Pakistan Link - September 25, 2015

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VOL. 25/39 - 12 Dhul-hijjah 1436 H

Friday, September 25, 2015

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VOL. 25/39 - 12 Dhul-hijjah 1436 H PAGE 4

Amplifying the Pope’s Message of Change Muslim Americans Welcome First NY Eid School Holiday

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PAGE 20

PAGE 20

Muslims Must Counter Negative Image in US

Swat Girl Wins Muhammad Ali Award

Kashmir Is the Main Cause of Tension

New York Empire State Building lit green for Eid

New York: New York marks a mile-

stone in the fight for equality Thursday when 1.1 million children in America’s largest school district will take the day off to mark Eid al Adha.

It is a small but hard-won victory at a time when American Muslims complain of growing

HOLIDAY, P28

Presidency Rejects PPP Claims of Involvement in Politics

Prime Minister David Cameron greets Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif outside 10 Downing Street in Central London

London: Describing Kashmir as a ‘core issue’ between Pakistan and India, Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Tuesday urged the need for early resolution of the longstand-

ing dispute between the two South Asian neighbors.

“Kashmir is a core issue, which must be resolved. And in my view the sooner the two countries start

working on it, the better it would be for them,” he said.

Sharif said the issue of Kashmir should be discussed at all KASHMIR, P28

Terrorists Are Destroying Islam’s Image: Grand Mufti

Islamabad: A Presidency spokes-

man on Wednesday rejected allegations levelled by Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) about the ‘political meetings’ of the president, and clarified he had no political ambitions.

“The president held a meeting in Islamabad with a PML-N delegation from Sindh in his personal capacity,” the president’s spokesman said in an official statement.

The spokesman also rejected the notion that Hussain may lead the election campaign for local government elections in Sindh.

Before becoming president, Hussain had an active political role in Sindh and enjoyed grass-root ties with workers, which is why the workers requested for a meeting which the president accepted, clarified his spokesman.

Earlier, according to a report published in Dawn, the PPP had objected to Hussain’s participation in a PML-N meeting despite a ban on his participation in political activities by the court.

For news, updated round the clock, visit

www.PakistanLink.com No Permanent Membership of UNSC for India New York: Pakistan has prepared a plan of action against any changes in the composition of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), high-level diplomatic sources said on Wednesday.

They disclosed that India’s aggressive stance on the Kashmir issue will be discussed openly at the UN. “Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif will expose foreign involvement in initiating terrorism in Pakistan,” said the high-level diplomatic sources.

Sources informed that while PM Sharif will be meeting various heads of state at the UN, including those of US and China, he is unlikely to meet the Indian Prime Minister.

The Pakistan Foreign Office in a press release on Tuesday said, “Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif will lead the Pakistan delegation to the 70th Session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York from 25 to 30 September 2015 …

The prime minister will address the General Debate of the General Assembly on 30 September. He SEAT, P28

Pakistan to Offer $1Bn Eurobond This Week Islamabad: Cash-strapped Paki-

Muslim pilgrims make an imposing mass movement as Hajj begins

Arafat: Saudi Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdul Aziz al-Sheikh has denounced conspiracies hatched by enemies of Islam to undermine its strength and urged the Muslim Ummah to forge unity among its ranks

to foil their designs.

Delivering the Haj sermon from Masjid-i-Nimra in Arafat, where over two million pilgrims had converged to perform the main ritual of Haj, Waqoof-i-Ara-

fat, the mufti implicitly targeted the self-styled Islamic State (IS) group.

In an apparent condemnation, the grand mufti IMAGE, P28

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stan will raise at least $1 billion (Dh3.67 billion) from international debt markets in the next two days

by Eurobonds offerings, a media report said on Wednesday.

Finance Minister Ishaq Dar during his visit to the US will lead the Pakistani team to launch a Eurobond.

Pakistan has opted the easier but more expensive path of capital markets financing rather than implementing tough but necessary energy sector reforms and accessing the much cheaper financing available from international aid agencies, The Express Tribune reported.

“The bond will be priced on September 24 and is being underwritten by Citibank, Deutsche Bank and Standard Chartered Bank, which were appointed less than three weeks ago,” it said.

The Eurobonds are expected to be of either five or 10-year maturities, or possibly both.

OPINION

P4 – PAKISTAN LINK – SEPTEMBER 25, 2015

Pakistan Link President

Arif Zaffar Mansuri

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urdulink@yahoo.com Resident Editor Urdu Link & Director Video Operations

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akhawaja@pakistanlink.com Director Advertising & Sales

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Peace Is the Universal Message of All Religions n By Dr Shahid Athar

A

ll religions call for peace.

Assalamulaikum, the Islamic greeting, Shalom the Jewish greeting, and Shanty in Hinduism are all greetings of peace. If we desire peace for ourselves, we should desire the same for others. While religions talks of peace, some of their followers from time to time like to disturb it .We should define the need and objectives of peace that will bring us into peaceful coexistence.

The process of attaining peace starts by being at peace with self, our Creator, our family, coworkers, our neighbors and all fellow humans. As Confucius, the Chinese Philosopher said, “If we have harmony in our beliefs and in our actions, there will be love in our homes. If there is love in our homes there will be order in the nation. If there is order in the nation then there will be peace on earth”. Prophet Mohammad once said, “Shall I tell you what is better than prayer, fasting and giving charity to the poor? It is making peace between one another as animosity and quarrels destroy mankind.” Late Dr M.L. King, who was inspired by Gandhi’s philosophy of non-violence, said, “Peace is

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not absence of tension but presence of justice. Racial and economical justice is a prerequisite for peace”.

It is reported that two kings in ancient India were on the verge of starting a war. Control over a piece of land was under dispute.

Buddha seeing the kings with their armies ready to fight requested them to tell him the cause of their quarrel. Having heard the complaints on both sides, he said “I understand that this land has some value for your people.

Does it have any intrinsic value?”

The kings said it had no intrinsic

value. Then Buddha asked, “Now when you go into battle, is it not certain that many of your men and you the kings too may be killed.

They said “yes it is possible. Then Buddha asked, “Does the blood of men have less value than a piece of land?” “No”, the kings answered, “the lives of men and above that the lives of kings, are priceless”.

Then Buddha asked, “Are you going to sacrifice that which is priceless for that which has no intrinsic value at all?” The kings realized their mistake and came to a peaceful agreement. We need to engage war mongers in an intel-

Amplifying the Pope’s Message of Change

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Indiana

lectual discourse to prevent war and instill peace.

We need to win peace over the course of war. Religions should make us better humans and instruments for peace, not of war. Jesus, “the Prince of Peace” as quoted in Gospel of Mathew, went up on the mountain and when he sat down, his disciples came to him and he taught them, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness and they shall be satisfied. Blessed are the merciful for they shall obtain mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called children of God.” The Jewish tradition the Talmud says “More Justice- More peace”.

In these troubled times that we are going through since Sept.11, 2001, I conclude with the prayer for peace as taught by Prophet Mohammad who said, “Lord, You are peace. From You comes peace. Let us live in peace.

Let us enter in the house of peace.

Blessed are You O Lord, Most High, Most Honorable.”

(Dr Shahid Athar, a physician, is past president of Interfaith Alliance of Indiana. E mail sathar3624@aol.com)

Pensioners’ Plight n By Col. Riaz Jafri (Retd)

T

“

Many things have to change, of course, but it is we human beings above all who need to change.”

The above words by Pope Francis, while profound in meaning, mimic traditions of ancient religions and philosophies. Gandhi himself said, “Be the change that you wish to see in the world.” The Qur’an states, “Indeed, Allah will not change the condition of a people until they change what is in themselves.” With the Pope’s first ever visit to the US next week, an opportunity to be inspired to change ourselves is at hand.

Pope Francis has elaborated that many of the world’s problems of today - climate change, poverty, war - originate within individuals. He has shown by example, that change within one’s self and nation can be a positive force for progress. The Pope has been an advocate for peace in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Far from just wishing for change, he took it

upon himself to lead the Vatican itself to recognize Palestine as a state.

The Pope has also been on the forefront of pleading for the protection of refugees. The Pope’s call for churches in Europe to host refugee families shows this pontiff ’s benevolent focus on the most vulnerable in society.

MPAC will be present when Pope Francis gives his remarks at the White House next week. During his conversations with President Obama, Congress, and his address to the public, MPAC hopes to hear His Holiness bring attention to some of the more pressing issues affecting our nation and our world.

We hope the Pope will encourage the President to increase the numbers of refugees that the US is receiving from 10,000 to 100,000.

In addition, we hope he encourages Americans to be welcoming to these victims, who have experienced death and destruction in their homeland.

We as a nation must have open hearts and open hands if we seek to alleviate

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suffering.

The pontiff has shown his deft political skills with successes in the international area, including the thawing of relations with Cuba and the US. The Pope should continue this success by asking for a firmer approach in other places in the world that are suffering- such as the persecuted Rohingya in Burma. While the US continues to give the Burmese government a pass on its human rights abuses in the name of fostering democracy, laws against Muslims are being passed in Burma with no protest.

We urge American Muslims to join hands with their Catholic brothers and sisters in bringing about change within our nation so that the world follows. We look forward to the Pope’s visit to inspire not only the American public, but elected officials as well, to prioritize issues that will set America up to be on the right side of history as we face growing international crises. - MPAC

Westridge, Rawalpindi

he Comptroller Military Accounts Officers (Pension Section) is reported to have issued a letter dated 1st September 2015 but dispatched on 9th Sept. asking retired army officers to submit a life certificate latest by 10th Sept. 2015 failing which their pension would be withheld. No less than a retired Lieutenant General visited the office of the CMAO (P) to apprise them of the possibility of their letter reaching the officers after the due date. He asked them to extend the last date for the submission of the certificate. But to no avail.

When the general narrated to me his woeful tale of being unsuccessful in convincing the CMA staff, I cautioned him to be careful as anything could be expected of the CMA. They are on record to have asked an officer, who had submitted a similar life certificate during the British PLIGHT, P28

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SEPTEMBER 25, 2015 – PAKISTAN LINK – P5

Pilgrims in mass movement as Hajj begins

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OPINION

P6 – PAKISTAN LINK – SEPTEMBER 25, 2015 n By Syed Kamran Hashmi

A

Westfield, IN

What to Do after the Multan Blast?

bomb blast in Multan rocked the city of saints last Sunday, killing at least ten people and injuring dozens more. Among those who survived there would be many who would lose their arms or legs, eyes or ears, rendering them permanently disabled and dependent for the rest of their lives. Would they ever be able to forget what had happened to them on the bus stand?

Past this week though, I am sure all of us would.

What about the families of the wounded? They endure the trauma too, an injury of a different kind which does not inflict physical pain but hurts just as much, if not more. We will not remember them either.

Five days from today, I bet we will just count the dead bodies at the most and move on with our lives, while some survivors would stay in the hospital for weeks or months after the incident. And when they leave, they would leave on a wheel chair, to be pushed by someone else for years to come. Have you ever thought about them?

As a nation, we do very little, if anything, to acknowledge their contribution in this war. No one talks about their lives after the attack or their discharge from a hospital.

How do they survive? How are they treated by the government, by their friends, and by the society? Imagine if you are the sole provider of a family with four school-going kids, your parents living with you, and you lose your right arm? Without your income and without government assistance, how long would it take your family to fall apart? Who is going to educate the children and how are you going to make the two ends meet? These questions, pressing and relevant, slip our minds. Don’t they? We always remember the children of Peshawar in our prayers, which

we should. But the people who can in fact benefit from something more than prayers, we tend to disregard and ignore.

I think it is time for us to recognize the disabled citizens and their families as the real heroes of the war on terror. No,. I do not think the ones who have passed away have offered less to the country. Of course, they have sacrificed their most important asset, their lives, for the motherland which cannot be undermined. However, the slow death that kills the disabled takes the suffering of the martyrs to another level. I think it is the obligation of the government to provide assistance, both financial and social, to the affected families as an integral part of its ongoing effort to curb terrorism. Can the government do it alone? Surely not. The civil society has to step in too. NGOs need to make it a priority to raise awareness. And the media has to stop chasing Ayyan Ali and follow some real people, people who suffer

even today from an attack of 2008.

I understand if the terrorists had attacked the city five years ago like they had targeted Lahore and Peshawar, we would have just thought of it as the price that every nation has to pay for supporting the war on terro. Back then, it was widely understood that the jihadists attack their fellow believers because somehow Muslims do not resist their ruler’s decision enough for becoming a US ally on the war against terror. And by doing so they have become an accomplice, betraying their Muslim brothers, and endorsing the crusade unleashed upon them.

Shouldn’t their cowardice be dealt with accordingly then? These meaningless and shallow arguments have plagued us for years sweeping the ‘moral justification’ away from people in favor of the jihadists who were portrayed by some enthusiasts as the ‘freedom fighters.’ A ‘freedom fight’ in Pakistan for a war that was fought in Afghanistan or

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Iraq or Palestine. Under those ambiguous circumstances, people who died or were left disabled were not regarded as martyrs, not even human beings, they were considered as ‘collateral damage,’ the losses one has to incur to achieve the higher objective.

Things are not the same anymore though. After the failure of negotiations and the Peshawar massacre, the terrorists have lost their moral authority, if one ever e x i s t e d before. Indeed, it would not be too wrong if I said the war is not debated on religious grounds anymore at all. It is now a war against the criminal gangs, who have taken up arms against the state and its people: men, women, children, old, young sick and healthy, everyone. Have you met anyone recently who wants to negotiate a peace deal? People say: find them, try them and kill them. Even the most outspoken proponent of negotiations, Imran Khan, keeps quiet on this issue, although it remains uncertain if he agrees with the use of force. For years, he stood against it. But, as a populist he understands how not to exasperate people’s opinion even if he does not understand how to end an insurgency or how to quell a rebellion.

So what should be the response of the provincial and the federal government now?

Sheepish like before, pleading to the Taliban to spare Punjab as Shahbaz Sharif did in 2 0 0 9 , explaining them that both the PMLN and the Taliban stand against protecting the US interests in the region. Or should the government reassure people that it really is committed to eradicate violence in the name of religion? I do not think appeasement is a policy that can help the PMLN any longer. Areas of Punjab need as big an operation as in Karachi. Would it muster enough courage though? I doubt that. The Chief Minister is too busy in running and messing up the power projects, one after another. The heroes of Multan will not grab his attention.

They will be forgotten soon after a couple of emotional speeches.

OPINION n By Dr Mohammad Taqi

“

Florida

I am receiving very depressing reports of economic distress and maladministration through political interference, frustration and complete lack of faith by the people in political leaders.

The general belief is that none of these men have the honesty of purpose, integrity and patriotism to root out the evils of the country, which will require drastic action,” thus wrote Field Marshal Ayub Khan in his diary in August 1958.

He proclaimed martial law within three months of this notation and disparaged politicians to the fullest in his first speech and there on out. He did not even spare the venerable Ms Fatima Jinnah and targeted her in vicious personal attacks when she decided to contest elections against him in 1964. Ironically, the field marshal — his disdain for politicians and politics notwithstanding — formed a king’s party, the Pakistan Muslim League (PML), aka the Convention League, within four years of proclaiming martial law and relied on assorted politicians to sustain and then prolong his reign.

One of the first things that Ayub Khan did was take over Progressive Papers Limited (PPL) and its publications The Pakistan Times, the Urdu daily Imroze and the weekly Lail-o-Nahar in April 1959. Muzzling the free press while controlling the state media (initially radio and later on television too) gave the

SEPTEMBER 25, 2015 – PAKISTAN LINK – P7

The One Unit Redux Ayub regime an edge in narrative control that could not be blunted till the end of his rule.

Fast-forward 58 years and the media is churning out material identical to those lines from Ayub Khan’s diary. The prime target is the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) and the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) but politicians in general are at the receiving end again. No overt takeover of a media house has, however, taken place this time around. With the booming conventional electronic media and various social media avenues, blatant takeovers are out but not-so-subtle makeovers are in.

While coercion is not totally out of fashion yet, rather than flagrant stifling, the media is being inundated with pliant opinions. Instead of outright censorship, critical voices are carefully weeded out and, in almost every talk show, a political Tweedledum is seen debating a Tweedledee.

The peg invariably deployed is the purported success of the Zarb-eAzb military operation in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) and the Rangers’ operation in Karachi. A case is then built for either overt military intervention or a much larger tutelary role than it is already playing. Of course, when all else fails, there are mysterious petitioners who move the courts, which seem only too eager to issue gag orders like the one barring the media from carrying the MQM leader Altaf Hussain’s speeches. It is surreal how the exact same media, which went blue in the face condemning the US drone strikes against terrorists for causing alleged civilian casu-

alties, does not question the accuracy of the payload delivered by the air force jets over FATA. The indigenous drone (developed with assistance from China, according to the Financial Times) strike that killed three supposed militants obviously

en on escorted tours of the combat zone — knows who those individuals were. If a terrorist kingpin has been killed or arrested in this operation, one has not heard that name.

On the other hand, according to media reports, the Afghan Taliban

Parliament has been reduced to virtually a nonentity after having shot itself in the foot with the 21st Constitutional Amendment setting up the military courts. In Sindh province, the PPP and MQM are on the ropes while the Center calls the shots in Karachi.

The government in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is run from an Islamabad suburb while the fate of Balochistan’s resources — and its government — is already being decided in Punjab courtesy the faux nationalist dispensation in that province remains above reproach.

The only question the mainstream media seems to ask when told to jump is how high. The military has claimed to have killed over 3,500 terrorists in the Zarb-e-Azb operation since June 2014 but no one — not even the journalists tak-

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appointed their new emir (leader) inside Pakistan while the Haqqani network men attended the botched Murree peace talks. Indeed, according to the Wall Street Journal, the US national security advisor, Susan Rice, recently “told top civilian and military leaders in Islamabad that

attacks in neighboring Afghanistan by Pakistan-based militants were absolutely unacceptable”. And, of course, India-oriented jihadists continue to cry hoarse from central Punjab. So, if the Afghan Taliban, their allied Haqqani network and anti-India jihadists have gone scotfree, what exactly has Zarb-e-Azb achieved? The short answer to that is that Operation Zarb-e-Azb has achieved exactly what it had set out to do: neutralize the jihadists who attack inside Pakistan, i.e. the ‘bad Taliban’.

The ‘good’ Taliban, who pose an imminent threat to its immediate neighbors but not to Pakistan itself remain unscathed, at least for now.

And they might not get the boot anytime soon. Aside from any capacity issues to go after these transnational jihadists, there seems to be no domestic pressure and, therefore, the need to smoke them out. Operation Zarb-e-Azb seems to have decisively neutralized the Tehreeke-Taliban Pakistan’s (TTP’s) capacity to hit at will inside Pakistan.

With the heartland relatively secure, even the otherwise liberal opinion makers seem to care less about what goes on in Kabul or Kashmir.

In fact, some sections of the intelligentsia have bought the ‘change of heart, change of tack’ theme hook, line and sinker. They are as ecstatic about the new management as they were about General Pervez Musharraf, and thus unwilling to question its Punjab-centric agenda. And therein lies the rub. The ostensible economic success under Ayub Khan created a halo effect under which he consolidated the top-heavy, Punjabheavy civil and military

UNIT, P24

OPINION

P8 – PAKISTAN LINK – SEPTEMBER 25, 2015

The Refugees Problem: A Telling Contrast in Response n By Kaleem Kawaja

I

Washington, DC

n the sixth century as the mighty Roman Empire and its powerful Byzantine Kingdom were crumbling with marked inhumane treatment of the impoverished populace by the rulers, Islam sprang up in the northwest corner of Hijaz in the Arab peninsula.

God sent Prophet Mohammad to preach the revolutionary faith of Islam that debunked the mighty and wealthy and invoked the right of every citizen to justice and fair play. The Prophet and most of his companions were people with modest means. They were neither intellectuals nor skilled in military tactics.

When people asked Prophet Mohammad to show a miracle to prove that God had sent him as the redeemer, he replied that his miracle was the core message of Islam in the Holy Qur’an, the word of God. He asked them to listen to it and reflect upon it to transform the wretched lives they were trapped in. In less than 50 years practicing that powerful message of Qur’an the then followers of Islam took over the centuries old mighty kingdoms of Romans, Byzantium and Persians. As the Christian Bible had predicted six hundred years ago, the meek did indeed inherit the earth.

Today the tyrants in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan and ISIS have unleashed a tyranny in the name of Islam to subjugate the population under their control and to claim that they are superior than other Muslims. They also claim the right to annihilate, torture and treat like animals all who do not follow their brand of Islam. The intense violence on ordinary helpless civilians, most of whom are educated professionals, academics and contributors to society, has forced more than 6 million of them to leave their homes, jobs and cities and

become refugees. Families with grandparents, women, children are languishing in these camps for over five years with no end to their misery in sight. There are 2 million refugees in Turkey, 1 million in Jordan, 1.5 million in Lebanon, half a million in Iraq, and a quarter million in Egypt.

Most of them are practicing Muslims and they are being waylaid and persecuted by those who claim to be better Muslims and better rulers. Every day they violate the core message of Islam that forbids such inhumane behavior, and yet they claim that everything is fine as they are purifying and improving the Islamic governments. They are indifferent to the continuing misery of 6 million fellow Muslims who are their subjects. The messages of the Qur’an and the Prophet have been blatantly ignored.

Beginning a year ago, the residents of

these refugee camps made an effort to move to countries in Europe with stable governments and stable economies. Lacking any options, as the international community stopped paying attention to their plight, they took huge risks in travelling with illegal groups of international smugglers, traffickers and organized crime syndicates. Crossing the Mediterranean Sea in leaky, overcrowded boats they landed on the shores of southern Europe in countries like Greece, Italy and the Balkan states.

They started moving towards the countries of northwestern Europe. Many a tragedy happened with infant children and mothers getting killed in the perilous journeys by sea and on land.

A week ago the crisis came to a head as about half a million refugees, including many small children under five years of age, young mothers and aged grandparents in wheel-

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chairs, started trekking on foot after crossing Greece, Serbia and Macedonia on their way to Austria, Germany, Sweden and Norway.

While the right wing government in Hungary tried to harass them with police action, Germany and Scandinavian countries offered asylum to the refugees. In France, United Kingdom, Austria and other countries in western Europe ordinary civilians held massive rallies urging their governments to shed their indifference and give asylum to the refugees.

In the name of humanity the governments and ordinary people in the economically advanced countries of Germany, Sweden, Norway and Austria, that are inhabited mostly

by Christians, have been most generous in giving asylum and help to the refugees from the Middle East who are predominantly Muslim.

It is a breathtaking phenomenon to experience and witness: despite the protests of a few right wing Christians in those countries, most people and governments have willingly accepted and given precedence to the principle of humanity over all other aspects of life and are granting asylum and help to the mostly Muslim refugees. Scenes of ordinary European citizens standing on the roadside, passing food, drink and other supplies and raising welcome slogans to the harried and helpless refugees were unbelievably real.

At the same time the super wealthy Muslim Arab countries like Saudi Arabia, UAE, Kuwait et al. have behaved with atrocious arrogance and inhumanity by totally declining to accept the refugees who are also Muslim and Arab. Although the rulers and peoples in these countries often pride on being Muslim, they have stubbornly declined to accept a single refugee or extend any help to the unfortunate people.

One does not have to be a rocket CONTRAST, P24

OPINION

SEPTEMBER 25, 2015 – PAKISTAN LINK – P9

Is Imran Khan Really Pakistan’s Donald Trump?

n By Michael Kugelman

I

Washington, DC

t’s one thing to deal with a man often referred to as Im the Dim. It’s a very different thing altogether to deal with a man who merits the moniker of Donald the Dangerous.

In a recent Dawn op-ed, Dr Pervez Hoodbhoy argued that Imran Khan is the Donald Trump of Pakistan. I beg to differ.

Yes, there are many striking similarities between the two men. Both are celebrities-turned-politicians with sky-high egos.

Both espouse very conservative views and exploit the deep anti-government grievances of right-wing constituencies. And both are as far as one can possibly get from camerashy wallflowers.

And yet, these convergences are merely superficial. In the end, the analogy simply doesn’t hold for me.

Political scale First, Khan occupies a significant position in Pakistan’s political hierarchy. He’s elevated the PTI to great prominence in quite rapid fashion, and he boasts a track record of electoral success. In short, Khan is a bonafide political star. Trump, to put it mildly, is not.

Trump is a wildly successful businessman, but he’s barely gotten his feet wet in politics. And don’t be fooled by his high-flying act as a leading Republican Party presidential candidate.

In US presidential campaigns, fringe candidates often ride on the coattails of populist anger to rush to the front of the pack early on, only to quietly fade away later on.

Naïve not nefarious Second, Khan may harbor some misguided and troubling views (I’ve written previously in this space about his disturbingly complacent attitudes toward anti-state militancy).

Still, they pale in comparison to Trump’s.

Trump says such outrageous things that he makes Khan sound like Abdul Sattar Edhi.

Let’s face it: Naya Pakistan may be naïve, but it is neither nasty nor nefarious.

It’s certainly fanciful to promise an end to corruption in 90 days, but it’s downright cruel and bordering on racism to call for a “Great Wall of Trump” to keep Mexican immigrants out of America.

Also, when was the last time we heard about a cancer hospital developed and funded

by Trump — or, for that matter, about any type of Trump charitable project?

Trump claims to contribute to many different charities, and I’m quite sure he does.

Yet, he’s no prodigious philanthropist. In fact, an investigation by The Smoking Gun website has concluded that Trump may be the “least charitable billionaire in the United States.”

The supporters Third and finally, let’s consider the supporters of Khan and Trump.

Not to state the obvious, but there are

many admirable and well-informed Insafians out there. Generally speaking, they are a wellintentioned (even if sometimes naïve) lot.

Yes, some will troll you viciously on Twitter. Some can be quite intense in person, too, and especially when railing about drones or

Khan occupies a significant position in Pakistan’s political hierarchy. He’s elevated the PTI to great prominence in quite rapid fashion, and he boasts a track record of electoral success. Khan is a bonafide political star. Trump, to put it mildly, is not other US-patented evils.

But even the most unpleasant Insafians can’t hold a candle to Trump’s partisans.

What’s so scary about Trump’s supporters is not necessarily what they say or do — but rather what they don’t say and don’t do.

It’s worth watching the video of Trump’s town hall meeting in New Hampshire a few days back. At one point, a supporter in the crowd asks, “when can we get rid of ” Muslims.

Trump’s response: “We’re going to be looking at that.”

This brief exchange was sickening enough. But so was the way in which the audience reacted — or more accurately, did not react.

From the time the question was posed to the time that Trump uttered his terse response, the people seated behind Trump barely batted an eyelid. They simply sat there; several appeared to be smiling.

It was as if the terrible things said in such a shocking back-and-forth were somehow commonplace, and didn’t merit one iota of concern.

Contrast this with Khan’s jalsas, when scores of supporters cheer him on as he thunders about drones or vote-rigging, or even when he grandstands atop a container while saying nasty things about Nawaz Sharif.

These supporters may be endorsing some questionable viewpoints and highly distasteful remarks, but at least they’re not acquiescing in the most base and ugly form of prejudice (this is not to say, alas, that all Khan supporters are unabashed champions of Pakistan’s imperiled religious minorities).

It’s one thing to deal with a man often referred to as I am the Dim. It’s a very different thing altogether to deal with a man who merits the moniker of Donald the Dangerous.

Are there troubling dimensions to the politics of Imran Khan? Absolutely. But are they as troubling as the politics of Donald Trump?

Absolutely not.

So, who should be known as Pakistan’s Donald Trump? I’ll let others answer that question. At any rate, it’s not Imran Khan.

(Michael Kugelman is the senior program associate for South Asia at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, DC)

Nawaz’s Complaint of Conspiracy against Him Should Be Seriously Taken n By Salahuddin Haider Karachi, Pakistan

T

he fear expressed by Nawaz Sharif that attempts may well be on to “ remove him from power”, generated a somewhat belated reaction but the very fact that such a statement had come from the country’s prime minister was alarming and needed a thorough review.

His reference to “vested interests” was interpreted differently by different individuals. Those less skeptical thought it was aimed at the Tehrik-i-Insaaf chief Imran Khan, but such a suggestion was quickly dismissed by news commentators and analysts who pointed fingers at the more powerful segments of society.

“Imran can be a potential danger, but not for the present at least”. This argument is advanced by knowledgeable circles, who promptly refer to the mounting strife and friction within his party in the northern KPK province. Putting his own house in order is presently his first priority.

Focusing attention on the Punjab heartland, which will also be the principal battleground in municipal or parliamentary polls, will be difficult for the PTI chief. A general impression is that the cricketer-turned-politician may find it hard to defeat the Nawaz nominees in the Lahore bye-elections for National Assembly seats originally held by speaker Ayaz Sadiq and railways minister Khawaja Saad Rafiq. A tough contest is also expected for the Lodhran seat in southern Punjab but the scale appears tilted in favor of Imran’s right hand party man, Jahangir Tareen. Municipal elections are due in Sindh and Punjab within six to eight weeks, and may be a

pointer to future trends.

Since the present conditions look tough for the PTI leader, attention automatically shifts to the other “people who matter” but the Peoples Party, despite differences with Sharif, looks determined to protect democracy and parliament from any unconstitutional change.

Opposition leaders in the two houses of the parliament, Khurshed Shah and Aitzaz Ahsan, have made this abundantly clear in their speeches. Some minor reactions too have been supportive of the democratic dispensation. A veteran politician, on condition of anonymity, nevertheless referred to the Bangladesh formula wherein a two-year government of technocrats “helped clear the mess” before elections were finally held, allowing Sheikh Hasina Wajid to take control of the administration.

Some experts believe that despite all difficulties and handicaps the present government was able to restore Pakistan’s image in the world as “an emerging success story”. But mere praises from international institutions like IMF, World Bank, etc. will just be not enough to silence the public outcry for reforms in the social sectors.

Education, health and labor policies have assumed urgency. These sectors demand expeditious attention and resource mobilization to set the country on the path of achieving genuinely laudable goals.

The PML(N) administration, in control for well over two years, has neglected major welfare sectors, for which it has been repeatedly targeted by opponents. Sharif was able to counter criticism to some extent by announcing major concessions, tax holidays and a number of other incentives for the farming community. But he did so only after facing caustic attacks from Imran Khan and Bilawal Bhutto.

However, Sharif ’s claim that “conspirators won’t succeed in their designs because we are not

here to make money, but we, in fact, have been spending from our own pockets, and are not a burden on the exchequer” , was a moot point again. Imran has been training his guns principally on him and Zardari for being corrupt and dishonest.

At the same time, ignoring the army’s continuing campaign against terrorists, abettors, financiers etc; will be a grave mistake. The arrest and joint interrogation by the army, rangers, NAB and FIA of former petroleum minister and a close Zardari aide, Dr Asim Hussain, repeated raids to lay hands on the revenue and land allotment records in Karachi and the rest of the southern province, is turning into a litmus test for those accused of acquiring dirty money over the years.

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Confirmation comes quickly and unhesitatingly from authoritative sources that a list of those suspected of white collar crime is not only ready, but is being constantly updated. A number of arrests, including those of top notch officials, is enough to prove the intentions of the people who matter. Confessional statements from those in detention may lead to a much more grim scenario than has been witnessed thus far.

The Nandipur power project, hanging fire for 11 long years, street agitation by parents against rising school fees, protests by doctors and nurses have become a worrisome proposition for Sharif. He had to divert energy to solving issues, which have begun to assume dangerous proportions. The out-of -operation, 425-megawatt Nandipur power project is turning into a mega scandal.

If in Sindh, two major parties, MQM, and PPP, have been a source of headache for the premier, rising crime rate, murders and suicide incidents in his power base of Punjab are not a very happy augury for the government either.

The bitter truth is that the Sindh situation is taking a turn for the worse with two of its major political parties in a confrontational mood, and virtually on the warpath.

It is high time that the Prime Minister, or the army chief General Raheel Sharif, not only take notice of it, but act quickly to smother its likely effects.

It is slowly and steadily getting out of hand.

Asif Zardari’s repeated attacks on PML(N), the hard-hitting speech of Bilawal Bhutto, and the MQM rally, all depict a definite trend----something which is worrisome, and need skilful handling.

No one opposes or even differs with the strategy to counter terrorists, or deal sternly with those backing them. Its outcome has been COMPLAINT, P28

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SEPTEMBER 25, 2015 – PAKISTAN LINK – P11

42 Die in Attack on PAF Badaber Base in Peshawar

Troops rush to the PAF Badaber Base

Peshawar: A brazen Taliban attack on a Pakistani military base on the outskirts of the northwestern city of Peshawar killed 42 people on Friday, including 16 worshippers who were gunned down when the militants stormed a mosque inside the compound during prayers.

The attack triggered an hourslong firefight at the base and the Pakistani forces said they killed 13 of the attackers, though it was unclear how many were involved in the assault.

Apart from 16 slain inside the mosque, three guards employed with the air force and an army captain were also killed, officials said.

The attack was a major blow for Pakistan’s military, which stepped up operations against the militants following a horrific Taliban attack last December at a Peshawar school that killed 150 people, mostly children. It also underscored the ability of the militants to stage spectacular attacks on targets linked to the country’s military and government.

In Friday’s assault, the attackers first stormed the guard room of the Badaber base, according to air force officials. The base was established in 1960s as an air force facility but has mostly been used as a residential place for air force employees and officers from Peshawar.

Army spokesman Maj. Gen. Asim Saleem Bajwa said 13 attackers were killed by the security forces. He said the attack was quickly repulsed and that the bodies of the slain “terrorist” were lying on the ground in the base compound.

However, details about how the Taliban managed to make their way into the mosque, which is inside the compound walls, and gun down 16 people during prayers were sketchy.

Bajwa said the militants entered the base from different directions in a two-pronged assault — apparently one push targeted the mosque — but that security forces quickly responded.

According to Bajwa and a statement released by the air force, along with those killed, 10 soldiers were wounded in the firefight with militants, along with an unspecified number of civilians. The dead and most the wounded were taken to a military hospital in the area, where access was barred to reporters.

Five wounded security personnel and two civilians were brought to the main government hospital in Peshawar. It was not immediately clear whether the army would allow media

Bodies of Taliban killed in encounter with the troops

access to the base, once it has been cleared.

One of the wounded security officials, Mohammad Rizwan, said he was coming out of the mosque when he was hit by a bullet.

“I fell down and I saw some of the attackers, but I don’t know what happened later, I fell unconscious,” he said.

A wounded soldier, Akram Ullah, said from his hospital bed that he was inside the mosque and that he remembers seeing a gunman with a grenade come in.

Fayaz Hussain Chaudhry, father of the slain army Capt. Asfand Yar, told the Dunya news TV station that his son gave his life for his country. “He fought at the front of the battle today and he killed terrorists,” he said.

Shortly after the attack, a suspected US drone strike hit a home in the South Waziristan tribal region, south of Peshawar, killing at least three militants and wounding five, according to two Pakistani security officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the media.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and the country’s powerful army chief, Gen. Raheel Sharif, rushed to Peshawar and attended some of the funerals of the victims. According to Muslim tradition, the deceased are buried as soon as possible.

Earlier, the army chief met with the security forces taking part in the clearing operation at the base and also visited a military hospital where doctors were treating soldiers wounded in the attack.

A rescue officer said his crew transported at least 20 wounded to hospitals in the area. The officer, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to media, said there were no immediate reports of women or children among the wounded.

A spokesman for the Pakistani Taliban, Mohamad Khurasani, claimed responsibility for the attack. In a statement to the media, he said 14 Taliban fighters were involved in the assault.

They offered “safe passage” to women and children after attacking the base, Khurasani said. He added that the Taliban “targeted” 50 security forces, without explaining what that meant.

Pakistani TV footage showed army helicopters hovering near the base, as police and troops surrounded the area.

Local police officer Shahid Khan Bangash said a large explosion was

heard as the militants first tried to storm the base. “We are hearing that the attackers were armed with guns and rockets,” he said. Bangash said the attackers threw grenades at the guard room but were unable to enter the main area of the base.

Friday’s attack came a day after Pakistan reported the arrest a militant figure behind a recent failed attempt to target an air force facility in Kamra, also in the northwest of the country.

Counter-terrorism officer Junaid Khan in the southern port city of Karachi, where the raid took place, identified the suspect as Umar Hayat and said he was being questioned.

On Thursday, the Pakistani police in Karachi also reported the arrest of another prominent suspect, Syed Sheaba Ahmad, a former air force pilot who allegedly helped finance alQaida’s newly formed South Asian affiliate.

The Pakistan air force has been playing an important role in the fight against militants since June 2014, when the army launched the much-awaited operation in North Waziristan.

Eight Attackers Appeared to Be ‘Foreign Nationals’

Islamabad: Eight of the 14 terrorists who mounted Friday’s brazen assault on the Badhaber air force camp are believed to be foreign nationals as per initial investigations.

“According to the record and evidence collected by investigators so far, eight attackers did not appear to be Pakistani,” a spokesperson for the interior ministry said in an official statement.

“It could take some time to determine their exact identity,” the spokesperson added. It was learnt on the day of attack that some of the militants looked foreign but officials deliberately did not reveal their identity due to the sensitivity of the matter, the spokesperson further said.

On Sunday, the identities of five attackers were determined by the country’s top registration body – the National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra) – after fingerprints of the assailants killed in Friday’s brazen assault were sent for verification. The five terrorists were traced to Khyber Agency and Swat.

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Afghan President Calls Nawaz, Condemns Attack on PAF Camp

The Afghan president extended his “heartfelt condolences on the demise of civilians and military personnel in the incident”

Islamabad: President Ashraf Ghani of Afghanistan telephoned Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Monday evening and condemned the recent terrorist attack on the PAF base near Peshawar, said a statement issued by the Prime Minister House.

The Afghan president denounced the attack on Badaber Airforce base and extended his “heartfelt condolences on the demise of civilians and military personnel in the incident”.

Ghani reiterated his government’s stance that “Afghanistan will never allow its land to be used against Pakistan by anyone”.

Earlier last week, the government of Afghanistan had strongly rejected the claims as baseless that the attack on PAF camp in Peshawar was planned and controlled from Afghanistan.

A statement issued by the office of Afghan president claimed the Afghan government had never, nor would it ever allow its territory to be used against other countries.

However, the military and government of Pakistan claims that the attack on PAF Badaber camp was planned and controlled from Afghanistan.

Adviser to Prime Minister on National Security and Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz said on Sunday that initial investigation into the attack on the PAF camp had proved that the terrorists had contacts in Afghanistan.

The announcement came two days after over a dozen armed men stormed a PAF camp in Peshawar, killing 29 people including a captain of the Pakistan Army and officials of the Pakistan Air Force.

“There are evidences that terrorists had telephonic contacts within Afghanistan. Since Tehreeki-Taliban Pak¬istan leadership is in Afghanistan, the possibility of terrorists’ contacts within Afghanistan cannot be ruled out,” he said while speaking to a private TV channel.

“It is not the first incident that terrorists had links within Afghanistan. The December 16 attack on Army Public School was also planned in Afghanistan and its information was passed to Afghan authorities,” he recalled.

Mr Aziz said when Pakistan’s army chief went to Kabul, the Afghan government’s response was positive, action was taken and many

militants were apprehended.

“Now again, there is evidence that terrorists had received phone calls from Afghanistan. Further investigation is under way and will be shared with Afghan authorities on completion,” he said.

Defense analyst and PML-N Senator Lt Gen (retd) Abdul Qayyum welcomed this gesture of Afghan President Ghani and stressed that joint efforts like intelligence sharing are very much important to eliminate terrorists from the soil of both the countries.

While talking to Dawn.com, Qayyum said, “Ghani is an experienced politician, he understands that terrorists are the enemy of both Pakistan and Afghanistan.

“He is facing a lot of internal pressure from his opponents as well as the Indian lobby active in Afghanistan that Pakistan is creating problems for Kabul but Ghani believes on bilateral cooperation to counter terrorism,” said the former military general.

Pakistan to Go ‘Soft’ on Afghanistan over PAF Attack

Islamabad: Pakistan on Monday

decided against lodging a strong protest with Afghanistan over the Badhaber attack, sources privy to the development told The Express Tribune.

“Due to Afghan President Ashraf Ghani’s weak writ, Pakistan’s protest with Afghanistan on Badhaber attack will be more harmful than beneficial,” said a source who attended a high-level meeting chaired

by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in Islamabad on Monday.

“Pakistan will only share evidences with the Afghan government and will actively pursue the case instead of lodging a protest,” the source added.

The high-level meeting was held to review the overall security situation in the country, with particular reference to the terrorist attack on Pakistan Air Force (PAF) camp in Badhaber which killed 29 people.

“Ghani’s regime is very weak and it is not in Pakistan’s interest to suspend its relations with Afghanistan over members of Tehreek-eTaliban Pakistan (TTP) hiding in Afghanistan,” the source further said.

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Pakistan Counts Cost of Taliban Attacks on Economy London: Taliban attacks have been costing Pakistan’s economy as much as $5 billion a year in lost investment, the country’s finance secretary said, adding that Islamabad is keeping open the option of another IMF program.

Speaking as Pakistan officials met bond investors in London, Waqar Masood Khan stressed a lot was at stake in the latest $1.9 billion three-year military drive to rid the country of the violence.

“Our people have suffered terribly over the last 1-1/2 decades and we have lost out enormously in terms of economic opportunities and output because of this terrorism,” he told Reuters.

“We have seen in the past foreign (investment) inflows of $5-7 billion but today we are not even having $2 billion,” he said, noting that security costs and damage to the economy had to be added to that.

With the army making headway against the Taliban in North Waziristan, the situation was finally “reversing”.

Khan said Karachi for example seemed safer than at any time over the last decade and “exporters who met with the prime minister recently said their customers are now coming (to Pakistan)” again.

The Pakistan economy is benefitting from the near 60 percent drop in global oil prices, its biggest import. Its central bank has also been cutting interest rates while its IMF program is clamping down on corruption.

GDP growth is expected to be 5.5 percent for the year to June 2016. Reserves are expected to top $20 billion, 4-5 months of import cover, this month or next.

“In the 1960s and 80s Pakistan

Taliban attacks have been costing Pakistan’s economy as much as $5 billion a year in lost investment

The Pakistan Air Force (PAF) has discussed buying Su-35 ‘Flanker-E’ fighter aircraft from Russia in potentially the largest defense deal between the two countries

achieved growth rates of 6-7 percent. We are held back by the internal problems and the terrorism.

Once we have it under control we should really be a breakout country as justified by our potential,” he said.

Islamabad: A senior Pakistani official has confirmed Russian media reports that the two countries have discussed a potential deal on the Su-35.

The Pakistan Air Force (PAF) has discussed buying Su-35 ‘Flanker-E’ fighter aircraft from Russia in potentially the largest defense deal between the two countries, but a final decision is yet to be made, a senior Pakistani government official has confirmed to IHS Jane’s.

The official was responding to Russian media reports that Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov had said talks were underway for an unspecified number of Su35s, which follow a recent agreement to provide Mi-35M ‘Hind E’ attack helicopters to Islamabad.

While the official said “it’s too early to say if a deal will conclude and the terms”, the fact that discussions have taken place shows Russia’s willingness to sell advanced hardware to Pakistan despite Mos-

Pakistan’s financial markets have been performing well for the most part and Khan said a coming debt sale, details of which should be announced later this week, could see it sell more than the originally envisaged $500 million.

“We are not fixated on the size, we can definitely do more and we are open with regards to the tenor too,” Khan said. “Last time we raised $2 billion.

“And we will do a sukuk (sharia-compliant bond) in ... maybe the April to June quarter,” he added, also likely to be worth $500 million.

Power shortages cause daily outages for Pakistani firms and the

General Raheel Approves Death Sentences of Nine Terrorists Rawalpindi: The Chief of Army Staff

General Raheel Sharif on Monday approved the death sentences of nine hardcore terrorists involved in various heinous terrorism activities, said a statement released by head of military’s media wing on Twitter.

The director general of Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), Maj Gen Asim Bajwa, tweeted that the army chief confirmed the death sentences of nine hardcore terrorists involved in the killing of civilians and security personnel.

The condemned terrorists were involved in the killing of Major General Sanaullah, General Officer Commanding for Malakand Division, and Lt Col Tauseef Ahmed during an attack on a military convoy in Swat.

The Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan had claimed responsibility for the attack. The police later claimed that the suspect behind the attack, Abdul Rahim alias Raes, was arrested in March this year during an operation in Barawal, near the PakAfghan border.

The ISPR said that those convicted were involved in sectarian attacks in Mastung, killing of civilians and security personnel in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, suicide attack in Nowshehra and the IED attack on the military convoy in Swat.

One terrorist has also been awarded life imprisonment, DawnNews quoted the ISPR as saying.

Pakistani Official Confirms Talks for Purchase of Su-35

The military statement did not disclose when the sentencing was done.

There are currently nine military courts in the country. The army chief recently agreed to increase the number of tribunals in Karachi.

Political parties had unanimously agreed over the issue of setting up military courts to tackle terrorism cases in the country following the gruesome attack on the Army Public School in Peshawar in December 2014, following which the Parliament passed the 21st constitutional amendment to set up the said courts.

The apex court did however keep the power to review sentences in certain cases, where it feels the condition of fair trial is not met.

government says it will take years to fix.

The rupee is holding up better than many emerging market currencies, down less than 2 percent over the last year, which is hurting exporters.

Eleven out of 12 IMF programs Pakistan has had since 1998 have been scrapped or abandoned because the government failed to implement reforms.

It will be viewed as a great success if the current one, due to run until September next year, goes the full distance.

“At this stage it is not clear what we will do, we will cross that bridge when we come to it,” Khan said.

“A fund program is meant to eventually be graduated from and you go it alone, but you never know how the conditions will evolve and whether there would be any need for a new program or not.”

War Is for Pakistan’s Future Peshawar: Chief of the Air Staff Air Chief Marshal Sohail Aman on Monday visited Pakistan Air Force (PAF) camp Badaber and said that the war against terrorism was the war for Pakistan’s future.

“The enemies of Pakistan should remain cognizant of the fact that no one can shake our resolve,” said ACM Sohail Aman, while addressing a gathering of PAF airmen during his visit to the PAF base.

“The air chief prayed for the martyrs of the attack and lauded the valiant response of the airmen who fought bravely during the recent terrorist attack,” said Air Commodore S M Ali, a spokesperson for the PAF. ACM Sohail Aman said that PAF as a force is more resilient to fight against the menace of terrorism and it will never let the terrorists succeed in their nefarious designs.

Late last week, at least 42 people, including 13 terrorists, were killed as PAF Badaber came under attack by Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) militants.

In a press conference later on the day of the attack, Director General Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Major-General Asim Bajwa had said that the attack on PAF Badaber camp was planned and controlled from Afghanistan.

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cow’s longstanding ties with India.

The official said Pakistan’s interest in the Su-35 was driven by the PAF’s need for a twin-engine fighter “that can fly for a longer range than the JF-17 and penetrate more deeply into the enemy’s territory”. The PAF flies a mixed fleet of Lockheed Martin F-16s, Dassault Mirage-5s, Chinese-manufactured F-7s, and the JF-17 Thunder, which is jointly produced by China and Pakistan.

In November 2014 a senior Pakistani official told IHS Jane’s that Pakistan was in discussions with China to buy 30 to 40 FC-31s - the export version of China’s J-31 fifthgeneration platform. At the time, the official told IHS Jane’s that Pakistan was interested in the platform partly because it was fitted with two RD-93 Russian Klimov engines, which also powers the JF-17. PAF officials have also told IHS Jane’s in the past that they have considered the purchase of up to 40 Chengdu J-10 fighters.

Islamabad in a Fix over Joining US-Led Coalition Islamabad: With the war against

militancy raging on within its own boundaries, Pakistan has to decide within the coming days whether or not to join the US-backed international alliance against the ultra-extremist Islamic State (IS).

Ahead of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif ’s upcoming trip to the US, the government is in a quandary over how it should respond to Washington’s request to join its military alliance against the militant group, which has established a selfstyled Caliphate over large areas in Iraq and Syria.

PM Nawaz is expected to visit New York to address the United Nations General Assembly session next week.

The US started bombing IS hideouts in Syria using bases in Turkey in August last year. It has also formally asked Islamabad to join its military alliance to fight the growing global presence of the terrorist group.

“Pakistan is caught between the American demand and its own ongoing battle against the militants,” a senior government official said on Sunday.

Islamabad has to decide soon with the PM’s trip to the US com-

ing up. The official claimed the premier and army chief General Raheel Sharif are on the same page: unwilling to join the alliance.

Washington is expected to announce this new alliance – Sahel to South Asia – soon and has already taken Islamabad into confidence, he added.

Foreign Office spokesperson Qazi Khalilullah confirmed the US has shared the idea with Pakistan.

“Details however are awaited,” he added.

Last month, US National Security Adviser Susan Rice held meetings with the Pakistani military and civilian leadership when she also extended an invitation to Premier Sharif for the Washington visit.

Officials at the PM Secretariat said Gen Raheel and PM Nawaz would this week discuss the US proposal and other issues ranging from the New York visit, Taliban regrouping, al Qaeda and other militant groups sympathetic to the IS. With Pakistan facing pressure on its eastern and western borders, they said the fear of suspension of the Coalition Support Fund seems to be Washington’s tactic to pressure Islamabad into joining the proposed alliance against IS.

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SEPTEMBER 25, 2015 – PAKISTAN LINK – P15

Pakistani Researchers Develop Solar-Powered Mobile Phone Network

Security Worries over LG Polls in Muharram

delivering timely advice to disaster-hit people, said Pervaiz Amir, country director for the Pakistan Water Partnership.

“Local researchers should be encouraged to develop innovative solutions to help people in distress,” he said.

But the RBS needs to be tested in the field under different conditions before being deployed on a wider scale in actual disaster zones, he added.

Amir said the RBS could be useful for rescue and aid activities, especially in remote rural areas of Pakistan where natural disasters regularly disrupt poor communications systems.

Researchers at the Information Technology University (ITU) in Lahore, together with a team from the University of California, have developed a prototype “Rescue Base Station” (RBS) for Pakistan

Karachi: Pakistani researchers have

developed a portable, solar-powered mobile phone network for use in disasters like floods and earthquakes when regular communications are often disrupted.

Researchers at the Information Technology University (ITU) in Lahore, together with a team from the University of California, have developed a prototype “Rescue Base Station” (RBS) for Pakistan – the country’s first emergency telecoms system that would work on normal cell phones.

“When the RBS is installed in a disaster-struck area, people automatically start receiving its signals on their mobile phones. They can manually choose it and then call, send messages and even browse (internet) data free of charge,” said Umar Saif, ITU vice chancellor and an adviser to the project.

The RBS is a lightweight, compact rectangular box fitted with an antenna, a signal amplifier and a battery, which can be carried easily and even dropped by helicopter in hardto-reach disaster zones.

It has a solar panel to charge the battery, to keep it working in places without electric power.

An alternative communications system like this could help save lives when disasters strike by connecting survivors with rescue workers and government officials.

The RBS has yet to be deployed on the ground, but the ITU expects it to be used in the next six to eight months in partnership with the National Disaster Management Authority and a local telecoms company.

Saif said the RBS signal can be received within a three km radius, and people in the area can easily register by sending their name, occupation, age and blood group to a special number.

“This helps generate an automatic database of people in distress, and eventually helps both the rescue and relief teams and the victims,” he said.

Pakistan has 116 million active cellular subscribers out of a total population of 185 million, according to official data.

Potential users of the RBS system can get the information they need in just a few seconds by sending a text message to specific numbers appearing on their mobile phone.

For example, if a person needs to contact a fire brigade, they text the words “occupation: firefighters” to the

relevant number.

They will then receive names and contact details for local firefighters in just a few seconds and can call for help, Saif said.

Or if someone needs access to blood supplies, they send a message saying “blood group, B positive”, for instance, and receive contact information for people nearby with that blood group, so they can ask for a donation.

Saif said RBS teams on the ground plan to collect information about disaster-affected people in a database, and pass this on to rescue teams, doctors and government departments that can provide assistance. “(They) can also send weather forecasts and disaster alerts to subscribers, and help them evacuate troubled areas,” said Ibrahim Ghaznavi, an ITU researcher and one of the RBS developers.

The RBS, which operates using open source software, offers all the features provided by regular cellphone companies, he added.

Ghaznavi said it costs around $6,000 to develop an RBS, and the Pakistan prototype has been funded by a Google Faculty Research Award.

Tech innovation: The RBS team is now working with Endaga, a USbased company that connects rural communities through small-scale independent cellular networks, and a local telecoms firm to commercialize the project, he added.

The aim of the collaboration is to help phone companies keep their communications systems functioning in a disaster until their regular networks are restored.

Pakistan is a disaster-prone country, which needs $6 billion to $14 billion to help it adapt to climate change impacts, such as unusually heavy rains, droughts and melting glaciers, through to 2050, according to a 2011 study funded by the UN climate secretariat.

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies developed a customized communications system called the Trilogy Emergency Response Application (TERA) in Haiti when it was struck by a massive earthquake in 2010.

But that system could only send text messages to its subscribers on their mobile phones, unlike the RBS which allows users to call, send texts and even browse the web for free.

Cutting-edge technologies like the RBS could help save more lives by

Two Sentenced to Death for PML-N Leader’s Murder

Lahore: An anti-terrorism court on Monday awarded death sentence on two counts to two suspects and imprisonment to two others for killing local PML-N leader Maimoona Jabeen and her gunman in 2011.

The court awarded death sentence to Ziafat Ali and Ghulam Abbas, and life imprisonment on two counts to Saqib with a fine of Rs2 million and 10-year jail term to Khawar with Rs1 million fine.

The suspects had gunned down Maimoona and her gunman Muhammad Ashfaq near Ravi Road in June 2011. She was a coordinator of PMLN in Union Council 113.

Police to Crack Down on Sectarian Pamphlets

Rawalpindi: The Punjab government

has directed the police to launch a province-wide crackdown against the distribution of provocative, sectarian pamphlets and posters.

This directive comes after intelligence reports suggested the banned group, Lashkar-e-Jhanvi (LeJ), had threatened a prominent Shia leader not to hold the Majlis-i-Aza at a Darbar in Multan during the upcoming month of Muharram. A security source had confirmed the threat was made through a letter.

The government has already taken a strict stance on the collection of animal hides over Eidul Azha. A senior police officer at the Counter Terrorism Department said operations were in place to check up on banned groups and see if they were raising funds or planning to set up camps for collecting animal hides.

He said: “Any individual associated with banned organizations or placed on schedule four of the AntiTerrorism Act (ATA) will not be allowed to establish camp to collect animal hides or to raise funds.” He added that security agencies were also watching individuals previously associated with banned outfits or placed on the 4th Schedule.

According to a security source, the Punjab Home Department, after gathering intelligence reports from Faisalabad, Rahimyar Khan, Multan and D.G. Khan, has found some individuals ignoring the government ban on distribution of pamphlets and posters regarding the collection of animal hides.

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The IGs’ apprehensions appeared to be an attempt to seek further postponement of the first phase of local government elections

Islamabad: The inspectors general

(IGs) of Punjab and Sindh told the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Monday that they feared that the local bodies elections — currently scheduled to be held during the month of Muharram — may be targeted by terrorists.

The fears were expressed during an ECP meeting held to review arrangements for the polls in Punjab, Sindh and Islamabad Capital Territory.

Chaired by Chief Election Commissioner retired Justice Sardar Muhammad Raza Khan, the meeting was also informed that thousands of leaders and activists from banned outfits would be contesting the polls with different organizational affiliations. The CEC, however, was quoted as telling the IGP, “It is your duty to trace such people out and report them to the ECP”.

The IGs’ apprehensions appeared to be an attempt to seek further postponement of the first phase of local government elections.

The IG Punjab also raised the issue of increased threat levels during the month of Muharram, but said that a polling station-wise security plan was already in place and the Quick Response Force (QRF) was ready to meet any challenge. He also said that strict security measures would be taken at polling stations with a history of electoral tensions.

The two IGPs said the provinces would requisition the army and Rangers for reinforcements, if need be.

At one stage, the CEC observed that the local government law and rules and delimitation were prerequisites for the announcement of the election schedule. “The announcement of the schedule means we call upon the electorates of a constituency to come and elect their representatives,” but regretted that Islamabad had no constituencies as the exercise for the federal capital was yet to be completed. He ordered that the delimitation exercise be completed in Islamabad and also directed governments of Punjab and Sindh to immediately notify the updated local government rules they kept insisting were ready.

The chief secretaries of Punjab and Sindh also objected to the blanket ban the ECP had placed on transfers and postings, saying that many of the cases had nothing to do

with the electoral process at all. They said the blanket ban brings some of government operations to a standstill and were of the view that it was not possible to seek permission on a case-to-case basis from the ECP. The two senior bureaucrats said that while there should be ban on bulk transfers, but posts that required immediate filling should be exempted from this bar. Relenting to their request, the ECP promised to revisit the protocol.

The two chief secretaries also pointed out that the polls were taking place over three phases and a perpetual ban on postings and transfers for months would be problematic.

Later ECP Secretary Babar Yaqoob Fateh Muhammad told reporters that the ban on appointments and transfers of government officers in Punjab and Sindh had been placed to ensure transparency in the electoral process.

He also said that the commission had not yet received any written request for the deployment of Rangers personnel during the elections, adding that the paramilitary force could be called in, if the need arose.

Yaqoob said that the participants of the meeting had discussed issues related to security and the CEC had directed the IGs of Punjab and Sindh to ensure the security of returning officers and other electoral staff.

Meanwhile, the ECP announced the schedule for the third phase of local government elections in Punjab and Sindh. Under the schedule, returning officers will issue notices inviting nominations on Sept 28 and receive nomination papers from Oct 3 to Oct 7.

The nomination papers will be scrutinized from Oct 8 to Oct 13 while Oct 30 has been set as the last date for filing appeals against acceptance or rejection of nomination papers by the returning officers. The tribunals will decide the appeals by Nov 5.

Nov 6 will be the last date for withdrawal of candidature while the final list of the candidates will be published the following day.

Polling for the third phase of LG polls in Punjab and Sindh will take place on Dec 3.

Polling for the first and second phase of LG polls will be held on Oct 31 and Nov 19, respectively.

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Community Link Friday, September 25, 2015

VOL. 25/39 PAGE 20

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egum PAGE 21

‘He Named Me Malala’ Release on October 2

12 Dhul-hijjah 1436 H

AMV Peace Convention in Sacramento

Pakistan Super League Is a WinWin Situation

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Journey Into Europe Launch a Reminder of Hurdles—and Hopes—in Peace Building n By Patrick Burnett American University School of International Service Washington, DC

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s a Catholic who grew up in Northern Ohio, I never thought I would be speaking on a panel at the Islamic Society of North America’s (ISNA) annual Convention and Film Festival a mere four months after receiving my bachelor’s degree.

Yet on September 5, I had the opportunity to speak alongside Ambassador Akbar Ahmed, Chair of Islamic Studies at American University and former Pakistani High Commissioner to the UK, Dr Amineh Hoti, Director of Pakistan’s Center for Dialogue and Action—speaking a mere 36 hours after arriving in the US from Islamabad—and Michael Wolfe, renowned author and director, of the Unity Productions Foundation, on a panel at the ISNA Convention in Chicago to discuss Muslims in the media.

But more importantly, I represented the new film Journey Into Europe, one of the most important films to date on dialogue between the West and Islam, at its launch, acting as an interfaith ambassador working to promote understanding and goodwill on behalf of my country and culture.

A Powerful Launch In Journey Into Europe, world-renowned scholar Ambassador Akbar Ahmed explores Islam in Europe and the place of Islam in European history and civilization. This project—consisting of this film and a forthcoming book—is the fourth in an unprecedented quartet studying relations between the West and the Muslim World. Along the way, we hear from some of Europe’s most prominent figures – presidents and prime ministers, archbishops, chief rabbis, and grand muftis, heads of right-wing parties, and everyday Europeans from a variety of backgrounds, to uncover Islam’s place in Europe.

Growing up, given my background, never did I think I would be representing such an important project on behalf of my professor and mentor. Nor did I expect that I would have the honor of welcoming my dad, an inspiration in all that I do, to my first major professional accomplishment in launching the screening of this film.

As an undergraduate student at American University, I had the distinct honor of learning about knowledge and its importance to peace from Ahmed, my professor and mentor. Now, watching throngs of people at the exciting ISNA Convention jumping to interact with him and seeing so much public recognition of him and his work, these important lessons from the classroom were now coming to life.

Ambassador Ahmed with his team at the ISNA film festival in Chicago where he showed his latest film about Muslims in Europe

Lord Nazir Ahmed, the first Muslim member of the British House of Lords, even went out of his way on the convention floor to interact with Ahmed and his son and legal advisor to the film, Umar Ahmed.

In attendance for the film launch were some of America’s most prominent interfaith leaders, including Ambassador David Saperstein, the US Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom and Imam Mohamed Majid and Mr Rizwan Jaka of the All Dulles Area Muslim Society in Sterling, Va. The Pakistan Consul General of Chicago, Zahid Zaman, attended as well. Having so many prominent officials in the audience was truly an honor and statement to importance of this work. A Muslim advocate from Texas even stood up to emphasize my professor’s middle name— Salahuddin. As a leader of the Ayyubid Dynasty who projected justice and compassion in his time, this emphasis shows the level of respect Ahmed commands within the American Muslim community. And with this level of respect comes a great deal of inspiration for the community.

Journey Into Europe’s Important Lessons for the West and Muslim World After two years of grueling fieldwork and research studying Islam in Europe through the lens of European Identity, Ahmed brought to ISNA his lessons on how to build a more peaceful world.

Ahmed sees that the West and Muslim

World each carry respective responsibilities to building bridges, making the ISNA Convention’s natural overlap of these worlds an ideal place to spread this message.

Among the many messages he has for American Muslims, Ahmed took the chance at ISNA to challenge the community to always value ilm, or knowledge, seek everyday to act as ambassadors of the faith and challenge those who use Islam as a justification for violence.

Yet, as a Christian American who studied abroad in Berlin and have witnessed the American and European perspectives to Islam in our respective societies, we too clearly have many lessons to learn and messages to spread in this globalizing world.

I was fortunate enough to grow up in a suburb of Cleveland and Akron that was home to a myriad of families committed to the finest upbringing for their children. It was a wonderful place to grow up and emerge into the person I am today. Yet, many of those around whom I grew up were of a very similar background—White Christians born and raised in the US. I knew of one Muslim family in my entire hometown. And this is hardly a unique story even in an America as diverse as ours today. Unless people of different faiths and cultures can come together in everyday life, it will be hard to build bridges between communities.

And yet, as we are seeing in Europe today, even when one has many Muslim neighbors,

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there is no guarantee of mutual understanding. In Journey Into Europe, one witnesses a large protest against the building of a new mosque in Cologne, concerns of intercultural war in Bradford, and communities in the Balkans still torn nearly twenty years after the region’s devastating wars.

Ultimately, the West must remember its roots in the values of the Renaissance and the Enlightenment—humanism and treating the other with dignity and respect—and object to intolerance and violence in order to uphold our mosaic of cultures and faiths and build peace in this world.

Dr Rowan Williams, the former Archbishop of Canterbury, is quoted in Journey Into Europe as saying, “When you realize that you don’t know your neighbors, you can either panic, or you can sit with them and listen.’”

As I write this article, Pope Francis has exonerated European parish communities to take in refugees fleeing to Europe, refugees traveling not to earn a higher income or “take jobs away,” but for their own safety and security. In Germany, while some try to burn down new asylum homes throughout the countries, many more are cheering refugees as they arrive in Munich, Berlin, and elsewhere in the country. And more and more non-Muslim Americans are working and living side-byside peacefully with Muslims. Clearly, there is much to celebrate in the West today. This bridge-building journey is hardly over though.

Until people in both the West and the Muslim World do not still believe that the “other” is out to attack them, we will not see peace in our world. We will still see young Muslims leaving for Syria, and we will still see asylum seekers attacked for “threatening” Western civilization. And members of communities all across our great nation will still see Muslims as an “other” out to attack their very way of life.

The ISNA community was very receptive to our film and showed great enthusiasm for spreading its challenging, but hopeful message.

We received invitations for screenings across the country, in cities such as Dallas, Atlanta, and Philadelphia, and kind words of encouragement from many more in attendance. There is no doubt that this is a hopeful beginning for the Journey Into Europe project. But at the end of the day, we need out fellow global citizens to take in the film’s ultimate message of compassion and bridge building through understanding and spread this message throughout their communities. Until this film’s powerful message is widely spread, and people across the West—and the whole world—live up to these challenges, we are simply not going to move forward as a civilization. As we watch our TV screens during this refugee crisis, we must all watch and respect this vital film and put forth its lessons in today’s humanitarian crises.

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P18 – PAKISTAN LINK – SEPTEMBER 25, 2015

Hubert Humphrey Fellowship Program: Fostering People-to-People Exchange n By C. Naseer Ahmad

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Washington, DC

eteran journalist Jules Witcover narrates the journey from “irrelevance to power” – through the stories of US Vice-Presidents from John Adams to Joe Biden, in a recent book. The elected position of the US Vice-President was once described as “not worth a warm bucket of spit”

by John Nance Garner who was elected the 32nd Vice-President during 1933-1941 and served with President Franklin D Roosevelt.

Over time, US Vice-Presidents have played important roles is projecting US influence in creative ways. As Vice-President, Richard Nixon vigorously debated Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev in Moscow in the “Kitchen Debate”, famously pointing finger at him. As US Vice-President visiting Pakistan in 1961, Lyndon Johnson befriended an illiterate camel driver Bashir Ahmad setting off a chain of people-to-people diplomatic events.

Then Vice-President Johnson greeted him at the airport upon his arrival in New York and was a bit apologetic for the chilly weather.

Though unlettered, Bashir responded: “It is not the cold; it is the warmth in the people’s heart that matters.”

Johnson’s successor as the 37th US VicePresident, Hubert Humphrey had a lot of warmth in his heart – earning him the nickname “Happy Warrior” and who championed many worthy causes. He was the lead author of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and first introduced the initiative to create the Peace Corps.

“Every time he spoke to a large or small audience he would bring people to their feet cheering with his brilliant oratory and his encyclopedic knowledge,” remembered Ann Howard-Tristani, Board Member, the Embassy

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Series and niece of Hubert H. Humphrey, at Boston University Hubert H. Humphrey Fellowship Program Graduation Ceremony on May 1, 2015.

In 1978, President Jimmy Carter initiated the Hubert Humphrey Fellowship program to foster “an exchange of knowledge and mutual understanding throughout the world.” This program serves as a lasting legacy of a caring man and a memorial to one of the finest US Presidents. The Humphrey program brings young and mid-career professionals from across the world for a year no-degree graduate level study, leadership development and professional collaboration with US counterparts.

A wealth of information is available on the website about this program which is sponsored by the US Department of State. Applicants can obtain information about eligibility, the fellowship provisions and components. Host Universities are listed on the website, which also provides encouraging information about why a university should become a host.

A luncheon at the National Press Club with

Humphrey Fellows from Pakistan, Fernanda Katz Ellenberg, International Programs Coordinator, American University (AU) Washington College of Law and Anne Howard-Tristani provided an in-depth understanding about this important program and its far reaching impact. Each participating fellow visiting from Pakistan brought energy, enthusiasm as well as fresh perspective. They came across engaged and eager to take back a renewed spirit to serve in the communities from where they came. As a host university representative, Ms Ellenberg – originally from Brazil – had shared with empathy and provided ardent support to each fellowship participant.

Haidar Zaman a lawyer, graduating from the University of Peshawar, worked as a literacy coordinator for the National Commission for Human Development before coming to the US. Zaman was taking back both knowledge and experience from AU and the Humphrey Fellowship program.

Malala Yusufzai has earned a venerable place in history due to her courageous stand

14-Year-Old Boy Arrested for Bringing Homemade Clock to School Not to Be Charged

hmed Mohamed, a freshman at Irving MacArthur High School in Irving, Texas, seems like the kind of student America needs more of. He’s bright and curious; he’s excited about learning; and he wants to impress his teachers.

Perhaps most importantly, the 14-year-old student also appears to have a knack for engineering - Mohamed recently made an electronic clock at home, not as part of a required assignment, but because that’s what he wanted to do with his weekend. On Monday, at his parents’ encouragement, he took the clock to school in the hope of making a good impression with his first-period engineering teacher.

Later in the day, Ahmed Mohamed found himself in handcuffs.

Mohamed said the problem arose when the clock rang in his back pack in class with a second teacher later in the day. He said he showed that teacher the device after other students had left the room.

“She said, ‘Well it looks like a bomb. Don’t show it to anyone else,’” he said. “And she decides to take it from me.”

Mohamed said police handcuffed him and took him to Irving police headquarters for interrogation, fingerprints and mug shots. He said his family surname repeatedly came up in police questioning.

After the Monday arrest, Irving police released a report, noting that Mohamed, who was wearing a NASA t-shirt when he was taken away in handcuffs, was charged with building a “hoax bomb.” He was released after it was determined there was no threat.

The student was suspended from school and the local police are still investigating the incident.

The school district issued a written statement, but it included no apology.

Ahmed Mohamed’s arrest has been sharply criticized, and the boy has received an outpouring of support including an invitation to the White House. The controversy has quickly garnered national attention, with Democratic presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton tweeting a message to Mohamed: “Assumptions and fear don’t keep us safe - they hold us back.

Ahmed, stay curious and keep building.”

Under the hashtag “#IstandwithAhmed,” thousands of Twitter users praised the boy’s initiative and questioned why he was detained including Nasa scientists, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and US President Barack Obama.

Ahmed told reporters it was “very sad” that his teacher thought his clock was a threat.

“I built a clock to impress my teacher but when I showed it to her she thought it was a threat to her. I’m very sad that she got the wrong im-

for education. However, among the enlightened exemplars of Pakistan is the mother of Qurrat-ul-Ain Rasheed, a Humphrey fellow at Syracuse University. “My mother was an illiterate woman but she left no stone unturned to ensure that I go to school and make her proud,” recollects Qurrat. In a recent article “Societal Fault Lines,” which would earn her mother’s pride, Qurrat wrote “a successful life is all about humanity – to be a human first and foremost.” After an year of “extraordinary cultural and social experiences in United States and in this transitional phase I’m endeavoring making plans to contribute and bring difference in the lives of ordinary people of my country,” she wrote in a recent email to the author.

Umar Mehmood, an engineer with background in renewable energy and water management is another dedicated Humphrey Fellow. “Although, I got extension until December, 2015 but I came back to Pakistan with the passion to justify the cause and objectives of Hubert Humphrey fellowship to share my expertise for a positive change. Currently, I am in Islamabad, visiting national and international organizations like USAID etc. to look for a potential place/ forum to work, where I can effectively use my skills and expertise to help contribute to the growth and development of my country,” he wrote to me.

Before the advent of emails, in the age of political correctness and hypersensitivity, many are eager to paint the US as the arch enemy of Islam and Muslims; however, few will know that as US Vice-President Lyndon Johnson wrote in a cable to his departing camel rider friend Bashir, who did not even own a shoe before his visit to US: “Since your return to Pakistan takes you so close to Mecca, arrangements have been made through the People-toPeople program for you to visit there.“

Trump under Fire for Failure

JadooTV Launches JadooGO Mobile

to Rebut Anti-Muslim Backer

App on Apple & Android Devices

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he campaign trail exchange triggered the latest uproar over the Republican frontrunner’s regard for minorities in America, and prompted at least one Republican White House hopeful to say he would have corrected the man immediately.

pression of it.”

The police have rejected the claim made by Ahmed’s family that he was detained because of his name.

“We have always had an outstanding relationship with the Muslim community,” Irving Police Department chief Larry Boyd said on Wednesday.

“We have a problem in this coun“Incidents like this present challenges. try, it’s called Muslims. We know our We want to learn how we can move current president is one, you know forward and turn this into a positive”. he’s not even an American,” an unidentified man told Trump at the real estate magnate’s camMPAC Hollywood Bureau billionaire paign stop late Thursday in Rochester, Applauds Regina King’s New Hampshire.

Trump chuckled and interrupted him to say, “We need this question.

Emmy Win This is the first question.”

“Anyway, we have training camps n By Suhad (Sue) Obeidi Director of the Hollywood Bureau growing where they want to kill us,” the man resumed. “That’s my question: When can we get rid of them?” n Sun“A lot of people are saying that, d a y and a lot of people are saying that nig ht, bad things are happening out there,” actress Regina Trump responded.

King won an Trump quickly moved on to anEmmy award other questioner, without addressing for her role as the man’s assertions about Obama -an American which reflect a lingering misconcepMuslim womtion among the American public. an in Disney/ Thursday’s exchange prompted ABC Television’s drama American Crime. MPAC’s Hollywood Bu- outrage from Democrats and dereau congratulates Ms. King as she mands for an apology.

Democratic frontrunner Hillary is the first actress to win an Emmy for portraying an American Mus- Clinton tweeted that Trump’s failure to denounce the “hateful rhetoric lim character in a recurring role.

We would like to also congrat- about Muslims is disturbing, & just ulate actress Viola Davis for being plain wrong. Cut it out.”

Trump’s campaign manager the first African American to win an Emmy award for best lead actress in Corey Lewandowski said his candia drama series. Ms. Davis won for date did not hear the question about her role in Disney/ABC Television’s Obama’s religion. series How to Get Away with Mur“All he heard was a question der. This year, the Academy of Tele- about training camps, which he said vision Arts and Science we have to look into,” Lewandowski told CNN. MPAC, P24

O

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Pleasanton,

CA: JadooTV announced has launched mobile applications for its over-thetop streaming service named Jado oGO. “JadooTV users can now enjoy their favorite South Asian content everywhere, all the time with JadooGO. “With cord cutting becoming the norm, this release is a key component of our longterm strategy to release JadooGO on various connected platforms such as Smart TVs, gaming consoles and other mobile devices” said Sajid Sohail, CEO & Founder of JadooTV, Inc. The JadooGO App is available in both Apple (iOS) and Android app stores. The service provides mobile access to the same live and on-demand content available on JadooTV’s set top boxes. Priced at $4.99 a month for those who purchase a subscription directly for use on Apple & Android mobile devices, JadooGo is available for free for one year with purchase of the Jadoo4 set-top box. Stand-alone subscribers of JadooGO app get a 30day free trial of the service without using their credit card.

JadooGO users are allowed logins on multiple devices at the same time, and can enjoy content on up to three screens simultaneously.

JadooGO is compatible with Google’s Chromecast as well as Apple’s AirPlay features. Users can wirelessly stream JadooGO content playing on their phone or tablets to their HDTV using Apple TV or Google Chromecast.

About JadooTV, Inc.: JadooTV is a consumer technology and JADOO, P28

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Muslims Must Counter Negative Image in US, Congressmen Say Washington, DC: It is important

to push back “against the narrative that Muslims represent terrorism and extremist ideologies,” said US Representative Andre Carson, one of only two Muslims in Congress.

The Indiana Democrat told VOA Urdu that Muslims need to present a positive image to American society.

“A lot of terrorism activities are thwarted because Muslims are working with the law enforcement agencies and they are part of the law enforcement agencies. But you never hear about these stories,” he said. “America is ours, and until we dismiss the negative notions of what it means to be a Muslim, we will still face this kind of discrimination across the country.”

Carson was referring to the temporary detention Monday of a Muslim student from suburban Dallas who was pulled from class after he showed a homemade clock to a teacher who mistook it for a bomb. Ahmed Mohamed was questioned by the principal and police, then was handcuffed and taken to a police station.

Intent questioned: Larry Boyd, chief of police in Irving, Texas, told CNN that after school resource officers determined the device was not a bomb, officers investigated whether Mohamed had brought the device to school with

the intent to create alarm. Boyd said it was against the law to make even a phony bomb.

Representative Keith Ellison, the first Muslim elected to the US House, told VOA Urdu that Mohamed was doing what every kid his age should be doing, yet some people treated him like a criminal.

“There are bigoted, unfair people all over the world, not just here in the United States,” Ellison said. “But this is not a static situation. American Muslims and people of other faiths who believe in inclusion are busy, too. And we are reaching out, moving forward, building the bridges to make sure that a young Ahmed Mohamed

can build that clock, can be creative and innovative.”

As Ahmed’s story spread across social media, Twitter erupted with support for him.

The hashtag #IStandWithAhmed was tweeted more than 1 million times.

President Barack Obama invited him to the White House, and Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg posted that he wanted to meet him. A NASA scientist asked Ahmed to give him a call in a couple of years for a job opportunity.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott also weighed in, cautioning that he did not know all the facts but saying that police were wrong to

detain the boy.

‘Environment of fear’: Ellison said Muslims have a lot to offer to the United States, and once their contributions are better known, things can change for better.

“There are over 30 clinics set up in low-income communities across the United States, founded and run by Muslims, where people of any faith can go and get health care service for free,” he said. “A lot of Muslims are running for office, offering free legal advice and starting businesses so that people can get jobs.”

Some Muslim organizations have blamed the “environment of fear” created by anti-Muslim rhetoric for suspicions against the Muslim community. The Council on American-Islamic Relations said Ahmed’s case was an example of the climate of hate and manufactured fear around the religion.

But Ellison admitted that the number of fair-minded and good people in the country by far exceeds those who try to present Muslims or any other group in a bad light.

“This is a great country, and most people are with us,” he said.

“Most school systems would be honored to have him [Ahmed].

What we cannot do is retreat and heed the bullies, bigots and the haters.”

CAIR Condemns Carson’s Comment Washington, DC: The nation’s largest Muslim advocacy group says lawmakers from across the political spectrum should repudiate Republican presidential candidate Ben Carson’s comments that the Islamic faith is inconsistent with the Constitution and that he would not agree with a Muslim being elected president.

Ibrahim Hooper is a spokesman for the Council on American-Islamic Relations and says the Constitution expressly prohibits a religious test to qualify for elected office.

Hooper says Carson’s comments show he is not qualified for the presidency because he cannot hold such views about a religion and at the same time say he will represent Americans of all faiths and backgrounds.

Carson said on NBC’s “Meet the Press” that he would advocate that voters not put a Muslim in charge of the United States. -AP

He Named Me Malala Releases on October 2

13-Year-Old Swat Girl Wins Muhammad Ali Humanitarian Award n By Fazal Khaliq

Rights’. He is also founder of the group’s parent organization, “The Awakening”.

Babak also serves as the head teacher of a private school in Saidu Sharif town of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province’s Swat district . he highly anticipated docuHadiqa Bashir’s family members mentary He Named Me Malala said they were happy that their daughreleases in US theaters starting ter received the award for her noble on October 2 in New York City and cause.

Los Angeles, and then on October 9

Kentucky: Another young girl from

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Swat district – home of child activist Malala Yousufzai – has earned international recognition by being awarded the Third Muhammad Ali Humanitarian Award for dedicating her life to ending the practice of child marriages in Pakistan.

Thirteen-year-old Hadiqa Bashir is a women’s rights activist who has successfully stopped several child marriages in her area. She received the award from Dr Jennifer Clinton, President of Global Ties USA. Hadiqa has become the youngest recipient of this award.

The award ceremony, hosted by four-time Olympic gold medalist Janet Evans, took place at the Marriot Louisville to recognize people from around the world who have made significant contributions to peace, social justice, human rights, and social capital.

Six individuals 30 years or younger were presented with an award that mirror boxing legend Muhammad Ali’s six core principles: confidence,

n By Maureen Fiedler

B

Washington, DC

en Carson said recently that he does not believe a Muslim should be President of the United States. This statement flatly disqualifies Ben Carson himself from that office because he apparently is not familiar with the basic tenets and ideals of the US Constitution. Article 6 says plainly: “…no religious Test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the United States.”

I want to say, “OK, Ben, suppose

T

Inna Lil La He Wa Inna Ilay Hey Rajioon

Hadiqa Bashir is seen during a group discussion in Swat

conviction, dedication, giving, respect and spirituality. The Muhammad Ali Center was co-founded by Ali and his wife Lonnie.

Speaking on the occasion Hadiqa Bashir said she was honored to receive the award. “The award reaffirms my conviction that with truth, courage and determination as our weapons, my country, Pakistan will

be liberated from every type of injustice and violence. I did not make the journey here alone. Numerous people have supported me along the way,” she said.

Bashir added that she was blessed with an amazing and supportive family, especially her uncle Erfaan Hussein Babak who is the co-founder of the group ‘Girls United for Human

My mother-in-law, Begum Bilqis Jehan, passed away last evening (Tuesday) in Abbottabad.

Qur’an Khwani will be held when Maimoona returns from Pakistan.

I will be grateful if you could email to your contacts the announcement requesting from us to do “Dua” for her. Our phone numbers are: Home 310-456-5059 Cell 714-724-4535 Thanks and Jazak Allāh.

Karim Raza

across all other US cities.

He Named Me Malala is an intimate portrait of Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Malala Yousafzai, who was targeted by the Taliban and severely wounded by a gunshot when returning home on her school bus in Pakistan’s Swat Valley.

Acclaimed documentary filmmaker Davis Guggenheim (An Inconvenient Truth, Waiting for Superman) shows us how Malala, her father Zia and her family are committed to fighting for education for all girls worldwide.

The film gives us an inside glimpse into this extraordinary young girl’s life from her close relationship with her father who inspired her love for education, to her impassioned speeches at the UN, to her everyday life with her parents and brothers. For more information, visit www.malala.org.

“No Religious Test for Public Office” you are elected. How will you take an oath to uphold the Constitution of the United States … ‘so help you God’?” when you don’t agree with something so basic to our democracy?

And I have to ask him as well: you are an African American yourself. You know what discrimination means. Why would you want to discriminate against another group?

OK… that’s Ben Carson. Then there is Donald Trump, who apparently cannot muster the courage to tell someone who questioned him about the “Muslim problem” in the United States that he is a bigot. And

when the questioner suggested that President Obama is a Muslim, he did not correct him (which John McCain – to his credit – DID do in his presidential contest against Obama). In short, Trump let the man rant about Muslims and never called him out on that. That too is disqualifying in my book (not that Trump was ever on my short – or long – list to begin with).

Enough already! In both cases, this is religious bigotry pure and simple… Islamophobia, to be specific.

And it disqualifies anyone running for the highest office in our land, who must swear to uphold the Constitu-

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tion and with it, our American ideals of non-discrimination.

And you know… as a Roman Catholic… this conjures up memories of anti-Catholic rhetoric from my youth. In school, I learned about the long history of anti-Catholic prejudice in the 19th century… from the Know Nothing Party onward. I recall that the candidacy of John F. Kennedy was questioned because he was a Catholic. People thought he would “bring the Pope over” or take instructions from him when running the country. [Ironically, today some people – who like Pope Francis –

wish our elected officials would actually listen to him].

But in time, the better instincts of our nature took control and we overcame anti-Catholic prejudice as a nation. Today, several Presidential candidates in both parties are Catholic, and no one blinks an eyelash. If we are true to our ideals of religious non-discrimination… the same will be true for Muslims and anyone regardless of their religious belief or non-belief.

(Sister Maureen Fiedler is Host, Interfaith Voices, a program on over 70 radio stations via NPR)

COMMUNITY

SEPTEMBER 25, 2015 – PAKISTAN LINK – P21

American Muslim Voice Peace Convention in Sacramento

The AMV-Sacramento Chapter did a fine job by organizing a function where youth, adults and even some seniors were able to participate in spreading a message of peace from a Muslim viewpoint

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n By Ras H. Siddiqui

he theme for the day was “Hate Hurts America: Can We Turn the Tide of Hate into Love?” with a Peace Convention where close to 500 people gathered at the California Automobile Museum on Saturday, September 12, 2015, a day after an understandably somber national 9/11 anniversary which this time was held on a unique note in Sacramento, California’s capital city with a parade organized to honor three brave Americans who helped to stop a possible terrorist attack from occurring in Europe.

The group that organized this Peace Convention the day after was none other than the American Muslim Voice Foundation (AMV) whose Executive Director Samina Sundas and National President Khalid Saeed decided to move their annual convention from the Bay Area to Sacramento for the first time. And the AMV-Sacramento Chapter took up this task and did a fine job at it, with an evening where youth, adults and even some seniors were able to participate in spreading a message of peace from a Muslim viewpoint.

It is just not possible to encapsulate the entire event activity in just one article here but this attempt will try to highlight as much as possible.

Emcee Firdos Sheikh did a commendable job in conducting the evening activities and deserves praise up front for keeping everyone focused for several hours. The formalities began with a recitation from the

Holy Qur’an. AMV National President Khalid Saeed next welcomed everyone and introduced the AMV Team that both locally and regionally makes good things happen. The AMV vison is personified in Khalid because he is everywhere, networking with the mainstream, neighbors, friends and elected officials. The Sacramento AMV Chapter is possibly the most active one currently, and as hosts deserved the additional recognition given to it this evening.

A re-introduction by Ushna Asif Sattar and Aisha Noor of the topic that inspired over 100 youth to participate in an essay competition conducted by AMV earlier this year set a nice tone for the evening as did the short speech by Asif Sattar (who was delighted to see a full hall) as to why he joined the AMV Foundation.

He also reiterated that AMV was not here to compete against any other Muslim organization and that the goals may be the same but the methodology may differ.

Aside from the all-important AMV youth factor which included the Essay Contest winning writers, the rest of the evening speeches can be categorized as the social, political and the spiritual with a great deal of overlapping between them. The social was well covered by Samina Sundas of AMV Foundation (http://www. amuslimvoice.org/) and Komal Ahmad, the CEO of Feeding Forward.

Some could successfully argue that the social and political easily merged during their promotion of humanitarian values. The political did overlap into the spiritual in the speech

by Terry Holdbrooks, former police guard at Camp Delta in Guantanamo Bay who converted to Islam. And for deeper spirituality we turned to professional skateboarder Jordan Richter who grew up in a Jewish household and accepted Islam later in life and was quite satisfied with his choice.

In her speech Samina Sundas did not mince any words when she said how much 9/11 had cost American Muslims. From young men picked up soon after the attack, to the Patriot Act and INS Special Registration of people from over 20 countries (only North Korea amongst them was not Muslim) even if they were sick or handicapped. Many innocent people were detained. After 9/11 and observing its impact she asked, “Where is the peaceful voice of Islam?” And that became the genesis of American Muslim Voice. She said that our fellow Americans want to get to know us, but that we (99% peaceful Muslims) need to become visible and show them the true face of our faith. A video and a slide show of the work that AMV has done stretching from the San Francisco Bay area to Sacramento and as far away as Washington DC was shown to stress that point. “Moving from Fear to Friendship” is a good vision to have and AMV wants to pursue it.”

In her speech, Komal Ahmad a young American Muslim woman, shared her road to making what Samina had mentioned earlier, a reality. One meal with a homeless veteran changed her life and the idea of Feeding Forward was born. She said that as a child she was told by her mother

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of people starving in Pakistan but that she later learned that people were also starving right here in America in spite of the fact that Americans throw away millions of pounds of edible food every day. She said that many Americans don’t know where their next meal is coming from. The vison and goal of “Feeding Forward” (https://www.feedingforward.com/) is to get the food from people who are ready to throw it away (as waste) to the people that need it most. Komal Ahmad is a young American Muslim who had set out to make a difference, and she has succeeded, a fact that should make us all proud.

Terry Holdbrooks who spoke next, said that he was a young man looking for employment options after High School. He decided to try to “Be all You Can Be” and join the army since money was tight (his last employment before that was working at a Taco Bell). On finally being accepted, he asked which job was providing a joining bonus. And that job was that of a Military Guard which led him to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba or Camp Delta to be exact where he met the world’s meanest and toughest terrorists or so he was set to believe (he was taken on a visit to Ground Zero in New York before he was posted).

Instead, he met people who were often mistreated but kept their faith.

When asked why he accepted Islam, he said that it was the behavior of the prisoners. Terry also cautioned all Americans (not just Muslims) about the NDAA and the issue of their rights.

The deeply spiritual component

of the evening was provided via a preview of Harpo Productions (Oprah Winfrey Network) documentary on faith which featured the final speaker of the evening Jordan Richter performing Haj. A former Jew performing Haj and being deeply moved by his experience in the process moved us in the audience too. Jordan spoke after a break for prayers. “I find it very disturbing that I have to apologize for being a Muslim,” he said. He also shared his journey coming from a family where drug use was prevalent and how he found his own salvation in Islam and how he is using that experience to bond with his son.

The tone of the evening was passion, as described by the esteemed emcee. The segment on essay writing contest winners will have to be deferred to another article (and hopefully another event) as will the important comments of Taj Khan.

He was one of the “Unsung Heroes” honored by AMV at this Peace Convention along with Hamza El Nakhal, Helen Roland, Shabbir Khan, Komal Ahmad, Sylvina Frausto, Basim Elkarra, Imam Mumtaz Qasmi, Rabina Khan and a writer for the Pakistan Link newspaper who in his acceptance said that his role was minimal since he was continually inspired to write by others from the community who do the actual work.

The people of the AMV Foundation are a prime example of this observation!

(Dedicated to a 14-year-old Muslim kid from Texas named Ahmed Mohamed who built a clock and took it to school)

COMMENTARY

P22 – PAKISTAN LINK – SEPTEMBER 25, 2015

Why the Pakistan Super League Is a Win-Win Situation

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n By Omair Alavi

here is no limit to ambition and the Pakistan Super League (PSL) is one such project that has no limitations. Set to be played in Qatar in February 2016, the event promises to be the biggest, the most exciting and by far the most entertaining tournament in the history of Pakistan cricket.

Biggest, because the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) is trying to rope in the biggest names in T20 cricket; most exciting since it will feature local talent alongside international names, and most entertaining because the entertainment stars on this side of the Wagah will support different teams. Interesting isn’t it?

Why the hype about PSL? The PSL is not just about cricket.

It is something bigger than the game especially in Pakistan where the standard of local T20 cricket is much lower than the rest of the world. Players drop more catches than they actually hold on to; patience doesn’t seem to be a virtue of these cricketers and the fitness standards are below par.

PSL plans to change all that as the involvement of foreign cricketers will make it far more interesting; not only will the bar be raised on the playing standards but sharing dressing rooms with cricketers who have won matches for their country will give the youngsters a chance to learn from the masters.

Furthermore, the financial sta-

bility the league will bring with it is likely to raise the living standards of cricketers and their happiness will ensure that Pakistan cricket is in good hands.

And finally, the league will showcase Pakistan as a peace-loving country, where cricket is worshipped as much as it is in India.

The soft image of the country will show the world that there is nothing wrong with Pakistan and although the first edition will be played in Qatar, a successful PSL might propel cricket back to Pakistan. And yes, Pakistanis will finally have something to be proud of as well.

Is PSL superior to IPL? The Pakistani version will have fewer teams because if anything can be learnt from IPL, it is that too much of something is never good.

IPL has always had more than eight teams and by the time the tournament is about to end, most people tend to forget as to what happened a month back in the initial matches.

Thankfully, PSL will only have five teams — Islamabad, Quetta, Peshawar, Karachi, Lahore — and players would be selected on the basis of their talent, not on the basis of their residence.

Unlike IPL, PSL will comprise of just 24 matches, with each team playing the other twice. Therefore, the event will end in less than a month, making it simple, yet effective.

However, many fans of the game will be disappointed to know that a play-off will decide which team gets

tion against Pakistan’s best — Boom Boom Shahid Afridi, Misbahul Haq, Mohammad Hafeez, Shoaib Malik and even Wahab Riaz.

to play the final instead of the age-old semi-final format. The losing side of the first play-off will still have a go at a place in the final, thanks to the IPLinspired format.

Pakistan’s best versus the rest As for the players, well the world’s best are ready to visit Qatar and be part of history from a Pakistani perspective. So far, 100 international cricketers have agreed to be part of PSL and that includes current as well as recently-retired cricketers from England, Australia, South Africa, West Indies, New Zealand, Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe, Bangladesh and even Ireland.

Just imagine Lasith Malinga bowling for Karachi Knights and Misbahul Haq representing Lahore Leopards; and the world record holder for fastest Test century blasting the Sri Lankan quickie for his trademark huge six — straight over the bowler’s head! What a sight would that be …

West Indian quartet — Dwayne Bravo, Sunil Narine, Kieron Pollard and Andre Russell — are considered the best players of T20 cricket in the world, and guess what … they all have agreed to be a part of PSL. Sri Lanka’s ODI captain Angelo Matthews and T20 skipper Lasith Malinga will also be a part of the extravaganza which will see them in ac-

No auction, no problem The players will not go under the hammer in PSL — in fact, the PCB will follow the format of the Caribbean Premier League in this regard. There are five categories for the players interested in being part of PSL — Platinum, Diamond, Gold, Silver and Emerging.

There will be no discrimination between Pakistani and foreign players and the top local players will be placed at par with international stars.

Each team will have a minimum of 12 local and four foreign players and they will all be selected through a ballot.

As for the coaches, at least a dozen international coaches — some with World Cup triumph on their resume — are willing to transfer their experience to youngsters in Pakistan and abroad.

Their involvement will also help the Pakistani coaches who haven’t worked at the international level; same will be the case with local umpires and match referees who will be all ready to grasp any kind of experience that comes their way through international match officials.

Show me the money!

So we all know that there are five categories in which the players will be placed. What we don’t PSL, P28

Setting the Record Straight: Six Stereotypes Overseas Pakistanis Face

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n By Sabeer Lodhi

Pakistani living abroad has to battle with numerous stereotypes. It has been a year since I moved to Australia and I still get heckled by people’s preconceived notions about where I’m from. It is not just because I am from Pakistan, a country plagued by terrorism and corrupt regressive regimes, but also because Pakistan is considered to be a religiously extremist country.

There is a distinct need to set the record straight and inform the international community that Pakistan is a lot more than what they have assumed it to be.

I want to address some of the questions that were thrown at me so that the rhetoric surrounding Pakistan does not remain strictly onedimensional.

1. “Aren’t you a poor country?”

Yes, Pakistan is poor. However, it is rich in certain domains.

Pakistan is the first Muslim state to acquire nuclear arsenal. It has built the highest paved international road known as the Karakoram Highway.

Pakistan’s deep sea port is included in the 100 busiest container ports of the world. It manufactures 60 million hand sewn footballs for the World Cup in a year. Pakistan has the world’s second largest salt mine that stretches to 18 working levels and 40 kilometers of tunnels, and the fourth largest irrigated land area after China and the US. So, you see, don’t judge a book by its Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

A worker applies adhesives to the edges of a design on a football

ahead of the FIFA World Cup 2014 in Brazil at a factory in Sialkot

single proof of this whole exercise.

2. I want to visit Pakistan but I’m scared I’ll get killed Indeed the security situation in Pakistan is discouraging. However, once you visit, you’ll see for yourself how hospitable the people of this country are. This is because hospitality is tightly woven into Pakistan’s cultural values. Just ask Brandon Stanton of Humans of New York about his experience in Pakistan.

3. So Arabic and Urdu are similar, right?

No, they are not. Urdu may borrow some Arabic words just like Japanese borrows some words from the Chinese language, but they are completely different languages.

Urdu is a blend of Persian, Turkish, Arabic, and some Sanskrit words and is an amalgamation of IndoAryan languages. Pakistanis have a strong emotional attachment to Arabic because the Holy Qur’an is written in it. The language itself is more prevalent in the Middle East and South Africa.

4. How is your English so good?

Pakistan was a part of the Indian sub-continent which was a British colony for a century. Although the subcontinent was decolonized 67 years ago, Pakistan and India have not been able to shake off the hold of the English language. There’s a strong emphasis on English in the education sector and in the professional arena.

Islamic studies itself is taught in English in O’ levels. It has now become a representation of class.

The educated and well-off section of the Pakistani population is closely associated with English while

out?

the uneducated and poor people of Pakistan do not have access to the language.

him and Monica Lewisky before they admitted to the relationship? Our knowledge of OBL’s presence in Pakistan is as good as yours – through the

Ayesha Farooq is one of the few brave women who are serving the nation as part of Pakistan’s Air Force. Women in Pakistan tend to the sick as doctors, fight for the right to education, win Nobel prizes like Malala Yousafzai, surmount the highest peaks of the world like Samina Baig, play their part in the civil society at the cost of their life like Sabeen Mahmud, uphold democracy like Benazir Bhutto, and are cultural ambassadors, artists and musicians like Noor Jehan, Iqbal Bano and Nayyara Noor 5. Was Osama bin Laden actually in Pakistan?

This is tantamount to a Pakistani asking Americans if they actually planned 9/11 with al Qaeda or were they in Bill Clinton’s bedroom with

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mainstream media. Off the record, Pakistan’s establishment would have known of his presence and kept it a secret just as America had the right to throw the most wanted terrorist’s body into the sea without sharing a

6. Are women allowed to go

Although there is a distinct difference between the lives of urban and rural women in general, not all women in Pakistan are suppressed.

In fact, many women are not just allowed to go out but also drive, work, and have equal rights as men. Did you know that Pakistan has female fighter pilots?

Ayesha Farooq is one of the few brave women who are serving the nation as part of Pakistan’s Air Force.

Women in Pakistan tend to the sick as doctors, fight for the right to education, win Nobel prizes like Malala Yousafzai, surmount the highest peaks of the world like Samina Baig, play their part in the civil society at the cost of their life like Sabeen Mahmud, uphold democracy like Benazir Bhutto, and are cultural ambassadors, artists and musicians like Noor Jehan, Iqbal Bano and Nayyara Noor. All this and they are the best mothers, daughters and sisters in the world.

Samina Baig and her brother Mirza Ali made history by climbing the world’s highest mountain Mount Everest without using supplemental oxygen In conclusion, I would encourage the international community to not look towards bigoted news agencies such as FOX News to gather information regarding Pakistan. In fact, you should get to know Pakistan without the shackles of mainstream stereotypes. Pakistan and Pakistanis have a lot more to offer than what is portrayed about them.

(Sabeer Lodhie is pursuing a journalism degree at Monash University, Melbourne)

COMMENTARY

SEPTEMBER 25, 2015 – PAKISTAN LINK – P23

Should I Hire a Professional to Help Resolve My IRS Problems? n By Ismail F. Bharmal, CPA, EA

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Los Angeles, CA

he most common IRS tax problems are the following: tax money owed, no filers, and IRS levy and lien issues. Because IRS tax problems are a complicated issue, many address them in different ways. Some taxpayers decide to face the IRS on their own, while others hire a professional like a CPA, Attorney, or EA. However, the best solution is closer to the latter: to hire an expert in tax resolution so that you may have an organized, tested, and efficient result.

Even if the debt is $10,000 or less, it is essential to have all your income tax returns filed. The amount owed, regardless of its quantity, can be paid over 36 months with a guaranteed, monthly Installment Agreement (payment plan). A small hiring fee for a professional to arrange this will be well worth the conflict averted in future. Furthermore, here are the top 4 reasons why hiring a CPA or EA who specializes in tax resolution is the smartest thing to do if you OWE money to the IRS. 1. Contrary to popular belief, you DO have rights as a taxpayer. One of these rights is the right to representation. For example, if an IRS revenue officer or revenue agent calls or “visits,” you do not have an obligation to answer any of their often very intrusive and condescending questions. Instead, you may politely respond by asking for their contact information and inform that your tax representative will contact them soon. Specially trained for conversations like these, a CPA or EA is more able to speak with an IRS officer while ensuring that your rights are protected. In addition, a tax resolution specialist also knows how to get you the low-

est possible settlement. It is our hope that our clients will never have to be forced to deal with often convoluted and tiring conversations with the IRS once we’re on the scene!

2. If you owe between $10,000 and $200,000 and over, the IRS has several, NEW, and flexible programs available to taxpayers such as Offer in Compromise, Partial Pay Installment Agreements, Payment Plans, Penalty Reduction, and Currently Not Collectible Status. Each carries its own unique process, procedures and qualifications. Having an experienced tax professional in your corner ensures you are taking advantage of the best options available to you.

3. Having unfiled returns (on average our clients have more than three years of unfiled returns) qualifies for getting professional help. Not filing legally required tax returns when due is considered a federal misdemeanor which carries with it a $10,000 fine and potential jail time.

Fortunately, the IRS won’t throw you in

jail unless the taxpayer is deemed to owe a cumbersome amount of money and is uncooperative in getting the returns filed.

Specially trained for conversations like these, a CPA or EA is more able to speak with an IRS officer while ensuring that your rights are protected. In addition, a tax resolution specialist also knows how to get you the lowest possible settlement Hiring a professional to represent you so that you may steer clear of any legal trouble is the smartest move you can make!

4. If you are or about to be audited, the IRS will ask you close to 50 very intrusive questions in the initial interview with them. Unfortunately, many individuals unintentionally force themselves into corners because the information gained from these answers is often delicate. Having a tax resolution specialist conduct these meetings, without you present in the conversation is the best course of action I can recommend.

Dealing with the IRS is synonymous to going to court. Would you go to court without a lawyer? If you answered “yes” hopefully you know the law inside and out concerning your case, but if representing yourself doesn’t seem like a good idea it’s best to hire somebody who is well versed in the subject matter. This applies to the IRS as well. Having someone who knows how to negotiate and deal with the IRS will save you not only money and time but also relieve a tremendous amount of stress and weight off of your shoulders.

The following guidelines will be helpful in choosing a tax professional: 1. Professional designation, i.e. CPA or EA. 2. Prior experience and special skills in tax resolution.

3. Prior testimonials on resolving tax resolution cases.

4. Relevant distance from your location.

5. An official, well-organized, and professional workspace.

6. Easy to communicate, so that he/ she can understand your tax situation.

7. Genuinely willing to resolve your tax problem(s), not just for his/her fee.

If you have any or all of the above issues, please contact our office at (714) 896-0366 ismail@bharmalcpas.com to schedule your 30-minute complimentary, no-obligation consultation.

10,000 Children Fleeing to Sweden without Their Parents

Eskilstuna: Mahmud Zaraa is 13, a hint of a

moustache budding on his upper lip. Strolling through the tranquil Swedish town of Eskilstuna, it’s a world away from the warravaged Syria he fled without his family.

Mahmud is one of 10,000 unaccompanied children who have sought asylum in Sweden since the beginning of the year – a sharp rise from previous years – making it the EU nation with the highest number by far.

Sweden’s Migration Board has described the influx as “extraordinary”.

“These past few weeks have seen an incredible rise in the number of unaccompanied minors,” spokeswoman Sophia Ohvall Lundberg told AFP. “The situation is strained,” she added.

“No one is saying we’re not going to make it. Each player is trying to improve the system.”

Sweden’s system for taking these children in may be under pressure, but so far housing has been found for each minor, and every case is being followed up by authorities.

There are many reasons why Sweden is the country of choice for these children, most of whom have escaped conflict and misery in Somalia, Afghanistan, Syria and Eritrea.

But the main explanation is that Sweden is known for its generous asylum policy and welfare state – and word of mouth travels quickly.

“They know they will be welcomed humanely in Sweden, that things will be pretty well-organized and that they have a good chance of getting asylum,” Red Cross official Ida Holmgren said.

Scared and traumatized When the children arrive in Sweden, they are registered and housed either in a

special asylum center for minors, or placed with distant relatives or a host family, which is automatically the case if they’re under 13.

Social services then track the children’s well-being and schooling.

The system isn’t perfect. A recent report by the Stockholm’s Stadsmissionen volunteer organization said a lack of personnel was hurting children’s welfare.

Many of them are traumatized by what they’ve been through, wary of strangers, and unaware that they may need psychological help.

Mahmud, meanwhile, appears unusually calm and well-adjusted on this autumn day in a cafe in peaceful Eskilstuna, chatting happily about playing football as he sips orange juice, his manner revealing no trace of his dramatic three-month journey to Sweden, in which he covered a part of Europe on foot before ultimately ending up in this town

of 100,000 people.

Mahmud is now living with a great-uncle and his family.

One day “before the summer,” he recalls vaguely, his entire family piled into two cars to leave Damascus for Europe.

Mahmud wanted to play with his 20-something cousin’s mobile phone, so he jumped into that car instead of the one carrying the rest of his immediate family.

At the Turkish border, a burst of gunfire made his parents’ car turn back to Syria, while the car carrying him and his two cousins forged ahead.

‘Horrific stories’ Mahmud now goes to Swedish class every morning, one of many programs to help unaccompanied minors learn about the culture and language of their new home.

“Swedish is not so hard,” he insists, ex-

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cited that his teachers mix games with learning, an approach to school he’d never seen before.

He hopes to join a special class for foreign students at a “normal” school in a month, and so far, he says, he’s happy in Sweden.

Once he has obtained a residency permit, which can take up to eight months, the rest of his family hopes to join him under family reunification rules.

“It’s very important that the children resume contact with their family, if they want to. Behind each of these faces is a horrific story,” says the Red Cross’s Holmgren.

Some unaccompanied minors become separated from their families along their journey, while others are sent off alone to Sweden. Family reunifications can sometimes take years.

Mahmud is full of confidence that he will have a good life in Sweden, blissfully unaware of many of the hurdles immigrants face here, including acute housing shortages and growing anti-immigrant sentiment with a far-right party on the rise.

In 2014, the unemployment rate for people born outside Sweden was double the national average.

One of Mahmud’s distant cousins in Sweden, Bashar, a 28-year-old lawyer who fled Damascus two years ago, is still struggling to learn Swedish. He fears he’ll never be able to practice law here but is not giving up yet, hoping to go back to school to study international law.

“I have experience but my diplomas have to be translated and to be a lawyer you really have to master the language,” he says.

In the meantime, he’s just grateful that Sweden has given him a chance to rebuild his life – and Mahmud the chance to grow up in peace.

COMMENTARY

P24 – PAKISTAN LINK – SEPTEMBER 25, 2015

Impatience: Investor’s Enemy n By Saghir Aslam Rawalpindi, Pakistan

(The following information is provided solely to educate the Muslim community about investing and financial planning. It is hoped that the Ummah will benefit from this effort through greater financial empowerment, enabling the community to live in security and dignity and fulfill their religious and moral obligations towards charitable activities) I received a letter from an investment manager recently which recounted his experience with a client. Sadly, the client had fired him, despite the fact that he had accomplished exactly what they hired him to do. It seems that they were frustrated that he underperformed the Dow Jones Industrial Average, which was flying to stratospheric levels, despite their desires for significant income from their portfolio and contingency liquidity needs they just could not face not “getting their share” in a massive bull market.

Sound familiar? Have you or anyone you know complained about not keeping pace with the market?

Be careful. Today’s market may be in its latter stages (no one knows for sure until we have the benefit of hindsight), and the folks who beat the market most during the latter stages of a bull market often take a real beating in the bear market that follows.

Back to our story…the dissatisfied client fired the manager in June, 1987—just four month before the 1987 crash. I cannot imagine that the client did better with a new manager that set him off in pursuit of full market exposure immediately prior to the most dramatic market sell off in modern history. The lessons here are many.

CONTRAST FROM P8

scientist to say that these Muslim countries have tarnished the image of the Muslim community and Islam.

Conversely, the Christian countries of Europe have set a shining example and glorified the name of Christianity and Christians on planet earth.

I am aware that some Muslims may criticize me for making such an observation. But I want them to reflect on the core message of the Qur’an and Islam that places huge emphasis on our personal and collective behavior vis-a-vis our obligations to humanity and our accountability on that score. No amount of prayers can compensate for demonstrating inhuman arrogance and brutality to our fellow human beings. So many sublime precepts in Islam are for practicing and not for just repeating like euphemisms. In the Qur’an God has clarified that He is the Sustainer and Lord of the entire mankind from the smallest worm to the mightiest being. (The writer is the executive director of the Association of Indian Muslims of America, Washington DC) UNIT FROM P7

establishment’s agenda, including perpetuation of the infamous One Unit. As the then commander-inchief, Ayub Khan helped sire the One Unit in 1955, marking the

This scenario could very easily be happening today. Impatient clients could be fleeing cautious, defensive advisors in favor of more aggressive management. This is the danger of pursuing performance without understanding how the performance is obtained. The time to get aggressive is BEFORE the market embarks on an 80% increase in two years. At this point, it makes sense to be looking for ways to protect the extraordinary gains you have accumulated in 1995 and 1996.

Do not misunderstand, my intent is not to call the top in the market. I put little faith in attempts to outguess the market. However, I believe it prudent to understand some basic things about this investment vehicle we call the stock market. First, history does tend to repeat itself. Beware the advisor who tells you “this time is different.” Second, the market does move in cycles. It is healthy (in the long term) and natural for stocks to go up and down. Third, history suggests that an 80% advance in two years probably puts us closer to the end of this bull market than to the beginning.

Again, do not misunderstand.

My suggestion is to be cautious and defensive NOT to simply liquidate your stocks. While this temptation may be great, consider the consequences. If you sell today, you will need to buy back into the market sometime in the future in order to resume your participation. If we first open military foray into Pakistani politics. Something similar seems afoot. No overt military intervention is imminent because none is needed when one is getting one’s way without any hiccups. Every other official picture coming out of Islamabad would have one believe that the federation comprises of only two men. And no marks for guessing which one wields the power.

Parliament has been reduced to virtually a nonentity after having shot itself in the foot with the 21st Constitutional Amendment setting up the military courts. In Sindh province, the PPP and MQM are on the ropes while the Center calls the shots in Karachi. The government in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is run from an Islamabad suburb while the fate of Balochistan’s resources — and its government — is already being decided in Punjab courtesy the faux nationalist dispensation in that province. The critical question remains whether the Punjabdominant Center is out to reverse some of the gains that the provinces made under the 18th Amendment and the National Finance Commission (NFC) Award. For all intents and purposes, the One Unit redux is underway merely by another name.

(The writer can be reached at

do get a correction, or even a bear market, chances are that you will not buy back in at the bottom because things just seem too scary. If you then wait through the bottom, until things feel “better” you will likely buy back in at higher levels than you sold. On the other hand, if we do not get a correction, you will have no chance to get back into the market for anything but higher prices.

Cautious and defensive are two pretty broad terms. In the stock market they can mean several things: buy larger companies that offer more liquidity; buy quality companies that pay above average dividends; buy quality companies that have not fully participated in the market’s run up; buy mutual funds that have below average P/E ratios and above-average dividends; avoid fast-growing, high-flying companies; look for value. Often the best indicator that a market is over-priced, and thus due for a pullback, is a lack of attractively valued stocks.

So, if you have participated in this bull market, count your blessings and look for ways to protect your gains. If you have not been in the market over the past two years, and you are considering getting in now, be cautious…and patient.

(Saghir A. Aslam only explains strategies and formulas that he has been using. He is merely providing information, and NO ADVICE is given. Mr Aslam does not endorse or recommend any broker, brokerage firm, or any investment at all, nor does he suggest that anyone will earn a profit when or if they purchase stocks, bonds or any other investments. All stocks or investment vehicles mentioned are for illustrative purposes only. Mr Aslam is not an attorney, accountant, real estate broker, stockbroker, investment advisor, or certified financial planner.

Mr Aslam does not have anything for sale.) mazdaki@me.com and he tweets @ mazdaki) MPAC FROM P18

made history by nominating two African American women in this category. In fact, nominations for African Americans were at a record high, 18 across all acting categories. During her profound acceptance speech, Ms. Davis said, “The only thing that separates women of color is opportunity.” To watch Ms. Davis’ acceptance speech, please click here.

While we have a ways to go with diversity and authentic portrayals of underrepresented communities in the entertainment industry, we are turning a corner. I do see more people who look like you and me on television today, and I am hopeful that the trend not only continues, but becomes the new normal.

However, we cannot wait for Hollywood executives to come around and represent our community in an authentic light. Ultimately, this responsibility is ours. To this end, MPAC’s 3rd Screenwriters Workshop is scheduled for November 4 and 5.

Apply here by October 8. We have a great lineup of workshop facilitators, who are award-winning professionals in the industry including, Screenwriter Roger Wolfson, Transmedia Producer Jay Buchman and the Producers of East Los High, Mauricio and Katie Mota.

www.PakistanLink.com

Qurbani/Udhiya Pakistan • India • Bangladesh • Sri Lanka Guinea • Sierra Leone • Ghana • Cameroon • Ethiopia • Somalia

Goat/Sheep: $150 each Cow: $65/share, $455 each Donate online at: www.hidaya.org Donate by Phone: 866.244.3292 Mail Checks Payable to: Hidaya Foundation PO Box 5481 Santa Clara, CA 95056 Donate your Qurbani for the poor and help make Eid special for them.

Hidaya Foundation 866.2.HIDAYA | www.hidaya.org Hidaya Foundation is a non-profit 501 (c)(3) charitable organization with Tax ID # 77-0502583

Exchange Rates for Currency Notes* Countries

USA

UK S.Arabia Japan Euro UAE

Buying Rs.

Selling Rs.

104.20 159.35 27.15 0.85 115.85 28.10

104.45 160.05 27.30 0.88 116.35 28.25

(*23 September, 2015)

US VISA AVAILABILITY IN SEPTEMBER, 2015 For Pakistan, Bangladesh & India Compiled by: Hasan Chishti FAMILY SPONSORED PREFERENCES

Pakistan/Bangladesh

1st Unmarried sons & daughters of U.S. Citizens

Dec., 15, 2007

Dec., 15, 2007

2-A Spouses and unmarried children of permanent residents

March 1, 2014

March 1, 2014

2-B Unmarried sons & daughters (21 years of age or older) of permanent residents

Dec., 22, 2008

Dec., 22, 2008

3rd

Married sons & daughters of US Citizens May 8, 2004

4th

Brothers & sisters of adult U.S. citizens

Jan., 15, 2003

India

May 8, 2004 Jan., 15, 2003

EMPLOYMENT BASED CATEGORY 1st

Priority workers

Current

Current

2nd Members of the professions holding advanced degree or persons of exceptional ability

Current

Jan., 1, 2006

3rd Skilled workers Other workers

Aug., 15, 2015 Aug., 15, 2015

Dec., 22, 2004 Dec., 22, 2004

4th

Current Current

Current Current

Certain special immigrants Certain religious workers

5th Employment creation Targeted Employment Areas/ Regional Centers and Pilot Programs

Current

Current

UNLIMITED FAMILY-BASED Immediate Relatives of U.S. Citizens (IR): The spouse, widow(er) and unmarried children under 21 of a U.S citizen, and the parent of a U.S. citizen who is 21 or older.

Returning Residents (SB): Immigrants who lived in the United States previously as lawful permanent residents and are returning to live in the U.S. after a temporary visit of more than one year abroad.

RELIGION

SEPTEMBER 25, 2015 – PAKISTAN LINK – P25

Al-Fatihah: The Prayer and the Message

Gems from the Holy Qur’an

n By Dr Muzammil H. Siddiqi (Khutbah at ISOC – Dhul Qi’dah 1, 1421/ January 26, 2001)

I

n the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.

Praise belong to Allah, the Lord of the worlds. 2. Most Gracious, Most Merciful. 3. Master of the Day of Judgment. 4. It is You we worship, and it is You we ask for help, 5. Guide us to the straight path, 6.

The path of those you have blessed.

7.Those who incurred no anger, and who have not gone astray. (alFatihah 1:1-7) Surah al-Fatihah is the first Surah of the Qur’an. According to most of the authorities this was the first Surah that was revealed to Prophet Muhammad – peace be upon him - when he was in Makkah. Before this he received some verses of Surah al-‘Alaq, Surah al-Muzammil and Surah al-Muddathir, but as a complete Surah, al-Fatihah was the first one.

The word al-Fatihah means “opener”. So this Surah is the opener of the Qur’an. It has seven verses that are repeated by every Muslim many times during the course of his/her daily prayers.

Thus the Surah is also called the “al-Sab’ al-Mathani” (al-Hijr 15:87) that is “the Seven Oftrepeated.” This Surah has many other names: Umm al-Qur’an (the Essence of the Qur’an), AlAsas (the Foundation), Al-Shafiyah (the Healer), Al-Kafiyah (the Sufficient) etc. In Al-Bukhari it is mentioned that the Prophet – peace be upon him - said that this was “the greatest Surah in the Qur’an.” (al-Bukhari 4114) It is also reported: Ubayy ibn Ka’b reported that the Prophet – peace be upon him - said, “Allah did not reveal in the Torah, nor Injil like Umm alQur’an and this is the Seven Oftrepeated and it is (the one about which Allah said) ‘it is divided between Me and My servant and for My servant is whatever he asks.’ (al-Tirmidhi 3050) Surah al-Fatihah is both a prayer and a full introduction to the message of the Qur’an.

As a prayer it contains the praise and glorification of Allah and the human request for Allah’s guidance, direction and blessings.

According to a Hadith: Abu Hurairah says, “I heard the Messenger of Allah says, ‘Allah says, I have divided the prayer between Me and My servant in two halves and for My servant is whatever He asks for. When the Servant says, ‘Praise be to Allah the Lord of the worlds,’ Allah says, ‘My servant has thanked Me.’ When he says,’ the Most Merciful, the Most Compassionate’ Allah says, ‘My servant has praised Me.’ When he says, ‘Master of the Day of Judgment’ Allah says, ‘My servant has glorified Me.’ And He says, “My servant has submitted to Me.’ When he says, ‘You we worship and You we ask for help.’ Allah says, ‘This is between Me and My servant and

From the translation by Muhammad Asad (Leopold Weiss)

for My servant is whatever he asks.’

When he says, ‘Guide us to the straight path…’ Allah says, ‘This is for My servant and for My servant is whatever he asks.’ (Muslim 598) As an introduction to the Qur’an it contains all the basic principles that are given in detail in the Qur’an. It tells us that we are surrounded by Allah’s grace and favors. He is the Source of all love and mercy. We should be thankful to Him. Our life is not permanent. We shall die one day and He will judge us. He alone is

His punishment.

The Surah tells us: 1. The essence of religion is thankfulness to Allah.

2. Allah is the Lord and Sustainer of the whole universe.

3. Allah is very kind, loving and merciful.

4. Allah is also the Judge and He does not tolerate injustice, evil and sin.

5. The Day of Judgment will come.

6. Worship should be only to Allah and all prayerful requests

After this introduction comes the whole Qur’an. Al-Fatihah is the prayer and the Qur’an is the answer to our prayers. AlFatihah is the introduction to the Qur’an and then we have the whole Qur’an the Master of that Day. We must worship Him and Him alone. We must seek His help and He has all the power to give us whatever we need. It reminds that Allah is the only one who can really guide to the straight path. It calls for righteous actions in this life. It speaks about life after death and of the consequences of human action and behavior. It tells that the true guidance comes through God’s Prophets and Messengers. They were the people who were truly guided and they received Allah’s grace and mercy. Those who turned away from that path were those who went astray and they incurred the wrath of God and

should be directed to Him alone.

7. One should continuously seek Allah’s guidance and remain on the path of truth and righteousness.

8. True righteousness comes when we follow the example of those who were righteous and who were under Allah’s grace: the Prophets, Messengers, and pious and devoted people of Allah.

9. One should always be careful not to make the most Merciful angry with him.

10. One should never ignore the path of guidance and should always be careful not to go astray.

After this introduction comes the whole Qur’an. Al-Fati-

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hah is the prayer and the Qur’an is the answer to our prayers. AlFatihah is the introduction to the Qur’an and then we have the whole Qur’an.

IMAGE FROM P28

upon every Muslim who has the financial means and the physical ability to perform it. Thursday marks the Islamic holy day of Eid al-Adha, which commemorates Abraham’s readiness to sacrifice his son on divine orders.

The pilgrimage, conducted over five days, includes detailed rituals such as wearing a special white garment that symbolizes human equality and unity before God; a circular procession around the Kaaba, Islam’s holiest shrine; and the symbolic stoning of evil.

For many, the hajj will be the highlight of their spiritual lives.

This year’s gathering is about the same size as last year’s, with 1.4 million foreign pilgrims joining hundreds of thousands of Saudis and residents of the kingdom.

They are undeterred by a construction crane collapse at Mecca’s Grand Mosque earlier this month that killed 109 people, including foreign pilgrims.

About 400 people were injured by the crane which was working on an expansion of Islam’s holiest site.

Previously marred by stampedes and fires that killed hundreds, the pilgrimage had been largely incident-free for the past nine years after safety improvements. About 100,000 police have been deployed to secure pilgrimage sites and manage the crowds.

About the translator: Muhammad Asad, Leopold Weiss, was born of Jewish parents in Livow, Austria (later Poland) in 1900, and at the age of 22 made his first visit to the Middle East. He later became an outstanding foreign correspondent for the Franfurter Zeitung, and after his conversion to Islam travelled and worked throughout the Muslim world, from North Africa to as far east as Afghanistan, India and Pakistan. After years of devoted study he became one of the leading Muslim scholars of our age. His translation of the Holy Qur’an is one of the most lucid and well-referenced works in this category, dedicated to “li-qawmin yatafakkaroon” (For people who think).

Chapter 79, An- Naaziyaat, Verses 15-26 Has the story of Moses ever come within thy ken?

Lo! His Sustainer called out to him in the twice-hallowed valley: “Go unto Pharaoh – for, verily, he has transgressed all bounds of what is right – and say [unto him], ‘Art thou desirous of attaining to purity? [If so,] then I shall guide thee towards [a cognition of] thy Sustainer, so that [henceforth] thou wilt stand in awe [of Him].’ ” And thereupon he [went to Pharaoh and] made him aware of the great wonder [of God’s grace].

But Pharaoh gave him the lie and rebelliously rejected [all guidance], and brusquely turned his back [on Moses]; and then he gathered [his great ones], and called [unto his people], and said, “I am your Lord All-Highest!”

And thereupon God took him to task, [and made him] a warning example in the life to come as well as in this world.

In this, behold, there is a lesson indeed for all who stand in awe [of God].

Chapter 79, An- Naaziyaat, Verses 34-45 And so, when the great, overwhelming event [of resurrection] comes to pass – on that Day man will [clearly] remember all that he has ever wrought; and the blazing fire [of hell] will be laid open before all who [are destined to] see it.

For unto him who shall have transgressed the bounds of what is right, and preferred the life of this world [to the good of his soul], that blazing fire will truly be the goal!

But unto him who shall have stood in fear of his Sustainer’s Presence, and held back his inner self from base desires, paradise will truly be the goal!

They will ask thee [O Prophet] about the Last Hour: “When will it come to pass?”

[But] how couldst thou tell anything about it, [seeing that] with thy Sustainer alone rests the beginning and end [of all knowledge] there of?

Thou art but [sent] to warn those who stand in awe of it.

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P26 – PAKISTAN LINK – SEPTEMBER 25, 2015

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SEPTEMBER 25, 2015 - PAKISTAN LINK

SPORTS SPORTS

SEPTEMBER 25, 2015 – PAKISTAN LINK – P27

Shoaib Akhtar Plans on Owning PSL Team 'World Will See a Different Amir On My Return'

LAHORE: Former Pakistan fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar announced on Monday that he was interested in buying a team in the Pakistan Super League (PSL).

"Everyone is excited about PSL and so am I," Akhtar said, while speaking to the media, according to ESPN Cricinfo.

"It's like a gift to the nation; it's not [just] the brand of PCB, it's the brand of Pakistan. I am interested in buying a team in the league and want to serve Pakistan cricket this way by promoting cricketers and making more Shoaib Akhtars who

can bowl at 100 (mph). My business partner and I are testing the waters; assessing whatever is put on table and how it suits us."

Read: Pakistan Super League launched in star-studded event Akhtar's statement came after a meeting with PSL head Najam Sethi on Monday afternoon.

Rumours were rife that Akhtar had been in talks with Sethi to take a PCB job. However, Akhtar denied it outright.

"There are more ways to serve Pakistan cricket than taking a job at the PCB. You all know what

kind of a person I am. I might be critical at some point but my intentions are always positive and I want things to be right. By buying a team, I can offer the talented boys in my team a platform. [I can] make an academy and recruit the best possible talent in my team," he clarified.

Read: PCB unveils PSL's logo and anthem in star-studded ceremony "I might be very critical of the board on many things but I only want Pakistan to win. There is a lot of talent in our country but they need guidance. The PSL is a good initiative and we should support it.

This is the product that can help us revive cricket in Pakistan," he added.

The PSL, which is a franchisebased T20 tournament to be held in February 2016, will feature teams from the provincial capitals, Lahore, Karachi, Peshawar, Quetta and Islamabad - with prize money of $1 million. The full schedule of the 24-match event is yet to be announced but dates from February 4 to 24 have been reserved.

In a ceremony on Sunday, PCB formally announced its plans for the PSL, as well as the inclusion of Kevin Pietersen, Shakib Al Hasan and Dwayne Bravo in the event.

The PCB is expected to hold an open auction for the five franchises and the broadcast rights for the tournament in November.

The players, however, will be sold via a draft. J

Indian Players Should Be Invited for PSL: Javed Miandad ISLAMABAD: Former captain Javed Miandad called upon the board to invite Indian players to the inaugural Super League (PSL) and avoid retaliating to the Indian Premier League's (IPL) decision to ignore Pakistani players from its Twenty20 tournament.

The PSL, a franchise-based T20 tournament on the same lines as the IPL, is scheduled to be staged early next year with Qatar or UAE the proposed venues.

Talking to APP, Miandad advised the PCB to make the best arrangement for the league as the country's 'prestige was at stake.'

"Nothing should go off beam," Miandad said.

"PCB should categorize the players according to their standards," he said, adding that all

international players who desire to participate in the tournament should be asked to sign a contract first rather than confirming verbally or through any other medium.

"It is a matter of our country's reputation and nothing should go wrong. Each interested player should first sign a contract as backing out at the last moment would bring a bad name," the 58year-old batting great said.

The much-blighted PSL is finally ready for take off in February 2016 and this time its organisers say they are leaving nothing to chance.

A Twenty20 league, following a model similar to the IPL and Big Bash, has been in the works since 2013 but the PCB has had to post-

pone it twice -- in 2014 and 2015 - over what it said was lack of response from sponsors and logistics issues.

But a team dedicated solely to the PSL project and headed by PCB Executive Committee chief, Najam Sethi, says there is now a strong commercial interest in the tournament and foreign players are lining up to sign up for it.

Miandad said PCB should have invited business tycoons at the PSL logo unveiling ceremony as advertisement was the 'need of the hour for PSL'.

"PCB should have also called in different bank presidents and multinationals who are interested in the event," he said.

"One of these people may have bought some teams of the PSL and this way the number of teams would have increased and the tournament would have acquired a bigger profile."

When asked about the fate of the Pakistan-India series, Miandad said he 'did not entertain too many expectations.'

"As far as the series is concerned everyone knows who dumped who."

Miandad said he preferred to offer condolences to the family and friends of Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) president late Jagmohan Dalmiya rather than talk about the series between the two teams.

"I want to extend my heartfelt condolences to the family and friends of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) president late Jagmohan Dalmiya.

"He was a true gentleman and had respect for Pakistani cricketers," he said adding a big void will be left in cricket after his death." J

www.PakistanLink.com www.Pakistanlink.com

KARACHI: Pakistan left-arm pacer Muhammad Amir thinks he is still not ready to make a comeback in international cricket with his main focus on the domestic front.

But the cricketer promises a more mature bloke with the ball the next time he is given a chance at the international level.

"I think my future is bright, God-willing," said Amir, while talking toPakPassion in an interview.

"Five years ago I was bowling well and I was very happy with my form but my career came to an

down."

The 23-year-old said that he is happy with the way things are progressing and he is getting back into that bowling rhythm where he left it.

"Things have been going well.

I'm very happy with how things are progressing," he said.

"I made a good start when I was playing Grade II cricket and that boosted my confidence and then I played in a Twenty20 tournament in Faisalabad and that went to my satisfaction also. I've recently finished

abrupt halt. Whether I reach those levels again nobody knows, we shall see, but looking ahead, the world will see a different Mohammad Amir, a mature person.

"I feel I am on the right track on and off the field and I request everyone who has supported me through the tough times to continue to support me and I will not let them

playing in a Twenty20 tournament in Rawalpindi and I was very happy with my bowling rhythm during that tournament.

"I feel as if day by day my bowling is improving. As you will have seen in the tournament in Rawalpindi my pace is increasing and my confidence is higher now so the signs are very good." J

Grant Elliot All Set to Join Pakistan Super League

LAHORE: New Zealand all-rounder Grant Elliot is all set to represent an outfit in the inaugural Pakistan Super League (PSL) scheduled to be held in February next year.

Elliott was allowed by the New Zealand Cricket (NZC) to participate in the PSL after he was done offering his services to the Kiwis in the ChappellHadlee series against Australia from February 3-8. The 36-year-old was one of the three players, including James Franklin and Jesse Ryder, who were named by the PSL organisers to be drafted in for the five-team tournament.

NZC's head of cricket, Lindsay Crocker, said the Kiwi's semi-final hero against South Africa in the 2015 World

Cup was in the clear after the three ODIs. "Grant has been approached through his agent to sound out his availability but he hasn't sought a release in order to be signed," said Crocker, as quoted by stuff.co.nz.

"Our priority of course [in February] is the Chappell-Hadlee series, then the test matches which Grant clearly won't be involved in.

"In theory he would be available beyond the Chappell-Hadlee part, and we'd be supportive of that. It sits nicely with our programme and gives him some good quality cricket should he be required for the World T20 [in India in March]." J

PAKISTAN

P28 – PAKISTAN LINK – SEPTEMBER 25, 2015 PLIGHT FROM P4

days, to submit the certificates for the previous three years also to prove that he was alive during those years as well!!

CMA, great people to deal with.

JADOO FROM P18

services company based in Silicon Valley, committed to delivering Live and On-Demand content to viewers via its proprietary internet based set-top box (STB). JadooTV is the leading distributor of internet based South Asian television content, bringing Television, Movies, and Music to South Asian diaspora from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Nepal, and Middle East.

JadooTV is privately held and backed

by Intel Capital. For further information please visit: www.jadootv.com PSL FROM P22

know is that each team will have a salary spending cap of roughly $1 million. To make the league more interesting and different from the local T20 tournaments PCB organizes annually, the board has hired foreign consultants for the project; the ones behind the Big Bash League of Australia.

These professionals will bring loads of experience to Pakistan and with their help, PSL is sure to become a successful brand. With such people on board, PCB is confident that the franchises will be bought in no time.

After all, they will get a share of the central pool that consists of broadcast rights, sponsorship rights, apparel rights and ticket sales. The franchises will be free to sell its own sponsorship rights and for that, there is no limit and boundary as to how they make money.

Entertainment all the way Oh I forgot about the most entertaining part of PSL — the celebrities.

Just imagine the giants of Pakistani films, TV industry, as well as former cricketers endorsing franchises in PSL … wouldn’t that be a sight to die for? What if Adnan Siddiqui decides to support the team featuring his favorite cricketer; Humaima Malik becomes the owner of one of the franchises and Moammer Rana decides to follow his family business (of being associated with cricket).

Cool, if you think about it! Former captains Wasim Akram and Ramiz Raja are already onboard as brand ambassadors and more former cricketers might join them soon. It will be great to see Hanif Mohammad, Majid Khan and Mushtaq Mohammad return to cricket as icons … with their combined experience; PSL will surely hit the rival leagues for a six.

Mark your calendars Pakistan Super League will be played between February 4 and 24 next year in Doha, Qatar; so mark those dates on your calendars now.

It will give the cricket enthusiasts in Pakistan a chance to witness the world’s best battle it out against each other; not only will that give the local cricketers a chance to learn from the best, it will also raise the bar for them the next time they play the game at the domestic level.

It’s a win-win situation for Pakistan, I tell you!

COMPLAINT FROM P9

welcomed by all and sundry. There is no sympathy in anyone’s mind for the ongoing crusade against corruption.

But a feeling is perhaps building slowly that the execution of corrective measures lack tactful handling.

The iron-hand approach or rough and tough tackling ought to be avoided. The impression of a witch-hunt must never be allowed to develop. That will be not only be counter-productive but may prove disastrous in the end.

The statement of Zardari depicted anger and sounded vengeful. So was the tone and tenor of Bilawal’s speech at the Lahore workers convention. Whether they can really inflict damage on the party in power, or erode its authority, is not important. What is significant is its fall-out on the concept of Statehood.

National unity needs to be preserved at all cost. Any dent will be extremely damaging for the country, troubled internally, and feeling the heat from outside its borders.

If MQM had been crying since long against injustice and victimization, they deserved a proper hearing.

Their frustration, stemming from persistent neglect, forced them to call for mourning last Friday. The party never called for business or transport closure, but people, over the years, out of sheer sense of insecurity, had become tuned to a shut-off. But while the paramilitary force succeeded in erasing public fear, they, simultaneously must not be seen indulging in over-kill. That, it was resorted to in this case, bounced back with a thunder.

The party, sweeping elections in urban Sindh, persistently for nearly three decades, brought out a huge rally from Liaquatabad to Quaid i Azam Mausoleum, chanted slogans, and waved its flags for hours together, proving by its actions that the law of diminishing return could well be applicable, but the party’s hold and appeal for the electorate, remains a reality. That the authorities showed wisdom in allowing the rally to vindicate itself, deserved full marks. Slight miscalculations or undue interference would have caused a political blast of unmanageable magnitude.

Where did things go wrong then?

Peoples Party has remained a silent spectator to raw hand treatment to MQM, often its coalition partner, but now in opposition. It couldn’t remain silent, in fact started an orchestrated campaign against two federal agencies, NAB and FIA. Sindh chief minister’s remarks that their raid on provincial departments was a raid by federal government on the province, hardly holds ground.

In India and the USA, federal agencies CBI and FBI do raid and arrest people in provinces or States without prior permission.

In short, the prime minister’s remarks of conspiracy being hatched against him, cannot be dismissed lightly. Whether the age-old maxim that coming events cast shadows early can be applied here too will be too premature a verdict at this point of time.

HOLIDAY FROM P3

Islamophobia and worsening antiMuslim rhetoric following the 9/11 attacks in 2001.

For the first time, more than 1,800 public schools in New York will close for the Muslim feast of sacrifice, a day after also closing for Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish calendar.

Mayor Bill de Blasio unveiled the new policy in March, announcing that New York public schools would get two days off for Eid al Fitr, which falls during the summer, and Eid al Adha, in addition to major Christian and Jewish holidays.

Since then, city hall has added a further day off — February 8, 2016 — for Lunar New Year, celebrated by Asian-Americans.

“It is a huge victory to actually see the day come,” says Linda Sarsour,

a member of the Coalition for Muslim School Holidays and a New York activist with three children.

“As an imam as well as a parent I am very happy,” agreed Imam Shamsi Ali, director of the Jamaica Muslim Center in Queens.

“I’m sure this kind of policy from the government side will push Muslims further to feel a sense of belonging,” he said.

Muslim New York parents previously faced a quandary: keep their children at home to observe the holiday and skip class, or send them to school and let celebrations fall by the wayside.

There are an estimated seven to 10 million Muslims in America, of whom a million are believed to live in New York — about 10 percent of the city’s population.

New York follows at least seven other school districts that close for Eid in New Jersey, Massachusetts and Vermont, but activists are still campaigning in other parts of the country.

Activists hope that embracing Eid in the school calendar will make Islam more mainstream and counter Islamophobia.

KASHMIR FROM P3

levels and forums. “This issue should be discussed not only at international forums, but also at Pakistan-India bilateral forums,” he added.

The Pakistani PM arrived in London en route to the United States, where he will attend the UN General Assembly’s 70th session.

Indian PM Narendra Modi will also be reaching New York for the UNGA summit on Wednesday.

Both the leaders are likely to stay in the same Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York.

Modi’s choosing Waldorf Astoria to stay is a break from tradition.

In the past, Indian PMs have always stayed at the New York Palace Hotel.

Not just India, US President Barack Obama will also be breaking t tradition by not staying at the Waldorf Astoria. The move by Obama comes amid fears of surveillance and bugging at the hotel now owned by the Chinese.

Nawaz meets British counterpart David Cameron: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was received by British Prime Minister David Cameron here at the 10 Downing Street on Wednesday.

During the meeting, held in a friendly and cordial atmosphere, both the leaders expressed satisfaction on the overall trajectory of the bilateral relationship between Pakistan and UK and discussed ways to further strengthen cooperation in various areas of mutual interest.

Prime Minister Nawaz stated that Pakistan and UK enjoyed close and cordial relations in diverse fields including trade, commerce, education, security and defense.

He felt the presence of a large Pakistani diaspora in the UK acted as a bridge between the two coun-

www.PakistanLink.com

tries, a press release issued by Pakistan High Commission in London said. The two leaders also exchanged views on issues of global and regional importance, including the situation in Afghanistan. Nawaz reiterated Pakistan’s desire to have good relations with all its neighbors in line with his vision. He also mentioned Pakistan’s important role and sacrifices in the fight against terrorism.

The British Prime Minister welcomed Pakistan’s policies for a peaceful neighborhood and appreciated its role in the fight against militancy and terrorism.

Cameron was assisted by his National Security Adviser Sir Mark Lyall Grant, while Prime Minister Nawaz was accompanied by his Special Assistant on Foreign Affairs Syed Tariq Fatemi.

SEAT FROM P3

will articulate the government’s vision of a peaceful neighborhood and economic development, and share with the world community, Pakistan’s position and priorities on key international and regional issues.”

IMAGE FROM P3

The grand mufti said the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) declared all types of injustices as forbidden (Haram) and added that no human being would take the life of another human being. He said injustice is destined to be eliminated sooner or later.

In his Haj sermon, Sheikh Aziz specially addressed the youth and said they should not listen to those who are spreading anarchy. Instead, they should “direct their energies towards constructive pursuits and spread the true message of Islam”.

“We should make our lives a beacon of light for people living around the world,” he added.

The grand mufti also urged rulers of the Islamic world to take care of the needs of their people and concentrate on efforts to promote unity among the ranks of the Ummah.

Millions of Muslims mark spiritual climax of Hajj pilgrimage: According to an earlier report by CNN’s Don Melvin, more than 2 million Muslims from around the world were spending Wednesday in prayer near Mecca in Saudi Arabia as the most important day of the annual Hajj pilgrimage got underway.

At sunrise, pilgrims began traveling from Mina to the Plain of Arafat, spending an emotional day in reflection and repentance to symbolize a cleansing of sins and a spiritual rebirth.

The Hajj is one of the most celebrated events in the Islamic calendar and one of the world’s largest public gatherings. For most Muslims, it is the spiritual climax of their lives, with many saving for decades to be able to make the journey.

Known as the fifth pillar of Islam, the Hajj is an obligation

cautioned Muslims against those who are misusing the name of Islam and indulging in sabotage and terrorist activities.

“They have not spared even mosques and peaceful citizens.

These elements have gone astray and are strengthening the hands of Islam’s enemies,” said Sheikh Aziz.

They are disfiguring the image of Islam and serving the cause of its enemies, he said, urging the Muslim Ummah to make concerted efforts in their individual and collective lives to spread the true message of Islam as a religion of peace, love and brotherhood.

IMAGE, P25

CLASSIFIED & MATRIMONIAL

SEPTEMBER 25, 2015 – PAKISTAN LINK – P29

Classified Section A Clerical Assistant is needed to help partners with administrative tasks and help. Candidates must have strong communication skills and computer skills.

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P30 – PAKISTAN LINK – SEPTEMBER 25, 2015

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SEPTEMBER 25, 2015 - PAKISTAN LINK

ENTERTAINMENT

ENTERTAINMENT & LIFESTYLE

W

e finally get it - this is why Shobhaa De called Fawad Khan a Lahore

SEPTEMBER 25, 2015 – PAKISTAN LINK – P31

kebab.

The actor's sexy new avatar in the latest issue of Filmfare maga-

zine made our jaws drop.

We're used to seeing Fawad in his usual Mr Nice Guy persona, but in this cover shot he'd definitely turning up the heat and flaunting that come-hither look.

We're wondering what Fawad himself thinks of his getup - when he posted the cover shot to Instagram he did so with a very tame caption: Looking at Fawad, we've decided the ingredients for a perfectly delicious I-don'tcare look are as follows: messy hair, an untied bow tie, a rumpled tux and a penetrating gaze. Men, take note!

And if he swaps the tux for some leather, the result is just as good: The black and white cover calls the hot export a 'Cross Border Turk' who's "giving our heroes sleepless nights," implying that Fawad is giving India's actors a run for their money.

The actor, who won a Filmfare for his debut in Khoobsurat proves that he's the flavour of the year in the subcontinent.

What do you think of this look?

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P32 – PAKISTAN LINK – SEPTEMBER 25, 2015

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For tickets/information Arif Mansuri 310-400-0325 Hawa Vahed 714-718-7110 Samin Faruqi 951-830-7488 Nasir Rao 714-418-8203 Sales@PakistanLink.com www.PakistanLink.com