPO chairman with required expertise in the relevant field may take time, we suggest the government to extend the tenure of existing chairman to avoid any disturbance in the important case,” the REAP member said, adding that any lack of seriousness on the part of relevant officials could damage the case of the country.

It may be recalled here that Pakistan has registered Basmati as GI product after approval of the GI law of the country. It had registered its GI for basmati rice in 2020 after India had falsely claimed its produce of basmati rice to be original in an attempt to hinder Pakistan’s trade in the EU. The Trade Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP) was given the task of registering all the merchant profiles and trade routes and with the Intellectual Property Organisation (IPO).

In September 2020, India had applied for an exclusive GI tag for Basmati rice in the EU. The EU had approved India’s application in its official journal, and then claimed basmati rice as an Indian origin product, even though the same rice is produced in Pakistan on a large scale.

India, to support its claim of exclusivity, had referred to various reports and dictionaries to show that the basmati rice is of Indian origin and conveniently left out the part that the same rice is widely produced in Pakistan.

Countrywide fuel shortage looms as tankers’ body announces strike The All Pakistan Oil Tankers Contractors Association (APOTCA) has announced a countrywide strike for an indefinite period, raising fears of a petrol crisis across the country.

According to local media reports, the association has parked the oil tankers and suspended the supply of oil in a bid to coerce the government in to meeting its demands.

Speaking to the media, APOTCA President Abidullah Afridi said that the oil tankers contractors and owners have invested billions of rupees to upgrade their vehicles to transport oil supplies from Karachi to the upcountry. However, the OMCs have laid the White Oil Pipeline (WOP) from Karachi to Punjab to transport oil upcountry.

“We demand 50pc quota in the WOP, meaning that oil marketing companies should dispatch 50pc supplies through roads and rest of the 50pc through the pipeline,” Afridi said.

The OMCs are reportedly dispatching some 60pc diesel supplies through the pipeline whereas the rest of the supplies were being supplied through tankers.

The association president went on to say that all the associations engaged in oil supplies to the

upcountry are part of the strike, including the oil tankers owners’ association.

It may be mentioned here that there are some 15,000 tankers engaged in supplying petroleum products nationwide.

“The government had promised to cut the rate of tax on us to 2pc in FY22 from 3pc. However, the rate of tax has remained unchanged,” he said, adding that the demands included a cut in the rate of taxes on transportation of oil and fixation of the queue system at oil storage facilities.

“There is a need to fix the queue system at oil storage facilities. At present, tankers which belong to influential people are given priority while filling while others have to wait for longer durations,” he said.

Afridi vowed to continue the strike until their demands are met. However, on the other hand, the All Pakistan Oil Tankers Owners Association (APOTOA) has distanced itself from the strike.

APOTOA’s vice president, while speaking to the media, said that the strike is an attempt to get rid the new system as a computerised system would end kickbacks on oil tankers. NEWS DESK

No leniency for tax defaulters from next fiscal year, warns Tarin Finance Minister Shaukat Tarin has said that the government will not show leniency towards willful tax defaulters from the next fiscal year (FY22). Speaking informally with journalists at the Parliament House on Wednesday, the finance minister said the government will take action against those who ignore tax notices sent by the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR). He said the budget would be implemented from July 1 as it is expected to get the Parliament’s nod in the coming week. He said that various sectors have been given relief on the Senate’s recommendations, adding that their proposals were accommodated in the budget. However, he clarified that the government is ready to hold talks with all parties to discuss tax-related matters. “The government will take policy enforcement steps after holding talks with all stakeholders,” he assured. MONITORING REPORT

In a first for Mideast, Bitcoin fund launches on Dubai bourse DUBAI AGENCIES

The Middle East’s first bitcoin fund launched on the Dubai bourse on Wednesday, with Canadian digital asset manager 3iQ Corp seeking to raise around $200 million in the offering.

Created in 2008 as an alternative to traditional currencies, bitcoin is the world’s most popular virtual unit, but its price has slumped recently due to moves from China to crack down on cryptocurrencies.

“3iQ Corp., Canada’s largest digital asset investment fund manager… today officially listed The Bitcoin Fund on Nasdaq Dubai, the region’s international exchange,” the bourse said in a statement.

It said that “this fund is the world’s first regulated major Bitcoin fund to be listed on the capital markets in the Middle East North Africa region”.

“Bitcoin trades 24 hours a day around the world, and in Canada we trade around North American market times and Dubai is almost perfectly opposite of (those) trading hours,” 3iQ Corp chief executive Fred Pye told Bloomberg Television.

“We think if the market holds up for the next few months while we get the listing going, we expect to probably be quite far north of ($200 million).”

Bitcoin fell under $30,000 on Tuesday for the first time in five months, hit by concerns over China’s ongoing crackdown.

The unit had recovered

CMYK

some lost ground by 1040 GMT on Wednesday, punctuating a rollercoaster month of trading, standing at $34,104 a piece.

Chinese mines power nearly 80% of the global trade in cryptocurrencies despite a domestic trading ban since 2017.

But in recent months several provinces have ordered mines to close as Beijing puts the industry under the regulatory microscope.

The 3iQ fund finished up 10.38% at $38.30 following Wednesday trading, according to the Nasdaq Dubai website.

The fund’s prospectus says that it seeks to invest in longterm holdings of bitcoin as a less volatile alternative to direct investments in unpredictable cryptocurrencies.

PSW to boost international trade in Pakistan: ADB ISLAMABAD: The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is supporting the development of the Pakistan Single Window (PSW), which automates and integrates government processes under a single digital platform to ease international trade. According to a statement issued on Thursday, international trade will be faster, easier, and cheaper with the development of the Pakistan Single Window. The Pakistan Single Window will strengthen Pakistan’s integration and cooperation with its neighbours and allow the country to fulfil its commitment under the World Trade Organization's Trade Facilitation Agreement, said the statement. The Pakistan Single Window System (PSW) is a transformational trade facilitation initiative that will help reduce time, cost, and complications of moving goods across Pakistan’s borders while ensuring better compliance with cross-border trade regulations. Set under the World Trade Organization’s Trade Facilitation Agreement, PSW will significantly enhance Pakistan’s trade competitiveness, said the statement. Under its Trade and Competitiveness Programme, the ADB is facilitating institutional and legal changes relevant for PSW. The ADB also provided technical assistance to design and implement a risk management system that is important for reducing cargo clearance time. TLTP

Daraz improving customer experience with TPL Trakker’s infrastructure KARACHI: TPL Trakker has partnered with Daraz to provide the e-commerce website with completely customised Fleet Management Services (FMS), to help enhance their delivery services across Pakistan, resulting in quick and efficient deliveries to customers.

To initiate the partnership, a digital signing ceremony was held at TPL Trakker and Daraz’s respective Head Offices in June. Present at the occasion from TPL Trakker were, Sarwar Ali Khan, CEO, Talha Dawood, Head of Asset Tracking and Ubaidulla Afaq, Regional Sales Head, South while Ahmed Tanveer, Chief Operating Officer represented Daraz. “One of the top challenges in the growth of e-commerce is the logistics infrastructure. Our continuous goal is to improve the situation, recently we have partnered with TPL Trakker which will help us and all our partners to 100% digitize the tracking of line haul movements. This will give us the right data and new insights through which we can further optimize our delivery lead times,” Tanveer said.

“It’s a new milestone for Trakker in being chosen as the sole FMS Provider by Pakistan’s biggest ecommerce platform who have placed their trust in our services to streamline their deliveries. The move is in line with our mission at TPL Trakker, to deliver telematics to connect mobile assets, people and businesses and help businesses make faster and smarter decisions with real time insights,” TPL Trakker CEO Sarwar Ali Khan said. PRESS RELEASE

Friday, 25 June, 2021

10 FOREIGN NEWS

LAHORE

Iran says Us to lIft oIl sanCtIons, WashIngton says nothIng agreed DUBAI/BERLIN REUTERS

I

RAN said on Wednesday the United States had agreed to remove all sanctions on Iran’s oil and shipping but Washington said “nothing is agreed until everything is agreed” in talks to revive the 2015 Iran nuclear deal. The remarks by outgoing President Hassan Rouhani’s chief of staff Mahmoud Vaezi echoed previous assertions by officials in Rouhani’s pragmatist camp that Washington is ready to make major concessions at the nuclear talks in Vienna that began in April.

The indirect talks adjourned on Sunday for consultations in capitals, two days after Iran held a presidential election won by hardliner Ebrahim Raisi, the Iranian judiciary chief subject to US sanctions. Raisi is due to re-

place Rouhani in August.

Iran struck a deal with major powers in 2015 to curb its uranium enrichment program, a possible pathway to nuclear arms, in return for the lifting of US, EU and UN sanctions. Then-US President Donald Trump abandoned the deal in 2018 and reimposed harsh sanctions, prompting Tehran to start violating some of the nuclear limits in 2019 while sticking to its position that it had no nuclear weapons ambitions.

US President Joe Biden aims to restore the deal, but the sides disagree on which steps need to be taken and when, with the key issues being what nuclear limits Tehran will accept and what sanctions Washington will remove. “An agreement has been reached to remove all insurance, oil and shipping sanctions that were imposed

by Trump,” Vaezi was quoted as saying by Iranian state media.

While acknowledging negotiators sometimes draw up draft texts, the US State Department said there would be no agreement until all matters had been resolved.

“During negotiations of this complexity, negotiators try to draft text that capture the main issues, but again, nothing is agreed until everything is agreed,” a State Department spokesman said on condition of anonymity.

Echoing Western and Iranian negotiators, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said there were still significant hurdles. “We are making progress but there are still some nuts to crack,” Maas told a news conference with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken. Maas said a deal was possible even after the election of Raisi, an implacable critic of the West.

‘DIFFICULT DECISIONS’: French Junior Foreign Minister Franck Riester told lawmakers time was running out to reach a deal and he suggested one might not

Thai protesters return to streets demanding constitutional changes BANGKOK REUTERS

Hundreds of Thai pro-democracy protesters took to the streets on Thursday, calling for the resignation of Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha and constitutional changes that would curb the influence of the country’s powerful monarchy. The rally, which defied a ban on public gatherings due to the pandemic, comes as Prayuth’s government faces public criticism over its handling of coronavirus outbreaks, a slow economic recovery and a vaccine policy that involves a company owned

by King Maha Vajiralongkorn.

“The constitution must come from the people,” protest leader, Jatupat “Pai Daodin” Boonpattararaksa, told the crowd in the capital Bangkok.

Youth-led demonstrations last year attracted hundreds of thousands of people across the country, but they stalled after security forces began cracking down on rallies, detaining protest leaders and after new waves of Covid-19 infections broke out.

Protesters had broken traditional taboos by criticising the king, risking prosecution under a strict lese majeste law that makes insulting or defaming the king, queen, heir and regent punishable by up to 15 years in prison. Most of the protest leaders have been released on bail.

In March, several dozen were injured when police fired water cannon, tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse a protest.

Thursday’s rally, which also included some former Prayuth supporters, marks the day when Thailand declared an end to absolute monarchy on June 24, 1932.

“In 89 years since the end of absolutism we have not got anywhere,” Jatupat said.

About 2,500 police officers had been deployed to maintain order, said the deputy head of Bangkok police, Piya Tavichai. “A gathering at this time in not appropriate because it could lead to further spread of the virus.”

DUBAI Oman's foreign minister told his Israeli counterpart he hopes Israel's new government will take concrete steps towards creating an independent Palestinian state

with East Jerusalem as its capital, Omani state media said on Thursday.

Oman's Badr al-Busaidi spoke by phone to Israel's Foreign Minister Yair Lapid, according to ONA, the state news agency of Oman, which has a longstanding policy of neutrality in the turbulent re-

REUTERS

gion and often acts as a mediator.

In February, Busaidi said Oman was satisfied with its current relationship with Israel even after fellow Gulf States the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain normalised ties with Israel last year under US-brokered accords.

Lapid will travel to the UAE next week in the first official visit by an Israeli minister to the Gulf state since they established diplomatic relations. He will inaugurate the Israeli Embassy in Abu Dhabi and the Consulate General of Israel in Dubai.

LUXURY IN THE CLOUDS

Shanghai opens world's highest hotel SHANGHAI AFP

The world's highest luxury hotel, boasting a restaurant on the 120th floor and 24-hour personal butler service, has opened in Shanghai to guests with deep pockets and a head for heights.

Elevators whizz guests up the intimidating spiral-like skyscraper at ear-popping speeds of 18 metres per second to the J Hotel's 165 opulent rooms.

The hotel occupies the top floors of the 632-metre (more than 2,000 feet) Shanghai Tower in the city's financial district, the second-tallest building in the world after Dubai's Burj Khalifa.

Its opening was delayed partly by the coronavirus pandemic but the hotel has now started receiving well-heeled guests who can call on the services of a dedicated butler at any hour, day or night. Patrons can also enjoy one of the hotel's

Indigenous group in Canada announces discovery of hundreds of unmarked graves TORONTO

Oman urges Israel to create independent Palestinian state REUTERS

be struck quickly. “Difficult decisions will need to be made in the coming days or weeks if these negotiations were not to move forward.”

White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said on Sunday there was still “a fair distance to travel.”

Iranian and Western officials say Raisi’s rise is unlikely to alter Iran’s negotiating stance because Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei already has the final say.

Vaezi also said Washington had agreed to take some senior Iranian figures off a blacklist. “About 1,040 Trump-era sanctions will be lifted under the agreement.

It was also agreed to lift some sanctions on individuals and members of the supreme leader’s inner circle.”

The State Department did not directly comment on this. Some Iranian officials have suggested Tehran may prefer an agreement before Raisi takes office to give him a clean slate and allow him to avoid blame if problems arise. Vaezi also said Iran’s Supreme National Security Council would decide whether to extend its nuclear site monitoring deal with the International Atomic Energy Agency after its expiry on June 24.

Iran and the IAEA reached a three-month accord in February to cushion the blow of Tehran’s decision – another response to the US withdrawal from the nuclear agreement – to scale back its cooperation with the UN watchdog by ending extra monitoring measures introduced by the 2015 deal.

seven restaurants, bars, spa, 84th-floor swimming pool, and all the other usual trappings of a topnotch hotel. It does not come cheap. To celebrate its opening J Hotel is offering a "special experience rate" of 3,088 yuan ($450) a night, but prices for its 34 suites sky-rocket.

A night in a "J Suite", complete with crystal chandeliers and sauna, this Saturday costs over 67,000 yuan.

The hotel is part of Jin Jiang International Hotels, a major Chinese state-owned group, and officially opened on Saturday.

"On the day of our opening even the web page was overloaded with so many visitors with strong interest and they have such (a) strong will to come and experience our hotel," said Renee Wu, sales and marketing director.

"Of course this is very encouraging to all of us, but at the same time, we are committed to making sure that all our guests are well taken care of."

A Canadian indigenous group announced on Wednesday the "horrific and shocking discovery" of hundreds of unmarked graves at the site of a former residential school, just weeks after the discovery of other children's remains shook the country. The Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations said in a statement that the number of newly found unmarked graves was "the most significantly substantial to date in Canada." The statement did not specify numbers. The group said it would announce at a news conference on Thursday morning "the horrific and shocking discovery of hundreds of unmarked graves at the site of the former Marieval Indian Residential School" in Saskatchewan. The discovery weeks ago of the remains of 215 indigenous children at the site of another residential school for indigenous children in Kamloops, British Columbia, forced Canadians to confront the legacy of an abusive and assimilationist system. Between 1831 and 1996, Canada's residential school system forcibly separated about 150,000 indigenous children from their families. They were malnourished and physically and sexually abused in what the country's Truth and Reconciliation Commission called "cultural genocide" in 2015. Survivors who spoke with Reuters recalled perpetual hunger and haunting loneliness, and schools run under the threat and frequent use of force.

Canada's federal government apologised for the system in 2008. The Roman Catholic Church, which ran most of the schools, has not apologised. Earlier this month, Pope Francis said he was pained, a statement dismissed by survivors.

Friday, 25 June, 2021

SPORTS 11

LAHORE EURO 2020

RonaLdo SavES PoRtugaL with REcoRd-EquaLLing goaL; gERmany, SPain avoid Shock Exit BUDAPEST

c

AFP

RIStiano Ronaldo equalled the all-time international scoring record with his 109th goal for Portugal as the reigning champions scraped into the last 16 of Euro 2020 on Wednesday along with Germany and Spain.

The Portugal captain netted a pair of penalties in a 2-2 draw with world champions France in Budapest to send his team through as one of the four best third-placed sides on a dramatic night in Group F. Germany needed an 84th-minute equaliser from Leon Goretzka to rescue a nervy 2-2 draw with Hungary in Munich, setting up a heavyweight showdown with England at Wembley next week.

The 36-year-old Ronaldo gave Portugal the lead just after the half-hour mark with his first spot-kick, before France hit back through Karim Benzema’s two goals either side of half-time.

But, with Portugal heading out as it

stood with Hungary leading Germany, Ronaldo converted another penalty on the hour to help send Portugal through to a clash with top-ranked Belgium.

“We did everything I wanted us to do (in the 4-2 defeat) against Germany,” Portuguese coach Fernando Santos told RTP. “The result was clearly fair.”

His fifth goal of the group stage extended his record tally of Euro goals to 14 and drew him level with former Iran striker Ali Daei, in his 178th international match.

France finished top of the group on five points and will take on Switzerland in the first knockout round.

“It was a fight, it wasn’t easy,” France coach Didier Deschamps told TF1.

“I know very well that a new competition will be starting from the last 16.”

GERMANY FIGHT BACK: Germany narrowly avoided a repeat of their group stage exit at the 2018 World Cup, twice coming from behind against Hungary to advance as runners-up.

Adam Szalai gave Hungary a shock early lead and although Germany drew level through Kai Havertz in the second

England down Sri Lanka by eight wickets LONDON

half, Andras Schaefer soon put the visitors back in front, only to be eliminated by Goretzka’s late goal.

“We made mistakes but fought and showed superb morale,” said Germany coach Joachim Loew.

“It was not for the faint-hearted. Now it will a real highlight to play against England at Wembley.”

Just minutes before kick-off at Munich’s Allianz Arena, a fan wearing a Germany shirt and waving a large rainbow flag evaded security to invade the pitch, running in front of the lined-up teams before being tackled by stewards and led away.

The build-up to the match had been overshadowed by the fallout from Uefa’s decision to block plans by Munich authorities to light the stadium in rainbow colours.

SPAIN HIT THEIR STRIDE: Spain found their form at the right time, crushing Slovakia 5-0 in Seville to qualify for the last 16 as runners-up of Group E behind Sweden.

Spain benefited from two own goals as they swept through to a tie against Croatia, while Ukraine progressed without playing and will face Sweden.

Having already qualified, Sweden secured top spot only after scoring late to win 3-2 against Poland, for whom a Robert Lewandowski double was not enough in Saint Petersburg.

Spain had drawn their first two matches in the competition despite having home advantage in Seville, but coach Luis Enrique warned on the eve of facing Slovakia that his team were “like a bottle of cava that is about to be uncorked”.

For the second consecutive game they contrived to miss a penalty as Alvaro Morata’s effort was saved by Martin Dubravka.

However, a calamitous error by Dubravka allowed Spain to go ahead on the half-hour as the goalkeeper palmed into his own net as a Pablo Sarabia shot hit the bar and dropped back down.

Aymeric Laporte then scored his first goal for Spain since switching international allegiance from France, making it 2-0 right on half-time.

The 2008 and 2012 European champions ran away with the game in the second half as Sarabia and Ferran Torres scored.

Juraj Kucka’s own goal made it 5-0 as Spain equalled the biggest winning margin in the history of the European Championship. “We’ve shut a lot of mouths up.

We’ve played some great football and had more luck than in the first two games,” Laporte told television channel Telecinco.

Sweden led Poland 2-0 in Saint Petersburg, Emil Forsberg scoring an early opener and then firing in for his brace after great work from Dejan Kulusevski.

In between Lewandowski had contrived to miss a sitter, twice heading off the bar in quick succession when it seemed easier to score. But the Bayern Munich superstar showed his worth with a stunning strike to reduce the deficit and then an 84th-minute equaliser, a scoreline that would have allowed Spain to win the group.

Poland needed to win themselves to go through but instead Sweden won it in the fourth minute of added time as substitute Viktor Claesson made it 3-2.

Meanwhile those results allowed Ukraine – who played their final Group C game on Monday – to go through as one of the best third-placed teams.

India introspective as ICC success eludes captain Kohli again

AFP

NEW DELHI

Jos Buttler saw England to a comfortable eight-wicket win in the first Twenty20 international against Sri Lanka at Sophia Gardens on Wednesday as the hosts went 1-0 up in a three-match series. Sri Lanka were restricted to a modest 129/7 after winning the toss, with leg-spinner Adil Rashid taking 2-17 from his four overs and Sam Curran 2/25 from three overs. Chris Woakes, playing his first international T20 since 2015, went wicketless in an economical return of 0-14 in three overs. Rashid, however, did not concede a boundary while enticing Kusal Perera and Wanindu Hasaranga to hole out to Chris Jordan at long-on. Only Dasun Shanaka with 50 off 44 balls really threatened England’s attack. But a target of 130 proved well within the range of England, the world’s top-ranked T20 side, as they won with 17 balls to spare. Buttler thrashed eight fours and one six in his innings and shared an opening stand of 80 with Jason Roy. “The thing about batting in partnerships is it allows you to try and sit in and keep Roy back on strike,” said player of the match Buttler, whose innings was labelled a “masterclass”

by England captain Eoin Morgan. “I think it was a fantastic performance from the boys, early wickets in the power play always keep you in the game,” added Buttler after his ninth half-century in just 20 T20 innings opening for England. Morgan, speaking to BBC Radio, was pleased by an all-round display that augurs well for England’s prospects in October’s T20 World Cup. “It’s a great way to start a series that’s so condensed,” he said. “The bowlers really did set the tone, so full credit to them. Chris Woakes has come and performed extremely well. Liam Livingstone has done a really good job and taken his opportunity. “In the chase, Roy and Buttler at the top of the order are a quite formidable pair, and when they play in the fashion that they can be quite intimidating.” Sri Lanka captain Kusal Perera added: “Our batting department was not up to the mark – 130 was not good enough against the number one side in the world. “Our bowlers gave us a little bit of hope. There are a lot of youngsters in our team but that is no an excuse. We have to adapt to conditions.”

ReuteRs

India’s defeat in the final of the World Test Championship forced the cricket-mad nation into introspection while accepting New Zealand were worthy winners of the honour.

India’s eight-wicket loss in Southampton prolonged their wait for a first global title since Mahendra Singh Dhoni led them to victory in the 2013 Champions Trophy.

It was Virat Kohli’s fourth unsuccessful attempt to lead India to an ICC title, the previous being the 2019 One Day World Cup when they lost to New Zealand in the semi-finals in Manchester.

“India fail the ultimate test,” the Times of India newspaper said as it questioned India’s team selection and their preparation for the match.

“The lack of match practice in England hurt them but shouldn’t India have played an extra batsman in Hanuma Vihari?”

The Times suggested seamer Mohammed Siraj should also have been picked in the match in which India played both their spinners in conditions that gave more assistance to swing and seam bowling.

“The answers will arrive in due course but it will rankle this proud Indian team, which has towered over the rest of the test pack for a few years now,” the daily said. “No one, after all, remembers who came second.”

While captain Kohli’s title drought in global tournaments continued, New Zealand put behind

their losses in successive 50-overs World Cup finals with their victory at the Ageas Bowl.

“Kiwis bury the ghosts of 2019, crowned first World Test champion,” The Hindu newspaper said on its sports page.

The Indian Express also hailed New Zealand’s victory with the headline “An island conquers the world”.

“Even as India worryingly continued to trip

up in knockout games, New Zealand, the team that not even the most parochial Indian fan can stir up any negative emotion for, admirably held their nerve to become world Test champions,” it said.

Former India opener Gautam Gambhir summed up the sentiment when he tweeted: “Nice guys don’t always finish last! Congrats NZ. World No.1!”

Djokovic returns to Wimbledon with stranglehold on men’s game LONDON ReuteRs

It is almost two years since Novak Djokovic left Roger Federer crestfallen by edging a momentous Wimbledon final but as the tournament prepares to return after last year’s cancellation, the men’s game remains in the Serb’s stranglehold.

Since that epic five-set victory, in which he saved two match points and won the first fifth-set tiebreak in a Wimbledon final, Djokovic has claimed three of the next six majors with Rafa Nadal bagging two and Dominic Thiem one.

It would likely have been four for Djokovic had he not been defaulted from last year’s US Open — allowing Thiem to sneak in and finally add a new name to the Grand

Slam winners’ club which has been ruled by Roger Federer, Djokovic and Nadal for over 15 years. That proved a mere bump in the road for Djokovic, however, and he will arrive at Wimbledon bidding for a sixth title to match Federer and Nadal’s men’s Grand Slam record haul of 20.

Should he triumph he would also be three quarters of the way to completing the first men’s calendar-year Slam since Rod Laver scooped up all four in 1969.

Nadal will not be playing at Wimbledon, having decided to rest, while eight-time champion Federer is showing signs that, at 39, the window of opportunity to win one more Slam is closing.

Federer, who underwent two knee operations last year and has played only four tournaments since the 2020 Australian Open,

was not his usual self last week at the Halle grasscourt tournament he has won 10 times, succumbing rather meekly in the end to young Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime.

Writing off his chances would be foolhardy, but the main threats to Djokovic might come from a young brigade gradually edging closer to shaking up the status quo in men’s tennis.

“Is his level high enough to compete?

Not in the end of matches but from the first point? That’s the question mark that I think only he knows the answer to until we see him play,” seven-time Grand Slam champion mats Wilander said of Federer’s competitiveness ahead of Wimbledon.

Djokovic looked supreme at times in Paris as he claimed his second French Open title — but there were also dips.

He lost the opening two sets against Italian youngster Lorenzo Musetti in the fourth round, dismantled Nadal in a breathtaking semi-final, but again found himself two sets in arrears in the final against Stefanos Tsitsipas. Therein lies the problem for those trying to stop the Djokovic juggernaut.

Taking three sets off a player who is teak tough mentally and physically is one of the toughest challenges in world sport.

“It’s all about endurance, if you can keep up with the endurance, keep your level there for longer periods of time, then, of course, that’s what is needed in a Grand Slam,” Greek Tsitsipas, who will be a threat at Wimbledon if he can shrug off any French Open hangover, said.

World number two Daniil Medvedev will take huge confidence from his run at the

French Open, seeing that clay is his least favoured surface. His huge serve and flat groundstrokes will give him a shot, while Germany’s Alexander Zverev is another with the weapons to challenge for Djokovic’s crown. Big-hitting Italian Matteo Berrettini might be the dark horse, however, after winning the Queen’s Club title on his debut last week — the first player to do that since Boris Becker in 1985. Becker won Wimbledon a few weeks later.

And as crowds prepare to return to the All England Club, home favourite Andy Murray will get the biggest cheers.

The two-time champion is struggling to return to anywhere near his best after hip resurfacing surgery in 2019 — but few know their way around a grasscourt better than the wily Scot.

Friday, 25 June, 2021

PrAyer Timings

NEWS

IMF SAyS PAKISTAn TAlKS ongoIng, More WorK needed on STrucTurAl reForMS

T

HE International Monetary Fund (IMF) is holding open, constructive discussions with Pakistan as part of a sixth review of the country’s 39-month, $6 billion financing programme that began in 2019, IMF spokesman Gerry Rice said on Thursday.

Rice declined to say if disbursements under that programme had been halted but said further discussions were needed about Pakistan’s fiscal spending plans, structural reforms, particularly in the tax and energy sectors, and social spending.

IMF staff were unable to complete the talks during a recent mission, but the global lender remained “fully engaged” and aimed to resume the discussions in the period ahead, Rice told a regular IMF briefing.

“We stand ready to continue to support Pakistan,” he said. “As the recovery gains strength, it will be important to accelerate the implementation of policies and reforms

needed to address some of the long-standing challenges facing the Pakistani economy.”

Pakistan this month set a target of 4.8

Akram stresses parliamentary cooperation in implementing development goals NEW YORK APP

Pakistan Ambassador to United Nations Munir Akram has underscored the role of parliaments in generating momentum towards achieving the anti-poverty sustainable development goals and overcoming the challenges posed by the coronavirus pandemic.

“Achieving the sustainable development agenda requires inter-governmental and multi-stakeholder partnerships between national governments, the private sector and the people,” Akram, who also heads the UN Economic Council, said in an online address to a meeting of the International Forum of Global Inter-Parliamentary Cooperation. ‘”Such inclusive partnerships, built upon principles, values, and shared goals, that place people and the planet at the centre, are needed at the global, regional, national and local level,” he told the meeting that discussed the implementation of SDGs. Noting that the global landscape is marked by pervasive inequities, Akram said they have grown since the adoption of the SDGs in 2015 and been further exacerbated by the pandemic.

The ambassador, therefore, called for adequate global action to contain and defeat the virus, recover from the impact of the pandemic — and revive the implementation of the 2030 Agenda, the SDGs, and the global climate and environmental goals.

“Mobilising the participation and support of parliaments for the global development agenda is urgent,” he told the meeting. In this regard, he said four areas merited immediate attention: 1: The Parliaments of the developed countries can ensure that the COVID-19 vaccine is made available to everyone, everywhere, as soon as possible to overcome Covid19, with scaling up production, supply, distribution, and, above all, emergency mass vaccination programmes in every country and community.

per cent growth in gross domestic product for the 2021-22 financial year and a fiscal deficit target of 6.3pc.

The country surpassed growth projections in the 2020-21 financial year despite a third wave of Covid-19 infections, reaching GDP growth of 3.96pc, after a 0.47pc contraction in 2019-20.

Earlier this month, Finance Minister Shaukat Tarin had said it was not possible for Pakistan to get out of the IMF programme at a time when the economy is reviving.

“It is not possible to get out of the IMF programme at this time,” Tarin had said, adding: “We were forced to go to the IMF.” “This time the IMF was not friendly with us and the programme was frontloaded and tough,” he further said, comparing the current programme to previous ones with the lender.

He said that the power sector measures would be sustainable and will increase revenue. “This is what IMF wants from Pakistan,” he had remarked. reuTers

28 civilians killed in Afghan province as fighting intensifies Intense fighting in the northern Afghan province of Kunduz killed at least 28 civilians and injured 290 this week, according to hospital officials, as conflict surges in the war-torn nation while foreign forces withdraw.

Ehsanullah Fazli, head of Kunduz’s provincial hospital, said 28 bodies and 290 wounded civilians had been delivered to two local hospitals in the past three days, with the vast majority of the casualties children, women and elderly people.

“The war is still going on in the city of Kunduz and the death toll will rise,” he said.

Fighting has worsened around Afghanistan but especially in the north where insurgents have conducted a wave of offensives in recent days, moving beyond their southern strongholds.

Since the United States announced plans in April to withdraw its troops without conditions by September 11 after nearly 20 years of conflict, violence has escalated throughout the country as the Taliban seek more territory.

Peace talks in Doha have largely stalled, officials say, though there have been meetings in recent days and the Taliban say they are committed to negotiations.

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani arrived in Washington on Thursday with his former rival and top

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Sajid Sadpara announces summer K2 expedition to search his father’s body ISLAMABAD APP

Sajid Ali Sadpara, the son of renowned Pakistani mountaineer Muhammad Ali Sadpara who had gone missing early this year in an attempt to ascend K2 in winter, on Thursday announced that he would be embarking on summer expedition from Friday (June 25) to comb the mountain for his father’s body.

Missing climbers Ali Sadpara, Iceland’s John Snorri Sigurjónsson and Chile’s Juan Pablo Mohr Prieto were officially declared dead in February. The three climbers were last seen on February 5 near the Bottleneck on K2 as they attempted to reach the summit of the Savage Mountain. Sajid Sadpara, who was accompanying the three, had to abandon his summit bid after his oxygen regulator malfunctioned and he returned to camp 3. Bad weather thwarted multiple attempts to search for the missing climbers, though the efforts continued. A February 14 update on the search mission said the “leads — taken after scrutinising satellite images, using SAR technology and checking testimonials and timings — turned out to be a sleeping bag, torn tents or sleeping pads, none of which belong to these climbers.” “As you remember, my father, Ali Sadpara, myself, and John Snorri set out to become the first team to summit K2 in winter early in January. We were later joined by Elia Saikaly, a Canadian filmmaker who is here now along with Pasang Sherpa. Fazal Ali, one of the high-altitude porters from Shimshal was also with us who had summited K2 three times,” Sajid said at a news conference here at the National Press Club. “My father was the only person on K2 in winter who had summitted an 8,000-meter peak in winter. John Snorri had even tried K2 in winter in the previous seasons. In addition, John, myself, and my father had all summit K2 in summer.

What should I know about the delta variant of coronavirus?

LONDON The AssociATed Press

Afghan peace official Abdullah Abdullah where they were to meet with US President Joe Biden to discuss the US troop withdrawal.

The United Nations envoy for Afghanistan said this week the Taliban had taken more than 50 of 370 districts and were positioned to take control of provincial capitals as the country looked increasingly unstable and analysts warned of the growing risk of civil war as more groups took up arms.

On Wednesday, hundreds of armed men gathered on the outskirts

of the capital Kabul and vowed to fight against the Taliban, according to Reuters witnesses.

On Thursday, 130 Taliban fighters surrendered with the help of tribal elders in the western province of Herat.

“They realised that the Taliban’s war with the Afghan government was illegitimate,” Herat Governor Abdul Sabur Qani said at a ceremony to mark the event. Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said the 130 men were not from their group, calling the event “propaganda”. reuTers

What should I know about the delta variant of coronavirus? It’s a version of the coronavirus that has been found in more than 80 countries since it was first detected in India. It got its name from the World Health Organisation, which names notable variants after letters of the Greek alphabet. Viruses constantly mutate and most changes aren’t concerning. But there is a worry that some variants might evolve enough to be more contagious, cause more severe illness or evade the protection that vaccines provide. Experts say the delta variant spreads more easily because of mutations that make it better at latching onto cells in our bodies. In Pakistan, a few cases of the Delta variant were found after genome sequencing was conducted in the first weeks of May. The authorities in Sindh recently sounded the alarm about a “fourth wave” after the detection of this variant in the region. The government has also banned land and air travel from India, citing concerns about the rising infections.

However, recent cases have been discovered in those who have returned from the Gulf states, where there are significant numbers of workers from different South Asian countries.

Cotton industry unprepared for climate change threat to crop, farmers KARACHI reuTers

Climate change impacts, from hotter temperatures to more droughts and floods, threaten much of the world’s cotton production, risking worsening shortages, higher prices and financial woes for growers, researchers have warned.

Protecting the $12-billion market — in countries such as India, the United States, Brazil and China — will require both slashing emissions to limit planetary heating and stepped-up efforts by farmers to adapt to the new risks, they said.

By 2040, 40 percent of cotton-producing regions are likely to see their growing seasons shortened by rising heat, while drought could hit half of the global crop, according to a report produced by Cotton 2040, an initiative working for a more sustainable and climate-resilient cotton industry.

Eventually, if efforts to cut emissions fail

and warming ramps up in line with the harshest scientific projections, cotton could be dramatically reduced as a crop, leaving the industry “a shadow of what it is today”, said Sally Uren, chief executive of Forum for the Future, an international nonprofit that backs Cotton 2040.

But even with less warming, crop losses are likely to occur even as global cotton demand rises due to population increases and an expanding middle class in some developing nations. While growers are rapidly becoming aware of rising climate risks, few companies that rely on cotton for their products know much about those threats, and consumers even less, Uren said.

The new analysis should serve as “a wakeup call for the cotton industry”, she added.

Extreme weather has already led to growing volatility in cotton prices. Largescale floods in Pakistan in 2010, for example, caused global cotton prices to spike to nearly $2.50 from about $0.70 in 2009, the

report noted.

Crop losses are proving particularly tough for millions of developing-world cotton farmers who make up about 90 percent of the world’s growers, the report said.

Crop failures could slash incomes among poorer growers who cannot afford to adapt to changing conditions or switch to climate-smarter crops, Uren told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.

In India, where farmers are already struggling with severe droughts and water shortages, some cotton growers left with no money to restart production after their crops fail are committing suicide, she said.

Cotton-growing areas facing some of the biggest extreme weather risks include northern Sudan, Senegal and southern Mali in Africa, as well as parts of Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan, the report noted.

Efforts to adapt to changing conditions by shifting planting times, boosting irrigation and providing farmers with climate forecasts

could help some cope better, the report noted.

But unless emissions are slashed, some cotton-growing areas will become unsuitable for the crop in the future, Uren predicted.

In those areas, governments should ensure a “just transition” for farmers, such as by helping them adopt new crops or providing social safety nets, she said.

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