Editorial Dawn
 

[COLOR="Black"][SIZE="6"][CENTER][FONT="Georgia"][U][B]Trouble in Parachinar[/B][/U][/FONT][/CENTER][/SIZE][/COLOR]

[COLOR="DarkRed"][SIZE="2"][B]Dawn Editorial
Monday, 20 Sep, 2010[/B][/SIZE][/COLOR]

The seemingly interminable violence in the Parachinar area of Kurram Agency has spiked once again. This time a water dispute between two of the four main tribes — Bangash and Mangal — has claimed the lives of over 100 people in weeklong fighting that shows no sign of abating. Water, along with other resources such as forests, has long been a source of inter-tribal rivalry in the agency, but what makes Kurram Agency doubly dangerous is that the violence has been thoroughly infused with sectarian hatreds — starting as far back as 1982, though much of the present blame must lie with the ingress of the Taliban in the area in 2007.



For a couple of years the area remained cut off from the rest of Pakistan with the closure of a key road; however, a political agreement signed in Murree and a limited military operation in the area has helped to reopen the Thall-Parachinar road. Limited traffic continues to move on the road, though many people of the area still use the Afghan route to travel to other parts of Pakistan because of the dangers involved. (The Afghan route is no less dangerous: in July, 11 residents of Parachinar who were en route to Peshawar via Kabul were ambushed and killed in Paktia.)

Bringing an end to the violence in Kurram Agency, and the Parachinar area in particular is a matter of the state taking its responsibilities more seriously. The agreement signed in Murree in October 2008 was in part possible because of the initiative of the then political agent of the agency, who has since been replaced. That agreement remains the best hope for the return of peace to the area and as such should be implemented in all earnestness. From the return of displaced persons, some of whom have not returned home since the 1982 violence, to the payment of compensation for property damaged and destroyed to the return of property confiscated, the agreement encompasses many sensible and pragmatic measures. In addition, cellphone services should be restored in the area (at present, locals have to use Afghan SIMs and networks, which adds to the difficulties of life).

By now it should be apparent that the longer Pakistan delays resolving the crisis in Kurram Agency, the more it will slip back towards the sphere of Afghan, and by extension American, influence. Such a development may only further complicate the resolution of the troubles in the area. The sooner the Murree accord is implemented the better. Unfortunately, implementation isn’t the state’s strongest suit.

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[COLOR="Black"][SIZE="6"][U][B]Extreme need[/B][/U][/SIZE][/COLOR]
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Dawn Editorial
Monday, 20 Sep, 2010[/B][/SIZE][/COLOR]

The link between poverty and acts of violence, including suicide, is well-established. Sheer need can lead people to commit acts of both tragic and horrifying proportions. On Friday, for example, a 30-year-old Karachi industrial worker, Asif Nasir, committed suicide after strangling his three minor sons and wife. In a note he left behind, the worker claimed responsibility for the deaths, saying that poverty and inflation had compelled him to take this extreme step.



While a handwriting analysis is awaited, the police say there is little doubt that the circumstances of the deaths were as they appear. And this is not a stand-alone case. In June in Lahore, a rickshaw driver also committed suicide after poisoning his wife and three of his six children, again because of poverty-driven frustration. There have also been cases of children being abandoned at the doors of welfare organisations by parents who can no longer afford to feed them.

These cases drive home the magnitude of the human cost of poverty. It is not too difficult to imagine the compulsions that led the industrial worker to take a step so telling of utter desperation. The country’s plummeting economy and rapidly deteriorating infrastructure translate to exponentially growing rates of inflation, rising food costs and growing job insecurity. Families that could earlier make ends meet, even send their children to school, are now struggling to fill empty bellies. Friday’s tragedy is a case in point. Asif Nasir was literate and his two older sons were enrolled in school. Clearly, however, his Rs5,000 salary was no longer enough to make the future feel sustainable.



As mental health professionals have been warning for some time now, poverty and related issues are leading to rising depression and emotional ill-health in the citizenry. While the state appears to be doing little to address these issues, there also exist laws that make matters worse for such sufferers, such as one that renders a suicide attempt a criminal offence. The death of Asif Nasir and his family should remind us of the state’s apparent inability to protect the most vulnerable, and constitute a clarion call for immediate action.

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[COLOR="Black"][SIZE="6"][U][B]
Financial crunch[/B][/U][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER]
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Dawn Editorial
Monday, 20 Sep, 2010[/B][/SIZE][/COLOR]

The vice-chancellors of 71 public universities are threatening to resign and lock up their institutions in protest against drastic budgetary cuts in tertiary education by the government. Ironically, this sector had until recently seen allocations rising from millions to billions of rupees within five years of the constitution of the Higher Education Commission in 2002. But even then there was criticism that the enhancement was made at the expense of primary and secondary education and to the neglect of technical and vocational education. Although the crunch in funding became evident after the current government came into power in 2008, the recent floods have shifted budgetary priorities even more. Increased demands for more effective spending have made it difficult to justify funding this sector on the scale of recent years.

All this, however, is not to sideline the importance of knowledge and the contribution of higher education to Pakistan’s development. But with the squeeze in public funding, the HEC ought to look into ways of economising on costs while our universities should consider adopting alternative methods of income generation through, for instance, public-private partnerships as is done in other countries. The government has suggested the formation of a multi-agency committee, which will include vice-chancellors, to find solutions to the financial problems of our universities.



Whatever the course of action it decides on, it should not have a negative fallout on the less privileged. Our public universities should continue to remain accessible to the under-privileged. Until these universities can generate most of their income on their own and thus prove less dependent on public grants, it should be the government’s responsibility to continue to allocate as much as it can to higher education. The future health and viability of our universities depends on the cooperative effort of all concerned in successfully overcoming the financial crunch.

editorial dawn
 

[CENTER][B][U][SIZE=4]Ahmadinejad’s offer [/SIZE][/U][/B][/CENTER]
[RIGHT]Tuesday, 21 Sep, 2010 [/RIGHT]

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s views aired in the ABC interview on Sunday should not be dismissed merely as a show of one-upmanship. The ideas it contains show the Iranian president’s areas of interest and concerns and, perhaps, constitute a message which the P5-plus-one, and not just the Americans, should be able to pick up. Iran is angry and feels hurt because it has been sidelined on the events in Afghanistan. It has a long border with Afghanistan, still hosts a large number of Afghan refugees and has deep linguistic and cultural ties with its eastern neighbour.



However, its justifiable eagerness to play a constructive role in Afghanistan has been circumscribed by some realities. To begin with, it has very little leeway with the Taliban. Even though Tehran sometimes hobnobbed with the dark horse that is Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, Iran was closely identified with the anti-Taliban Northern Alliance and the Wahdat group. Today, the Taliban may share Tehran’s anti-American hard line, but the two have little else in common. Both would be happy to see the Americans quit, but beyond that, especially on the key issue — the post-America scenario — Iran and the Taliban leadership are unlikely to see eye to eye.

There are added problems for Iran when we look at what Afghanistan’s other neighbours, especially Pakistan, want. Again, notwithstanding the traditional friendship that has characterised the relationship between Islamabad and Tehran, it would be wrong to assume that the Ahmadinejad regime doesn’t know what Pakistan’s aims and concerns in Afghanistan are. Those aims are too obvious and stem from the Pakistani establishment’s overt and covert involvement in Afghan affairs since the Soviet invasion of December 1979. Besides, America and Pakistan stand committed to a negotiated settlement, and both can reach the Taliban themselves without Tehran’s intercession.



All one can say is that Mr Ahmadinejad is waving an olive branch and telling Washington he doesn’t wish to upset America’s exit strategy, but as a quid pro quo he wants western concessions on his nuclear programme. Given Israel’s anxiety about Iran’s nuclear programme, it would be unrealistic to expect the US to relent.

Editorial: DAWN
 

[COLOR="Black"][SIZE="6"][CENTER][U][FONT="Georgia"][B][I]Petrol scarcity[/I][/B][/FONT][/U][/CENTER][/SIZE][/COLOR]

[COLOR="Blue"][SIZE="2"][B]Dawn Editorial
Tuesday, 21 Sep, 2010[/B][/SIZE][/COLOR]

Govt allows introduction of private high treason bill in NA
All around us there is evidence of the government’s failure to protect Pakistani citizens from shortages of every sort. Long grappling with the persistent food and power shortages, the hapless consumers are now faced with the acute scarcity of petrol in major Punjab cities and some so-called remote areas in the rest of the country. Most petrol pumps in Punjab remained closed for the last several days because of the continuing disruption of supplies. At other petrol pumps motorists have been forced to stand in long lines for hours on end to get their vehicles’ tanks filled.



In some cases, according to media reports, the consumers have been forced to pay almost double the price to keep daily life moving. The fact that the petrol shortages have badly hit the low-income segments of society, dependent on their motorbikes, means that many will not be able to go to work and their children will have to skip schools. It also means that the supplies of vegetables, fruit and other items of daily use for urban consumers will be disrupted, pushing prices upwards.

Meanwhile, the government is conspicuous by its absence. There is no effort to alleviate the crisis. Until a couple of days ago it was reluctant to even acknowledge that there was a crisis and claimed that the country had enough petrol stocks to meet its requirements for 18 days. Officials have pinned the blame on the closure of refineries and transportation problems caused by the widespread destruction of the road infrastructure by the floods as well as the failure of oil marketing companies to build storage facilities in petrol-scarce areas during the current crisis. Other factors like the corporate circular debt in Pakistan’s collapsing energy sector are also at work.

Will the government’s intention to deregulate the price of petroleum products, diesel excluded, to allow refineries to ‘improve’ their financial situation help matters? Officialdom contends that this would help streamline upcountry petrol supplies over the next few days. But it is unlikely to solve the problem, at least not immediately. Apparently, the government is using the crisis for the benefit of the refineries alone. It is unlikely the government will take action against marketing companies which have failed to build storage facilities to avert such a situation. We must ask why it is so slow to intervene when those it governs face a crisis.
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[COLOR="Black"][SIZE="6"][CENTER][FONT="Georgia"][U][B]Many faces of PML[/B][/U][/FONT][/CENTER][/SIZE][/COLOR]

[COLOR="Sienna"][SIZE="2"][B]Tuesday, 21 Sep, 2010[/B][/SIZE][/COLOR]

The news that the Chaudhry Shujaat-led PML-Q has merged with Pir Pagara’s Functional League has been met by many political observers with a sense of bemused scepticism. Pir Sahib will lead the new entity, which has been dubbed the All Pakistan Muslim League. Though political parties in Pakistan split at the drop of a hat, the Pakistan Muslim League is perhaps the party which has seen the most splits, mergers, unifications and factions in the history of this country.



Starting from the Ayub era, the party has been broken up into so many factions that it is difficult to keep count.



Military dictators including Ayub Khan, Ziaul Haq and Pervez Musharraf have all used the Muslim League banner to cobble together a willing coalition of political malcontents, opportunists and turncoats that could offer a democratic fig-leaf to their authoritarian adventurism. The countless variants of the League have had different shelf lives, with some outliving their patrons politically.

As for the latest development, the PML-N is reportedly keeping a close eye on things. The Q-League has given it a tough time in parts of Punjab and perhaps Chaudhry Shujaat and Mushahid Hussain are trying to create a constituency in Sindh by merging with Pir Pagara’s faction. This is probably not designed to dent the PPP’s vote bank in Sindh but to eliminate the chances of the N-League gaining a foothold in the province. As it is, PML-N has hardly been active in Sindh’s flood-affected areas. There is also the question of name, for the APML tag already appears to be taken: Gen Musharraf plans to launch his own party of that name on Oct 1. Ultimately, it is difficult to see what great, long-lasting impact the merger will have on national politics as none of those involved have sterling democratic credentials.

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Editorial: DAWN
 

[COLOR="Black"][SIZE="6"][CENTER][FONT="Georgia"][U][B]Karachi’s trauma[/B][/U][/FONT][/CENTER][/SIZE][/COLOR]

[COLOR="Sienna"][SIZE="2"][B]Wednesday, 22 Sep, 2010[/B][/SIZE][/COLOR]

IT is now well-nigh impossible to detect a pattern in the anarchy sweeping Karachi. Ethnic, sectarian and political lines are getting blurred and the one consistent reality is the rising number of fatalities. Those who have fallen in several days of violence include activists of the MQM, ANP and Ahle Sunnat Wal Jamaat, the new name for the proscribed Sipah-i-Sahaba, besides pedestrians caught in crossfire. On Monday, the violence was not citywide, occurring in some of the most congested zones known to be politically sensitive. But the fallout turned the life of millions of people topsy-turvy, with shootouts and fires blocking traffic and closing shopping centres for hours. On the whole, acts of arson rocked no less than 16 areas, some of them as far away from each other as Malir and Ibrahim Hyderi. Whether the violence in one area was a reaction to similar incidents elsewhere or whether somebody was trying to ignite ethnic and sectarian violence is a question begging an answer.

A new feature of the recent violence was the exchange of fire between the Rangers and a Shia group in Rizvia Society for two hours. This was the day’s second shootout involving the Rangers. Earlier they claimed they had been fired upon at Dak Khana in Liaquatabad and that they had to fire in self-defence. One wishes the Rangers exercised a little restraint, caught up though they indeed are in a difficult situation, whose chief characteristic is the absence of a proactive role by civil society and the people’s representatives. Addressing a press conference, Dr Farooq Sattar blamed the federal interior ministry and the Sindh home department for the bloodshed. While doing so, the MQM leader seems to forget that his own party is part of coalition governments in Karachi and Islamabad and thus should share the blame for what now has become a way of life for most residents of Karachi.

While the security agencies’ failure to anticipate and pre-empt mischief is obvious, all political parties, especially those in power, seem to be mere spectators to the gory drama on Karachi’s streets. On Aug 7, the PPP,

MQM and ANP signed a 10-point ‘code of conduct’ in a bid to rise above petty politics and work jointly to give a sense of security and peace to its tormented citizens. They even pledged to establish coordination committees at local levels. However, the fact that it is gunmen who rule Karachi and hold its people hostage to their criminality confirms that the code was a mere political stunt designed to hoodwink electors.

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[COLOR="Black"][SIZE="6"][CENTER][FONT="Georgia"][U][B]Power sector reforms[/B][/U][/FONT][/CENTER][/SIZE][/COLOR]

[COLOR="Sienna"][SIZE="2"][B]Dawn Editorial
Wednesday, 22 Sep, 2010[/B][/SIZE][/COLOR]


Two and a half years since ascending to power, the political government in Islamabad still appears to have little idea about how to address the crisis in the power sector. True, many of the reasons for the crisis are structural and pre-date the present government, but the fact remains this administration inherited a mess that through inaction it has helped turn into an even bigger mess. A report in this paper yesterday suggests that at long last, the next step in the privatisation and deregulation of the power sector may finally be undertaken — though even at this point it is not clear which reforms will be pushed through and which will remain tied up in bureaucratic red tape.



Some history here is necessary. Nearly two decades ago, the government came to the late realisation that a power sector owned and operated by the state was inefficient and resulted in under-investment in power generation, transmission and distribution systems, leading to ‘loadshedding’. It took several more years before the creation of the Pakistan Electric Power Company (Pepco), which was tasked with splitting the thermal-power side of the vertically integrated behemoth Wapda into a dozen entities that were to be made ready for self-sufficiency and eventual privatisation.

Fast forward a dozen years, and now there is talk of disbanding Pepco itself — because of its failure to implement the tasks it was charged with and because it has, according to some officials, itself become a roadblock to reform and restructuring. Pepco officials hotly deny such charges, pointing out, with some degree of truth it must be said, that officials of the water and power ministry have frequently interfered in Pepco’s operations and have not allowed it a free hand, in all likelihood because were Pepco to succeed, the influence and power of the ministry, and Wapda too, would diminish. Bureaucratic and political turf wars are of course not unique to Pakistan but the difference here is that the power sector is on the verge of collapse. Plans to restructure the sector already exist. What’s needed is the political will to do so.

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[COLOR="Black"][SIZE="6"][CENTER][FONT="Georgia"][U][B]Jirga ‘justice’[/B][/U][/FONT][/CENTER][/SIZE][/COLOR]

[COLOR="DarkRed"][SIZE="2"][B]Wednesday, 22 Sep, 2010[/B][/SIZE][/COLOR]

VIOLENCE against vulnerable sections of society such as women and children, and the denial of their constitutional rights, continues to characterise Pakistani society irrespective, it seems, of all efforts to alter the situation. Often, this is because of lack of awareness and the enforcement of relevant laws. Consider, for example, a jirga convened on Sunday in Kaloo Jatoi village near Shikarpur, which ordered the marriage of two minor girls as a dispute-settlement mechanism. The complainant, a Jatoi tribesman, accused two men of having had an illicit relationship with his two wives, whom he killed a month ago. The jirga decided that two girls from the accused men’s families be married into the complainant’s family as compensation. Consequently, 12-year-old Sadia was forced to marry a man nearly 30 years her senior, while 9-year-old Shami was married to a teenaged boy.

This system of dispute settlement, where women are used as currency, is considered traditional in some areas but can be held to violate a number of laws. These include legislation against underage marriages, specific protection for children and women, constitutional protection of human rights and the legislative freedom to consensual marriage. Additionally, jirgas themselves were branded as unconstitutional by the Sindh High Court in 2004, which ruled that they usurp the power of the state. In the past, there have been many cases where jirga rulings have led to gross rights’ abuses. Almost invariably, the victims have been women and children, though men have suffered as well. Jirgas have ordered murder, rape and public humiliation as ‘fitting’ punishment. These practices will not end until the state makes it a priority to take legal action against those who constitute the jirgas and those who implement unlawful punishments. It is time that laws that are available on the books are stringently enforced.

Editorial: DAWN
 

[COLOR="Black"][SIZE="6"][CENTER][FONT="Georgia"][U][B]NRO travails[/B][/U][/FONT][/CENTER][/SIZE][/COLOR]
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Dawn Editorial
Thursday, 23 Sep, 2010[/B][/SIZE][/COLOR]


Another week and another round in the judiciary-executive clash is unfolding as we speak. The latest revolves around the selection of erstwhile NRO beneficiaries for government-appointed posts and around the leadership of the National Accountability Bureau. By now it is relatively clear the government has little interest in implementing the NRO judgment. If the political difficultly of a PPP-led government proceeding against senior leaders of the party, including the co-chairman and President of Pakistan, is understandable to an extent from a political point of view, the insistence of the government on appointing NRO-tainted officials to important jobs in the public sector is inexcusable. Was no one else available to lead the OGDCL other than Adnan Khwaja? Absolutely not.



Mr Khwaja’s replacement as managing director has already been nominated and appears to have vast experience in the hydrocarbon field. Surely, with public-sector enterprises draining away Rs250bn annually at a time when the state is struggling to rein in the budget deficit, the leadership of such organisations must be of the highest calibre.

Even elsewhere, in the bureaucracy and in advisory roles, the poor state of governance at a critical juncture in the country’s history demands that the age-old political weakness of doling out jobs to favourites be suspended. Unhappily, the government has shown little inclination to do so, leading to embarrassing retreats when hauled up by the Supreme Court. The modus operandi of the government, to the extent that can be discerned, is self-defeating and, from the perspective of the country, is damaging to the interests of the people, who more than ever need the government to focus on doing its job.

Having said that, the Supreme Court must also remain cognisant of the need to play a positive role in the strengthening of democracy in the country. The ghosts of the NRO are periodically dredged up and ad hoc measures are taken to try and get the government to do its job. But the review petitions filed against the NRO have yet to be settled, creating the awkward situation in which the court is demanding the fulfilment of a judgment against which there is pending litigation.



Further, the dogged interest in the Swiss money cases is inordinate and has the potential to nudge the system towards the very clash that many apprehend. The world over superior judiciaries act with the utmost care and after sustained deliberation, particularly when veering on to terrain which may have wider consequences for the political system. There’s already too much speculation in the air. The courts must be mindful of not adding to that burden.[CENTER]
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[COLOR="Black"][SIZE="6"][CENTER][FONT="Georgia"][U][B]Financial cover-ups[/B][/U][/FONT][/CENTER][/SIZE][/COLOR]

[COLOR="Sienna"][SIZE="2"][B] Dawn Editorial
Thursday, 23 Sep, 2010[/B][/SIZE][/COLOR]


The lack of transparency in the spending of public funds is deplorable under any circumstances but in Pakistan’s severely cash-strapped situation, it becomes an issue of grave proportions. Not only is there no transparency about where the funds have been spent, it seems that funds are often deliberately placed under heads other than where they have actually been earmarked.



Even more disturbing is the fact that the truth is generally not forthcoming, even upon direct query. Take, for example, the revelation put before the National Assembly’s Public Accounts Committee on Tuesday about an unaccounted for, one-time disbursement of Rs5.55bn to the Inter-Services Intelligence in 2007-08. When pressed for details, Finance Secretary Salman Siddiqui was only willing to say that the sum was paid as a supplementary grant “for the provision of relief”. Mr Siddiqui conceded that the head was a cover-up but refused to give any further details since it was “highly sensitive information”.



In a different regard, another piece of information that surfaced before the PAC was that the pensions of retired army personnel — amounting to Rs72bn in the current financial year versus Rs18bn for retired civilian employee pensions — was shown as civilian expenditure under a 2001 government decision. The finance secretary also told the committee that the government was paying Rs400bn annually under the head of subsidies but the sum actually went towards covering the losses of federal government entities, the recipient of the highest sum of money (Rs183bn) last year being the Pakistan Electric Power Company.

Pakistan cannot afford such financial murkiness and mismanagement. Given the various grim economic realities including inflation, rupee devaluation, debts and repayments, it is vital for the country to spend extremely wisely. Whatever funds are available must go where they are most needed, in a transparent manner and for good reason.



We must remind the authorities that it is well within the domain of the PAC to ask about allocations, given that the ISI and other bodies fall under the purview of the government. The country’s economy is already in dire straits, and matters must not be worsened through cover-ups and denials.

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[COLOR="Black"][SIZE="6"][CENTER][FONT="Georgia"][U][B]Protecting children[/B][/U][/FONT][/CENTER][/SIZE][/COLOR]

[COLOR="Sienna"][SIZE="2"][B] Dawn Editorial
Thursday, 23 Sep, 2010
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In a society where children are perhaps the most vulnerable of all sections of the population, any effort for their protection is welcome. In this context, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly has taken a progressive step by passing the Child Protection Bill 2010 on Tuesday.



The bill is designed to provide care and protection to children “at risk” through the establishment of a child protection court as well as a provincial commission along with other associated mechanisms. A proposed amendment sponsored by the MMA calling for the age limit of children to be lowered from 18 to 15 was rejected and perhaps rightfully so, as according to international norms adulthood is deemed to begin at age 18.



The KP government has taken a bold initiative considering the fact that both the centre and the provinces have been extremely tardy when it comes to legislation designed to protect children’s rights. Laws have been written up but have been gathering dust for years, either waiting to be taken up in the federal and provincial legislatures or their passage has been blocked on procedural grounds. Hopefully Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s move will prompt the provinces and Islamabad to enact similar laws.

Yet, to truly end exploitation and give the children of Pakistan access to education, health, nutrition and a safe and secure environment, laws must be implemented. There are lots of good laws on the books. It is their implementation which is lacking and which is key to achieving the aims for which they were framed.



Also, some experts are of the opinion that the Child Protection Bill 2010 is a little vague when it comes to describing children “at risk” as well as the assessment procedure that would allow the authorities to determine which children are at risk. These concerns can possibly be addressed in future amendments.

Editorial: DAWN
 

[COLOR="Black"][SIZE="6"][CENTER][FONT="Georgia"][U][B]Kashmir and global silence[/B][/U][/FONT][/CENTER][/SIZE][/COLOR]

[COLOR="Blue"][SIZE="2"][B]Dawn Editorial
Friday, 24 Sep, 2010
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Even though a democrat is in the White House, today’s America seems to have forgotten what was the cornerstone of Jimmy Carter’s foreign policy — human rights. No wonder it should take Pakistan’s foreign minister to remind the Obama administration of its moral obligation to break its silence over the gory drama in Indian-held Kashmir.



Speaking at New York’s Council on Foreign Relations on Tuesday, Shah Mehmood Qureshi asked Washington to “invest its political capital” in Kashmir the way it was doing in the Middle East to seek peace. The Obama administration, despite its deep involvement in economic and security matters with Pakistan and India, has chosen not to utter a single word of concern much less unequivocal condemnation of gross human rights violations in the valley by Indian security forces armed with special powers. This is all the more surprising because the world has now recognised that the protests in the Kashmir Valley are indigenous and are an expression of the Kashmiri people’s resolve not to live under Indian occupation. This is something recognised even by some of India’s human rights organisations and sections of the media. To allege that Pakistan is behind this popular — and largely urban — round of protests is laughable. As Mr Qureshi told the council, “No one any longer can seriously believe … that Pakistan can orchestrate thousands of people…”

Islamabad must, however, accept part of the blame for the international community’s silence over the intifada in Kashmir, where the state response to popular unrest has resulted in more than 100 fatalities since June 11. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon was too mild for the occasion. In a statement on Tuesday, he called for an “immediate end to violence” and pleaded for “calm and restraint by all concerned”, thus equating the people of Kashmir with their oppressors.
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[COLOR="Black"][SIZE="6"][CENTER][FONT="Georgia"][U][B]Defence budget hike[/B][/U][/FONT][/CENTER][/SIZE][/COLOR]
[COLOR="Blue"][SIZE="2"][B]
Dawn Editorial
Friday, 24 Sep, 2010[/B][/SIZE][/COLOR]


A report in this newspaper yesterday suggests the defence budget has been quietly hiked by an astonishing 25 per cent, from the budgeted figure of Rs442bn to over Rs550bn. As usual, neither the government nor the military has seen fit to divulge any details, making it difficult to comment on the need for such an extraordinary increase.



Surveying the landscape of Pakistan and assessing the security situation, however, provides some clues. For one, the army has been very active in the flood rescue and relief efforts, costly activities that could not have been budgeted for earlier this summer. For another, the military operations against militant groups in the tribal areas look set to continue. North Waziristan remains a hornet’s nest that has yet to be tackled and the other agencies of Fata continue to require the application of force as the security forces struggle to master the clear-and-hold phase of counter-insurgency. So a hike in the defence budget may well be justified.

What isn’t justified is the lack of transparency. At the best of times, there needs to be accountability of the public’s money that is spent by state institutions. In times of crisis, when funds are even scarcer than usual and the state has to make choices between equally pressing needs, accountability becomes an even more pressing factor. Do the armed forces absolutely need Rs110bn more or could they have done with less if belt-tightening had been attempted first? Where will the money go, only to fund essential, emergency needs or also to finance wants that could otherwise be postponed? The public will likely never know.



Even parliament, where in-camera meetings could provide some kind of limited oversight, is unlikely to be given any details. (Earlier this week, the Public Accounts Committee was stonewalled by Finance Secretary Salman Siddique when members demanded details of a one-time Rs5.5bn supplementary grant to the ISI in 2007-08.)

A few comparisons may put the figure of Rs110bn in the proper perspective. Rs110bn is close to half the amount public-sector enterprises rack up in losses each year — a key area of reform and restructuring that the international financial institutions have been emphasising. Rs110bn exceeds the entire gains that the reformed General Sales Tax is expected to make. The sum is also roughly equal to the amount which would be raised by the controversial ‘flood tax’ that has been mooted. One single head of expenditure, then, is already set to absorb all the revenue gains that are expected to be made this year — even before those gains are realised. Surely, the public is owed an explanation.

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[COLOR="Black"][SIZE="6"][CENTER][FONT="Georgia"][U][B]‘Plots’ against democracy?[/B][/U][/FONT][/CENTER][/SIZE][/COLOR]

[COLOR="Blue"][SIZE="2"][B]Dawn Editorial
Friday, 24 Sep, 2010[/B][/SIZE][/COLOR]


Recent weeks have seen a fair amount of speculation on whether Pakistan’s democratic project is to be interrupted. Much of the confusion has come from the politicians themselves.



Consider the past week alone. On Sept 17, during an emergency high-level meeting, President Zardari and Prime Minister Gilani felt it fit to vow to foil any move to derail the democratic set-up. Even the US joined the fray with the US special envoy for Afghanistan and Pakistan, Richard Holbrooke, telling a group of journalists that he did not see “evidence that the government is drowning”. A day later, last Saturday, Prime Minster Gilani cautioned against “conspiracies against the government” and asked whether “those who are thinking to send us packing unconstitutionally” had any possibility of gaining consensus.



Then on Sunday, again in Lahore, he told reporters that a change by non-political means would harm the country. The matter has been raised by opposition politicians as well and finally, during Wednesday’s National Assembly session, the government and opposition joined hands to assert the supremacy of parliament, warning against any encroachment on “our space”.

The citizenry and other shareholders in the democratic process should be forgiven for being bemused. Are there ‘plots’ against the government or not? And who is behind them? In uttering dark warnings against unexplained moves by unspecified actors, the politicians are fuelling confusion and fomenting unrest. If there does exist any evidence that the government faces a credible threat of dislocation or intervention by any body, including the military or judiciary, this should be brought forward so that the matter can be clarified. But if there is no such evidence, then such dire mutterings can only be viewed as irresponsible, for they lead to confusion at home and abroad. The matter has not been helped by the debate being taken up by the media.



The country is facing multiple crisis situations, from militancy and terrorism to a plummeting economy and an unravelling infrastructure. This is no time to indulge in rumour- and scare-mongering, which is what these unsubstantiated allegations must be viewed as unless evidence is presented and specific actors are named.

Editorial: DAWN
 

[COLOR="Black"][SIZE="6"][CENTER][FONT="Georgia"][U][B]Competition law[/B][/U][/FONT][/CENTER][/SIZE][/COLOR]
[COLOR="Blue"]
Dawn Editorial
Saturday, 25 Sep, 2010[/COLOR]

THE passage of the competition law must clear the doubts over the future of Pakistan’s first anti-trust law and boost the confidence of those fighting against unfair market practices. The law will promote competitive and (relatively) fair markets in the country, while encouraging producers and service providers to become efficient and protect consumer rights. The law has drawn vast opposition from corporations since its promulgation as a presidential ordinance almost three years ago. Obviously, corporations don’t enjoy any law that dismantles cartels and curbs the abuse of their dominance in the market. The lobbies representing the interests of the corporate sector in parliament did everything possible to stall the passage of the competition law, or at least dilute it to make the Competition Commission of Pakistan ineffective. When a July 2009 Supreme Court ruling required the government to get a parliamentary seal for the ordinances protected under the Nov 2007 Provisional Constitution Order imposed by Pervez Musharraf, within 120 days of the announcement of the judgement, these lobbies tried to block the law. Since then, it has been kept alive by the repeated promulgation of the presidential ordinance.

The bill tries to address the concerns of both the supporters of the competition law and the opponents of any anti-trust legislation through the constitution of an appellate tribunal, which was not provided for in the original ordinance. The CCP decisions could be challenged only before the Supreme Court to ‘minimise’ chances of its work being stalled by the affected companies by going to a high court, as approved by the Senate earlier this year. Now, the affected parties will get an additional forum to seek remedy against CCP actions before going to the apex court. That precludes chances of unwarranted delays in the implementation of the commission’s decisions. While the government should be commended for the passage of the bill, it must be reminded that the country has been without a competition law since Aug 16 because of the lapse of the ordinance. The government must therefore ensure that the president signs the bill at the earliest to provide consumers legal cover against the corporations’ anti-competitive activities.

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[COLOR="Black"][SIZE="6"][CENTER][FONT="Georgia"][U][B]Aafia Siddiqui[/B][/U][/FONT][/CENTER][/SIZE][/COLOR]

[COLOR="Blue"]Dawn Editorial
Saturday, 25 Sep, 2010[/COLOR]


FOR the most part, rational debate about the case of Aafia Siddiqui has not been possible. In part, it must be acknowledged, this is because an air of mystery still endures over where Dr Siddiqui and her children were for five long years between 2003 and 2008 and how she came to be ‘found’ in Afghanistan. Here in Pakistan, the vociferous protest about the ‘innocence’ of Dr Siddiqui has much to do with the suspicion that she has been a victim of the ‘war on terror’, a Muslim mother who was somehow targeted by an increasingly Islamophobic West because she proudly wore her Muslim identity. Inside the courtroom, however, such suspicions and fears were largely beside the point:

Dr Siddiqui’s decision to take the witness stand against all legal advice was largely her undoing, there being enough contradictions raised during her cross-examination that reasonable suspicion was created.

In truth, the case of Aafia Siddiqui was wrapped from the very beginning in all the contradictions and suspicions that characterise relations between Pakistan and the US. Post 9/11, the Pakistani state is accused here in Pakistan of throwing in its lot with the Americans, an unforgivable alliance with a superpower that has always been suspected of harbouring anti-Pakistan feelings. But the very same state machinery that is accused do-mestically of being an American lackey is accused in the US of playing a ‘double game’, working to undermine rather than promote American interests in the ‘Af-Pak’ theatre. Trying to reconcile those two positions is well-nigh impossible, largely because both sides are more interested in furthering their ideological and political agendas than the facts. But while polemical debates continue, the facts, the ‘ground realities’ as Pakistanis are wont to say, have continued to nudge this country towards ever more dangerous terrain.

Denialism embedded deep in the public psyche has allowed the real threat to the Pakistani state and society, religious extremism, to grow to dangerous proportions. The ‘impossibility’ of a Muslim committing a crime against another Muslim or the sympathy extended towards those who resort to violence against the West as ‘retaliation’ for its crimes against Islam and Muslims serve to obfuscate the campaign by a militant, fringe minority to hijack a religion of peace. The cancer within grows, ironically even as it is occasionally held up as a symbol of heroic resistance. If the government can, it must try and bring Aafia Siddiqui back to Pakistan, given the unsatisfactory conclusion to her trial. But long after the story of Dr Siddiqui will eventually fade, Pakistan will still be faced with an internal enemy it has not even begun to comprehend.


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[COLOR="Black"][SIZE="6"][CENTER][FONT="Georgia"][U][B]
Loan write-offs[/B][/U][/FONT][/CENTER][/SIZE][/COLOR]
[COLOR="Blue"]
Dawn Editorial
Saturday, 25 Sep, 2010[/COLOR]

Rs50bn loans written off in two years
THE disclosure in the National Assembly on Thursday that loans amounting to a little over Rs50bn were written off by commercial banks over the last two years was certainly distressing, but nothing out of the ordinary in Pakistan. It should be remembered that over the past 40 years, loans worth Rs256bn have been written off in this country. The latest figure was made public in a written reply to a question by an MQM lawmaker by the federal finance minister. The reply adds that over 200,000 people and companies have benefited from the banks’ generosity. The names of the banks and the beneficiaries have not been made public.

It may be true that the government was not involved as the write-offs were granted by commercial banks, as argued by the minister of state for finance in parliament. But considering that the State Bank of Pakistan is the nation’s banking regulator, it has a duty to investigate — especially considering the huge amounts involved — to ensure that there has been no financial impropriety. While loans are written off all over the world, it must be ascertained whether the people and firms in question actually went bankrupt or if they had the loans forgiven due to patronage. The names and details of the beneficiaries should be made public and if the amounts were indeed written off due to patronage, there must be action against all involved. Banks often maintain an aggressive posture against defaulters of small loans. A few years ago a man committed suicide in Karachi after being hounded by a recovery team for defaulting on a Rs250,000 loan. The ensuing outrage caused the SBP to caution banks from employing hostile tactics when recovering loans. It is a sad reflection on society when defaulters of small loans are hunted down, while the multi-million rupee loans of the well-connected are written off.

Editorial: DAWN
 

[CENTER][U][FONT=Georgia][SIZE=6][COLOR=Black]Cricket controversy [/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT][/U] [/CENTER]

[LEFT] [SIZE=2][COLOR=Blue]Sunday, 26 Sep, 2010 [/COLOR][/SIZE] [/LEFT]




IN times to come, Pakistan’s 2010 tour of England will acquire, even by the acrimonious standards of this rivalry, a status unmatched. Only relief can greet its ending. That the summer began with such hope, such camaraderie, further sours the aftertaste. Grave implications lie ahead.

First, the spot-fixing allegations: until the investigations of Scotland Yard and the International Cricket Council are complete, the three players are innocent. But we must brace for the worst. Reportedly, the evidence is substantial. We must not seek refuge behind denial and grope for conspiracy. Neither can we impose our own lack of respect for law and due process onto other bodies; the findings must be respected. Instead we must address why Pakistan’s name constantly swirls around whispers of spot- or match-fixing. Why, a decade after the Qayyum commission, are we still here? Another equally critical result is Pakistan’s isolation in cricket. Talk of bans is impulsive and unjustified. A small sport cannot afford to lose a significant member. But thanks to one man, Pakistan stands alone in its hour of greatest need. Ijaz Butt, the Pakistan Cricket Board chairman, has made enemies where friends are required. Over two years, Butt has rubbed most cricket boards the wrong way. After his tasteless accusations against England, one more has gone and with it another venue where Pakistan can play cricket. This is not how you respond to an organisation that went out of its way to help, as the England and Wales Cricket Board did. If Butt wanted to fight back, he should have hit the right target: those tabloids that speculated irresponsibly at Pakistan’s expense. The allegations after the Oval ODI, in particular, are sketchy. The PCB is being run as one man does a fiefdom. Butt has presided over two of the darkest years of cricket. For cricket to have any hope, firm action needs to be taken.


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[FONT=Georgia][I][U][SIZE=5][COLOR=Black]Presidential immunity [/COLOR][/SIZE][/U][/I][/FONT] [/CENTER]

[B][SIZE=2][COLOR=Blue]Sunday, 26 Sep, 2010 [/COLOR][/SIZE][/B]



IS it really a slow-motion train wreck in progress that the country is watching play out in the Supreme Court over the NRO? Government circles are alternatively adamant and confident: that President Zardari cannot be legally proceeded against while serving as president and that the constitution’s clear wording on presidential immunity underpins the legality of the government’s stance. While rumours of a clash have proved premature before, it does appear that the NRO-related hearings are gearing up for the next phase. Thus far the Supreme Court and the government have engaged in a game of cat and mouse, with the government refusing to say one way or the other what its official stance on the

Swiss matters pertaining to the president would be. Without such a categorical legal statement filed with the Supreme Court, the court has been unable to proceed on the matter. Though, this is also relatively clear: the Supreme Court has itself allowed the matter to stretch out by not issuing a firm ultimatum to the government to file a response.

For structuralists, the part of the NRO judgment pertaining to President Zardari presents difficult questions about the limits of judicial activity, or even activism — by design, the superior judiciary is dependent on the executive for the implementation of court orders, so what happens when the executive does not see it to be in its own interests to implement the court’s orders? Beyond the realm of theory, however, the answer to such questions can have potentially very serious effects on politics and political systems. Independent observers, and more importantly even legal analysts known to be staunch defenders of the present superior judiciary, have voiced unease about the thrust of the court’s efforts to ensure the NRO judgment is implemented in full. They point out that of the 8,041 erstwhile NRO beneficiaries, the vast majority are still unnamed and unknown and appear set to remain so, unless they happen to come into close orbit with the present government. But even if it is selective zest, it can’t be wished away. The government needs to state its position in clear terms before the court and then hope that reason prevails.


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[I][FONT=Georgia][U][SIZE=5][COLOR=Black]Land reforms [/COLOR][/SIZE][/U][/FONT][/I] [/CENTER]

[B][SIZE=2][COLOR=Blue]Sunday, 26 Sep, 2010[/COLOR][/SIZE][/B]



THOSE who have been calling for reforms in Pakistan say that land reforms would be an essential initial step towards the establishment of an equitable order in the entire country, not just in the rural areas. The reasons why we should institute land reforms may have changed over time, as various experts on economy have pointed out. While reforms remain on the agenda of the economic managers, they are equally desirable socially. The latest World Bank remarks on the subject are in the same vein. The Independent Evaluation Group of the World Bank says the recent floods offer an opportunity for Pakistan to introduce land and irrigation reforms. Among other things, the World Bank evaluators point to the crucial relationship between the tenants and the notorious revenue officer known as the patwari, the relationship between tenants and landlords, and of course the equation between the big landlord and the small peasant that is increasingly in favour of the large-scale farmer or feudal.

It is unlikely that the World Bank statement is going to draw anything but the standard response from circles that matter here. Once more, we are going to hear that it was agriculture that was sustaining Pakistan, not just economically but also socially, and that it would be dangerous to tamper with it. Then, some agriculturalists would react to the advice about the need for land reforms by flaunting their status as the real sons of the soil who cannot be left at the mercy of a few misguided urbanites occupying the policymaking positions. Contrary to the World Bank calling it an opportunity provided by the floods, there will be resolute voices describing the notion of land reforms in a flood-hit country as cruel, and the floors of the assemblies will rumble with emotional speeches by the proud cultivators. This is how it is going to pan out in the country which, far from speaking of fresh demarcation of land, scoffs at the very mention of taxing farm income. In fact it is typical of how we deal with issues of all kinds. The images of patriots supposedly clinching the argument by dismissing undesirable comments and advice as a foreign conspiracy against Pakistan are routine.

The alternative would be that those who have been opposing land reforms as a foreign idea are asked to come up with their own programmes of addressing the injustices inherent in our agricultural system. Whichever route they take, they will without doubt be discussing land reforms not long after they have begun talking about agriculture in Pakistan in earnest.

Editorial: DAWN
 

[CENTER][COLOR="Black"][SIZE="6"][U][B][FONT="Georgia"]Introspection required[/FONT][/B][/U][/SIZE][/COLOR][/CENTER]

[COLOR="Blue"][I][B]Dawn Editorial
Monday, 27 Sep, 2010[/B][/I][/COLOR]

The Minister for Defence Production, Abdul Qayyum Jatoi, has been unceremoniously sacked from the federal cabinet after his rather extraordinary outburst against the armed forces and the superior judiciary.

The prime minister’s decision is of course 100 per cent correct, notwithstanding that in private moments the historical role of the armed forces and the judiciary in undermining the democratic process in the country can, and does, rightly come in for some rather serious criticism. Yet, to dwell on the role of other players and institutions isn’t the point here, no matter how relevant to the explanation for all that ails Pakistan. Instead, it is the increasingly tiresome attitude of some in the political class, especially those in and near the orbit of civilian political power in Islamabad at the moment, that needs to come in for some scrutiny.

Consider this. If certain institutions have in the past repeatedly thwarted the strengthening of democracy in the country, going forward they cannot be expected to simply pack up and leave or withdraw from the scene altogether. If democracy is ever to be strengthened in Pakistan, the civilian politicians will need to raise their game to demonstrate that they are indeed capable of responsibly running the state’s affairs. Only that will increase the space for civilian rule, and, conversely, reduce the space for undemocratic forces to operate in the country. True, the present government, parliament and assemblies have taken some very important political steps, and by doing so demonstrated an unexpected political maturity: the 18th Amendment, the NFC award, the Gilgit-Baltistan and Balochistan packages, etc.

However, it is the governance side that has proved to be disappointing, to say the least. From the handling of the economy to the delivery of basic health and education services to the management of public-sector enterprises to legislative reform, the present government has undeniably had space to act, but, equally undeniably, has bungled each of those opportunities to turn a crisis into something positive. If pressed, analysts and observers of the present government would struggle to identify even a single ministry in a record size cabinet that deserves even a passing grade on its performance so far, even by the relatively low standards of past governments.

When politicians like the now fired Mr Jatoi lash out at other institutions, it does come across as a desperate attempt to cover up the shortcomings of his government. If corruption in other institutions is equally rampant, as Mr Jatoi claimed, then why has the government failed to introduce an effective, across-the-board anti-corruption law? It really is true, you cannot fool all the people all the time.
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[COLOR="Black"][SIZE="6"][CENTER][FONT="Georgia"][U][B]Deepening rifts[/B][/U][/FONT][/CENTER][/SIZE][/COLOR]

[COLOR="Blue"][SIZE="2"][B][I]Dawn Editorial
Monday, 27 Sep, 2010[/I][/B][/SIZE][/COLOR]

The chasm between the western world and Islamic countries seems to be getting ever wider. And while certain elements in the West are indeed guilty of fanning the flames of mistrust through provocation, some leaders and entities within the Islamic world are also responsible for the deepening polarity between Islam and the West.

While addressing the United Nations General Assembly on Thursday, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said that most people believed that the US government was responsible for the Sept 11 attacks. He also called for the UN to form “an independent fact-finding group” to investigate the tragedy. Expectedly, the comments outraged the US and European delegations, which staged a walkout. On the other hand in Pakistan, the Jamaat-i-Islami called for Muslim states to use their nuclear and oil resources as a “tool against American expansionism” while advocating that Muslim nations cut off all ties with the US. This was stated through a resolution adopted at a rally in Peshawar on Friday to protest Florida pastor Terry Jones’ proposal, which was eventually abandoned.

This is a difficult time for inter-cultural relations between Islam and the West. The atmosphere has been vitiated by fringe elements such as Terry Jones, while American public opinion is also reflecting an intolerant streak with the vitriolic opposition to Park51, misleadingly dubbed the ‘Ground Zero mosque’. There are also strong currents of Islamophobia in Europe. Yet when Muslim leaders and politicians make statements similar to what the Iranian president said at the UN or what JI leaders expressed in Peshawar, they must also shoulder the blame for adding to the growing intolerance on both sides. Their rhetoric is grist for the mill of hardliners both in the West and in Islamic countries as conservatives are strengthened by this state of confrontation. Continued dialogue and engagement is the need of the moment, not increased hostility. Muslim leaders and opinion-makers should concentrate on the core issues confronting the Muslim world — poverty, hunger, illiteracy, disease — rather than baiting the West. Meanwhile, leaders in both western and Islamic nations must continue efforts to forge understanding, so that hardliners are disallowed the chance to exploit differences.

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[COLOR="Black"][SIZE="6"][CENTER][FONT="Georgia"][U][I][B]Maternal and child health[/B][/I][/U][/FONT][/CENTER][/SIZE][/COLOR]

[COLOR="Blue"][SIZE="2"][I][B]Dawn Editorial
Monday, 27 Sep, 2010[/B][/I][/SIZE][/COLOR]

There are serious concerns over the management of the Rs20bn maternal, newborn and child health programme (2007-2012) that is supposed to cover approximately 110 million people countrywide.

With just five years left until the 2015 UN Millennium Development Goals’ deadline, international sponsors of the MNCH programme are pessimistic that the latter’s objectives will be achieved, especially if doubts regarding its financial transparency are not addressed. That such concerns have emerged is not surprising. Although several positive initiatives have been introduced under the programme, such as the lady health workers’ and community midwives’ schemes, they need closer monitoring and evaluation. For instance, if those involved do not follow the proper protocol in maternal and child healthcare delivery, it would not only amount to wasted training but also cause more harm than good. Moreover, the delay in reintroducing a proper local government system nationwide has also raised concerns about accountability. The programme is structured as a national-level one, owned and managed by the districts. It is premised on the district health system as the vehicle for continued, integrated care for mothers, newborns and children, although the programme also seeks to make its services accessible at other levels.

It is necessary to monitor the funds for maximum efficiency as well as ensure the timely disbursement of allocations. The mobilisation of additional resources to fund service-delivery gaps is equally important. The latter is particularly crucial given the recent floods. Finally, the government cannot be expected to achieve the MDGs alone. The best way to reduce maternal, newborn and child mortality and improve our maternal and child health indicators — amongst the lowest in the world — is to encourage and strengthen public-private partnerships in improving the availability of services for maternal and child health and in increasing community awareness.

Editorial: DAWN
 

[COLOR="Black"][SIZE="6"][CENTER][FONT="Georgia"][U][B]Post-flood health needs[/B][/U][/FONT][/CENTER][/SIZE][/COLOR]

[COLOR="Blue"][SIZE="2"][B]Dawn Editorial
Tuesday, 28 Sep, 2010[/B][/SIZE][/COLOR]


It is becoming increasingly apparent that amongst other things, rebuilding Pakistan’s flood-battered healthcare system must become a priority. However, it is also clear that this is a mammoth task. Speaking at a seminar recently, the director-general health said that billions of rupees are needed to repair the nation’s health infrastructure. This includes health facilities such as basic health units, dispensaries and hospitals damaged or destroyed in over 30 districts.



A report by the UN’s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs says that about 236 health facilities have been damaged while around 200 have been destroyed in the flood-hit areas. The report adds that the “management capacity of the local health systems in the flood-affected districts has virtually collapsed”. The DG health also observed that the threat of epidemics has been averted thanks to timely interventions. This is largely true, yet it does not mean the state should become complacent. A World Health Organisation bulletin says that 2.2 million cases of malaria are expected in the flood-affected areas over the next six months. WHO figures also indicate that around 500,000 pregnant women are among the affected population. The pressing shortage of skilled healthcare workers — including lady health workers — has made a complex situation more difficult. Sanitary conditions in IDP camps remain a matter of concern.

Yet the state, as well as the world, must respond to these grave concerns and respond with urgency. While it is true that Pakistan’s healthcare infrastructure was not very good to begin with, the floods have exacerbated the situation to an alarming degree. The government must make earnest efforts to rehabilitate the country’s healthcare infrastructure. Considering the magnitude of the disaster, this gigantic task cannot be achieved alone and the international community should play its part to help Pakistan get its healthcare system back on its feet.

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[COLOR="Black"][SIZE="6"][FONT="Georgia"][CENTER][U][B]Incidence of suicide[/B][/U][/CENTER][/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR]

[COLOR="Blue"][B]Dawn Editorial
Tuesday, 28 Sep, 2010[/B][/COLOR]


Deafening silence prevails in government circles even as economic hardship and other grim realities drive more and more poor Pakistanis to suicide.



Karachi alone has seen an alarming rise of over 100 per cent in the number of suicides in the first six months of this year, as against the corresponding period last year, according to a report in this newspaper. This is a measure of failure on the part of our economic managers. We say this because economic hardship is the reason cited for most of the suicides attempted or committed. In Karachi, the reported cases of suicide went up from 18 last year to 43 in the same period this year. The actual numbers are believed to be much higher. The recent case of a factory worker in Korangi brings to light the desperate state of mind of the distressed citizen who, before killing himself, also killed his wife and three children. The reason: inability to provide for his family within his monthly income of Rs5,000. Suicide figures cited by the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan from across the country are no less shocking: 2,486 committed suicide in 2008, mostly because of economic hardship.

It must be asked as to what the government is doing about this worrying trend, and what is it doing to address the factors that are leading the poor to take their own lives. Runaway inflation stands in double digits as the basic cost of living has risen beyond all sustainable limits. With among the highest interest rates in the world on borrowing, the government has failed to arrest inflation. This is now translating into growing human as well as fiscal deficit. Yet, there is no policy initiative to protect the vulnerable against the onslaught of a cut-throat economic downturn, which is literally stealing the leftovers the poor could put on their plates. The government must show some sense of priority in alleviating this utterly distressed state of affairs. Urgent measures must be taken to control at least food inflation — even as an equally needed, well thought-out economic recovery plan remains conspicuous by its absence.

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[COLOR="Black"][SIZE="6"][CENTER][FONT="Georgia"][U][B]Crisis averted?[/B][/U][/FONT][/CENTER][/SIZE][/COLOR]
[COLOR="Blue"][SIZE="2"][B]
Dawn Editorial
Tuesday, 28 Sep, 2010[/B][/SIZE][/COLOR]


In the end, common sense prevailed, though perhaps only for a few weeks. The government took a sensible route — the NRO review petition ought to be decided before the issue of implementation can be addressed — and the Supreme Court had the grace to give the government, and perhaps the democratic system, more time to devise a workable resolution to what has become an impasse.



Talk of a ‘final showdown’ and the ‘beginning of the end’ whipped up by the media was not to be, at least yesterday. Ten months since the NRO judgment, and there is little new that can be said about the legal complications and possibilities surrounding the pursuit of cases against President Zardari and his cohorts: ultimately, the Supreme Court must determine what the law is and what must be done. Ultimately, it is the executive, presently led by a PPP government, that must implement what is asked of it by the court. That is the stark reality, as is the fact that the answer to the impasse does not lie in the field of law but at the cross-section of law and politics.

What is worth commenting on at this stage, however, is the increasingly baneful influence of the media, particularly the electronic media. The media is certainly entitled to its opinions, but it is becoming ever clearer that segments of the media are bent on creating their own reality — not so much reporting the news as creating it. Overnight, pundits have become legal experts, reporters fantastical jurists and analysts the reincarnation of Blackstone, Dicey, Marshall and Cornelius all rolled into one. Specious predictions are presented as fait accompli, complicated legal jargon and dense constitutional clauses are bandied about with ease, a certainty of meaning, and prediction, applied that would be the envy of lawyers the world over. Oddly enough, or perhaps not oddly at all, the ones leading the charge of the uninformed are the very same elements that were crusading for democracy just a couple of years ago. The suspicion that the antagonists in the media really want to be the protagonists of democracy — the ones who call the shots, elections and electoral legitimacy be damned — is hardly a suspicion anymore. It is near fact.

All sides have a few weeks to take stock. Perhaps most important here is the government: it needs to understand that there is something more to public office than simply occupying that office: governance matters need to be taken up urgently. At the end of the day, even neutral observers must wonder: what’s the point of having a government, however ‘democratic’, if it does nothing?