[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="DarkGreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Elections in Lebanon[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Wednesday, 10 Jun, 2009[/B]

THE electoral victory of the ruling ‘March 14’ coalition in Lebanon has been welcomed as a victory for democracy. With voter turnout over 50 per cent and no violence reported, Sunday’s polls were not what this strife-torn country is accustomed to. The coalition led by Saad Hariri’s party won a majority, proving that the unexpected can still happen. The Islamist Hezbollah that had successfully confronted Israel in 2006 and proved its military prowess in Beirut last year failed to demonstrate its political strength. Many factors contributed to the electoral outcome. One of them was the booming economy that went in favour of the incumbent. With a GDP growth rate of nine per cent in 2008, revenues growing rapidly, the number of tourists going up by 50 per cent and industrial exports expanding, there was no reason for the Lebanese to reject their government. President Barack Obama’s ‘new beginning’ speech in Cairo a few days before the polls also injected that much-needed feel-good factor that was needed to tip the scales. Does all this mean that Lebanon has entered a new era and that fractious politics has become a thing of the past?

One should not be over-optimistic. With the fragmented sectarian composition of its population given constitutional recognition through a system of political quotas and checks and balances, Lebanon can hardly hope for any single party to gain a majority in parliament. Every party that rules is required to seek the backing of allies to stay firmly in the saddle. Moreover, given its proximity to Israel, Beirut is expected to put up with a lot of meddling from its neighbours — Syria, Iran or Saudi Arabia. There is also the overt and covert pulling of strings by distant allies, mainly the US, which Lebanon cannot escape. Above all, Israel is a dominating factor in the life of any Arab country. Hence any government in Beirut has to tread carefully and address the “sensitive equations” referred to by a Hezbollah leader recently. Mr Hariri’s offer “to extend our hand to work together” with his rivals should be well received. But his refusal to opt for the ‘blocking minority’ formula that allows the opposition to veto a cabinet decision could create hurdles when he seeks to enter into a power-sharing arrangement that is durable. Moreover, the well-armed militias of various parties will continue to give their supporters disproportionate leverage.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]IDPs’ disillusionment[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Wednesday, 10 Jun, 2009[/B]

WHILE the Pakistan military’s latest offensive against the TTP and other militant outfits has achieved some success, gains are also being made on the ideological front. The past few months have seen the tide of public opinion turn — from a fearful or confused conciliatory attitude towards these groups to what the US-based

New Yorker magazine recently called an “antipathy towards the Taliban”. Reports suggest that this change of heart is true not only of the people displaced internally by the conflict, and therefore most directly affected, but also of residents in areas as yet unscarred by the battle. Deeply disturbing, however, is the fact that this antipathy is accompanied by a general lack of faith in the commitment of the government and the army to the long-term battle: the defeat of the Taliban and their ilk for good and the extension of the state’s writ and protection to all areas. The New Yorker magazine reporter pointed out that “a number of refugees and residents of Mardan questioned how serious it [the government] was about cleaning out the militants”.

This is worrying, for a population disillusioned with the government can become part of anti-state or militant groups in the future. The more than two million people displaced by the fighting are most at risk, for the state has done little to mitigate their suffering. Even when it is safe to return, these people will face an uncertain future in the battle-ravaged areas where the civic and administrative infrastructure is in a shambles, and where medical and educational facilities will have to be rebuilt from scratch. Refugees can be easily radicalised. The failure of the state and its institutions to protect, accommodate and later rehabilitate them increases the anger of millions, as does the rejection of their presence in Sindh and Punjab by political groups. This can well create recruiting space for militant outfits. For long-term success in the battle against the Taliban and other anti-state forces, it is essential that the military battle is followed by tangible steps towards civic development and economic uplift of devastated zones and the rehabilitation of the displaced.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Pakistan Railways[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Wednesday, 10 Jun, 2009[/B]

PRIVATISATION works when it builds capacity and improves products or services. In the case of Pakistan Railways, any sale by the state will most likely fail to meet the first criterion. Services may — and that’s a big ‘may’ — improve under private ownership. Train travel could conceivably become safer and more comfortable and dependable. At the same time, however, it is inevitable that loss-making routes will be done away with, which means that fewer stations will be serviced. Capacity will thus be reduced, not enhanced. In many remote areas, the train service represents a lifeline to the rest of the country and this link that sustains both travel and trade ought not to be severed. Britain’s privatisation of the rail system saw several stops disappear from the map for reasons of profitability. The same is bound to happen in Pakistan, with far greater adverse effect, if Pakistan Railways is sold. Jobs too will be lost in the downsizing effort and fares are likely to increase, again to the detriment of the public. What’s more, firing poorly paid workers is unlikely to turn Pakistan Railways around. What is needed instead is a complete rethink of the organisation’s top-heavy administrative structure. This can be done without selling the railways.

The railways minister was adamant on Monday that PR would not be privatised even though a cabinet committee had been formed to discuss the same. Admitting that “some people” want the sale to go through, he said privatising the railways would run counter to the ruling party’s manifesto. He also pointed out that the budget for the road transport network is nearly four times bigger than that of the railways. This is a key point. Pakistan Railways, which racks up billions in losses every year, is a victim of government neglect as well as mismanagement. Its fortunes could well be reversed through a combination of commitment, increased funding and honesty of purpose.

Substantial investment will be required to make train journeys safer and more comfortable. Staff performance must be improved and tracks upgraded to ensure smoother traffic flow at junctions and stations. When trains are delayed it is not just the passengers who suffer — Pakistan Railways’ budget also takes a hit. Fuel expenses accounted for over 32 per cent of PR’s operational costs in 2006-07. This figure would be lower were it not for the fuel wasted by locomotives idling for hours at stations or waiting elsewhere for other trains to pass. According to a report in this paper in February, “Locomotives stalled in yards and train delays resulted in the loss of 770,700 minutes between May 2007 and April 2008, causing a loss of Rs776,865,600”. Pakistan Railways need not be seen as a lost cause. There is massive room for improvement and it could be revitalised without being privatised.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]OTHER VOICES - European Press FF have lost the right to dictate[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Wednesday, 10 Jun, 2009[/B]

SO, the medicine has been administered and now all we can do is wait, watch and hope, wondering if the patient will respond or succumb to the malaise…. [T]he patient’s well-being is central to all of our prospects and ambitions.

Stretching the medical analogy, almost as far as our credibility was stretched over recent years, hopefully we can begin to build a sense of optimism now that the fever has broken and the patient is in a position to respond. And what a response it must be. In the next few days Taoiseach Brian Cowen goes to the EU summit in Brussels, which is scheduled to finalise the legal guarantees to enable a rerun of the Lisbon Treaty in the autumn.

[B][I][SIZE="4"]The Irish Examiner[/SIZE][/I][/B]

A second rejection of the Lisbon Treaty, no matter how earnestly felt, would be suicidal. We simply don’t have the luxury of pretending that we can reject it and continue to enjoy the essential support of our European neighbours, support that proved absolutely vital in the last few months.

In the coming weeks An Bord Snip Nua will publish its assessment on how the public service might be reformed. If the report has the substance and sweep required … it will cause ructions amongst those in the firing line. Age-old privileges and authority will be challenged and those once thought untouchable will be taken out of their comfort zone…. It is certain, however, that the Commission on Taxation report on the tax system will have an impact on incomes.

This report is taking shape and will be with us long before the consequences of last Friday have faded…. [IT] will feed into the December budget…. These projects would stretch a government in rude health, but … [a] profoundly challenged government might find it all too much…. Of course there are other matters, such as our errant banks, the prospect of 500,000 people in dole queues before Christmas, energy dependence, collapsing pension schemes, great difficulties in agriculture too and many … more problems that can’t be ignored. In this context it would be appropriate for [the] government to give an outline of how it intends to proceed … [and] secure these objectives….

These unique circumstances present challenges for Fine Gael and Labour too. They are both a step closer to their holy grail and must now behave as they might should they assume power. They too must say how they would fix our world. If they don’t how can they expect to be given the opportunity? — (June 09)

Failure to protect
 

[B]Failure to protect[/B]
Dawn Editorial
Thursday, 11 Jun, 2009


The devastating strike against the Pearl Continental hotel in Peshawar is another sobering reminder that the terrorists are continually adapting their modus operandi and probing gaps in security arrangements in what should be high-security areas.

The attacks on the FIA centre in Lahore in March 2008 and the Marriott hotel in Islamabad last September introduced the devastation of truck-bombing to Pakistan and led to a scramble to put up heavy-duty security barriers at the entrances to buildings that could be potential targets of terrorists across the country. Then last month in Lahore, a similar attack on an ISI building may have been thwarted but it did severely damage a Rescue 15 building and killed dozens. Seemingly having learned from that experience, the terrorists in Peshawar arrived at the hotel in an innocuous looking car, and when the barrier was lowered for them they fired in the air dispersing the guards. Then, followed closely by the truck filled with the explosive material, they drove to their target. Even more alarmingly, the terrorists appear to have thoroughly reconnoitred their target: they exploded their truck at a point that caused maximum damage to the portion of the hotel that reportedly was occupied mostly by foreigners.

What is equally clear though is that there was a spectacular failure of security at the hotel itself and the surrounding neighbourhood. Private security guards at the hotel were clearly not up to the task of fending off sophisticated terrorists on a suicide mission. Or were they complicit in the crime, as NWFP senior minister Bashir Bilour suspects. But where were the police and other law-enforcement personnel? With humanitarian workers and officials from international aid agencies flocking to help the IDPs in the north-west, the local, provincial and federal administrations should have already had a plan in place to protect the hotel.

After all, terrorist strikes in retaliation against the military operation in Malakand had already occurred and more were expected. Clearly, more — much more — needs to be done on the security front. If there is a shortage of personnel, then they must be urgently recruited. If there is a shortage of other resources, the relevant administrations must provide them to the law-enforcement agencies immediately. If the intelligence apparatus is stretched thin, then it must quickly be beefed up.

The neighbourhood in which the hotel is located ought to be kept in mind. The provincial assembly, Supreme Court registry, Governor House, Chief Minister House and Corps Commander House are all a stone’s throw from the Pearl Continental. True, the road on which the hotel is located is a major artery and security concerns must be balanced against the need of the population to move around. But the fact that a truck laden with explosives could travel unchecked on the road is extremely disconcerting. A system needs to be put in place that can screen all traffic, particularly heavy vehicles.

[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="DarkGreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]A silver lining[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Thursday, 11 Jun, 2009[/B]

MR Manmohan Singh’s statement in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday will be seen as the olive branch that is badly needed in the present state of impasse between India and Pakistan. By acknowledging honestly that it was in his country’s vital interest to engage with Pakistan, the Indian prime minister has indicated that the peace process could be revived. What is more significant is Mr Singh’s assurance that New Delhi is prepared to walk more than halfway if Pakistan accepts its share of responsibility in the partnership. This is one of the rare occasions that a silver lining has appeared in the dark cloud that has symbolised ties between the two South Asian neighbours since the Mumbai carnage. In recent weeks Pakistan has proposed the resumption of talks but India’s reservations were too manifest. It is now universally recognised that states should resolve their disputes through negotiations rather than recourse to war and violence. India and Pakistan too have made progress towards peace only when they have been engaged in a dialogue as happened in 2004-2008.

Mr Manmohan Singh speaks of Pakistan accepting its share of responsibility in the partnership. Any relationship of this nature has to be reciprocal if it is to be sustained. It is also important that the two sides should perceive a commonality of interest in the peaceful resolution of their disputes. After quarrelling on the agenda of their talks — negotiations focusing on Kashmir first and other wider issues later or vice versa — India and Pakistan managed to launch their dialogue in 2004. Much progress was achieved on a wide range of issues that allowed the two sides to open new doors of communication that also helped them address the Kashmir issue, though only peripherally. A beginning had been made. The Mumbai attack led to a breakdown of this process. True there was heartburn and differences in perception on the issue of terrorism, but these could have been talked out at the negotiating table if talks had continued. The Indian prime minister says Pakistan must accept its share of responsibility but it is not clear what is expected of Islamabad. But one would want the threads to be picked up from where they were dropped. Islamabad cannot be pushed to the wall and India should also understand how the Kashmir dispute, regarded as a core issue in Pakistan, creates constraints when New Delhi refuses to address its substance.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Failure to protect[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Thursday, 11 Jun, 2009[/B]

THE devastating strike against the Pearl Continental hotel in Peshawar is another sobering reminder that the terrorists are continually adapting their modus operandi and probing gaps in security arrangements in what should be high-security areas. The attacks on the FIA centre in Lahore in March 2008 and the Marriott hotel in Islamabad last September introduced the devastation of truck-bombing to Pakistan and led to a scramble to put up heavy-duty security barriers at the entrances to buildings that could be potential targets of terrorists across the country. Then last month in Lahore, a similar attack on an ISI building may have been thwarted but it did severely damage a Rescue 15 building and killed dozens. Seemingly having learned from that experience, the terrorists in Peshawar arrived at the hotel in an innocuous looking car, and when the barrier was lowered for them they fired in the air dispersing the guards. Then, followed closely by the truck filled with the explosive material, they drove to their target. Even more alarmingly, the terrorists appear to have thoroughly reconnoitred their target: they exploded their truck at a point that caused maximum damage to the portion of the hotel that reportedly was occupied mostly by foreigners.

What is equally clear though is that there was a spectacular failure of security at the hotel itself and the surrounding neighbourhood. Private security guards at the hotel were clearly not up to the task of fending off sophisticated terrorists on a suicide mission. Or were they complicit in the crime, as NWFP senior minister Bashir Bilour suspects. But where were the police and other law-enforcement personnel? With humanitarian workers and officials from international aid agencies flocking to help the IDPs in the north-west, the local, provincial and federal administrations should have already had a plan in place to protect the hotel. After all, terrorist strikes in retaliation against the military operation in Malakand had already occurred and more were expected. Clearly, more — much more — needs to be done on the security front. If there is a shortage of personnel, then they must be urgently recruited. If there is a shortage of other resources, the relevant administrations must provide them to the law-enforcement agencies immediately. If the intelligence apparatus is stretched thin, then it must quickly be beefed up.

The neighbourhood in which the hotel is located ought to be kept in mind. The provincial assembly, Supreme Court registry, Governor House, Chief Minister House and Corps Commander House are all a stone’s throw from the Pearl Continental. True, the road on which the hotel is located is a major artery and security concerns must be balanced against the need of the population to move around. But the fact that a truck laden with explosives could travel unchecked on the road is extremely disconcerting. A system needs to be put in place that can screen all traffic, particularly heavy vehicles.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Silent sufferers[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Thursday, 11 Jun, 2009[/B]

FORCED marriages are abhorrent in any situation but the practice becomes appalling when it involves underage children. Though the country’s laws recognise the marriage of underage girls as a crime, this practice remains widespread and constitutes a telling indictment of the manner in which women are victimised and basic human rights trampled in feudal social structures. More shocking perhaps is the fact that in Sindh’s Umerkot district there now exist brokers who link up buyers with parents — mostly fathers — willing to sell their daughters. ‘Marriage’ under such circumstances amounts clearly to selling a child into a life of slavery and all manner of abuse. Fuelled by poverty and ignorance though it may be, the practice is detestable. And yet it is only one of the many ways in which this country’s women are victimised. It is well known that in many parts of the country, women and young girls are bartered to settle disputes or discharge debts. Meanwhile, the trafficking of women and their sale into anything from prostitution to semi-slavery — often given the nominal cover of ‘marriage’ — continue unchecked. The state makes the right noises from time to time but nothing changes.

The project to modernise and civilise the country must start with protecting the rights of women. Expanded legislation is required to criminalise practices that are too often defended as ‘social’ or ‘tribal’ customs. Moreover the laws that exist, such as those against underage marriages, karo-kari and ‘honour’ killings, must be stringently applied. All too frequently, the perpetrators of such crimes go unpunished because of the influence or money they wield. The police force must therefore be made more accessible, effective and independent. A lasting change, however, requires that the societal mindset be altered and women be recognised as equal citizens and human beings. It took a graphic video showing the whipping of a young girl for Pakistan to recognise the excesses committed against women by the Taliban. Yet crimes such as those enumerated above take place every day, and society as a whole remains uncaring. We should not need a video of each victim’s suffering to realise that the country’s women are in need of protection, often from their own kin.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]OTHER VOICES - Middle East Press Helping citizens[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Thursday, 11 Jun, 2009[/B]

DESPITE all the problems with the railways and other forms of land transport, Minister of The Egyptian Gazette

Transport Mohamed Mansour seems obsessed with the idea of introducing … means of transport in some parts of the country … for the benefit of investors and tourists. Before completing the free highway project he has launched between Cairo and Alexandria, Mansour announced the launching of another project … connecting Upper Egypt’s governorates with the Red Sea resorts….

This will encourage tourists to spend more time in Egypt and make transport safer for visitors after the many road accidents in which a lot of tourists have died. What we really need is a better train service for ordinary citizens. If we concentrate on projects that serve rich businessmen and foreign visitors, we will … deprive ordinary citizens of the fruits of economic reform. —(June 8)

[B][I]Justifying Afghanistan[/I][/B]

THE US does not want to keep its forces in Afghanistan on a permanent basis. This was one of the points made by [Barack Obama in] … Cairo.

… [T]he president has left open the whole issue of how … US troops may be expected to remain there. He said, “It is costly and politically difficult to continue this conflict. We would gladly bring every single one of our troops home if we could be confident that there were no violent extremists in Afghanistan and Pakistan determined to kill as many Americans as they possibly can. But that is not yet the case.”

The US at this point should realise that all concerned states would like to see Al Qaeda defeated … but the answer for that does not lie in additional troops.

It lies in winning the support of the people. For that the US may have to make more efforts to minimise … civilian casualties. —(June 6)

[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="DarkGreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Iran’s presidential election[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Friday, 12 Jun, 2009[/B]

IRANIANS go to the polls today in what most observers believe is a race too close to call. Even though there are four candidates, the real contest is between President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the conservative incumbent, and reformist candidate Hassan Moussavi whose green-coloured rallies gave a new and popular dimension to the campaigning that ended on Wednesday. Unless there is an upset, none of the four candidates — the other two being former speaker Mehdi Karroubi and former general Mohsen Rezaei — is likely to get more than 50 per cent of the vote, thus forcing a run-off. Former President Mohammad Khatami quit the presidential race in March but he boosted Moussavi’s chances by throwing his weight behind him. The reformists seem to have learnt their lesson, for in the 2005 election their boycott of the polls helped Ahmadinejad. This time bands of ‘green’ throughout the country are urging young people to cast their votes to swing the election in Moussavi’s favour.

Iran’s 10th presidential election is in a sense a referendum on the hard-line president’s domestic and foreign policies, which enjoy the support of Iran’s powerful clerics, especially spiritual leader Ali Khamenei. The arch-conservative Council of Elders too has played its partisan role by disqualifying several candidates, including conservative Rafat Bayat, a female MP. Besides, Ahmadinejad enjoys popularity with rural people, on whose welfare he has spent a huge amount of money in violation of rules. With world oil prices down, the economic situation continues to be grim for a country which is the world’s fifth biggest exporter of crude. But inflation has come down from last year’s 30 per cent to 18.

The president has given no indication that he intends to give up his hard line toward the West and show flexibility on the nuclear question. Moussavi, on the other hand, stands for a flexible approach toward the West, because he believes Ahmadinejad’s policies enabled America to go the UN and place Iran under sanctions, thus aggravating the economic condition. What has endeared Moussavi to young people is his pledge to improve freedom of expression and liberalise the cultural scene. There is no doubt Iran stands at a crossroads. Victory for Ahmadinejad will mean a continuation of his hard-line conservative policies and a fruitless confrontation with America which under Barack Obama seems keen to turn a new leaf in relations with Iran and the Muslim world.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Police recklessness[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Friday, 12 Jun, 2009[/B]

DEATH is always unsettling. But it hurts more when it comes suddenly and that too at the hands of those who are supposed to protect life and property. It was this grievance that made the family and friends of a man who the Lahore police killed on Wednesday so enraged that they blocked roads and surrounded a local police station for hours. The circumstances that led to the death they were protesting are unclear. The dead man’s relatives say the police killed him without warning as he was driving to the police station in a car that had earlier hit his motorcycle. The police claim the owner of the car complained that someone was taking his car away; they cautioned the alleged car-snatcher to stop but he did not so they had no choice but to fire at him. One thing the two versions have in common is that it was a police bullet that killed the man.

This is definitely not the first incident of its kind, nor will it be the last. Shooting as the first recourse is a trademark of the Punjab police. They are also ill-trained and ill-equipped to tackle any situation without using violence. They lack the training and facilities to chase down errant vehicles and they are never prepared, let alone willing, to talk someone out of a crime situation. To top it all, they are jittery these days about their own security which makes them prone to knee-jerk reactions to anything looking remotely suspicious. But these are professional hazards the police should learn to live with, strongly internalising the notion that their job is to protect, not take, lives. They should know, in no ambiguous terms, that their powers and their weapons should be used to maintain law and order and not undermine it. Their valour should show through their discretion and their errors should result from caution, not from a wanton display of their authority and dubious expertise in using firearms. Every policeman should know that exceptional circumstances that may allow killing should be just that — truly exceptional.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Curbing extremism[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Friday, 12 Jun, 2009[/B]

AN amendment to the Pakistan aid bill moved in the US Congress requires, among other things, that Islamabad implement economic, legal and social reforms that would discourage “violent Islamic extremism”. Pakistani citizens must demand the same from their government. The fight against extremism in any form concerns Pakistan most deeply and directly, for as events in the country’s north-western areas illustrate, extremism and the militancy it sponsors represent a potent threat to the writ of the state. Firstly, of course, the militants must be effectively neutralised. The army operation should be taken to its logical conclusion and all areas be brought under the control of the government, while the millions of people affected must be rehabilitated. Reconstruction efforts need be initiated, in which regard the involvement of local people may well prove invaluable. Not only would they have an idea of where the money is best spent but such involvement would help return to them a sense of ownership.

Subsequently, the root causes of extremism will have to be addressed. It is vital that poverty alleviation measures be undertaken and employment opportunities be created in underdeveloped areas; an industrial base could be set up, for example. People with jobs and regular incomes are, after all, far less likely to turn towards extremism or militancy. And Pakistan will have to find ways of ensuring that development funds do not leak down corrupt or bureaucratic holes. Employment opportunities must be accompanied by the setting up of schools and vocational training centres. This requires a coherent education plan and a significantly bigger budgetary allocation. The education sector has traditionally been subjected to arbitrary changes; now a needs-assessment exercise by legislators and experts must lead to solid policy.

Concurrently, the madressah system must be reworked. Such institutions must be identified, counted and registered, after which curriculum reform can be devised. While all madressahs are not connected to extremism, their graduates are often unfit for the job market. This must be remedied. Furthermore, issues such as deficiencies in the state education system and the lack of access to it must be addressed, for these are among the factors that lead to the popularity of madressahs. Then there exists the pressing need for access to quality healthcare and, most vitally, justice in its real sense. We must learn the lesson taught by Swat, where the promise of justice under Sharia initially led many citizens to extend support to the extremists. Most importantly, perhaps, areas such as Fata, the rest of the tribal belt and the designated Northern Areas must be brought into the political mainstream. The Political Parties Act must be extended so that all political organisations can carry out their legitimate activities in all areas. Access to genuine representation allows citizens to effectively present their concerns, thereby reducing the need to bargain with a gun.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]OTHER VOICES - Bangladesh Press BNP’s reform agenda[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Friday, 12 Jun, 2009[/B]

THE BNP’s reform plan, at least the first phase of it, has been executed as the party announced [the] formation of the convening committees for its district (organisational) units. It will pave the way for the participation of … workers and leaders in the party’s overall reorganisation scheme.

We welcome the move that will initiate the process of internal democratisation of one of the two major political parties…. The real benefits of internal democratisation can be reaped through developing a system that will enable the upcoming, committed and dedicated leaders to rise to prominence within the party hierarchy, while discarding the failed and the disgraced who have outlived their utility.

BNP chief Begum Khaleda Zia has to bear in mind that the defeat suffered in the Dec 29 general elections could be attributed as much to … corrupt party men as to [the] lack of internal democratisation which made it impossible for the party to face the situation as a compact outfit. The distance between the top leadership and workers … was far too visible.

[B][I][SIZE="4"]The Daily Star[/SIZE][/I][/B]

And what is particularly important here is to view the last election results as part of the cyclic ups and downs that any political party has to undergo in the highly volatile world of politics….

A party has to face such [a] political crisis by reinvigorating itself through new ideas, new plans and new faces of integrity and commitment…. But we notice that some of the leaders, having questionable credentials, have retained their positions in the committees. It may be rather difficult for the party to start anew while retaining the elements responsible to a great extent for the obloquy brought upon the party. The party has to concentrate on finding out the areas where things went wrong, instead of crying foul and holding certain ‘conspirators’ responsible for [its] election defeat. — (June 11)

[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="DarkGreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Militancy’s HQ[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Tuesday, 16 Jun, 2009[/B]

“IT has been decided that a comprehensive and decisive operation will be launched to eliminate Baitullah Mehsud and dismantle his network,” NWFP Governor Owais Ghani announced at a press conference in Islamabad on Sunday. For weeks now, skirmishes between the security troops and militants and air strikes in parts of South Waziristan Agency controlled by Baitullah Mehsud have built up the expectation that the Pakistan state may finally be preparing to take him on in a decisive battle. It is clear why: the Waziristan agencies have long been a viper’s nest. Militants based there have been involved in attacks against every conceivable target: across the Pak-Afghan border on foreign troops and the Afghan government and security forces; in the Malakand division and other areas against the Pakistan state and local rivals; and in Pakistan’s cities and towns against the state, security forces, sectarian leaders and the general population. Al Qaeda too is believed to have a substantial presence in the Waziristan agencies, and international terrorist plots, including the July 2007 attacks in the UK, have been traced back to the area. And there appears to be an almost endless supply of the dreaded suicide bombers who are trained in the area and then sent forth to wreak havoc and undermine the state’s will to fight the militants.

What is not clear though at the moment is what exactly the security forces’ plan is. Will they only go after Baitullah Mehsud and his network or will they try and clean up both South and North Waziristan Agency of all militants? The last time the militants in North Waziristan were taken on was in October 2007, but within weeks the state pushed for a peace deal after it suffered heavy losses. The deal was eventually signed in February 2008. In South Waziristan, the last round of major fighting was in January 2008, but there too heavy losses forced the state to quickly sue for peace. This time, the security forces’ strategy appears to be to cut off the three main routes leading to the South Waziristan bastion of Baitullah Mehsud and to use aerial power to pound his network. The operation underway in Frontier Region Bannu appears to be a part of that plan.

But it remains to be seen how far the state is willing to go, the losses it is willing to accept, the cost it is ready to impose on the local populations and to what extent it is ready to disrupt the various networks of militants that are intertwined. Just as importantly, the state must be careful about who it sees as its allies. Baitullah Mehsud has many rivals and enemies among the Mehsud tribe, but defeating him with the help of others only to see those others become the next menace — that must not be allowed to happen.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Peace process scuttled[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Tuesday, 16 Jun, 2009[/B]

A REVIVAL of the peace process now appears a virtual impossibility, not only because the Israeli prime minister on Sunday practically scuttled it but also because the White House welcomed his negative speech as “an important step forward”. Speaking at the Bar-Ilan University, Mr Benjamin Netanyahu said his concept of a Palestinian state was that it should have no armed forces. Besides he would allow settlements to grow, Jerusalem would remain Israel’s ‘united’ capital, and the Palestinians would have to recognise his country as a Jewish state. The crucial sentence had two ‘ifs’. He said: “If we get this guarantee for demilitarisation and necessary security arrangements for Israel, and if the Palestinians recognise Israel as the state of the Jewish people, we will be willing in a real peace agreement to reach a solution of a demilitarised Palestinian state alongside the Jewish state.” The words “demilitarisation” and “a demilitarised Palestinian state” and the “state of the Jewish people” and “the Jewish state” were repeated in the small but key sentence by Mr Netanyahu to emphasise that this was the central theme of his policy. The irony of it was that having himself attached conditions impossible for the Palestinians to accept for a revival of the peace process, Israel’s hawkish Likud prime minister called upon the Palestinian Authority to “begin peace negotiations without preconditions”. This duplicity received an appropriate response from PA spokesman Saeb Erekat when he said: “We ask the world not to be fooled by his use of the term Palestinian state because he qualified it.”

The much-awaited speech went totally against President Barack Obama’s clear-cut stance that Israel must halt all settlement activity and that his administration stood categorically for a two-state solution. By insisting that Jerusalem would remain Israel’s capital, Mr Netanyahu ruled out the final status negotiations, and by demanding that Israel be recognised as a Jewish state he made it clear Palestinian refugees would not be allowed to return to their soil from where they were made to flee during the 1948-49 fighting. More astonishingly, he not only rejected President Barack Obama’s call for a settlements freeze, he said the settlements should be allowed to grow, saying the settlers were “not the enemy of peace — they are our brothers and sisters”. The rebuff to President Obama’s peace efforts is obvious, for Mr Netanyahu has given the world an unabashed dose of his intransigence.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Anti-terrorism force[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Tuesday, 16 Jun, 2009[/B]

IN stating that the “police are not trained to counter terror attacks” and referring to the need for a new security force dedicated to fighting terrorism, PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif has made a valid point. The methods pursued by the extremists at work in Pakistan resemble a form of urban warfare where it is not easy to tell a terrorist from a civilian. All a militant has to do to pass for a non-combatant is to temporarily abandon his weapon. This allows terrorists to melt at will into the civilian population, making the countering of possible attacks doubly difficult. While the military operation has certainly achieved some success, it is also certain that the army cannot maintain an indefinite presence in the affected areas — particularly with the military action being expanded to Fata. Once active military presence is withdrawn and displaced populations start returning, the task of ensuring law and order will, under the current circumstances, fall primarily to the police. But the police force in the conflict areas is already demoralised and suffers from issues endemic to the country’s civilian security apparatus such as the lack of training, funding and operational resources.

There is, therefore, a need to constitute a new security force trained specifically to counter terrorism. In this regard, it is encouraging that the government has announced the intention of setting up such a force in Swat. Such a force would be of use wherever there is evidence of militant or terrorist cells. To achieve long-term success, however, the intelligence-gathering network feeding the anti-terrorism force will prove of pivotal importance. The ability to tell a terrorist from a non-combatant will depend on local knowledge and require an ear-to-the-ground approach. The conduits of information available to the police must therefore be utilised to the fullest, for the police already have a wide network of informants and local knowledge. And while the anti-terrorism force must work in conjunction with the police, the two bodies must also remain distinct from each other to avoid issues of jurisdictional and operational overlap. Moreover, the police force must urgently be bolstered with resources and trained staff.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]OTHER VOICES - Sindhi Press Budget lacks relief aspect[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Tuesday, 16 Jun, 2009[/B]

THIS is the second budget of the PPP government. With revenue receipts estimated at Rs1.37tr, the budget envisages a total deficit of Rs722.5bn, 4.9 per cent of GDP. To meet this deficit, Rs264.9bn in external financing and Rs457.6bn in expected internal financing will be used. The government announced an ad hoc relief allowance of 15 per cent of pay of government servants. The common man expects some relief in terms of prices, job opportunities and services. It has been witnessed that whatever allocations are made for the poor, benefits do not trickle down. All this remains on paper. In reality problems are not mitigated.

The new budget carries a proposal for setting up a ministry of human rights, this is a welcome gesture. Would it be possible for this ministry first of all to look into the lack of poverty alleviation? This is a major human rights issue in Pakistan. As far as Sindh is concerned, there are certain proposals which would increase differences between Sindh and the federal government. Allocations have been made for the Thal canal and Bhasha Dam. The people of Sindh have reservations about Bhasha Dam, but they accepted it as they preferred it to the Kalabagh Dam. The case of the Thal canal is quite different. The Sindh Assembly has passed resolutions, while the PPP and other politicians who are in power today have been moving such resolutions in the assembly against the Thal canal. The incumbent Sindh chief minister had been head of the Anti-Thal Canal Committee which organised big rallies throughout the province against this water project. The people of Sindh had rejected Gen Musharraf’s Water Vision 2020 due to such controversial schemes. Allocating funds for this project compels people to think that the PPP is following Musharraf’s policies.

[B][I][SIZE="4"]Kawish[/SIZE][/I][/B]

Sindh and other provinces have to sustain financial losses as the issue of the NFC award remains unresolved. The PPP government has completed its two years, but no move has been made in this regard. At the micro level, there is nothing for the poor as prices have not been reduced. There is nothing for the common man in the new budget except for a price hike.

We have a long history of this. Unelected governments have ruled for so long that elected governments have to bear the burden of the former’s policies. People are not getting any relief, one of the major reasons might be the mistakes committed by dictators in the past and the fact that elected governments fail to address and correct these ills. At least there should be some indications that things are moving in the right direction. Salaries of government employees were increased in the last budget also but the inflation increased manifold.

In this budget there is no relief for the common man, while funds have been proposed for controversial projects and no measures have been taken to remove the sense of deprivation among the smaller provinces. — (June 14)

[B][I]Selected and translated by Sohail Sangi[/I][/B]

[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="DarkGreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Need to deliver[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Wednesday, 17 Jun, 2009[/B]

THE ranks of the doubters are diminishing by the day. It is well established now that Pakistan’s government and its security personnel are committed in their resolve to engage the forces of militancy and quell the obscurantists’ bid for power. Considerations of faith or religion are not first or foremost in the minds of the militants. Being able to take human life at will can be a heady drug and it gives the formerly unempowered Taliban foot soldiers a singular sense of importance. Fortunately, the citizenry has seen through the façade at long last and is now roundly condemning the militants. The political consensus on the need for a telling military operation against the Taliban is backed by public opinion. And this view seems to be shared by the majority of displaced persons from Malakand who want to see the Taliban routed once and for all so that life for them ceases to be a living hell.

It appears that what began in Swat, Buner and Dir is being extended to Waziristan and other parts of the tribal belt. Baitullah Mehsud and his Taliban HQ are now in the crosshairs, or so it seems. But this is no mean task and while the world realises that Pakistan cannot go it alone in this fight, it has been slow to come to Islamabad’s aid in combating both militancy and its socio-economic fallout. On Monday, Pakistan’s president, prime minister and foreign minister all reiterated the need for urgent help in the battle against the Taliban and the rehabilitation of millions of displaced persons. Pledges of support have not been delivered on and people are going hungry. Hearts and minds cannot be won this way. Whenever an individual loses faith in the state, the Taliban can claim a minor victory.

The World Food Programme is running out of food. The new US aid-to-Pakistan bill may still be months in the making. The EU has failed us in our hour of need and the Muslim world even more so. Pakistan needs logistical help in the physical fight against the Taliban. At the same time, people displaced by war need to be looked after, and not just in the immediate term. Even if they can be fed and kept relatively comfortable and disease-free — which is clearly not the case right now — their homes and towns will have to be rebuilt and they will need resources to make up for lost livestock and agricultural produce. As the foreign minister said, Pakistan cannot afford to divert from other sectors the kind of money needed to fight militancy and rehabilitate its victims.

That could further harm the economy and make people poorer. And that may generate a new generation of militants.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Sindh’s finances[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Wednesday, 17 Jun, 2009[/B]

THE Rs327bn Sindh budget for 2009-10 could not have been any better in these times of economic crisis. Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah patted himself on the back for not imposing any new taxes. But what is questionable is the manner in which the available resources have been distributed among various sectors especially when Sindh is faced with gargantuan problems which call for austerity in spending. Notwithstanding the financial constraints the province has conventionally faced, the available resources could have been more wisely distributed to ease the burden of the common man. With a slowdown in economic activity the resource gap can be expected to grow and the austerity measures the chief minister speaks of would require cuts in spending. How these cuts are instituted will be the key determinant of the success or failure of government policy. If the outgoing year’s accounts are anything to go by one cannot feel very hopeful. Due to scarce funds, the budget estimates for 2008-09 have been scaled down in the revised estimates for the same year in some sectors. For instance, the revenue expenditure on education is shown as Rs12.1bn in the revised estimates for 2008-09 when Rs15bn had been budgeted. Police also suffered cuts from Rs22.2bn to Rs21bn. But the expenditure incurred on the governor and chief minister went up from Rs1.2bn to Rs1.5bn while administration showed a jump from Rs111.7m to Rs119.6m.

For the incoming year many heads have registered an increase. But they can be expected to face cuts when deficits have to be bridged. If we take the examples of law and order and education as well as administration, our policymakers’ priorities become clear. In 2009-10, administration shows a jump of 21 per cent from the amount budgeted in 2008-09. It will be Rs135.2bn. The increase for education and law and order is nine and 15.6 per cent respectively. The latter heads may ultimately face cuts because administration has traditionally been the most privileged item on the agenda and is not allowed to face any cuts. Although funds are important for they indicate the priority a sector is given in the scheme of things and allow the government to plan and implement schemes, strategies and capacity to absorb funds are also important. For instance, more than an expansion in manpower, the police need training and equipment. But only Rs560m has been allocated for training which is a miserly two per cent of the total expenditure on police. Similarly, teachers’ training has not received the importance it merits.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Iraq war inquiry[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Wednesday, 17 Jun, 2009[/B]

THE Labour government’s role in the Iraq war is one of the most sordid chapters of modern British history. Few actions by a British government have aroused so much anger and protest at home and abroad than Tony Blair’s decision to be part of the Bush administration’s Iraq war. Baathist Iraq had nothing to do with 9/11, and Saddam Hussein had rebuffed Osama bin Laden’s attempt to turn his country into a base of operations for Al Qaeda. He had no WMDs, and when the Security Council passed a resolution calling for inspections, Baghdad accepted it. After extensive inspections, including those of Saddam Hussein’s palaces, the UN Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission, led by Hans Blix, reported that it had found no “smoking gun”. But the Bush administration still decided to attack Iraq without a second UN resolution authorising the war, and found a willing tool in the Blair government.

Then began a demeaning intelligence game across the Atlantic, with the Bush and Blair governments apparently doctoring intelligence to make a case for war. President Bush quoted a British intelligence report, which claimed that Baghdad had tried to procure uranium from Niger: it turned out to be false. An unfortunate result of the way Britain’s intelligence dossier was ‘sexed up’ was the suicide by David Kelly, a scientist. This centred round the ‘45-minute’ controversy, for the dossier claimed that Iraq could mobilise its WMDs, which purportedly included both nuclear and chemical weapons, within 45 minutes. It was later confirmed that the original dossier didn’t say this and that this was inserted by Britain’s director of communications. The truth was that Israel considered Iraq the greatest threat to its security, and had the satisfaction of seeing America and Britain do the job without incurring losses itself. But both America and Britain suffered thousands of dead, while Iraq’s civilian casualties range between 300,000 and over half a million. There is no doubt the inquiry report will make new revelations about the goings-on that led to the war and the conspiracies that resulted in the tragedy of Iraq.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]OTHER VOICES - European Press Carter report: returning our TV[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Wednesday, 17 Jun, 2009[/B]

EXECUTIVES at the BBC are bracing themselves for the publication this week of Lord Carter’s report on broadcasting. Britain’s television industry is going through a period of unprecedented change. “On-demand viewing” is already a reality, and may soon be ubiquitous. ITV is on the verge of bankruptcy, brought down by the effects of a combination of the recession in advertising, the proliferation of competing channels and some very poor decisions by its managers. It is not alone in facing financial crisis: the viability of all three of the major terrestrial commercial channels is very uncertain.

What is certain is that the BBC will remain as the linchpin of British television and radio — as indeed it should. At its best it provides a service of unrivalled quality, and if anyone wants an idea how abysmal broadcasting might become if it ceased to exist, they need only look at Italian or French television. That said, the Corporation is hardly free of faults. Its recent lapses of judgment on matters of taste and decency have been shocking. It has been, and continues to be, grossly profligate in the way it spends the £142.50 licence fee it collects from each person with a colour television. The absurd amounts it pays some of its presenters seem likely to be reduced — but it also has too many tiers of managers collecting £100,000 or more, and no one has yet talked about cutting their pay or jobs.

[B][I]The Daily Telegraph[/I][/B]

Lord Carter will probably suggest that some of the licence fee goes to prop up local news programmes from ITV…. That would certainly be a better way of using the BBC’s resources than some of the schemes its managers have backed….

BBC executives fear that the government will replace the six-yearly assessment of the licence fee with an annual audit of the way the Corporation spends our money. We appreciate that anxiety: annual assessments by government of whether the BBC is spending its money “correctly” would risk greater political control and interference, which is something best avoided. Reducing the licence fee, or giving a slice of it to fund public service broadcasting by private channels, would be a better way of making the BBC do what its managers have so far been unable to: control its costs. — (June 13)

[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="DarkGreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Desertification and its fallout[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Thursday, 18 Jun, 2009[/B]

‘CONSERVING land and water’ was the dominant theme of this year’s World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought, an event that was observed across the globe on Wednesday. Desertification — the degradation of land in arid, semi-arid and dry sub-humid areas — is a growing problem in Pakistan and could assume catastrophic proportions if current trends continue. Here’s what the government’s Sustainable Land Management Project has to say: the livelihoods of two-thirds of the population are linked to arid or semi-arid areas, which comprise nearly 80 per cent of the country’s total land mass. And according to other environment ministry estimates, 38 per cent of Pakistan’s irrigated land has been lost to waterlogging while soil productivity has diminished elsewhere because of higher salinity and sodicity levels. Much of the blame can be pinned on poor water management and destructive agricultural practices such as over-cultivation, excessive use of pesticides and run-off from unlevelled farmland that pollutes water bodies and causes soil erosion. Reduced water flows also play a part. Besides affecting crop yields, an acute lack of irrigation water can lead to fields being left barren and thereby susceptible to wind erosion. Other factors include a growing number of livestock and resultant overgrazing, deforestation, erratic weather associated with climate change and rising salinity due to sea intrusion.

Loss of arable land and grazing grounds affects livelihoods and the worst hit may have no option but to migrate, increasing stress on land and water resources in other areas and possibly triggering a new cycle of degradation. Growing pressure on shrinking resources also carries with it the potential for conflict between communities and even nations. Already there are some 24 million ‘environmentally induced migrants’ across the world and the UN estimates that their number could reach 200 million by 2050. The outlook for Pakistan is particularly bleak given that the glaciers that feed the Indus, the country’s agricultural lifeline,

may disappear in another 50 years if global warming continues apace. Migration induced by environmental degradation is on the rise here and the ranks of the poor are growing. As UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon put it, “the poor will be the first victims [of desertification] and the last to recover.”

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Handshake in Russia[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Thursday, 18 Jun, 2009[/B]

THE leaders of India and Pakistan shook hands again, this time in Yekaterinburg on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit. As in 2004 when their predecessors’ encounter at the Saarc summit in Kathmandu had launched the composite dialogue between their two countries, the meeting between President Asif Zardari and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is expected to revive the moribund peace process. Four rounds of the dialogue had been held until last year. But the Mumbai terrorist attacks last November stalled the exercise. It is therefore a happy development that New Delhi and Islamabad have decided to reopen communications and discuss issues at the negotiating table. The foreign secretaries will meet before the NAM summit, scheduled in July, where Mr Zardari and Mr Manmohan Singh will review the prospects for talks. These meetings might appear to be more procedural in nature. Nevertheless they will be important as they will set the tone of the dialogue in the months to come. If they have a positive impact on the atmospherics of the talks these encounters would have been worth their while.

The only caveat is that this will entail further delays before the interlocutors begin to address substantive issues in earnest. The problem with setbacks such as the one caused by Mumbai is that they take the peace process back to square one that requires the two sides to start from the beginning. For instance at Yekaterinburg both the leaders took their time to reiterate their stated positions. India wants greater cooperation in good faith from Pakistan in investigating cases of terrorism against it. Pakistan expects the Kashmir dispute to be addressed as a result of this exercise. Both know that these objectives can be achieved only after a confidence-building exercise has created some measure of trust between them. To revive the dialogue after an impasse can be quite a challenge and invariably requires the friendly intervention of friends — the US on the present occasion.

When India and Pakistan meet again they would do well to focus on the key problem that threatens the peace and stability of South Asia i.e. terrorism which has grave implications for the future of both countries, given the fact that terrorists recognise no international boundaries in their operations. It is important that neither government provide any kind of sanctuary to terrorists operating against the other in the misplaced belief that this strategy promotes its political interest. It is time both realised that terrorism is a double-edged sword that also destroys its protector and patron. Hence the Saarc mechanism that has already been set up to investigate and fight terrorism must be activated and used effectively to the advantage of both.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Unrealistic Punjab budget?[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Thursday, 18 Jun, 2009[/B]

PRUDENCE demanded that Punjab prepare a cautious budget for the financial year 2009-10 and attempt to achieve its priority development goals while living within realistic financial means over the next one year. But the provincial government did not take that road, perhaps believing that it must follow populist policies even if it were short on cash to finance its development budget. Here is a classic case of passing the buck: the federal government’s budget for fiscal 2009-10 is dependent on the aid it expects from abroad while Punjab pins its hopes on the centre. The province’s development package of Rs175bn for the next year is already facing a resource gap of more than Rs26bn. This could fall apart if the federal government fails to collect the targeted tax revenue to transfer the promised funds — Rs421bn in Punjab’s case — to the provinces under the NFC award. Analysts predict that the Federal Bureau of Revenue will not be able to meet its tax collection target, just as it was unable to do so during the outgoing fiscal, not least because of sluggish economic conditions and the even slower industrial recovery.

The tax revenue target of Rs49.6bn, too, appears to be unrealistic, particularly because it has been increased from just over Rs28bn collected during the outgoing year and without imposing any new tax or even revising upwards the existing tax rates. This means that a possible financial crunch could result in development targets going topsy-turvy in no time because of the lack of money to finance schemes. It could also force the provincial government to borrow money from commercial banks. The worst scenario is a financial crisis without a contingency plan.

That said the provincial government must be commended for increasing allocation for pro-poor subsidies — cash transfers to poor families, provision of sasti roti, subsidised tractors for farmers, etc — to a whopping Rs30bn. The efficacy of these schemes had remained open to question until now, though, as these were initiated by Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif to counter the impact of similar schemes launched by the PPP government at the centre: the Benazir Income Support Programme and the Benazir Tractor Scheme. To improve on its current reputation of being a provider of relief to target groups, the provincial government must extend the scope of these subsidies to include areas of the province where people voted for its coalition partner PPP and the PML-Q in last year’s election.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]OTHER VOICES - Middle East Press To plan for retirement[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Thursday, 18 Jun, 2009 [/B]

IN these difficult economic times, people across the world are digging into their savings to cover their daily living costs, leaving them ill-prepared for retirement at the end of their working lives. A survey of 15,000 people across the world by HSBC Insurance revealed that 87 per cent have no idea how much money they will have when they retire, leaving only 13 per cent feeling well prepared for [retirement]….

The survey showed that, across the world, people have a poor understanding of how to save for retirement and lack access to good financial advice. This is a strong argument for governments to [encourage] financial education…. In many countries like the UAE, governments have programmes in place to take care of … retired citizens…. However, this will become more difficult as populations age….

Everybody has the responsibility to make sure they are able to take care of their financial needs later in life… For those who are young … it may seem as though there are still many years ahead to get ready for retirement. But the uncomfortable truth is that you have to start saving for your old age as soon as you start earning…. — (June 12)

PRIME Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s declaration … that he would accept the principle of the creation of a “demilitarised Palestinian state beside the Jewish state” was a small step in the right direction, despite being abominably late in coming….

His new position further validates the two-state solution which is accepted by the majority of the Israeli public…. Netanyahu needs to ask himself if his stubborn resistance to a Palestinian state prior to Sunday contributed to Israel’s national interests, or if it was only a desperate attempt to buy time…. The prime minister also needs to explain to the public why he waited three months and got involved in a public and unnecessary confrontation with President Barack Obama before he became willing to state the obvious.Netanyahu’s test will be to translate the speech into a practical policy: was its purpose to fend off US pressure at a minimum price without upsetting his coalition partners to the right? Or did it represent an ideological change in direction…. Netanyahu skipped past the first hurdle of his second tenure as prime minister when he received praise from Obama for the speech, but that is only one small step. The burden of proof is still on him. — (June 16)

[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="DarkGreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Wheels within wheels[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Friday, 19 Jun, 2009[/B]

SOW the wind and reap the whirlwind. The full ramifications of the dangerous game played by Pakistan’s security establishment over the past few decades are now being felt where they hurt the most: at home, on our own turf. Misguided policies of strategic depth in Afghanistan created a cadre of highly trained and motivated militants who are now beyond the control of their original keepers. Perhaps equally disastrously, Pakistan’s policy of turning more than a blind eye to sectarian and ‘jihadi’ outfits that looked eastward rather than across the Durand Line produced a breed of fighters that has now been deprived of a cause. Their guns, as we speak, are trained inwards and terrorism within the borders of Pakistan is the curse of the day. The ‘jihadis’ of the 1990s are today’s terrorists, harbouring a serious grudge against a state that seemingly jettisoned them after joining the ‘enemy’ camp. What once came across as a symbiotic relationship turned adversarial soon after 9/11, possibly under duress. Our very own militants, it seems, have come home to roost.

The ‘Punjabi Taliban’ cannot really be linked to the Afghan war; their ideology has its roots elsewhere. These are people who were/are steeped in sectarian hatred and a passion for an armed approach to ‘resolving’ the Kashmir dispute. Yet, they now enjoy solid linkages with the Taliban who are engaged in a bitter war against the states of Pakistan and Afghanistan as well as Nato forces. The origins of the Lashkar-i-Jhangvi and the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan have little in common, but that has not prevented these organisations from pooling resources in what has become a joint ‘struggle’ against the forces of democracy and modernity. The TTP’s Darra Adamkhel chief, whose ultimatum apparently forced the closure of Peshawar airport on Wednesday, was once a member of the Lashkar-i-Jhangvi. Also on Wednesday, the Punjab police paraded before the press one of the alleged perpetrators of the assault against the Sri Lankan cricket team in Lahore. In effecting his arrest, the law-enforcement agencies claimed to have cracked a ‘Punjabi Taliban’ network. The Taliban ‘movement’, clearly, is amorphous and its tentacles are spreading despite the state’s recent military gains. The arrest in Lahore could well be cited as an intel success if the case against the accused can be proved. But it also highlights the enormity of the task at hand, for there are wheels within wheels when it comes to tackling the Taliban.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]An avoidable crisis[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Friday, 19 Jun, 2009[/B]

KARACHI, along with other parts of Sindh, plunged into darkness on Wednesday after the city was sudden-ly disconnected from the national electricity grid. What went wrong and what or who is to blame? It appears that tornadoes — known to occur at this time of the year — damaged Pepco’s Jamshoro-Dadu and Jamshoro-Hub lines which supply around 700 MW to Karachi every day. The city is supplied electricity from three other sources (KESC’s own power-generating plants, including some rental plants; independent power producers; and the nuclear plant Kanupp) which provide slightly more than two-thirds of the electricity available in recent days. So why did a sudden loss of one-third of the electricity supply result in a total failure of the system? It should not have. There appears to have been failures at two levels. One, the cascading effect could have been minimised: there is no obvious technical reason why losing part of the electricity supply must necessarily result in the tripping of all other systems. Two, even if reasons of safety or the fact that the system is old and dilapidated meant that the system had to shut down in its entirety, there is no reason why it could not have been reactivated sooner. Many parts of Karachi were still without electricity on Thursday afternoon, more than 18 hours after the crisis first hit.

The city, it appears, was once again the victim of KESC’s incompetence. Never mind the press briefings, hurriedly arranged huddles with the city’s rulers or advertisements in the media touting the KESC’s management, there seems a fundamental inability on the part of those in charge to prepare for and react to crises. Note, the weather that caused the initial damage is seasonal - where was the planning to address its potential effects? And if a total shutdown was inevitable, then where was the planning to get the system up and running again as soon as possible? Surely to not prepare for one possibility is bad enough — to not try and contain the fallout and mitigate the suffering inflicted on the city for a day and a half was even worse.

And there was much suffering. Emergency systems were disrupted, hospitals could not operate properly, perishables in people’s and businesses’ refrigerators were lost, and, not least, after a day of heat and during a night of high humidity, millions of people in one of the world’s largest cities spent a sleepless night. All of this because of the managerial and operational incompetence of a power company that the city has no choice but to rely on. Will heads roll? Will people be held accountable? Will something be done to prevent a repeat? Or will the city go into the rainy season ahead exposed and helpless?

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="DarkGreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]EU and Pakistan[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Friday, 19 Jun, 2009[/B]

PRESIDENT Asif Ali Zardari’s summit meeting with the EU’s current presidency is expected to open a new chapter in Pakistan’s relations with Europe. The statement issued after the summit in Brussels spoke of kick-starting a strategic dialogue covering security, aid, trade and measures to promote democracy. This is most encouraging. As Mr Javier Solana, the EU’s high representative for the 27-member bloc’s Common Foreign and Security Policy, wrote in this newspaper, a secure and stable Pakistan is essential for the people of Europe. Therefore the EU perceives Pakistan’s war against terrorism to be a joint endeavour. This will be widely welcomed because Islamabad is well aware that its fight against the Taliban cannot be undertaken single-handedly, given its limited resources. In this context, the EU’s offer to help Pakistani police in their fight against militancy should be of enormous practical value since this is an area where Pakistan is on weak ground. Similarly, the EU’s offer of 72m euros as humanitarian aid for the IDPs should boost Islamabad’s relief and rehabilitation efforts for the war-affected people.

The summit in Brussels also signals the broadening of relations between the EU and Pakistan. As Mr Solana observed, this relationship that was mainly about trade has moved towards a strategically focused partnership. This is not simply because of Pakistan’s changed circumstances. The EU has also developed from a regional grouping for economic cooperation into a major political entity under the Treaty of Amsterdam of 1997. But this should not detract from the EU’s role as a global economic power and how it can use this potential for promoting peace. Thus the EU is Pakistan’s major trading partner which accounted for 20 per cent of its trade in 2007 when it imported 3.8bn euros worth of Pakistani goods. Yet at Wednesday’s summit some Europeans concerned about their own industries resisted moves to offer tariff concessions to Pakistan as an incentive to stimulate its economy. In the end, all it received was a vague offer of a free-trade agreement some time in the future. It is time the industrialised world understood that Third World countries can benefit more from trade incentives rather than having aid poured into their coffers.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]OTHER VOICES - Pushto Press Need for cultural revival[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Friday, 19 Jun, 2009[/B]

EVERY society goes through a phase in which a state of disorder causes anarchy. But in the process it gets acquainted with values which are rooted in a political culture of broadmindedness, knowledge and established values. Political awareness ensures cultural progress of a nation by developing a value system in which archaic cultural values that do not conform to the present nor meet demands of the age are resisted vehemently.

When we talk of an old culture, it comes to mind that its relics can be found in the peripheral plains of a country. Cities which normally make strides towards civilisation have few of them which is unfortunate because these relics keep us tied to our history, identity and the nation. Historical relics and artefacts illustrate a history of the struggle by a nation to make life easy and fruitful. But it does not mean that we should be prisoners of our past.

[B][I][SIZE="4"]Daily Wahdat, Peshawar[/SIZE][/I][/B]

In the case of Afghanistan, the young educated lot looks at with disapproval at all those things that are in conflict with the values and culture of a modern and civilised Afghan nation. Art, skills, music, calligraphy, sculpture and so many other such things are part of a culture…. During the decades-long war Afghanistan has witnessed the ransacking of its centres of culture and its relics. Its museums and historical sites have been pillaged mercilessly — even now in some provinces and regions the heist of artefacts is rampant.

The government of Hamid Karzai, which enjoys worldwide recognition, should put in place a plan to introduce Afghanistan to the outer world as a modern developing country which cares about its history, culture and values. The young, school-going generation should be educated on the cultural and historical richness of the war-torn country, so that they can feel proud of their past.

The information and cultural ministry of Afghanistan, and similar ministries in provinces, owe a duty to their nation to rehabilitate the debilitated culture of Afghanistan and reactivate all cultural centres on a war footing. All poets, writers, intellectuals and politicians should play a positive role in this endeavour. — (June 18)

Selected and translated by Faizullah Jan

[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="DarkGreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]IDPs: no solution in sight[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Monday, 22 Jun, 2009[/B]

IN a message on World Refugees Day on Friday, Prime Minister Gilani appreciated the support of the international community for the approximately three million external refugees from Afghanistan living in Pakistan for the past three decades. This, the largest refugee population anywhere in the world, has over the years constituted a heavy burden on the Pakistani state. It also holds deep implications in the current context, for the scale of the Afghan refugee crisis must be juxtaposed with the issue of the people displaced internally by the fighting against the Taliban in the north-western parts of the country. Official estimates put the number of IDPs at over two million. The actual figure is likely to be much higher.

Now, the government claims that some areas have been cleared of the militants and is sending out appeals for the IDPs to return. The issue is not so easily resolved, however. For one thing, the military operation is set to expand to other areas that continue to harbour militant cells, including Waziristan and parts of Fata. While necessary, the move will result in the destabilisation of civilian life — the further displacement of people is virtually certain. Secondly, the military continues to encounter pockets of resistance even in areas that the government has declared “safe”. This, in conjunction with the fact that the administrative and utilities’ infrastructure of the affected areas is in tatters, means that the IDPs are reluctant to return to their hometowns. Of the estimated 700,000 people who fled Buner, for example, only about 6,000 have returned after the area was declared ‘safe’, according to District Coordination Officer Yahya Akhundzada. Stressing the need for people to start returning to the secured areas, Mr Akhundzada noted rightly that this would build confidence which would contribute to the defeat of the Taliban. But the government must offer more than mere assurances of safety. It must demonstrate the administrative resolve to reconstruct the battle-ravaged areas, which includes setting up education and health facilities and creating employment opportunities. It must also demonstrate the ability to rehabilitate the IDPs. Most importantly, the government must show the political will to change policies that allowed the creation of the militant-Taliban nexus in the first place. Otherwise, Pakistan risks adding the IDPs issue to the Afghan refugee crisis which remains unresolved despite the passage of three decades, and of continuing to create circumstances that stoke extremism.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]The water crisis[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Monday, 22 Jun, 2009[/B]

WATER shortfalls may be seasonal, temporary or cyclical, and as such can be overcome in due course when nature becomes more benevolent. Unfortunately, that is not the case in Pakistan where water resources have been under severe stress for a long time. The downturn continues and the country is now on the brink of water scarcity — availability in 2005 stood at a mere 1,100 cubic metres per capita. Let’s put this into perspective. A country is classified as water-stressed when annual supply dips below 1,700 cubic metres per person, and is said to face water scarcity below the 1,000 cubic metres per person mark. The situation wasn’t always so dire in Pakistan: per capita water supply stood at a robust 5,000 cubic metres in 1951. It has since plummeted by almost 80 per cent and, according to WWF Pakistan, could drop to as little as 700 cubic metres per capita by 2025. Demand has so dramatically outstripped supply for a number of reasons. These include an ever-burgeoning population, the absence of integrated water management, irrational use and lack of awareness of the need to conserve. Wasteful farming techniques, leakages in the irrigation network, climate change and the over-exploitation or pollution of natural aquifers and other water bodies also rank among the major culprits. At the same time, little attention has been paid to rain harvesting and the storage of seasonal flood waters.

It is said that future conflicts will be rooted in disputes over water. Take the case of Pakistan and India. Tensions related to water-sharing are nothing new in the subcontinent but they received fresh impetus with the construction of Baglihar Dam in Indian-held Kashmir. Last year Pakistan demanded compensation for reduced water supplies, which apparently hurt agricultural productivity in this country. But the potential for conflict runs deep and is not limited to states taking on other states. Within nations, downstream users may accuse upper riparians of stealing their water and thus their rights and livelihoods. This has long been a simmering issue in Pakistan, one that has stoked the fires of nationalism and increased the trust deficit between provinces. Water-related issues can also pit village against village, clan against clan and farmer against farmer. From the international stage to rivalry between individuals, the potential for conflict exists at every level.

We are not only wasting but also contaminating our water, thereby reducing its usability. Untreated industrial and domestic effluent is being discharged into water bodies and pesticides from farms are finding their way into streams and groundwater. Water quality is as important as its quantity because it affects the health of the nation, the productivity of its workforce and the arability of its land. Our policymakers must rise from their slumber and grasp the linkages between the adequate availability of clean water and social and economic development.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Apathy of parliamentarians[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Monday, 22 Jun, 2009[/B]

“ONLY ‘baboos’ (government officials) and not Assembly members are required to be punctual.” This nugget of wisdom was uttered in the Punjab Assembly on Friday by the provincial law minister, when the opposition pointed out that there was no quorum. In fact, at 9am, when the Assembly should have begun its session, not a single treasury member was present in the house. Perhaps for reasons of old habits, which die hard — since the boot could be on the other leg some time in the future — the opposition came to the treasury benches’ rescue by saying that the 30-minute suspension could be extended and that it would not ask the chair for an adjournment. Finally, the session began nearly two hours late, and this on a day when the MPAs were to discuss the 2009-10 budget. The man who crafted the budget and whose duty it was to defend the increase in the non-development expenditure, Finance Minister Tanvir Ashraf Kaira, reached the precincts of the Assembly at 10.15am. To his rescue rose Law Minister Rana Sanaullah Khan, himself late by an hour and 50 minutes. Instead of being apologetic Rana used the ‘baboos’ as a red herring.

The MPAs’ late-coming and banter come against a grim national background. A full-fledged rebellion is going on in Swat and Fata, and the Taliban have chosen Punjab’s capital city as a focal point of their attacks, spewing death and destruction. In addition, there is economic gloom, constantly rising inflation and the acute power crisis, besides bad governance and corruption. While there is no quick-fix solution to these problems, our parliamentarians, whether in the provincial assemblies or in the federal parliament, show an attitude that betrays a lack of commitment to the cause of those who elected them. More important, the parliamentarians forget that one of their major duties is to help strengthen democratic institutions. The ‘baboos’ that the law minister railed against often consider themselves the government because the MNAs and MPAs have failed to set higher democratic standards, which alone can tame Pakistan’s powerful bureaucracy. No wonder democratic governments in Pakistan are politically weak.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]OTHER VOICES - North American Press A stop sign for human trafficking[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Monday, 22 Jun, 2009[/B]

IT’S not every day that the US government gives Nigeria a shout-out for a job well done. After all, the State Department labels this African nation’s human rights record “poor” and its 2007 presidential election “seriously flawed”. But this week, the State Department praised Africa’s most populous country for its progress in prosecuting human traffickers and helping their victims. “I can’t talk about Nigeria enough,” said Ambassador Luis Cde-Baca…. In only five years, Nigeria has advanced from the State Department’s human-trafficking watch list to its top tier of countries fully complying with standards to eliminate servitude.

In its ninth annual report on human trafficking, the State Department said … that the economic crisis has made people more vulnerable … to enslavement. Of the 175 countries and territories it rated, the 2008 report put 52 of them on its watch list, up from 40 the year before — a 30 per cent increase.

And yet, since 2000, more than half of all countries have enacted laws that ban human trafficking. Non-governmental organisations are working more closely with law enforcement and that’s leading to thousands of prosecutions. Last year, nearly 3,000 traffickers were convicted. It’s the law-enforcement follow-through that counts most, and that’s one reason why Nigeria moved into the top-tier rank. Over the last year, it investigated 209 trafficking cases resulting in 23 convictions — more than double the convictions from the year before. That number is small considering that 150 million people live in this West African country. Nigeria is a source and a destination for coerced labour. Boys are forced to work as street vendors and beggars, in stone quarries and as domestics. Women and girls are trafficked mostly for the commercial sex trade and as servants.

But Nigeria’s anti-trafficking trajectory is moving in the right direction. The government is making a concerted effort to train law enforcement and cooperate internationally. Last year it helped in the arrest of 60 Nigerian trafficking suspects in Europe. It has increased funding for its anti-trafficking programme and is assisting victims by working with NGOs…. Nigeria’s efforts are even more remarkable given what happened elsewhere on the continent. Of the seven countries demoted to the report’s worst-performing category, six were from Africa (the seventh was Malaysia, where traffickers are exploiting migrants from Burma, or Myanmar). Mr CdeBaca said several of these countries had stalled in their commitment to curb “hereditary slavery”, in which a slave The Christian Science Monitor

caste serves the same families, sometimes going back hundreds of years. He singled out the West African countries of Chad, Mauritania and Niger.

Human trafficking occurs in every country, including the US — which for the first time will be rated in next year’s report. No doubt, it, too, can do more to stop this serious crime. At the end of the day, it’s not enough to pass laws banning human trafficking. Cases must be investigated, suspects prosecuted and traffickers convicted. Nigeria has shown the political will to follow through. Other countries can, too. — (June 19)

[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="DarkGreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Balochistan’s poverty[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Tuesday, 23 Jun, 2009[/B]

BALOCHISTAN’S budget for 2009-10 is a reminder of the province’s deep-rooted economic and political problems. Facing the challenges of growing political violence and rising poverty, Quetta is in dire need of permanent sources of funds for development. Though the provincial government will spend Rs18.5bn on development next year, the amount is not nearly enough to build a durable economic infrastructure or to provide quality public services like education, healthcare, drinking water, roads, etc to the population of the province. Given its vast size, sparsely scattered population and difficult terrain, Balochistan must spend a lot more on its development than the rest of the country. For example, a road 500km long in Punjab would link scores of villages, towns and cities and connect hundreds of thousands of people if not millions. The same length of road in Balochistan would cost more and hardly connect a couple of villages and a few hundred people.

Nevertheless, in spite of its meagre resources, the Raisani government has done a good job during its first year in power. It created more than 4,200 jobs, constructed schools, colleges and hospitals and tried to provide some relief to the poverty-stricken people. Its budget for the next fiscal also contains several pro-poor measures: food subsidy, increase in the minimum pension of provincial employees, subsidy on agricultural tube-wells, etc. In addition, the provincial development outlay, which is just twice the size of Lahore’s development programme for the outgoing year, seeks to build a definitive social and economic infrastructure and to create employment. The federal government has helped the Raisani government undertake development works. Islamabad has picked up the province’s overdraft with the State Bank of Pakistan freeing annual resources of Rs4.2bn for its development. The federal government will spend Rs71bn under its Public Sector Development Programme in Balochistan during the next one year. There is a clear-cut shift in the federal attitude towards Balochistan’s problems. The change also reflects growing realisation in Islamabad that the ongoing political violence stems partly from the large-scale frustration among the people, resulting from the lack of development over the past six decades. The people of Balochistan must get complete ownership of their natural resources as well as of their coasts. That may not bring about peace in the immediate future.

But that would be the single-most important step towards a lasting solution to the province’s economic and political problems.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Power of passion[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Tuesday, 23 Jun, 2009[/B]

THE skipper of the underdogs summed it up nicely after winning the semi-final. There is little to celebrate in Pakistan these days, said the man from Mardan, but the nation’s cricketers are determined to bring a smile to people’s faces. And that the Pakistan team certainly did with sterling back-to-back performances after a lacklustre start to the Twenty20 World Cup. For a while it seemed that the nation’s joy would be confined to seeing India exit the tournament at the Super Eights stage. The clinically efficient South Africans lay ahead in the first of the two semi-finals, a contest Pakistan was tipped to lose. How could so mercurial a side prevail over a machine programmed to win? Never mind, Pakistan did it anyway. And on Sunday, it was Sri Lanka’s turn to be reminded that Pakistan can put in a crackerjack performance when it counts most.

An unpredictable side, of course, but also most sublimely, sweetly brilliant when it matters. As one commentator, former England player David Lloyd, put it: “It’s Pakistan. And yes, you might say fittingly.”

Fittingly indeed. Pakistan’s victory in the T20 World Cup final sends a clear message that we will not be written off, come what may. Yes, it is perfectly understandable that foreign teams are unwilling to play in Pakistan. After all, the Sri Lankan side, which alone stood by us in our time of trial, came close to dying on Pakistani soil. We are now resigned to the fact that we will either have to play our ‘home series’ at offshore venues or not play at all. So how are things any different now? Pakistan’s victory tells the world that we can win wherever we might have to play. Even in India, which with its deep pockets now virtually controls the ICC. It will take some doing to crush Pakistan’s spirit. We will not simply go away and sulk. We can triumph in the face of adversity.

Besides the cup, the best thing this slam-bang version of cricket delivered was a sense of self-belief. Also, this Pakistan side seems to enjoy itself on the field; it’s not just another day at the office for men who once liked playing cricket for its own sake. Gone too for the most part are those pumped up ‘I would be a serial killer if I weren’t a bowler’ celebrations that some subcontinental players had picked up in recent years from Caucasian teams. Why be angry when you take a wicket? That’s not our style. This team smiles and exults when it gets a batsman out, like the West Indians did in their heyday. If there is any friction behind closed doors — and it could well be that for a change there isn’t — it doesn’t show on the field and that’s what counts. This Pakistan side has done us proud.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Post-election protests in Iran[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Tuesday, 23 Jun, 2009[/B]

WITH the post-polls protests in Iran escalating by the day, we now have an announcement from the Council of Guardians that some discrepancies have been detected in the results. Three million votes are under scrutiny. This adds a new element to the Iranian crisis that has kept the world on tenterhooks for the last fortnight. State television reported 10 deaths in Sunday’s demonstrations, bringing the total tally of casualties to 17. Until the Council of Guardians’ new position, it appeared that the government, which includes President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei, who represents the religious establishment, was not willing to accede to popular demand. But the protests do not seem to be on the way to petering out as happened in 2003 and 1998 when Iran was convulsed by demonstrations. Mr Ahmadinejad’s opponents are convinced that the results were rigged, though no proof is available in the absence of independent observers. The president, who claims the support of 63 per cent of the electorate against Mr Mir Hossein Mousavi’s 33 per cent, has denied allegations of foul play. He accuses the US of meddling in Iranian affairs and instigating the protests.

Irrespective of who wins, or if there is a compromise, one fact can no longer be denied. A large number of Iranians, especially among the post-revolution generation, now want reform — albeit within the Islamic system. With the active backing of Mr Rafsanjani and Mr Khatami, both of whom have presided successfully over Iran’s destiny in different official capacities, Mr Mousavi is proving to be a heavyweight. What is more, the religious establishment has split and the clerics in Qom are supporting the opposition. Mr Ahmadinejad is said to enjoy the support of the rural masses who have been won over by his populist politics. He also has the backing of the Revolutionary Guards and its auxiliary — the Basiji — militia. With 35 per cent of the Iranians living in the countryside, Mr Ahmadinejad will have to contend with changing realities. One hopes that the use of force is not an option to maintain the status quo.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]OTHER VOICES - Sindhi Press Blackout in Sindh[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Tuesday, 23 Jun, 2009[/B]

THE entire province of Sindh including Karachi plunged into darkness when the high-tension power line of Jamshoro developed a fault last Wednesday night. Sindh braved a blackout of 24 to 48 hours. Residents of Hyderabad and Karachi passed the night roaming the roads. Minister for Water and Power Raja Pervez Ashraf and the chief minister of Sindh apologised for this breakdown. The matter was then discussed in the National Assembly along with the provincial assemblies. The Senate’s discussion of the budget was interrupted by an uproar over the power breakdown and the issue was thoroughly debated. The cause of the breakdown was a wind storm of medium intensity which lasted for half an hour coupled with light rain which hit some areas of Sindh. The result was the collapse of the entire power supply system.

The issue was taken up in the Sindh Assembly where the Sindh chief minister admitted on the floor of the House that there was a big power crisis and that the situation in interior Sindh was worse. What has become evident is that if there is a major power outage in Karachi it becomes a national issue and debated at all forums while in the case of interior Sindh the matter is ignored consistently. The Sindh Assembly put forward a motion unanimously seeking a report from Hesco and KESC within 15 days regarding the failure of power supply. KESC and Hesco remain unaccountable, as they are not answerable to any authority. The Met office had been announcing the weather forecast but these power companies failed to take precautionary measures and prepare for any eventuality.

In fact we have no system in place to deal with such situations. Neither the government nor power distribution companies considered having underground lines for power supply. There are countries where heavy rain and snowfall are routine. One cannot even imagine a power outage lasting a few minutes in these countries. We are running the power supply system on an ad hoc basis and are not ready to think otherwise.

Power theft and unannounced loadshedding have become a hallmark of power companies and there seems to be no hope of improvement because theft and corruption are so deep-rooted. While we may be unable to take major decisions and make policy changes, at least line losses can be reduced by streamlining and repairing the distribution system. The minister for water and power claimed that by December there would be no loadshedding. People highly doubt this as indications which may lead to the fulfilment this claim are missing. In fact no relief is being given to the common man as even the subsidy on electricity is being withdrawn. Recently a further rise of 17 per cent in power tariffs has been made. These two decisions are anti-people measures and should be withdrawn.

There is an urgent need to control unnecessary use of electricity by government and private consumers. At marriage halls misuse of power is commonplace which can be avoided. However, all this needs management and commitment. Unfortunately we lack these as time has proved. Cautiousness in power consumption and strict monitoring can yield results. A limit should be placed on operating air conditioners at offices and in residential areas.

This incident demands an impartial inquiry which should bring those responsible to justice and unveil the real reasons behind the failure. — (June 18)

[B][I]Selected and translated by Sohail Sangi [/I][/B]

[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="DarkGreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]AJK: a generous budget[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Wednesday, 24 Jun, 2009[/B]

AZAD Kashmir’s budget for 2009-10 focuses on the rehabilitation of those affected by the October 2005 earthquake, the reconstruction of infrastructure and the generation of employment opportunities. The AJK government says the “budget provides solid foundation for the social and economic uplift of the area with the provision of infrastructural services and escalation in the pace of development activities ….” There is little reason to doubt its claims. The budget sets aside Rs10.8bn, including a foreign component of Rs1.1bn, for development projects. The proposed development outlay is 13 per cent more than the amount for last year. The money will be provided by the Pakistan government, which is also financing the revenue budget deficit of Rs4.8bn. In addition, the AJK Council is also likely to spend Rs2.5bn on development activities. The Pakistan government has separately allocated Rs6.4bn in its Public Sector Development Programme for 11 projects in the region.

Besides, development expenditure to the tune of Rs29.5bn has been allocated to different federal ministries. Another sum of Rs15bn is to be spent on reconstruction. On the whole around Rs64bn is to be spent on AJK’s developmental activities, with additional spending on projects by sponsors. That should be sufficient money to undertake development works, provide relief and rebuild infrastructure in the quake-hit areas. If spent judiciously, the funds set aside for the different schemes can bring about a noticeable change in the life of the people in the region. The government intends to spend Rs16bn on reconstruction and rehabilitation programmes and over Rs6bn for the completion of 11 mega projects under the annual development programme. Allocations have also been made in the budget for implementing development projects in the health, education, agriculture and irrigation sectors. Provision of potable water is also a priority. Apart from making generous allocations for development, the new AJK government should also be commended for its austerity drive, which allowed it to retire its overdraft of Rs2bn and save another Rs1bn. One hopes that the government will continue to control unproductive expenditure and divert resources to the social and economic development of the region in future as well.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Conflict in Balochistan[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Wednesday, 24 Jun, 2009[/B]

BALOCHISTAN is simmering. A low-grade insurgency has gradually been gaining strength and the law-enforcement agencies are finding it difficult to check the violence that now erupts with unfailing regularity in the province. Last Friday, a judge and his aide were killed. The same day a bomb blast in Dera Murad Jamali injured a number of people while two were wounded in a grenade attack in Quetta. There have been more incidents of violence since then. In May the police disclosed that since the beginning of 2009, more than 200 incidents of shooting, bomb blasts, grenade attacks and abductions had taken place. More than 150 people had died while approximately 400 were injured. Add to this the toll of the last one month — over 20 deaths and at least 125 injured — and the picture is one of war.

So grave is the crisis that talk of all-parties conferences, committees and enhanced budgetary allocations does not have any impact. Why should it be taken seriously when no concrete steps are being taken to indicate that Islamabad means business? The government’s broken promises are now becoming embarrassing for the Baloch leadership that threw in its lot with the rulers at the centre. Some of the leaders have tried to resign but have been held back. Others have demonstrated public dissent at the way matters are being handled. Take the APC. The PPP promised a dialogue to resolve Balochistan’s problems but has so far failed to honour its word. The last time the prime minister pledged to convene an APC was in May and it was supposed to be “within days”. Nothing has come of these assurances except for the establishment of a PPP committee headed by Senator Raza Rabbani to study earlier reports and formulate a common position.

The Rabbani report makes many worthwhile points. But will they help if they remain on paper as previously? There is also the question of Baloch participation in the APC. Not all nationalists are willing to attend. So strong is their distrust of Islamabad that they are no longer willing to be appeased by words. If Islamabad is serious about resolving the Balochistan problem, some confidence-building measures are in order. Palpable steps to trace the missing people, release political prisoners and rein in the military presence in the province might help pave the way for a dialogue on political and economic issues. At the heart of the problem is the desire of the Baloch to control their own political destiny and natural resources. Is this really an unreasonable demand?

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Waziristan uncertainty[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Wednesday, 24 Jun, 2009[/B]

QARI Zainuddin, a militant commander and rival of Baitullah Mehsud, has been assassinated by his bodyguard in Medina Colony in D.I. Khan. According to Qari Misbahuddin, the younger brother of Qari Zainuddin, the guard, Gulbuddin Mehsud, had been working with the family for six years and was one of the most trusted employees in the family’s pay. However, on Tuesday morning after Qari Zainuddin and Baaz Muhammad, a close aide of Zainuddin’s, retired to their living quarters after morning prayers Misbahuddin opened fire on the two men, killing Zainuddin and injuring Baaz Muhammad. The FIR registered by Baaz Muhammad alleges that the killer acted on behalf of Baitullah Mehsud. That is possible. In recent days, Qari Zainuddin had come out publicly against Baitullah and accused him, among other things, of having links with India and Israel and “working against Islam”. This against the backdrop of an impending military operation in South Waziristan Agency, Operation Rah-i-Nijaat, targeted against Baitullah.

The immediate result of the assassination is likely to be demoralisation in the Qari Zainuddin camp. The group has quickly appointed Qari Misbahuddin as its new amir in a bid to keep themselves organised, but there is little doubt that losing their leader on the eve of serious fighting is a big blow. The truth is though little is known about what exactly is going on in South Waziristan Agency, who is fighting whom and why, and what is likely to happen in the days and weeks ahead. What is clear so far is that the security forces are squeezing Baitullah Mehsud’s strongholds by cutting off the three main routes that lead to them and pounding targets from the air. Reports suggest several militants from the Baitullah camp have been killed so far, but this has not been verified independently. Meanwhile, drones continue to strike targets in South Waziristan Agency, but once again it has not been possible to independently verify who has been killed.

Then in the last few weeks, Qari Zainuddin and Haji Turkistan, former allies of Baitullah, had suddenly emerged in the national media to denounce the strongest warlord in Waziristan. It is suspected that the two were encouraged by the state to turn up the heat on Baitullah. Questions are now being asked about who put up Zainuddin in the house in Medina Colony and what he was doing in D.I. Khan. Questions are also being raised about wheels within wheels: Zainuddin appeared to have taken on the mantle of Abdullah Mehsud, another militant commander from South Waziristan who was killed in 2006, and was quoted in a recent interview as saying that the “infidels and foreign troops in the neighbouring country [Afghanistan]” needed to be attacked. Smoke and mirrors everywhere it seems.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]OTHER VOICES - European Press Call the Labour leader’s bluff[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Wednesday, 24 Jun, 2009[/B]

INFRASTRUCTURE Minister Austin Gatt may be politically arrogant but he sure knows what he is talking about when he deals with the hottest subject that falls under his ministry: power and all that goes with it. This contrasts sharply with the poor knowledge of the matter so often displayed by many of the opposition politicians….

With the rise in the energy rates hitting the pockets of so many people, Labour turned the matter into a powerful propaganda tool in their favour, as they … did over the health services report drawn up for the government.

….What the Nationalists should do now is to call their bluff and challenge them in no uncertain manner to spill out their ‘solution’.

This is not a trifling matter but a problem that revolves around how to pay for the oil the island needs to buy in order to generate electricity. ….There is no easy solution to the problem, which is why Dr Gatt called for a serious discussion on utility tariffs when he was winding up the debate on the estimates of Enemalta for 2009.

The minister was down to earth, explaining the situation in simple language and giving detailed information about plans, including the project for the laying of the inter-connector to the Sicilian power grid….

… Clearly, Labour plan to continue taking as much advantage as they can from the matter, as shown by the way the Labour leader replied to questions on the subject put to him in an interview…. But it is sheer political irresponsibility to give the people the impression that there is an easy solution to the problem when there is not. It was only after the European Parliament election that Labour appeared to be taking a step back and made it clear it was not making any commitment on tariffs. But by Times of Malta then, the votes had been in the bag already….

Dr Gatt said that, despite the high tariffs, it still had to fork out a sum some seven times higher than the subsidy given to the dry-docks. This shows the size of the problem.

It suits Labour well to stay on the sidelines but if it wants to win credibility it has to show to the electorate it does have workable solutions…Uncommitted voters will not be taken in easily by sweet talk. They would increasingly press Labour to go beyond this and put forward their own proposals.... — (June 23)

[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="DarkGreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Kidney tourism again?[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Thursday, 25 Jun, 2009[/B]

MANY will be relieved at the Supreme Court’s decision to look into reports about the organ trade in Pakistan. An ordinance banning the sale of human organs had been promulgated in 2007 under instructions from the apex court. The law, when it was enacted, had been hailed by the medical community, civil society and international health agencies that had been disturbed by the scam which reflected poorly on the medical profession in Pakistan. Hence reports that the practice of yesteryear was resurfacing gave rise to the fear that the law would be flouted with impunity and then pushed into oblivion. What is worrying is that challenging the idea of human organs being put on sale is not easily surmountable in our part of the world where the value of human life and dignity is often trumped by avarice. True, those who buy a kidney do so because they need it for their own health. But using the chequebook to bypass the law at the expense of another, poorer person is abhorrent.

In fact, law-abiding, civilised societies where the rules can be enforced stringently do not even approve in principle of the regulated sale of human organs. Hence a total ban. In our country where poverty abounds, the unscrupulous exploit the poor and allow market forces to determine the trade. They grab the impoverished, who are also illiterate and oppressed, and get them to sell a kidney for a measly sum while the touts and hospi- tals concerned pocket ex- orbitant amounts. The Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissues Ordinance (Thoto) was intended to stop this abominable practice. Regrettably, it has not, or so it seems. In the process, the medical profession, which admittedly has some black sheep, is earning itself a bad name. Little wonder, the surgeons who still remember the Hippocratic Oath are reacting so strongly to this unethical use of surgical expertise by some medics.

Apart from the humanistic, ethical and professional dimensions, the organ trade has another negative aspect. It is fetching Pakistan disrepute in the medical world. Transplantation done surreptitiously, as it is when the law is being violated, can lead to complications and health problems. The donor who is a Pakistani from the backwaters of the underdeveloped rural areas where poverty abounds is left to his own devices and is not always provided the post-operative care he needs. Many illegal donors have reported that their health deteriorated considerably after their kidneys removed. Foreigners, who constitute the mainstay of the business, return to their home country and sometimes end up in hospitals when complications set in. That is how the scam is first reported from abroad. One hopes that the spirit of Thoto will be adhered to and Pakistan will effectively rein in kidney tourism.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Amending the constitution[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Thursday, 25 Jun, 2009[/B]

WITH things moving at a snail’s pace, we will have to wait for quite some time before the constitutional amendments on which there is by and large a national consensus make their way through parliament. Let us note that Speaker Fahmida Mirza’s announcement on Tuesday to form a 27-member parliamentary committee came 15 months after the PPP-led government was sworn in. Time was lost in other matters equally crucial — like the restoration of the pre-Nov 3, 2007 judiciary and Pervez Musharraf’s peaceful exit from the scene. Also a major source of distraction and anguish has been the rebellion in Swat and the deteriorating economic conditions in the country. Notwithstanding the somewhat improved security environment at this time, these problems will continue to haunt us, but they should not be allowed to interfere with the task of restoring the 1973 Constitution to reflect its original spirit.

Today the constitution stands denuded of its parliamentary character. The villain of the piece is Article 58(2)(b), which is part of the MMA-supported 17th Amendment validating virtually all Gen Musharraf’s actions contained in the Legal Framework Order. First crafted and made part of the constitution by Gen Ziaul Haq, Article 58(2)(b) armed the general with draconian powers, including the right to dismiss a prime minister even if he enjoyed the confidence of the National Assembly and call elections within 90 days. It also authorised the president to dissolve an elected assembly. Nawaz Sharif, when he returned to power with ‘a heavy mandate’ in 1997, did away with the infamous article — he had his own reasons. Gen Musharraf revived the clause with a slight, though inconsequential change, requiring the president to refer the assembly’s dissolution to the Supreme Court.

This article must be scrapped if the country is to have a form of government that is truly parliamentary in character — something to which the two leading parties stand committed, as made amply clear in the Charter of Democracy signed in May 2006. The 17th Amendment also created some other distortions in relations between the president and the prime minister, especially with regard to appointments in the higher judiciary and the armed forces. We hope the committee will work with speed to come up with a parliamentary consensus on the amendments. One regrets to note, however, that in the committee, there is not a single woman member or persons belonging to the minority communities.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Damage to heritage[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Thursday, 25 Jun, 2009[/B]

ALL too often the law fails to deter transgressors in Pakistan. On numerous occasions, one finds that the left hand of the state machinery does not know what the right is doing, to the ultimate detriment of all. A case in point is the unauthorised construction taking place on the premises of Karachi’s Jinnah Courts. Currently being used as the temporary headquarters of the Pakistan Rangers, the site is protected under the Sindh Cultural Heritage Protection Act. The law requires that any repair, restoration or construction work be preceded by a no-objection certificate obtained from the advisory committee on cultural affairs, headed by the Sindh chief secretary. Failure to meet this requirement means a hefty fine and prison sen- tences. Nevertheless, a structure akin to a watchtower is being constructed on the premises of the protected site. When approached, Sindh Culture Secretary Shams Jafrani said that the Rangers had not applied for permission to carry out the work. Indeed, it seems that the culture department remained unaware of the transgression until the matter was raised by this paper. A spokesperson for the Rangers, mean- while, indulged in the usual prevarications.

The culture secretary has expressed his resolve to look into the matter, but it is worth noting that the Rangers have on earlier occasions constructed three illegal structures on the same premises. While no-objection certificates were obtained later, this ought not to change the Rangers’ position — legal requirements cannot be fulfilled after the event and used to provide retrospective cover to an essentially illegal act. Incidents such as this take place with distressing frequency across the country. That violators often go unpunished, or are allowed to provide themselves with retrospective cover, amounts to providing encouragement to other potential transgressors. In terms of protected heritage sites, the damage thus wrought is often irreversible. The Jinnah Courts’ case illustrates that the mere existence of the law is insufficient; the law must be bolstered by effective prosecution, for which the relevant body — in this case the Sindh culture department — must command sufficient resources and manpower to do so. Meanwhile, respect for the law must be inculcated across the board.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]OTHER VOICES - Middle East Press Public hospitals do not make law[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Thursday, 25 Jun, 2009[/B]

IN virtually no society is the issue of abortion easy…. We acknowledge that there are and will be many views in Turkey as elsewhere on the ethics of terminating an unwanted pregnancy.

But we also strongly believe that safe and responsible policies can only be promulgaHurriyet Daily New, Turkey

ted and instituted through the mechanisms of the state…. The alternative is to drive those seeking abortions to untrained midwives…. We advocate no particular policy. We do advocate … the implementation of clear national standards that reflect local mores, concerns and outlooks. This is what all European nations have done, with the exception of Turkey. And contemporary practice in Turkey is an egregious abuse of the law.…

Officially, Turkey does have a policy…. In general, it allows termination of pregnancy up until the 10th week after conception. If a woman is [underage] … she must have parental consent. If she is married, she must have spousal consent. If she is unmarried, the decision is between her and her physician. In theory.

In practice, as our reporter … discovered, public hospitals in Istanbul have left implementation of the policy largely to the whims of nurses or doctors on duty…. — (June 22)

The class system in Yemen

BESIDES poverty, instability, and the deterioration of both the economy and civil rights, Yemen faces yet another challenge in its social texture. The Yemeni class system dictates social interaction and relations between Yemeni people. To the outsider it might not be visible, but to Yemenis it permeates everyday life, especially in traditional families….

[B][SIZE="4"]Yemen has a very Yemen Times[/SIZE][/B]

racist culture. The consequences of this racism have stepped out of social life and moved into politics. When the Houthi movement started in 2002, many … families supported the Houthis … and claimed that the government clampdown on the Houthis was an attack against the Hashemite people.…

If Yemenis cannot get along with each other socially, how will they get along politically? If as human beings, they cannot recognise equality or fairness, how can they recognise human right laws or international conventions?

We are living in very difficult times, with narrowing freedom of [the] press, political tension and decreasing democratic space. But … it is more important to have a just culture where people act fairly because they believe they are all born equal, exactly as Islam — that Yemenis claim to adhere to — preaches…. —(June 20)

[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="DarkGreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]On death row[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Friday, 26 Jun, 2009[/B]

SARABJIT Singh may have committed the crimes for which he was sentenced to death, but he is now in jail and as such poses no danger to Pakistan or the well-being of its citizens. What then will be accomplished by executing Mr Singh, who has spent nearly 20 years in prison? Taking the life of a murderer will not bring back those he has killed, nor has it been demonstrated that the death penalty serves as a deterrent against violent crime. Indeed, does the state have the right to take a person’s life? Issues of morality aside, the death penalty has no place in a country where police officials and even judges can be bought or intimidated, where the wealthy can get away with murder and where the poor are implicated in crimes they did not commit. Personal vendettas come into it, as does the incompetence of an unprincipled police force which often considers its job done so long as an arrest — any arrest — can be officially recorded. Pakistan is also a country where torture is the preferred method of extracting ‘confessions’. Against this backdrop, the scope for miscarriage of justice is huge and chances are high of innocent people being put to death.

While dismissing Sarabjit Singh’s review petition of his sentence on Wednesday, the Supreme Court observed that “no ground has been made out in the case warranting a review”” Is this is surprising given that Mr Singh’s lawyer failed to attend Wednesday’s hearing as well as the one preceding it? True, the same verdict may have been issued even if the convict’s counsel had bothered to show up. But one thing is clear: his absence certainly did not help Sarabjit Singh’s appeal in any way. Hope for Mr Singh now lies in presidential clemency, a gesture that would not hurt relations between Pakistan and India.

Court rulings are based on the law as it exists and it is up to the government to introduce new legislation. In June last year the prime minister proposed that capital punishment be abolished and death sentences commuted to life imprisonment. Then, in October 2008, it was reported that the law ministry would soon present a final draft in this connection, enabling the government to fulfil its pledge and do away with the death penalty. But little or nothing has been done and more than 7,000 prisoners are still languishing on death row. Their lives, and that of Sarabjit Singh, ought to be spared.


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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]A difficult road ahead[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Friday, 26 Jun, 2009[/B]

AS the state inches closer to what could possibly be a definitive showdown with Baitullah Mehsud in South Waziristan, events are already beginning to unfold on other fronts. On Thursday, groups that are rivals of Mehsud fought with militants loyal to the South Waziristan warlord in Tank bazaar, resulting in the death of two fighters. The fighting was triggered by the assassination of Qari Zainuddin in D.I. Khan earlier this week, a killing that the Mehsud group has claimed responsibility for. Meanwhile, in South Waziristan itself a series of drone strikes have targeted Mehsud strongholds and killed dozens, though it is unclear if any senior militant leader was killed. In an area as fraught with danger and complexity as South Waziristan, there are so many seemingly disparate threads to tie together that understanding the dynamics at work is no easy task. Compounding that difficulty is the fact that much of the information emanating from the Waziristan agencies is hard to verify independently given the dangers involved for reporters and journalists.

However, one of the major foreseeable difficulties is the security situation on either side of the Durand line. Dislodging the Baitullah Mehsud network in South Waziristan may lead to militants fleeing across the border to the Afghan provinces of Paktika, Khost and Paktia. Meanwhile, the impending American push against militants operating in southern Afghanistan, particularly in the province of Helmand, may cause militants to flee towards Pakistan. On the Afghan and Pakistan sides, then, a double whammy of militan-cy may be looming. The Pakistan Army high command has been engaged in intense discussions on this very subject with its American and Afghan counterparts and assurances are believed to have been extended by all sides to mitigate the expected fallout of a serious push against the militants on several fronts at the same time. If there has ever been an occasion for the three main parties, Pakistan, the US and Afghanistan, to cooperate to the fullest extent possible this is it, and it should not be squandered.

There is another aspect that the state here must prepare more urgently for: looking after the local population that will likely exit from the Waziristan agencies if fighting starts in earnest. The military operation in Malakand division exposed the state’s inadequate preparation on this crucial aspect of any successful counter-insurgency, and a repeat must not occur. With Operation Rah-i-Rast too there was a precedent — hundreds of thousands left Bajaur Agency after the start of a military campaign there to flush out the militants — so surely the state cannot fail to prepare for a third time in a row. After three million IDPs it should be clear that counter-insurgencies are not won through the barrel of a gun alone.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Medical negligence[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Friday, 26 Jun, 2009[/B]

AN example of medical negligence has presented itself in the case of a woman who died in an Islamabad hospital due to the transfusion of blood that did not match her blood group. According to reports, none of the health professionals attending to her noticed that the blood administered was not of the correct group. It seems that the prescribed protocol was not followed to the letter. This resulted in the mixing up of two blood bags. The unfortunate woman, who was operated on first, received the blood meant for another patient. This shows how a little carelessness can lead to death. The hospital’s decision to conduct an independent inquiry into the incident will be welcomed since it will help it pin responsibility and ensure that such fatal errors are not repeated.

There are two aspects of the matter that should be addressed seriously. One is the protocol that a hospital formulates not simply in its blood bank but in every department. It is widely known that stringent and foolproof processes not only facilitate the smooth running of institutions. They also help minimise the chances of human error, that can cost a human life, in various surgical and medical procedures. The second aspect is the human factor. Even the best of protocol can be of little use if it is not observed carefully. It is therefore a pity that the surgeon, the anesthetist, the nurse and the technician attending to the woman were not attentive enough to check the error that proved to be fatal.

This case reflects poorly on the professionalism of those whose stated mission is to save lives and ease the distress of the sick. Given the quality of education and training in our medical education institutions which are supposed to instill motivation and commitment in their students, can we expect any better? True, we as a people have developed the trait of doing our work in a haphazard, careless fashion, and meticulousness is no longer considered to be of any use. But negligence in the medical profession can prove to be costly as this is a matter of life and death.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]OTHER VOICES-Pushto Press Afghan candidates meet US envoy[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Friday, 26 Jun, 2009[/B]

THE US ambassador in Kabul has been meeting candidates for the upcoming presidential elections in Afghanistan. He has so far met Ashraf Ghani Ahmedzai, Dr Abdullah and Mirwaiz Yasini. The US envoy’s interaction with the candidates at this critical juncture cannot be without an objective.

Though the US ambassador insists that his country does not support a particular contestant, such activities raise doubt. We know that the presidential candidates stoop low and lodge complaints against the government or its functionaries with the US ambassador, pleading with him to introduce a federal system in Afghanistan. It does not behove presidential candidates of a country to make a beeline to meet an ambassador. So why are they doing it?

We are of the opinion that such meetings not only compromise the stature of the candidates and question their loyalty to the country, they also cast presidential elections in a negative light. They reinforce misgivings that people have about the US. Self-determination and pride are important to the Afghan nation. There is no need for activities that put the credibility of the presidential elections at stake. If the candidates want to serve the Afghan nation, they should respect its norms and values. With regard to Pakistan, it has on the one hand launched a military operation against Baitullah Mehsud in Waziristan and on the other its interior minister has once again insisted that the Taliban receive weapons and other help from Afghanistan.

Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi told Nato that if the Taliban were not stopped they could reach India, Bengal and the Gulf. This speaks of Pakistan’s incapability in dealing with the Taliban to a great extent. Pakistan’s weakness does not lie in the incapability of its army and other law-enforcement agencies; the real problem is that the political leadership and the armed forces are not on the same page. Most of the writers in Pakistan say that the real Taliban are those who fight the American (Nato) forces inside Afghanistan, Daily Weesa, Afghanistan and that their attacks inside Pakistan are un-Islamic.

It is a miscalculation on the part of Pakistan’s political and military leadership to think that the Taliban would do their bidding and remain under their command. The Taliban are a rebel force and should be treated as such. Pakistan and Afghanistan, with the support of the international community, should put in place a plan to tackle the Taliban effectively and rid the region of this menace. — (June 25)

[B][I]Selected and translated by Faizullah Jan[/I][/B]

[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Money for the Taliban[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Monday, 29 Jun, 2009[/B]

ONE must welcome the realism shown by the foreign ministers of Pakistan, Afghanistan and Russia in recognising drug trafficking as a major source of funding for terrorists. Meeting in Trieste on Friday, Shah Mahmoud Qureshi and his Afghan and Russian counterparts, R. D. Spanta and S. Lavrov, agreed to cooperate in a number of fields, including terrorism, drug production and trafficking, regional stability and sustainable development. According to a statement the three decided to explore the potential of cooperation in areas of border control, exchange of information on terrorist activities and organisations, training anti-terrorist and anti-drug police personnel and promoting tolerance and inter-cultural dialogue. Expressing the belief that terrorists could not be defeated merely by law enforcement, they called for the affected region’s socio-economic development. One harsh reality seems to have made the three ministers focus on the drug trade — Afghanistan has returned as the world’s largest drug producer. More regretfully, powerful elements in the Kabul government are allegedly involved in drug smuggling, and the Karzai government has been unable to act against them. This was a godsend for the Taliban. In fact, as Richard Holbrooke told Congress recently “hundreds and hundreds of millions of dollars” have gone waste in destroying crops without achieving the desired results, for this only served to drive the peasants into Taliban hands.

The various Taliban factions run billion-dollar empires. They need — and manage to get — big money for sustaining military operations, which require not only an uninterrupted supply of sophisticated weapons but also a modern logistics system, besides an underworld that runs recruitment, brainwashing and training centres. The point to note is that not all this money comes from the drug trade, for there are other sources of funding available to the Taliban, including from those who have misguided concepts of philanthropy. While the activities of the drug barons can perhaps be tracked if not totally crushed, detecting the flow of non-drug money to the terrorists is a truly difficult job, because this system is more subtle. This makes us wonder whether the plethora of intelligence and security agencies we have possess the skills and investigative techniques needed to intercept and break up the infrastructure of this source of funding for the rebels. While the tripartite cooperation is welcome, the onus perhaps is on us in Pakistan because of the subtlety of the challenge and its effect on the current military operations against the Taliban.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Iran in flux[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Monday, 29 Jun, 2009[/B]

IRAN’S Guardian Council has ruled that this month’s presidential election was fair and the “healthiest” the country has seen since the 1979 revolution. How it came to these conclusions after “10 days of examination” remains unclear, however. Given the stranglehold Tehran maintains over information, what is true or otherwise in Iran is hard to verify. The government has maintained all along that the election, which resulted in a landslide victory for incumbent President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, was free and transparent. But Mir Hossein Mousavi, who according to the official count was routed on June 12, believes he was short-changed. His views are shared by hundreds of thousands of Iranians who poured into the streets for days on end to register their protest. In the immediate aftermath of the election, Mousavi supporters alleged that there was a shortage of ballot papers at several polling stations, agents of candidates running against Mr Ahmadinejad were not allowed to oversee the voting process, and that some polling stations were shut down even though voters were lined up outside. Then they took to the streets.

What followed was a brutal crackdown by the state machinery. At least 17 protesters were killed but some claim the number was much higher. Women, who were in the forefront of many demonstrations, were not spared either. Neda Agha Soltan (1982-2009), who has become a symbol of the struggle in Iran, was apparently shot dead by a sniper while others were bludgeoned mercilessly by the Basaji and the police. Independent video footage supports these contentions. On Friday, leading cleric Ahmad Khatami declared that “rioters” — it is not clear if peaceful protesters are included in this category — “should be punished ruthlessly and savagely”. They should be declared mohareb, he said, guilty of waging war against God and therefore worthy of death. No one can contest the presidential election in Iran, it should be pointed out, unless he is vetted and approved by the Guardian Council.

If anecdotal evidence is anything to go by, Iran’s power brokers are not in sync with the mood of a sizeable segment of Iranian society. Roughly 60 per cent, if not more, of Iran’s population is under 30 years of age and increasingly frustrated by the social and political restrictions imposed on the citizenry by what is fast becoming the old order. What had relevance in 1979, or through the ’80s and ’90s, may no longer be applicable today. The protesters, for the most part, may have been driven off the streets through strong-arm tactics but that cannot change mindsets. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad originally came to power through a popular vote with his promises of helping the underprivileged and reining in rampant unemployment. His contribution on those counts has not been substantial even though Iran is the world’s fifth largest exporter of crude oil. A rethink may be in order.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Restrictions on movement[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Monday, 29 Jun, 2009[/B]

SECURITY and freedom are bad neighbours. To create a sense of safety and security, the authorities often put restrictions on people’s movement. Restrictions on pillion-riding, roadblocks and security check-posts appear differently to the government and the citizens. Popular reaction to such security measures becomes all the more negative when they are meant to block access to the government itself. It was under these circumstances that the Lahore High Court on Wednesday ordered the Punjab government to demolish a wall it had built to block a road connecting the Government Officers’ Residences (GOR) to a public park. The court ruled that the government could not be allowed to stop people from using thoroughfares, not even under the excuse of securing a neighbourhood.

But the wall is not the only obstacle impeding public access to GOR. A couple of weeks ago, footpaths in the neighbourhood were replaced with greenbelts in an obvious attempt to discourage the entry of pedestrians; at least four roads in the area remain blocked for all kinds of traffic, and the entire GOR remains off-limits to rickshaws, carts and a number of other not-so-pleasant-looking vehicles. These are not the first attempts to turn GOR into an exclusive zone. Under the previous provincial government of Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi, the chief minister had a secretariat erected for himself smack where once a thoroughfare used to be. Senior officials had walls built on a number of major roads leading to the area where almost all of them resided. To what extent such steps induce a sense of security is subject to how they are perceived. The government’s standpoint is that its offices and residential buildings are obvious targets for terrorists and, therefore, should be safeguarded no matter what. But the citizens might be forgiven for thinking that a government obsessed with its own security can do little to maintain public safety. People also fail to understand why one area needs more securing than all others and see it as an attempt to differentiate between the rulers and the ruled. That they should see their freedoms compromised thus, without raising an outcry, beats the imagination.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]OTHER VOICES-North American Press How not to help the poor[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Monday, 29 Jun, 2009[/B]

PEOPLE often talk about “a culture of poverty” as if being mired in dependency and despair is a personal choice. But what if government contributes to that culture with counterproductive rules that keep struggling families down? Today, a special state commission will release a report that identifies bureaucratic barriers to climbing out of poverty — some familiar, some new — and recommends ways to correct them. The Massachusetts Asset Development Commission spent the past 18 months looking for ways that low-income people can build up financial cushions, becoming less dependent on state assistance and providing a better foundation for their children. “Assets” can be something as simple as a used car for getting to work, a savings account, or a less tangible benefit such as an education or vocational skills. They are the keys to financial stability. Senator Jamie Eldridge, an Acton Democrat and co-chairman of the commission, says that up to 43 per cent of the state’s population is considered “asset-poor”; they are less than three months away from being unable to maintain their households if they were to lose their job or income. These aren’t just people on welfare; many work in service jobs or as office clerks, but they still need support from programmes such as food stamps, subsidised day care, or one of the new state-sponsored health insurance plans to help them keep their heads above water.

Unfortunately, these programmes can include perverse disincentives to getting better-paid employment or building assets. For example, a parent cannot keep more than $2,500, own even a clunker car, open a college savings plan for the kids, or keep more than $50 in child support per month and still be eligible for most state assistance. Eldridge has filed legislation to adjust some of those limits upwards. The commission report identifies a “cliff effect” whereby working people reach a wage threshold and are precipitously cut off from benefits. These people are working hard at difficult jobs; they shouldn’t have to choose between reaching for a better life and losing support programmes that make working possible. The current fiscal crisis has removed other pillars of support for low-income residents. A pilot programme that matched a working family’s savings in individual development accounts was zeroed out of the new state budget. Many programmes that accept applicants if they earn 130 per cent of the federal poverty line — just $18,310 for a single mother with two children, unreasonably low for a state like Massachusetts — now cap eligibility at 115 per cent. The state ought to help people climb out of poverty, not keep them cycling through. — (June 25)

[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="DarkGreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Kurram Agency violence[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Tuesday, 30 Jun, 2009[/B]

UNLESS tackled with all the seriousness the bloodletting demands, the situation in Kurram Agency could get out of hand and have wider repercussions. More menacingly, the Taliban have made their deadly presence felt. Clashes over the weekend between rival tribes led to at least 36 more deaths, the total from 12 days of fighting going up to nearly 90 killed with hundreds injured. Because of the military’s focus on Swat and South Waziristan, the fighting and consequent humanitarian disaster in Kurram Agency seem eclipsed. But the truth is that a minimum of 3,000 people have been killed in the sectarian clashes there that have been going on intermittently since 2007. Geographically, Kurram Agency is vulnerable to outside influences because it juts into Afghanistan. It also borders North Waziristan, a Taliban bastion. The surreptitious entry of the Taliban from Dir and Swat has exacerbated the sectarian conflict to the disadvantage of the Shia community.

The true sufferers of the conflict are the people, thousands of whom have been forced out of their ancestral homes because they belong to the wrong tribe. The militants control all highways, including the key Thall-Parachinar road. This has served to block the supply of food and medicines. As Medecins Sans Frontieres said recently, it is finding it extremely difficult to provide relief to the sick because medical supplies are getting increasingly scarce, and even hospitals have been attacked. Electricity sometimes remains out for months. This has forced many Bangash tribesmen to move into Afghanistan. The local elders have complained to the government that they were unable to play their role in effecting peace because outside presence has sidelined them. Recently, an all-party conference in Parachinar appealed to the government to launch an operation to clear Kurram Agency of the Taliban.

It is a measure of the government’s ineffective role in the Kurram Agency killings that Isaf officials from Afghanistan have tried to bring the warring factions together and end fighting. One can understand the government’s reluctance to open another front at a time when Swat cannot be said to have been fully cleared of the Taliban and the operation in South Waziristan has just begun. But given the people’s misery, the government has no choice but to make its presence felt meaningfully and ensure peace. The first job is to open roads, especially the Thall-Parachinar route, rush food and medical supplies to the people and restore electricity fully. The government should also look into the claim recently by elders from six tribes that there was foreign interference in the area, and that some local tribesmen had been recruited by a foreign power to perpetuate trouble in the agency.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Solutions needed[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Tuesday, 30 Jun, 2009[/B]

ALL is not well in Balochistan. The simmering insurgency there shows no sign of abating. But why should it? After all nothing has been done on the ground to meet the demands of the disgruntled Baloch. The provincial budget with an outlay of Rs72.2bn hardly reassured those in the province who are demanding control over their resources. Be it the gas in Sui, the mineral wealth of Saindak and now the deep-water port in Gwadar, one knows well that the underdeveloped province will not be the major beneficiary of these projects. Even the NFC which divides taxes collected by the centre among the provinces works against Balochistan, which is contributing handsomely to the treasury but gets very little in return. The allocation is made on the basis of population and Balochistan happens to be sparsely populated. The province needs proportionately more funds to develop infrastructure throughout its sprawling territory and make facilities accessible to its scattered population. Long overdue, a new NFC Award is being promised but nothing has been delivered. And, with summer in full swing, it is a major blow to a water-starved province to be deprived of 30 per cent of its water entitlement.

Seen against this backdrop, it is shocking that Islamabad doesn’t seem to be in a hurry to put matters right. Since the PPP government assumed office more than a year ago it has been reiterating its commitment to negotiate with the Baloch to resolve problems that have already been identified — many of them by committees and subcommittees set up by the centre itself. An apology has been offered by the president and the need to grant autonomy to the province has been conceded. But this is just talk and no one walks the walk. As a result we now have a hardening of the Baloch nationalists’ stance which may take them to the point of no return. On Sunday Sardar Akhtar Mengal, head of the BNP-M, said that even a compromise is not acceptable on the national rights of the Baloch. It is disturbing that the nationalists are now convinced that they are being taken down the garden path with offers of dialogue and negotiation that are designed to appease and not necessarily solve any problem. This is most disquieting because our failure to respect the political sensitivities of one province led to the loss of half the country. We cannot push another province over the brink. The government itself says that there is many a foreign power interested in continued turmoil in Balochistan. Why should we so willingly help?

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Up for barter[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Tuesday, 30 Jun, 2009[/B]

OUR collective conscience is silent each time humanism stands compromised. The age-old price tag slapped on the female of the species is a common example as young girls continue to be ‘auctioned’ to the highest bidder or traded in transactions such as vatta satta and other forms of barter. The latest reported victim is eight-year-old Zahida who was ‘married’ to a teenager in Karachi. Reports say the bargain was engineered by her father who wanted to marry the groom’s sister. The great paradox is that these incidents abound at a time when women’s rights’ awareness is at an all-time high across the globe. The prime culprit remains the state; it has consistently failed to enforce laws that provide protection or establish shelters for victims. Secondly, it extends implicit sanction to such excesses by overlooking the provision of legal aid, women police personnel and stations, and laws that guarantee security and women-friendly legal processes. On the other end, child marriages such as Zahida’s not only sustain a self-perpetuating cycle but throw up tragic consequences — loss of education, rise in infant and maternal mortality, and more victims of domestic torture. These ‘marriages’ are one of our saddest social truths that are not just embedded in poverty and ignorance but in the menace of male supremacy. Also, this practice has to be seen as a heinous form of child abuse and the Child Marriage Restraint Act of 1927 that prescribes imprisonment for perpetrators should be brought into force.

Despite Pakistan’s status as a signatory to the United Nation’s Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Stockholm Declaration and Agenda for Action that protect children from abuse, low-income segments of the country remain bereft of the concept of child rights. Organisations such as Unicef and Sparc need to initiate aggressive advocacy campaigns that target rural, feudal and low-income environments, focusing on elders who have the power to curb such customs. Last but not least, parliamentarians must overhaul existing laws, police stations and relevant authorities to ascertain that ‘conventions’ extend beyond paper. Healthy childhoods cannot be distant dreams but realities made possible through sensitised legislature and media.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="DarkGreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]OTHER VOICES-Sindhi Press Punjab’s undue outcry[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Tuesday, 30 Jun, 2009[/B]

REPORTEDLY the Indus River System Authority has decided to close the Taunsa-Panjnad canal supply at a meeting presided over by President Asif Ali Zardari. The purpose is to provide relief to Sindh but this raised an undue hue and cry in Punjab. The PML-N and PML-Q were up in arms in the Punjab Assembly last Thursday.

The prime minister, however, managed to calm down the Punjabis when he asserted that the distribution of water would be on the basis of the 1991 accord and the share of one province would not be diverted to another. He categorically stated that there was a temporary shortage which is now over.

The politicians of Punjab, irrespective of their political and ideological differences, present a united front when the interest of the province is at stake. Unfortunately this is not the case in Sindh. Never has a minister threatened to resign in the interest of the province. There is a stark difference between how the politicians of the two provinces deal with matters.

History is witness to the fact that Punjab did not implement the water accord and Sindh has suffered unfair treatment. Ironically when the Punjabis claim they have been treated unfairly, the representatives of Sindh assert that they will be the first to launch a protest. Why is it that the latter does not feel the need to do the same for their own province?

In fact the issue has been further complicated due to the non-implementation of the water accord which was signed during Nawaz Sharif’s government in 1991. Punjab has always benefited from this lack of implementation. Sindh has not got its due share while Punjab has taken water forcibly.

Lower Punjab tributary areas linked to the Indus through the Chashma-Jhelum and Taunsa-Panjnad links should not be a permanent burden on the Indus. The Chashma-Jhelum link canal carries 11 MAF of water, or double the capacity of the [proposed] Kalabagh dam. The Taunsa-Panjnad link accounts for 4.93 MAF. Together these two canals divert 16 MAF of water which is equal to the flow of the Ravi river. In fact the link canals are inter-provincial canals and should be regulated as such.

Punjab claims that the Mangla Dam belongs exclusively to it. But the loan [taken for its construction] was paid off by all the provinces jointly. There is no authority to stop Punjab from this irrational and unjustified act. It appears Punjab has got veto powers.

The prime minister has provided assurances that the water accord will be implemented which means that currently this is not the case. Until it is, the dispute will continue to grow. — (June 27)

[B][I]Selected and translated by Sohail Sangi[/I][/B]

[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="DarkGreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Peace deal ends[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Wednesday, 01 Jul, 2009[/B]

THE interconnections between different militant groups operating in the Waziristan agencies is becoming increasingly apparent as the state edges closer to an armed confrontation with Baitullah Mehsud’s network in South Waziristan Agency. The latest sign that the state is confronted with a hydra-headed militancy threat has come with the scrapping of a peace deal signed in mid-February 2008 with tribal elders in North Waziristan Agency. The deal had been approved by a grand jirga of 286 elders of the Dawar and Wazir sub-tribes of the Utmanzai and, among other things, barred the Taliban from setting up a ‘parallel government’ and required that they not attack government and security forces personnel in the agency. The February 2008 peace deal was itself meant to revive and build on an earlier peace deal struck with a ‘sympathetic’ Taliban commander Hafiz Gul Bahadur in September 2006. The difference the second time round was that the deal was supposed to apply to the entire North Waziristan Agency (as opposed to the earlier one which was limited to Miramshah where Gul Bahadur held sway) and was supposed to be guaranteed by the 280-odd tribal elders rather than the 45-member ‘monitoring committee’ that had failed to oversee the implementation of the first deal.

Yet, problems were always apparent. While the February 2008 deal was signed by tribal elders, it was the Taliban who held all the power and called the shots in the agency. Then events last month suggested that the deal was all but dead in name. The kidnapping of students of the Razmak Cadet College, an ambush that killed four soldiers in a military convoy moving along the Miramshah-Mirali road, another deadly ambush of a convoy on Sunday that killed 27 — all these incidents and more have been blamed on Hafiz Gul Bahadur. When the deal was officially scrapped on Monday by Gul Bahadur’s Taliban, the reasons given were the drone strikes and the presence of troops in North Waziristan. But there is a suspicion that the operation in Frontier Region Bannu and the one impending in South Waziristan are the real reasons for scrapping the deal. Therein lies the rub: Gul Bahadur had long been considered a ‘friendly’ Taliban leader by the state because he hadn’t been a thorn in its side, but the ‘friendliness’ only lasted while the state took a hands-off approach to militant groups in surrounding areas. Now that South Waziristan and FR Bannu are in the state’s crosshairs, Gul Bahadur has apparently chosen to side with his Taliban brethren. The problems for the state in the Waziristan agencies keep growing.


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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Prisoner of loyalty[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Wednesday, 01 Jul, 2009[/B]

PUNJAB Minister for Prisons Chaudhry Abdul Ghafoor has had problems with traditions and customs in recent weeks but this was a particularly bad day for him. For a period of time on Monday afternoon and from the Sharifs’ Raiwind estate, the minister hogged the attention of television channels. This was the time when a clash — apparently over washing rights — between inmates at Lahore’s Kot Lakhpat jail competed for space on the screen with a fight taking place inside the Punjab Assembly. Eventually, the more privileged lawmakers won and the prisoners faded out. Chaudhry Ghafoor has yet to speak on the frequent shows of ill-mannerism on the part of jail inmates in Punjab. He has, however, felt sufficient urge to explain as to what prompted his face-off with a group of women lawmakers belonging to the PML-Q in the house on Monday. He accused a woman MPA of trying to defame the leader of the house, Mian Shahbaz Sharif. Independent accounts confirm the MPA, Bushra Nawaz Gardezi, had flashed a placard inside the assembly, which in no ambiguous words criticised Chief Minister Sharif of failing to protect Punjab’s share of water for agriculture.

Independent versions also say some other leaders, among them prominent men such as Zulfiqar Khosa of the PML-N and Raja Riaz of the PPP, had played more than a cameo role in the proceedings which led to the violence. Chaudhry Ghafoor denies having assaulted the Q-League ladies but eyewitnesses say he had the intent to do so and that throwing books at his target did, in fact, constitute some kind of an attack. Fortunately, he was reined in by his party men or we could have had an even uglier situation on our hands. Indeed one of the aggrieved women MPAs has reminded the faithful Chaudhry Ghafoor of the grave consequences his act could have entailed.

Chaudhry Ghafoor survived the episode just as his political career escaped an early ending after he was accused of violating the law at Lahore’s Allama Iqbal Airport in May. Who knows he might have earned a pat on the back for the show of his loyalty to the Sharifs inside the Punjab Assembly but a party occupying the high moral ground on issues will find his continuing antics a bit too difficult to ignore. After the Lahore airport incident, Mr Shahbaz Sharif let Chaudhry Ghafoor go with a ‘be careful in future’ warning. The people are watching: the chief minister needs to be careful himself.


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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Power woes[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Wednesday, 01 Jul, 2009[/B]

ALREADY reeling under the weight of a massive power shortage, the country suffered a body blow on Monday when Mangla dam went off line and the national grid all but collapsed. Outages of up to 18 hours a day were reported from across the country. Infuriated people took to the streets in large numbers, particularly in Punjab where some protests turned violent. While demonstrations that result in destruction of property cannot be condoned, the outrage felt by long-suffering citizens is understandable. For years now Pakistanis have paid the price for government inaction in the power sector, where ad-hocism and excuses seem to rule. Life at home has been turned into a living hell for all but the privileged, commerce has taken a huge hit, small-time entrepreneurs are feeling the pinch and factories sit idle these days for prolonged periods, depriving daily-wage earners of a sizeable chunk of their already meagre incomes. Productivity has declined and the economy as a whole is suffering because of a crippling shortage of electricity.

Mangla’s contribution to the grid is massive and a sudden shutdown there was bound to cause major problems. But that just reflects poor planning. Our power-generation capacity is woefully inadequate and there seem to be no contingency plans for unexpected shortfalls. According to Pepco’s managing director, “We have lost all sense of the demand and supply situation. The entire system is overstretched … without any contingency [measures in place].” A similar situation was witnessed in Karachi and other parts of Sindh last month when a storm cut off power supplies from Wapda for nearly two days. Then too there was no backup plan that could have lessened the impact of a sudden power deficit. These are not problems that will go away and must be addressed immediately.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]OTHER VOICES - European Press CSO figures[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Wednesday, 01 Jul, 2009[/B]

FIGURES published by the Central Statistics Office highlight great disparities between the public and private sectors in relation to both pay and employment…. The latest figures mean that the average employee in the public sector is earning 25 per cent more than his or her counterpart in the private sector, and over 48 per cent more than the average industrial wage. Whereas 113,000 jobs were lost in the private sector in the 12 months to March 2009, employment in the public sector increased by 2,900 in the same period.

“With the public sector pay bill now accounting for over 40 per cent of current expenditure, and growing, the country cannot afford to finance its expansion,” warned Mark Fielding, the chief executive of the Irish Small and Medium Enterprise Association (ISME)…. Even though employment did increase in the public sector in the 12 months to March…. [I]t dropped by 2,100 between December and March…. Benchmarking was introduced to bring about equity between the public and private sectors, but now that balance had been seriously disrupted in the other direction.

Members of the government effectively set up the group to get the best advice on how to proceed in cutting public expenditure. This does not mean that they must accept all of its recommendations, but the public should know the extent of the advice being adopted. Only then will it be apparent whether the delay was actually to get the best advice or merely a temporising device to delay having to make the hard decisions. — (June 30)

[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Crisis in the making[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Thursday, 02 Jul, 2009[/B]

THE situation faced by the hundreds of thousands of IDPs in makeshift camps is getting grimmer. The IDPs are already contending with gross inadequacies in terms of shelter, food, potable water and access to education or income-generating activities. Now, the World Health Organisation warns that the camps risk running out of essential medical supplies within two to three weeks unless donors deliver more funds soon. This is a catastrophe in the making. The cramped and unhygienic conditions prevalent at the camps have already raised the incidence of illnesses such as cholera, malaria and acute diarrhoea. With the monsoons coming up and many of the camps located in areas that are likely to be flooded, as WHO noted, the risk of full-blown epidemics looms large.

The international community must immediately make good on its promises for donations, and make further pledges. According to WHO, the UN appealed to the international community for $530m for the aid of Pakistan’s IDPs. Of this, $37m is earmarked for basic health needs, but only 27 per cent of this sum is met by the money delivered and pledges made so far. More, much more, is needed. Meanwhile, cash-strapped though Islamabad is, ways must be found to aid the IDPs. Out-of-the-box thinking is needed urgently — after all, these citizens are victims in equal measure of the extremist line taken by the militants, the domestic and international policies that allowed the militants to consolidate power in the first place, and the resultantly inevitable offensive launched by the Pakistan Army. Each avoidable death will further alienate and potentially radicalise an already disillusioned segment of the citizenry. The state cannot afford to be seen as abandoning its citizens to the scourge of disease and death that will follow if the supply of essential medicines and basic health services at the camps slows down.


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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Iraq: new challenges[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Thursday, 02 Jul, 2009[/B]

ONE can well understand the jubilation in Iraq over the withdrawal of American troops from the urban areas, but it remains to be seen whether all parties and political forces will turn this into an opportunity, and work for the country’s consolidation. The end of Shia-Sunni fighting has been a positive development, but that alone is not going to give stability to Iraq.

The recent bombings, including the one in Kirkuk that killed 26 people on Tuesday, show that terrorism is very much alive. One challenge to stability comes from self-governed Kurdistan. It has oil, and that adds to the tension in its relations with the Baghdad government headed by Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki. Recently the Kurdistan government signed some oil deals with foreign companies, which evoked a sharp rebuke from Baghdad. The latter told the oil companies that all contracts with Kurdistan would be illegal unless they were ratified by the centre.

Iraq’s own oil production — 2.2 million bpd — is far below its potential at this time. The government needs money because it has to undertake the huge task of rebuilding Iraq’s infrastructure. A most important job is to rehabilitate the two million internally displaced persons and the 1.5 million refugees abroad. The representative of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees recently warned that Iraq was “too fragile” to absorb the refugees. The IDPs too cannot return to their cities because the homes of most of them have been destroyed. All eyes are now fixed on the January election, and Mr Maliki and his Dawa party seem determined to retain power. The opposition has accused him of arresting dissidents and using strong-arm methods to tighten his grip over the administration with an eye on the January election. All Iraqi factions have to realise the gravity of the task facing them in the aftermath of the American withdrawal. The total withdrawal is still more than two years away. A worsening of the law and order situation could make America reschedule its withdrawal, and that will only increase dissensions and give a new lease of life to terrorism.


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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Unfair and avoidable[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Thursday, 02 Jul, 2009[/B]

EFFECTIVE July 1, the prices of petrol, diesel and kerosene have been increased by between 10 to 15 per cent by the federal government. The reason: international oil prices have risen in recent weeks, meaning the revenue the government had planned to raise from a carbon surcharge would have been eliminated by a subsidy if local petroleum prices were not increased to reflect the international change. Faced with an understandable outcry from the public, the government has tried to portray itself as a victim of circumstances and claimed its hands are tied — there is neither the fiscal space for a petroleum subsidy nor does the agreement with the IMF allow one. What the government isn’t willing to delve into though are two awkward questions that arise with any form of taxation: raise money from where and for what purpose?

Begin with the first. The Rs120bn that will be earned from the carbon surcharge this year is necessary if the government is to have any hope of reaching its revenue target of Rs1.5tr. But while the carbon surcharge is easy to impose, it is also highly regressive and affects the lower and middle classes disproportionately. Whether you travel in a bus or an air-conditioned car, the percentage impact of the fuel price increase will be the same. And transport charges will rise uniformly, meaning the rich and the poor — the already suffering poor — will have to pay the same rate of tax on basic foodstuffs and other essentials. The alternative would be to raise taxes from elsewhere; Pakistan has an abysmal tax-to-GDP ratio of less than 10 per cent and there are many, many areas that have yet to be taxed. But because the political will and capacity are lacking to rope in sectors with powerful lobbies, governments in Pakistan always opt for the easy option of indirect taxation that is highly regressive. There is, then, no doubt whatsoever that in the present circumstances a petroleum tax is highly unfair.

Next, the question about what the tax revenue is being used for. Here too there is absolutely no doubt that there is lot of fat in government and that wasteful expenditures can and should be reined in. A grotesquely large cabinet, billions spent on foreign trips of government officials, many of dubious importance, the devil-may-care attitude of elected officials to spending public money — all of this adds to the bill that the taxpayers have to pay for. There is a stench of a reverse Robin Hood syndrome hanging over the government.


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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="DarkGreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]OTHER VOICES - Middle East Press The legend [/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Thursday, 02 Jul, 2009[/B]

… WHAT stood him out … [was] Jackson’s unique style of dancing…. He was a perfectionist to the core…. His perfectionism, probably, might have hastened his death.

A report has speculated that he was exerting himself too much for his forthcoming British tour. … Like many other American greats, Jackson had had ups and downs

and lows and highs. But his fall had started … when his private life cast a long shadow on his music.

He was more on gossip columns than in pop charts because of allegations of child molestation, a series of plastic surgeries, reclusive living and eccentric behaviour.

Though he was cleared of all charges, his expensive life had cost him dearly…. Jackson would have bailed himself out financially with a comeback tour of 50 concerts at the O2 arena in London….

The shows, worth $50m … would have put him back on to the world stage…. It is debatable, of course, whether he had the same energy and zing with which he had set the stage alight when he was on top…. — (June 27)

[B][SIZE="4"][I]Pronouncements[/I][/SIZE][/B]

… HUMAN Rights Watch is pressing Jordan to adopt regulations spelling out the rights and duties of domestic workers, in the wake of the 2008 amendment to the labour legislation…. HRW claims that the ministry is late in adopting these additional regulations…. It says the ministry of labour should have concluded its consideration of the proposed regulations soon

after the adoption of the amendment to the labour law … in view of the … situation of domestic workers. … HRW cannot, in all fairness, prejudge the content of these regulations…. Furthermore, HRW could be trespassing on ILO jurisdiction, and those of various human rights bodies, by assuming that it knows all about the jurisprudence of these international organisations, pertaining to matters related to domestic workers.

HRW should refrain from passing judgment until the final picture is made clear … and ILO bodies have had a chance to give their opinion…. The only international bodies that are entitled to scrutinise Jordanian laws on workers’ rights and duties, including domestic helpers, are the UN human rights treaty bodies and the ILO.… — (June 29)

[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="DarkGreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Anti-Taliban wave[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Friday, 03 Jul, 2009[/B]

THE results of an opinion poll on the US, Afghanistan and the conflict in Swat should come as no surprise. There is now a sea change in the attitude of Pakistanis towards the Taliban and the government’s belated crackdown on the insurgents. As the findings of the survey by the World Public Opinion Poll show, 81 per cent of Pakistanis think Al Qaeda and the Taliban are “a critical threat” to their country — phenomenally up from 47 per cent 18 months ago. This 18-month period has seen some crucial political and military developments. No wonder it has induced some reassessment of the situation on the people’s part. The biggest political development was the induction of an elected government last year and Pervez Musharraf’s departure from the scene in August. This in no small way served to create a national consensus on all vital issues, including the war on terror. In fact, Musharraf’s departure removed the unjustified apprehension that it was a war on terror on America’s behalf. That all the leading parties with parliamentary representation agreed to pursue the war on the Taliban with renewed vigour sent out a clear message to Pakistanis and the rest of the world that the government was serious about crushing the menace of terrorism at home and not allow its soil to be used for acts of terrorism elsewhere.

Another major factor has been the series of terror attacks that sent shock waves across the nation. These attacks are too numerous to recount, but there is no doubt some of them will live in memory to serve as a perpetual reminder of the militants’ terrorism. These attacks included the bombing of the Islamabad Marriott, killing 57 people; the attack on the Sri Lankan cricketers in Lahore in March; and the murder of the renowned religious scholar Maulana Naeemi. This is in addition to what they have been doing for long — waging war on education, especially girls’, by blowing up schools and colleges, blasting mosques and funeral processions and beheading civilians and captured Pakistani soldiers.

Nevertheless, a lot remains to be done. The military operations against the rebels have produced results in Swat but there are challenges to be faced in South Waziristan and Kurram Agency. The government must build on the nation’s support and take the war on terror to its logical conclusion. It must also ensure that an effective political administration is installed in areas that have been cleared of the Taliban.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Need to move forward[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Friday, 03 Jul, 2009[/B]

IN an ideal scenario, Pakistan and India would be cooperating fully in the battle against militancy. Events both recent and age-old have not helped achieve that goal, however, and mistrust between the two remains high despite the odd statement of positive intent. New Delhi is upset that the reported masterminds of the Mumbai attacks have not been brought to book, perhaps ignoring concerns that recourse to the courts without a watertight case serves little purpose. The release from house arrest last month of Hafiz Mohammad Saeed, head of the Jamaatud Dawa, allegedly a front for the Lashkar-i-Taiba, further aggravated the situation.

Ours is not a perfect world and ideal scenarios are hard to come by. But the least Indian officialdom can do is to ask itself one basic question: is it helping out or is it part of the problem? The fight against the Taliban cannot be brought to its logical conclusion without the sort of commitment that the Pakistan Army is currently showing. Pakistan’s military, it must be kept in mind, has been trained to see India as the conventional enemy and that outlook is unlikely to change any time soon. Yet, India persists with provocative moves that can only be counterproductive. On Wednesday, Washington assured New Delhi that it would be consulted “very closely” in the fight against extremism in South Asia. This followed a visit by Indian parliamentarians who asked the US to ensure that aid to Pakistan would not go towards buying weapons that could be used against India.

Surely we had put this behind us when ‘India-specific’ conditions were dropped from US plans to increase aid to Pakistan. Surely Pakistan’s displeasure with India’s growing influence in Afghanistan had been relayed all too clearly when Washington asked New Delhi to scale down its Jalalabad mission. So why regress instead of moving forward? Some positive gestures are in order at this critical stage. A scaling down of the Indian military presence along our mutual border would justify a much-needed deployment of Pakistani troops to the western frontier. Calling Islamabad’s commitment into question may reinforce India’s ‘case’ among Pakistan-bashers on Capitol Hill and in sections of the American media.

It will not, however, help win the war.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Practical democracy[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Friday, 03 Jul, 2009[/B]

SINDH Education Minister Pir Mazharul Haq has said that his department intends to include “democracy in the curriculum to educate future generations on the merits of democracy and the demerits of dictatorship”. It remains unclear whether the topic will be introduced as a stand-alone subject or be included in the curricula of existing examination subjects. Nevertheless, one hopes that practical experience helps its theoretical understanding. Given the country’s historical oscillation between democracy and dictatorship, and the cloudy issues plaguing governance, popular understanding likens democracy to a magic wand. Consider, for example, the criticism levelled against the current government for having failed to immediately resolve issues such as power generation. While no doubt the government must take responsibility for many such issues, a more nuanced understanding of democracy as an institutionalised system of governance is markedly absent.

Inculcating a true appreciation of the tenets of democracy will require much more than their inclusion in the school curricula. To understand why this system proves ultimately effective, the country’s leaders must lead by example; their democratic ideals must be reflected in their conduct. There have been too many failures on this count. Consider, for example, the shameful behaviour displayed recently by the PML-N’s Chaudhry Ghafoor and the PML-Q’s Bushra Gardezi in the Punjab Assembly. Both the provocation offered and the reaction were unparliamentary in nature; the episode constitutes an insult to the dignity of the legislative house. Similarly undemocratic and disruptive behaviour was witnessed in February, when legislators were denied entry into the Punjab Assembly building after the Supreme Court’s ruling against the Sharif brothers. For the nation to appreciate the logic of democracy, it must demonstrably be applied in its full meaning. Without an understanding of the characteristics of this system, politics in Pakistan will continue to be based on personalities rather than institutions, and democracy will remain a mere slogan.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]OTHER VOICES - Pushto Press Karzai’s concerns[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Friday, 03 Jul, 2009 [/B]

PRESIDENT Hamid Karzai has expressed reservations about the US entering talks with the Taliban which he says his government should do in order to achieve lasting peace in Afghanistan. Karzai is of the opinion that peace talks cannot succeed unless his government is part of the whole process.

Karzai’s reservations about talks between the Taliban and the US are justified to a certain extent because the US does not enjoy the same credibility as the Afghanistan government when it comes to dealing with internal matters.

However, Karzai’s efforts to engage with the Taliban have been fruitless in the past. The Afghanistan government and the US have been stressing all along that talks should be held with the ‘moderate’ Taliban but it is hard to apply the term ‘moderate’ to the Taliban as they lead a movement and are a force to reckon with.

The Afghanistan government and the US should take steps which take into account the ground realities and wishes of the people. Instead of denying their failures in Afghanistan, they should accept them and talk to the Taliban addressing the militia’s genuine concerns. Unless they recognise the political and democratic rights of the Taliban, the latter cannot be defeated militarily. — (June 30)

Swat IDPs

THE majority of the 3.5 million people displaced by the military operation in Swat are those who owned large swathes of land, fruit orchards and decent houses in the beautiful valley. Now they live in tents in the sweltering heat, have no cold water to drink and no healthy food to eat.

Since they are not acclimatised to this kind of weather, a majority of them have fallen ill.…

Where is the foreign aid going as these people are still living in destitution? According to the prime minister, 95 per cent of the area in Swat and Buner has been cleared of the Taliban, while the NWFP government claims that electricity and gas supply has been restored in these areas and so the IDPs should return home.

But the IDPs have a point that first the government should move to these areas and establish peace camps there.

This is the only way they will return home. They ask that if there is actually peace in the conflict zones why do government officials go there in helicopters, scan the area and come back?

Firstly the government should reopen schools and offices in these areas only then can the IDPs return home. — (June 30)

[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Colossal task[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Monday, 06 Jul, 2009[/B]

AMERICA’S first special representative to Muslim communities has a singular job on her hands. Farah Pandith says her primary responsibility is to “know the next generation of [Muslim] thinkers.” She will, apparently, also be doing a lot of “listening” while focusing on creativity, respect and nuance. This brief is as vague and all-encompassing as Ms Pandith’s job title, as well as her debut public statement in which she eschewed specifics and made no mention of Kashmir or Palestine. True, engaging in dialogue, listening to diverse viewpoints and respecting cultural nuances are key first steps on the long road to mutual respect and conflict resolution. But the journey cannot and must not end with an image-building exercise. Words alone cannot undo the damage done by the follies and atrocities of the Bush era and the misguided policies of those who preceded him in the White House.

On the US domestic front, there are now grumblings even among some supporters that President Obama seems to be big on ideas and short on performance. Hopefully his new strategy of “reaching out” to the Muslim world will go beyond the conceptual and strive to bring about meaningful change on the ground. The task at hand is no doubt colossal. Anti-American sentiment may have reached fever pitch in the 21st century but the resentment felt by Muslims predates Mr Bush’s tenure by many decades. America’s unqualified military, economic and moral support for Israel despite the latter’s brutal treatment of Palestinians and illegal occupation of their lands is the primary reason why so many Muslims see the US with a jaundiced eye. Then there is Washington’s failure to take a principled stand on the freedom struggle in Kashmir and the reign of terror unleashed there in the shape of murder and rape by Indian forces. But the list doesn’t end there.

Washington’s support for dictators and monarchs in the Muslim world, who were and continue to be unanswerable to the people, has not gone unnoticed. The US lent staunch support to the Shah of Iran, a man who was out of touch with the reality of his country, cared only for self-aggrandisement and unleashed a reign of terror on dissidents. Authoritarians in Egypt have consistently enjoyed American backing. In Pakistan, the US has put its money and weight behind military dictators — from Ayub and Zia to Musharraf — who have collectively brought this country to the brink of ruin. America has also been accused of pandering to monarchies in oil-rich countries where people can’t vote and women are denied basic rights. Policies must change. Listening alone will achieve nothing.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Lahore’s half-dug roads[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Monday, 06 Jul, 2009[/B]

EVERY year around this time, newspapers carry reports warning citizens of the hazards that half-dug roads pose during the rainy season. There are comments on the administrative and financial factors that lead to such a mess, and politicians vow that it will not happen again. But come the monsoons and we are at it again. Half of Lahore, it seems, is commuting on the edge of less-than-half-built roads dotted with trenches, uncarpeted pebbly patches and mounds of mud. Most of the digging is done for the numerous rainwater drains being built in many localities. But residents in many of these areas complain that the construction of these drains is, in fact, behind schedule and is aggravating civic problems, making their solution a distant dream. The rains, as and when they come, will certainly flood a large number of neighbourhoods, with incomplete drains doing little or nothing to take the rainwater away.

Wasn’t it supposed to be different this time round? Hadn’t Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif promised the residents of Lahore a trouble-free monsoon last time they had their roads submerged and drainage choked? Weren’t the city government departments warned by him that they would be answerable for any inconvenience that the rains might cause to the people? The way things stand today, it is highly likely that in the coming weeks we will once again see the chief minister wading in knee-deep water and admonishing the authorities for their inefficiency. But this will hardly fix the problem, nor will any piecemeal approach that aims at building a drain here and a pumping station there. Lahore requires a new rainwater drainage system — not just in a couple of localities but across the entire length and breadth of the city. Any measure short of that will not resolve the problem.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Domestic violence[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Monday, 06 Jul, 2009[/B]

A MONITORING exercise conducted by the law firm AGHS shows that from April to June this year, 122 cases of women being burnt were reported in Lahore. Of them, 21 women had acid burns while the rest were injured by direct exposure to flames. Forty victims died. Disturbingly, the figures have doubled as compared to the first quarter of the year. These cases constitute merely the tip of the frightening iceberg of violence against Pakistan’s women. The figures reported above apply to Lahore but are unlikely to be lower in other parts of the country. Indeed, one wonders how many cases go unreported. The forms of coercion range from emotional and economic abuse to gross violations of constitutional and human rights, including rape, burning and being handed over as settlement in disputes. Last year, at least two women were believed to have been buried alive in Balochistan. That a sitting parliamentarian defended the act as a ‘tribal custom’ reflects just how endemic violence against women has become in the country.

It is important to note that much of the violence against women, particularly in the domestic sphere, goes unreported. Legislation in this regard, meanwhile, has been indefensibly slow. Work on formulating a bill at the federal level against domestic violence was first initiated in December 2006. Two private members’ bills were combined and approved by the National Assembly’s standing committee on women’s development in April 2007. The assembly’s term lapsed before the bill could be passed, however. In March this year, the National Assembly’s standing committee on women’s development unanimously approved the Prevention of Domestic Violence Bill 2008. But little further progress has been reported so far.

That violence against women continues to rise is perhaps symptomatic of the steady brutalisation that Pakistani society has suffered over the past many decades. It is imperative that effective legislation be devised to not only protect women against abuse, both domestic and otherwise, but also bring the persecutors to book. Treating violence against women, including domestic abuse, as a crime will give protection to victims in meaningful terms.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="DarkGreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]OTHER VOICES - North American Press 10 years, 430 dams[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Monday, 06 Jul, 2009[/B]

TEN years have gone by since a modest but important moment in American environmental history: the dismantling of the 917-foot-wide Edwards Dam on Maine’s Kennebec River.

The Edwards Dam was the first privately owned hydroelectric dam torn down for environmental reasons … by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. … the interior secretary at the time, showed up at the demolition ceremony to promote what had become a personal crusade against obsolete dams. The publicity generated a national discussion about dams and the potential environmental benefits of removing them.

It certainly helped the Kennebec and its fish, and dams have been falling ever since. According to American Rivers, an advocacy group and a major player in the Edwards Dam campaign, about 430 outdated dams (some of them small hydropower dams like Edwards) have been removed with both public and private funding.

More lies ahead. Three dams that have severely damaged salmon runs in Washington State are scheduled to come down in 2011. A tentative agreement has been reached among farmers, native tribes and a power company to remove dams on California’s Klamath River, the site of a huge fish kill several years ago attributed mainly to low water flows caused by dams.

Maine, where this all began, will be the site of a spectacular restoration project. Under an agreement, two dams will be removed and a fish ladder built at a third to open up 1,000 miles of the Penobscot River and its tributaries so that fish can return to their traditional spawning grounds.

A half-dozen species should benefit, including endangered Atlantic salmon. The federal government has now imposed “critical habitat” protections in nine Maine rivers….

NOAA’s heightened interest in Atlantic salmon has raised hopes that it may now take aggressive … steps to protect salmon on the West Coast by ordering the removal of four big dams on the Lower Snake River. — (July 3)

[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="DarkGreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Judicial policy[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Tuesday, 07 Jul, 2009[/B]

IF implemented in letter and spirit, the Islamabad Declaration issued on Sunday could change Pakistan’s judicial scene, though one shouldn’t underestimate the challenging nature of the task. An operation to salvage the judiciary — its very image — was long overdue, for all constitutional institutions had sunk to such depths that the very idea of the rule of law appeared in danger of extinction. The restoration of the chief justice and the reinstatement of all those judges who had not taken the oath under the PCO promulgated by decree on Nov 3, 2007, will be regarded by history as milestones in the long road which the nation followed to establish the principle of judicial independence. Against this background the series of decisions taken on Sunday by a conference of judges and leading lawyers to implement the National Judicial Policy deserve to be welcomed, especially where they concern the judges’ social interaction, the need for clearing the backlog of undecided cases and removing corruption by holding the adjudicators accountable for their assets.

Clearing the backlog of cases is not an easy task, because there are 1.6 million cases pending. The reasons the conference gave for this huge number of pending cases include manpower shortage, the “scattered location” of courts, and loadshedding. While the first two points can be addressed by administrative action, there is little the courts can do about the third point. It is a national problem and seemingly unsolvable. The conference correctly noted that the implementation of the NJP was not possible without full commitment to it by the bench, the bar and the relevant government agencies. A representative of the bar also spoke of “incompetent judges” in reference to the oaths taken under the PCO and considered them an obstacle to the NJP’s implementation. One would like to caution all sides that the legal community has to stand by the principles it has been advocating publicly and act in a way that doesn’t smack of witch-hunting. The bench and the bar must look to the future and begin a new chapter in our judicial history instead of raking up the sordid past.


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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Expensive ‘gifts’[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Tuesday, 07 Jul, 2009[/B]

PERVEZ Musharraf and Shaukat Aziz are very rich men. Yet, according to a series of revelations in The News, neither man could resist the temptation to leave office with hundreds of gifts presented to him by various heads of state and other officials during his tenure. The presents — everything from luxury watches to expensive handicrafts to exquisite jewellery — have a market value of tens of millions of rupees, but, according to obscure rules governing the claims to such gifts, were valued at a song and duly carted off by Gen Musharraf and Mr Aziz after paying a pittance. Rules may or may not have been broken, but, politically and morally, it looks very bad — yet another instance of the rich and the powerful in Pakistan making off with booty. There is absolutely no doubt what needs to be done: the gifts, each and every one of them, must be returned, they must be valued transparently and, if the rules allow it, the two must pay the fair price for whatever they want to purchase. Anything less and the stench of ‘legal’ corruption will not go away.

Will that happen? The former president and prime minister have kept quiet thus far, perhaps hoping that the furore will die down and they will continue to be able to live in comfort surrounded, perhaps, by their cheaply acquired expensive knick-knacks. They may even feel aggrieved for being ‘targeted’ and ‘victimised’. But the only ones who have a right to feel aggrieved are the luckless people of Pakistan. Gen Musharraf and Mr Aziz were supposed to be different; they were supposed to be clean in office; they were supposed to have been a decisive break from ‘dirty’ politicians. But it seems they were in fact all too willing to climb into the mud and have a good time.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Bloody childhoods[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Tuesday, 07 Jul, 2009[/B]

THE easiest, and now customary, escape from tackling felonies as heinous as child rape is to pour scorn on depraved elements, offer compensation to their prey and move on, burying both the crime and punishment. In some incidents, these last rites involve a real burial such as that of three-year-old Sana who was allegedly raped and murdered by two police constables after she went missing last week. However, a true confrontation involves a battle with the state as it is a virtual accomplice in terminating countless childhoods — civil society’s long and seemingly endless struggle to have the Child Protection Bill endorsed by parliament continues.

The ‘law’ will shield innocent lives by preserving child rights and protection; a subject almost alien to the lower classes. The great contradiction remains the fact that Pakistan enjoys the status of being one of the first 20 countries that sanctioned the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) in 1990. It can be asked then, that, as the authority responsible makes five-year reports on its implementation to the UN committee on child rights mandatory, what the state has to say for its children, and secondly, why the delay in the enactment of the bill into law has not been condemned by international bodies. Also, it is the government’s duty to overhaul the almost non-existent forensic and medico-legal facilities so vital to the dispensation of justice.

Regrettably, there is precious little to not only prevent but to assuage the wounds of despicable offences. Child victims and their hapless families often face a long, arduous road to justice and recovery. The most destructive consequence is that child abuse breeds future offenders as the child and his/her family grapple with the sense of violation without help such as counselling by qualified personnel who visit the home. This can prevent aftermaths including depression, anxiety, low self-esteem and fractured adult relationships. Lamentably, little Sana’s case threatens to be yet another police crime; and if the perpetrators go scot-free, it may once again see the public taking the law into its own hands as it did this time. The journey to justice becomes all the more onerous and perilous when it involves its own ‘custodians’. After all, how long can an impoverished family hold out against criminals who may be members of the police and what mechanism ensures that the police department will not do all it can to wash its hands of Sana’s blood? It is this helplessness that spawns mob justice — it would do the authorities some good to bear previous gory incidents of mob fury in mind.


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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="DarkGreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]OTHER VOICES - Sindhi Press Democracy linked to dispensation of justice[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Tuesday, 07 Jul, 2009[/B]


CHIEF Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry while addressing the Judicial Policy Council linked change in society to the supremacy of law and economic development. Undoubtedly democratic institutions play a fundamental role in the development of a society but the judiciary has to ensure speedy justice. Strengthening of democracy and the dispensation of justice are two major issues Pakistan needs to deal with. In order to do so we have to critically assess our political history, upon which the role of the establishment in suppressing the democratic rights of the people becomes quite clear.

The people of Pakistan have continued their struggle for the restoration of their political and democratic rights but the establishment has repeatedly thwarted the democratic process. It has managed to find elements which raised their voice for the people but were in fact tools of the establishment.

This made the leadership dependent on the establishment and their roles became intertwined. At times elected government under public pressure successfully made pro-people decisions but such decisions were not acceptable to the establishment. No wonder then that military dictators who had little knowledge about political affairs were able to impose their decisions on the people. Dictators suit the establishment.

The establishment has not favoured the supremacy of law. It has hindered the evolution of the political and judicial system creating a trust deficit among the people. Gen Musharraf with the collaboration of the establishment reduced the independence of the judiciary. Judges, including the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, were arrested which made people feel helpless. It was only when an elected government came to power that there was a chance to undo the damage done to the judiciary. The judiciary’s role is important for creating confidence among the people for sustainable democracy.

The country is in dire need for an independent, effective and efficient system of justice which addresses the problems of the people and safeguards their rights. Hence a difficult task lies ahead for the judiciary. Surely the dispensation of justice is the key to strengthening democracy and putting an end to the class-based system. — (July 3)

[B][I]Selected and translated by Sohail Sangi[/I][/B]

[B][U]Global swine flu infections pass 90,000: WHO [Dawn News] 06 Jul, 2009[/U][/B]




GENEVA: Swine flu has infected 94,512 people worldwide and been blamed for 429 deaths since it was first detected in April, the World Health Organisation said Monday.

The A(H1N1) virus has now spread to 136 countries and territories, the WHO said in its latest update, which shows 4,591 new cases and 47 more deaths since the last numbers released on Friday.

Argentina reported 34 more deaths — the largest increase among all countries — bringing its death toll to 60. The Argentine government has come under fire for what critics call a slow response to the virus’s spread.

It now has the third-highest death toll, behind the United States with 170 and Mexico at 119.

Some affected countries no longer keep track of all cases according to the UN health agency, while others do not report for each of the thrice-weekly bulletins.

Australia is the worst-affected country in the Asia-Pacific region with 5,298 cases, followed by Thailand, on 2,076, where the number has gone up by 662 cases since the last report.

Britain remains the worst hit in Europe with 7,447 cases. — AFP

[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="DarkGreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]SC and taxation[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Wednesday, 08 Jul, 2009[/B]

THE taxes imposed on petroleum products in Pakistan are unjust and unfair, and in these columns we have roundly criticised the federal government for putting the squeeze on the poor in these already difficult times. But is the carbon surcharge/tax proposed by the federal government and unanimously approved by the National Assembly as part of the Finance Act, 2009 after 10 days of debate unwarranted? Prima facie a bench of the Supreme Court of Pakistan led by Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry appears to think so, for it has directed the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority to issue a notification suspending the imposition of the carbon surcharge on petroleum products. It is important to understand the events leading up to the Supreme Court’s direction. Days after being restored as the chief justice in March, Chief Justice Chaudhry began to look into the government’s controversial policy of imposing a petroleum development levy to harvest money for the federal kitty. That investigation led the Supreme Court to direct the federal government to reduce the prices of petroleum products to ‘reasonable’ levels in May, as a result of which the government reduced prices by a token amount. Perhaps worried that the legal cover for the petroleum development levy was not strong enough to withstand the Supreme Court’s apparent dislike for it, the government sought to address the matter by legally imposing a new tax — a carbon surcharge on petrol, diesel and kerosene of between Rs6 to Rs10.

The surcharge, and this is critical from a legal point of view, has been approved by the National Assembly. Following the unanimous vote approving the Finance Bill, 2009, Sheikh Aftab Ahmed, chief whip of the PML-N, and Riaz Hussain Pirzada, chief whip of the PML-Q, spoke appreciatively of the government’s handling of the budget process and extended their parties’ support for the budget. So, in a very direct way, the Supreme Court has taken on both the executive and parliament and overruled them on a matter of taxation. This is dangerous ground and goes to the heart of the separation of powers and the concept of checks and balances. Stripped to the basics, policymaking is the executive’s domain, legislation is parliament’s and determining legality is the judiciary’s. In the present case, the arguments made before the court for reducing the price of petroleum products appear to have been largely normative — the poor will suffer, the productive sector will be hit, etc — and not technical/legalistic. While the former are worthy of sympathy and must rightly be supported, the judiciary is not the forum in which they ought to be resolved.

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[B][U][CENTER][SIZE="5"][COLOR="darkgreen"][FONT="Georgia"]PML-Q breaking up?[/FONT][/COLOR][/SIZE][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Wednesday, 08 Jul, 2009[/B]

WHERE the PML-Q is concerned, news of the impending demise of the party as we know it is less a case of being greatly exaggerated and more a belated statement of fact. It’s been a while since a majority of those who won the 2008 election on Q-League tickets ditched the Chaudhries of Gujrat and tried to sidle up to the PML-N at the centre and specially Punjab. The ‘party’ has long since been rendered meaningless by ‘forward blocs’ that dwarf the original cadre which was, first and foremost, loyal to Gen Musharraf. The PML-Q was in fact just another version of that peculiar animal in Pakistani politics — the civilian arm of a military dictatorship erected to add a veneer of legitimacy to the patently illegal. As his ‘partners’ in governance, Gen Musharraf chose the duo from Gujrat, Chaudhry Shujaat and Pervaiz Elahi, and while the going was good all three enjoyed their moment — actually multiple years approaching a decade — in the sun. Effectively, President Musharraf ruled the country, making all the big national security, economic and political decisions. As his apparent lackeys, Mr Shujaat and Mr Elahi enjoyed the trappings of power, their role as arbiters of the political careers of countless mid-level politicians and even the privilege of high office — Mr Shujaat made his way into the prime minister’s office, albeit briefly, while Mr Elahi lorded it over Punjab for a full term.

But all good things must come to an end and after the unceremonious exit of Gen Musharraf it was only a matter of time before the page was turned on the unsavoury chapter of yet another King’s Party. It couldn’t have been any other way — after all, the party has actively criticised the post-February 2008 governments in Islamabad and Lahore for many of the same policies pursued by it on the Musharraf-Shujaat-Elahi watch. Even by the lowest standards of Pakistani politics, it has been a stomach-churning U-turn. Many will celebrate the demise of the PML-Q. But as a people we should only mourn the lost years of another destructive exercise in ‘democracy’.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]US-Russia accord[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Wednesday, 08 Jul, 2009[/B]

MONDAY’S agreement between America and Russia allowing American over-flights to Afghanistan is one of the eight accords signed between the two countries and marks a breakthrough in relations between the former Cold War adversaries. From America’s point of view, the 4,500 annual flights should serve to partly offset the uncertainty of supply routes through Pakistan, because convoys have often been attacked by the Taliban. Washington now needs stepped-up supplies of war material because of the ‘surge’ in American troop levels and the likely expansion of the military operations by US and Nato-led Isaf forces. Supplies through Russia should take some pressure off Pakistan in terms of fuel supply and other material for the coalition forces. However, Islamabad’s role in the war on terror will continue to remain crucial because of the dual nature of Pakistans responsibilities: it has to crush insurgency within its borders as well as coordinate with forces across the Durand Line to stop the Taliban’s two-way movement.

The eight agreements, including one on the nuclear arms cut, show President Barack Obama’s keenness to break new ground in relations with Moscow and remove what a Russian foreign ministry spokesman called the “toxic waste of the past” — a reference to the Bush era, when relations between the two powers were almost as strained as those during the Cold War. Treated by the Bush administration in a way that hurt its national pride, Moscow now wants with Washington a relationship based on mutual respect and equality. The series of agreements, especially the accord on the sensitive nuclear issue, should serve to remove mistrust between the two countries, reflecting as they do President Obama’s continued search for a new image for his country — an image that will be in sharp contrast to the jingoism that characterised the policies of the Bush era.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]OTHER VOICES - European Press Labour defenders trip over own feet[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Wednesday, 08 Jul, 2009[/B]

ONLY a few days after The Times strongly criticised the government for a string of shortcomings … it turned its attention to the Labour Party and hit out at it over the impression it repeatedly gave in the European Parliament election campaign that it had a solution to the problem of … water and electricity tariffs.

It followed the argument by holding it was time to call Labour’s bluff over this, naturally expecting Labour to spell out its solution. This stand scandalised l-orizzont, the pro-Labour daily … and some columnists ….

[B][I]Times of Malta[/I][/B]

...Speaking at a meeting with Labour MEPs, Dr Muscat was reported saying that, in the national interest, the party was prepared to work to bring about a leap in the quality of life for Maltese and Gozitan families. They were prepared to extend their hand, beyond … political confines, and work for the good of the country.

The aim was not just to win … votes…. They were, in fact, prepared to offer solutions…. If Dr Muscat means what he says, then this is exactly what all the uncommitted voters had been expecting to see happening in the country: an opposition that does not stand on the sidelines all the time but is also prepared to contribute to improvement in the life of the people….

Yes, it is the opposition’s duty to keep the government on its toes all the time through its criticism but its credibility is primarily built on its ability to propose sound alternative solutions to problems, not on meaningless sound bites or obstructionist postures. In other words, it has to be seen as an alternative government all the time not … when elections approach…. — (July 7)

[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="DarkGreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Jihad and the state[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Thursday, 09 Jul, 2009[/B]

TWICE this week President Zardari has spoken about the root of Pakistan’s problems with religious extremism and militancy. In an interview with The Daily Telegraph, the president said that the military’s erstwhile “strategic assets” were the ones against whom military operations were now required. And in a meeting with retired senior bureaucrats in Islamabad on Tuesday, Mr Zardari was reported in this paper to have said that “militants and extremists had been deliberately created and nurtured as a policy to achieve some short-term tactical objectives”. The president is right, and we would add the policy was wrong then and it is wrong now. It cannot be any other way. How is it possible to rationally explain to the people of Pakistan that the heroes of yesteryear are the arch-enemies of today? The militants’ religious justifications remain the same; what’s changed is that the militants were fighting the state’s ‘enemies’ yesterday but have turned their guns on the state and its allies today.

Perhaps more than anything else impeding the defeat of the militants today is the inability of the security establishment to revisit the strategic choices it made in the past and hold up its hand and admit candidly that grave mistakes were made. Should we have ever used jihadi proxies to fight the Russians in Afghanistan? Should we have ever supported the idea of armed jihad in Kashmir? Should we have ever sought to retain our influence in Afghanistan through the Taliban? If any of those choices ever made sense, then we should have no complaints about the rise of Talibanisation in Pakistan because we created the climate and opportunity for them to run amok. Blaming the US’s invasion of Afghanistan is no good — the first and foremost responsibility of the state is to ensure the security of Pakistan, and allowing an internal threat to create a space for itself is anathema to that idea. Whatever the catalyst, the fact remains that it was because a jihadi network was allowed to flourish inside the country that we were left exposed to its eventual wrath against us.

The fault is of course not ours alone. The US, obsessed with the Soviet enemy, happily colluded in the creation of Muslim warriors. Our Middle Eastern and Gulf allies were happy to create a Sunni army to counter the ‘threat’ from post-revolution Shia Iran. But, at the end of the day, it was Pakistani soil on which they were primarily nurtured. Because they were raised in our midst we should have always been wary of the extreme blowback we are now confronted with.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Trouble in Xinjiang[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Thursday, 09 Jul, 2009[/B]

THIS week’s ethnic violence in China’s Xinjiang region — the worst case of political disturbance in that country since Tiananmen Square in 1989 — has come as a serious jolt to the People’s Republic. At a time when it has been trying to effect a smooth political and economic transition to a controlled democracy with a semi-market economy, internal instability is the last thing Beijing would want on its agenda. Hence its concern when the street protests staged by the Uighurs in Urumqi turned ugly and more than 150 people, most of them apparently Han Chinese, were killed, followed by rioting by the latter and a crackdown by the authorities. This was not an iso- lated incident of Turkic Muslim Uighurs clashing with the Han Chinese. Last month the two communities had been locked in violence in Shaoguan over a rumour of ethnic assault. Hence the allegations by the authorities that the riots were instigated by Uighur separatists abroad might appear a bit far-fetched, though one cannot deny that the community enjoys the support of its compatriots scattered all over the world.

Ethnic tensions between the Uighurs and the Han Chinese predates the founding of the People’s Republic. Although in 1955 Beijing attempted to pacify the Uighurs by making Xinjiang an autonomous region it didn’t help much because real political power was exercised by the Communist Party that was controlled by the Han Chinese. Moreover internal migration later changed the ethnic ratio and the Uighurs no longer constitute a majority in Xinjiang. Far more disturbing for them is the fact that the Han Chinese who have moved to Urumqi and other cities are better educated and fluent in Mandarin that gives them an advantage in the race for jobs. This has left the Uighurs disgruntled. Some separatist voices have been raised by elements seeking to exploit the situation for political gains. More explosive could be the religious issue, especially complaints by Uighurs that restrictions have been exercised by the Chinese government on their practice of Islamic rites.Given the rise of Islamic militancy in the region, one can understand Beijing’s fears. But it would do well to investigate the matter before reaching a hasty conclusion.


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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Plight of the disabled[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Thursday, 09 Jul, 2009[/B]

IN a country where employment and economic opportunities are a struggle for most people, the plight of disabled people is often neglected. These citizens face discrimination from society at large, where the lack education combined with low levels of awareness about disabilities leads to the handicapped being viewed with anything from derision to fear. Meanwhile, the support offered by the state and its institutions is minimal. Consider that the chief justice of the Lahore High Court recently took suo motu notice of the fact that disabled people were not being appointed to posts in federal and provincial government departments, although a two per cent job quota had been fixed from them. Subsequently, the deputy attorney general informed the court that 800 vacancies in various departments would be filled “soon” against the quota for the disabled, while just over 1,300 people had already been appointed. Meanwhile, the Punjab Social Welfare director stated that committees had been formed for the recruitment of disabled people in 31 districts of the province, and that such committees would soon be formed in the remaining districts.

While this is a step in the right direction, it must be asked whether the federal and provincial governments would have acted similarly if they had not been answerable to the courts. Moreover, merely appointing disabled persons to jobs that are their right under the quota is insufficient. Greater efforts are needed to include the disabled in the mainstream in terms of education and vocational training opportunities. This must be underwritten by a move to change societal attitudes and spread awareness about the capacity of the disabled to participate within the mainstream. Earlier efforts have resulted in the country’s active participation in sporting events for the disabled, such as the Special Olympics and cricket for the blind. Such participation much be widened beyond the arena of sport.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]OTHER VOICES - Middle East Press Task of rebuilding[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Thursday, 09 Jul, 2009[/B]

WHEN President Rajapaksa … declared victory over the Tamil Tigers in May, he had announced that the war was not against Tamils in the country but against terrorists, and that everyone in Sri Lanka would now have equal rights. It was a war in which he had received widespread support both at home and abroad, since the LTTE was branded as a terrorist organisation by most countries. But more than six weeks after the Tigers defeat, scepticism is running high among the country’s Tamils. The reason: Rajapaksa has done little to convince the country’s three million Tamils — and also the 74 million-strong diaspora — of the sincerity of his intentions. The government still has not allowed the UN staff and aid workers unfettered access to the 300,000 ethnic Tamil refugees in army-run internment camps and the government has not announced any rehabilitation package for the Tamil refugees.

Reports paint a grim picture of the plight of refugees in camps — of misery, diseases and an utter sense of desperation and hopelessness. There are also reports that the authorities are building permanent camps to house many of the 300,000 refugees….

The government says that it has set … Aug 8 for elections to representative bodies in the Vavuniya and Jaffna areas, as part of a broader plan to democratise the Tigers’ former territory. The elections will be meaningless if nothing is done to improve the lives….

This is not to say that the Sri Lankan government is oblivious of the plight of Tamils in the country and that it has no plans to rehabilitate them. But the government is losing precious time to win the confidence of Tamils and assure them of its sincerity. One of the root causes of Tamil insurgency was the sense of alienation among the Tamil community and the feeling that their future would be secure only in their own hands.

However erroneous this feeling could be [for] the government, the onus is now on the Rajapaksa administration to make sure that the Tamil community feels secure and confident in the post-war period…. — (July 4)

[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="DarkGreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]PDL ordinance[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Friday, 10 Jul, 2009[/B]

HOURS before the Supreme Court was set to examine the carbon tax on petroleum products that it had suspended earlier this week, President Zardari found a novel way to bypass the court’s inquiry — he issued an ordinance re-imposing the controversial petroleum development levy on kerosene, diesel and petrol, effectively nullifying the need for the suspended carbon tax. Petroleum prices are back to their July 1 levels and Attorney General Latif Khosa told the Supreme Court bench headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry that his government was ‘withdrawing’ the carbon tax, rendering the court’s inquiry redundant. The government may feel relieved that it has averted the Supreme Court’s censure for now and that its bid to raise an additional Rs120bn from taxes on petroleum products is still in place, but its conduct has been egregious. Whatever misgivings the government may have had about the Supreme Court intruding on the government’s policymaking and parliament’s legislating turf, a middle-of-the-night ordinance was not the right move.

Firstly, it was the National Assembly that approved the carbon tax as part of the Finance Act, 2009 and it was incumbent on the government to at least defend in court the tax that it had itself proposed. Flip-flopping on legislative and taxation matters sends a signal that the government is not serious about the business of governance. If the carbon tax was a ‘mistake’ then what does that say about the process by which it was imposed? And if the government needed to keep its budget projections on track — always an important issue and doubly so when the IMF is involved — then why act with such indecent haste? Which brings us to the second point: presidential ordinances are an undesirable way to legislate. The PPP has criticised governments in the past for resorting to ordinances and with good reason — legislation is most appropriately handled by parliament. Making laws is one of parliament’s primary duties, and if the government deemed it necessary to revisit the issue of taxation of petroleum products, there is no better forum than parliament in which to do it. It is not enough to simply keep repeating the mantra of democracy; the government must also demonstrate by its actions that it respects the respective domains of state institutions.

Finally, a word about what lies at the heart of the skirmish between the Supreme Court and the government over the pricing of petroleum products: the unjust and unfair tax regime in the country. The poor are overburdened while the rich keep themselves out of the tax net. Legalities aside, this is a policy that must change.


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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Harming democracy[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Friday, 10 Jul, 2009[/B]

PUTTING off matters indefinitely has become almost the norm where the federal government is concerned. This is not a useful strategy, especially in the case of urgent issues. Though local government elections may not come under the latter category, Wednesday’s decision of delaying them gives the impression that our rulers are seeking temporary relief for a task that is bound to add to their future workload. Also, a gaping hole is left in the working of the system at the most basic level of governance. The decision to postpone local bodies’ elections was announced by Prime Minister Gilani after a meeting with representatives of the four provincial governments. The local governments will be sent packing on Aug 14 when their term expires. They will be replaced with non-elected, bureaucrat administrators of the provincial governments’ choosing. The decision is premised on bad law and order, but there appears to be more to it than meets the eye. Considering our circumstances, no elections should have been possible in the country. But we had a peaceful general election last year in a similar situation. If law and order is such an obstacle to elections, countries such as Iraq and Afghanistan should not even think of holding them.

Perhaps the real reason for delaying the polls lies in the disagreement between the federal and provincial governments over whether or not to have local governments at all. They are also divided on how to go about devolving power at the local level if this is a necessity, and on what kind of powers should be devolved. Add to these, the reservations that the PPP and the PML-N have about the political utility of local governments, and the reasons behind the official decision become even clearer. However, delaying elections is hardly the answer to their concerns and fears. Bringing local affairs, such as building roads, laying sewerage lines, providing tap water etc. under bureaucratic control is, in fact, a big step backwards as far as empowering the people at the grass-roots is concerned. Elections are a must if we are to see greater democracy at this basic level of governance.


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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Towards the abyss?[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Friday, 10 Jul, 2009[/B]

THE report by the Sindh Chapter of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan on politically motivated murders in Karachi should worry every citizen, for it constitutes an indictment of the country’s politicians and gives a fair indication of the kind of violence-prone society we have become. In fact, going by the statistics, there is a menacing rise in the level of political violence. According to the HRCP report, the 100 fatalities during the first six months of this year are up from 74 deaths during the corresponding period last year. The 17-year vendetta between Muttahida and Haqiqi has re-emerged with greater ferocity and accounts for 66 of the 100 deaths. While this should surprise no one, given the two groups’ track record and the bitter differences over extortion rackets typical of the underworld, a number of other political parties, too, were involved in murders, kidnappings and ‘executions’.

Contrary to what may appear, all murders do not necessarily have political overtones. In many cases, criminal elements, especially those belonging to Karachi’s powerful land mafia, use political patronage as a cover to advance their vested interests and kill rivals. Nevertheless, this cannot absolve the political top brass of its responsibility, for it would be failing in its duty if it did not take up the issue with the seriousness it deserves and stopped what appears to be an unchecked slide into the abyss. To begin with, the least the top political leaderships can do is to stop shootouts among their student followers. The campuses are places where one acquires not only knowledge but also character and values that go into the making of a law-abiding citizen. Instead, it is not uncommon to find our campuses turning into battlefields. The teaching community is of little help because it, too, is often divided along political lines.


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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]OTHER VOICES: Pushto Press[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Friday, 10 Jul, 2009[/B]

[B][I]Drone attacks (Daily Khabroona, Peshawar)[/I][/B]

JUST recently the United States fired two missiles from drones in South Waziristan killing 13 people and injuring several others. The attack targeted the camp of Mufti Noor Wali, a close ally of Baitullah Mehsud, in Saroki.

It is common knowledge that Pakistan’s territory has been under drone attacks for the last few years and the rulers pay no heed to this. This is evident by the fact that the US says that they launch these attacks from within Pakistan.

It is regretful that the rulers incessantly talk about the integrity and sovereignty of the country when it is pretty clear that they do not mean it.

Under such circumstances the people of the country should rise and stand united against those who are responsible for the foreign attacks on our nation.

The government should honour the mandate of the people by telling the US in clear terms to stop infringing on the sovereignty of Pakistan and violating its geographical borders.

Otherwise the US will suffer even more in this region than it did in Vietnam. This is an important fact to be kept in mind. — (July 4)

[B][I]Hijab — the martyr (Daily Shahdat, Peshawar)[/I][/B]

SOME Muslims cannot comprehend the fact that the ‘war on terror’ is in fact an onslaught on Islamic principles and traditions.

Afghan Muslims are not the only ones being killed; Muslims living in the West also pass through this agony in the name of human rights and democracy.

Loudly trumpeting the emancipation of women, western rulers say that it is a woman’s right to choose how to dress and that those who object to it should be punished. But the so-called champions of human rights do not let Muslims living in the West dress in accordance with their faith.

The West has declared a war against the hijab and Muslim women are not allowed to cover their heads while attending universities or working in offices.

And now this war has turned bloody: a 33-year-old Muslim woman was killed this month in Dresden, Germany, for wearing the hijab…. Police reached the spot when she was dead with her four-year-old son screaming and her husband critically injured.

One wishes that this incident will awaken the conscience of those Muslims who have been intoxicated by wealth and power. — (July 8)

[SIZE="3"]Investing in women[COLOR="Indigo"][/COLOR][/SIZE]

[B]Saturday, 11 Jul, 2009[/B]

WORLD Population Day today comes as a reminder to the international community that humankind is at great risk from man-made and natural disasters that can be traced to a rapidly growing global population. The UN Population Fund (UNFPA) now recognises the close link between women’s education and health and demographic issues. Women empowered through education, healthcare and employment invariably show a lower fertility rate. This has a positive impact on a country’s population growth and development. A holistic view must be taken of these interacting factors when seen in the context of demographics. In fact, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has expressed concern that the global economic crisis threatens to reverse the gains made so far in these areas because in times of hardship women are the worst affected in terms of education, health and employment. When budgets — national or household — have to be slashed, spending on women is the first to be cut. Hence Mr Ban’s call for supporting the UNFPA theme for World Population Day and to invest in women and girls.

For Pakistan the day comes at a time when the country has much to worry about. First, contrary to the emphasis that UNFPA places on data collection and the relevance of the latter to demographic research, we have not been able to hold the census on schedule. The last headcount took place in 1998. The next was scheduled for last October. It was put off to June 2009 but has now been postponed indefinitely. Secondly, with no accurate statistics available — the demographic and health survey of 2007 only provided tentative data — planning and policymaking in every field of national life is impossible. Thirdly, given the country’s failure to improve the status of women substantially, can we hope to see much improvement in the population sector? Population dynamics affect every sector of national life. The issue of concern is not simply the growth rate and population size, which no doubt are key factors in economic development. Also critical are the age structure, fertility and mortality, spacing of children and migration.

With unsatisfactory investment in women’s education and healthcare, especially reproductive health, it is unrealistic to expect any substantial change in the immediate future. The female literacy rate is appallingly low while primary school enrolment shows gender inequity. Maternal mortality is still high, reflecting on the state of healthcare women receive and also the low esteem in which they are held in Pakistani society. It is the women’s issue that has to be addressed if Pakistan’s population crisis is to be defused.
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[COLOR="Indigo"]Long journey home[/COLOR][SIZE="3"][/SIZE]

MILITARY operations in Swat and Buner have entered the final phase, officials claim, and a few remaining pockets of Taliban resistance will soon be eliminated. On Wednesday, the federal information minister and the DG ISPR stressed that both districts are now safe enough for displaced persons to return home. All of Pakistan can take heart from this news. But it will naturally be welcomed most by those with the greatest stake in the outcome of the Malakand operation, the IDPs who suffered terribly during the conflict and were ultimately forced to flee. The timetable for their journey home became clearer on Thursday when the prime minister told the media that the official relocation process will begin on July 13. Also on Thursday, the head of the army’s special support group said that the displaced will be taken home in four phases. People living in camps are to be given precedence over those taking shelter in schools while IDPs who are housed with relatives in villages will be third on the list. Finally it will be the turn of all remaining IDPs wherever they might be, including those in the care of NGOs.

The government has promised that returning IDPs will receive rations for one month and food suppo[U][/U]rt until December. The DG ISPR, for his part, maintains that most essential services have been restored, the local administration and police are functioning ‘adequately’, and troops will remain on hand to provide security cover. But this is just the beginning of the rehabilitation process and the challenge ahead will be daunting. Considerable infrastructure repair needs to be undertaken. The political administration as well as the local security apparatus must be strengthened to ensure that the writ of the state, once it is restored fully, is not undermined again. Schools and houses have to be rebuilt. Farmers who lost livestock or seed grain during exile and entrepreneurs whose tourism- oriented businesses collapsed under Taliban rule may need grants or soft loans to get back on their feet. Equally importantly, the state’s guard vis-à-vis militants must not drop even momentarily. Only then can the people of Malakand hope to regain any sense of security.
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[COLOR="Navy"][SIZE="3"]Sarkozy’s warning[/SIZE][/COLOR]

FRENCH President Nicolas Sarkozy is not wide of the mark when he says that an Israeli attack on Iran will be “an absolute catastrophe”. His statement at the G8 summit at L’Aquila, Italy, comes within days of American Vice-President Joe Biden’s remark in a television interview that his country could do nothing if Israel chose to attack Iran. In an interview with ABC News, Mr Biden said Washington could not “dictate to another sovereign nation” and that it was for Tel Aviv to decide what was in its interest. ‘Dictating’ to another country is, of course, against the basic principles of interaction among sovereign nations. But the sole superpower cannot take refuge behind this principle to shirk its responsibility and avoid action where a serious breach of international law is feared and where a recalcitrant state’s or group’s behaviour poses a threat to world peace. The G8 summit called upon Tehran to negotiate, but thanks to Russia the conference decided not to slap further sanctions on Iran. The summiteers thus showed maturity when they gave Tehran until September to negotiate, and refused to impose another layer of sanctions on Iran.

Mr Biden’s statement runs counter to the spirit of moderation shown by the G8 summit and to the overtures President Barack Obama has been making to the Muslim world. Mr Obama has also exercised restraint during the West’s Iran-bashing frenzy in the aftermath of the June 12 presidential election, and he has promised a seat for Tehran at the Afghan talks. The American vice-president’s statement, however, is fraught with consequences, for it is tantamount to giving a go-ahead for the attack. The French president perhaps pulled the rug from under Israel’s feet when he said “Israel should know it is not alone and should follow what is going on calmly”.

[B][SIZE="4"][COLOR="DarkRed"]Power sector blues[/COLOR][/SIZE][/B]
[B]Sunday, 12 Jul, 2009[/B]

SO decrepit and inefficient is the country’s power sector that fixing all that ails the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity in Pakistan will take many years. But even if the problems are immense and long-term in nature, it does not mean the present federal government should be exonerated for its failures thus far. Start with the power generation side of the problem. The peak difference between supply and demand is approximately 4,000 MW, a gap the governments hopes to close as quickly as possible by bringing new rental and privately owned power plants on line. Past promises of an ‘end’ to power cuts by December 2009 were always treated with scepticism, but even if it will take another few years to achieve that goal, there is a fundamental question that has not yet been answered: desirable as it is to end as quickly as possible the power cuts roiling the country, at what cost to the consumers is the government acting?

The numbers suggest that the price of electricity that is to be added to the national grid could be on the high, the very high, side, meaning that consumers could have to pay exorbitant rates for the privilege of using electricity in the future. For now the government has wrangled a concession from the IMF to postpone the elimination of the electricity subsidy until December 2009, but what will happen after that? Consumers may find that from a position of having too little electricity they will find themselves in a situation where electricity is available but too expensive to use.

At the distribution end, the government is planning on going down the KESC route once again: privatisation of the eight other distribution companies in Pakistan proper. The Faisalabad Electricity Supply Company is at the top of the privatisation list and could be sold off within the present financial year. But has the government learned from the disastrous experience of the KESC’s privatisation? The government believes it has, arguing that the new process will be transparent, sensible and will ensure that the buyers have clear, enforceable responsibilities and investment strategies. But failing a public inquiry into the KESC fiasco and thorough public debate on the new privatisation policy, electricity consumers will not know, at least until it’s too late, if lessons have in fact been learned.

Good governance is about rolling one’s sleeves up and getting down to the nuts and bolts of policymaking and implementation. Unglamorous as it may be, success lies in the mastering of the details of problems. The government has yet to demonstrate it is up to the task.
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[COLOR="DarkRed"][B][SIZE="4"]Israeli intransigence[/SIZE][/B][/COLOR]

AN Israeli official let the world know the truth about his country’s intentions when he said on Friday that Tel Aviv would not withdraw from the Golan Heights for the sake of peace with Syria. The statement by Uzi Arad, who is considered one of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s closest aides, is among the many Israeli policy moves which have come one after another in a bid to sabotage President Barack Obama’s Middle East peace initiative. It has made known to the world that the Israeli leadership does not believe in the ‘land for peace’ formula. In fact, the reasons given by Mr Arad for Israel’s con- tinued occupation of the Golan are shockingly self-serving. Israel needed the Golan Heights, the Netanyahu aide said, for “strategic, military and settlement reasons … [and for] water, landscape and wine”. Apparently, truth, justice and peace — the principles in which humanity believes and which form the basis of the world’s three major monotheistic faiths — have been ditched to quench Israel’s insatiable thirst for other people’s lands.

Golan is not the only issue where Israel has defied Mr Obama. During his last visit to Washington before the American president embarked on his Middle East tour for the epoch-making June 4 speech, Mr Netanyahu displayed an appalling rigidity in his policies and during the joint press conference with the American president made no mention of settlement activity which Mr Obama wanted halted. In his address to the Muslim world Mr Obama again called for a halt to all settlement activity. But, according to press reports, Israel and America have struck a deal under which Tel Aviv will go ahead with the construction of 2,500 more houses for settlers.

Israel has already annexed Jerusalem and the Golan Heights in violation of international law and various UN resolutions, and it has decided to continue settlement activity irrespective of what America wants. It is apparent that Israel believes in the law of the jungle. It is sure in the knowledge that the power of the Israel lobby in America is on its side, and what Mr Obama wants is of little consequence.
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[B][COLOR="DarkRed"][SIZE="4"]Business of survival?[/SIZE][/COLOR][/B]

ILLEGAL though their trade may be, it must be recognised that sex workers often pay with their lives to earn a livelihood. Last week’s efforts to address the health hazards of their occupation may have taken a long time coming, but must be lauded as a significant step. The United Nations Population Fund reportedly set up a three-day training session for sex workers with the collaboration of the National Aids Control Programme to generate sexual health awareness in the community through ‘skill building and implementation of strategies’. Disturbing figures thrown up by surveys in 2007 revealed that an alarming 80 per cent of these workers have either been abused or suffer from disease. The reasons remain age-old: illiteracy, biological constitution, male domination, poor hygienic conditions in red-light localities, negligible health facilities, and most importantly, the absence of a say in safe-sex practices.

Undeniably the aspect that makes the exercise all the more timely is the issue of the discordant times, fuelled by conflict and global recession, that we live in. Historically prostitution has risen in times of dislocation and become increasingly rampant in areas plagued by conflict. Women become the worst victims of turmoil and economic hardship, particularly when they are bereft of occupation and resources. It is therefore crucial to sensitise the public and policymakers to monitor STDs and formulate precise strategies to thwart them. The media can strengthen such endeavours through aggressive attempts to create an environment that encourages prevention plans. For example, commercials on television need not be overly discreet to the point of becoming abstract for the layman. Also, relevant departments should focus on the demands — the flesh trade being one of them — of desperate times and tackle not just causes but also groups that are particularly vulnerable in these difficult times and that turn to prostitution for sustenance and shelter.

[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Chemical poisoning[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Monday, 13 Jul, 2009[/B]

SO rapid is the rate of degradation that slow poisoning may no longer be an accurate description. As speakers at a workshop pointed out last week, irrational use of chemicals in both rural and urban settings is killing the environment as well as the people of Pakistan. Agriculture is a major culprit, with run-off from farms that rely heavily on chemical fertilisers and pesticides polluting waterways and contaminating groundwater aquifers. Polluted water not only harms human health and biodiversity but also affects agricultural productivity — which, ironically, is what pesticides and other chemicals are meant to boost. Pesticides comprise an overwhelming majority of deadly toxins classified as ‘persistent organic pollutants’, which accumulate in body tissue over time. Despite international restrictions, some of these pesticides are still used in Pakistan and have entered the food chain.

Studies have also shown that fruit and vegetables grown with polluted water can contain alarming levels of heavy metals. At times this ‘water’ is obtained by directly tapping into the effluent discharged by factories located on city outskirts. Improper storage of expired pesticides is another cause for serious concern, as is the release of untreated waste into the sea. Industrial air pollution and vehicle emissions are also hurting human, animal and plant life in a country where relevant environmental laws exist on paper but are routinely flouted. Serious physical and psychological ailments are on the rise in large cities with unacceptable levels of air and noise pollution.

Irrespective of where it occurs, the poor are always the biggest victims of environmental degradation. Farmers, herders and fisherfolk lose their livelihoods as land and water resources shrink. The urban poor tend to cluster in the most polluted parts of cities and towns, and as a result are exposed to serious health risks on a daily basis. The state healthcare system cannot cater to their needs and poor health in turn affects productivity and life expectancy. Children are deprived of adequate schooling as well as the nourishment they need for future development. Among other socioeconomic measures, environmental laws must be rigorously implemented if this vicious circle of poverty is to be broken.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Need for dialogue[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Monday, 13 Jul, 2009[/B]

HOPING for the best can do no harm but the signs aren’t promising. There is considerable anticipation surrounding what could happen on the sidelines of this week’s Non-Aligned Movement summit, where top-level talks are expected between Pakistan and India. It is being hoped, at least in Pakistan, that this interaction in Egypt may help kick-start the composite dialogue process that came to a halt following the Mumbai massacre last year. The Pakistani and Indian foreign secretaries are expected to confer on Tuesday, setting ‘the tone’ for talks the following day between PMs Yousuf Raza Gilani and Manmohan Singh. It could be argued that ‘the tone’ ought to have been set much earlier, not 24 hours before the prime ministers’ tête-à-tête. Things have been left a bit late, it seems, for any breakthrough.

India’s position was understandable in the heat of the moment. The Mumbai attacks traumatised the country and it was soon clear that Pakistani militants had orchestrated the massacre. But what has happened since then is a different story. New Delhi exploited global sympathy in a calculated manner to drive Pakistan to the brink of international isolation. Forgotten in all this was the distinction between state- and non-state actors. India’s strategy began unravelling in May this year when the Pakistan military launched a telling operation against the Taliban. Global and local opinion vis-à-vis Pakistan’s hitherto questionable commitment to the fight against militancy began to change.

Yet India kept up the offensive. It demanded that the alleged masterminds of the Mumbai assault be brought to book, ignoring the argument that taking a shaky case to court would serve little purpose. The release in early June of Jamaatud Dawa chief Hafiz Mohammad Saeed added more fuel to the fire. Again India overlooked the fact that under the law as it stands the court had no option but to order Mr Saeed’s release. Most recently, an Indian defence ministry report openly accused organs of the Pakistani state, not individuals or organisations, of aiding and abetting terrorism in India. Pakistan, for its part, has admitted that non-state actors operating from its soil were behind the terror unleashed in Mumbai. To overcome the trust deficit, Islamabad also needs to demonstrate that its decision to take on militants is not limited to ‘jihadists’ operating within the country or on the western front — those who seek to destabilise our neighbour to the east must also be neutralised. Sincere cooperation in the battle against militancy and dialogue on outstanding issues can point us to a new and healthier direction. The need to talk has never been greater.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]A sad goodbye[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Monday, 13 Jul, 2009[/B]

MIXING food with politics is sure to leave a bad taste in the mouth. The way that ‘food street’ in Lahore’s Gwalmandi area has succumbed to politicking confirms that. A food court overlooked by tastefully painted and well-lit balconies of traditional Lahori houses, the place was the delight of gourmets and a favourite haunt of tourists and other visitors to the city. Now the curtain has fallen on all that. With vehicular traffic allowed through the street during all times of the day, shopkeepers have lost the open space for seating and serving their customers. The lights are out for good it seems. It all started last month with city authorities telling the shopkeepers in the area to pull down their shutters for a few days to facilitate the laying of a sewerage line. Next the officials said the street could no longer remain a restricted area. They said those living in the vicinity were dismayed that their access to nearby roads had been blocked. In fact, a couple of banners hung over the gates of the now desolate street praise local and senior leaders of the PML-N for restoring the people’s right to free passage.

Given that the street is part of a thickly populated neighbourhood, this would sound reasonable — if it were true. First, the street is not the only route available to local residents to make their way out of the side lanes. Second, it is surprising that the residents who haven’t complained for nearly a decade should do so now. Perhaps the real reason for the closure lies in how the management of ‘food street’ has lost the political support it enjoyed before the 2008 polls. It seems that Punjab’s new rulers cannot stomach anything that started during Gen Musharraf’s regime — how could they allow the street to flourish in the heart of their political stronghold knowing that it enjoyed the former president’s patronage? Certainly, in doing away with this popular haunt they might have rid the country of yet another remnant of the Musharraf era but not without depriving Lahore of one of its star attractions.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="DarkGreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]OTHER VOICES - North American Press Global warming: the heat is on US[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Monday, 13 Jul, 2009[/B]

THIS week’s Group of 8 summit has pretty much lived down to the low expectations it generated from the outset, yet it did produce a long-overdue agreement to fight climate change. The club of industrialised nations agreed to cut greenhouse gas emissions 80 per cent by 2050. It was less than President Obama had hoped for — he had aimed to get developing countries such as China and India to sign on as well — but it represents the first time the US has taken the international lead on climate change since the 1990s, and demonstrates to recalcitrant nations that the industrialised world is willing to take responsibility for its outsized contribution to the problem.

Such international pacts are usually meaningless without the backing of Congress…. The clamour from global-warming deniers has heated up as the nation gets closer to taking action, yet their comprehension of climate science hasn’t improved. A particularly common obfuscation from rightwing pundits is the “revelation” that global temperatures have been declining since 1998, even as carbon emissions during the intervening 11 years have risen. — (July 10)

[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="DarkGreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Bordering on censorship[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Tuesday, 14 Jul, 2009[/B]

PAKISTAN is no stranger to ill-conceived laws and regulations that eventually prove crippling to the national good. Take the blasphemy laws, which over the years have become an instrument for the victimisation of individuals and minority communities. Though less pernicious, the most recent example of discriminatory laws is the government’s announcement that the sending of “indecent, provocative and ill-motivated stories and text messages” via email and cellphones will henceforth be punishable by up to 14 years of imprisonment under the Cyber Crime Act. According to the interior ministry, the government is initiating a campaign against “ill-motivated and concocted stories against the civilian leadership and the security forces.” This borders on officially sanctioned censorship of the free flow of ideas and the people’s right to engage in debate over the actions of the government and its institutions. For one thing, the ‘law’ is dangerously loosely worded: the parameters of ‘indecent’ or ‘ill-motivated’ have not been defined. Neither have any conditions been identified under which potentially prosecutable offences will be delineated from legitimate discourse. This leads to the possibility of the regulation being misused to harass and silence the government’s critics. Indeed, the decision carries disturbing echoes of past attempts at censorship, for email and SMS messages are now an important means through which the voice of the people makes itself heard.

By criminalising what is essentially the people’s freedom to debate and comment, the government exposes itself to the charge of stifling political opposition rather than changing or reconsidering policy. Certainly, no person should be allowed to fan communal hatred or incite others to violence. But the laws governing freedom of speech must be specific and tightly worded, as they are for slander and libel. The government would do well to remember that upholding the tenets of democracy, amongst them the freedom of legitimate expression, is an important part of retaining its democratic credentials. The political parties currently in power may tomorrow find themselves in the opposition, facing the sharp end of the stick they wield today.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Child rights denied[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Tuesday, 14 Jul, 2009[/B]

BALOCHISTAN law minister Robina Irfan has called upon the government and parliamentarians to work for the protection of children’s rights. Noting the increase in child labour, incidents of sexual abuse and violence against children, she termed the situation “very alarming” and demanded that the government take notice. Certainly, the minister’s concerns are valid. Although Pakistan ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1990, the rights of the country’s children continue to be violated. Child labour and trafficking, violence in the home, school and workplace, sexual abuse, child marriages and the handing over of underage girls in dispute settlements are a few examples of direct transgressions against child rights that take place virtually every day across the country. Also pressing is the issue of juvenile offenders: the Juvenile Justice System Ordinance was formulated in 2000 but the codes of conduct laid out therein have never been properly implemented. In reality, minors falling foul of the law rarely benefit from their right, as specified by the ordinance, to state-provided legal counsel or alternative sentencing measures. And beyond these issues, there are the less immediately apparent ways through which children are routinely denied their due: lack of education, healthcare, economic opportunity or even adequate food and potable water.

With the country’s population skewed heavily towards the young and a rising birth rate, it is high time that the protection of child rights became a priority of the state and citizenry alike. It is ironic, meanwhile, that the minister has called for the attention of a government that she, in her professional capacity, is part of. It is the task of the country’s parliamentarians, and the elected government they represent, to not only formulate legislation and policy but also ensure implementation. In the case of child rights, the legislators’ performance has been unjustifiably slow.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Why this delay?[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Tuesday, 14 Jul, 2009[/B]

THE delay in doing away with the 17th amendment with all its aberrations is astonishing given that there is a virtual consensus on its repeal. On Sunday the prime minister repeated his resolve to annul the Musharraf-gifted law that is now part of the constitution. Speaking at the convocation of the International Islamic University in Islamabad, Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani reiterated his determination to amend the basic law, pointing out that the present system of government was neither parliamentary nor presidential — a ‘hodgepodge’, as he put it. Almost every political entity is in favour of scrapping the 17th amendment. In fact, the very first paragraph of the Charter of Democracy, signed in London on May 14, 2006 with Benazir Bhutto and the Sharif brothers present, declared categorically that “the Seventeenth Constitutional Amendment shall be repealed”. Armed with this national consensus, the democratic government should have translated this idea into reality long ago. Clearly, the resistance against reverting to a true parliamentary system comes from within the PPP.

The most pernicious part of the 17th amendment is article 58-2b which gives the president the power to sack the government, even if the prime minister enjoys the National Assembly’s confidence, and dissolve the lower house. Ziaul Haq inserted it into the 1973 Constitution by decree and it enabled him to sack the Junejo government. Subsequently, Ghulam Ishaq Khan and Farooq Leghari exercised this power to sack three prime ministers — Benazir Bhutto, Nawaz Sharif and then Benazir again. Incidentally the article makes it clear that the president can exercise this power only if a situation arises where the government of the federation cannot be carried on according to the constitution. In each case, no such situation existed and Ziaul Haq, Ghulam Ishaq Khan and Farooq Leghari used it for purely political purposes. In his second term, Nawaz Sharif had the article repealed. Pervez Musharraf brought it back through the Legal Framework Order.

What is involved now is the PPP’s credibility. Both the prime minister and President Asif Ali Zardari stand publicly committed to the repeal of the 17th amendment. However, mixed signals from the presidential camp smack of dithering and lack of resolve. The president may say one thing in public but his views are perhaps best couched in the statements of loyal functionaries. One cannot but recall here the inordinate delay that went into the restoration of the sacked judges. They were restored, no doubt, but not before mob fury forced the federal government to act. Let the 27-man committee formed last month by Speaker Fehmida Mirza expedite its work.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]OTHER VOICES - Sindhi Press Transfer of LBs to the provinces[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Tuesday, 14 Jul, 2009[/B]

AFTER presiding over an inter-provincial meeting, Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani announced the handing over of local bodies to the provinces and said he would advise the president to issue a notification for the appointment of administrators. Local government was a purely provincial subject which had been taken over by the federal government by including it in the sixth schedule during the Musharraf era. Local bodies helped the former military dictator create constituencies favouring him in order to perpetuate his rule.

Ayub Khan’s entire system of ‘basic democracy’ was condemned because of the way he used it as an electoral college. Zia’s system could not yield any results and slowly died. Gen Musharraf advocated devolution of power and through propaganda he tried to make people believe that this would lead to the provision of speedy justice. Military dictators rely on local government as a means of creating new constituencies of support which is why people view it as the illegitimate offspring of undemocratic forces.

The district government system practically destroyed all institutions. As far as financial matters were concerned, local bodies were made completely dependent on the federal government. Districts were distributed like jagirs — fiefdoms for feudal lords.

Now the prime minister has said the provinces will decide when they will hold elections and whether they will be on a party basis or otherwise. We appreciate this but insist that the elections be held on a party basis. Other reforms and changes are needed so that the people can benefit. For example, conflicts between bureaucrats and nazims have led to numerous problems and the situation is in need of remedy.

Why are administrators being appointed as opposed to holding elections? Only the NWFP has objected to elections due to the ongoing military operation and issues regarding the IDPs which make the polls impossible. Why are they not being held in the other three provinces? It should also be noted that elections held on a party basis will determine the current popularity and vote bank of the political parties. We appreciate the announcement of the prime minister and demand immediate implementation because promises haven’t been kept in the past. Hence arrangements should be made for elections in the three provinces without delay. — (July 12)

[B][I]Selected and translated by Sohail Sangi[/I][/B]

[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="DarkGreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Mangrove plantation[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Wednesday, 15 Jul, 2009[/B]

TRYING to set a world record for trees planted in a single day generates publicity and helps raise awareness of the urgent need for environmental protection. In this connection, credit must go to the Sindh forest department which in conjunction with the federal environment ministry hopes to plant as many as 450,000 mangrove saplings around a barren island near Keti Bandar in Sindh. What is particularly encouraging about this initiative is the emphasis on local participation. Members of the indigenous community will be in the forefront of the plantation drive and, it is envisaged, will ultimately be paid to monitor and preserve the new mangrove stand as it matures. While this initiative must be lauded, it needs to be said that tackling the destruction of mangrove forests is a fight that must be fought on many fronts. New plantation drives cannot be a substitute for the massacre of existing forests, nor can one-off schemes suffice in the absence of a comprehensive preservation strategy.

It is estimated that Pakistan’s coastline boasted nearly 605,000 hectares of dense, normal and sparse mangrove vegetation in 1966. Today this figure is said to stand at roughly 170,000 hectares, though some believe it is much lower. A combination of factors has contributed to this heavy loss of life (yes, it is time we started thinking of plants and non-human animals in those terms as well). Faced with a lack of alternative fuel and timber sources, coastal communities have been guilty over the decades of over-harvesting what were once abundant mangrove resources. A burgeoning population also comes into it, as does destruction by influential developers who can flout environmental laws at will. Then there is the growing shortage of freshwater supplies in the delta region, which has increased sea-water salinity and resulted in the stunted growth or slow death of mangrove stands. Discharge of untreated effluent into the Arabian Sea and pollution generated by port activities are other major culprits. Mangrove forests are rich in biodiversity, serve as marine hatcheries and present a buffer against tidal surges and tsunamis. They must be protected at all cost.


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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Return of IDPs [/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Wednesday, 15 Jul, 2009[/B]

NOW that the IDPs have started returning to their hometowns with the government’s help, we can hope that normalcy will soon be restored to the conflict-hit areas. Nearly 200 displaced families left the Jalozai camp on Monday, while another 26 started their journey from Charsadda. Many said that their nightmare appeared to be coming to an end. Repeated assurances have been given that the areas, dominated by the militants until quite recently, are now safe; administrative services such as water and electricity supplies as well as banking facilities are also being restored in many areas. This constitutes some evidence of the government’s commitment to its stated resolve of facilitating the IDPs’ return.

Nevertheless, it must be recognised that major challenges continue to confront both the government and the IDPs. More than two million citizens were displaced by the conflict and their return to and rehabilitation in the battle-scarred areas, devastated by the use of heavy artillery, will not be easy. The attacks and counter-attacks have taken their toll on the civic infrastructure; the scale of reconstruction required is immense. That services such as water, gas and electricity are being restored in some areas is no doubt encouraging. But beyond this basic step other measures such as rebuilding schools and hospitals are required. Furthermore, a support system for the returnees will have to be put in place until they are able to resume their normal income-generating activities — and this may take some years.

Meanwhile, chances of a lasting normalcy will hinge on the security situation. The army’s claim that the militants have been routed in the affected areas has held so far. However, militant activity by even a handful of the remaining Taliban would be enough to spread terror and severely disrupt civic life. After all, we have witnessed little success when it has come to arresting or eliminating the militants’ top leaders. It is evident that the IDPs are aware of this danger: the Emergency Response Unit had made arrangements for over 2,000 families to leave the Jalozai camp, but the majority of them refused to do so, citing security concerns. Lasting peace in these areas requires not only that civic life be restored to what it was before the militants launched their attacks, but that the earlier position of the citizenry be improved upon. The region needs increased investment in development: better educational facilities, more income-generating opportunities and greater economic contact with the rest of the country. Only then will it be possible to eliminate the risk of disillusioned citizens turning against the state in the future.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Madressahs as a cover[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Wednesday, 15 Jul, 2009[/B]

IT was not a suicide bomber who left 12 people, including seven children, dead in a village near Mian Channu on Monday; it was a huge quantity of ammunition stored in a seminary that blew up, spewing death and destruction. This is just a small indication of what some of those who run madressahs do behind what would appear to be an innocuous, even laudable, activity. The man who ran the seminary, Riaz Kamboh, was known to have militant links, had gone to Afghanistan for training and was arrested twice but then released. Seemingly, the madressah he ran was teaching the Holy Quran to village boys and girls. However, the recovery of propaganda literature and suicide jackets from the debris makes it abundantly clear that he was using the madressah as a cover for organising a terrorist cell which brainwashed and trained young people to become terrorists and suicide bombers.

What happened at village 129/15-L in south Punjab is symptomatic of a larger phenomenon throughout the country, for many — though not all — madressahs have links with banned militant organisations and serve as recruiting grounds and as centres of indoctrination for both boys and girls. Let us not forget that Jamia Hafsa was an intrinsic part of the Lal Masjid empire run by the Aziz-Rashid duo, and it used girls for unlawful activities like raiding and occupying a government library and kidnapping a woman. There are thousands of such madressahs and seminaries in Pakistan, and though all of them cannot be tarred with the same brush the security agencies must be able to separate the wheat from the chaff. That Kamboh’s activities remained undetected constitutes a sad commentary on the efficiency of our security agencies whose performance leaves a lot to be desired. We do not know how many other Kambohs are using madressahs as cells for terrorist activity.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]OTHER VOICES - European Press Crisis in tourism[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Wednesday, 15 Jul, 2009[/B]

THESE are very bad times for the Cyprus tourism industry. Arrivals are down, spending is down, hotel occupancy rates are low and bars, cafes, clubs and restaurants are struggling… but everyone knows there are no quick fixes.

In the last couple of weeks we have even witnessed bickering between the coastal resorts, with the mayor of Ayia Napa implying on radio that Paphos was exploiting … cases of … swine flu in the Famagusta district to attract more local tourism….

The message by the Hotelier’s Association chairman Haris Loizides was clear — things were bad enough, without the media making them worse….

Loizides … said the economic crisis created an opportunity to upgrade the Cyprus tourist product — we could improve our hotels, our tourist areas and the image of tourism in general. This is indeed a great opportunity to make improvements….

But to achieve this we need a proper strategic plan, with short-, medium-, and long-term goals. First, we need to decide what type of tourist destination Cyprus could be. Everyone talks about attracting high-quality tourism, while we have always been a destination that caters for mass tourism. Resorts full of karaoke bars, below-average restaurants and tacky cafes will not attract the high-income tourists we dream of…. Perhaps, it would be very costly to make the switch, both financially and politically….

This may not be a financially viable option, in which case efforts would have to focus Cyprus Mail

on regaining our competitiveness. This might also be very difficult, given the way the cost of living has been rising, but the crisis is more than likely to force tourist businesses to lower prices…. There is no denying, however, that this is an opportunity to return to the drawing table, re-think our tourist policy, take decisions and devise a strategy for implementing them.… (July 14)

[SIZE="5"][COLOR="DarkRed"][B][U]Karachi killings[/U][/B][/COLOR][/SIZE]
[B]Thursday, 16 Jul, 2009[/B]

GOING by Interior Minister Rehman Malik’s statement, it seems the federal government has finally woken up to the Karachi killings, which have led to scores of deaths this year. On Tuesday, the interior minister told a press conference in Karachi that the government intended to form a judicial commission to probe the recent spate of political violence in the city, fix responsibility and take action against the guilty irrespective of political considerations. The last point is important, considering the fact that the Muttahida Qaumi Movement, which is involved in the present spree of violence, is PPP’s coalition partner in both Islamabad and Karachi. The interior minister then repeated that this situation had been created to destabilise the country’s commercial hub.

Mr Malik didn’t tell us precisely how he and the plethora of security agencies he commands can check the present nightmarish wave of violence. ‘Target killings’ is a euphemism for the blood feud between the Muttahida and the Mohajir Qaumi Movement-Haqiqi. It all goes back to 1992 when the army launched a crackdown on Muttahida (then the Mohajir Qaumi Movement) strongholds, bulldozed the security walls that had turned large parts of Karachi into ghettoes and opened up ‘no-go’ areas. Haqiqi rode into these areas on the back of the army. Even though this feud, arising as much from personality clashes as from disputes over extortion rackets, has been going on for 17 years, there has been a surge in recent days, with both Haqiqi and Muttahida claiming a number of casualties among their workers. Because Aamir Khan, the Haqiqi leader, is likely to be out of prison on bail soon, his organisation believes that the Muttahida has gone on a killing spree to prevent him from mobilising his party.

There is some justification in the Karachi police chief’s claim that this is not a police problem, that police resources are overstretched because of the terrorist threat and that what is needed is a political solution. Mr Malik seemed to show an awareness of this truth when he said he had requested the Sindh chief minister to meet political personalities to learn their points of view and evolve a strategy. While the interior minister thanked the Muttahida chief for offering his cooperation to end the bloodletting he should ensure that the security agencies do their duty impartially. Forming a judicial commission might be a step in the right direction. But more than that the federal leadership as well as opposition groups need to exert pressure on the two rival organisations to resolve their turf war through talks before matters take a more serious turn.

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[SIZE="5"][COLOR="DarkRed"][B][U]Right to equality[/U][/B][/COLOR][/SIZE]
[B]Thursday, 16 Jul, 2009[/B]

IN a country where the rights of citizens are abused routinely, the importance of the recent Supreme Court decree that the federal and provincial governments take steps to protect the rights of transvestites is welcome. Discriminated against by virtually every section of society, this group of people is separated from the mainstream because of a backward societal mindset and lack of awareness about physical and emotional gender-related conditions — it must be remembered that the term ‘transvestite’ is used generally in Pakistan to describe hermaphrodites, eunuchs, cross-dressers etc. These people are often forced into the lowest strata of society, subjected to mental and sexual abuse and denied their right to education and employment. Indeed, it is not unknown for families to wash their hands of the responsibility of raising children with gender-related physical abnormalities by handing them over to ‘gurus’, or leaders of ‘transvestite’ gangs, to be raised as prostitutes, beggars or dancers. In the absence of a law or a sizeable forum actively reiterating their rights, these people have been routinely harassed by many, even the police if approached for help.

After hearing the petitioner argue that as a welfare state, it was the government’s responsibility to look after this community, the Supreme Court observed on Tuesday that as equal citizens of Pakistan, ‘transvestites’ should benefit from the federal and provincial governments’ income support schemes such as the Benazir Income Support Programme and that they were entitled to funds from the Baitul Maal. These are encouraging developments and it is hoped that they will lead to an improvement in the financial and societal status of ‘transvestites’. However, there is also a need to address the educational and vocational training requirements of this section of the citizenry. An awareness campaign is just as crucial if societal attitudes are to be changed.

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[SIZE="5"][COLOR="DarkRed"][B][U]Investment troubles[/U][/B][/COLOR][/SIZE]
[B]Thursday, 16 Jul, 2009 [/B]

CAPITAL needs a peaceful environment in which to maximise profits and multiply. In that sense, Pakistan has never been the ideal destination for global investors and it is not surprising that foreign investment in the country has plunged by 31 per cent to $3.7bn in 2008-09 compared to the previous corresponding period. There are many explanations for this drop in foreign investment levels: security concerns, global financial troubles, domestic economic woes, political turmoil and the power crunch.

Nevertheless, rising levels of foreign investment in Pakistan during the last several years, until fiscal 2007-08, showed that investors were prepared to dismiss security concerns if the economy offered them an opportunity to make profits on their investment. That’s why we continued to receive direct and portfolio investment in spite of poor law and order and conflict in parts of the country. Even the turmoil generated in 2007 by the judicial crisis, the imposition of emergency and Benazir Bhutto’s assassination, together with terrorist attacks in major cities ahead of the 2008 elections, couldn’t deter the investors. Foreign investment continued to pour in until the first half of the last fiscal up to December 2008 when it became clear that the economy was shrinking and opportunities for maximising profits dwindling. The global financial crunch too has had much to do with stalled investment inflows. But the major blow was dealt by the eroding confidence in the economy on the back of surging inflation, worsening macroeconomic fundamentals and a severe energy crunch. Pakistan lost whatever attraction it had as a destination for foreign and domestic investors.

For years foreign investors ignored security concerns. But now they are not prepared to invest in an economy plagued by energy shortages and economic uncertainties. Even when the global recession is over and international investors have liquidity to spare for countries like ours they are unlikely to return to Pakistan unless we overcome the energy crunch and remove obstacles in the way of profitability. The government cannot tackle this on its own and must take domestic businessmen and investors on board before it seeks international investment to prop up the economy.


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[SIZE="5"][COLOR="Teal"][U][B]OTHER VOICES - Middle East Press G8 fails to set practical targets[/B][/U][/COLOR][/SIZE]
[B]Thursday, 16 Jul, 2009[/B]

THE important meeting in Italy of the G-8 gathering of the world’s leading industrialised nations came up with very disappointing targets when they discussed the vital topic of global warming. They simply restated two important scientific facts which they converted into targets for themselves, with no hint as to how they were going to be achieved, and no call to the rest of the world to try and follow these targets.

Their first aim was for the world’s temperature to not rise two degrees above what it was in 1900, which was when the world started to use oil and gas in a major way. The second aim was to cut carbon emissions by 80 per cent by 2050. Both these targets are so huge that they need many more specific details on how they will be managed. No one country can affect the world’s temperature on its own.

A target needs a tough but achievable number, which government officials can work to define, so that the public, or businesses, or anyone affected by the target understands what they have to do. For example, maybe we all have to switch to driving electric cars. We have to waste less water. We have to reduce our carbon footprints. All these actions are things that we or our employers or our governments can work to make happen. This is where the G-8 failed by not setting immediate or medium-term goals. This gap now puts a huge responsibility on the Copenhagen meeting on global warming later this year to get it right.

Let us hope that many more specific results emerged from yesterday’s meeting when several significant African leaders joined the summit to push for new funding for farming in the developing world so as to tackle global hunger. They certainly cannot wait until 2050 to achieve their targets. — (July 10)

[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Margallas in danger[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Friday, 17 Jul, 2009[/B]

A PHOTOGRAPH published in Dawn of a once-flowing stream in the heart of Islamabad, now dry and filled with debris, testifies to the incalculable harm inflicted on our environment by the stone-quarrying and crushing activities in the surrounding Margalla Hills. Quarrying in the Margallas has not only caused natural streams to dry up as a consequence of deposits of stones but has also damaged numerous aqueducts, culverts and water tunnels causing water wastage and contamination. The activity is also denuding the Margallas of their green cover, besides accelerating soil erosion and destroying archaeological sites — this is happening even though the Margalla Hills were designated as a national park by the federal government in 1980. The government, with the support of civil society, had in the 1990s managed to curtail stone-quarrying and crushing in several valleys but today the decimated Margallas are a sorry picture of our failure to completely put a stop to such activity, particularly in certain parts of the terrain near Taxila under the jurisdiction of the Punjab government.

With 2009 being the National Year of Environment, the government has shown some resolve against quarry masters and stone crushers. Accordingly, a new high-level committee, comprising officials from relevant ministries and departments as well as representatives from international environmental organisations, met recently in the capital to focus on the issue. Success in saving the Margallas from further destruction will depend on how the plethora of federal and provincial ministries and departments cooperate to put an end to quarrying activities. These include the federal environment ministry, the Pakistan Environmental Protection Agency, the Pakistan Railways, which operates a stone-quarrying and crushing plant in the hills, and the Punjab Mineral Development Corporation, which reportedly grants new quarrying leases and extends existing ones in the Taxila area of the Margalla Hills.


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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]A step forward[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Friday, 17 Jul, 2009[/B]

CREDIT must go to both sides for seizing the moment and breaking the impasse. Events at Sharm el Sheikh on Thursday may not have rewritten relations between Pakistan and India but a much-needed breakthrough was achieved nonetheless. Whether the latest round of talks between PMs Yousuf Raza Gilani and Manmohan Singh will alter ground realities is immaterial at this stage. Equally irrelevant at this point is the role, if any, played by the US in convincing India to take a more flexible stand. Major powers almost invariably find a say in issues of major geopolitical import, and a continued stand-off between Pakistan and India is to no one’s benefit. What matters most is that the two neighbours appear to have found the middle ground and acknowledged that dialogue is the only way forward on the road to peace.

The joint statement issued after Thursday’s meeting between the two prime ministers deviates sharply from the rhetoric of recent months, especially the hard line taken by New Delhi. It was being said that India would try to recast the composite dialogue process, refusing to entertain any issue other than that of terrorism. This single-point agenda now appears to have been abandoned, at least on paper. According to the joint statement issued in Egypt, “Action on terrorism should not be linked to the composite dialogue process and these should not be bracketed…. India [is] ready to discuss all issues with Pakistan, including all outstanding issues.” Instead of describing this development as some kind of victory for Pakistan, we would do well to hail India’s timely recognition that terrorism and militancy should not be allowed to come in the way of improved relations. Mr Gilani’s point that “Pakistan has some information on threats in Balochistan and other areas” also managed to find its way into the joint declaration. This too is indicative of India’s ostensible receptiveness.

Both countries have pledged to “share real-time, credible and actionable information on any future terrorist threats.” If followed through with honesty of purpose, cooperation on this front has the potential to strike a major blow against terrorism, a mutual threat that must be fought jointly. Considerable give and take will be required in the days to come. Pakistan needs to do everything in its power to crack down hard on all organisations and individuals whose goal is to unleash violence against our neighbours to the east. India, for its part, must understand Pakistan’s position at a time when Islamabad is fighting militancy on several fronts. The politicians succeeded where the bureaucrats faltered at Sharm el Sheikh. The elected representatives must keep talking.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Wake-up call[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Friday, 17 Jul, 2009 [/B]

A PROTEST call issued by the Pakistan Workers Federation and supported by other workers’ platforms brought hundreds of thousands of people out on the roads on Wednesday. The government was severely criticised for what the protesters termed as “anti-labour legislation that impeded workers’ access to their rights”, the routine violation of labour laws and the non-implementation of the Minimum Wages Act. Other points raised included the petroleum development levy, the worsening power and security situation, rising unemployment and inflation. The demonstrations should serve as a serious warning for the government, indicative as they are of the growing frustration in society. While the protest rallies in Rawalpindi, Lahore and Hyderabad were massive, people came out on the streets in other cities too, including Peshawar, Gujranwala, Faisalabad, Quetta and Karachi. The level of support given to the protest call reveals how the aforementioned issues are perceived as having worsened the lot of the common man.

There is no denying that generating income is becoming increasingly difficult because of factors ranging from power shortages that have had a domino-effect impact on the industrial and manufacturing sector, to the worsening economic situation which has led to downsizing in hitherto flourishing sectors. Additionally, Pakistan has suffered the knock-on effect of changes in the global economy, such as fluctuating oil prices. To the ordinary citizen, these factors are represented by the ever-increasing prices of essential commodities, including dietary staples. The protests reflect the state of mind of the people who perceive themselves as having their backs against the wall, with no option left other than to push back. This is dangerous, for today’s peaceful protesters may well turn into the violent anarchists of tomorrow. It is essential for the government to address the basic issues of survival — and to be seen to be doing so. There already exists a general perception that the government, despite its installation through a democratic process, is an entity divorced from the needs and aspirations of the citizenry. If this perception continues to deepen, it could spell disaster for the future of not only this government but also the country.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="DarkGreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]OTHER VOICES - Pushto Press Peace in Afghanistan[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Friday, 17 Jul, 2009[/B]

PAKISTAN and Afghanistan have become a theatre of war because of the activities of the world powers. As a result, the infrastructure in these war-torn countries is up in flames. Along with this region, the entire world is under threat from extremists and no one knows how to solve this.

Be it the East or West, the possibility of danger looms large everywhere as images of imminent death haunt the citizens. People in the West may feel relatively more secure than those in the East, economically and otherwise. However, this has not eliminated the threat of terrorism.

No one can deny that unless the world powers stay away from furthering their dirty agendas in Afghanistan and Pakistan, the world cannot be at peace. Peace in the region and the entire world depends on a prosperous and peaceful Afghanistan.

After the US defeated Soviet forces in Afghanistan, it turned its back on Pakistan and its neighbour shattered by war. After that if any foreign power kept up ties with Afghanistan or Pakistan, it was only to serve its own interests or to damage those of others.

Some countries would fuel war and killings by goading one faction against another.This has turned Afghanistan into a pit of fire whose flames have now engulfed the whole region. Today the West led by the US is going on about Al Qaeda and the Taliban presence in Pakistan and Afghanistan. But they forget that had the US not brought foreign jihadists from around the world to defeat the Soviet Union and equipped the Afghans with Kalashnikovs, these entities would have been non-existent.

Being the sole superpower after the disintegration of the Soviet Union, no one can dare stop America’s interference in the affairs of other countries. But if the US continues with its hegemonic and imperialist designs, the day is not far off when weak and oppressed countries will stand up to the West, especially the US, to wrest away their sovereignty.

This scenario is likely to kick-start a new ‘world war’ that may consume humanity…. To forestall such a tragedy, the US should put a stop to the war and killings in Afghanistan and Pakistan. At the same time it is obligatory for weaker nations of the world to stand by those who have challenged the barbarism and high-handedness of the ‘great powers’. — (July 14)

[B][I]Selected and translated by Faizullah Jan [/I][/B]

[SIZE="5"][COLOR="DarkRed"][B]Clarity needed[/B][/COLOR][/SIZE]
[B]Sunday, 19 Jul, 2009[/B]


IT is understandable that India’s prime minister will tread warily at home when it comes to an issue as emotionally charged as relations with Pakistan. Manmohan Singh acted boldly at Sharm el Sheikh when he threw his weight behind the joint statement issued after a second meeting with Yousuf Raza Gilani. Until then the Indian stance vis-à-vis talking to Pakistan had been one of utmost rigidity: all pending matters must wait until the masterminds of the Mumbai assault are brought to book. The lingering trauma of those brutal attacks, coupled with a history of mutual hostility, all but ensured that delinking action on terrorism from the composite dialogue process would be seized upon by critics in India. And perhaps it is not just the opposition BJP or the media that Mr Singh is attempting to appease by going back on his word. The ruling Congress party enjoys a commanding position in parliament and can chart its own course if it so chooses. Does this mean that talking to Pakistan is anathema not just to the Indian rightwing but also sections of the Congress’s own constituency?

According to the joint statement, the composite dialogue and action on terrorism would not be bracketed together. However, shortly thereafter Mr Singh told the Indian press that a “composite dialogue cannot begin unless and until the terrorist attacks that shook Mumbai are accounted for”. He took the same line in the Indian parliament on Friday. Indeed, Mr Singh offered an entirely different interpretation of the pledge to delink action against terrorists from the composite dialogue process. The resumption of talks, he appeared to argue, cannot be a precondition for taking legal action against those who orchestrated the Mumbai carnage. Such reasoning is at odds with the spirit of the joint statement. Ideally, Mr Singh ought to speak his mind with greater clarity.

It is hoped that Mr Singh is merely playing to the gallery and catering to domestic political compulsions. If he has to make the right noises on his home turf then so be it. But nothing should be allowed to derail the process of negotiation which is clearly in the interest of both countries. Terrorism is a mutual threat and sincere cooperation on this front is essential for the well-being of Pakistan as well as India. Other outstanding issues such as Kashmir also need to be addressed. It has been reported that Pakistan is likely to figure prominently during the US secretary of state’s trip to India this week. Any attempt by any quarter to bring the two neighbours closer at this critical juncture can only be appreciated.


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[SIZE="5"][COLOR="DarkRed"][B]Strengthening democracy[/B][/COLOR][/SIZE]
[B]Sunday, 19 Jul, 2009[/B]


NOW that the Supreme Court has cleared the way for Nawaz Sharif to return to electoral politics, the PML-N chief must return to the National Assembly at the earliest. Elections for vacant seats in Lahore and Rawalpindi are on the cards and provide the perfect opportunity for Mr Sharif to enter parliament and take his role as leader of the opposition. From a democratic standpoint, there ought to be no other option: Mr Sharif is the chief of the PML-N, the party that leads the opposition in the National Assembly, and therefore he must now play his designated constitutional role from centre stage. This isn’t simply a matter of form: despite being one of the central pillars of a constitutional democracy, parliament here suffers from a lack of real power and gravitas. One man’s entry alone will not change that, but Mr Sharif is no ordinary politician and his presence in the National Assembly could be a catalyst to making parliament relevant again and restoring its centrality to the democratic project. Rather than meetings in drawing rooms and statements issued at press conferences, what the system needs is serious public debate in parliament and institutionalised decision-making. Because Mr Sharif has been deliberately, and unfairly, shut out from parliament for nearly a decade, his non-presence could not be justifiably criticised — but that has changed now and democracy needs him to play his constitutional role.

It must also be pointed out that from an institutional point of view the fact that the Supreme Court has made Mr Sharif’s re-entry into elected politics possible is not necessarily a good thing. There is no doubt that from the charges to the trial itself the process of the PML-N chief’s conviction was flawed and unfair. But, unlike other high-profile public figures, Mr Sharif opted to let that process run its course and refused to challenge it until recently. So, legally speaking, the Supreme Court had to veer onto difficult terrain in overturning a nine-year-old conviction. It would have been better if parliament found a way to solve what was a political problem disguised as a ‘legal’ matter.


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[SIZE="5"][COLOR="DarkRed"][B]Challenges ahead[/B][/COLOR][/SIZE]
[B]Sunday, 19 Jul, 2009[/B]


THE repatriation on Friday of about 9,000 families to the main areas of Swat increases the number of displaced people who have turned homewards to about 61,000. This is encouraging since order can only be restored to the battle-ravaged zones once the internal refugees return and resume their regular activities. Notwithstanding some initial reluctance prompted by security fears, it is evident that many families have decided to take the chance and return home rather than continue to contend with the anxiousness of living in camps, temporary shelters or with relatives. All this has meant disruptions in education and income-generation, violations of familial and gender privacy codes, poverty and an increased risk of hunger and illness. Repatriation signals a beginning to the process of picking up the pieces of lives shattered by the conflict, and a limping return towards normalcy — for great challenges still lie ahead. While the process of repatriation has gone relatively smoothly so far, only a handful of the internally displaced — estimated originally as exceeding two million — have chosen to return at this point.

A sizeable number of families have not received the one-time cash grant promised to them, and the government must immediately act on its assurance to provide it soon. Having assisted their repatriation, the state cannot afford to abandon the returnees to their fates. Increased efforts are required to repair the civic and administrative infrastructure, set up educational and healthcare facilities and improve local economies.

Most importantly, the areas declared safe must be kept that way. Reports of sporadic militant activity continue to come in and little success has been witnessed so far in arresting or eliminating much of the militant leadership. They cannot be left with any chance of resuming their anarchic activities and the government must institute all the policy changes required to ensure this.

[SIZE="5"][COLOR="DarkRed"][B]Raiwind meeting[/B][/COLOR][/SIZE]
[B]Saturday, 18 Jul, 2009[/B]


BEFORE and during the lengthy meeting between President Zardari and PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif in Raiwind yesterday speculation centred on the possibility of the PML-N rejoining the federal cabinet and something concrete being decided on amending the constitution. But there was disappointment on both those fronts. Does that mean the meeting was a failure? Not quite. Indeed, the very fact that Mr Zardari and Mr Sharif — whose conviction in the 1999 hijacking case was overturned by the Supreme Court the same day — were meeting after eight months, during which they clashed bitterly over several issues, was itself a small victory for democracy. As the joint statement noted ‘dialogue and discussions [are] the essence of the democratic process and … the doors to meaningful and result-oriented dialogue should always remain open.’
Perhaps most promisingly the statement also mentioned: ‘Both sides agreed that the problems faced by the country were too stupendous to be resolved by any one political party or state institutions and required the collective efforts of all political forces and parties.’ Effectively dealing with the threat of militancy, the economic crisis and a structurally flawed system of constitutional governance will definitely require cooperation between what are effectively the two largest national parties in the country.

But, words aside, there is no getting away from the fact that the relationship between the PPP and PML-N leaders is at best complicated and that differences do exist. One sign yesterday was the decision to not hold the traditional press conference and face the media together. The other was the lack of anything concrete on precisely what amendments are to be made to the constitution. Reference to ‘undemocratic clauses’ and the need to ‘democratise the constitution’ were plentiful, but Mr Zardari and Mr Sharif could clearly only agree that the parliamentary committee set up to review the constitution should ‘complete its task in the shortest possible time and propose suitable amendments in it’. Therein lies the rub: cooperation at the centre and perhaps even another ‘national government’ is conditional on amending the constitution to the satisfaction of both the PPP and the PML-N. In theory, the two parties ought to be in agreement on the big constitutional changes because they share similar views on the issue. But the status quo favours the PPP over the PML-N and the former will be keen to extract a quid pro quo while the latter will be averse to making binding political commitments. Much hard bargaining lies ahead, but at least the leaders of the PPP and PML-N are once again talking to each other rather than at each other.


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[SIZE="5"][COLOR="DarkRed"][B]Talking to the Taliban[/B][/COLOR][/SIZE]
[B]Saturday, 18 Jul, 2009[/B]


EVEN though President Barack Obama has decided on a ‘surge’, the US doesn’t seem averse to the idea of talking to the Taliban, albeit the Afghan ones. Bush administration officials had also indicated from time to time that they were willing to talk to the Taliban, making it clear they thought Al Qaeda was the principal foe. Wednesday’s statement by Hillary Clinton is pregnant with possibilities, though the Democratic administration needs to be a little more open about its plans. Nearly eight years after America invaded Afghanistan and toppled the Taliban regime, the insurgency has shown no signs of declining. The militants have surprised the world with their resilience and tenacity, for their major strategic assets — continued recruitment and uninterrupted arms supplies — remain intact. For all their firepower, American and Nato-led Isaf forces have failed to win logistically.

Talking to the enemy has been a good idea universally. So if the Obama administration wants to probe such a possibility and bring Afghanistan’s misery to an end by peaceful means then perhaps the idea should be debated. There are, however, many imponderables. Pakistan, for instance, has learnt the hard way that it is not easy to talk to the militants, that they cannot be trusted, and that they can use a period of truce to consolidate their power and turn their mountainous fortresses into ‘safe havens’ — as demonstrated by the Musharraf regime’s disastrous deal in 2006 with the Taliban in North Waziristan. The same mistake was repeated, though with slight variations, in Swat. Ultimately, it is the army’s firepower, with full support from the people, which seems to be paying off though much remains to be done.

The US secretary of state said America would talk to the Taliban who lay down their arms and renounce violence. This appears to be a conditional approach to talks. Nevertheless, the ‘good’ Taliban should be able to pick up the signal, although President Hamid Karzai is the last person who should differentiate between ‘good’ and ‘bad’ Taliban. The other day he released five convicted drug barons, knowing full well that drug money is a major source of Taliban funding.


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[SIZE="5"][COLOR="DarkRed"][B]Credit for the poor [/B][/COLOR][/SIZE]
[B]Saturday, 18 Jul, 2009[/B]


The federal capital’s administration recently decided to extend micro-credit to rural women of the area by distributing cheques worth Rs 20,000 each among 30 deserving candidates. The money was disbursed under a micro-credit scheme of the national centre for rural development Chak Shahzad. Some 500 women are said to have benefited so far. After the success of Grameen bank in Bangladesh, experiences around the world have shown micro-credit to be a highly efficient method of addressing poverty at the gross-roots level. Many of the poor would be able to improve their financial condition by setting up small, self-sustaining businesses if they had access to credit. Unfortunately, they cannot approach banks that demand collateral against loans. Research conducted by the Orangi Pilot Project in Karachi found that there is no shortage of market demand or productive labour, but the lack of credit forces the poor to buy dear and sell cheap.

Moreover, micro-credit schemes run by the OPP and other organizations show that the loan recovery rate is among the poor, particularly when the recipients are women. The latter tend to place greater value on financial independence and also resources wisely. Micro-credit has therefore allowed women in several places to establish income-generating enterprises. They have set up shops, purchased and reared livestock and bought sewing machines. This has also had effect of empowering women in a patriarchal society. Some micro-credit organizations have, however, experienced difficulties in either disbursing loans fairly or recovering them due to politically motivated demands that individuals of certain constituencies or party loyalties be given preference. This must cease. It is incumbent on the government to not only ensure that recipients of its micro-credit scheme are deserving but also political interference is not allowed.

[SIZE="5"][COLOR="DarkRed"][B]Fata ‘development’[/B][/COLOR][/SIZE]
[B]Monday, 20 Jul, 2009[/B]


IT’S a catch-22 situation: lasting peace depends on development, and uplift work can’t commence in earnest until peace is restored. That is the situation today in vast swathes of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas where the state is struggling to wrest control from Taliban-backed insurgents. South Waziristan is being bombarded every other day and Bajaur, Kurram, Mohmand, North Waziristan and Orakzai are also far from peaceful. Kurram, for instance, has been all but cut off from the rest of Pakistan for nearly two years. When a consignment of cement can’t reach the place, it is easy to see why development work is at a standstill. Many parts of the tribal belt are no-go areas, even for those responsible for their administration. Officials at the Fata Secretariat remain barricaded in Peshawar, and it would be interesting to know how many top officers there have ventured deep into the tribal areas in recent months.

Yet we are told that all the funds — Rs5.61bn to be precise — allocated for Fata development were utilised in the last fiscal year. It needs to be asked how this was possible at a time of conflict. A breakdown of the spending may shed some light for those who are unable to locate precisely where this ‘development’ work took place. What progress has been made on the ground and how much money was consumed by ‘administration’ and the perks that come with it? On Wednesday, the Fata Annual Development Fund for 2009-10 was approved during a meeting held at the Governor House in Peshawar. Of the total outlay for the current fiscal, nearly 90 per cent has been earmarked for ongoing projects. The nature of these schemes is anybody’s guess but chances are that they have more to do with paperwork, ‘strategising’ and expenses incurred in Peshawar than physical work in the field.

Infrastructure development, job creation and the provision of essential services such as education and healthcare facilities hold the key to a healthier future for the people of Fata. If it is to prosper, the tribal belt needs to be brought into the mainstream of Pakistani society. Otherwise this deprived region will remain a breeding ground for extremism. The Political Parties Act must be extended to Fata so that its people are given real choices and true representation in parliament. The archaic Frontier Crimes Regulation needs to be replaced, as promised by the government last year, by a more just and effective penal code. It is understandable that the successful implementation of such measures hinges on the cessation of hostilities. But somehow, against all odds, ‘development’ work continues in Fata.


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[SIZE="5"][COLOR="DarkRed"][B]Pressure on history[/B][/COLOR][/SIZE]
[B]Monday, 20 Jul, 2009[/B]


IT is not difficult to see why there is a clash between attempts to preserve the past and the pressing needs of today. A growing population and its ever-increasing housing and other requirements put extraordinary pressure on historical monuments especially in a bustling city like Lahore where scores of such relics are struggling to maintain their original look and keep their extensive premises. An official report says that more than 3,000 people are encroaching on space that belongs to these monuments. Can the government do anything to rectify matters? Going by an official handout, authorities in Lahore appear all set to launch a massive anti-encroachment drive against those who illegally reside or do business in and around the city’s 124 historical monuments.

All the concerned departments, including the police, are being mobilised to make the campaign effective.

The current drive should take note of a similar effort in 2007 when city authorities moved against encroachers, equipped with a Supreme Court order for their eviction. The resistance put up by the occupants was so strong and the hue and cry they raised so vociferous that the government had to backtrack after having removed only a fraction of the encroachments. Moreover, the little that was removed came back soon enough. In the absence of any official plan to provide the encroachers with alternative housing and business concerns, the latest drive will certainly meet a similar fate. The encroachers will not let this be an easy task for the government. They will resist the demolition squads and wait for encroachments to return even before the debris is removed. Any anti-encroachment drive, therefore, should not just involve bulldozers and batons but also plans to resettle those it displaces. Short of that, Lahore’s past and present will keep struggling to survive in an uneasy and uncertain coexistence.


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[SIZE="5"][COLOR="DarkRed"][B]A costly non-probe[/B][/COLOR][/SIZE]
[B]Monday, 20 Jul, 2009 [/B]


THE futility of asking the UN to investigate Benazir Bhutto’s murder has now become obvious, with the probe team chief saying it would fix no “criminal liability”. Then what is the probe all about? After all, the aim of every investigation into an act of crime is to find out who committed it and give justice to the guilty. As he defined it at his Friday’s press conference in Islamabad, UN commission chief Heraldo Munoz said the mandate of his mission was limited to determining “the facts and circumstances of the assassination”, and that “the mandate does not include a criminal investigation”. This means we have asked the UN to conduct a costly non-probe that in the end is programmed to prove nothing. We are also reminded here of the investigation by Scotland Yard, whose finding limited itself to determining the cause of Ms Bhutto’s death. Again, the all-important question — who killed Benazir Bhutto? — remained unanswered.

The Muslim world’s first woman prime minister was killed at a time when the PPP was not in power. The party’s demand that the UN should investigate the Pakistani icon’s murder was indicative of its lack of trust in the Musharraf government. However, even after it came to power after the February 2008 election, the PPP still had a resolution passed by the National Assembly asking the world body to investigate what indeed was a crime that had stunned the world. One could understand the UN investigating Rafiq Hariri’s assassination. He was anti-Syrian, and Damascus had troops and influence in Lebanon. A situation like this did not exist in Pakistan on Dec 27, 2007.

Before the assassins struck, Benazir Bhutto had written a letter to Pervez Musharraf naming the persons she thought wanted to assassinate her. Indeed given her lineage and gender, she had reason to suspect that, with the elections approaching, the powerful lobby well-entrenched in Pakistan’s establishment since Gen Ziaul Haq’s days could eliminate her. Benazir Bhutto’s murder was a crime against a Pakistani citizen committed on Pakistani soil. For that reason, there is no alternative to a high-level investigation by Pakistan itself.

[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="DarkGreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Checks on madressahs[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Tuesday, 21 Jul, 2009[/B]

THE demand by a group of ulema that the government should conduct raids on “all madressahs” serves to highlight the rising awareness in the nation of the threat to Pakistan from religious extremism. At a meeting held in Lahore on Sunday to observe the chehlum of Maulana Sarfraz Naeemi, the ulema suggested raids on madressahs to make sure that they did not have a terrorist agenda. Last week, we know how a blast flattened many homes in a village near Mian Channu, killing 12 people. It later transpired that the explosion occurred in the stockpile of arms and ammunition which a man running a seminary attached to his home had allegedly managed to store. The seminary taught the Holy Quran to the village’s boys and girls, and under its cover the man — who had gone to Afghanistan to acquire training and was known to the police — was said to be training suicide bombers. Reportedly he also wanted to assassinate the prime minister

While the scholars’ demand for raids can be understood in view of the gravity of the situation, what is actually needed is a system of perpetual monitoring of madressahs. A raid that yields no information about covert activities will be counterproductive and will expose the government to the charge of harassing madressahs believed to be imparting normal religious instruction. Whether it is sources of funding from abroad, propaganda or hate literature, the intelligence agencies need to closely monitor the working of all madressahs. Action must be taken where positive proof exists of anti-state activities. That the demand for raids has come from a section of the ulema is indicative of the fact that the Taliban and their supporters are becoming increasingly isolated because of their barbaric ways and the threat they pose to Pakistan.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Oil spoils[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Tuesday, 21 Jul, 2009[/B]

THE pain being felt by people at the pump has a lot to do with the existing taxation on petroleum products. The oil-pricing formula made public on Sunday reveals that the government is pocketing 24 to 30 per cent of the price of each litre of kerosene oil, diesel and petrol. The cumulative taxes on petrol come to 50 per cent of its ex-refinery price, 39.49 per cent of the price of diesel and 36 per cent of the price of kerosene oil. As if this were not enough, refineries, oil-marketing companies and pump owners too are making windfall profits. According to the Rana Bhagwandas Judicial Commission report on oil pricing the government, refineries and OMCs have raked in billions of rupees since the adoption of market-determined oil prices almost a decade ago. It says the government revenues from the oil sector crossed Rs1tr between 2001 and 2008. The net profits of oil refineries and OMCs also recorded an unprecedented jump during this period, one more indication of how governments here protect the interests of big corporations.

There are no two opinions that the government needs enhanced tax revenues for spending on development and public services. The best way of doing this is to expand the net of direct taxes rather than going the easier route of indirect taxation. The latter always punishes those who are already paying their taxes according to their income or those who should not be paying taxes at all. It also contradicts the logic of withdrawing food and energy subsidies. As the poor need to be helped through direct subsidies, the rich must also be taxed directly, whatever the source of their income.

Just as the withdrawal of subsidies hasn’t won the government many friends, the growing feeling that it is fleecing the consumers is going to hurt the ruling PPP’s public image which is certainly in need of some urgent improvements. Blaming ‘high’ prices in the global oil market will not help. The government must invent a way of cutting the profit margins of those involved in the oil trade for the benefit of the party and the people.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Unprepared yet again[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Tuesday, 21 Jul, 2009[/B]

KARACHI, that unfortunate, creaking city by the sea, has been hit by disaster again. More than 200mm of rain in a 24-hour period stretching from Saturday morning to Sunday morning nearly broke a 32-year-old precipitation record and seemingly nearly broke the city itself. But, as ever, it was not just a case of the unavoidable wrath of nature but also one of human mismanagement and incompetence grossly compounding the original problem.

Take the case of one of the city’s chief tormentors, the Karachi Electric Supply Company. A month ago, storms damaged Karachi’s links to the national grid, rendering the city powerless for nearly a day. At the time, the KESC management explained the situation as ‘unavoidable’ and suggested it had acted as quickly as it could. What it did not explain was why losing one-third of the city’s power must necessarily cripple the entire system — in addition to electricity supplied from the national grid, KESC has its own power plants and purchases power from IPPs. In fact, it should not; however, the system does collapse because KESC’s transmission and distribution systems are dilapidated and decrepit, and for reasons of age and safety the entire system tends to shut down when a major part of it is damaged. And since power plants require a few megawatts to start up, KESC and the city’s

IPPs cannot restart their plants until the link to the national grid is at least partially restored.

This miserable tale from last month had a new twist last weekend — one IPP did not trip after Karachi’s links to the national grid collapsed, but the power available from the IPP could not help restart the other power plants because the transmission poles had also been damaged by the rain. And so the city had to see out one of the worst downpours in its history in complete darkness until the link to the national grid was restored in the early hours of Sunday morning. And it did not end there — parts of the city were without power until Monday. The KESC management claimed it was working on a war footing to get the system fully functional as quickly as possible, but history suggests there are reasons for scepticism. No doubt this was a major crisis — the city’s drainage system was overrun, there was chaos on water-filled roads across the city, getting from one place to another was all but impossible on Saturday night — but had the KESC prepared? Had it taken the predictions of rain seriously and stationed repair crews at the sites that were most vulnerable? Karachiites deserve answers.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]OTHER VOICES - Sindhi Press Raiwind meeting: a pleasant change[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Tuesday, 21 Jul, 2009 [/B]

PRESIDENT Asif Ali Zardari met Nawaz Sharif after eight months at Raiwind. The president reportedly asked the PML-N to rejoin the federal cabinet. On the same day the Supreme Court quashed the conviction of Nawaz Sharif thus clearing the way for the PML-N chief to return to parliamentary politics. This created a convivial atmosphere and Zardari congratulated Nawaz Sharif on his acquittal.

The Charter of Democracy signed by Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif advocates that the political leadership should stand united on basic political issues. The Charter is a significant document as it reflects the vision of national leaders and especially because it promises to stop army intervention….

Pakistan is a country where anything is possible. However, now the political forces should be vigilant and should not invite intervention by non-civilian elements on any pretext.

This may be a long and difficult path but political forces have to take it. Practically speaking, this journey has not started yet. Benazir Bhutto after years in exile concluded that in Pakistan the intervention of non-civilian forces can only be stopped through the unity of political forces.

It is high time that the political leadership introduced a new political culture. The country is presently facing a number of crises including the war against extremists, the Balochistan issue, repeal of the 17th Amendment and an unfriendly relationship with India. Nawaz Sharif should understand that if he comes to power next he will need the PPP to strengthen his government. Both the PPP and the PML-N need to fulfil their responsibilities. — (July 19)

[B][I]Selected and translated by Sohail Sangi [/I][/B]

[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="DarkGreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Home truths[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Wednesday, 22 Jul, 2009[/B]

EVEN though many IDPs still await relocation, hundreds of thousands of refugees are now back home in Swat and Buner. And not a moment too soon for the majority of those housed in makeshift facilities. Conditions at the camps in which the displaced were boarded left much to be desired, and the scorching heat was clearly unbearable for the highlanders. Like the accommodation process, the journey back home has not been without its hiccups.

Transport arranged for the purpose wasn’t always available, many displaced families say they did not receive the cash cards they were promised, and others weren’t quite convinced that it was safe to return to areas that were war zones not too long ago. That said, it must be recognised that the government was faced with a gargantuan task for which it was ill-prepared. Also, with the exception of the US, Pakistan was let down badly by the international community and the ‘Muslim brotherhood’ in particular. Still, against all odds, things weren’t as bad as they could have been. The World Food Programme and its untiring efforts to feed the hungry deserve a special mention here.

Two IDP camps in Mardan were officially closed on Monday as there was little reason to keep them running after the recent exodus of homeward-bound refugees. This is welcome news but the road ahead is bound to be rocky. Although some basic services have been restored in parts of Swat and Buner, it will take time and resources to rebuild infrastructure in these areas. Some schools have already reopened in Swat but those demolished by the Taliban must be rebuilt. Businesses and farms, in some cases, will have to begin from scratch. The most pressing concern, however, is that of security. To this day, Taliban fighters are being engaged and killed in parts of Swat and security personnel too are dying. Some IDPs are refusing to go home until the influentials in their communities do the same. The element of fear has not been eradicated, and it is the duty of the state to convince the people that it will not let them down again.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]A courageous step[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Wednesday, 22 Jul, 2009[/B]

THAT Pakistan’s history may have been different if the judiciary had stood by the law, as Iftikhar Chaudhry said on Monday, is something that hardly needs reiteration. However, his remarks are courageous in that an admission of this sort is rare. The chief justice began by referring to the Tamizuddin Khan case, and though the printed version of the top judge’s words made no reference to any particular judge, one name lurked in the background —

Justice Munir. Over the six decades of Pakistan’s history, many judges have kowtowed to dictators and legitimised their usurpation of power, but it was Justice Munir’s court that set the wrong precedent. By legitimising Governor General Ghulam Mohammad’s dismissal of the Nazimuddin ministry and the dissolution of the Constituent Assembly, Justice Munir’s court dealt a mortal blow to Pakistan’s nascent democracy. Subsequently, other army chiefs were to dismiss civilian governments on one pretext or another, and either abrogate the constitution (as in 1958 and 1969) or make arbitrary changes in the basic law. The superior judiciary either looked the other way or upheld the coup d’état and legalised the dictators’ violations of the constitution. Generals Ziaul Haq and Pervez Musharraf may not have abrogated the constitution, but they mauled it by stripping it of its parliamentary character.

However, the Nov 3, 2007 post-emergency period ushered in a new era that saw an unprecedented struggle by the bench and the bar for upholding fundamental constitutional values and waging an uncompromising struggle for the restoration of the judges sacked by Gen Musharraf.

With the judiciary restored and a democratic government in power, it is time the courts and the country looked ahead. Once in a while even a system overseen by a dictator can produce sensible measures. Consider for example the issues of greater representation for women and minorities, an independent election commission and the abolition of separate electorates. All these were introduced by the Musharraf regime and must be judged on merit.

One wishes our generals, too, had the courage to confess to their crimes and apologise to the nation. In the past there have been suggestions from ex-servicemen that generals involved in dismissing governments apologise to the nation; however, regretfully, such sentiments are always voiced after retirement. Pakistan is now at a crossroads. The task before all sections of the people, especially leaders in politics, judiciary, academia and media, is to strengthen democracy and consolidate constitutionalism to a point where no general would again think of betraying the nation’s trust and arrogating to himself the right to rule.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Power riots[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Wednesday, 22 Jul, 2009[/B]

FROM Karachi to Jhang and everywhere else in Pakistan it seems, power riots are roiling the country. There is no single cause of the blackouts. In Karachi, the KESC claims it has enough electricity to power the city, but that was of scant comfort on Tuesday to those braving a third consecutive day without electricity. Clearly, the KESC needs to work on its emergency response capabilities. In Punjab, the summer heat combined with low electricity production has driven people out on to the streets to vent their frustration against their electricity providers. Systemically, there is a straightforward central fact involved: the peak demand for electricity far outstrips peak supply, especially in summer. Combine that fact with
dilapidated transmission and distributions systems, organisational inefficiencies, managerial incompetence and resource constraints and you get what you have at the moment: a torrid summer of discontent. Help though may be on its way from both nature and man: the monsoon ought to bring down the peak temperatures across much of the country, while power plants currently off line may soon restart and add more power to the national grid.

The actions of the mobs rioting on the streets and causing damage to private and public property cannot be condoned in any circumstances. Yet, there are several things that can be done to reduce the anger felt by the people. First, is there any good reason why any locality should go without electricity for days on end? If not, then the regional electricity supply companies must do better. Second, is there any reason why consumers should not have accurate information about their electricity predicament? There clearly have to be power cuts, but the randomness and, one suspects, unnecessary severity is what irks consumers.

Must violence be the only way for the people to get what they are meant to have?

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]OTHER VOICES - European Press Frank McCourt[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Wednesday, 22 Jul, 2009[/B]

WHEN Frank McCourt’s great memoir Angela’s Ashes was published 13 years ago it was immediately recognised as a wonderful, benchmark memoir. That, however, did not prevent a degree of criticism from an offended minority who felt that his descriptions of Limerick as a dismal, impoverished, rain-sodden and priest-ridden backwater were unjustified.

If we are to be honest … we have to acknowledge that McCourt’s work describes exactly the lot of the poor, the near-destitute and the alcohol-plagued in the Ireland of more than half a century ago. … McCourt’s great, defining quality is the honesty he brought to his writing. … His directness could be crushing, it was certainly challenging. His great grace was that he leavened the misery with the easy humour of a natural optimist.

… Angela’s Ashes … told us things about ourselves that we might prefer were left unsaid and unacknowledged. Even today the legacy of those appalling social circumstances can be seen in all of our cities and prisons. Angela’s Ashes became a million seller, won the Pulitzer and was made into a movie. It has been published in 25 languages and 30 countries. Not bad for a retired, 65-year-old, New York-based, English teacher plucked from immigrant stock. The great redemption and victory in McCourt’s work is himself. After a childhood where survival was not guaranteed … he came to realise so many improbable dreams.

He was the child of immigrants who became wealthy. He was the inspirational teacher who stepped into a magical second life. Through his struggle to get an education, and the evangelism with which he later shared that education, he drew a map for us all. ... [H]e showed us the absolute liberating, life-defining power of education. … Frank McCourt teaches us many powerful lessons about overcoming life’s challenges and realising dreams. The greatest honour we could pay him would be to learn them. — (July 21)

[SIZE="4"][COLOR="DarkRed"][B]Lives in danger[/B][/COLOR][/SIZE]
[B]Thursday, 23 Jul, 2009[/B]


FAKE and under-qualified medical practitioners are an inevitable menace in a country where the needs of a largely uneducated population are being addressed by an overstretched and inefficient public healthcare system. These quacks take advantage of the citizenry’s lack of awareness and exploit the need for medical aid. It is estimated that the number of fake medics across the country runs into hundreds of thousands. The ‘medicine’ they practise includes specialised fields such as dentistry, bone-setting and antenatal care. The state’s poor record in prosecuting such offenders means that the quacks routinely fleece citizens as well as endanger the lives of unsuspecting patients through medical malpractice.

A step in the right direction has recently been taken in Sahiwal, where an investigation was undertaken to identify and prosecute quacks. Under the Punjab Consumer Protection Act 2005, the District Consumer Protection Council has lodged cases against 49 fake medics to be taken up by the local consumer court. The illegal practitioners include dispensers and homeopathic ‘doctors’ administering allopathic medicines — and in some cases veterinary injections to human patients.

Though welcome, the move constitutes a mere drop in the ocean. To effectively rout the menace of fake medics from society, the state must follow a multi-pronged approach. First, practising a form of medicine for which one is not qualified must be treated as a serious crime as such practices endanger public health and contribute in a big way to the spread of dangerous diseases. Stringent legislation must be passed in this regard. Secondly, the state healthcare system must be expanded to efficiently cover all areas, and access to qualified practitioners must be improved. Most importantly, the citizenry must be made aware of the danger in seeking medical aid from unqualified people. It must be made clear to people that they stand to lose not only their money but also their lives.


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[SIZE="4"][COLOR="DarkRed"][B]The RAW dossier[/B][/COLOR][/SIZE]
[B]Thursday, 23 Jul, 2009[/B]


FOR quite some time now, Pakistani officials have been both hinting and asserting that there is an Indian hand behind the insurgency in Balochistan. India, it is alleged, has been using its growing influence in Kabul to channel weapons and funds to separatists in Balochistan, besides funding a training camp in Kandahar for the likes of the Baloch Republican Army. India’s Research and Analysis Wing also stands accused of masterminding other terrorist acts in Pakistan, including deadly assaults on the Sri Lankan cricket team and a police academy in Lahore. New Delhi for its part has insisted, and not without reason, that it be provided with concrete evidence of Indian involvement. This has now been done, with the reported handing over of a dossier detailing instances of Indian interference in Pakistan. The evidence apparently includes pictures of some senior Baloch separatist leaders conferring with Indian operatives as well as details of safe houses run by RAW in Afghanistan. Proof of India’s involvement in terror financing in Pakistan has also been provided, it is said, as have the names of Indian agents who crossed the border to link up with militants on this side of Wagah.

It is said the document changed hands at the recent meeting between the Pakistani and Indian PMs at Sharm el Sheikh, where the two countries pledged full cooperation in the battle against terrorism. The Indian response is now awaited. No one expects India — or Pakistan for that matter — to accept charges of state-sponsored interference in a neighbouring country. It will suffice if the evidence is examined with honesty of purpose with due follow-up, even if it takes place behind closed doors. Stopping the meddling is more important than the manner in which it is brought to an end. It is the final result that counts. If they are rogue elements within RAW who are acting independently, they must be taken to task forthwith. Pakistan also needs to put its own intelligence agencies under the microscope and determine whether a similar cull is needed here.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton urged India the other day to help Pakistan in the fight against terrorism, for the common good of both countries. This is advice worth heeding because the two neighbours are now at a crossroads and need to choose a course that will relegate past follies to the realm of history. It is not the intelligence agencies that have paid the price for our mutual antagonism. It is the poor people of the subcontinent who have suffered at the hands of a money-guzzling war machine.


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[SIZE="4"][COLOR="DarkRed"][B]Solutions or management?[/B][/COLOR][/SIZE]
[B]Thursday, 23 Jul, 2009[/B]


WITH power protests continuing unabated across the country, President Zardari and Prime Minister Gilani have attempted to intervene in the crisis. The president has talked of the need for out-of-the box solutions to the unprecedented crisis while the prime minister has constituted a high-powered cabinet committee which, according to a report in Dawn, will “make a fresh study of the situation and formulate short- and long-term strategies to overcome the crisis”. It is good that the power crisis is attracting the attention of the highest officials in the land and if some good can come out of their initiatives then we wholeheartedly support them. However, some points need to be noted. With summer in full swing, it is not so much a time for crisis resolution as simply crisis management. While power generation, transmission and distribution cannot be overhauled in days or weeks that does not mean nothing can be done in the near term. Where circular debt has hamstrung electricity generation, the federal government and finance ministry can try harder to find emergency solutions. Where the distribution companies have been unable to provide electricity to neighbourhoods for days on end, the government can hold them to account or the local authorities can lend them whatever support is needed to see the next few weeks through.

At the power generation end, the government’s latest proposals raise some troubling questions. Last year, coal was touted as the nation’s saviour, and talk centred on untapped coal mines being able to power the country for 1,000 years. Yet, nothing concrete has emerged until now. Meanwhile, Pepco keeps referring to the 3,500 MW of new capacity that will be on line by December. Pepco also claims that the power deficit on Monday stood at 2,930 MW. Simple math, then, would suggest that blackouts ought to be over by December. But that seems unlikely to be the case — so are the capacity figures being over-inflated or the deficit understated or is it both? The point is that the nation’s power policy ought to be consistent, transparent and effective. If the president and prime minister ensure that, much of Pakistan’s power woes could be solved at the earliest.


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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="DarkGreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]OTHER VOICES - Middle East Press India, Pakistan: back to talks[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Thursday, 23 Jul, 2009[/B]

NO other bilateral diplomacy is conducted with as much fanfare and media glare as India and Pakistan’s. And, most regrettably, an element of mistrust is always there, which to a great extent, has hindered any meaningful progress in matters of mutual concern. Though they agree to disagree on almost all core issues, it is a reassuring sign that they believe in talking to each other….

It comes as a whiff of fresh air that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his counterpart Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani have agreed to kick-start the stalled dialogue process. Now is the time for both the countries to upgrade their level of dialogue and make it result-oriented…. [The] collective peace and prosperity of more than 1.5 billion people of the region [is] at stake.

Apart from doing proper homework, what both countries need to do is to clear the Augean stables of mistrust…. [S]everal spokespersons have taken on the responsibility of commenting on bilateral relationship, thus spoiling the broth. On the other hand, the tendency of talking via the media has not only hampered progress across the table, but has resulted in discomfort and deadlock. The core issues are serious business, and can’t be addressed through knee-jerk reactions and chauvinistic tendencies. We hope the leadership and their emissaries will look into the prospects of reaching an accord, keeping in view the broader canvas of serenity and progress….

Both India and Pakistan need to pick up from the understanding that was achieved before the Mumbai terror attacks … which derailed the composite dialogue process. A host of agreements reached in the domain of people-to-people contact, arts and culture, as well as a liberal visa regime should see the light of day. Moreover, there is no need for cajoling Pakistan in doing more on the terrorism pretext. Islamabad has already demonstrated its willingness to fight terrorism on its soil by going after the Taliban…. Rather, it would be wise if contentious issues were not brought to the fore for the sake of point scoring. Treading the bureaucratic path and hiding behind petty excuses has not helped…. — (July 17)

[SIZE="3"][COLOR="DarkRed"][B]Supporting artists[/B][/COLOR][/SIZE]
[B]Friday, 24 Jul, 2009[/B]


THE Sindh Minister for Culture and Tourism, Sassui Palijo, has said that an endowment fund was being set up for renowned artists, and that jobs would be provided to one family member of such performers. She referred primarily to folk and classical musicians, composers and vocalists. The announcement must come as a relief to such artists. Regardless of the public acclaim they garner, many great Pakistani artists have found themselves living in penury after retirement, sometimes unable to pay for even medical treatment. After their deaths, their dependants have no access to any institutionalised system of assistance. This is all the more tragic since in many cases such artists have become emblematic of Pakistan. Certain poetry, voices and compositions have come to be understood as signifying the soul and spirit of the country, or embodying a provincial culture — examples range from Noor Jehan and Mehdi Hasan to Allan Faqir, Pathanay Khan and Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan. They also perform a service to the state by acting as ambassadors in the international arena.

A formalised system of assistance for needy artists is, therefore, a step in the right direction. However, it must be underpinned by creating an environment where the cultural worth of such professions is recognised, and it becomes possible to earn a decent living from them. The government-funded provincial arts councils have done little to promote such artistic activities, and often seem to be run along the most pecuniary lines. Such deficiencies must be addressed. Meanwhile, there is a need to support those who wish to be trained in the arts of music and composition, which can be done through setting up music and musicology departments in universities. This would increase the employment opportunities available to the masters, while increasing the scope of their fields. It would also promote music as an established profession in its own right.


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[SIZE="3"][COLOR="DarkRed"][B]Extra care needed[/B][/COLOR][/SIZE]
[B]Friday, 24 Jul, 2009[/B]


WILL Gen Pervez Musharraf (retd) or his counsel appear before the 14-member Supreme Court to defend his Nov 3, 2007 actions? Since the bench has baulked from issuing a binding summons, the chances are remote. But what is playing out in the Supreme Court is nevertheless compelling and involves fundamental issues of the law and the constitution and therefore deserves close scrutiny. Beginning with what may appear to be a relatively minor issue regarding the fate of two judges of the Sindh High Court, the 14-member bench has undertaken the scrutiny of the entire gamut of issues raised by the Nov 3 emergency and the subsequent actions that have flowed from it. From the legality of the February 2008 elections and the current assemblies to the legality of the emergency and the Provisional Constitutional Order, high-stakes constitutional issues are being examined.

Two things are clear. One, undoing the constitutional and legal mess created by Gen Musharraf will require a delicate and artful combination of pragmatism and legal principles. Two, the issue is being decided in an atmosphere that is clearly hostile to Gen Musharraf — all of the 14 judges on the Supreme Court bench were victims of the emergency and were shoved out by the then president-cum-general, but returned in various stages after the emergency was lifted. Therefore, we believe that the bench should appoint several respected amici curiae from among the nationally acknowledged constitutional experts to help it make sense of the complex issues before it and to maintain a sense of credibility and fairness in the process.

Consider that on Tuesday the 14-member bench declared that the February 2008 elections were not held under the PCO and therefore could not be challenged. The effect is welcome, not least because there is no appetite in the country to undo what are generally believed to be representative and, by and large, democratically elected assemblies. But then what about the PCO judges? There is a very real possibility that the superior judiciary could be riven on the basis that if the PCO is declared illegal the status as judges of those who took an oath under it will also stand revoked. Should that happen? Since it is such a controversial issue and since it is a bench of non-PCO judges which is holding hearings on the matter, the court should reach out to constitutional experts for their input. Where issues of such high principles, law and the constitution are at stake, the Supreme Court must take extra care to ensure that there is no element of the personal involved.


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[SIZE="3"][COLOR="DarkRed"][B]Folly of drone attacks[/B][/COLOR][/SIZE]
[B]Friday, 24 Jul, 2009[/B]


ON a logistical level, the military operation in Malakand cannot be compared to the ongoing offensive in Waziristan. The terrain differs dramatically and Swat is a settled district whereas South Waziristan lies in the tribal belt. Mindsets in a region where livelihoods are earned largely through commerce and farming have little in common with the frontier outlook of tribesmen unfettered by Pakistani law. And there is another key difference. After years of unspeakable suffering, the people of Swat finally turned against the Taliban and wanted nothing less than their eradication by the military. The point to note here is that the Malakand operation was conducted solely by the state’s security apparatus, with no hint of outside involvement, and this probably had a say in swinging public opinion in favour of the offensive.

The mood is different in the case of South Waziristan, partly because of America’s relentless drone attacks in the region. People across the country are now convinced that the battle in Malakand is Pakistan’s own war but that level of support does not extend to operations in Waziristan. The reason: continued American strikes which brazenly violate Pakistan’s territorial sovereignty. That fight is seen by many as America’s war, primarily because of the death and destruction unleashed by US drones.

In his talks on Wednesday with Richard Holbrooke, the US special envoy for Pakistan and Afghanistan, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani again stressed the negative fallout of American strikes in Fata. “Drone attacks … have proved counterproductive and seriously impeded Pakistan’s efforts towards rooting out militancy and terrorism,” he told the visiting dignitary. The PM is right. American strikes have come in the way of Pakistan taking ownership of the battle in the tribal belt, and given fresh ammunition to elements whose political agenda is more or less limited to stoking anti-US sentiment. Pakistan, as the PM requested, needs real-time intel from the US as well as unmanned aerial vehicles of its own. America’s concern over cross-border infiltration by the Taliban is understandable. But Washington too must realise that it is time to so empower Pakistan that it can do the job on its own.


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[SIZE="4"][COLOR="DarkRed"][B]OTHER VOICES - Pushto Press The core issue is state’s writ[/B][/COLOR][/SIZE]
[B]Friday, 24 Jul, 2009[/B]


PAST experiences show that unless people stand up for development and against extremism in the region peace efforts cannot succeed. Despite army operations in Swat and Waziristan and other tribal areas the writ of the government has not been established.

The state can restore its writ once a sense of security is instilled in the people of the war-torn areas. The destruction of a few ‘training centres’ or the killing of a few militants cannot ensure the rule of law.

Instead of killing the low cadre of militant groups, the state should ferret out leaders that have been spearheading this insurgency and find out how they attract common people. The truth is that today’s Taliban did not study in madressahs as reports suggest that young tribesmen without a madressah education have joined the Taliban. What the state needs to do is find out why the common man is joining militant groups along with foreigners and how to put an end to this. — (July 21)

The plight of women

RECENTLY suicide bombers tried to strike in three provinces to target government buildings and security forces. In Gerdez Taliban attackers were wearing female attire to hoodwink security personnel at a government office. This tactic, which may be new, will cause even more problems for the women of Afghanistan. When Soviet forces entered Kabul in 1979 some people tried to flee the Afghan capital disguised as women.

Once again Afghan women will be forced to show their faces and offer themselves for frisking, especially in areas where Taliban are active. At a time when the rulers are seeking peace with the Taliban such incidents show that the enemies of the Afghan nation are still thirsty for more blood. They kill their own brothers, sisters and mothers at the bidding of others. It seems that the warring factions work under a single plan as they are now justifying each other’s existence. — (July 22)

Selected and translated by Faizullah Jan

[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="DarkGreen"][SIZE="5"]Doctors’ protest[/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Saturday, 25 Jul, 2009 [/B]

DISRUPTION in the delivery of basic services like healthcare can mean the difference between life and death. This observation is underscored by the Punjab-wide doctors’ strike on Thursday when tens of thousands of patients, some of them in serious condition, were unable to get essential medical attention because their would-be healers were out to make their own woes heard. The strike did not come about all of a sudden. Doctors at government hospitals have been protesting for the regularisation of their services and promotions for close to a year now. A few weeks ago, they had threatened a ‘long march’ on the chief minister’s residence. They abandoned the idea after some influential personnel promised that notifications would be issued in acceptance of their demands. By the look of things, the strike would not have come to pass if the provincial government had not prevaricated on its commitments.

The provincial authorities should not have made pledges that would be difficult for them to honour. The government should have instead told the doctors that regularisation and promotions require a lot of money which the authorities did not have and that accepting some of their demands would mean bypassing the Punjab Public Service Commission. This would set a bad precedent and further weaken the already beleaguered provincial services. Thus persuaded, the doctors might have agreed to withdraw some of their more controversial and expensive demands. But the government has chosen to deal with the issue differently by apparently trying to drive a wedge between doctors’ associations and obfuscating the issue. Official media managers are insisting that the chief minister has already regularised the services of thousands of doctors while ‘summaries’ regarding their remaining demands are ready. These tactics will induce a sense of alienation and aggravate the problem, making life even more difficult for patients.


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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="DarkGreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]The deal that wasn’t[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Saturday, 25 Jul, 2009 [/B]

IT was the opinion of this paper that “the Pakistan government is counting its chickens before they’ve hatched.” That assessment was made in mid-May, a few days after the foreign minister proclaimed that a nuclear power deal with France was all but done and dusted. Even though Paris made no such promises, at least not in public, Shah Mehmood Qureshi insisted that “France has agreed to transfer civilian nuclear technology to Pakistan.” Mr Sarkozy, he claimed, said there was no reason why Pakistan should be treated differently from India in terms of access to nuclear power technology. The French take was altogether different, with Mr Sarkozy’s office clarifying that he had offered to help Pakistan improve its nuclear safety capability. This position was confirmed on Thursday by the French secretary of state for foreign trade, who told the press in Islamabad that her country’s partnership with Pakistan in the realm of civilian nuclear energy would be limited to safety and security issues. Clearly the chickens haven’t hatched, and the government must be censured for acting with undue haste and indulging in hype.

That said, France’s refusal to sell civilian nuclear technology to Pakistan smacks of an obvious double standard. India, like Pakistan, is not a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. India and Pakistan both conducted nuclear tests in the ’90s that were widely condemned in the West. A US moratorium on nuclear trade with India, dating back to the ’70s, was already in place and Pakistan too had been placed under sanctions. Yet, in a major deal, the US has since agreed to sell reactors to India while Pakistan continues to be ostracised by the Nuclear Suppliers Group. Significantly, the US-India agreement does not require the latter to cap fissile material production at a time when most nuclear powers are cutting back on the same. And though a system of checks and safeguards have been guaranteed on paper, the American technology transferred to India could be used to enrich uranium or reprocess plutonium for the manufacture of nuclear weapons.

None of this is India’s fault, of course. It pressed its case and used its clout and got what it wanted. New Delhi’s position was probably helped by the fact that, unlike Pakistan, India does not have a history of nuclear proliferation. But times have changed. Pakistan is trying to make a new beginning, and it must be recognised by the international community that this country’s economic and social progress is being impeded by an energy crunch that is worsening by the day. Nuclear power can go a long way in easing the burden.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]Press under fire[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Saturday, 25 Jul, 2009[/B]

THE Geneva-based Press Emblem Campaign has warned of an increase in the killing of journalists around the world. It says that 53 journalists have been killed so far this year in various countries, as compared to 45 in the corresponding period last year. Mexico tops the PEC list with seven deaths. However, Pakistan — where six journalists have died this year — is identified as the most dangerous country for this profession, with the situation comparable to that in Iraq and Somalia. The danger faced by Pakistan’s journalists is hardly surprising. Over the past year, the country has seen a deteriorating security situation. Journalists have lost their lives in suicide bombings and have also been killed by either militants or security forces during the recent army operation in the north-west. They have died in the crossfire and been targeted. It is distressing that the state has done very little to discourage such violence: no conclusive investigation has been launched to probe the deaths of the unfortunate journalists and no perpetrators have been brought to justice.

The fact is that the intimidation of journalists has become routine in Pakistan. The failure of successive governments to either properly investigate such cases or bring offenders to book has created an environment where press rights and freedom are violated with impunity. Indeed, on various occasions the state has itself attempted to restrict journalistic activities and coerce specific members of the profession. The consequence, as the PEC president noted, is a very negative effect on objective reporting. The expansion of the country’s media industry will remain meaningless until an environment is created where journalists can work with objectivity, without fear of harassment or intimidation of any sort. The government must immediately take steps to protect journalists’ lives and livelihoods. It must not only refrain from intimidating journalists directly or indirectly, it should also vigorously pursue non-state actors that issue threats against or unleash violence on press organisations and individuals. Creating a culture of safety for journalists will enhance the capacity of the media to contribute to building a confident and lasting democracy.

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[B][U][CENTER][COLOR="darkgreen"][SIZE="5"][FONT="Georgia"]OTHER VOICES - Sri Lankan Press Another killing: who cares?[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER][/U][/B]

[B]Saturday, 25 Jul, 2009 [/B]

THEY came, they shot and they fled in Galle on Wednesday. Another … opposition politician, Dushyantha Seneviratne (40) has been … gunned down in broad daylight in front of his children on their way to school. His killing has sent shockwaves through the southern province. The killers have not yet been identified and opinion is divided on their motive but the message they have conveyed is chilling: criminals are still capable of striking at will.

Political assassinations are not of recent origin. But one thought the culture of violence would end after the elimination of northern terrorism….

What has emboldened criminals to continue their operations? Their confidence stems from several factors such as political connections, the prevailing culture of impunity and a flawed legal system characterised by inordinate delays and leniency to lawbreakers….

War has ceased to be a stock excuse for the government’s failure to restore the rule of law. The eastern and northern fronts are now quiet and the government must concentrate on criminals holding out on the southern front. It is preening itself on having defeated terrorism but the high incidence of criminal activity is likely to take the gloss off its military achievements.

The government must do its utmost to have the killers of the Galle politician brought to justice so as to prove that it had no hand in that dastardly crime or criminals have not rendered it completely impotent. Let it not be said that a government that crushed terrorism has lost to lesser criminals! — (July 24)

[SIZE="4"][COLOR="DarkRed"][B]Baloch rights[/B][/COLOR][/SIZE]
[B]Sunday, 26 Jul, 2009[/B]


MUCH is said but little has been done to address the problems plaguing Balochistan. The grievances felt by the Baloch are genuine, and they have not only been ignored but exacerbated by the actions of the federation over the course of several decades. The government now at the helm in Islamabad made a promising start when it issued a public apology for the “the atrocities and injustices committed” in Balochistan. That was seen as a statement of positive intent, even by some nationalist forces, but the lack of follow-up relegated the apology to the realm of rhetoric. In the dying days of March 2008, Yousuf Raza Gilani pledged that the Concurrent Legislative List would be abolished within a year. That hasn’t happened. Broken promises are what the people of Balochistan have come to expect from the centre. It is time for deep and intrinsic change.

We are now told by the interior minister that there will be “good news” about Balochistan in a matter of weeks. This is a typically vague statement, short on content and high on hyperbole. Instead of mouthing off, we should be soul-searching. It must be admitted and recognised that, much to the detriment of the ‘smaller’ provinces, a form of neocolonialism has been at work in Pakistan all along. Regional rights over resources have been appropriated by the centre with little dividend accruing to the provinces. Successive governments have colla-borated with tribal chieftains who want to keep their areas backward so that the system remains intact and influence is retained by a chosen few. Education is denied because knowledge is a tool that could be used by the poor to better their lot in life. Industry is discouraged in parts of Sindh and Balochistan because monthly paychecks are likely to shrink the ranks of sharecroppers. The people have been rendered voiceless and the state is a party to this crime.

It is said that foreign agents are fomenting the insurgency in Balochistan, which is most likely true. At the same time, however, it ought to be acknowledged that the state is creating the conditions that can be exploited by outside forces. Given its natural riches, Balochistan should be the most prosperous province in Pakistan. In reality it is the poorest. It was not just the Musharraf era in which Baloch dissidents simply ‘disappeared’. The practice of branding political opponents as ‘anti-state’ must end and the government needs to ask itself whether its actions are forcing insurgents to seek outside help, which is what happened in East Pakistan. There has been enough talk and it is now time to act.


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[SIZE="4"][COLOR="DarkRed"][B]Damani dam breach[/B][/COLOR][/SIZE]
[B]Sunday, 26 Jul, 2009[/B]


YET another dam in Balochistan has breached after the recent torrential rains, once again causing misery and destruction. Although the incident is not comparable to the 2005 Shakidor dam-burst in coastal Balochistan in which hundreds of people went missing or died, the recent breach in the under-construction Damani dam has reportedly affected 15,000 people, submerged over a dozen villages and inundated over 1,200 hectares of agricultural land. The immediate needs of the affected people include food, shelter and medicine. Once the waters subside they will need monetary and other help to repair their damaged homes and rebuild their agricultural lands.

Post-disaster relief is no doubt an important responsibility of the local and provincial governments as well as of the army and relief agencies. But of equal, if not more, importance are pre-emptive measures to ward off a disaster or mitigate its effects. Dam failures during the monsoon rains have become common in recent years in Balochistan which has some 300 big and small dams. Of particular concern is the fact that the threat comes more from new dams. Shakidor dam was built in 2003 and the Damani dam was under construction. Clearly, greater checks, at regular intervals, on under-construction and built dams are in order.

What is also required is structural enhancement so that dams vulnerable to breaching do not threaten communities. A detailed evacuation plan to minimise harm to the communities when the structure fails should also be drawn up. This would entail installing an effective early-warning system and educating communities on ways and means to evacuate their villages when the threat of flooding becomes imminent. Considering the potentially immense damage and loss of life that can be caused by failing dams, comprehensive disastermitigation efforts are essential.


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[SIZE="4"][COLOR="DarkRed"][B]Stemming the rot[/B][/COLOR][/SIZE]
[B]Sunday, 26 Jul, 2009[/B]


THAT technology can help curb crime and the media can make matters difficult for wayward politicians are the lessons to be learned from the Shumaila Rana saga. Accused of using someone else’s credit card, the Punjab Assembly legislator has handed over her resignation to the speaker and chief minister. The CCTV footage from inside a jewellery shop showed her purchase ornaments that were later confirmed to have been charged to the ‘stolen’ card. Next, the media picked up the story continually running the footage and following it up with headlines, commentary and analyses. Three cheers to technology and the media: they can certainly claim credit for Ms Rana’s resignation. This could not have been possible in an earlier age. Without technology providing substantial evidence and in the absence of a round-the-clock media, her case could have lingered on for years, allowing her to keep her assembly post.

Is the marriage between technology’s precision and the media’s activism what we need to cleanse our politics? The answer has to be a qualified yes. Though this has proved effective in Ms Rana’s case, in another instance it has not. Closed-circuit televisions showed Chaudhry Abdul Ghafoor in less than two months picking fights with customs officials and fellow members of the Punjab Assembly. Television channels and newspapers followed up on the two incidents vigorously. But he remains the provincial minister for prisons.

While no doubt the leadership of Ms Rana’s party has exhibited rare political courage by showing her the door, the warts of our political culture are too big and too many to be smoothened by technology and the media alone. Chaudhry Ghafoor’s case underscores this point and indicates that political parties have to put in more efforts to clamp down on disruptive and criminal elements within their ranks. No technology, however intrusive and precise, can stop the selective application of moral standards within political parties. Neither can the media, however alert, persuade political leaders to overcome their reluctance to punish erring confid-ants. For this to happen, nothing less than the drastic restructuring of our political culture is needed. Clearly, the marriage between technology and the media is not enough.