Despite the Pakistani Taliban’s recent deadly attack on 10 foreign climbers, many Pakistanis still want to hold talks with the group to end a decade long conflict that has killed more than 50,000 people, mostly civilians.Pakistan has a broad consensus in favor of talking to the Taliban. A May 2013 Pew survey found only 35 percent support using the military against the Taliban, and 64 percent saw the US as more of an enemy than a partner. Anecdotal evidence since the attack indicates that’s still the view.
“Both sides are interested in peace due to the reason that the government wants to improve its rating among people,” says Mansur Khan Mehsud, research director at the Fata Research Center.
But the question is: How?
Nawaz Sharif, Pakistan’s new president, has repeatedly expressed his desire to sit down with the Taliban, also known as the Tehrik-e-Taliban (TTP), but analysts say the hurdles are tremendous. It is highly unlikely that the TTP would ever recognize the current government as legitimate, or that the rest of Pakistan would accept the group's particular interpretation of sharia (Islamic law). Others say ending the US alliance – a major demand from the TTP – is untenable. Civilian impact
The principle route for NATO supplies to Afghanistan goes through northwest Pakistan in the Khyber Agency. There, the TTP and Lashkar-e-Islam, an allied militant group, have been fighting the Pakistani Army for control since 2009. More than 370 people have been killed there this year, alone, and Pakistanis are tired of it.
Millions have been displaced by the conflict with the TTP in the past decade, and hundreds of thousands have fled to refugee camps scattered throughout the northwest to avoid it. Although the TTP supports the Afghan Taliban's insurgency next door, it has a separate leadership structure. And since 2008, it has focused its efforts on carving out territory for itself in northwest Pakistan, with the stated aim of replacing the Pakistani state with one enforcing their interpretation of sharia law.
Three months ago, Porughola, who goes by only one name, and 10 family members fled her home in Bara in the northwest of Pakistan in the Khyber Agency. Now she lives in the Jalozai refugee camp, situated about 21 miles southeast of Peshawar, along with more than 65,000 people from her area.
Porughola says her family left with “nothing but the clothes on our backs, no shoes on our feet” after her home was destroyed. “When we fled,” she says, “we didn’t know who was shelling us, the Army, or the extremists.” A shell landed near them and injured her daughter. Refugees from Bara like Porughola have a long journey to Jalaozai, walking eight hours south to Hangu, then paying up to $100 for transportation to the refugee camp. She like many other refugees is glad the military is in Bara, but likes the idea of the government talking to the militants.
"I have no idea about any [extremist] movement ... I want peace, peace in our areas," she says.
Starting talks, little consensus
In December, the TTP offered a cease-fire if Pakistan altered its constitution to be “in line with” sharia, ended its alliance with the US, and pulled its troops back from the tribal regions. In previous negotiations, the TTP has also demanded a general amnesty and the release of prisoners.
Despite statements from political parties promising talks, the TTP has continued attacks against civilians, and the Pakistani military has continued operations in places like Khyber Agency. Meanwhile, the US continues to target the TTP with drone strikes (though the number has gone down in recent months), which the militant group says would be impossible without Pakistani support.
The TTP claimed responsibility for the killing of 10 foreign tourists last week in the mountainous northern region of Gligit-Baltistan. Since then, the TTP has killed two lawmakers belonging to the Pakistan Tehrike-e-Insaaf (PTI), a party that openly called for talks with the group, and was thought to be immune to attacks because of its outspoken stance against the United States.
Some say if the TTP was actually interested in talks, it would stop such attacks.
“The TTP's target is the Pakistani state,” says Raza Rumi, who heads the Jinnah Institute, an Islamabad-based think tank. “This idea of talks should only happen once they give up arms and come to the negotiation table.”
Arbab Muhammad Tahir, of the Awami National Party says the ANP continues to support peace talks, but only if militants “give up terrorism and accept the writ of the government.” He adds:
“There cannot be a state within a state.”
Some think it is possible to pursue talks, even if the conflict is ongoing.
“There is a continuous effort [to hold peace talks],” says Muhammad Asim Khan, a spokesman for the ruling PML-N. He says an investigation of the attacks in Gilgit-Baltistan will be carried out, and any individuals responsible will be prosecuted. “They will be taken to task,” Mr. Khan says, “but those who have accepted the writ of the government, we will talk with them. Our doors are always open.”
The US alliance
“Pakistan can compromise, but not agree to all demands,” says. Mr. Mehsud. He says Pakistan cannot take provocative steps against the US like shooting down drones, or closing NATO supply routes because it depends on US aid, and full-fledged conflict with the US would prove disastrous.
But some peace talk supporters say the TTP draws support from Pakistanis who resent their country's involvement in the US “War On Terror,” and talks won’t have any effect until Pakistan ends its alliance with the US.
“[If] this war keeps going on, [the TTP] wont stop,” says Sami ul Haqq, an influential cleric who runs Dar-ul-uloom Haqqania, a seminary in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa whose alumni include several of the Afghan Taliban's leaders.
The anticipated 2014 US withdrawal from Afghanistan will have a significant impact on the TTP, says Mehsud. The TTP exploits grassroots resentment of the US presence in Afghanistan, arguing the Pakistani state, as an ally of the US, is also a legitimate target.
Others say getting the TTP to stop fighting won’t be as simple as ending the US alliance, even if that were possible.
“There are apologists in Pakistan who say the Taliban are involved in terrorist activities because we are in league with the US ‘war on terror’,” says Asad Munir, who headed Inter-Services Intelligence in the tribal regions until 2005. “There is no confusion in the armed forces ... they have no doubt the Taliban are anti-Pakistan,” he says.
Even if the TTP's demands are untenable, some experts say simply getting them to the table might help stem violence in Pakistan.
“The process itself is important,” says Amir Rana, who heads the Pakistan Institute for Peace Studies.
“When [the TTP] make demands, the government will be prepared to understand their mindset,” he says.
Wednesday, July 3, 2013
Pakistan wants to talk to its Taliban, but doesn't know what to say
Despite the Pakistani Taliban’s recent deadly attack on 10 foreign climbers, many Pakistanis still want to hold talks with the group to end a decade long conflict that has killed more than 50,000 people, mostly civilians.Pakistan has a broad consensus in favor of talking to the Taliban. A May 2013 Pew survey found only 35 percent support using the military against the Taliban, and 64 percent saw the US as more of an enemy than a partner. Anecdotal evidence since the attack indicates that’s still the view.
“Both sides are interested in peace due to the reason that the government wants to improve its rating among people,” says Mansur Khan Mehsud, research director at the Fata Research Center.
But the question is: How?
Nawaz Sharif, Pakistan’s new president, has repeatedly expressed his desire to sit down with the Taliban, also known as the Tehrik-e-Taliban (TTP), but analysts say the hurdles are tremendous. It is highly unlikely that the TTP would ever recognize the current government as legitimate, or that the rest of Pakistan would accept the group's particular interpretation of sharia (Islamic law). Others say ending the US alliance – a major demand from the TTP – is untenable. Civilian impact
The principle route for NATO supplies to Afghanistan goes through northwest Pakistan in the Khyber Agency. There, the TTP and Lashkar-e-Islam, an allied militant group, have been fighting the Pakistani Army for control since 2009. More than 370 people have been killed there this year, alone, and Pakistanis are tired of it.
Millions have been displaced by the conflict with the TTP in the past decade, and hundreds of thousands have fled to refugee camps scattered throughout the northwest to avoid it. Although the TTP supports the Afghan Taliban's insurgency next door, it has a separate leadership structure. And since 2008, it has focused its efforts on carving out territory for itself in northwest Pakistan, with the stated aim of replacing the Pakistani state with one enforcing their interpretation of sharia law.
Three months ago, Porughola, who goes by only one name, and 10 family members fled her home in Bara in the northwest of Pakistan in the Khyber Agency. Now she lives in the Jalozai refugee camp, situated about 21 miles southeast of Peshawar, along with more than 65,000 people from her area.
Porughola says her family left with “nothing but the clothes on our backs, no shoes on our feet” after her home was destroyed. “When we fled,” she says, “we didn’t know who was shelling us, the Army, or the extremists.” A shell landed near them and injured her daughter. Refugees from Bara like Porughola have a long journey to Jalaozai, walking eight hours south to Hangu, then paying up to $100 for transportation to the refugee camp. She like many other refugees is glad the military is in Bara, but likes the idea of the government talking to the militants.
"I have no idea about any [extremist] movement ... I want peace, peace in our areas," she says.
Starting talks, little consensus
In December, the TTP offered a cease-fire if Pakistan altered its constitution to be “in line with” sharia, ended its alliance with the US, and pulled its troops back from the tribal regions. In previous negotiations, the TTP has also demanded a general amnesty and the release of prisoners.
Despite statements from political parties promising talks, the TTP has continued attacks against civilians, and the Pakistani military has continued operations in places like Khyber Agency. Meanwhile, the US continues to target the TTP with drone strikes (though the number has gone down in recent months), which the militant group says would be impossible without Pakistani support.
The TTP claimed responsibility for the killing of 10 foreign tourists last week in the mountainous northern region of Gligit-Baltistan. Since then, the TTP has killed two lawmakers belonging to the Pakistan Tehrike-e-Insaaf (PTI), a party that openly called for talks with the group, and was thought to be immune to attacks because of its outspoken stance against the United States.
Some say if the TTP was actually interested in talks, it would stop such attacks.
“The TTP's target is the Pakistani state,” says Raza Rumi, who heads the Jinnah Institute, an Islamabad-based think tank. “This idea of talks should only happen once they give up arms and come to the negotiation table.”
Arbab Muhammad Tahir, of the Awami National Party says the ANP continues to support peace talks, but only if militants “give up terrorism and accept the writ of the government.” He adds:
“There cannot be a state within a state.”
Some think it is possible to pursue talks, even if the conflict is ongoing.
“There is a continuous effort [to hold peace talks],” says Muhammad Asim Khan, a spokesman for the ruling PML-N. He says an investigation of the attacks in Gilgit-Baltistan will be carried out, and any individuals responsible will be prosecuted. “They will be taken to task,” Mr. Khan says, “but those who have accepted the writ of the government, we will talk with them. Our doors are always open.”
The US alliance
“Pakistan can compromise, but not agree to all demands,” says. Mr. Mehsud. He says Pakistan cannot take provocative steps against the US like shooting down drones, or closing NATO supply routes because it depends on US aid, and full-fledged conflict with the US would prove disastrous.
But some peace talk supporters say the TTP draws support from Pakistanis who resent their country's involvement in the US “War On Terror,” and talks won’t have any effect until Pakistan ends its alliance with the US.
“[If] this war keeps going on, [the TTP] wont stop,” says Sami ul Haqq, an influential cleric who runs Dar-ul-uloom Haqqania, a seminary in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa whose alumni include several of the Afghan Taliban's leaders.
The anticipated 2014 US withdrawal from Afghanistan will have a significant impact on the TTP, says Mehsud. The TTP exploits grassroots resentment of the US presence in Afghanistan, arguing the Pakistani state, as an ally of the US, is also a legitimate target.
Others say getting the TTP to stop fighting won’t be as simple as ending the US alliance, even if that were possible.
“There are apologists in Pakistan who say the Taliban are involved in terrorist activities because we are in league with the US ‘war on terror’,” says Asad Munir, who headed Inter-Services Intelligence in the tribal regions until 2005. “There is no confusion in the armed forces ... they have no doubt the Taliban are anti-Pakistan,” he says.
Even if the TTP's demands are untenable, some experts say simply getting them to the table might help stem violence in Pakistan.
“The process itself is important,” says Amir Rana, who heads the Pakistan Institute for Peace Studies.
“When [the TTP] make demands, the government will be prepared to understand their mindset,” he says.
Afghan army chief: 'Pakistan controls Taliban'
Fighting in Afghanistan could be stopped "in weeks" if Pakistan told the Taliban to end the insurgency, the head of the Afghan army has told the BBC.
Gen Sher Mohammad Karimi said Pakistan controlled and gave shelter to Taliban leaders, deliberately unleashing fighters on Afghanistan.
Pakistan denies controlling the militant group.
It was one of the Taliban's main supporters from its launch in 1994 until the 2001 fall of the regime.
Most of the Taliban's leaders reportedly then fled to Pakistan and the group is still considered to be heavily dependent on the support of certain elements in the country.
Sensitive time
"The Taliban are under [Pakistan's] control - the leadership is in Pakistan," Gen Karimi told the BBC's Today programme.
"Madrassas have been closed and all the Taliban have been unleashed to Afghanistan."
Afghanistan could achieve peace if this was desired by both the US and Pakistan, said the general.
"If [Pakistan] put pressure on [Taliban] leadership or convinced them what to be done, that can help a lot," he added.
A Nato report leaked in April said Pakistan was aware that Taliban leaders were taking refuge within its borders.
Senior Taliban figures such as Nasiruddin Haqqani were housed close to ISI headquarters in Islamabad, added the report, entitled State of the Taliban.
It was based on the interrogations of 27,000 captured Taliban, al-Qaeda and foreign fighters as well as civilians.
But Pakistan consistently denies wielding influence over the Taliban, saying many militants have based themselves across the border in Afghanistan's eastern province of Kunar, from where they are known to have carried out attacks in north-western Pakistan.
Securing the long, porous border between the two countries has long posed a major challenge to the authorities.
Lack of trust
Gen Karimi's comments come at a sensitive time, says the BBC's Richard Galpin in Islamabad.
The US is pushing for peace talks with the Taliban as Nato combat troops continue to withdraw from Afghanistan - a process due to be completed next year.
Last month the Taliban opened their first official overseas office in the Qatari capital, Doha - the first step ahead of the expected peace talks.
US and Afghan leaders want the Taliban to join the Afghan government as a result of the peace process.
They say peace talks will succeed when the Taliban finally sever all ties with al-Qaeda, end violence and accept the Afghan constitution, including its protections for women and minorities.
Pakistani officials have been involved in the background talks, and generally say Islamabad wants a "friendly, peaceful and sovereign" Afghanistan. But they are adamant that Pakistan's "legitimate interests" in Afghanistan must be recognised after the withdrawal of Nato troops.
Within hours of the opening of the Doha office, however, Afghan President Hamid Karzai raised concerns about the process not being Afghan-led and suspended plans for Afghan officials to meet the Taliban.
For their part, the Islamist militants said they did not trust the Afghan government and considered it a "puppet" of the US.
The Taliban insist on the complete withdrawal of foreign forces as a pre-condition to becoming part of a political settlement in Afghanistan.
Although Nato's combat troops are due to leave the country by the end of 2014, the US plans to station forces after that as part of a bilateral security agreement. Details are still to be agreed by Kabul and Washington.
US drone strike kills 4 in NW Pakistan
A US drone strike early Wednesday killed four militants in the northwestern tribal area of Pakistan, local officials said.
Four unmanned aircrafts fired as many missiles on a compound in the main market area of Miranshah, the main town of North Waziristan, which is known as a stronghold of Taliban and Al-Qaeda-linked militants.Drones were seen flying over Miranshah's main bazar for hours before launching a strike at the militants' compound in the early hours of Wednesday.
"Four drone aircrafts were flying over the area at the time of the attack, while two of them fired four missiles on a compound, killing four militants and wounding two others," a local security official told AFP.
Another official in Peshawar confirmed the attack.
"The attack came when the militants were sleeping in the targeted compound. The death toll from the attack may rise," the official told AFP on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak to media.
An AFP reporter saw the drones flying over the area even after the attack.
Tuesday, July 2, 2013
Brotherhood demonstrators shoot at Morsy opponents
http://www.egyptindependent.com/An official source at the Giza Security Directorate said on Tuesday evening that demonstrators belonging to the Muslim Brotherhood fired shots at opponents of President Mohamed Morsy as they were marching in Faisal Street in Giza, wounding seven with bullets and cartridges. The directorate deployed the Central Security Forces to control the situation.
Bolivian President’s Plane Diverted Over Snowden
Bolivian President Evo Morales’s plane has been forced to land in Austria after France and Portugal refused to let the jet land on their territories amid false rumors that US intelligence leaker Edward Snowden was on board, media cited the Bolivian foreign minister as saying.
Snowden, a former contractor for the US National Security Agency, is wanted by the United States for disclosing a top-secret surveillance program that allegedly targeted millions of Americans. He is believed to be in Moscow.
“We are told that there were some unfounded suspicions that Mr. Snowden was on the plane,” Bolivian Foreign Minister David Choquehuanca told journalists as quoted by the CNN.
“We do not know who has invented this lie, someone who wants to harm our country,” Choquehuanca said. “This information that has been circulated is malicious information to harm this country.”
The foreign minister said the move had put the life of Morales, who visited Russia for a gas exporting conference, at risk. “Portugal owes us an explanation. France owes us an explanation,” he said.
Bolivian Defense Minister Ruben Saavedra told CNN en Español that he thought the US government was behind the rumors.
“This is a lie, a falsehood. It was generated by the U.S. government,” he said, adding that Bolivia’s air travel rights were violated.
Ecuadorian Foreign Minister Ricardo Patino said he planned to call a regional meeting of the Union of South American Nations, or Unasur, to discuss the situation, according to CNN.
The United States is communicating with several countries that could offer Snowden political asylum or be a stopover, about his possible return home to face criminal charges of leaking state secrets, a US State Department spokeswoman said Tuesday.
Washington has spoken with “a broad range of countries” that could either serve as “transit spots or final destinations” for Snowden, who is holed up in the transit zone of Moscow’s Sheremetyevo Airport while trying to elude US authorities, State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki told a news briefing.
South American nations Bolivia and Venezuela have expressed possible support, but 11 of the 21 governments that the whistleblowing website Wikileaks said the fugitive former CIA employee had appealed to for possible political asylum have said Snowden must be on their respective territories in order to request political asylum, CNN reported Tuesday. Meanwhile, three of the countries – Brazil, India and Poland – have rejected his request outright.
Snowden had asked for asylum in Russia, but a Kremlin spokesman said Tuesday that the American withdrew his request after Russian President Vladimir Putin publicly stated Monday that Snowden must stop “harming our US partners” with the leaks.
The United States has revoked Snowden’s passport, but US officials have said Washington would issue him a one-time travel document in order to travel home to face a “free and fair trial.”
Obama Africa tour ends with Tanzania bombing tribute
President Barack Obama is on his way back to the US after visiting Tanzania, the last leg of his Africa tour, which also included Senegal and South Africa.
Earlier he laid a wreath for the victims of the 1998 US embassy bombing in the Tanzanian city of Dar es Salaam.
Eleven people were killed in the al-Qaeda attack, which coincided with a bombing in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, which left hundreds dead.
The president was joined for the ceremony by predecessor George W Bush.
Mr Bush was in Dar es Salaam for a conference on African women sponsored by the George W Bush Institute.
While he and Mr Obama attended the ceremony at the US embassy memorial, their wives took part in the African First Ladies Summit.
'Modernise customs'
Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete walked Mr Obama and his wife down a red carpet to the Air Force One at the international airport in Dar es Salaam on Tuesday.
A guard of honour saluted and marching bands played as the couple boarded the plane.The US president had arrived in Tanzania on Monday.
During his stay, he also visited a US-owned power plant, following his announcement over the weekend of a multi-billion-dollar electricity initiative.
The $7bn (£4.6bn) five-year initiative is intended to double access to electricity in sub-Saharan Africa, in partnership with African countries and the private sector.
"We're starting with countries that are making progress already with reforms in the energy sector - Tanzania, Ethiopia, Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana, Uganda, Mozambique and Liberia," he told a business leaders forum in Dar es Salaam.
"And with a focus on cleaner energy, we will initially add 10,000 megawatts of new electricity generation, which expands electricity to 20 million homes and businesses."
At the same forum on Monday evening, Mr Obama launched a programme helping Africa's eastern nations of Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda trade both with each other and with the US.
"We'll work with the countries involved to modernise customs, move to single more efficient border crossings, reduce bottlenecks, reduce the roadblocks that stymie the flow of goods to market," he said.
Mr Obama's second tour to sub-Saharan Africa since becoming president began in Senegal where he called on African governments to give gay people equal rights by decriminalising homosexual acts.
The US president excluded from his week-long itinerary Kenya, where his father was born, and Nigeria, Africa's biggest oil producer which has been hit by an Islamist insurgency.
China: Crack down on 'three evil forces' in Xinjiang
UAE court sentences 64 to jail on charges of planning coup, report says
International pressure mounts on Morsi
Sources: Mubarak says 30 June dwarfed 2011 protests
http://www.egyptindependent.com/Egypt's former leader Hosni Mubarak watched 30 June demonstrations demanding President Mohamed Morsy stand down, well-informed sources have revealed. The imprisoned dictator reportedly expressed astonishment at the number of protesters on the streets of Cairo, commenting that crowds dwarfed those that rose up against him in January 2011. Sources said that Mubarak told his two sons Alaa and Gamal in their cell that those who revolted against him were much less than the millions that came out calling for the fall of the current Muslim Brotherhood--led regime. Mubarak said he responded to the demands of the people and stepped down in order to save lives, sources added. Sources, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Al-Masry Al-Youm that Mubarak appeared happy and that his psychological condition improved significantly. The sources pointed out his condition improved especially after he watched comparisons between him and Morsy in talk shows, and the result always seemed to be in his favour. Mubarak is currently imprisoned at Tora prison in Cairo's Helwan area, pending trial on charges of exploiting influence and killing demonstrators during the 25 January revolution, in addition to other corruption and public money squandering charges. Mubarak stepped down on 11 February 2011, after 18 days of protests that swept the country demanding an end to his 30-year reign.
Deadlines loom for Egypt's Morsy
A deadline looms Tuesday for Egyptian President Mohamed Morsy, and another hangs over his head for Wednesday.
Opposition protesters are threatening to march on Cairo's presidential palace, if Morsy does not step down Tuesday evening. So far, he has given no indication that he will do so.
But that is no surprise.
What's unclear is what happens Wednesday.
That's when a 48-hour deadline imposed by the Egypt's military expires.Appearing to throw its weight behind the opposition that has swarmed Cairo's Tahrir Square, the military told Morsy's government it has until Wednesday evening to "meet the demands of the people," or it will step in to restore order.
But the army stopped short of saying that it was suggesting a coup.
The ultimatum was meant to push all factions toward quick solutions and a national consensus, and the armed forces aren't looking to be part of the political or ruling circles, a spokesman, Col. Ahmed Ali, said in a written statement Monday.
While insisting they want no direct role in national politics, the generals appeared instead to be pressuring Egypt's first freely elected president to restructure his government.
The steps could include reducing the influence of the Muslim Brotherhood in his Cabinet and calling early presidential and parliamentary elections, a source close to highly placed members of Egypt's leadership told CNN.
Afghanistan: Anti-drug drive hits dead end
http://www.afghanistantimes.af/
Efforts of the Afghan government to halve poppy cultivation and trafficking has hit a dead end, having unleashed catastrophic mayhem in the vulnerable society of Afghanistan, said Acting Deputy Minister of Information and Cultural (MoIC), Mustafa Saeedi, on Monday.
Mustafa Saeedi told a workshop on the occasion that the deficiency of concerned officials in reining in drug haul and alcohol abuse has inflicted a terrible impact on the youth. Ever-galloping violence, poverty, weak family system and illegal immigration are of also the major reasons that propel the naive youth to resort to the malicious practice of drug addiction. The Afghan government has not been able to deliver on this highly important issue and as it is apparent international community’s counternarcotic focus has drained as no substantial achievement concerning elimination of drug cultivation is visible.
The world’s consumption of the illicit drugs and intoxicatives is rapidly increasing and as far as Afghanistan is the most abundant source of narcotics, notorious drug rings and mafias use every opportunity to export narcotics from the country, he said. He criticized the government policies for eliminating opium cultivation and trafficking and said that the Ministry of Counter-Narcotics has not shown any interest for cooperation with the MoIC regarding current anti-drug policies.
Mr. Saeedi warned of appalling consequences of drug abuse such as rise in crimes, murder, robberies and kidnappings if the government fails to contain drug haul.
Chief of Afghanistan Youth National and Social Organization, Mohammad Shfiq Popal, said that social dilemmas derived by drug smuggling are huge and the seminar is aimed at raising public awareness regarding detriments of drugs and ways to eliminate drug abuse.
Mrs. Shabnam a Kabul resident said that many drug rendezvouses are in Kabul city and act as sources of infesting the young generation. She urged profound strategies be implemented to eliminate this social menace. Impunity of drug lords from conviction has caused a surge in drug trafficking and increased drug abuse in the Kabul city.
The Christian of Pakistan How Being Treated According To LEAD
http://www.pakistanchristianpost.com/(LEAD) Church, Scholars, lawyers and members of civil society are discussing the deteriorating situation of the Christians and threats posed by the religious extremists and society’s outdated customs. It is our duty to take your attention to injustices, prejudices and discrimination, which is being faced by Christians of Pakistan. Root Level Serious Issues of Pakistani Christians Religious Discrimination: we receive many complaints and applications regarding different issues of persecution and discrimination in Pakistan. On dated 26 June,2013,LEAD's lawyers submitted a Writ Petition No.16117/2013 in The Lahore High Court Lahore in which it was requested and prayed to direct the respective Government Departments to implement the notifications Nos.4/15/94-R-2 of 26th May, 2009,SOR-III(S&GAD)1-35/93,dated 23 October,2009 and SOR-III(S&GAD)1-35/93 dated 27 March,2010 in which right of 5% quota in all kinds of jobs was given to religious minorities but that was not implemented by any single Government Institution and Department. We are waiting for the decision of Court. Economic Persecution: We are getting information and requests from different people regarding the issues and problems of sanitary workers. They are making complaints that there are a number of vacancies of sanitary workers are filled by Muslims almost in every city and town and these Muslims just get the salaries and do not perform their duty. We are going to file a writ petition regarding this serious issue in Lahore High Court Lahore. We heard from different Christians that they are being deprived the right of job in private sector too due to possession of Christian faith sometimes they are openly and straight forwardly told and sometime in hidden they are ignored and refused. Religious Hatred: The main problem is the religious hatred among Pakistani. The claim of Muslim is that Pakistan is for Islam and other religious minorities feel unsafe and insecure of this claim. Pakistan should be for Pakistani not for any particular religion. Blasphemy laws: The promulgation and misuse of the blasphemy laws against Pakistani Christians is one of the biggest concerns for us. After Joseph Colony issue one other heart breaking incident happened at Pattoki Three Christian Women Beaten and Publicly Humiliated in Village Sereser Chak No.21 Pattoki. At that time, the women were sleeping in the house along with their father-in-law Sadiq Masih, 73, and mother-in-law Rani Bibi, 70.The mob invaded the house and started looking for Masih’s sons, but when they could not find his sons, they started beating the three women. We, the Christians of Pakistan, need to start working hard to attain positions where our voices can be heard loud and clear by our fellow Christians in the world and only then will our problems be put in front of the top hierarchy of the Church and The Politicians and some good hearten Christians will stand with us to resolve and solve these issues. LEAD is a Christian relief, development and advocacy organization dedicated to working with children, families and communities to overcome poverty and injustice. As followers of Jesus, we are motivated by God’s grace and love to serve all people regardless of race, religion gender or ethnicity.
Pakistan: Far from enlightenment
THE recent attacks in Quetta, Peshawar and elsewhere reflect the growing culture of violence and militancy in Pakistan. Why is Pakistani culture notable for the lack of a zero-tolerance approach towards extremism, militancy and violence against innocent people? How can a cultural change be brought about which can promote enlightenment and coexistence?
Over the past 30 years or so, it is possible to discern a significant transformation in Pakistani culture: the values of tolerance, moderation and coexistence have diminished, providing enormous space for aggression.
One can blame the Afghan war for the permeation of the gun culture, drug trafficking, etc, but if analysed more deeply, one can see that the absence of a culture of reasoning and critical thinking has promoted extremism and radicalisation in Pakistani society. Further, the analysis raises questions about the role of state actors that are responsible for ensuring basic security for people.
The absence of a culture of enlightenment can be termed a major reason why this country has become a hub of violence. And Pakistan is not alone: in terms of the absence of a culture of enlightenment, the situation is more or less similar in many post-colonial states, particularly in Muslim countries.
According to the New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, enlightenment means “an intellectual movement of the 17th and 18th centuries marked by the celebration of the power of human reason, a keen interest in science, the promotion of religious toleration and the desire to construct governments free of tyranny.”
Cultural enlightenment, which became a part of the European/Western civilisation, caused far-reaching structural changes in the way of life and thinking of people who were once behind in the realm of scientific knowledge and reasoning. As a philosophical movement unleashed primarily in parts of Western Europe, enlightenment challenged centuries of stagnation, orthodox thinking and a conservative way of life.
Based on the contributions of leading philosophers such as Jacques Jean Rousseau, Immanuel Kant, Baron de Montesquieu, John Locke and David Hume, the intellectual discourse known as enlightenment focused on reasoning and rationality, doubt, the quest for knowledge, free-thinking, tolerance, secular principles, innovation and research, humanism, and the promotion of art and culture.
The Renaissance, geographical discoveries, scientific innovations, exploration and reformation gave an impetus to the culture of enlightenment, which played a leading role in shaping the European/Western cultural discourse.
No such activity was going on in the Muslim world at the time, though. Large sections of Muslim territories later came under the colonial and imperial tutelage of major European powers and remained devoid of the knowledge process.
While repeated wars in Europe culminating in the Second World War challenged cultural enlightenment, centuries of philosophical work, discoveries and scientific innovations in the West strengthened the culture of reasoning, secularism, democracy and individualism. Cultural enlightenment became a symbol of change in the West which denied space to violence and strengthened the rule of law, notwithstanding the recent emergence of neo-nazis and anti-immigration groups in different parts of Europe.
If Pakistan is known as a country with high numbers of suicide attacks and other acts of violence, it is because there are major fault lines in Pakistani culture that provide space to extremist, militant and violent groups.
In order to curb extremism, Pakistanis will have to change the culture which provides space to groups that propagate hate and violence against those who do not conform to their way of life. The culture of intolerance needs to be replaced with the culture of enlightenment where reasoning, rationality, coexistence, humanism and peace will shape societal values.
The process of cultural enlightenment in Pakistan can only be initiated when a parochial mindset is transformed and a broadminded approach becomes the dominant way of thinking and of discourse. Unfortunately, Pakistan’s cultural paradigm is devoid of a pragmatic, rational and democratic thought process which can effectively challenge those who promote the culture of intolerance. Furthermore, the country’s feudal/tribal culture, along with religious fanaticism, is responsible for societal retrogression.
Two examples can be cited to prove the acceptability of people who take the law into their own hands, propagate hate on religious grounds and create a culture of fear. First, Mumtaz Qadri, who was officially responsible for protecting the then governor of Punjab, Salmaan Taseer, killed him in January 2011 in Islamabad at a public place. He not only confessed to the killing in a court of law but got a lot of support from the legal community and others for an act which should have been condemned. Recently, a Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf member of the National Assembly demanded on the floor of the house that Qadri be “honourably” exonerated.
Second, the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan and the Lashkar-i-Jhangvi have taken responsibility for countless suicide attacks and other acts of terror in different parts of Pakistan but there has been no strong condemnation by religious parties.
The only way Pakistan and its future generations can hope to save their country from degeneration is by promoting a culture of enlightenment by investing in the provision of quality education, encouraging innovation, scientific research, human development and preventing the use of religion for political or personal benefit.
Pakistan: Ignoring cries, pain at home
PTI chairman Imran Khan will write a letter to the prime minister asking him to form a comprehensive anti-terrorism policy to rid the country of this peril. Condemning the bomb blast in the KPK that killed 17 people, he says the whole nation will have to fight against terrorism and devise a joint policy to eradicate this menace for which he will ask the premier to convene a meeting of all stakeholders in the province and the army chief to discuss a comprehensive strategy to end terrorism. The PTI chief Imran Khan has rightly opted to remind the Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to do more for the safety of the people of the KPK, facing bombings every now and then. The blood of the innocent people is consistently going down the drain. Yet non at the helm of the affairs is bothered to say a word about the plight of the people in Peshawar and Quetta.
The federal government is keeping mum over the situation as if there is nothing doing. The lack of urgency on the part of the federal government in joining hands with the provincial administration to curb terrorism is being felt and perceived as the continuation of the previous regime with only difference of some change of faces in the Prime Minister House. Against all hopes that the federal government and army will sharply react to the deadly terrorist attacks and come up with new strategy, the National Security Adviser elderly Sartaj Aziz seems more concerned over Afghan peace process, on Monday he had floated the concept of an Afghan power-sharing arrangement between Kabul and the Taliban as part of a peace talks but he did not say a word about the TTP attacks. Peace in Pakistan, to some extent, may be linked to the peace in Afghanistan.
Yet the recent clashes, amongst the TTP and pro-Pakistan militant groups along the Afghanistan border, give ample evidence for the Pakistan to open their eyes that Islamabad has to deal with the TTP terrorism phenomenon on its own—no body especially from its allies will come to its rescue. Participants of the Doha Talks from either side deemed it fit to go into the peace talks without Pakistan that many perceived it as dumping of Islamabad from the Afghan initiative.
Even then putting forth any suggestion by Pakistan or from the office National Security Advisor cannot be a welcome suggestion and it has duly attracted wrath from the Kabul regime. Pakistan should concentrate hard on ways and means to curb the TTP insurgency at home rather than joining the diplomatic warfare that Americans have unleashed in the region. Blindly following the end-game of the Americans will take Pakistan no where.
Islamabad needs to show far more seriousness to look after its own country and its people crying over loss of the innocent lives rather than feeling for others.
The federal government’s silence over the internal situation is nerve-breaking. Leaving aside Afghan peace phobia, Islamabad must feel the pain of its masses.
Why Quetta suicide attack has already been forgotten
– by Mahpara QalandarOne teenage mourner crying over the killing of his father raised his head up towards the sky and cried: “Ya Allah, what crime did my father commit for which he had to die like this?” Certainly, there cannot be any answer which can comfort the boy. On the other side of humanity-Islamofascism divide, a spokesman of the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) phoned a few media offices proudly claiming, “By Allah’s grace, we have dispatched more Shias to hell!” The spokesman was referring to the suicide bombing near a Shia mosque in Quetta on 30 June which killed 30 Shias and injured scores of them; the majority of the injured in serious condition (Read the report: http://dawn.com/news/1022000/quetta-shuts-down-to-mourn-attack-as-blast-toll-rises-to-30). Allah’s name exists on both sides of the good-and-bad binary which has destroyed the very fabric of the Pakistan society. On the one side are the Taliban and their various incarnations such as the LeJ. On the other side are the Shias, Hindus, Ahmadis, and Christians who have been apostatized by the Taliban for not subscribing to their literalist Manichaean version of Islam. No matter you are a Muslim or non-Muslim, or even a Pakistani or else. Only two weeks before, the Taliban killed 10 foreign mountaineers at the base camp of the Nanga Parbat and made a good escape. http://criticalppp.com/archives/271141 The killing of the mountaineers was as usual “breaking news” on national channels followed by the routine condemnation from every person of substance. But in reality it was just another show of routine emotion. Pakistanis are shown this emotion every day because every day the Taliban strike with bloody precision and consequences. The day following the killing of the mountaineers, the entire Pakistani nation was held in enthrall by the national and provincial/state parliaments where the fate of the “treasonous” General Musharraf was speculated by no less a person than the prime minister who only a month before won national elections on the promise of eradicating terrorism and ending long power outages. No resolution was passed against the Taliban’s crime against humanity. No one pointed out that the killing of the foreign mountaineers has indeed killed tourism in Pakistan. The present government led by Nawaz Sharif and supported by the country’s top anchors do not use the word “Taliban”; their expression of choice is “shidat pasand” which means one who likes to do violence. When the government itself is afraid to call a spade a spade and when the ‘bravest’ decision it takes is make a dialogue offer to Taliban on the basis of equality and brotherhood, it is evidence of the collapse of the state as a sovereign entity. The story of the relations of the state of Pakistan with the Taliban is one of incompetence, complicity, and fear. Pakistan is on the verge of becoming a stateless, lawless society
Monday, July 1, 2013
The story of Malala's friend: Brightening girls' lives with education
By Gordon Brown, special for CNN
Gordon Brown is a United Nations Special Envoy on Global Education. He was formerly the UK's prime ministerToday we can tell the remarkable story of Shazia Ramzan, a 15-year-old Pakistani schoolgirl. Last October Shazia was travelling home from school with her friend Malala Yousafzai when a Taliban gunman boarded their bus and shot both of them. Malala suffered head and facial injuries and had to be rushed to hospital in the UK. Shot in the neck and arm, Shazia spent a month in hospital while her deep wounds healed. Both were attacked by terrorists who wanted to stop girls going to school. Shazia dreams of being a doctor. Fighting back from her injuries, she attempted to resume her schooling at home in the Swat Valley. So keen was she to return to school at the earliest opportunity that she ignored continuing threats to her life from the same Taliban terrorists who shot her and Malala. For months she has had to be escorted to school each day by two armed guards. Her home has had to be protected by police. Sadly, the more that Shazia spoke up, the more the threats escalated, making it difficult for her and her family to remain secure. And in the past few weeks violence has escalated across Pakistan. A female teacher was gunned down in front of her young son as she drove into her all girls' schools. A school principal was killed and his pupils severely injured when a bomb was thrown into a school playground in an all-girls school in Karachi just as a prize giving ceremony began. Only ten days ago, in a massacre which will long be remembered as the single worst terrorist assault on girls' education in recent years, the bus in which 40 female students were travelling from their all-girls college campus in Quetta was blown up by a suicide bomber. 14 girls were killed. So violent was the terrorist attack that another group followed the injured girls to hospital and opened fire on them again.Despite the public revulsion against the violence, the attacks have continued. Only this weekend two schools were blown up, while another two girls were murdered for posting a video in which they were filmed dancing in the rain. It is because of events like these that, with her family's support, Shazia feels forced to leave the country if she is to have the education she needs. Tomorrow she will resume her schooling in the UK after being flown over to Birmingham last weekend and reunited with her lifelong friend Malala. I first spoke to Shazia last November, a month after the attempted assassination. She told me then of her determination to persevere and to speak up for a girl's right to education. She called education the light that brightens up girls' lives. And when I met her off the plane from Islamabad on Saturday night, she told me that she wanted every girl to have the chance of an education. Her dream, she said, was to build schools so that every out-of-school girl could develop their talents and fulfil their potential. According to UNESCO, 700,000 school-age children in Malala and Shazia's home province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) are not at school today - and 600,000 are girls. They are some of the 32 million girls worldwide denied a place at school. In total, 500 million girls of school age will never complete their education. This makes the battle for education for every girl the civil rights struggle of our generation. And until we provide both the resources and security for girls to travel to school and feel safe from the Taliban, then many of Pakistan's schools will remain closed. The biggest force for change today is the courage of Malala and now Shazia and girls like them, who are no longer prepared to acquiesce in their subjugation. It is their courage that we will celebrate when at the United Nations on July 12th, the day of Malala's sixteenth birthday, we will hold Malala Day. A youth resolution will be passed demanding that world leaders provide the resources to get every child to school. Now with a new petition launched by Malala on A World at School, young people themselves from around the world are becoming more vociferous in fighting for their right to education than the adults who for centuries have been charged with delivering it. Go not just to Pakistan, where I met many of the million-strong Malala demonstrators demanding a girl's right to school. Travel to Bangladesh and you'll find girls who have created 'child marriage free zones', preventing themselves being kept from school in a loveless marriage they did not choose. Visit Nepal, where girls are fighting child slavery with the Common Forum for Kalmal Hari Freedom. Attend the marches in India led by child labourers, demanding not just an end to this form of slavery, but the delivery of their right to learn.We saw how in the wake of the attack on Malala and Shazia, over three million people -- including a million out-of-school Pakistani children -- signed petitions calling for children to be able to go to school. This powerful movement is supported by international campaigns such as Plan's Because I am a Girl and Girls not Brides, started by Nelson Mandela's The Elders group. As we shift from the 20th century movement of women's emancipation to the 21st century campaign for women's empowerment, girls sense that the future is theirs. And it is this new liberation movement, led by girls, that we will celebrate in ten days' time when Malala addresses the United Nations.
TEXT OF EGYPTIAN MILITARY ULTIMATUM
The text of the Egyptian military statement issued Monday warning the armed forces will intervene if the demands of the people aren't met in 48 hours.
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"Egypt and the whole world witnessed yesterday demonstrations by the great people of Egypt expressing their opinion in an unprecedented, peaceful and civilized way.
Everyone saw the movement of the Egyptian people and heard their voices with the greatest respect and concern. It is necessary that the people receive a reply to their movement and the call from every party with any responsibility in the dangerous circumstances surrounding the nation.
As a main party in the considerations of the future and based on their patriotic and historic responsibilities to protect security and stability, the Armed Forces state the following:
— The Armed Forces will not be a party in the circles of politics or governance and are not willing to step out of the role defined for them by the basic ideals of democracy based on the will of the people.
— The national security of the state is exposed to extreme danger by the developments the nation is witnessing, and this places a responsibility on us, each according to his position, to act as is proper to avert these dangers. The armed forces sensed early on the dangers of the current situation and the demands the great people have at this time. Therefore, it previously set a deadline of a week for all political forces in the country to come to a consensus and get out of this crisis. However, the week has passed without any sign of an initiative. This is what led to the people coming out with determination and resolve, in their full freedom, in this glorious way, which inspired surprise, respect and attention at the domestic, regional and international levels.
— Wasting more time will only bring more division and conflict, which we have warned about and continue to warn about. The noble people have suffered and have found no one to treat them with kindness or sympathize with them. That puts a moral and psychological burden on the armed forces, which find it obligatory that everyone drop everything and embrace these proud people, which have shown they are ready to do the impossible if only they feels there is loyalty and dedication to them.
— The Armed Forces repeat their call for the people's demands to be met and give everyone 48 hours as a last chance to shoulder the burden of the historic moment that is happening in the nation, which will not forgive or tolerate any party that is lax in shouldering its responsibility.
— The Armed Forces put everyone on notice that if the demands of the people are not realized in the given time period, it will be obliged by its patriotic and historic responsibilities and by its respect for the demands of the great Egyptian people to announce a road map for the future and the steps for overseeing its implementation, with participation of all patriotic and sincere parties and movements — including the youth, who set off the glorious revolution and continue to do so — without excluding anyone.
A salute of appreciation and pride to the sincere and loyal men of the Armed Forces, who have always borne and will continue to bear their patriotic responsibilities toward the great people of Egypt with determination, decisiveness and pride.
God save Egypt and its proud, great people."
Who’s afraid of Ayesha Siddiqa?
Dr Mohammad TaqiDr Siddiqa’s 2007 masterpiece Military Inc: Inside Pakistan’s Military Economy clearly did not win her any friends amongst Lieven’s friends There is no indication that the dark night of Takfiri terrorism is about to lift its heinous shadow from Quetta’s Shia Hazara. Are 40 days enough of a respite for the Hazara to be digging mass graves for their loved ones again? The terrorists of Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) appear to think so. Just as the Hazara Shia were about to commemorate the Chehlum — the 40th day of mourning — of those killed in the January 10 Alamdar Road bombing, death rained again on Hazara Town this past weekend. Over 110 Hazaras — about half of them women and children — perished. Toothless condemnations from spineless politicians have already poured in. But those really running the show in Balochistan are quiet. For them the Shia genocide in Pakistan is simply the cost of doing business, a price that has to be paid for the ‘greater good’. In the past, this ‘greater good’ was merely wars in Afghanistan and Kashmir but over the last few years the same formula is being applied in Balochistan. We have previously noted here that the LeJ was inducted into Balochistan by its khaki patrons to undermine the Baloch movement just like Gulbudin Hikmatyar and the Taliban’s ilk were used to undercut the Pashtun nationalist movement. The idea is to neutralize the Baloch nationalist struggle and keep the Baloch people and their resources under the praetorian thumb. If these jihadi terrorists take out a few ‘heretic’ Shia along the way, the patrons look the other way. If such ‘collateral damage’ happens to be in Quetta city, better yet. From the security establishment’s perspective nothing throws a spanner in the Baloch liberation struggle better than a war in and over Quetta. A free-for-all between the LeJ Balochistan — now largely manned by ethnic Baloch/Brahuis — the Hazaras and the Pashtuns, provides a reason for increasing the military’s presence in Balochistan to hunt down the nationalists while protecting the jihadist assets. However, the state-sponsored narrative remains that a few fringe jihadists gone rogue are targeting the Shia. And then there is the ubiquitous smokescreen that the Shia genocide in Pakistan is a proxy war between Saudi Arabia and Iran. Pro-army analysts were the first ones to paint the target on the Hazaras’ back. Baseless claims were made about Iran funding the Pakistani Shia, especially the Hazara. The fact is that Iran has not provided a single gun to the Pakistani Shia let alone run a training camp. Contrast this with the scores of Saudi-funded madrassas-cum-camps littering the length and breadth of Pakistan. Not one government/public installation has ever been targeted by any Shia. And never mind that the martyred leaders like Benazir Bhutto, Salmaan Taseer and Bashir Bilour were anything but Iranian proxies. Still the obfuscation goes on, including unfortunately by otherwise enlightened writers. Even the international media outlets like the BBC hesitate to identify the victims for who they are: the Shia, and why they are being killed: because of their faith. When questioned on twitter a BBC Urdu producer taunted that it is easy to say things bluntly when sitting in the USA. Well, the last time I checked the BBC was still based in London. A few hours later, the BBC Urdu website did add the word Shia in its story on the Quetta carnage! When the eminent scholar and defence analyst Dr Ayesha Siddiqa wrote a piece, “Who’s afraid of the Karachi Literature Festival?” describing why she was declared persona non grata and debarred from the Karachi Literary Festival (KLF), another BBC producer tweeted: “Just because she was not invited she is making it a public issue.” One finds such remarks and taunts in poor taste and symptomatic of a bigger problem, i.e. the laziness and hyper-nationalism pervasive in sections of the Pakistani media creeping into reputable international media outlets. Dr Siddiqa has herself stated that she was kept out of the KLF because she was perceived as a stern moderator by the pro-Pakistan army author Anatol Lieven at last year’s KLF. I am afraid that Dr Siddiqa is looking at just the tip of the iceberg. Dr Siddiqa’s 2007 masterpiece Military Inc: Inside Pakistan’s Military Economy clearly did not win her any friends amongst Lieven’s friends. Dr Siddiqa has described the Pakistan army as the country’s largest business conglomerate that holds large — at times the largest — chunks of the banking, industrial, real estate, agriculture, transport and construction sectors of the Pakistani economy. Little wonder that Islamabad Club and major hotels refused, under duress apparently, to hold her book’s launching ceremony. But perhaps Dr Siddiqa’s cardinal ‘sin’ is that she has described the military as an economic class that is out to keep its chokehold on the nation’s resources through whatever means necessary in the name of welfare of the servicemen ostensibly, but really for the preservation and enhancement of the privileged officer class. This effectively redefines the military-nation relationship paradigm as a predatory phenomenon, where the security establishment is robbing the nation blind. The western capitals were ecstatic about the latest edition of the Pakistan army Green Book showing that outfit’s thinking is changing vis-à-vis the internal threat from extremists. The compendium emphasising information warfare opens with General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani’s message about attaining politico-military objectives through Information Operations and without using force. But before one gets ones’ hopes too high and starts looking for Hakeemulla Mehsud, Malik Ishaq or Mullah Fazlullah’s names among the internal enemies, chapter one serves as a serious reality check for anyone under an illusion that the army think is changing, when it identifies the ‘enemy within’. This chapter titled, “A treatise on Indian backed psychological warfare against Pakistan”, is written by a Brigadier Umar Farooq Durrani who slanders Dr Ayesha Siddiqa for among other things, taking “material marked as top secret to India”. After reading the drivel against Dr Siddiqa, things started falling into place. Keeping her, and a few others like her, out of the KLF and mainstream media is not coincidental, as that BBC producer would want one to believe. I recalled Iftikhar Arif’s immortal lines: Yeh raat yoonhi to dushman naheen humari keh hum/Darazi e shab-e-gham kay sabab se waqif hein (The dark shadows do not persecute us without reason/[They hound us] For we know the cause of this darkness long-drawn-out). The Supreme Court’s suo motu notice, though welcome, will lead us nowhere. I do not foresee an end to the shadows looming over the Shia unless the political leaders miraculously muster the courage to hold the military’s feet to the fire. PS: The announced ‘targeted operation’ against unnamed targets in Quetta will remain futile without naming them and identifying and nabbing their cohorts elsewhere in Pakistan.
Karzai offers Pakistan anti-terror cooperation
http://www.pajhwok.com/President Hamid Karzai on Monday denounced deadly bomb attacks in Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan provinces, bordering Afghanistan. At least 47 people were killed and more than 114 others wounded in yesterday’s bomb explosions in Quetta and Peshawar. Thirty individuals were killed and 70 injured in a suicide bombing near an imambargah (Shiite mosque) in the Aliabad area of Hazara town in Quetta. Another 17 people were killed and 46 wounded during an explosion in the Badaber area on the outskirts of Peshawar. Several women and children were among the casualties. While denouncing the attacks in the neighbouring country, Karzai said terrorists killed and maimed innocents Afghans and Pakistanis on a daily basis. He called for sincere cooperation between the two nations in the fight against the twin scourge of terrorism and extremism in the region. Afghanistan had always been willing for such collaboration, a statement from the Presidential Palace quoted Karzai as saying.
Tahrir Square erupts in joy after Egypt army statement
http://www.egyptindependent.com/Thousands of protesters erupted in joy on Monday after the military said it would intervene if the people's demands were not met in 48 hours, an AFP journalist said, after millions took to the streets to call on President Mohamed Morsy to step down.
"Come down Sissi, Morsy is not my president," they protesters chanted, urging the country's minsiter of Defence, Abdel Fattah al-Sissi, to intervene.
On the streets of Cairo, cars beeped their horns and waved Egyptian flags after the army statement.
The powerful General Abdel Fattah al-Sissi issued a pressing ultimatum to President Morsy in a televised audio statement on Monday afternoon, calling on political forces to bridge Egypt's growing divide and agree on an inclusive roadmap for the country's future within 48 hours.
"If the demands of the people are not realised within the defined period, it will be incumbent upon [the armed forces]...to announce a road map for the future," said Sissi.
Culture and lifestyle during Morsi’s reign
Four Egyptian ministers quit Morsi's cabinet amid protests: Govt. official
Four Egyptian ministers have quitted the cabinet of President Mohamed Morsi following the massive protests in the country, government official says.
Teeming crowds greet Obama in Tanzania
http://www.businessweek.com/Teeming crowds and blaring horns are welcoming President Barack Obama to Tanzania's largest city, where the U.S. president's likeness is everywhere as he arrives on the last leg of his three-country tour of the African continent. Obama, first lady Michelle Obama and their two daughters touched down Monday afternoon in Dar es Salaam, where a marching band awaiting them on the tarmac danced and played as dozens waved U.S. and Tanzanian flags. Hundreds of young people lined the streets wearing t-shirts and sarongs bearing images of Obama, forcing Obama's motorcade to slow at times as it sped along a main thoroughfare that's been permanently renamed "Barack Obama Drive" — a sign that the visit from America's first president of African descent has resonated deeply with Tanzania's people. A world away from U.S. political battles, Obama was preparing to join together Tuesday with former President George W. Bush at a ceremony honoring Americans killed nearly 15 years ago. Bush will be in Tanzania for a conference on African women organized by the George W. Bush Institute. Although no meeting between the two men had initially been planned, the White House announced as Obama flew to Tanzania that Obama and Bush would come together Tuesday for a wreath-laying ceremony at the site of the 1998 bombings at the U.S. Embassy in Dar es Salaam. Eleven Americans were killed in that Osama bin Laden-masterminded attack, which mirrored a near-simultaneous bombing at the U.S. Embassy in Kenya, the birthplace of Obama's father. First lady Michelle Obama and former first lady Laura Bush also planned to team up at the conference Tuesday for a joint discussion on promoting women's education, health and economic empowerment. President Bush plans to be in attendance, before delivering his own speech there the following day, after the Obamas will have left. Having both presidents in town "sends a very positive message that both political parties in the United States share a commitment to this continent," said Ben Rhodes, Obama's deputy national security adviser. During his African visit, Obama has credited Bush with helping save millions of lives by creating the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief. "The United States has really done wonderful work through the PEPFAR program, started under my predecessor, President Bush, and continued through our administration," Obama said Sunday during a visit to the Desmond Tutu HIV Foundation Youth Center in Cape Town. Bush's accomplishment in fighting AIDS was one of his signature foreign policy successes, while Obama has not been so focused on Africa despite his roots there and only now is making a major presidential trip to sub-Saharan Africa. Obama's only previous visit as president was a brief visit to Ghana his first summer in office, although he traveled to Africa several times previously and has vowed to come back. While in Tanzania, Obama planned to launch a trade partnership with Africa, initially focused on the eastern African countries of Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda — a region of more than 130 million people. The program is designed to assist those countries' trade with each other and with the United States. Among the impediments to trade that the U.S. intends to alleviate are physical roadblocks that delay the transport of goods and products. As an example, Michael Froman, the U.S. trade representative who is traveling with Obama, told reporters it takes 42 days to export coffee out of Rwanda, compared to 14 days out of Colombia. Obama also planned to sign an executive order aimed at combating wildlife trafficking in Africa, particularly the sale of rhinoceros horns and elephant tusks. The State Department will provide $10 million to train and assist African authorities fighting the illegal poaching and selling of animals and animal parts. Grant Harris, the senior director for Africa for the National Security Council, said rhinoceros horns sell for $30,000 a pound on the black market. After arriving in Tanzania on Monday afternoon, Obama was preparing to meet with President Jakaya Kikwete. He'll visit later with business leaders from the U.S. and Africa to talk about increasing trade in east Africa, before ending the evening with a dinner hosted by Kikwete. On Tuesday, Obama plans a private greeting at the U.S. embassy, which has been relocated since the 1998 attack. The president then delivers a final speech focused on bringing more electric power to Africa and heads back toward Washington by noon.
‘Morsi tries to ram Sharia constitution down Egyptian people's throats’
President Morsi’s attempts to push through a Sharia constitution go against Egyptian cultural tradition and spark an even worse uprising as people don’t want religion to be dictated, political analyst and author William Engdahl told RT.
RT: Despite Morsi having strong support in the country, why is there so much anger at him and the Muslim Brotherhood at present?
William Engdahl: I think a number of issues. Number one – is trying to ram a Sharia constitution down the throats of the Egyptian people. That goes against Egyptian cultural tradition – 80-90 per cent of the population are Sunni Muslims – but it is a tradition of tolerance for other religion groups, Coptic and other Islamic groups. The other thing is the economy. Morsi has done nothing to improve the economy. In fact the economy has generated youth unemployment to bulge to an explosive level. That I think is a lot to do with the tinderbox that you see in the streets right now. But the other thing is that the military hasn’t yet weighed in as to whether they are going to continue to back Morsi as they have done under enormous Washington pressure – they are dependent on Washington for military aid and have been for decades. But the interesting new factor is that the Tamarod campaign – the reorganized opposition group that led the protest a year ago in Tahrir Square and elsewhere – they have claimed to have gathered a 15 million-strong petition asking for Morsi to step down. I think this is a make or break situation. The Obama administration continues to back the Muslim Brotherhood, which is a very unfortunate thing, but that’s a part of a larger geopolitical agenda that Washington and the State Department have built up over the past years.
RT: The US supported the uprising that brought Morsi to power. Now the opposition's calling for a ''second revolution'', do you see Washington playing a part?
WE: I think there is a question whether that was a democratic election because a lot of the opposition to the Muslim Brotherhood were simply in disarray and Washington pressed for an early election. The military thought they had done a deal with Morsi that he would be a figurehead and as soon as Morsi got into power he renaged on that deal, he fired chiefs of staff and so forth, and did it with backing from Washington. The Obama administration is backing the Muslim Brotherhood agenda here and in Syria with the opposition there.
RT: Could Sunday prove to be a watershed moment?
ME: There is no question that it is going to be massive. Morsi has already indicated he is going to take an Erdogan kind of brute force state power reaction to try to terrorize the opposition, but that is not going to work at this point. I have talked to people who were in Tahrir Square demonstrations two year ago and it is like a festering boil that has been growing as long as Morsi has shown that he has done nothing to improve the fundamentals of the economy. All he has done is introduce or he tried to introduce that fundamental constitution that would turn Egypt into a Sharia state. Most Egyptians don’t want that. They want to have their religion in private, but not to have the state dictate to them exactly what it is going to look like.
The statements, views and opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of RT.
Protesters to Egypt's Morsy: You have one day to step down
Egyptians who helped overthrow a 29-year dictatorship in a widely-hailed revolution have now given the country's first democratically elected president one day to step down from office.
In a statement posted Monday on its official facebook page, Tamarod (the "rebel" campaign") demanded that if President Mohamed Morsy doesn't leave office by Tuesday, the group will begin a civil disobedience movement, call for nationwide protests and march on the presidential palace where Morsy's administration is running affairs.
If the last few days have been any indication, Tamarod's deadline will most likely be ignored.
Both sides -- the anti-government demonstrators and Morsy's supporters-- have dug in their heels.
And the results have been deadly.
On Monday, protesters stormed the main headquarters of the Muslim Brotherhood, the party that Morsy led before his election. Armed with Molotov cocktails, the mob set the office on fire, shouting, "The people has toppled the regime."
A day earlier, five people were killed and 613 wounded in confrontations between the two sides, Egypt's official news agency reported.
On the one hand
Those calling for Morsy's ouster say he has hijacked the gains made in the revolution that toppled Hosni Mubarak and has pushed aside moderate voices.They say Morsy's policies are to blame for a breakdown in law and order, for an economy that's gone south, and for a gas shortage that has Egyptians waiting at the pumps for hours.
On the other
Those supporting the president say he is the people's choice and refer to the 13 million votes he earned in elections held exactly a year ago Sunday. They say he inherited a broken system and should be given time to fix it.
"We're not leaving and the president is staying," one supporter told CNN. "We believe in democracy. If people don't like him, they can vote him out in three years."
Deadly results
Periodically, the two sides have clashed and the results have been deadly -- even before the Sunday clashes.
On Friday, Andrew Pochter, a 21-year-old American in Alexandria to teach children English, was stabbed to death while watching the demonstrations, his family said.
And the Muslim Brotherhood has lost four members to violence in recent days. The Islamist group was shunted aside under Mubarak but is now the most powerful political force in Egypt.
For his part, Morsy says he is ready for dialogue. But the gap between the two camps is wide and only getting wider.
Unclear road map
The demonstrators say they have collected 17 million signatures -- roughly four million more than what won Morsy the presidency -- and all of them call for Morsy to go.
The opposition is made up of various groups and loose coalitions, and not all anti-Morsy protesters agree with the road map the Tamarod campaign is advocating.
Some are loyal to the ousted Mubarak government, while others want the army to intervene.
The army variable
Last week, Defense Minister Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi said the army would, if necessary, "prevent Egypt from slipping into a dark tunnel of civil unrest and killing, sectarianism and the collapse of state institutions."
His remarks raised the specter of a return to the powerful role the military played in domestic politics under Mubarak.
"Egypt," the government-run newspaper Al-Akhbar said, "is on the brink of a volcano."
Kabul is turning the tide
http://www.afghanistantimes.af/
Pakistan: Soaring numbers: Disease outbreaks demand attention
Blasts Kill Dozens in Pakistan During British Leader’s Visit
By SALMAN MASOOD and ISMAIL KHAN
Militant bombings in Pakistan killed dozens of people across the country on Sunday in attacks that overshadowed a visit by the British prime minister and underscored the array of threats facing Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s new government.
In the city of Quetta, the capital of Baluchistan Province and the center of a violent campaign by Sunni militants against the Shiite Hazara minority, a suicide bomber detonated explosives near a mosque on Sunday evening, killing at least 28 people, officials said. No specific group claimed responsibility, though officials attributed the attack to Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, an outlawed group that has killed hundreds of Hazaras there in recent years.
Though a national outcry over anti-Shiite violence has intensified over the past year, government and security officials have been accused of dragging their feet on efforts to curb the attacks. And it is just one of the facets of violence in Baluchistan, the center of a separatist movement that has brought repeated violent crackdowns by the Pakistani security forces.
On the outskirts of the northwestern city of Peshawar, a car bomb detonated as a convoy of Frontier Corps militiamen passed on the area’s main highway. The bomb, parked near a police station and in a market area that is always crowded, killed at least 17 people.
Though the Frontier Corps convoy appeared to be the target, all the victims were civilians, according to Javed Marwat, the deputy commissioner for Peshawar. The people wounded, including three members of the Frontier Corps, were taken to hospitals in Peshawar. Several cars and shops were damaged.
In a separate attack, a military convoy was struck by a roadside bomb in North Waziristan, the semiautonomous tribal region where militants of all stripes — local and foreign — have taken refuge. At least four soldiers were killed, and at least 19 people were wounded, officials said.
The Pakistani military has balked at American pressure to start a military operation in North Waziristan, and army troops deployed in some areas there mostly stay inside their bases and encampments.
But military convoys regularly move during what are called “road opening” days, when the authorities impose a curfew to help clear the roadways in an attempt to ensure safe passage. “Curfew was announced last night, so some militants might have planted the bomb and waited for the convoy to move,” one Pakistani security official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. “All they needed was to push a button, even if there was curfew.”
There were no immediate claims of responsibility for the attacks, and officials said that militants in the semiautonomous tribal regions straddling the border with Afghanistan were most likely involved.
The attacks came even as Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif played host to Prime Minister David Cameron of Britain, in the first visit by a Western leader since Pakistan’s elections in May. The two focused on helping Pakistan’s economy, and pledged to expand economic cooperation and trade.
But militancy again dominated the day’s headlines in Pakistan. In a joint appearance, the two leaders said that countering such violence was critical, and the British leader said his country would offer more expertise and equipment to help fight bombing campaigns by the Taliban and other militant groups.
Mr. Sharif and Mr. Cameron also discussed the war in Afghanistan and the coming Western military withdrawal. The shift has major implications for the Pakistani government, which is concerned about ensuring its influence in Kabul, and for the militants who work on both sides of the border.
“I have assured Prime Minister Cameron of our firm resolve to promote the shared objective of a peaceful and stable Afghanistan,” Mr. Sharif said.
Pakistan: Prices of petrol and CNG increased
People suffered a double blow on Sunday as the government increased the prices of petroleum products and CNG with effect from Monday.
The price of petrol has been raised by Rs2 per litre and that of high speed diesel (HSD) by Rs2.16, according to an official of the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra).
The petroleum ministry has also imposed an additional nine per cent GST on CNG, increasing it to 24pc. As a result, the price of CNG has gone up by Rs2.54 to Rs75.48 per kg for Region-I (Potohar, northern Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan) and by Rs1.85 to Rs66.75 for Region-II (central and southern Punjab and Sindh).
Earlier in the day, oil marketing companies had announced an increase in prices of petrol and diesel by Rs2.66 and Rs3.66 per litre, respectively.
But later a spokesman for the Ministry of Finance said the government had decided to adjust 66 paisa in petroleum levy on petrol and Rs1.50 on diesel. Ogra spokesman Afzal Bajwa told Dawn that the authority had recommended to the government to keep the prices unchanged, but the recommendation was turned down.
After the adjustment in levy, the new ex-depot price of petrol will be Rs101.77 per litre, Rs2 more than the previous rate of Rs99.77, and that of HSD will be Rs106.76, Rs3 more than the earlier rate of Rs104.60.
The prices of kerosene have been raised to Rs96.29 per litre from Rs93.79, light diesel to Rs92.17 from Rs89.13 and high octane blending component (HOBC) to Rs126.77 from Rs124.41.
Besides the import parity price of petroleum products and profit margins of dealers and oil companies, the government charges petroleum levy at Rs14 per litre on HOBC, Rs10 on petrol, Rs8 on HSD and Rs6 on kerosene.
The government has also started charging 17pc GST on sale price of petroleum products, one per cent more than the previous rate of 16pc.
Quetta carnage: need for a new security paradigm
Daily Times
BY Hasan NaserFrom the recent terrorist attacks it has become evident that the Taliban want the government to negotiate with them on their terms and conditions The terrorist attacks in Quetta bring to spotlight the issue of ever diminishing state writ in the province. The serene Quetta is drenched in blood once again. It was only months ago that the Hazara community suffered militants’ wrath. But no action was taken against the perpetrators. The militants have enough space to operate freely and spread mayhem. For instance, the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) took no time to claim the responsibility of the attack on the students of the women university. But the state has not condemned the banned outfit unequivocally, let alone taking any punitive action. It is worth noting that the terrorist outfit enjoys close nexus with the Tehreek-e-Taliban (TTP). But the state’s appeasement policy vis-à-vis the TTP is bewildering. Let it be clear now that there are no good or bad Taliban. Making a distinction between them is catastrophic on the part of security establishment. There are also separatists in Balochistan who are bent on challenging the writ of the state. Bombing of the national heritage at Ziarat has come as a shock to the nation. The participation of the Baloch in the election process and the subsequent installation of a nationalist chief minister dealt a blow to the rejectionist. They are out to destabilise the fledgling democratic set-up. The security establishment and the civil leadership do not seem to be on the same page on the Balochistan question. The security establishment has resorted to high-handed tactics in the past, which have proved counter-productive. The recovery of mutilated bodies has only helped the cause of the hard-liners. The civilians have very little say in running the security affairs of the state. It is quite clear who is calling the shots in Balochistan. There is a growing concern over the failure of the security agencies to pre-empt terrorist attacks. Frontier Corps (FC) is responsible for the security but it is not under the control of provincial government. There is urgent need to empower the civil law enforcement forces to take over from the FC. It is time for the security agencies to pool information and forestall attacks. The government has hinted at calling an all parties conference (APC) to address the problem of terrorism . It is a welcome move. It would be helpful in finding a long-term solution to the worsening law and order situation in the country. The security establishment is also likely to attend the joint session of parliament. APC is the first step in the right direction. A comprehensive counter-terrorism policy must be devised with input from all stakeholders. Political leadership would have to take the initiative and lead from the front. The Interior Minister Chaudhary Nisar came hard on the security establishment. But his own party the Pakistan Mulsim League-Nawaz (PML-N) owes explanation with regard to its soft approach towards terrorists. The PML-N seems to be lacking in clarity in addressing the larger problem of terrorism. In his maiden speech in the National Assembly, the prime minister talked about every issue but terrorism. There was no mention of the government policy on how to deal with the problem of terrorism. The PML-N should not be seen to be friendly with known terrorists. Imran Khan is all for talks with the Taliban, but despite the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s coalition government in the province of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, it continues to suffer attacks from militants. Deadly attack on a Peshawar mosque is an eye-opener for the ‘champions’ of peace. From the recent terrorist attacks it has become evident that the Taliban want the government to negotiate with them on their terms and conditions. All the talk of talk is itself the admission of the fact that the military has failed. From this weak position of negotiation the government would not be able to fix the menace of terrorism on its own terms. On the other hand, the Taliban have not budged an inch from their extreme position. To conclude, once a clear security policy is formulated the PML-N would have to ensure that it is implemented in letter and spirit. Only taking all political and military leadership on board would yield the positive outcome. To quell the Baloch insurgency, a multi-dimensional approach is to be adopted. It needs integration of the disgruntled elements, addressing their genuine grievances and isolating those who do not want to come down from the mountains.
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