Establishment' supporting Tehreek-e-Insaf

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf is at the centre of allegations that the country's powerful establishment is supporting its bid to power in the next general elections, with an increasing number of politicians and technocrats announcing their decision to join it.

Imran Khan, cricketer-turned politician who launched his movement for 'change' this year, has repeatedly rejected allegations of establishment support; but his critics insist that the reason behind his sudden rise in popularity is attributable to establishment support with the objective of creating an alternate power to rid the country of the two major political parties, ie Pakistan People's Party (PPP) and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N).

Currently, PTI has been joined by many politicians while many others are waiting for the appropriate time.

Prominent amongst those who joined PTI recently are PPP's former foreign minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi and former IB chief Masood Sharif Khattak while those waiting for the right time include former State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) governor Shahid Kardar and former Pakistan ambassador to Washington during Musharraf era Maleeha Lodhi.

These four names, Imran's critics allege are hardly likely to support change as envisioned by him as they are more likely to safeguard the interests of the establishment.

According to PTI sources in Lahore, the party chief Imran Khan has a long list of those willing to join the party at an appropriate time.

"Khan Sahib himself told me that Shahid Kardar and Maleeha Lodhi are willing to join PTI," said the source who requested not to be named.

Kardar, who resigned as SBP governor after differences with President Zardari, had previously served as minister for finance, planning and development, excise and taxation and industries and mineral development under government of Punjab between November 1999 and January 2001.

Additionally his critics allege that Kardar had first refused on some issues pertaining to Sindh Bank but later reportedly agreed to President Zardari's demands - demands considered financially untenable - however the President, when requested to revisit Kardar's resignation by Dr Hafeez Sheikh in light of his agreement, refused to be placated.

When asked if there was any involvement of establishment in the large numbers of known figures seeking to join PTI, the source laughed and said, "just wait for days to come." However, there is a growing perception in political circles that a large number of politicians, close to the establishment in the past, have begun joining the PTI in droves.

The decision of former IB chief Masood Sharif Khattak to join PTI and some other important figures has strengthened this perception.

According to political pundits in the capital the establishment is working hard to bring some set-up sans PPP and PML-N following next general elections in an effort to rid the country of the politics of the two major parties.

They believe that the establishment does not trust Nawaz Sharif or President Zardari who had been supported earlier by the establishment because of his weakness.

The executive's continued conflict with the judiciary especially subsequent to the recent court verdict on the review petition of the NRO filed by the government as well as the establishment of an independent commission to probe the Memogate has raised serious concerns within the government that the judiciary as well as the army top brass has joined forces to topple its top man.

However, the pundits maintain that the assassination of Benazir Bhutto coupled with the failure of the government to bring her murderers to justice, poor governance and unpopularity of PPP's co-chairman President Asif Ali Zardari had made its work easy.

Analysts also believe that the task to make Nawaz Sharif and his party (PML-N) unpopular has been given to Imran Khan which is why he (Khan) is more critical of the Sharifs rather than Zardari at his public meetings.

However, many argue that Khan feels greater personal animosity against the Sharifs because of allegations levelled against his ex-wife Jemima Khan for stealing antiquities from Pakistan by the Sharifs as well as the revelations of Sita White and her daughter which again are sourced to the Sharifs' camp.

In the next general elections, the main danger to PPP and PML-N would, therefore, come from Imran due to massive support from within the youth or the 18-34 year-olds.

This group consists of roughly one-third of the country's entire population.

According to an estimate, given that the total population of the country is 180 million, then this age group stands at about 60 million, all potential voters.

In the previous general elections of 2008, the total registered voters numbered a little over 80 million and, with a 44 percent turnout, almost 35 million polled their votes.

The youth group said to be extremely important for any political party in the next general polls, is not evenly spread throughout Pakistan but mostly concentrated in Punjab, parts of Sindh as well as Khyber Pakhtunkhawa.
http://www.brecorder.com/general-news/single/599/172/1260411/

Pakistani Madrassa boys found chained in Karachi

Gadap police on late Monday night recovered more than 50 children, chained in a seminary of Sohrab Goth, Geo News reported.

According to details, police conducted a raid at a seminary in Sohrab Goth and recovered more than 50 chained children. All the children hail from the outskirts of Peshawar.

Police sources informed that the children were kept at underground dungeon.

SP Gadap said majority of the children belong to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Key political risks to watch in Pakistan

Relations between the United States and its ally Pakistan, already heavily battered, have been pushed to their lowest point in years.

A NATO attack killed 24 Pakistani soldiers on November 26, and in mid-December U.S. lawmakers agreed to freeze $700 million in aid to Pakistan until it gives assurances it is helping fight the spread of homemade bombs in the region.

NATO aircraft struck two military border posts in northwest Pakistan, in the worst incident of its kind since Islamabad allied itself with Washington in 2001 in the war on militancy.

Relations were already strained after claims in late September by Admiral Mike Mullen, the former top U.S. military officer, that Pakistan was supporting militant attacks against Afghan and U.S. targets in Afghanistan.

The attack sparked fury across Pakistan, with Islamabad rejecting U.S. claims that it was an accident, and demanding U.S. personnel vacate a Pakistani airbase associated with the drone campaign on the country's western border region, a known militant base.

Pakistan has closed its borders to trucks carrying supplies through Pakistan to NATO forces in Afghanistan, and it pulled out of an international conference in Germany on the future of Afghanistan, depriving the talks of a key player which could nudge Taliban militants into a peace process as NATO combat troops prepare to leave Afghanistan by the end of 2014.

Adding to the uncertainty, Pakistan's President Asif Ali Zardari flew to Dubai on December 6 for medical treatment, sparking speculation of that he may resign, which his office has denied.

The domestic political instability and the tense relations with Washington, especially since the killing of Osama bin Laden by U.S. special forces in May, make the overall environment extremely hostile to foreign investors.

Such is the uncertainty surrounding Pakistan's commitment to the U.S-led war on militancy that Congress has suspended $800 million in military assistance to Pakistan.

RATINGS (Unchanged from November unless stated):

MOODY's: B3

S&P: B-

Here is a summary of key risks to watch in Pakistan:

WORSENING RELATIONS WITH AMERICA

The move to freeze $700 million in American aid, and the NATO strike came after a year of crises between the two uneasy allies. Washington has long pushed for action, military or otherwise, against the Haqqani militant network, one of NATO's deadliest foes in Afghanistan and thought to largely operate from North Waziristan.

Islamabad repeatedly said it would not do so, saying its forces were overstretched and it could not afford to provoke a general tribal uprising.

Reflecting American frustration with Pakistan, and suspicion that there are links between Pakistan's powerful spy agency and militants operating in Pakistan and Afghanistan, there have been many proposals to make U.S. aid conditional on more cooperation in fighting militants such as the Haqqani network Washington believes operates out of Pakistan and battles U.S. troops in Afghanistan.

Though the cutback announced is only a small proportion of the billions in civil and military assistance it gets each year, it is a warning sign that Washington is losing patience with Islamabad, and that relations may worsen. What to watch:

-- A further attack or unilateral raid on Pakistan from NATO forces in Afghanistan. Another attack could conceivably break the alliance completely, putting the war effort in Afghanistan at risk.

-- More aid cuts. December's move could presage greater cuts as calls grow in the United States to penalize Islamabad for failing to act against militant groups and, at worst, helping them.

-- Any further accusations from Washington, how Islamabad responds, and the tone of the rhetoric from both sides. The United States wants Pakistan to bring the Haqqani network into peace negotiations, but is wary of exerting too much pressure on Pakistan and forcing a break in ties.

INTERNAL SECURITY

There has been a noticeable decrease in bomb attacks in Pakistan, but random violence continues to affect parts of the southern port city of Karachi, Pakistan's key financial hub.

More than 1,600 people have been killed in the city this year, over half of them in political and sectarian violence, and Pakistan's paramilitary forces have been deployed in the southern port city to try to stabilize violent districts.

The violence and instability are a huge deterrent to foreign investment. Investors are particularly sensitive to attacks in Karachi, home to key financial markets and the central bank.

Sunni militants have stepped up attacks against Shi'ites in Baluchistan in recent months. On September 20, gunmen in the province opened fire on a bus, killing 26 Shi'ite pilgrims travelling to Iran. Ethnic Baluch militants have been waging a low-level insurgency in Baluchistan for years for more autonomy and greater control over natural resources of the region.

What to watch: -- Further attacks by militants. The assaults on high-profile military facilities have shown the continued ability of Taliban fighters to attack even protected targets.

-- Talks with the Taliban? The deputy commander of the Pakistan Taliban said in December his group was in talks with the government, which the prime minister and interior minister then denied.

POLITICAL VIOLENCE, GOVERNMENT WEAKNESS

President Zardari's treatment in Dubai for what could be a minor heart attack has sparked rumors that he may resign.

While the government maintains that the treatment is routine, the episode is indicative of the level of mistrust and suspicion that surrounds the president, and the continued belief the Pakistani army can and will take control -- or at least exert influence -- as it sees fit. Political leaders, many of whom are seen as incompetent and corrupt, have offered little guidance. Zardari's government is weak, prone to splits, has limited control over the military and has failed to tackle corruption or reform the economy. Serious problems formulating and implementing policy will continue to deter investment.

Pakistan's cash-strapped government has also been slow to respond to fresh flooding in the southern province of Sindh, which has killed over 300 people and damaged or destroyed about 1.4 million houses.

What to watch:

-- Attacks on politicians, and alliances forming between Islamist parties to challenge the government.

-- Any move by the military to more openly influence political developments.

EXTERNAL SECURITY

Relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan have faltered, with cross-border attacks reported by both sides.

Tension between the neighbors has been heightened by whispering from some Afghan lawmakers that Pakistan's spy agency, the Inter-services Intelligence (ISI), was behind recent assassinations in Afghanistan, something Pakistan vehemently denied.

Pakistan is a critical regional stakeholder, and backing out of the Bonn conference sends the message that it has lost faith in international efforts in Afghanistan and wants to pursue its own interests -- possibly at the expense of the West.

Relations with Afghanistan look increasingly fragile as a result of both Pakistan's absence at Bonn, and a series of attacks in Afghanistan that Afghan President Hamid Karzai has said were tied to Pakistan.

Karzai said Pakistan-based militant group Lashkar-e-Jhangvi claimed responsibility for the bomb attacks in Afghanistan on December 6 that killed 59 Shi'ite worshippers.

He has also said the assassination of former Afghan president Burhanuddin Rabbani, who was charged with leading peace talks with the Taliban insurgency, was planned in Pakistan.

Relations with India have also been shaken by the killing of bin Laden, with some Indian commentators questioning Pakistan's ability and will to contain militant activity.

What to watch:

-- Drone attacks. Any drone attack that results in high civilian deaths could further damage the U.S.-Pakistan relationship.

-- Attacks in India. An attack with Pakistani fingerprints could spark serious confrontation.

ECONOMIC REFORM AND INFRASTRUCTURE

Pakistan's cabinet unanimously decided on November 2 to grant India Most Favoured Nation (MFN) status, a major breakthrough that could bolster efforts to improve relations between the nuclear-armed rivals.

There are hopes that progress in trade ties will help bolster a fragile peace process, which the two resumed in February, with political implications likely to outweigh any practical benefits.

The two countries' commerce ministries say trade could easily triple in three years, which could help shore up Pakistan's rickety economy.

The Pakistani rupee has continued to drop against the dollar, recently hitting repeated lows, and the country's economy is propped up by an $11 billion loan program from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), as well as aid from donors including the United States.

Pakistan has said it will not seek a new loan program or an extension to the loan, because it had no immediate balance of payments crisis, a move analysts say is a risk.

Pakistan's economy is still highly vulnerable to widening deficits, and bold moves based on false optimism could possibly lead to a downgrade from ratings agencies.

What to watch:

-- The level of donations for flood relief. Paltry donations could signal that donors are losing patience with Pakistan on many issues.

Acid Attacks in Pakistan

PML-N to be eliminated even from Punjab

PAKISTAN People’s Party Women Wing Lahore President Faiza Malik said on Sunday that PML-N did not exist in other provinces and it would be eliminated from Punjab too with the power of votes.

Talking to several women workers delegations at her office here, she said that no one could threaten PPP workers as it was the only party which knew how to sacrifice for a greater cause.

She said that President Asif Ali Zardari would soon frustrate expectations of opponents by returning home after permission from his doctors. She said that PML-N President Mian Nawaz Sharif could not befool anyone now by praising Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto Shaheed as he made fake cases against her.

Faiza said PPP gained power with the support of votes of people and it would complete its constitutional tenure. She said PPP had always defeated its opponents at political front and it would never let them win in future.

U.S. admiral reveals plan to triple number of armed Afghans paid to protect villages

The head of the U.S. special forces has revealed a likely controversial plan to triple the number of armed Afghans paid by NATO to protect their villages under a plan once described as "a community watch with AK-47s".

In a rare meeting with journalists Saturday, Adm. William H McRaven, the architect of the daring U.S. raid that killed Osama bin Laden, said the plan could go into effect over the next two years.

The number of Afghan Local Police, or ALP, could go up from 9,800 to 30,000, if the Afghan government supports it.

American commanders consider the groups a local and cost-effective solution to shoring up security in Afghanistan's sprawling and lawless rural communities. They were active in 57 districts now, but could cover 99 by the end of 2013.

"The real advantage for the ALP and what it provides you as opposed to the Afghan National Army and Afghan National Police is the ability for Afghans from their local districts to protect their own homes," he said. "The ALP allow guys to stay at home and protect their families and their villages."

The ALP created "a network out there that can respond to any potential threats," he said.

Former NATO commander in Afghanistan, Gen. David Petraeus, first introduced the plan 17 months ago, describing it to the U.S. Congress as "a community watch with AK-47s."

But Human Rights Watch accused the groups of "committing serious human rights abuses" and not being held accountable by the Afghan government.

These reports have raised fears that the armed groups might turn on the communities they protect or neighbor, particularly if their coalition wages falter after the NATO drawdown.

There are also concerns they could enter into rivalries with neighboring groups, instead worsening security for local Afghans. McRaven said he had only heard anecdotal talk of these groups fueling local tribal rivalries, but has not seen evidence on the ground to support that.

Col. John Evans, deputy commanding officer of Combined Forces Special Operations, said at 30,000 in number, the groups would cost an estimated $170 million to maintain annually, making them significantly cheaper than the police or army as an Afghan method of providing security locally.

While he said the ALP could not provide all the same skills as the police and army, he added: "There is an economy aspect for the ALP for a government of Afghanistan that is going to continue have to meet financial commitments as a young democracy. It does give them some options."

Evans added that basic training and local accountability were in place to keep the ALP in order. "There are several check and balances: a vetting at the local level by the Shuras", or groups of village elders.

"It allows for people to say that a man would be a good guardian for them as they have known them all their lives. And secondly if this young man turns out not to be an honest man now he is accountable to that village elder as that's how the culture works."

Evans added the ALP were under the remit of the Afghan Ministry of Interior and answerable to local police chiefs.

A highly-decorated Navy SEAL and experienced terrorist hunter, McRaven was also the architect of the raid to kill Osama Bin Laden. He declined to discuss that operation.

McRaven defended NATO's controversial tactic of night raids in Afghanistan, which have become a sticking point in negotiations over the US's long term military presence in the country. He said there have been 2,800 raids on insurgents in the country in the past year alone, only 15% of which fired a shot.

McRaven added that of all the casualties caused by coalition special forces raids, only 1% were civilians killed in error. The intrusive nature of the raids, and the civilian deaths they cause, have made them deeply unpopular in the nation. President Hamid Karzai has frequently demanded that they stop.

"I think you would find that night raids are very valuable when you are trying to get somebody who is trying to hide," McRaven said. "It's an important piece of security and I think we have to continue to have this discussion with the Afghans. I'm not sure I know if it's essential but I know that it's important."

On special forces raids in general in Afghanistan, McRaven said: "There's not a guy in uniform who doesn't realize that we can't kill our way to success here. Statistically of the raids that we do, in generally 85% of them we never fire a shot. That always surprises folks. In a 12 month period -- and this is a number you can take to the bank -- in a 12 month period of time we conducted about 2,800 raids in Afghanistan.

He said the civilian casualties were less than 1%.

"The number of times we engaged was about 15%. In any conflict those are pretty good numbers. The Afghan (commandos partnering the US forces] are always in the lead. A common mission of for the guys is they will helicopter into an area and the Afghans will get on bullhorns and they will say "please come out we are coalition forces."

Previous reports have suggested raids happen on average 10 times a night, but sometimes as often as 40. McRaven's remarks lower that average slightly, but still provide an official confirmation of how common such operations have become.

McRaven said moves are under way to ensure that future night raids are led by Afghan commandos, a possible compromise in the face of complaints here from the presidency. McRaven insisted elements of the Afghan government were in favor of raids.

McRaven also addressed the changing nature of the insurgency after a decade of war in Afghanistan. An operations officer with his team said that since the bin Laden raid and other operations, al Qaeda's "relevance in Afghanistan is becoming less and less. Their leadership has been impacted significantly. Each time they try and put somebody up there, we take them down. That has really put a hurt on al Qaeda."

Afghan insurgents "see al Qaeda more as a liability now. They [the Afghan Taliban] see it was a mistake to ever partner with" al Qaeda, he said.

McRaven added the Haqqani network -- a sophisticated part of the insurgency considered responsible for various raids into Kabul and believed to have significant Pakistani military support -- were tough fighters who are well-supplied.

But he added the network was not entirely dependent on Pakistani support.

"I think the Haqqanis are fairly autonomous. That's not to say that support that they get living in Pakistan certainly makes them more difficult for us to get at. They have been around for quite some time. So they have developed a pretty extensive network in Pakistan and in Afghanistan. I don't think they would go away quickly regardless who went after them."

He added, after a month in which a border clash that killed 24 Pakistani soldiers has taken relations between Islamabad and Washington to a new low, that Pakistan was "an important part of the solution here. while we've had some difficult times here the Pakistanis are still open to dialogue on different levels."

International Human Rights Day: Awakening humanity

Daily Times
Every year December 10th marks ‘International Human Rights Day’ to commemorate the Universal Declaration of Human Rights adopted by the UN in 1948 following the aftershocks of the devastation caused in the Second World War. The declaration is a set of the fundamental civil and constitutional liberties that all human beings are entitled to, with the rights to life, freedom and equality being at the top of the list.

Foreign interventions, violations of territorial integrity, genocide, dictatorships, gender violence, child labour, false imprisonment and denying the right to a fair trial are just a few instances of human rights violations that the whole world is faced with today. It is, therefore, an established fact that in many countries around the world these basic rights are mere privileges, which millions of people are denied. These rights are meant to be universal and egalitarian; why then are so many people victims of conflict and war, starvation and poverty, restrictions and captivity? It is partisan individuals or societies that transcend the boundaries of humanity, oblivious and/or indifferent to the greater suffering afflicted upon the common people, who are only fighting to gain what is rightfully theirs and unjustifiably not accorded to them.

Similarly, Pakistan too encompasses a system that guarantees human rights but fails where the practical implementation and protection of those rights is concerned. Unfortunately, it is mostly the poor and the minorities who are subjected to oppression and deprivation of some of their most basic rights as equal citizens of the country. With the army’s kill and dump policy in Balochistan, targeted killing of minorities and human rights advocates, discrimination against minorities vis-à-vis their due parliamentary representation to ensure safeguarding of their rights, incitement of sectarian and ethnic conflicts and many other deprivations, Balochistan is the greater victim of human rights defilement in the country today. Therefore, it is noteworthy that the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) has taken this day to underscore the plight of the people of Balochistan, whose pleas for liberation from the repressive policy of the armed forces have long been turned a deaf ear to by the authorities. The chairperson of the Baloch Human Rights Organisation (BHRO) Nargis Baloch has petitioned the apex court to take suo motu action against the relentless and uncontrolled state of insecurity that the people of Balochistan are confronted with on a daily basis. The government must awaken to resolve this crisis before the Baloch people, who are as much citizens of Pakistan as the rest of us, are permanently alienated and Pakistan suffers an irreversible setback to its solidarity.

President Zardari’s comeback

Editorial:
Daily Times
President Asif Ali Zardari said that his “enemies will be disappointed” because he is recovering and will soon return to Pakistan. Mr Zardari told an anchorperson that those who run away do so with their families but he left his son in Pakistan. It is good to know that the president is feeling better now and we wish him a speedy recovery. This has also put to rest all those rumours, speculations and motivated agendas, the authors of which were frothing at the mouth about the president’s well-being and purported ‘developments’ in the offing. While such rumour-mongering must be condemned, it would be advisable for the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) to learn a lesson from this furore. When the president flew out to Dubai, we saw contradictory statements coming from the presidential spokesman and other government and party officials. It would have been better if an authoritative official statement had been issued to scotch any rumours and speculations. In this day and age of the media revolution, when even social networking sites can lead to further fog and confusion, it is advisable for all political parties, especially the ruling party, to appoint one spokesperson who would inform the public well in time of any new developments. The irresponsibility of the media and populace aside, the government should also take some responsibility in this regard and not mishandle any such situation in future.

On the other hand, President Zardari’s announcement that he will be back soon has blackened the faces of all those scandal-mongers who were looking forward to ousting the president and the government one way or the other. Ever since the PPP-led government took office after the 2008 elections, it has faced adverse reactions from many quarters, including the media. Every other day we heard analysts giving a timeframe for when this government would fall. Nevertheless, it has survived to date and looks likely to complete its tenure. Those who wanted a military-judicial alliance to turf out the government are also in for disappointment as Chief Justice (CJ) Iftikhar Chaudhry reiterated that there are limits for every institution as per the constitution and all institutions should stay within their parameters so that the country can progress. CJ Chaudhry observed that our nation can achieve political stability, economic development and prosper if we adhere to the dictates of the constitution. The Opposition is also not in the mood to derail democracy. This is substantiated by Mian Nawaz Sharif’s politically mature statements. The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) may have gone to the Supreme Court with its Memogate petition but this move cannot be taken as an outright demand to oust the government. Their lordships and the Opposition are not willing to derail democracy. And why should they? Any move leading to the destruction of the democratic process will in effect be as damaging to the opposition parties and the independence of the judiciary as it would the incumbents. It was only wishful thinking on the part of Zardari-haters that the judiciary and the PPP’s rival political parties, especially the PML-N, would help the undemocratic forces.

Pakistan is no stranger to military interventions, be they direct or indirect. More than three decades have been spent under direct military rule and the other three decades have been spent with the military meddling in political affairs. Now that a democratic dispensation is in place after almost a decade of military dictatorship, it should be given a chance to complete its tenure. Impatience is not the answer; the ballot box is.

Karzai says foreigners fuel Afghan corruption

Foreigners are fuelling the problem of corruption in Afghanistan, a country ranked as one of the most corrupt in the world, the Afghan President Hamid Karzai said on Sunday.

"We have problems with both Afghans and foreigners... Our foreigner colleagues have not only been uncooperative but sometimes they have created obstacles," he said during a speech in Kabul on corruption.

"One of the ways to curb corruption is that foreigners should stop giving out contracts to the relatives of the high ranking government officials. We have to revise and reform the contract system", Karzai said.

"We have lost our mutual trust: foreigners think we go corrupt for political reasons, and we think they are corrupt for the same reason."

In a global survey published this month by Berlin-based anti-graft watchdog Transparency International, Afghanistan was again named one of the world's most corrupt nations.

Karzai said the problem of corruption was exacerbated by uncertainty over the future of the country.

"We have to work together with our foreigner friends to give people assurance."

Afghanistan pledged at a major conference in Germany last Monday to step up the fight against corruption in return for sustained international support.

"Afghan government institutions at all levels should increase their responsiveness to the civil and economic needs of the Afghan people and deliver key services to them," Afghanistan and its international partners said in a communique after the Bonn meeting.

"In this context, the protection of civilians, strengthening the rule of law and the fight against corruption in all its forms remain key priorities."

Experts say corruption is an endemic problem among many officials in Afghanistan and that the government and foreign powers must do more to combat it.

The US government has spent billions on aid to Afghanistan since 2002, much of which goes through contractors.

Poor data collection system Development work suffers in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

DAWN.COM
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has a poor system to collect socioeconomic development data with officials blaming it on the successive governments` inclination to `demand-driven` strategies in preference to those based on the province`s needs.

An official of the provincial planning and development department told Dawn on Saturday that collection of primary data generated by conducting sample surveys had never been a priority for provincial government.

He said successive governments prepared development strategies in accordance with the demands by their constituents and dictates by their elected representatives and never tried to ascertain needs of the relevant communities before beginning development schemes for them.

“Surveys are conducted to determine development needs of a region in developed countries before decisions about roads, health facilities or electric supply are made,” he said.

The official said surveys served as a basis for planners to determine a baseline for development, determining requirements of the area concerned.

He said primary data was the most effective tool to develop indicators about sectors, including health, education, agriculture, population welfare, livestock, telecommunication etc, for interventions needed in an area.

According to an official of the provincial Bureau of Statistics (BoS), the last time the province conducted a broad-based survey to collect primary data by spending its own money was in 1988.

“The 1981 village level survey focusing on the rural areas of the province was carried out to collect social and economic data. There followed the holding of a multiple indicator cluster survey (MICS) in 2001 and 2008 with the financial assistance of the Unicef,” he said.

He further said the MICS had been used extensively to plan development schemes by international donor agencies.

“The government`s own data, generated through secondary sources, lacks credibility in the eyes of international donors,” said a section head of the P&D department, adding that the government should involve the private sector to perform the job of collecting and compiling data for development planning purposes.

A relevant official said the BoS established in 1970 had a presence in only three of the 25 districts in the province.

“Apart from its central office in Peshawar, the bureau has two `camp offices`, including one each at Dera Ismail Khan and Abbottabad,” he said, adding that the Musharraf-led military regime attached less significance to the BoS as it reduced its role and strength.

According to another official, the bureau currently compiles the `secondary` data provided by the provincial government`s departments, their attached wings, and the federal government agencies. Besides, it also issues monthly price review bulletins and periodic industrial output analysis.

The official said printed copies of the annual report, titled as Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Development Statistics, were distributed among the state universities, government departments and federal government institutions for different purpose. He said the report used information taken from the Economic Survey of Pakistan and data provided by various directorates of the provincial government, including food, agriculture, fisheries, etc.

“The provincial government has never used this important organ to complement development planning in the province,” said the P&D official, adding that it should be used to produce primary data more than compiling secondary data.

He said the bureau had around 50 employees, including 28 statistical officers, statistical investigators and senior statistical keypunch operators.

“Conducting surveys to collect primary data is the most important job the bureau should undertake, but it requires a lot of money,” said the official, adding that more than 60 per cent of the organisation`s annual budget was spent on paying salary to employees.

The P&D department official said an improved data collection system was essential for the provincial government to enable its policymakers, departments and researchers to harmonise the official decision making process with the genuine development requirements of various areas, ensuring apt resource utilisation.

Arrangements finalised to observe Benazir Bhutto ’s death anniversary

The Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Saturday said it had finalised arrangements to observe the fourth death anniversary of Benazir Bhutto

on December 27 in a befitting manner.

Speaking at a press conference here on Saturday, the provincial secretary information of the party Syed Ayub Shah said the PPP was the largest political party in the country that always served the poor.

Muhammad Azam Afridi, Israr Khan, Said Ahmed Khan and other party leaders were also present on the occasion.

Ayub Shah said that party organisations across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa would be contacted to observe the death anniversary of the late PPP chairperson of the party in a proper manner.

The PPP leader said the government had strengthened the National Assembly through the 18th Amendment. He said it also provided relief to five million families through the Benazir Income Support Programme and reinstated the employees sacked during the Nawaz Sharif government. He added that some forces were once again out to unleash propaganda against the PPP.

Zardari's health improving

Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari, who is undergoing treatment in Dubai for heart complications, is showing improvement and expected to make an "early recovery", authorities and doctors said, as speculation about his health refused to die down here. 56-year-old Zardari was resting in a Dubai hospital on the advice of doctors, Premier Yousuf Raza Gilani told a TV news channel last evening. "He (President Zardari) is improving," Gilani said. Gilani said the President, who was feeling comfortable, had talked to him on phone on Friday when former Premier Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain and ex-Punjab Chief Minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Ilahi called on him at the Prime Minister House. In a related development, a health bulletin issued from Dubai last evening by Zardari's personal physician said: "The President is making smooth progress and feels better. The treating doctors are confident about an early recovery." The bulletin did not give details about Zardari's ailment or say when he is likely to be discharged from hospital. When he was asked about the speculation on Zardari's health, Gilani said: "Anybody can fall sick and he (Zardari) is also an average human being." He said he and Zardari's family had insisted that the President should go abroad for medical tests and treatment. Gilani cited "security reasons" as the caused for the advice given to Zardari to go abroad. He recalled that there were some security threats when Zardari's late father Hakim Ali Zardari was admitted to a hospital in Islamabad earlier this year. The Premier said he and Zardari's son Bilawal Bhutto Zardari were present at the helipad to see off the President when he left for Dubai on Tuesday.

Balochistan: The province where human rights are bullet-riddled

The Express Tribune

Saturday was International Human Rights Day, though in Pakistan the focus remained squarely within its own borders and on one province in particular.

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan observed the day in solidarity with the people of Balochistan. Taking a look at recent statistics and hearing the stories from some of those affected, one understands why.

According to an HRCP report, as many as 225 bullet-riddled bodies of missing persons were found between July 2010 and November 2011. The Voice for Baloch Missing Persons (VFBMP) puts the toll even higher, at 236, and says that all the victims had direct or indirect political affiliation with Baloch nationalist parties or student organisations.

Most worryingly, the numbers are getting worse. 107 new cases of missing persons have been reported this year, out of which 97 people have been found dead in different locations in the province.

“The writ of the government does not exist in Balochistan” says Tahir Hussain, chairman of the HRCP Balochistan chapter.

Hussain also pinpoints the fragile existence of minority communities in the province. “Minorities are compelled to migrate from Balochistan as they have become a soft target for kidnapping for ransom. At least 100 families belonging to the Hindu community have migrated from Balochistan solely because of kidnapping for ransom,” he says. In addition, as many as 80 Shias were killed in targeted killing and bomb blasts this year.

Settlers are also at risk. “Over 100 families, who are Punjabi and Urdu-speaking, have left the province because they were vulnerable to targeted killing by separatist groups,” he said.

Even those defending such minorities and standing up for human rights are under threat. Two activists – Naeem Sabir and Mohammad Siddiq Edo – were kidnapped and their bodies turned up this year,” the HRCP report states.

Mir Asghar Bangulzai, the uncle of VFBMP chairman Nasurllah Baloch, was kidnapped in June 2000 by a group of armed men from Quetta and released after a few days. However, Bangulzai, a tailor by profession, was again abducted in October 2001. A decade has passed and the family is still in the dark regarding his whereabouts. They blame the security forces for the kidnapping.

“You cannot imagine the kind of pain a family goes through when their loved one has gone missing, and at the same time mutilated bodies surface almost every week,” says Nasurllah Baloch.

The HRCP report says that practices of enforced disappearance started during the Musharraf regime in early 2000 and have steadily intensified. “The situation has gone from bad to worse with the discovery of mutilated bodies. Ironically there is no investigation in any of the cases,” says Tahir Hussain.

It adds that security forces are involved in practices of enforced disappearances, while some Baloch armed groups are behind the targeted killing of innocent settlers.

HRCP Balochistan urged the government to investigate the involvement of politicians and security forces. HRCP also demanded that a judicial inquiry be launched into the kidnapping and dumping the bodies of political opponents. Security forces, however, categorically reject the allegations of foul-play in the province

HRCP highlights Balochistan

Addressing the media at Karachi’s press club on Saturday, HRCP Chairperson Zohra Yusuf appealed to the government to address the sense of alienation felt by the people of Balochistan.

Saying the issue was “of foremost concern in the country today,” Yusuf commemorated the day by saying that people in Balochistan “believe that the government of Pakistan is doing injustice with them and such sentiments are increasing.”

However, relatives of Baloch missing persons announced that they would not take part in the rally organised by HRCP Balochistan to observe the human rights day. “The HRCP does not have any role to play for the safe recovery of missing persons,” said Nasurllah Baloch. “The organization has prioritised other issues, giving lesser attention to the gross violation of human rights. We are holding a separate rally to highlight our plight.”

At the conference, the chairperson repeatedly crticised the government for their role in the violation of Balochistan’s human rights.

U.S. flag lowered at Pakistani airbase

American flag was lowered at a Pakistani airbase on Sunday as the U.S. military personnel had been asked to vacate the facility by December 11, local media reported.

Pakistan had asked the U.S. to vacate Shamsi airbase in Balochistan province following NATO fighter jets and helicopters bombed two border posts on November 26 and killed 24 soldiers.

The U.S. had reportedly been using the airbase since late 2001 for military operations in Afghanistan and for drone strikes in Pakistan tribal regions.

Pakistani security forces entered the airfield Sunday morning and hoisted the national flag as the last transport U.S. aircraft left with remaining personnel and equipment, Geo television reported while quoting its own sources.

Pakistani Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani said last week that the United States has been asked to vacate the airbase by December 11.

Local TV channels reported that the U.S. shifted all its personnel in 9 planes and equipment in nearly 20 transport planes. The personnel, drone aircraft, weapons and other equipment have been shifted to Afghanistan, the reports said.

U.S. officials recently said that they have a backup plan in Afghanistan if the Shamsi airstrip is closed down.

Geo TV reported that senior officials from the Defence Ministry and Civil Aviation were at the airbase at the time of the vacation.Soldiers from the Frontier Corps took control of the airbase late Saturday evening as most of the American personnel had already left the airfield and one U.S. cargo plane had been at the airbase for transferring the remaining personnel and equipment.

The U.S. officials dismantled fiber-made residential barracks which had been built for military personnel, local TV channels had earlier reported.

A Pakistani military official in Balochistan recently said that the U.S. officials at the airbase had also burnt some equipment, which he said is a routine practice as they were not required to be taken out of the facility.

Pakistan's Air Chief, Air Marshal Rao Qamar Suleman told the parliament in a special briefing in May after Osama bin Laden was killed by the U.S. military that the Shamsi airbase had been under the control of UAE.

Pakistan media then reported that the UAE had allowed the U.S. to use it for spy aircraft operation in Pakistani tribal regions. When the facility had been given to the UAE, only small aircraft could land at the airbase.

Sources said that top Pakistani leadership will decide whether or not to hand over the Shamsi airbase to the United Arab Emirates after a complete U.S. evacuation. The UAE had been using the airstrip for small aircraft of its leaders when they used to come to Pakistan for hunting. The U.S. had extended the runway to enable big aircraft to land.

SC larger bench sets to take up Z. A. Bhutto reference case on Monday

Chief Justice of Pakistan Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry has constituted an-eleven member larger bench to resume hearing from Monday, a presidential reference, regarding revisiting of late premier

Zulfikar Ali Bhutto's murder case.

The larger bench includes the Chief Justice, Justice Mian Shakirullah Jan, Justice Tassaduq Hussain Jillani, Justice Nasir ul Mulk, Justice Jawwad S. Khawja, Justice Anwar Zaheer Jamali, Justice Khilji Arif Hussain, Justice Tariq Parvez, Justice Mian Saqib Nisar, Justice Sarmad Jalal Osmani and Justice Amir Hani Muslim that will take up the Presidential reference sent to apex Court under Article 186.

The counsels for the parties as well as amicus curiae are being requested to ensure their presence for the case as it is likely to proceed on day to day basis from 12th December to 16th December, 2011 as the Court will have break for winter vacations from 19th December to 31st December 2011.

Notices to all concerned including incumbent president of Supreme Court Bar Association have been issued.

On the last date of hearing on June 29, the matter was adjourned by the larger Bench with the observation that the apex Court would take up the case subject to availability of the Bench.

On April 21, the Court had also appointed amicus curiae including senior advocates/jurists, M/s Ali Ahmed Kurd, Tariq Mehmood, Abdul Hafeez Pirzada, Fakhruddin G. Ebrahim, Khalid Anwar, Makhdoom Ali Khan, S. M. Zafar, Aitzaz Ahsan, Zahoorul Haq and Abdul Latif Afridi.

Khalid Anwar had expressed his inability to assist the Court as amicus curiae by sending a written request which was accepted by the Court and in his place Qazi Muhammad Ashraf was appointed as amicus curiae.

During the course of hearing on June 29, Attorney General for Pakistan also requested more time to prepare further arguments particularly with reference to each question referred by the President of Pakistan.

While Dr Babar Awan, counsel for referring authority had completed his arguments over the case raising five major questions for the apex Court to revisit the murder case.

The amicus curiae would start their arguments in the case.

Besides, the Chief Justice of Pakistan also constituted four benches (to sit after larger bench) at the Principal seat to hear a number of important cases in the next week starting from December 12.

The first bench includes the Chief Justice and Justice Khilji Arif Hussain, the second bench of Justice Mian Shakirullah Jan, Justice Jawwad S. Khawja and Justice Amir Hani Muslim, third bench of Justice Tassaduq Hussain Jillani and Justice Mian Saqib Nisar, third bench of Justice Nasirul Mulk and Justice Sarmad Jalal Osmani, and fourth bench of Justice Anwar Zaheer Jamali and Justice Tariq Parvez will take up a number of cases.

According to cause lists, no application for adjournment through fax will be placed before the Court. If the counsel is unable to appear for any reason the Advocate-on-Record will be required to argue the case. Besides, no adjournment on any ground will be granted.

Balochistan – a human rights free zone

DAWN.COM

Every year on this momentous day, 60-year old retired bank employee Abdul Qadeer Baloch organises special events in Balochistan capital, Quetta, to mark the international human rights day. He has organised, for instance, hunger strike camps and convened press conferences to raise the voices of the families of the disappeared Baloch political activists, students and professionals.

Qadeer had remained absolutely aloof to such hardcore activism until February 13, 2009, when officials attired in plainclothes whisked away his son Jalil Ahmed Reki, 35, from Quetta. The disappearance of a breadwinning son turned Qadeer’s life upside down. He eventually joined the Voice for Baloch Missing Persons (VBMP), an organisation representing the families of missing persons, to campaign for the release of his disappeared son.

Jalil Reki, Qadir’s missing son, had regularly operated as the central spokesman for the Baloch Republican Party, a nationalist political group seeking self-rule for the resource-rich Balochistan province. He was articulate, charismatic and well-connected with the local media. Qadeer made every attempt possible to seek the release of his missing child but completely failed to bring him back from the custody of the captors. After his involvement in similar missing persons’ cases, Qadeer realised his was not the only family which had a loved one listed as ‘missing’.

“Every missing person is my son,” Qadeer assured as he was recently promoted as the vice president of the VBMP. With more organisational responsibility came more pressure. In October, two secret agents reached out to Qadeer in Quetta warning him to immediately and unconditionally end the demand for the release of the disappeared activists.

“They warned if I wanted my son alive then I should end the hunger strike camp,” Qadir shared his insecurity with the media soon after being warned in person and also on telephone.

Qadeer would have routinely snubbed this warning if he had been contacted two years ago. In the past one year, the situation in Balochistan has dramatically changed. The bullet-riddled dead bodies of at least 220 missing persons have been found from different parts of the province in the past eight months.

Thus, Qadeer and his friends were totally cognizant of what he bills as the “nasty capabilities” of the captors of their loved ones. He took the threats seriously but it was no longer practically possible to abandon an organisation which funnelled hope to the relatives of hundreds of other missing persons.

“Quitting wasn’t simply an option” said Qadeer. Those who had warned him stood by their words. On November 24, the tortured and bullet-infested dead body of Qadeer’s disappeared son was found in Turbat district.

This year brings a totally different international human rights day for Qadeer. He says his young son’s killing has not undermined his resolve but given him a reason to stand beside those who still await the return of their loved ones.

‘Moral Crisis’

There is increasing international concern about human rights violations in Balochistan. Official denial of access to international media, human rights groups and researchers and increased role of agencies further make it difficult to independently analyse the crisis in Balochistan.

On November 16, the deputy spokesman of the US Department of State, Mark Toner, expressed concern over the situation in Balochistan.

Amnesty International’s Pakistan researcher Mustafa Qadri terms Balochistan as one of Pakistan’s “greatest moral crises”. The province, he says, has fast become a “human rights-free zone” with security forces and armed groups acting with total impunity.

Qadri, whose London-based global human rights watchdog has actively sought an end to killings and disappearances in Balochistan, says there are no excuses for the government to continue “such policies” in Balochistan.

“The failure of the state to protect its citizens’ right to life has left all of Balochistan’s diverse communities living in constant fear of abductions, torture, and targeted killings. The state continues to suppress the Baloch community’s right to freedom of expression whether with respect to nationalist politics or calls for justice for victims of enforced disappearance,” he claims.

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) has decided to dedicate this year’s international human rights day to the people of Balochistan in order to urge Islamabad to “make vigorous efforts to ensure respect for the rights of the people in the long suffering province.”

Zohra Yusuf, HRCP’s chairperson, says at least 107 new cases of enforced disappearance have been reported in Balochistan in 2011, and the ‘missing persons’ are increasingly turning up dead.

“Bodies of at least 225 ‘missing persons’ have been recovered from various parts of the province since July 2010,” she reveals, “It is scandalous that not a single person has been held accountable for these disappearances and killings.”

Alarming Trends

With numerous existing indicators, there are valid reasons to paint a murky future scenario for Balochistan vis-à-vis the state of human rights.

Firstly, defenders of democracy, champions of human rights and the advocates of press freedom are all being forcefully dragged into the ongoing conflict. At least two HRCP coordinators, eight journalists and one campaigner for the IDP (internally displaced persons) rights have been tortured and killed in less than a year.

In addition, the so-called ‘kill and dump operations’ provide a glimpse into the prevalent and sophisticated network of illegal torture cells maintained inside Balochistan. For example, when activists, such as Qadeer’s son, disappear from Quetta and are found dead 856 kilometres away in Kech district, it gives a clear idea about the extraordinary operational and logistical capabilities of people involved in such regular and untraceable operations.

Meanwhile, an underground armed group calling itself as the Baloch Musla Defai Tanzeem (Baloch Armed Defence Organisation) recently issued a hit-list of four journalists in Khuzdar district warning to kill them all if they reported the activities of Baloch nationalists. At least two former presidents and two members, of the same district press club have been murdered in recent past, highlighting the threats faced by journalists working in Khuzdar.

Amidst the crises, the governments at the centre and the province do not currently have an engagement policy in Balochistan to give an idea where it stands on the issue of disappearances, killings and warnings to defenders of human rights. It demonstrates absolute official indifference toward the issue while the attacks on defenders of democracy and human rights are taking place with flagrant impunity showing a total absence of an accountability-driven system.

The number of unknown, shadowy armed groups is increasing day by day. Emboldened over lack of official action against them, these groups have become less reclusive, more assertive and more selective while singing out their targets.

Turning a blind eye, the provincial and central governments and the executive and the judicial branches of the government continue to throw the issue of human rights into each other’s court. Additionally, the government has not either completed or initiated investigations into killings for which it has been blamed, such as the murder of Professor Saba Dashtiyari of the University of Balochistan, to assure its commitment to independently probe blatant attacks on educators and free-thinkers.

The government has also not fulfilled the promise it made unveiling the Aghaz-e-Haqooq-Balochistan Package that all missing Baloch persons would be released.

Decades of unabated attacks on dissenters have eroded Balochistan’s political landscape to such an extent that violence has knocked out an ambiance of political dialogue.

Obama decides high-profile issues ahead of 2012

On issues from air pollution to contraception, President Barack Obama has broken sharply with liberal activists and come down on the side of business interests and social conservatives as he moves more to the political middle for his re-election campaign.

Without a Democratic challenger who might tug him to the left, Obama is free to try to neutralize Republican efforts to tar him as a liberal ideologue by taking steps toward the political center.

At the same time, he is finding opportunities to boost his standing with his most committed backers. For example, he has appealed to environmentalists by delaying an oil pipeline that would run from Canada to Texas, and to gay rights activists by bolstering gay rights overseas and helping end a ban on gays in the military.

The sometimes seemingly contradictory moves come as Obama maneuvers toward next year's election. Critical to his success in 2012 is retaining support from independent voters who could be won over by his GOP opponents, given the country's high rate of unemployment and economic distress.

The White House denies that politics is at play. But as with any president, some of Obama's most potent campaign tools derive from the powers of his office, from the bully pulpit to decisions on issues that affect people's lives.

In the most recent example, Obama's health secretary overruled scientists at the Food and Drug Administration to block sales of the morning-after contraceptive bill Plan B to girls under age 17 without a prescription.

Social conservatives applauded and women's rights groups were livid, but Obama backed up Health and Human Services chief Kathleen Sebelius.

"As the father of two young daughters, I think it is important for us to make sure that, you know, we apply some common sense to various rules when it comes to over-the-counter medicine," the president said Thursday.

In September, Obama overruled scientific advisers at the Environmental Protection Agency and scrapped a clean-air regulation intended to reduce health-threatening smog. That angered environmentalists, but won praise from business leaders and even Republicans, who argued that the costs and potential job losses that could result from the proposal were too high.

Yet environmentalists cheered and Republicans and business groups groused last month when the administration delayed a decision on the oil pipeline from Canada to the Texas until the U.S. government can study routes that avoid environmentally sensitive areas of Nebraska. Final action on the pipeline is not expected now until after next November's election.

"There are politics in every issue, and there's an upside and a downside to every issue," White House press secretary Jay Carney said. "And usually, it's hard to know in advance how these things will play out politically. Which is just another reason why decisions like these ought to be made on the merits."

Melinda Pierce, a lobbyist for the Sierra Club, said that despite the disappointing decision on smog rules, environmentalists still believe they are coming out ahead with Obama as president. In addition to the pipeline delay, she cited rules from the administration on fuel efficiency for cars.

Pierce noted that one of Obama's most important roles in the eyes of environmental groups was to guard against bills being passed by majority House Republicans that would roll back environmental regulations.

"The kind of backstop the Obama presidency has provided against the barrage of anti-environmental attacks from the House is critical, and until the face of the House changes we need that backstop," Pierce said.

That underscores a calculation confronting Obama's liberal supporters: Even if Obama disappoints them, they would have to think twice before voting for his Republican opponent or staying home on Election Day, given how a Republican president might act on issues they are advocating.

So Obama has some latitude to make decisions that will anger interest groups that support him, especially if he mixes in other moves in their favor.

Such as the case this month when the White House announced plans to use foreign aid to promote gay rights abroad.

It was a relatively narrow step on gay rights, and one without great resonance domestically. What gay rights activists would really like Obama to do is endorse gay marriage, a step that seems unlikely before the election.

But Obama's done enough other things, such as repealing the "don't ask, don't tell" policy on gays in the military, that he's likely to maintain strong support from gay activists even without taking the final step on gay marriage that could hand ammunition to his GOP critics.

With the 2012 election approaching some analysts said it was hard to avoid viewing Obama's decisions through the lens of politics.

"He has no primary challenger and he's in full re-election mode, so he's triangulating, as Bill Clinton would say," said Paul Light, professor of public policy at New York University, using the term for Clinton's strategy of splitting Republican and Democratic differences.

"And that means quashing some major regulations and maneuvering toward the center on a host of issues, and he's perfectly willing to alienate core constituencies like the environmental movement," Light said.

PVDP launches campaign against HIV/AIDS

Pakistan Village Development Programme (PVDP), a non-governmental organization, observed a weeklong awareness campaign against HIV/AIDS in the flood affected union councils of district Nowshera.

The organization with the assistance of an international relief agency,
TROCAIR organized the concluding function of the week in Camp Koroona village, one of the worst flood affected union councils of the area.

Local teachers and students also addressed the concluding function of the HIV/AIDS awareness week, beside, chief of PVDP, Haris Zaka, Manager Operations, Ziaullah Khan and Project Coordinator, Imran Iqbal.

Addressing the function, the officials of the organization expressed concern over the growing number of HIV/AIDS patients and attributed it to the lack of awareness in the province. Expressing sympathies with the patients, he assured all possible cooperation and support in the treatment of the patients on behalf of the organization.

They said that the organization has prepared effective planning to
handle HIV/AIDS in the backward areas of the province. They urged the participants for becoming volunteers to carry door-to-door awareness campaign against the disease.

During the awareness campaign, the organization also organized several awareness related sessions in which youth and women were provided information about HIV/AIDS.

VEENA MALIK: I posed topless, not nude for FHM

Pakistan upgrades air defences on Afghan border in wake of Nato air strike

Pakistan has upgraded its air defence system on the Afghan border to make it capable of shooting down aircraft, after NATO strikes killed 24 Pakistani soldiers
"Now we have a fully equipped air defence system on the Afghan border. It has the capability to trace and detect any aircraft," the official in the northwestern city of Peshawar told AFP by telephone.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak to the media, said the step had been taken to avert air incursions from Afghanistan and to respond to any future air strikes.

"The system has also been upgraded to immediately respond after detecting any aircraft or helicopter and to shoot it down," he added.

Pakistan shut its border to NATO supply convoys on November 26, the same day as the deadliest single cross-border attack of the 10-year war in Afghanistan.

The government also ordered the United States to leave the Shamsi air base in the southwest, widely reported as a hub in the covert CIA drone war against the Taliban and Al-Qaeda in Pakistan's border area with Afghanistan.

Sarkozy snub David Cameron's handshake

The body language between the David Cameron and French President Nicolas Sarkozy was tense today after talks ended this morning with Britain opting out a Franco-German proposal for an intergovernmental European treaty.
At a second gathering of European Union leaders today, Nicolas Sarkozy can be seen walking towards David Cameron with his hand out. The Prime Minister raises his hand as if in greeting but as the French President walks on by, pats him on the shoulder.

The gesture was widely reported as a snub to David Cameron, but others have pointed out that the pair had already shaken hands moments before. Mr Sarkozy was making eye contact with a man beyond Mr Cameron, and the Prime Minister simply let him past.

National security not so fragile: Haqqani

Former Pakistan ambassador to the US, Hussain Haqqani said on Saturday that national security was not so fragile that it could be threatened by one memo.
Talking in a private TV channel programme, he said he had come to Pakistan to reply the allegations leveled by Mansoor Ejaz.
“I have filed reply in the Supreme Court through counsel in memogate issue. No charge has been leveled against me legally nor has any legal evidence been presented against me. If opinions from people have come on one essay I myself have made offer for investigation into matter”, he maintained.
Pakistan is a nuclear state and our national security is not so fragile that it can be threatened by a memo from a US citizen, he underlined.
Haqqani said he was loyal to PPP, President Asif Ali Zardari and democracy in Pakistan. An individual had brought accusation against him, therefore, he had come to Pakistan to prove his innocence, he maintained.
To a question, he said President Asif Ali Zardari was safe and stable and he would return home and complete his mandate.
“I am supporter of liberalism in Pakistan. Therefore, any matter be decided on the basis of truth rather than faith of anyone ”, he remarked.

Karzai chasing red herring

EDITORIAL:THE FRONTIER POST

What can you really make of this? After Pakistan asked for hard evidence to support Afghan President Hamid Karzai’s assertion regarding Lashkar-i-Jhangvi (LJ) owning up responsibility of the terrible terrorist bombing of Ashura procession in Kabul, his spokesman has come out with an amazingly senseless statement. “It is up to Pakistan”, he says, “to take action and find out where and how the contact was made by Lashkar-i-Jhangvi from inside Pakistan” without waiting for evidence. So do they expect Pakistan to act with no incriminating material or leads in hand to work on? There indeed is too much of jiggery-pokery to Kabul’s stance over this tragic episode, fraught with even contractions in its various official strands’ positions about it. While Afghan foreign ministry says it is collecting the evidence of LJ’s involvement, their interior ministry has accused the Taliban of perpetrating the mayhem. Clearly, they are still to determine the real culprits, and it was some half-baked information that a Karzai itching to take on Pakistan used as a launching pad to fling at Pakistan. Had he been any wise, he would have eschewed an impetuous assertion and instead first tried reaching the truth by critically wading through his various official arms’ disparate versions. The Taliban have denied any responsibility in the horrific carnage, which they have termed un-Islamic. Even the LJ has disowned any involvement. Obviously, the Afghan state apparatus has no concrete substantive information in its possession and different official organs have slapped the responsibility where that suited their fixations. And since Karzai with a strategic partnership pact with India in pocket is in these days in a jingoistic binge against Pakistan, he flew with some raw information to assail it.But certainly now is the time that he takes a pause and ponders seriously that his chase of red herring would take him to nowhere. His problem is right inside Afghanistan, not outside in Pakistan. The thorns were in fact sowed all over his land to sting its polity inconsolably the day Tajik-led Northern Alliance of minorities rode on the CIA’s shoulders to saddle in power in Kabul to the Pakhtun majority community’s great consternation. Had indeed he understood this right from the outset, his country in all probability would not been such a troubled land as is it now and personally he would have been earning acclaim worldwide as a great nation-builder to go down in history with golden letters. He would have been making all the right demands to the US-led occupiers and taking all the right initiatives for grand national reconciliation to bring lasting peace, security and stability to his war-torn country. He would have insisted firmly on the occupiers to put enormous boots on the ground to establish his writ not just in the south or the east but in the north and the west as well. He would have insisted on the international community unbendingly to channel all their aid through his government alone. And he would have demanded unflinchingly a fully free hand to found an all-inclusive power dispensation with due representation of each and all the ethnic entities of his polity. He did nothing of the sort. And now he is reaping the bitter harvest of his infirmity. Not only the Pakhtun bastions of the south and the east stand irreconcilably estranged with his. Even the Pakhtuns in the rest of country are alienated with him. And no darling is he of the Tajiks or Hazaras or Uzbeks either. He indeed is just a lame duck, dependent on others’ mercies and easily pliable by the occupiers. The insurgents denounce him as a mere West’s stooge, no peace interlocutor worth the name. Worse, he is getting a lot of infamy of corruption for the stolen aid money which in fact has been purloined by the NGOs and private contractors and consultants of the donor countries. But for this infamy he has to blame himself for not standing up for the aid money coming to his government instead of going directly to NGOs and the donors’ contractors and so on. Indeed, at the instance of these real beneficiaries of foreign aid, he showed the door to his competent planning minister Ramazan Bashardost for insisting on at least bridling these fortune-makers. Verily, Karzai has now missed the bus, probably forever. No wild-goose chase will come of avail to him. Pillorying Pakistan will not change the ground realities for him, and for that matter, not even for his allies, local or foreign. For their own failures, Afghanistan is now a veritable live tinderbox that will take long to defuse, if at all. And the people of Pakistan are fed up with being a perpetual quarry of Afghanistan’s turmoil. But Karzai should at least get them rid of the colossal burden of over two million Afghan refugees that has become such an unbearable strain on this cash-strapped country’s back multifariously.

President Asif Ali Zardari : I am coming

* President says he is ‘fine’

* Says those who run from country run with their kids

* Says his enemies will be disappointed

Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari is “fine” and will return home soon, a news anchor quoted him as saying on Friday, after his rush to a Dubai hospital led to speculation the unpopular leader might resign and even of a possible coup.

“I’m fine and will return soon,” Zardari reportedly told a news anchor, who repeated the comments on state television. “I did not want to leave. My children and friends and the prime minister insisted that I go for a checkup.”

The issue of the president’s health has gripped Islamabad, exacerbating a series of cascading crises. News media, bloggers and analysts have openly speculated that Zardari would resign or that a coup was afoot.

Zardari seemed to acknowledge the speculation.

“Those that run from the country run with their kids,” the president was quoted as saying. “My son is in Pakistan. I left him there.”

“My enemies will be disappointed.”

Zardari likely suffered a transient ischemic attack (TIA), sources said on Friday, which can produce stroke-like symptoms but no lasting damage to the brain.

According to the US National Institute of Health web site, a TIA occurs when blood flow to a part of the brain stops for a short period of time. It can produce “stroke-like” symptoms for up to two hours. “The MRI is clear, but we suspect it may have been that (a TIA),” said one party official who requested anonymity.



Zardari suffers from high blood pressure and diabetes and has been under heavy pressure in recent weeks following the resignation of the ambassador to Washington over an alleged memo to the US military chief asking for help in forestalling a feared coup attempt in May.

That political saga immediately preceded a low-point in relations with the United States after a November 26 cross-border NATO air attack killed 24 Pakistani soldiers.

The extent of Zardari’s possible involvement in the memo case is a burning question in Pakistan, where the military dominates, setting security and foreign policy.

Zardari had been due to address parliament this week after the Supreme Court admitted an opposition leader’s petition demanding a judicial inquiry into the memo issue, including any role played by Zardari. That address has now been postponed.

The government fuelled the rumour-mill by offering different explanations for Zardari’s trip to Dubai, initially saying it was previously scheduled routine medical tests. Then the prime minister’s media office said he went to get treatment for a “pre-existing heart condition.”

Zardari, however, would become vulnerable to longstanding corruption charges in Pakistan by losing his legal immunity as a head of state if he steps down. reuters

Veena Malik concedes to shooting 'topless' for FHM, but not 'nude'

tribune.com.pk
Pakistani actress

Veena Malik has conceded to being photographed in a “topless” shoot for FHM India, but denied that she shot a photograph in which she was “nude”.

In an interview with the British news channel BBC, Malik said that pictures of her fully naked which appeared on the December issue cover of the men’s magazine, FHM India were ‘morphed’ since during the shoot she was “topless and “covered” not “nude”.

Malik has filed a suit against FHM India, claiming damages worth Rs100 million. FHM India has counter sued Malik for Rs250million over the controversial magazine cover that hit the stands in early December.During the interview, Malik says “if you look at my shoot, I do admit that I have done a topless shoot.”

Asked about why she agreed to the shoot, Malik said “I liked the idea of a bold shoot, but I did not do a nude shoot – that’s why I am standing here today, because I have to prove it.”

She explained “I won’t allow anybody to remove my bikini or my shalwar (loose trousers) or my dupatta (scarf).” Malik said if anyone was going to remove her clothes, it would be her. “If I want to do it, I will do it myself. And if I do it, I will own it,” she said.

Veena Malik has been mired in controversy in both India and Pakistan with regards to the shoot. One rendition of the cover has a nude Malik with an enlarged ISI (acronym for Inter Services Intelligence, Pakistan’s premier spy agency) tattoo on her left shoulder.

Veena had rejected nude shoot of her

Veena Malik’s PR Manager Sohail Rashid has said that there was no agreement or any exchange of payment between his client and FHM India. That he had been approached by a Dubai based advertising agency which wanted a bold and a nude shoot with Malik, he told The Express Tribune on Thursday.

“Sometime back, in early November 2011, Veena Malik was approached through me by a Dubai-based Advertising firm to do bold shoots for which they were willing to pay $60,000 and wanted it to be conducted before 14 December 2011, for the pictures to run worldwide on 1st January 2012.” Says Rashid, the same company soon offered another shoot, this time a nude. “Besides that they wanted to do a nude shoot of hers, and had I quoted $200,000, I am sure they would have paid it to her,” the PR manager claims. However, he says Malik rejected the offer “but she rejected the nude photo-shoot offer completely and said, ‘I don’t go for such a thing, Sohail.”

Asked about how the FHM India shoot came to be, Rashid asserted, “FHM India approached her and it happened through Vishaal Saxena, the photographer.” Saxena had earlier shot Veena Malik for Zoom TV, in October 2011, the manager explained. “When Saxena approached her for FHM India, she never said no, because you develop a comfort zone with someone, if you have worked with them before.”

Asked whether Veena Malik was paid for her FHM India shoot, Rashid seems confused, a little unaware, “there was no contract agreement between the two parties, i.e Veena Malik and FHM India hence, I don’t think so they paid her anything.”

Earlier on Wednesday, a case was filed against Veena Malik in the Islamabad High Court. Rashid said, “It was filed by a petitioner, yesterday and rejected, today on account that this was a case based in India and the pictures too had been published in India.”

‘To be a Baloch is to embrace death’

What is happening in the largest province of the country remains behind a veil of secrecy. There are some who dare to speak, but only if their privacy is protected. For “to be a Baloch openly is to embrace death,” says one such woman.

Sarah* is one of thousands of victims of oppression in Balochistan to whom the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) has dedicated this year’s Human Rights Day (today).

Speaking to The Express Tribune by telephone from Quetta, Sarah, 35, cannot hold back her tears when narrating the story of her province, which she says has changed colours over the years – from dusty brown to blood red.

Working for a development NGO for seven years put her in the line of fire of intelligence agencies, she says, who claimed she was an agent of an Indian intelligence agency.

In 2008, she says she was forced to quit her job and put under house arrest. Men in white shalwar kameez surrounded her house and her phones were tapped for three years, she says. Threats and harassment followed everywhere before she was granted freedom. “I am a teacher and I believe in fighting for my rights. But, for how long? I don’t know.”

Many houses in her neighbourhood have seen worse. Young boys with an eye pulled out return home in a white shroud after being picked up, allegedly by security agencies.

However, there are the lucky ones who return home alive. Two boys who went missing and miraculously returned were not willing to talk. “Our phones are tapped. Please leave us alone,” they said.

Families of those who have died or have been abducted are unwilling to speak for fear that their words might take the life of another beloved one.

This situation in Balochistan has made thousands leave the province. According to HRCP’s estimates, around 100,000 people have left since 2007.

A surgeon who moved from Quetta to Karachi says her brother was picked up and charged with false cases when he was in college in Quetta. He was lucky enough to escape to a foreign country, while all his friends met the fate of death. “Raids and kidnappings are the story of every house,” she said. Locals believe that the younger generation is being targeted. “They are trying to scare generations so that they don’t raise their voice for their rights.”

Vice chairperson of the HRCP’s Balochistan chapter, Tahir Hussain, says from July 2010 to November 2011, around 300 dead bodies were found—some even of 14-year-olds. Two dead include two people from the HRCP as well, while the number of people missing range from 5,000 to 6,000.

While locals stay indoors, leaders fighting for the separatist movements remain miles away from the danger zone. Balochistan National Party leader Akhtar Mengal is in Dubai since 2009. “If I come back, my name will be included in the ECL and I need to go abroad for a lung treatment,” he said.

Despite the top leadership being away, he sees the separatist movements growing stronger. He claims that 26 people from his own party have been killed.

The separatist movements gained momentum after Akbar Bugti’s death. “Bugti’s national flag had four stars representing the four provinces. He believed in a federation. But by his murder, the government has given the message that Balochistan will never be accepted.”

Sarah, the surgeon and Akhtar Mengal are sure of one thing: ‘There is no foreign presence or Indian agents in the province. It’s our own men behind the killings.’

*Name has been changed to protect privacy

Published in The Express Tribune

China says Russian Duma election result reflects people's will

China believes that the result of the Russian Duma election is a reflection of the will of the Russian people, a Foreign Ministry spokesman said Friday.

China respects the choice of the Russian people, and it supports Russia in proceeding along the path in keeping with its own national conditions, Spokesman Hong Lei said at a daily press briefing,

About 700 international observers followed the election and they generally affirmed the election result, Hong said.

The Russian Parliamentary election was held on Sunday, and the United Russia party won by a landslide.

However, the election results have been questioned by some countries. U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton suggested Russia's elections were "neither free nor fair".

Bahrain police break up march on capital

Police in Bahrain used tear gas Friday to disperse hundreds of anti-government protesters marching on the capital, witnesses said.

The country's Sunni rulers also moved to mollify the mostly Shiite-led opposition movement by ordering prosecutors to investigate allegations of abuse by the security forces throughout Bahrain's 10-month-old uprising.

The investigation ordered by the Interior Minister, Lt. Gen. Sheik Rashid bin Abdullah Al Khalifa, was announced late Thursday by the country's Information Affairs Authority.

It covers "all cases related to deaths, torture and inhumane treatment implicating police."

The move follows the recommendations made last month by a special commission which probed claims of human rights abuses during the uprising, in which at least 35 people including security force members were killed.

The commission was authorized in a bid to ease tensions with the majority Shiites, a rare example of an Arab regime subjecting itself to a harsh public reckoning.

It issued a 500-page report documenting torture, the use of excessive force and fast-track trials, as authorities tried to stamp out the largest of this year's Arab Spring uprisings to hit the Gulf.

Opposition activists at the time said those responsible for the abuses needed to be brought to justice.

The Interior Ministry said Thursday it was following another of the report's recommendations by installing cameras to record interrogations, and that it signed an agreement with the International Committee of the Red Cross to develop better policing practices.

The government's self-scrutiny has not defused the protest movement, however.

Witnesses said Friday's clashes began as demonstrators assembled in the village of Musalla outside Manama for Shiite ceremonies to mark the holiday of Ashoura.

As the commemorations came to an end, some in the crowd began shouting anti-government slogans and started running in the direction of the capital's Pearl Square, witnesses said.

They were stopped by police as they neared the square. No injuries were reported, though some protesters appeared to have fainted and were being carried away by other demonstrators.

Pearl Square was the hub of widespread protests that began in February. After the protesters were driven out in March, the square was placed under heavy guard and a statue of a pearl at the center, which had become emblematic of the uprising, was demolished.

Opposition supporters have since made repeated efforts to reclaim the intersection.

US assures ‘early conclusion’ of NATO attack inquiry

he United States assured Pakistan on Friday of an early conclusion of the investigation into the last month NATO strike on two Pakistani posts which killed 24 soldiers, the Foreign Ministry said.
The NATO strike in Mohmand tribal region near Afghan border on November 26 had caused rift between the US and Pakistan.
Pakistan in reaction closed supply line for NATO troops in Afghanistan and asked the US to vacate its airbase in Balochistan province.
The US has been trying to revive normal ties with Pakistan since the strikes and now Pakistan has started the process to re-assess and re-evaluate relations with the US.
Ambassador Cameron Munter from the United States of America called on Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar and discussed the current status of bilateral relations between Pakistan and the US.
The foreign minister stated that relations between the two countries must be based on mutual respect. She added that the recent incidents had led to a re-evaluation of our terms of engagement.
Cameron Munter met Hina Rabbani Khar and discussed the current status of bilateral relations between Pakistan and the US, the Foreign Ministry said.
“The US Ambassador assured the foreign minister of an early conclusion of the investigation into the tragic incident on November 26 and to work together with Pakistan to normalise the relationship at the earliest,” a Foreign Ministry statement said.

China peace prize honors Putin for enhanced Russia

Two exchange students accepted a Chinese peace prize Friday on behalf of Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, who was honored for enhancing Russia's status and crushing anti-government forces in Chechnya, the prize organizers said.

The Confucius Peace Prize was hastily launched last year as an alternative to the Nobel Peace Prize which had just honored imprisoned Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo. The 2011 prize ceremony took place a day before this year's Nobel prize is awarded in Oslo, Norway, and as Nobel made new calls for China to release Liu from prison.

The Confucius Peace Prize organization announced last month that Putin had been chosen to receive this year's award, saying that during his 2000-2008 tenure as president Putin "brought remarkable enhancement to the military might and political status of Russia." It also cited Putin's crushing of anti-government forces in Chechnya.The justification seems slightly dubious given authoritarian trends in Putin's policies and his reputation for jailing political rivals and cracking down on government critics. Ongoing protests in Moscow over a parliamentary election believed marred by fraud have raised the biggest ever challenge to Putin, who is seeking to return to the presidency next year.

Qiao Damo, head of the China International Peace Research Center, said he hopes the Russian exchange students, who were apparently selected to stand in for Putin, will be able to give the prize to Putin, either in Beijing when he next visits or in Moscow.

The pair are studying at Beijing Language and Culture University, Qiao said in a telephone interview. He gave their names as Katya and Maria but was unsure of their surnames. Two students from Belarus were also present, he said.

The ceremony for the inaugural prize last year had its own surreal tint. Honoree former Taiwanese Vice President Lien Chan was unaware of the proceedings and did not attend, so the prize was given to a young girl whom the organizers refused to identify.

The Confucius Prize sponsors are professors and academics who say they are independent of China's government.

It was launched to promote traditional Chinese and Asian ideas of peace, Qiao said. He criticized the Nobel Committee's criteria for choosing peace prize recipients over the past two years, saying it had "drifted further and further away from the concept of peace."

Liu's win enraged the government and Chinese nationalists, who accused the Nobel committee of interfering in China's legal system as part of a plot to disgrace the nation. Liu is serving an 11-year prison sentence for co-authoring an appeal for political reform.

Qiao said he disapproved of Liu as a peace prize recipient because Liu had "humiliated his motherland" with his published views, and cited comments Liu made about how the Chinese territory of Hong Kong had benefited from being an English colony.

"We feel it's wrong to seize colonies by force and aggression," Qiao said.

Meanwhile, a group of five Nobel Peace Prize winners and human rights activists called for Liu's immediate and unconditional release from jail. The International Committee of Support to Liu Xiaobo said in an email that Liu is the only Nobel laureate currently in prison, and accused the international community of forgetting his plight.

"Unfortunately, the sentencing to 11 years in prison seems to be forgotten slowly but steadily outside China," said the group.

The campaign for Liu's release includes Nobel winners Shirin Ebadi, Jody Williams, Mairead Maguire, Betty Williams and Desmond Tutu. Also involved are former Czech Republic President Vaclav Havel and activists from Reporters Without Borders and other rights groups.

The announcement of Liu's Nobel prize last year cheered China's fractured, persecuted dissident community and brought calls from the U.S., Germany and others for his release. It also infuriated the Chinese government, and authorities harassed and detained dozens of Liu's supporters in the weeks that followed.

It resulted in harsh treatment of Liu's wife, Liu Xia, who has largely been held incommunicado, effectively under house arrest, watched by police, without phone or Internet access and prohibited from seeing all but a few family members.

Flower Exhibition in Peshawar

Pakistan president says he's fine, vows to return soon

Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari is "fine" and will return home soon, a news anchor quoted him as saying on Friday, nearly a week after he was rushed to Dubai for health reasons that led to rumors of his resignation and speculation about a possible coup.

"I'm fine and will return soon," Zardari reportedly told Hamid Mir, a popular news anchor, who repeated Zardari's statement on state television. "I did not want to leave. My children and friends and the prime minister insisted that I go for a checkup."