Posts Tagged ‘Mand’

KP cabinet suspends officials over Bannu Jail break

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa information and culture minister Mian Iftikhar Hussain – File Photo

PESHAWAR: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa cabinet after reviewing inquiry report of Bannu Jail attack by militants which ensued in escape of 384 prisoners including some hardened terrorists, has declared it as a failure of civil administration of Bannu, political administration of North Waziristan, Police and Frontier Constabulary (FC).

The cabinet met here on Wednesday for its special meeting on Bannu Jail break, said Provincial Minister for Information Mian Iftikhar Hussain while briefing media representatives about the decisions.

The cabinet, chaired by Chief Minister, Amir Haider Hoti, has taken a decision in principle to initiate disciplinary action against all those officials of concerned departments.

The cabinet approved to make all the officials of provincial and federal government as OSD (Office on Special Duty) from Wednesday (May 16) and from tomorrow they will be suspended to face inquiry.

The services of officials belonging to center will be relieved with note that they are not fit for such type of jobs and their future postings should be made while keeping their record in mind.

Whereas, those officials who belong to provincial government will face suspension from Thursday and during suspension they will be served with Show Cause Notice for lapse.

Mian Iftikhar said all those police officials who were performing duty on check posts set up on road that leads tribal area to Bannu jail are also suspended.

Similarly, officials of Home department, especially one identified as Muhammad Ghulam, Section Officer who issued NOC for shifting of convicted terrorist, Adnan Rashid from Punjab to Bannu without getting permission from high ups, are also suspended.

Mian Iftikhar said the cabinet agreed with the report of inquiry committee that intelligence agencies including Special Branch failed in giving proper information about the incident. He said a report about possible attack was given by intelligence agencies around four months earlier, but no follow up was made.

Similarly, he continued, the officials performing duty at control rooms of DCO, Commissioner were also found very irresponsible because they didn’t informed the high ups at proper time.

Mian Iftikhar said army is also performing duty in the district and responsibility on failure of attack also lies on them which is being properly investigated by the high ups of armed force. In the apex committee meeting, it was decided that army will also hold proper investigation into the incident and fix responsibility, he added.

In reply to a question, Mian Iftikhar said Punjab government should also hold investigation over shifting of terrorist Adnan Rashid from Rawalpindi to Bannu as according to rules shifting of convicted prisoners in murder cases from one province to another is strictly prohibited.

While answering another question, Information Minister said among the 384 prisoners who escaped after the attack 21 were convicted in murder cases and three were hardened terrorists including Adnan Rashid.

Mian Iftikhar said the chief minister has demanded completion of inquiry into the incident within 20 days. He said during suspension all the officials will be served show cause notices and inquiry will be proceeded to find out those who are responsible for the incident.

After completion of inquiry, those officials who were found not directly involved in the incident will be restored through the courts, he concluded.

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Via DAWN.com

Has Barack Obama changed anything?

Gideon Rachman
Weak. Apologist. Those two words are repeated endlessly in the Republican party’s attack on Barack Obama, as it tries to persuade voters that the US president is not worthy of another term as commander-in-chief.
The charge of weakness will be difficult to make stick. As the president’s team will endlessly remind Americans, he is the man who sent in a combat team to …

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Cabinet session: Printing money can help overcome loadshedding, suggests Gilani

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani on Wednesday suggested that the government should print currency notes and pour capital into the electricity sector in order to overcome loadshedding, Express News has reported.

During the federal cabinet session, Gilani said, “We can print currency notes and pour capital in the electricity sector in order to overcome loadshedding”.

Gilani’s suggestion surprised ministers present in the session, however, Interior Minister Rehman Malik, while endorsing the prime minister’s statement, said that the “2-3% rise in inflation could be overcome within a few years” and that there was no problem in printing money.

The participants also suggested that the recovery of dues that different sectors owed Water and Power Development Authority (Wapda) could be handed over to Malik to curb the circular debt.

However, this idea was opposed by some ministers, saying that this will cause a dispute between the trader community and industry with Wapda.

Finance Minister Abdul Hafeez Shaikh said that Wapda does not have a system to gauge the amount of electricity needed by different cities. He said that Wapda needs to develop a system to properly distribute electricity within the cities, prioritising on the demand.

Minister for Water and Power Syed Naveed Qamar could not answer a question asked 3-4 times in the session about the capacity of the electricity produced by Wapda.

Gilani says decision on Nato supplies be taken considering national interest

Gilani said that the decision on resumption of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (Nato) supply routes will be taken considering Pakistan’s national interest.

The prime minister said that the government has not compromised on its principles in the past and will not do so in the future.

A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) is likely to be formally approved by the federal cabinet to reopen vital land routes for foreign forces stationed in Afghanistan.

He said that the government does not want to take an “emotional” decision which will not be beneficial for the country.

Reiterating his stance on the right to appeal the Supreme Court’s verdict in the contempt of court case, Gilani said that he is not “scared of any threats” and that he will continue to guard the constitution.

Earlier, Gilani had said that Pakistan’s relationship with 48 countries serving in the Nato cannot be put on stake just because of the US.

On Tuesday, Defence Committee of the Cabinet (DCC) finally gave a go-ahead to lift the almost six-month old blockade on Nato supplies passing through the country.

The supplies were suspended in November last year in reprisal to a Nato air raid on a Pakistani border post that had killed 24 soldiers and strained Pakistan-US relations to the breaking point.

PM briefs cabinet on UK visit

The prime minister said that during his visit to the United Kingdom from May 8 to May 13, 2012, he met UK’s Queen Elizabeth on her diamond jubilee and her reign of 60 years as head of the Commonwealth at the British Deputy High Commission.

He said that he also attended a parliamentary reception held by the speaker.

“I also visited Buckingham Palace for a meeting with Duke of York,” said Gilani. “Apart from the enhanced strategic dialogue review, all major ministers called on me for detailed discussions on various strands of cooperation between Pakistan and the UK.”

The premier said that the warm welcome given to him as an elected prime minister reflects the importance and confidence the UK government attaches to its relations with a democratic Pakistan.

He said that British Prime Minister David Cameron applauded the fact that the current government of Pakistan was working to strengthen democracy in the country.

“His categorical statement that Pakistan’s friend is UK’s friend and Pakistan’s enemy is UK’s enemy was a strong reiteration of Pakistan’s standing and importance in the committee of nations.”

Gilani further said that the UK has vowed to build a deeper, stronger relationship with Pakistan and that that it wants to strengthen relations in the fields of trade, defence, health and education.

“We [Pakistan and the UK] have also agreed to boost bilateral trade,” he said.

Cabinet apprised of CASA-1000 project

While reviewing the status of the implementation of the cabinet’s decisions pertaining to Water and Power Division, the cabinet meeting was informed by Qamar that the CASA-1000 Megawatt project meeting being held in Dubai was expected to make substantial progress.

CASA-1000 is a joint project of Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Afghanistan and Pakistan. Prime Minister Gilani told the cabinet that economic indicators of Pakistan’s economy were moving in the right direction despite the global recession and the devastating floods of 2010 and 2011.

Shaikh assured the cabinet that full financial support will be extended to the Ministry of Water & Power to eliminate unscheduled loadshedding immediately and also to decrease scheduled loadshedding at the same time.

For this purpose, it was decided to utilise the full thermal and hydal power generation capacity in the country.

Nepal “blind” eatery lights way for visually impaired

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Blind waiter leads fellow waiters to their seats.—Reuters Photo

KATHMANDU: A line of diners, holding on to the shoulders of the person in front of them, enters the pitch dark hall at Nepal’s first blind restaurant, which treats guests to food they can smell, touch and taste but not see.

The 16-seat dining room has been heavily curtained from ceiling to floor in black, and the guests grope their way to the table, guided deftly by the waiters—all of whom are visually impaired.

But while similar blind dining venues have already opened in Europe and the United States, the one here comes with the key difference that it provides a rare chance for the Nepali handicapped to gain a measure of independence.

“We should see this from two angles—giving opportunities to the blind and a new experience to the public,” said Shyam Kakshhapati, president of the Hotel Association of Nepal (Han).

“It is important to give opportunities to disabled people because there are not many job openings for them in our country.”

The blind restaurant, a separate wing of an ordinary eatery, comes on the heels of a separate restaurant chain that employs deaf waiters and has become popular with patrons.

Trainees are nominated by the Nepal Association of the Blind, a charity working for the visually impaired, of whom there are estimated to be 200,000 in Nepal. Some are already working as telephone operators, teachers and musicians.

Waiters get a daily wage of $6, a substantial income in a country where nearly one quarter of its 26.6 million people live on an income of less than $1.25 a day.

“With this I can continue my studies and the money is a financial relief to my family,” said 23-year-old Utsav Nepal, a waiter and a bachelor’s level student in a Kathmandu college.

In impoverished Nepal disabled persons are considered economic burdens on many families. Some take disability as a curse for things they have done wrong in their previous lives.

But notions are changing fast as Nepal undergoes rapid political changes after the Maoist rebels, who waged a decade-long civil war, joined the mainstream and the 239-year-old feudal monarchy was abolished in 2008.

Still, change comes slowly, and the restaurant may play an important role.

“It gives customers a small taste of what it is like to be blind…If they understand the problems of the visually impaired people they can help them better,” said Adam Levene, a senior official of the Embassy of Israel, which helped set up the facility and train waiters.

At the restaurant, lined by a small bamboo grove, waiters put their white walking sticks into their bags and flit between tables to help diners find a fork or advise them on orders.

“If you want spicy food then take fusilli with cheese, mushroom, chilli and olives,” Nepal, the waiter, is heard suggesting to the guests.

A Spanish couple, who wanted to do “something special and different” on their first wedding anniversary, came to eat.

“At the beginning I was scared completely…how to find food, how big is the dish,” said Milca Hanukoglu, after the anniversary dinner with her husband, a native of Malaga.

“It was romantic. Instead of candle light, it was darkness.”

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Via DAWN.com

CEC’s appointment: PML-N floats new names as panel elects chairperson

The 12-member Parliamentary Committee on the Appointment of CEC elected Religious Affairs Minister Khurshid Shah as its head after Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F)’s Ghafoor Haideri – one of the six opposition members – voted in his favour.

The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), meanwhile, finalised three names for the post which will be formally put before the committee by Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, the opposition leader in the National Assembly, sources told The Express Tribune.

According to sources, PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif, after consulting his party’s legal cell and lawyers, approved the names of Acting CEC Justice Shakirullah Jan, Justice (retd) Ghulam Rabbani and Justice (retd) Sardar Raza Khan.

The PPP had proposed the names of Justice (retd) Munir A Sheikh, Justice (retd) Amirul Mulk Mengal and Justice (retd) Qurban Alvi for the crucial post which could ultimately decide the fate of Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani who has been convicted by the apex court in a contempt case.

Parliamentary meeting proceedings

On Tuesday, the body rejected PML-N’s demand to rotate the chairmanship between the government and the opposition.

In the bi-cameral panel, the PML-N has five and the JUI-F one member, while three belong to the PPP and one each from its three coalition partners — Muttahida Qaumi Movement, Awami National Party and Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid.

JUI-F’s Haideri, who is currently hospitalised, did not attend the meeting and casted his vote through a letter, which swung the balance in favour of the ruling coalition.

“It’s not a big deal. Election of the chairman doesn’t really make any difference. The real issue is whether the committee can appoint a new CEC or not,” said PML-N member Lt Gen (retd) Abdul Qadir Baloch.

Obstacles

The PPP and the PML-N have different interpretations of the procedure of appointing CEC laid down in the 20th Constitutional Amendment passed by parliament earlier this year.

The ruling party says the committee needs to approve one of the three names sent to it with a simple majority. It means the PPP can have a candidate of its choice with the JUI-F voting in its favour.

However, the opposition thinks otherwise.

Chaudhry Nisar has said that according to Rules of Procedures and Conduct of Business in the National Assembly 2007, the committee is required to approve a name with a two-thirds majority, and not simple majority.

PML-N’s strategy

According to PML-N’s strategy, the party wants any one of the names it has nominated for the post. They said that according to the Constitution, only the committee could decide the final name but they did not trust JUI-F’s Haidri. Keeping that in mind, sources said that the party has decided focus on the rules of the procedure’s two-thirds majority clause.

PPP’s strategy

Although the PPP has apparently failed to succeed in appointing Justice Munir Sheikh as the new CEC, it has devised another strategy.

According to sources, since the coalition’s six members plus JUI-F’s vote does not make two-thirds majority, the PPP has decided to amend the rule of procedure in the coming week.

And for this purpose, according to sources, the government has asked the law ministry to prepare a draft for amendment.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 16^th, 2012.

Zardari will attend Chicago summit: Spokesperson

WASHINGTON: After US set aside the condition of reopening Nato supply route for the presence of Pakistan at the Chicago summit, President Asif Ali Zardari too has decided to attend the crucial meeting this weekend, the Pakistan Embassy in Washington said on Tuesday. It brought closure to speculation that Islamabad might be omitted from high-level talks on Afghanistan’s future.

Nadeem Hotiana, an embassy spokesman, confirmed that Zardari would attend the conference, scheduled for May 20-21.  Given that Washington, which had earlier extended the invitation despite an agreement on the reopening of the supply line yet to be reached, demonstrated that they valued Pakistan’s presence at the summit more.

Pakistan had shut the land communication route in November after a Nato attack that killed 24 Pakistani soldiers.

Observing this, the Defence Committee of the Cabinet announced that it would endorse Zardari’s presence in Chicago later in the week.

Senior Pakistan officials including Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar and Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani had both signalled a need to reopen the supply lines, observing that keeping the route shut was detrimental for Pakistan.

US looks forward to resolving Nato supply route issue with Pakistan

The US state department, quizzed over whether extending Pakistan an invitation to the Chicago summit meant abandoning the demand of reopening supply route, spokesperson Victoria Nuland reiterated that negotiations were still underway but it was considered important that Pakistan attend the moot.

“We are continuing our discussions with the Pakistanis. Our technical team is still there. We are making progress. We have not yet completed an agreement. We do consider the agreement important, but we also consider — and all of our NATO partners considered it important — to have Pakistan in the ISAF and neighbours event at the summit in Chicago,” she said.

Explaining the invitation to the summit, she said that “as a neighbour of Afghanistan, Pakistan does have an important role to play in supporting Afghan security. We do want to see these land routes opened. We are continuing to work on it. But we thought it was important to have them at the summit in this partnership role.”

Nuland though hoped that the route reopens before the summit commences. “Obviously, it’ll be a wonderful signal if we can get it done by the time of the summit. But we decided nonetheless — NATO countries all together decided that it was important to have Pakistan in the ISAF meeting.”

She reminded the gathered media persons that negotiations with Pakistan were far from over. “But it’s not finished till it’s finished.”

Way cleared for Zardari to attend Chicago summit: Talks with US continue over apology: Nato routes set to reopen

ISLAMABAD, May 15: The Defence Committee of the Cabinet (DCC), the main decision-making body on country’s security policy, on Tuesday cleared the way for President Asif Ali Zardari to attend the coming Nato summit and gave its nod for the conclusion of an agreement for opening of ground supply routes, used for sustaining needs of coalition forces in Afghanistan, after de-linking the matter from demand for apology over the killing of 24 soldiers in last year’s border attack.

The stalemate over apology by the US, which had impeded progress in bilateral talks for re-engagement, has been left for further dialogue, along with negotiations on the parliamentary demand for cessation of drone attacks.

“The DCC welcomed the unconditional invitation by the Nato secretary general to the president of Pakistan to attend Nato summit in Chicago. The DCC fully endorsed the visit of the president for the summit,” said a statement issued after a meeting of the committee, chaired by Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani.

It was attended by federal ministers for defence, interior, foreign affairs and information, the chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, the three services chiefs and the director general of ISI. Before the start of the meeting, Nato Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen telephoned President Zardari to invite him to the May 20-21 summit in Chicago. The invitation came a day after Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar indicated Pakistan’s willingness to reopen the suspended Nato routes by saying it was now time to move on.

President Zardari, according to his office, told Mr Rasmussen that he would consider the invitation in the light of the guidelines of parliament and the advice of the government.

Now with the formality of government endorsement fulfilled, the president is set to fly to Chicago for the summit.

Afghanistan will top the agenda of the summit, to be attended by 28 Nato heads of state and government, leaders from many of the 50 nations that make up the International Security Assistance Force (Isaf) and countries providing supply routes to the trans-Atlantic politico-military alliance. The summit will also consider a long-term strategic partnership with Afghanistan for promoting security and stability there.

The government, fearful of isolation over Afghanistan and losing leverages in Afghan endgame, looked desperate to get an invitation to the summit, even though its media managers vehemently denying this impression.

President Zardari took special interest to see that the impasse in talks with Washington was addressed in time to secure the Chicago invitation.

Pakistan had suspended Nato supply routes following the Salala border attack on Nov 26 and ordered reassessment of terms of cooperation with the US and Nato by the parliament. The parliament sought apology over the incident, cessation of drone attacks, respect for Pakistan’s sovereignty and formalisation of cooperation pacts with the US, besides recommending restoration of the supply routes for non-lethal supplies and expulsion of foreign fighters who had taken refuge in Pakistani territory.

Demands for an end to unmanned predator drone strikes and apology became sticking points in the subsequent Pakistan-US negotiations.

However, technical groups from both sides continued discussions on new conditions for the ground supplies and are said to have already settled on a broad memorandum of understanding that would cover issues pertaining to costing, security of shipments, routes and type of goods to be transported.

“In keeping with the letter and spirit of the parliamentary committee’s recommendations, the DCC authorised officers of relevant ministries/departments to conclude the ongoing negotiation on the new terms and conditions for resumption of GLOCs (Ground Lines of Communications).

“The new terms and conditions should incorporate a clause, as recommended by parliament, to the effect that only non-lethal cargo will be allowed to transit through Pakistan to Afghanistan,” the DCC statement said.

The green signal from the DCC for concluding the agreement implies that the new pact on supply routes will be signed any time now.

Diplomatic sources say President Zardari will announce formal resumption of supplies at the Chicago summit.

Although it was evident that the government would not be able to keep the supply routes blocked for long, the course followed for reopening was essentially meant to minimise the chances of protest by hardliners opposed to supporting international efforts in Afghanistan.

The only news on divisive issues of apology and drones was that the Foreign Office had been asked to continue negotiations with the US.

“The committee further decided that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will continue to remain engaged with the government of the United States on other parliamentary recommendations, including the question of apology and cessation of drone attacks,” the statement released to the media said.

The DCC also discussed a recommendation for “expulsion of foreign fighters, if found, on the Pakistani side,” in addition to asking the military to settle fresh border ground rules with Nato/Isaf for preventing recurrence of Salala-like mishaps.

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Via DAWN.com

Corps commanders to meet today

RAWALPINDI – Corps Commanders will meet here on Wednesday (today).
Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani is expected to take the corps commanders into confidence over a possible resumption of supplies to Nato troops in Afghanistan, sources were quoted as saying.
Islamabad shut its Afghan border to Nato supplies after US airstrikes killed 24 soldiers in November. But …

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Tanker owners threaten oil supply suspension

KARACHI – All Pakistan Oil Tanker Owners Association (APOTOA) threatened to suspend oil supply across the country while demanding protection for their oil tankers from snatching and kidnapping incidents here on Tuesday.
Mir Muhammad Yousuf Shawani Chairman of APOTOA addressing a Press conference on Tuesday at Karachi Press Club said that kidnapping cases have increased on the highways.
He …

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Lame excuse

The Sindh government has opposed the Thar Coal project led by Dr Samar Mukarakmand over the objection that the gasification method would pollute underground water and would have a detrimental effect on environment. It is a reflection of the same argument that regards coal extraction for energy purpose as harmful, especially against the backdrop of global warming. However, the underground water …

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NATO invites Pakistan to Chicago summit

ISLAMABAD: NATO has invited President Asif Ali Zardari to next week’s summit in Chicago, a presidential spokesperson told AFP on Tuesday.

Nato Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen had called Zardari in the afternoon to invite him to the summit.

Spokesperson to the President, Farhatullah Babar said that the invitation was unconditional and not linked to the reopening of ground lines of communication for Nato or to any other issues.

Zardari said that he would consider the invitation in light of the guidelines of the Parliament and the advice of the government. He said that the decision will be communicated to Nato later.

NATO spokeswoman Oana Lungescu said Pakistan had “an important role” to play in the future of Afghanistan, which will be the focus of the second day of the summit.

“We’re working very closely with Pakistan to allow the opening of the transit line because obviously this is in everybody’s interest,” she said.

The defence committee of cabinet is to convene at around 1430 GMT, followed by a cabinet meeting on Wednesday which is widely expected to decide to reopen overland NATO supply lines into Afghanistan, closed since November.

Sources familiar with the discussions told AFP the government had effectively decided to end the blockade, probably by the beginning of next week.

Both sides had found “broad agreement” on logistics for the fuel and other non-lethal supplies that would go overland through Pakistan to Afghanistan, one source said.

“The meetings will indicate that the decision has the backing of all the stakeholders,” the source told AFP.

“This should minimise the prospect for militant groups to exploit the situation in the hope that they’ll get the backing of the military establishment.”

Pakistan previously negotiated a fee of $160 per 40-foot container and is now looking to secure anywhere from $320 to $500, although the figure has yet to be agreed, one source told AFP.

The United States has also guaranteed payment of at least $1.1 billion should the borders reopen, as compensation for fighting militants, the source added.

Mir Mohammad Yousuf Shahwani, chairman of the All Pakistan Oil Tanker Owners Association, told AFP he had been informed by a senior official in the petroleum ministry that Pakistan would reopen the supply line within days.

The invitation comes a day after Foreign Minister Khar had stated that Pakistan wanted to ‘move beyond’ the Salala incident as it had made its point by keeping the Nato routes shut for almost six months.

Nato Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen had said earlier this week that Pakistan’s participation in the summit in Chicago, scheduled for May 20-21, hinges on its decision on the supply route for the alliance’s mission in Afghanistan.

Both Khar and Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani had made it clear on Monday that the government is ready to drop its insistence on a formal US apology over the killing of two dozen Pakistani troops in the airstrikes on border posts in Salala, Mohmand Agency.

Nato supply routes have been closed for over six months in response to a US attack on a check post that killed 24 Pakistani soldiers.

Karachi port: Books for Afghan students held up in NATO containers

The curriculum books for grade 10, 11 and 12 Afghan students were published in Dubai with Nato support for educational institutions in the eastern parts of the country, said the education ministry.

Afghan Minister of Education Farooq Wardak told media on Sunday that his government has already raised the issue with the Pakistani authorities at the highest level. “They assured us of quick resolution of the issue, but it is yet to happen,” said Wardak.

He said the Pakistani authorities were impressed upon that politics must not deprive children of their basic right to education.

“I do not know why Pakistan has stopped our books. We are facing a shortage of books here,” said Nangialy, a 12 grade student of Dari language and literature at Kabul University. Another student of Pashto language grade 11 Abida Nazish appealed to the Pakistani government to immediately release the books.

The students said they got to know from the local media that the books were stuck at the Karachi Port due to ban on Nato supplies through Pakistan.

A lecturer at the university Ajmal Shakalay told The Express Tribune that the delay in arrival of new books could cause a failure in replacing the old curriculum. He further claimed that certain schools were closed due to shortage of books.

Education Ministry spokesperson Amanullah Iman said that fresh term in majority of schools in the country already began in May. However, in 40% schools the new term starts in August, but the curriculum changes are made simultaneously across the country, which could now be delayed, he added.

“The delay in the release of books’ containers were perhaps due to misunderstanding as the Pakistani authorities thought there were Nato supplies in the containers,” said Iman.

A Pakistani government official, requesting anonymity, said that it was surprising that books were being transported in Nato containers. He said the authorities were not certain as Nato containers, as per contract, are not opened to check the supplies.

“Naturally, and commonly they (containers) carry weapons and supplies for troops and not books for Afghan schools,” said the official. However, he said he could not comment on how soon the containers could be released as they were addressed to Nato authorities and not the Afghan government.

“The parliament will decide on opening the Nato supply routes. Until then, nothing could be done,” the official added.

The Afghan education ministry said the books were published by Oriental Publishing Company in Dubai under the support of Nato command. Therefore, they were being transported in the Nato containers.

An official of education ministry denied that schools were closed due to shortage of books. Rather a security threat to certain schools was the reason for their closure but they will be opened soon, he added.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 15^th, 2012.

Fresh push to kick-start dormant Gwadar port

QUETTA: In the latest efforts to expedite the process of making Gwadar Port functional, Rs3 billion has been pledged by the government for the completion of a link road connecting Gwadar to Upper Sindh and Punjab.

A high level meeting was held in the provincial capital to discuss the currently dormant port which, once operational, can greatly boost economic development.

The Planning Commission of Pakistan’s Deputy Chairman Dr Nadeem ul Haq said the federal government will prepare a “master plan for coastal development.” He added that the government will also release Rs3 billion for the completion of the Rato-Dero-Gwadar link road connecting Gwadar with Sindh and Punjab, which will be completed by June next year.

Gwadar Port Authority’s Director General Pervez Rehmat and Additional Chief Secretary, Development, Dr Umer Babar briefed the participants on the master plan’s salient features.

It was agreed in the meeting that if the government decides to restore the Nato supply route to Afghanistan, the supplies should be directed from the Gwadar Port. A formal demand will be made to the federal government regarding this. It was also suggested that the port be used for Afghan transit trade.

Participants of the meeting were told that the government has already spent Rs50 billion over the construction of Gwadar Port and the Coastal Highway. It was noted that the earlier decision of appointing the chief minister of Balochistan as chairman of the Gwadar Port Authority is yet to be implemented and no formal notification has been issued by the federal government to this effect.

The participants agreed that all pending decisions regarding the development authority should be implemented at the earliest in order to expedite the process of making the port operational. Dr Haq said Gwadar would be made a special economic zone for speedy development of the entire region.

He assured the meeting that the commission would ensure the availability of necessary funds for dredging and improving facilities at the port.

Haq added that the prime minister has issued clear instructions to provide funds to Balochistan to ensure development is at par with other provinces.

He said the provincial government was asked to study the feasibility report and look into possible future developments based on the model of prosperous neighbouring ports like Iran’s Chabahar and UAE’s Jabal-e-Ali.

The chief minister of Balochistan also stressed that the province’s progress was directly linked with making the port operational.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 15^th, 2012.

Message of reconciliation: Asma urges Nawaz to end political deadlock

LAHORE: The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) made its first move to reconcile with the Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) on Monday through a message conveyed by renowned lawyer Asma Jahangir.

The message was simple: the PPP is ready to negotiate with the PML-N over early elections, sources privy to the development told The Express Tribune.

According to an official handout, Asma was accompanied by a delegation of the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) who met the PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif in Lahore.

Asma advised Sharif to end the political deadlock with the government and cease demands on the issue of the prime minister’s conviction. She said that the continued rift between the government and the opposition would encourage the anti-state forces to exploit the situation.

Furthermore, she informed Nawaz that the lawyers’ community was in favour of early elections as well and urged him to move dialogue forward to ensure free and fair elections. Nawaz replied to Asma’s request, saying that early elections were the solution to the current political crisis, adding that she (Asma) should support the PML-N’s stance in the appointment of an independent chief election commissioner.

According to sources, Asma had been sent to Nawaz on the request of President of Pakistan Asif Ali Zardari to convey the message of reconciliation.

The PPP wants Nawaz to play an integral role in abridging the gap between PPP-led coalition government and the Supreme Court, sources added. Nawaz would be asked to help calm the judiciary and the lawyers’ community and discuss early elections with them.  The delegation invited Nawaz to attend Supreme Court Bar Association  National Conference in Islamabad. Nawaz accepted the invitation to address the conference.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 15^th, 2012.

Hollande vows new strategy for France and Europe

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France’s new President Francois Hollande (R) shakes hands with outgoing president Nicolas Sarkozy as he arrives at the Elysee Palace before the handover ceremony in Paris. -Reuters Photo

PARIS: Francois Hollande was sworn in as president of France on Tuesday with a solemn vow to find a new growth-led strategy to end the crippling debt crisis threatening to unravel the eurozone.

After brief ceremonies and a rain-lashed walkabout, the 57-year-old Socialist headed to Berlin to confront Chancellor Angela Merkel over their very different visions as to how to save the single currency bloc.

“Europe needs plans. It needs solidarity. It needs growth,” Hollande told dignitaries at his new home, the Elysee Palace, renewing his vow to turn the page on austerity and implicitly underlining his differences with Merkel.

“To our partners I will propose a new pact that links a necessary reduction in public debt with indispensable economic stimulus,” he told the assembled Socialists, trade unionists, military officers, churchmen and officials.

“And I will tell them of our continent’s need in such an unstable world to protect not only its values but its interests.”Hollande also named his new prime minister, Jean-Marc Ayrault, a 62-year-old longtime Hollande ally and the head of the Socialists’ parliamentary bloc, who was tipped as favourite.

Ayrault’s new cabinet will likely hold its first session on Thursday after which the Socialists turn to their campaign to win a parliamentary majority in June’s legislative elections — a key test for the party after Hollande’s win.

The new president was welcomed to the Elysee Palace by his predecessor Nicolas Sarkozy, who led him to the presidential office for a private head-to-head and to hand over the codes to France’s nuclear arsenal.

Hollande ushered Sarkozy to his car for a final farewell, outgoing first lady Carla Bruni exchanging kisses with Hollande’s partner Valerie Trierweiler, elegant in a dark dress and vertiginous heels.

Hollande then signed the notice of formal handover of power — becoming the seventh president of the Fifth Republic and only the second Socialist.

No foreign heads of state were invited to what was a low-key ceremony for a post of such importance, leader of the world’s fifth great power.

After the swearing in, Hollande rode up the rainswept Champs Elysees to the Arc de Triomphe in a modest open-topped Citroen DS5 hybrid, a symbolic break with the flashy style of his predecessor.

Soaked to the skin, Hollande laid a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and shook hands with veterans before greeting the sparse crowd of wellwishers who braved the bad weather.

He then visited Paris City Hall, a swearing-in day tradition for the French president, for a ceremony presided over by Socialist Mayor Bertrand Delanoe and attended by the capital’s elected and religious officals.

But the real work was to begin later in the afternoon, after Hollande flew to Berlin from an airbase north of Paris, for tense talks with Merkel, the leader of Europe’s biggest economy and France’s key ally.

Merkel was a Sarkozy ally and the architect of the European Union’s fiscal austerity drive. Hollande opposed the speed and depth of the cutbacks demanded by Berlin, and wants to renegotiate the eurozone fiscal pact.

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Via DAWN.com

Targets, not drones, draw ire from Pakistan: Weinbaum

Dr Marvin G. Weinbaum – Photo by Malik Siraj Akbar

Pakistan’s relationship with the United States was hit hard in 2011, owing to various factors, prime amongst which were the May 2 raid to kill Osama Bin Laden in Abbottabad and the attack on Pakistani armed forces’ check-post in Salala in November.

Both countries have been unable to undo the damage and Pakistani parliament’s review of relations has not deterred Washington from continuing drone strikes inside Pakistan’s tribal areas.

To assess the state of US-Pakistan relations, Dawn.com spoke exclusively to Professor Dr ,Marvin G. Weinbaum,, Director of the Pakistan Center at the ,Middle East Institute ,in Washington DC.  He is a professor emeritus of political science at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. From 1999 to 2003, he served at the US Department of State’s Bureau of Intelligence and Research as an analyst for Pakistan and Afghanistan.  

What has been the response in Washington to the parliamentary review of Pakistan’s relations with the United States?

It was interesting to see the Pakistani parliament debate the issue. Normally, the military in Pakistan decides the foreign policy. One wonders if the parliament was competent to examine the foreign policy vis-à-vis the United States.

Washington wants the reopening of supplies to Nato forces in Afghanistan, while the bottom line for Pakistan has been to stop the drone strikes. Drones are one area where the US is most reluctant to give up.

It is believed in Washington that Pakistani officials secretly endorse drone operations but publicly denounce them. Which of these statements is true?

Everyone realises that one could not have conducted the operations over the years without some cooperation from the Pakistani military authorities. The dispute between the two armed forces has been the issue of who to target. Pakistan does not mind if the US targets Al Qaeda. The raid on the Bin Laden compound was the only exception. Likewise, Pakistan does not mind if the drones strike on Hakeemullah Mehsud’s people. Pakistan seems to have problems when the Americans go behind the Haqqani Network or the Quetta Shura. The cause for friction between the two countries on drones is over the issue of the targets.

What is going to be the impact of the bounty announced by the US government on Jammat-ud-Dawa chief Hafiz Mohammad Saeed?

The US has been watching the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) in the context of the rise of the Pakistan Defence Council (PDC).  The PDC has become much visible and the Pakistani civil and military authorities have done nothing to stop it. The objectives of the LeT are aimed at the South Asian region as well as American interests and beyond. The bounty could have been announced one or two years ago but it has come now as a mark of American frustration with Pakistan in the wake of the stoppage of the supply lines, the parliamentary debate and, most importantly, how  groups like the LeT and even the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi have been given a free hand to operate.

What do you think are going to be the major transitional challenges in Afghanistan in 2014?  

There are going to be different transitions and different challenges. For example, the security transition looks into the matter of transferring authority to the Afghan security forces, finances, competence of Afghan forces and their loyalties.

Afghanistan will also go through political transition as there is going to be a change in political leadership of the country. If the Afghans can’t negotiate among themselves ahead of 2014, the Taliban are likely to take advantage of this and attain military gains which will eventually lead to a civil war. There is a need to sufficiently stabilise the security forces to avoid a civil war.

The third transition is going to be economic. Most of the economic growth in Afghanistan in the past one decade took place by the virtue of the money that came because of the military’s presence there. Recently, there has been a sharp decline in military assistance. The challenge is how the Afghan economy is going to make an adjustment with where it is today and what it would look like by 2015.

After the disintegration of the Soviet Union, Pakistan was left alone by the United States and even isolated due to its nuclear program. Now, it seems the US won’t be there to help Pakistan grapple with the post-2014 challenges, such as the Pakistani Taliban, because Washington is still annoyed with Islamabad over Bin Laden’s presence in Abbottabad. So, what do you think is going to happen to Pakistan?

In 1990s, there was no insurgency in Pakistan but now it has to calculate what the events in Afghanistan will lead to inside its territory. I do not think that the Pakistani government, or even the military, wants a complete Taliban victory in Afghanistan. They don’t want to see a civil war in Afghanistan which would place Pakistan on the other side of the military influence of Iran, Russia and India. Taliban rule could lead to further isolation for Pakistan and could also lead to the rise of an uncontrollable Taliban in Pakistan.

What is the future of the Pakistani Taliban?

The Afghan Taliban, if they come into power, would like to realign themselves with the Pakistani Taliban. At this time, their top priority is to get into power in Afghanistan because of which one does not see a lot of realignment between the two. But once the Taliban in Afghanistan achieve their goals, they would want the Sharia law for Islamabad as much as they want it for Kabul.

Pakistan wants to be instrumental in bringing a peaceful settlement in Afghanistan. They do not want to run Afghanistan but want to make sure that they have their elements there who will take care of Pakistan’s needs. This means, Pakistan would like to offer the Afghans so much domestic influence that they should be able to keep the Indians from getting too much of a foothold in Afghanistan.

What was the impact of Pakistan’s boycott of the Bonn Conference?

I think Pakistan’s boycott was emotional. It made no sense. Pakistan wants to be at the table whenever anything regarding Afghanistan is being discussed. The reason its absence did not matter much is because nothing significant happened in Bonn. Some speeches were made but nothing substantial took place there.

What do you think we should expect from Nato’s upcoming Summit in Chicago?

Some tough decisions, such as the pace of withdrawal, have to be made at the Chicago Summit. Presumably, some bilateral strategic agreements are going to be signed. This is, therefore, an event of important interest for Pakistan.

Would you agree that Pakistan was not consulted while opening an office for the Taliban in Qatar or initiating the reconciliation process?

Pakistan has never objected to the Taliban setting up an office in Qatar. Pakistan was on board on that notion from the very beginning. That is why it never complained about it. For instance, when Taliban leader Mullah Abdul Ghani Bradar was secretly talking to the Americans, the Pakistanis immediately locked him up. The problem with Pakistan’s strategy is that Islamabad can’t make the Taliban deliver what it wants them to do. It is naïve to expect the Afghan Taliban to accept Hamid Karzai as a part of the political set-up or form a political party of  their own to become a part of the electoral system.

Do you see a future relationship between the United States and Pakistan after 2014?

Both the countries can ill-afford a complete separation. They will struggle to find those areas of common interest that serve their purpose. There should be no illusions that it is going to be a broad-based strategic partnership. It is going to be a narrowly construed and transactional arrangement.

Why can’t the two countries have a successful strategic partnership?  

The military and the elements in the government are willing to develop a strategic partnership but the public opinion prevents it from happening. Political forces in Pakistan do not want a resolution of tensions between the two countries. Despite controlling the country’s foreign policy, the military in Pakistan involved the public and the media in key debates concerning the relations with the United States as was seen in the Raymond Davis affair. The Bin Laden raid and the killing of soldiers last November has created a set of expectations among the public which serves as the limiting factor for the policymakers.

Pakistanis complain that the United States comes up with a new set of demands every time. When should one expect an end to future pressures on Pakistan to ‘do more’?

I do not think that the US comes up with new demands all the time. We only keep repeating the old ones. The only new demand has come in the case of Hafiz Saeed.

Some sections of opinion in Pakistan believe that the United States is eying their nuclear program and would eventually take away the country’s nukes.

That is nonsense. Anything that weakens the government in Pakistan should be treated contrary to the US interests. The US needs a predictable partner. A partner that is distracted from issues cannot be an interlocutor in any kind of negotiations. If the US has to worry about Pakistan’s nuclear program, it would be for the fear of a break up within the Pakistani military. Does the US worry about it? Yes, it does. The US does not expect the imminent break up of the country but the consequences are catastrophic if junior officers (with support to Jihadi elements) turn on the senior officers causing a serious command-and-control challenge. Fortunately, we are not there at this point. It is not in the interest of the US or even India to deliberately weaken the Pakistani government or the military.

,Malik Siraj Akbar, is a ,Reagan-Fascell Democracy Fellow, at the ,National Endowment for Democracy ,(NED), Washington DC. The contents of this interview do not reflect the policy of NED.

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Via DAWN.com

Libyan Islamist quits militia to enter politics

 Abdel Hakim Belhadj speaks during an interview with Reuters in Tripoli. Belhadj, the Islamist who commands one of Libya’s most powerful militias is quitting to formally join politics full time. — File Photo by Reuters

TRIPOLI:  Abdel Hakim Belhadj, one of Libya’s most powerful militia leaders, is quitting to devote himself full-time to politics, an aide said on Monday, in a vote of confidence for the fragile transition from rebellion to democracy.

Belhadj, a former Islamist militant who helped topple former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi in last year’s revolt, is to resign his post as head of the Tripoli Military Council and set up a political party, his aide said.

His party is unlikely to be able to register in time for Libya’s first ever election on June 19, for a transitional assembly which will draft a constitution.

But with Islamists gaining in influence since Gaddafi’s overthrow, Belhadj’s party will be well placed to compete in fresh elections to be scheduled by the new assembly.

“He will announce his political party,” Anis Al-Sharif, head of Belhadj’s office, told Reuters, adding that Belhadj had sent a letter to the ruling National Transitional Council on his resignation.

“He also feels that the revolutionaries have done their job to oust the Gaddafi regime and now it’s time to rebuild Libya, to move to a political state,” he said.

The military council will meet to elect a replacement for Belhadj, the aide said.

Belhadj is a former leader of the Libyan Islamic Fighting  Group, which waged an insurgency against Gaddafi in the 1990s.
He spent time with Islamist militants in Afghanistan, though he said he was not allied with Osama bin Laden’s al Qaeda.

He was captured, detained by British and US intelligence services, and sent to Libya in 2004, where he was jailed. He renounced violence and was released from jail a few months before the uprising against Gaddafi’s 42-year rule.

After rebel fighters expelled Gaddafi’s forces from the capital, Tripoli, Belhadj became head of the Tripoli Military Council, a heavily armed force of about 25,000 men.

It was among the most powerful of the volunteer militias which have held real power in Libya in the vacuum left by Gaddafi’s downfall. In the past few months, though, it has ceded some functions to the newly created national police and army.

Belhadj ran the operation from a suite of rooms at the Radisson Hotel, overlooking Tripoli’s port. Initially he held meetings in camouflage fatigues, but later swapped those for a suit as he tried to re-model himself as a civilian leader.

Lawyers acting for Belhadj are suing the British government, its intelligence services and a former British foreign minister, over his transfer back to Libya in 2004.

Belhadj alleges that Britain colluded in his “rendition” from Malaysia, where he was arrested in 2004, back to Libya, even though British officials knew he faced torture at home.

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Via DAWN.com