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Pakistan News And Discussion-11 - Naresh - 07-27-2007
<b>Mudy Ji :</b>
The Beat goes on!
[center]<b><span style='font-size:14pt;line-height:100%'>Blast near Pakistan mosque kills 13</span></b>[/center]
Cheers <!--emo&:beer--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/cheers.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='cheers.gif' /><!--endemo-->
Pakistan News And Discussion-11 - Guest - 07-27-2007
majority of them are police. So music is still on. I can't believe it happened in Islam-a-bad.
Pakistan News And Discussion-11 - Naresh - 07-27-2007
<!--QuoteBegin-Mudy+Jul 27 2007, 09:26 PM-->QUOTE(Mudy @ Jul 27 2007, 09:26 PM)<!--QuoteEBegin-->majority of them are police. So music is still on. I can't believe it happened in Islam-a-bad.
[right][snapback]71587[/snapback][/right]
<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
<b>Mudy Ji :</b>
One could not believe if it was Islam-a-good.
Recent Highlights of Islam-a-bad :
1. Lal Mosque Affair - 1,00 Shrouds-Coffins from Edhi Organization in addition to which a lot of bodies were found without any Shroud-Coffin!
2. Chief Justice Day - Le'Affaire at the PPP Camp!!
3. Now the latest!!!
Donât fret.
Many more to come where these came from.
Cheers <!--emo&:beer--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/cheers.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='cheers.gif' /><!--endemo-->
Pakistan News And Discussion-11 - Naresh - 07-27-2007
<b>Lo Kar Lo Baat :</b>
[center]<b><span style='font-size:14pt;line-height:100%'>F O U R T E E N</span></b>[/center]
Cheers <!--emo&:beer--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/cheers.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='cheers.gif' /><!--endemo-->
Pakistan News And Discussion-11 - Guest - 07-27-2007
<b>Congress ties Pakistan aid to terrorism progress</b>
Now US Congress ............
Pakistan News And Discussion-11 - Guest - 07-27-2007
<b>Musharraf not advised to quit: Rashid Qureshi</b><!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->According to sources, Musharraf, during his six-day long discussions with his top military aides in Rawalpindi after the restoration of the chief justice, is said to have been advised that the best thing for him to do is to seek an<b> âhonourable exitâ. </b>
They said Musharraf did not react to these suggestions for the time being. He is expected to make a decision after his return from Saudi Arabia. He is likely to raise this issue with the Saudis to find a way out of the political âmessâ without any loss of face, the sources said.
They said the absence of General Musharraf from public engagements since the historic judgment of the Supreme Court has raised questions in the minds of both politicians and mediapersons.
The silence of an otherwise articulate Musharraf has given currency to reports that all was not well at the presidency. <b>His decision to visit the UAE and Saudi Arabia without any earlier announced schedule has given rise to the speculations in London that in his last ditch effort Musharraf was trying to seek help of his Saudi friends.</b>
.............
<b>Musharraf was now at the dead end of the tunnel,</b> the sources said. Meanwhile, talking to The News from Pakistan, General Rashid Qureshi said he had no knowledge of any advice given to General Musharraf by his close military commanders to quit<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd--> <!--emo&
--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/biggrin.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='biggrin.gif' /><!--endemo--> <!--emo&--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/biggrin.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='biggrin.gif' /><!--endemo-->
Pakistan News And Discussion-11 - Guest - 07-30-2007
<!--emo&
--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/biggrin.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='biggrin.gif' /><!--endemo--> http://youtube.com/watch?v=YF4OdzJLxqM&mode=related&search=
Imran Khans on Indians and burger families of Pakistan
Pakistan News And Discussion-11 - Guest - 07-30-2007
Good News from Pakistan <!--emo&:bevil--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/b_evil.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='b_evil.gif' /><!--endemo-->
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->Pakistani's way of resolving disputes:-17-year-old boy killed in seating order row
LAHORE: Unidentified killers clubbed a 17-year-old boy to death over a van-seating dispute in the Qilla Gujjar Singh police precincts on Sunday. Edhi Foundation officials said that Amir Mehmood, a resident of Jandiyala Village Manawan, was returning home from his work by a public van, when he quarrelled with two boys Shahzad and Majid over seat in the van.
Other passengers of the van settled the matter. Shahzad and Majid later came to Amirâs work place at Abbot Road on a motorcycle with no registration number plate. They called Amir outside the shop and injured him with multiple hits of wooden rods and fled the scene.
Co-workers rushed Amir to the Mayo Hospital where he died. Police sent the body for autopsy and registered a case against the alleged killers.
Radio Pakistan Islamabad official robbed
LAHORE: A couple robbed money from the deputy controller of Radio Pakistan (Islamabad) after intoxicating him in the Sabzazar police precincts on Sunday.
Radio Pakistan (Islamabad) deputy controller Ahmed Sheikh came to the city on July 27. As he left the bus at the Band Road, a couple riding a car asked him the way to Green Town.
Sheikh guided them towards the Green Town but the Saraiki speaking couple offered him a lift. On their way, the male member of the couple stopped the car at a cold drink corner and purchased three juice packs and gave one to Sheikh.
Sheikh went unconscious after taking the cold drink. The couple robbed him of important documents and Rs 50,000 and escaped after throwing him on the roadside. Locals called Rescue 1122 on finding him unconscious and he was later rushed to the Jinnah Hospital.
Sheikh regained consciousness late night on July 28, and hospital administration asked him about his family and informed them. They reached Jinnah Hospital and informed the police. The family took Sheikh to Islamabad.
When contacted, Sabzazar Police duty officer said he had no knowledge of the incident while the SHO could not be contacted for comments. staff report
Chinese language courses to start to help in better understanding your chinese accupuncturist<!--emo&:clapping--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/clap.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='clap.gif' /><!--endemo-->
KARACHI: Two Chinese language courses will start July 31 at the recently established Chinese Language Tutorial Center (CLTC). A four-month crash course and a 16-month regular course are being offered to citizens with the promise of a better chance in education and occupation.
The CLTC is the only Chinese language tutorial organization in the city. It is sponsored and managed by the Chinese Guangxi Corporation, which is a Chinese state-owned company. The month-old center is located in KDA Scheme Block 5, Clifton and a short introductory course has already been completed. A total of 25 Pakistani students from different groups participated and have completed the course successfully.
âI am an employee of a trading firm that is in <b>frequent contact with our Chinese counterparts.</b> Language was a major barrier in communicating with them. This center has given me a unique opportunity to learn the language in the shortest period of time,â said Khalid Hussain.
According to him, the teaching method has already proven itself in different countries. âOur Chinese language center in Dhaka has been a very successful experiment. The same set-up has been shifted to Pakistan and we are expecting similar success in Karachi as well,â Junqiang added.
Pakistanis collect dead fish that miraclously appeared in harbour
KARACHI: Thousands of dead fish have appeared off the Karachi Port Trust harbour and several people have started collecting them to sell in the city, raising alarm among experts.
âIt could be very dangerous for people to consume these fish without knowing the real cause of death,â Nasir Panhwer of the IUCN told Daily Times. âThe fish couldâve died because of a chemical or naturally. Nobody knows exactly when or how it happened and where they came from.â
Sham Lal, a visitor at the Hanuman Temple near the Native Jetty Bridge, told Daily Times that the number of these dead fish increased on Sunday. âThe disgusting odor is unbearable and the black kites and crows have started eating them,â he said.{P.S:- Sham Lal is a visitor at the Hanuman Temple and not a devotee}.
The news of the fish spread like wild fire. Many people were seen collecting them near Native Jetty Bridge without knowing why they had died. The authorities, including the KPTâs marine pollution control department, Sindhâs environment department, the EPA and others, have yet to find out the real reason behind this disaster.
âPerhaps some huge fishing ship caught these fish and then offloaded them when they found some other big catch in another place,â speculated Shariq, a KPT public relations officer.
He assumed that the fish did not die because of chemicals and that they were thrown away. âWe have collected samples and they will be sent to the national institute of oceanology for biological assessments. Initially, we found that the gills of these dead fish were white which means that they died naturally, not because of some chemicals,â he told Daily Times.
Load shedding completely ruins the day for Pakistanis who try to rest after a week of work
KARACHI: Karachi Electric Supply Corporation (KESC) consumers experienced another day of inconsistent power supply on Sunday â the day that KESC always says is free of load shedding because offices are closed and the demand is less than the supply.
KESC spokesmen have previously said that on days off the power demand remains well within the supply range because most of the demand coming from the offices is absent on a non-working day, therefore, there is no need to load shed. Kamran, a resident of Airport area, said that the load shedding spoilt the entire day. The inconsistent power supply completely ruined the day for people who try to rest after a week of work, said Ms Gulshan.
Shut down by September 27 or else...: Islamist threatens to bomb Rainbow Centre
* Issues warning to cable operators, cinemas and bus drivers who play loud music
KARACHI: A pamphlet from a man threatening to blow up Rainbow Centre unless it shut down by September 27 was distributed Saturday night, sparking panic in the ground-floor business owners and people who live in the flats above.
âIf the video business does not shut down in two months, there will be an explosion so big that the entire world will remember it,â said the A4 size open letter, written in crude Urdu handwriting and signed by âFatahâ. âEven if I do not remain, the voice of Islamic Shariat will never die.â
The open letter also issued a warning to the cityâs cinemas, cable operators and public bus drivers who play loud music. âAll of Karachiâs cinema hall owners are requested to shut down otherwise after July 27 any one of them could be blown up with a bomb at any time,â the letter said.
âCable operators should only air Islamic channels and if any vulgar programmes are broadcast in any locality of Karachi, the cable operatorâs office will be blown up,â it added.
The letterâs writer said that vulgarity and obscenity had become exceedingly common and that the various forms of the media were showing dancing and singing. He appealed to people to shun these forms of entertainment and for those he threatened to desist from their work.
The pamphlet was reportedly distributed to all the shops on the ground floor of Rainbow Centre by two children, aged seven and nine, said Waqas Khalid who works at shop No. G-39 and Nadim of shop No. G-112. The children did not know what was written in the letter, added Waqas of shop No. G-111. As the salesmen read it and the news spread, shopkeepers grabbed the children and questioned them.
The children, who are from the neighbourhood, said that they were given Rs 100 each by <b>a tall man with a big beard.</b>{Must be Osama's long lost pakistani Cousin}<!--emo&:bevil--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/b_evil.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='b_evil.gif' /><!--endemo-->Â He was wearing a shalwar kameez and skull cap. He gave them the pamphlets and told them to just throw it into each shop.
The Rainbow Centre union got together to discuss the problem and when this report was filed they were drafting a letter to the law enforcement agencies that they planned to dispatch.
Acting chief of police Javaid Bukhari told Daily Times Sunday night that he had not received any complaint but if he did the police would obviously do everything in their power to prevent anything bad from happening. âWe can give solve the problem 10 percent by giving them extra security but 90 percent of it will depend on their own vigilance,â Bukhari said, adding that he was going to look into the matter today.
Rainbow Centre union president Salim Memon said that while he agreed that there should be an Islamic system, threatening people with bombs was no way to impose it. One of his colleagues, Muslim, added that some people thought that distributing a letter like this was a âshort cutâ to heaven. Rainbow Centre will tighten security but are also deciding whether to continue work as usual or shut up shop.
The chairman of Media Plus Communications Amir who is also part of the management of Nishat Cinema said that they had not received the pamphlet.
JIâs Merajul Huda Siddiqui said âRulers should also realise, however, that the undue use of power gives rise to another kind of powerful movement. Our rulers think that steam would be released if they have a photo session at the Kaâba.â
More than 7.5 million Pakistanis than live in slums
* Rs 5,000 monthly income for family of 6
* Land prices soared because of World Bank
* Illegal housing growing by 10% annually
KARACHI: Half of Karachiâs population - more than 7.5 million people - live in katchi abadis, said Ahmed Tasneem Siddiqui, a known bureaucrat who is considered an expert on slums.
âThose who live there are from the skilled and unskilled working classes, including clerks, teachers, industrial workers, small workshop owners, air hostesses, domestic workers and sanitary workers,â Siddiqui said during the PPPâs weekly lecture programme held at the Peoplesâ Secretariat on the topic: âKatchi Abadis: Why they crop up? What is the solution?â
Siddiqui said that during the last seven to eight years, the gap between the nationâs rich and the poor has grown enormously. Now one sees thousands of people sleeping in open spaces or living in subhuman conditions, he added.
He noted that the locality where a family lived determined the level of its social conditions, income, and human rights. He said that a difference could easily be seen in the generations. Every generation of those living in posh areas was taller and healthier than the previous one, while in katchi abadis, every succeeding generation, especially the females, were shorter and weaker than their parents.
The reasons for this, he said, were malnutrition, high incidence of disease, congestion, lack of fresh air and recreation and lack of sound sleep, etc...
He narrated the history of the creation of katchi abadis that he said started immediately after Pakistanâs independence because of the influx of refugees and the import of cheap migrant labour for developing industrial sectors. And then later due to the break-up of the country, he added.
âThe phenomenon has now grown into an organised land invasion by land grabbers, who work in partnership with the police, the patwaris and local councillors. More than 1,000 acres of government land, around settled acres, is occupied every year by this partnership and is sold to those who have no place to live,â he said.
Siddiqui added that the government abandoned its duty of developing housing schemes for low income groups under the pressure of the World Bank, which set down rules and procedures that caused prices of land to soar.
The development programme, as dictated by the World Bank, delayed construction by 15 to 20 years because poor people could never meet the conditions for the schemes. The result was that all the housing schemes, such as Surjani, Gulzar Hijri, Shah Latif Town etc, were a failure. âHardly 10 to 20 percent of the plots in these schemes see construction and it takes more than 20 years to construct houses on the plots,â he said.
Informal and illegal housing in katchi abadis was growing by nine to ten percent yearly. Abadis such as Machar Colony were spreading overnight and even reclaiming land from the sea.
âThe private sector only develops housing for the rich and the public sector and the cooperative sector hardly function. Unfortunately it is the informal sector that is looking after the housing needs of low income groups,â he said.
Siddiqui stressed that the need of the hour was that the public sector look at the methods employed by the informal sector, eliminate corruption and provide land to low-income families at affordable prices legally.
Agreeing with the argument of the programme organisers - that all people have equal rights on land and the PPP shall provide a âplot for every familyâ - he cautioned that housing was not just about plots and the party should work on a comprehensive package for educational, health, recreation and micro-credit facilities in the new localities it proposes to develop for low-income groups.
Zahid Farooq, in his presidential remarks, severely criticised the government for playing into the lands of the land mafia. He said that the land mafia was bulldozing old settled localities of the poor in order to create spaces for commercial plazas. He urged the civil society, and most importantly the residents of these localities, to show resistance even if they have to face the might of the so-called law enforcing agencies.
Intelligence official, relative kidnapped in pakistan
MIR ALI: Unknown people kidnapped an Intelligence Bureau sub inspector and his relative from Mir Ali tehsil in North Waziristan Agency on Sunday.
A private television channel reported that five masked men abducted Sub-Inspector Bahadur Nawaz and his relative Muhammad Javed, a government schoolteacher, when they were going from Mir Ali Scouts Cantonment to a local bazaar.
Both hostages are from Bannu districtâs Domeel area.
TNSM suicide bombers head to Rawalpindi
ISLAMABAD: The law-enforcement agencies are searching for at least two would-be suicide bombers whom the Tehreek Nifaz-e-Sharia Muhammadi has tasked with attacking the residences of military officials in Rawalpindi, sources told Daily Times.
They said intelligence agencies had sent reports to the Interior Ministry, claiming that two suicide bombers trained by TNSM head Maulvi Faqir Muhammad and his brother Maulvi Ghulam Muhammad had left Bajaur Agency for Rawalpindi. âThe bombers are clean shaven and around 25 years of age,â according to the reports.
Pakistan faced with threat of Islamist revolt: No deal with uniformed president: BB
LONDON: Former prime minister Benazir Bhutto insisted on Sunday that she would not strike a power-sharing deal with President Pervez Musharraf so long as he remained the army chief.
Bhutto has had talks with General Musharraf about a possible return to Pakistan but maintained she had grave reservations about a uniformed president. âItâs very important to deal with whoâs there. He is the person there and if we can find a way to get the uniformed presidency out of the picture, we can find a way to get democracy back... we will be looking forward. Weâre not there yet.â
She added: âThe post of the army chief must be separated from that of the president.â
She said an amendment passed by Musharraf banning a twice-elected prime minister from seeking office a third time was âan issue which is part of the discussion between usâ.
âIf he doesnât bring the change, if the people of Pakistan, through their elected representatives wish to lift that ban, they certainly can,â she said. âFormer prime minister Nawaz Sharif and I have come to an understanding that we would lift this ban.â
Bhutto also told German newsweekly Focus that she would fight Musharraf before the countryâs highest tribunal if he tried to win a new term from the old parliament before new elections are held. âThe army must stop governing the country. The military must respect decisions of the government and be held accountable before the parliament,â she said.
âBut I will go back regardless of whether the talks with Musharraf are successful or not,â Bhutto said, adding that she would seek protection against prosecution from Pakistani courts.
Asked by Sky why she wanted to return, Bhutto said Pakistan was being threatened by extremists. â... this is more than a struggle for me: this is a struggle for the heart and the soul of Pakistan ... Very critical choices have to be made between the forces of the past and the forces of the future.â
<b>In the Focus interview, Bhutto warned of a looming Islamist revolution mounted from madrassas. âThe Red Mosque was just a warm-up for what will happen if the religious schools are not disarmed,â she said.</b>
She added that Islamist extremist leaders were plotting to overthrow Musharrafâs government and had converted madrassas in Pakistani cities into military headquarters with well-stocked arsenals.
She accused Musharraf of adopting an âappeasement policyâ toward extremists that had only strengthened them. She admitted that she had made mistakes during her time in office in trying to work with the Taliban to pacify the country.
Blasts suspects to be arrested soon
ISLAMABAD, July 29: Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz has said that the people involved in suicide attacks and other bomb blasts would be arrested and given exemplary punishment.
Talking to newsmen on Sunday after his visit to the Pakistan Institute of Medical Science, he said law enforcement agencies had been working hard so that the culprits behind the Aabpara suicide attack and other bomb blasts could be arrested soon.
The prime minister said: âSuicide attacks and bomb explosions always kill innocent people and it is against the basic teachings of Islam.â{Yeah then why send them to India,Mr.Aziz}.
He said some forces were working against the solidarity and interest of the country on the instructions of foreign forces. He said the government had taken adequate measures to face such elements.
Three held for grenade attacks
QUETTA, July 29: Police on Sunday arrested three suspects in connection with grenade attacks in Khuzdar.
According to sources, the police raided the hostel of degree college Khuzdar and taken a student and two other people into custody. Police claimed to seize a grenade and arms from their room.
The two arrested people were not students of the college and were living in the hostel illegally, the police said, alleging that they were involved in grenade attacks in different areas of Khuzdar.
The three suspects were handed over to concerned authorities for further interrogation.
Meanwhile, police rounded up over 60 suspects in connection with the killing of Raziq Bugti who was gunned down on Friday.
Baloch women take to Gandhigiri: To observe hunger strike
QUETTA, July 29: The newly-formed Baloch Women Panel on Sunday announced that it would observe a token hunger strike from July 30 till August 14 for the recovery of missing youths.
Speaking at a press conference here on Sunday, BWP members Hani Baloch and Shakar Bibi said the governmentâs oppression against the Baloch people had forced the women to come out on the streets.
They accused the security forces and intelligence agencies of torturing the detained Baloch youths in secret cells. They alleged that during raids on the houses of political activists, women are insulted, adding that hundreds of Baloch political workers had either been arrested or missing for the last four years.
The BWP members said the panel had been formed to support those families whose youths were either abducted or missing.
They appealed to the international human rights organisations to raise voice against the detention of Baloch youths in the province.
They said Wahid Qamar, Ghulam Mohammad, Sher Mohammad, Saleem Baloch, Khan Mohammad Marri, Qadir alias Shadi Khan Marri, Fazal Baloch, Zakir Majid Baloch and Faiz Baloch had been missing and for their recovery the BWP members would observe the token hunger strike.
Nine killed in road accidents, armed attack
QUETTA, July 29: Nine people, including three women, were killed and 38 others were injured in two road accidents and a firing incident in Hub, Kalat and the Rakhni area of Balochistan on Sunday.
Police sources said an armed man attacked a house in the Rakhni area of Barkhan and started firing, killing three people of a family on the spot.
The cause of the attack is said to be an old enmity. The armed man escaped after firing.
Deceased were identified as Nageen, Qadir Bakhsh and Hayatan Bibi.
Three people including a woman were killed and 24 others received injuries when a Karachi bound bus carrying pilgrims turned turtle near Hub. The pilgrims were coming back from Shah Noorani. The injured were shifted to the civil hospital Hub.
The victims were identified as Shahida Bibi, Abdul Rehman and Irfan.
Bomberâs identikit released
ISLAMABAD, July 29: The Islamabad police have released an identikit of the man thought to have blown himself up at Aabpara Market on Friday evening.
The government announced on Sunday a sum of Rs1 million for anyone who would identify the suicide bomber.
The snaps of the suicide bomber have been sent to government organisations across the country for identification.
The photograph shows a clean-shaven man, with some hair on his chin and jet black hair on the head.
The picture shows the nose and the chin fastened together with a string as one portion of the face had been blown away and both eyes were open.
A plastic surgery of the face has been conducted to reconstruct the face as the left side and nose were badly damaged.
Another Lal Masjid in pakistan
GHALLANAI, July 29: Gunmen have forcefully occupied a mosque and an adjacent shrine in Mohmand Agencyâs Lakaro tehsil and announced that they will continue the âmissionâ of late Maulana Ghazi Abdur Rashid and establish a madressah at the place.
The armed masked men took up positions in and around the Jamia Masjid Ghaziabad Lakaro on Saturday night and people coming to pray there were frisked at the gate. The gunmen announced that they were renaming the mosque as âLal Masjidâ and the madressah would be called âJamia Hafsa Umme Hassanâ, witnesses said on Sunday.
Residents said the gunmen after occupying the mosque and the shrine of Haji Sahib Turangzai, a known reformist and freedom fighter, declared that they would continue their jihad against the US and its allies. They urged locals to support them.
One of the gunmen, introducing himself as Khalid, spoke to journalists on behalf of the militants and said that they would continue the mission of deputy administrator of Islamabadâs Lal Masjid, Maulana Ghazi. âThe killing of Maulana Ghazi Abdur Rashid would give birth to hundreds others like him. We are establishing a madressah, Jamia Hafsa Umme Hassan here,â he said.
The armed men wrote âLal Masjidâ on the walls of the mosque and changed a signboard in front of the tehsil office building to âLal Masjid Ghaziabadâ.
The political administration could not be reached for comments despite several attempts. However, the political tehsildar of Lakaro tehsil confirmed that the mosque had been occupied.
<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Pakistan News And Discussion-11 - Guest - 07-30-2007
Time to get tough on Pakistan
According to a recently released National Intelligence Estimate, the United States faces a "persistent and evolving terrorist threat" and al-Qaida is as strong today as before Sept. 11. The most important and urgent action that we can take to keep America safer is to root out al-Qaida's sanctuary in Pakistan.
Al Qaida has rebuilt the base of operations it lost in Afghanistan across the border in tribal areas of western Pakistan. Key leaders, including Osama bin Laden and top lieutenant Ayman al-Zawahiri, are probably hiding in this rugged terrain. Training camps are used by the Taliban to support its insurgency in Afghanistan, and by al-Qaida to develop its capabilities. Plots in London have been traced back to Pakistan, demonstrating al-Qaida's operational control over a global network. We must remember that it was largely the sanctuary in Afghanistan that enabled bin Laden and al-Qaida to sponsor and carry out the 9/11 attacks.
Despite this direct threat, the United States has an agreement with Pakistan that prevents us from going after this safe haven. Our forces in Afghanistan are not permitted to pursue Taliban fighters once they cross the Pakistani border. Instead, we rely on the Pakistani government, led by President Pervez Musharraf, to target al-Qaida and the Taliban. Musharraf has resisted, relying on an agreement with tribes to do the job. Last week the Bush administration declared that Musharraf's strategy has failed.
The time has come to bear down on Musharraf. For years, he has captivated the United States by presenting himself as a secular moderate in a region beset by religious extremists. But his actions have not matched his rhetoric. He has promised to cease Pakistan's support for the Taliban and round up al-Qaida, but failed to deliver. He has promised to transition Pakistan toward open democracy, but continues to govern like a military dictator. Meanwhile, he has received $10 billions in U.S. aid since Sept. 11.
It is not acceptable for al-Qaida to retain a safe haven in Pakistan's tribal areas. We cannot permit another attack on the United States. Further U.S. military aid to Pakistan should be conditional on Pakistani action. And we must be clear with Musharraf that if Pakistan won't take out al-Qaida, the United States will. Here, we have many tactical options that do not involve a substantial ground force: covert actions, special operations and air strikes, including unmanned aircrafts. Before acting, we would have to be certain that our action was the only remaining option to eliminate the sanctuary.
Musharraf's argument against this kind of direct action -- by his government, or the United States -- is that it would cause his government to fall and enable Islamic extremists to come to power. The reality is that his rule is endangered because of his own heavy-handed tactics, and his current behavior has facilitated the growth of Islamic extremism. Furthermore, Islamic extremists are not strong enough to take over the country; it is far more likely that another Pakistani general or a political bloc led by a former prime minister would take over were Musharaff's government to fall.
The United States must make clear that our interests in Pakistan go beyond the rule of its president. Musharraf has insisted on keeping his position as the head of Pakistan's military despite promises to transfer to civilian leadership, refused to permit former civilian prime ministers to enter the country, cracked down on independent media, and rigged elections. His recent attempt to fire the chief justice of Pakistan's Supreme Court sparked intense protests and was eventually overturned.
There have been some improvements in Pakistani life, including economic growth. But most ordinary Pakistanis see the United States backing an autocratic leader. As we take a tougher line on counter-terrorism, we should broaden our engagement with the Pakistani people. We should increase aid for secular education and civil society, so that we help create alternatives to radical Islam, and show the Pakistani people that we want to help them achieve a better future.
We need to proceed with care in Pakistan, a country beset by radical Islam. But we must also have red lines. In the rugged tribal areas of Pakistan, those red lines are being crossed as al-Qaida has reconstituted a base. For the security of the American people -- and for the future of Pakistan -- we must send President Musharraf a clear message: Enough is enough.
Musharraf promised much, delivered little (Sydney Morning Herald)
<b>The Pakistani President, Pervez Musharraf, is now not only a widely opposed leader but also a humiliated leader.</b> He is at his weakest point since seizing power in a military coup nearly eight years ago. Neither Pakistanis nor the United States and its allies, which have backed him as a critical player in the war on terrorism, can easily view him as a credible and sustainable leader any longer. What has brought this about and what is Washington's best option in the event of his downfall?
Musharraf is largely responsible for his predicament, but the US role should not be ignored. The virtually unqualified support he received from the Bush Administration following the September 11, 2001, attacks in the US was instrumental in enabling him to renege on promises to put Pakistan on a path of genuine democratisation. The US too easily bought the line that Musharraf was the key to a stable Pakistan, just as it once consented to Pakistan's backing of the Taliban and a Taliban-al-Qaeda alliance in the naive belief it would stabilise Afghanistan.
Musharraf publicly emphasised the importance of democracy and what he called "enlightened Islam". But he never failed to suppress and humiliate the main opposition parties - the Pakistan People's Party, led by the former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, and the Pakistan Muslim League, headed by another former prime minister, Nawaz Sharif, whom he overthrew. He did everything possible to keep the leaders of these parties in exile, expanded the role of the military in politics and allowed Pakistan's military intelligence to continue its role as a government within a government.
He talked about reforming Pakistan's system of religious education to stem Muslim extremism, fighting al-Qaeda and preventing the Taliban from receiving help for cross-border operations in Afghanistan. Yet he did not address any of these issues effectively. He made little headway in exercising control over Pakistan's tribal areas on the border with Afghanistan, where many al-Qaeda's operatives are believed to be hiding. In 2005 Musharraf deployed 80,000 troops to bring those areas under his authority but the subsequent truce agreement left the Taliban and al-Qaeda uncontrolled.
<b>Musharraf seems to have acted on an expectation that when foreign forces left Afghanistan Pakistan would reclaim the influence it enjoyed while the Taliban were in power.</b>
Publicly, Musharraf has sought to assuage the nationalist demands of two smaller groups, the Pathans and the Baluch, in the provinces of North-West Frontier and Baluchistan on the border with Afghanistan. In reality, he did little to address the poverty and social and economic disparities in these provinces. Instead, <b>he allowed many of his generals to buy large tracts of land at cheap prices and ruthlessly suppressed the Baluchi nationalist movement.
Musharraf initially allowed a degree of freedom in the media and the judiciary. But early last year he turned against them and recently moved to dismiss Pakistan's respected Chief Justice, Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry, for corruption. The real reason is Chaudhry's refusal to kowtow.</b>
Indeed, Chaudhry's refusal to step down has turned him into a credible opposition figure. His reinstatement by the Supreme Court this month humiliated Musharraf. The military's storming of the Red Mosque in Islamabad to end a stand-off between Musharraf and a group of Islamic militants two weeks ago - and the subsequent spate of suicide bombings across Pakistan - has only compounded Musharraf's problems.
<b>The weekend announcement that the US and India have reached agreement on peaceful nuclear co-operation - allowing trade in nuclear reactors, technology and fuel, permitting India to reprocess nuclear fuel and opening the way for the US to become a "reliable" supplier for India's energy program - is another embarrassment to Musharraf.</b>
His position is now dire. If he is overthrown or assassinated, it leaves the US and its allies with difficult choices. One certainly would be to institute civilian-military rule, but this could only work if it led to democratic transformation. The US may not find this the most palatable option, but it is the best it can hope for under the circumstances.
<b>Pakistan cannot be left to its own devices; it is a nuclear-armed state, whose instability could have grievous consequences for the world.</b>
Pakistan News And Discussion-11 - Guest - 07-30-2007
US Congress jolts General Musharraf (Daily Times)
The contents of the overwhelmingly bilaterally supported bill â which looks and sounds like the dreaded Pressler Amendment of 1985 â require Pakistan to make âdemonstrated, significant and sustained progress towards eliminating terrorist safe havens from Pakistanâ.
One provision, which has got lost in the anti-US chorus, also makes US assistance conditional to democratic reforms in Pakistan, rule of law and parliamentary elections scheduled for 2007. There is also the inevitable reference to the issue central to the Pressler Amendment: proliferation of nuclear and missile technologies, without naming Pakistanâs ânational heroâ, Dr AQ Khan, whom the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) wants for interviews.
The White House is understandably uncomfortable with the stiff conditionalities it contains for Pakistan, but there is really very little it can do to water them down as they are linked to the strategy of âstrengthening American security to prevent future terrorist attacksâ and is consciously presented as a follow-through on the bipartisan 9/11 Commission Report. The bill is called the 9/11 Commission Recommendations Act of 2007. However, it repeats the Commissionâs assessment that Pakistan is an important ally with creditable performance in the execution of American plans to act against Al Qaeda and the Taliban.
<b>The bill then enumerates the âproblemsâ that have cropped up in US relations with Pakistan. [1] Curbing the proliferation of nuclear weapons technology; [2] Combating poverty and corruption; [3] Building effective government institutions, especially secular public schools; [4] Promoting democracy and the rule of law, particularly at the national level; [5] Addressing the continued presence of Taliban and other violent extremist forces throughout the country; [6] Maintaining the authority of the government of Pakistan in all parts of its national territory; [7] Securing the borders of Pakistan to prevent the movement of militants and terrorists into other countries and territories; and [8] Effectively dealing with Islamic extremism.</b>
After having placed the conditionality of certification in the US President â which was also done for five years after the passage of the Pressler Amendment â the new bill wants the Administration to consolidate American policy in Pakistan, designating it as an important âstrategicâ ally who must cooperate in the programme to âcombat international terrorism, especially in the frontier provinces of Pakistan, and to end the use of Pakistan as a safe haven for forces associated with the Talibanâ. This is to be followed by a âdramatic increase in the funding for programmes of the United States Agency for International Development and the Department of State that assist the government of Pakistanâ, but only âif the government of Pakistan demonstrates a commitment to building a moderate, democratic state, including significant steps towards free and fair parliamentary elections in 2007â.
Is there a provision allowing the White House wiggle-room to deal more autonomously with Pakistan? Yes, there is. This lies in the provision that says that President Bush can delay the restriction under the bill for one year. He would be required to submit a report to a Congressional committee â in classified form if necessary â describing the long-term strategy of the United States âto engage with the government of Pakistan to address the issues described in the bill and carry out the policies suggested by Congress in order to accomplish the goal of building a moderate, democratic Pakistanâ.
The 2008 and 2009 fiscal years may see military assistance to Pakistan blocked for 15 days till the presidential certification to the Congressional committee has been submitted. What will the certification be required to ensure? The bill says: âthat the government of Pakistan is making all possible efforts to prevent the Taliban from operating in areas under its sovereign control, including in the cities of Quetta and Chaman and in the Northwest Frontier Province and the Federally Administered Tribal Areasâ.
When will the bill stop âbitingâ? The conditionality here is not the âoutingâ of Dr AQ Khan as some of our anti-American conspiracy theorists say, but more ominously, after the elimination of the Taliban as a threat. The bill says: till the âTaliban, or any related successor organisation, has ceased to exist as an organisation capable of conducting military, insurgent, or terrorist activities in Afghanistan from Pakistanâ.
There is no other bill relating to foreign policy that is so specific. The White House is rightly upset because the legislation will cut the ground from under the feet of President General Pervez Musharraf who is desperately trying to win popular support for his counter-terrorism campaign in Pakistan. The âpainâ his campaign inflicts on his political partners in the shape of loss of popularity among the masses who are viscerally opposed to America may become unbearable. The protest against America may also become deafening with more calls to âbreak offâ relations with the United States.
Pakistan News And Discussion-11 - Guest - 07-30-2007
Pakistan's Economy & the limping exports
By Pervez Tahir
Trade policy has never been of much interest to informed analysts. Exporters are mainly concerned with tariff and tax changes. They are also keen to know the amount of public spending earmarked for the development of the export infrastructure. These, respectively, are the domains of the domineering and secretive Federal Board of Revenue and the Finance Division.
This yearâs policy is, however, different: Not for its content but for the explanations advanced for a dismal export performance and a massive trade deficit in 2006-07.
But first the boast, as painting things larger than life is now nearly part of the agenda of good governance. <b>Following the statistical tricks perfected by the finance ministryâs jadoogars,</b> the commerce minister happily announced that exports have more than doubled between 1998-99 and 2005-06 from $7.8 billion to $16.5 billion., an increase of 112 per cent.
These numbers do not mean anything unless expressed relatively to some useful aggregate. The usual suspect here is GDP. Now the government also claims a doubling of GDP during this period, which means that exports as percentage of GDP in 2005-06 were the same as in 1998-99, i.e. 12.9 per cent.
I make this comparison between these two years because the minister chose these years. But some economic official in the government might turn around to say that the comparison with 1998-99 is not legitimate because the GDP was rebased from 1999-2000. Comparison with years before 1999-2000 would be possible if the Federal Bureau of Statistics had done its duty to work the series backwards also.
Nevertheless, a comparison of the latest year 2006-07 with the base year 1999-00 does not indicate any significant improvement either. Over a seven year period, exports increased from 11.2 of GDP to 11.8 per cent of GDP, which works out at less than 0.1 percentage point of GDP per annum.
But the<b> commerce minister wants us to feel happy that âThis is the first time in the history of Pakistan that merchandise exports have crossed the barrier of $17 billion.â By the same token, it is also the first time that imports have crossed the barrier of $30 billion, in fact $30.5 billion to be precise.</b>
In a properly contextualised way, these exports finance only 57 per cent of imports. In 1999-2000, when exports had not crossed any mentionable barrier, they financed as much as 83 per cent of the imports.
It should be obvious that the commerce minister has had to resort to special pleadings for the not very handsome trade numbers. But his analysis of how this severest of the trade balance has come about is a devastating critique of the macroeconomic policies followed since October 1999.
It also, not unlike the independent economists and observers, questions the sustainability of the GDP growth that is claimed to have taken place at an unusually high pace in the past 3-4 years.
His observation that the growth of exports has been lagging behind the high growth claimed for the economy is correct. There is a counter-claim that the growth of the economy has not been that high anyway and the claims are the handiwork of creative national accounting. Leaving that aside, the question is: if growth is not coming from exports, what are its sources.
The sources identified in the ministerâs speech are the same as by many others. The main source is domestic consumption. A lot of it is cheap credit-financed; the inflationary chickens are now coming to roost. There are services, particularly telecommunications. Construction, not in the form of housing for the poor but large capital-intensive contracts resulting from public sector investment, is another source of growth.
This is not the way to sustainable growth. The commerce minister says as much: âIt is a fact that higher growth levels of the economy can only be sustained by a rapid growth in exports; for example, a 7-8 per cent GDP growth is only maintainable through a 20-25 per cent annual export growth.â Such high export growth requires high manufacturing growth. But the recent GDP growth has not been driven by the manufacturing sector. Says the commerce minister: âthe declining growth trend in the large scale manufacturing sector during 2006-07, from 10.7--8.8 per cent reduced our exportable surpluses.â
<b>Finally comes the most damning indictment of the macroeconomic policies. According to the minister, these policies have made imports cheaper and exports expensive. There lies the explanation for the big hole in the balance of trade, which bothers everyone except the `Kashkolâ breakers.</b>
<b>The minister has now spilled the beans. His candidness must be acknowledged. Independent writers have been talking about the un-sustainability of the present growth process for quite some. There is nothing in it for the poor, the jobless, the sick, the illiterate, the children, women, Balochistan, FATA and rural areas. Like in the Titanic, the rich and the powerful are merrily dancing to the tune of ânational interest,â unaware that the ship is sinking!</b>
Dr Pervez Tahir is a former Chief Economist of Pakistan. He can be reached at perveztahir@yahoo.com. {Seems like he wants to be spammed by pakis}
Pakistan News And Discussion-11 - Guest - 07-30-2007
<b>Musharraf has a deal with CJ: NSA Narayanan</b>
What Narayanan is up to? Trying to create problem in Pindi HQ.
Pakistan News And Discussion-11 - Guest - 07-31-2007
Paki stan today
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->Mohmand Lal Masjid militants offer talks
GHALANAI, July 30: Militants who had occupied a mosque and a shrine in the Lakaro area of the Mohmand Agency on Saturday night said on Monday that they were ready for talks with the government and elders of the area.
The self-proclaimed chief of the group, who introduced himself as Umar Khalid, told journalists that they would not impose sharia by force and would appeal to people to give up un-Islamic practices.
They warned of tit-for-tat response if the government took any action to dislodge them from the mosque.
âWe will continue Ghazi Abdur Rashidâs mission even if it means sacrificing our lives,â said Umar Khalid.
Brandishing an AK-47 rifle, he said that owning a gun was a matter of honour, adding that it had been snatched from German troops in Afghanistan.
<b>The militants wearing masks moved around waving rocket-launchers and long-range machine guns.Umar Khalid denied having links with Al Qaeda and Taliban, but said his people could not distance themselves from them. âIf they (Taliban) come to us, we will welcome them,â he said. He claimed his group had more than 3,000 trained people who were ready to sacrifice their lives.</b>
A grand tribal jirga in Mohammad Agency will assemble on Tuesday to discuss the situation after the occupation of Turangzai Babaji mosque by militants.
According to Mohmmand Agency political agent Said Ahmad, the jirga would be held in Ghalani.
Six pakistan soldiers die as freedom fighters renew attacks
MIRAMSHAH, July 30: Freedom fighters renewed their attacks on security forces in the North Waziristan Agency on Monday, killing six soldiers and wounding five others, while a Cobra helicopter fired rockets on a suspected car in Bakakhel area of the adjacent Frontier Region, officials and residents said.
Witnesses said that the helicopter attacked the car which was following an army convoy in the Bakakhel area. The convoy comprising several vehicles was going from Mirali to the Bannu district.
The driver of the car had been warned to keep away from the convoy, but he ignored the warning. The helicopter fired rockets destroying the car. The witnesses said that four people had jumped out of the car before it was hit by the rockets. They said that troops also had fired several shots to warn the driver against coming close to the convoy.
A truck coming behind the convoy was also hit and its driver Samar Gul was injured. He was taken to a hospital in Bannu.
<b>Cobra helicopters have been providing air cover to army convoys in the troubled region following recent suicide attacks on security forces. About 40 army and paramilitary soldiers have been killed and 52 wounded in suicide and rocket attacks in North Waziristan in July.</b>
Freedom fighters scrapped a peace deal with the government early this month, intensifying tension in the agency bordering Afghanistan. They have linked revival of the deal with the removal of troops from check-posts, but the government has rejected this demand.
An improvised device went off close to the Mashes camp near Miramshah killing three paramilitary soldiers. The soldiers were bringing water from a nearby watercourse when the bomb exploded.
On Sunday night, the paramilitary headquarters in Miramshah had come under rocket attack. Sources said that one rocket hit the nearby airstrip and another a tube-well near the base. Four paramilitary soldiers were wounded.
Three paramilitary soldiers were killed and another was injured when a convoy hit a roadside bomb near Thall picket on Monday. The convoy was going from Dosali area to Bannu.
Paramilitary forces responded with artillery fire and pounded suspected locations in the area. Miramshah bazaar remained closed and security forces blocked the Bannu-Miramshah road at Eisha check-post.
Our Bajaur correspondent adds: A post of the paramilitary Bajaur Scouts in Badan Kot area of the Bajaur Agency came under rocket attack on Sunday night.
Residents said that five rockets hit residential compounds. Security forces returned fire. No casualty has been reported.
Changes sought in pakistanâs organ transplant law draft
ISLAMABAD, July 30: Three of the countryâs most prestigious medical organisations on Monday suggested amendments to the proposed Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissues ordinance.
A joint memorandum sent by the Transplantation Society of Pakistan, the Pakistan Society of Nephrology and the Pakistan Association of Urological Surgeons to the government said that the amendments were the minimum for the proposed ordinance to achieve its objective of ending organs trade.
The government has introduced several changes in the draft ordinance on the recommendation of Law Minister Wasi Zafar and Adviser to Prime Minister Sharifuddin Pirzada, who were asked by the federal cabinet in February to improve the text.
<b>The revised draft, including the questionable clauses that are being seen as an attempt to legalise organ trade,</b> will be presented to the cabinet on Wednesday on the instructions of the Supreme Court, which has given a one-month deadline to the government to enact the law.
A source revealed that the government, while receiving the proposed amendments, accepted that certain provisions of the draft law were against the premise of the law, which was to end commercialism in affairs of transplantation of human organs.
The associations suggested deletion of the provision regarding compensation to donors, saying the concept was incompatible with the concept of voluntary donation. They recommended that all living donors should be provided health insurance, recognised for their act of altruism and given preference for employment by the government.
They suggested that it should be made mandatory for the evaluation committee to ensure certain requirements prior to approval of non-blood relative donor to avoid commercialism, which included proof that the donor had altruistic relationship with the recipient for over a period of 10 years and that there was financial or social compatibility between the recipient and the donor.
Failure of govtâs policy: Pulsesâ price continues to mount despite ban on export
KARACHI: The governmentâs ban on export of pulses, aimed to stabilise its prices, has failed to provide relief to the customers as prices of the commodity continue to surge in the domestic market.
Talking to Daily Times on Monday, Fareed Qureshi, General Secretary Karachi Retailers and Grocer Group said the government had banned pulses export to control upward price escalation prior to commencement of Holy month of Ramadan which is due to start from the second week of September.
Presenting an analysis of increase in pulses price, he said that Dal Chana, one of the popular commodity of the Holy month of Ramadan, which was earlier sold at retail level at Rs 39 to Rs 40 per kg is now available at Rs 42 thus an increase of Rs 2 was observed in its price.
Price of white peas, also ranked as one of the most demanding item of Ramadan, has also surged at retail level and compared to previous price of Rs 56 to Rs 58 per kg is now sold at Rs 60 per kg thus an increase of Rs 2 per kg was observed in its price at the city retail outlets.
Retail price of black peas (Kala Chana) has also gone up from previous price of Rs 37 to Rs 38 per kg to new rates of Rs 40 per kg thus an increase of Rs 2 was noticed in its price in the local markets.
Similarly Dal Masurâs retail price has also surged with the same ratio observed in prices of other pulses, as currently it is available at Rs 50 per kg in local markets.
Replying to a question related to prospects of decline in prices of above mentioned items before or during Ramadan, he ruled out such an eventuality, saying keeping in mind previous yearâs trend, consumers will start purchasing the commodities much before the beginning of Ramadan.
Since the pulses price mechanism are directly related to supply and demand there stands remote chances of any decline in their prices.
He said consumers in general would start purchasing and stocking pulses and other related commodities from the first week of August due to fear of inflated prices during Ramadan. Consequently, demand of all the commodities would surge sending their prices further up.
Pakistan security forces murdered Mehsud while he was sleeping
KARACHI: Abdullah Mehsud did not die in a suicide blast but was murdered in cold blood by pakistani security forces while he was sleeping. Pakistan should now refuse the support of the US in FATA, South Waziristan, North Waziristan, Khyber, otherwise bomb blasts will occur all over the country and especially in Karachi.
This was stated by a man claiming to be Abdullah Mehsudâs cousin, Major (retd) Muhammad Zaman Mehsud, also chief of the Mehsud tribe in Karachi. He held a press conference on Monday at the Karachi Press Club.
Zaman said that Abdullah was sleeping in the house of Sheikh Alam Mandukhel when some informer tipped off the security forces of his whereabouts. They raided the house and shot him in cold blood. Zaman said that after this, the ISPRâs Major General Waheed Arshad appeared on television and said that the Taliban leader Abdullah Mehsud had blown himself up during an operation.
Zaman said that Mehsud took part in the Afghan jihad and that he also lost his leg while fighting. He added that Abdullah was satisfied with the peace agreement between the government of Pakistan and the tribals.
Zaman asked how Abdullahâs body could have survived if he had indeed blown himself up. Why did the government not have a postmortem conducted and bury him âin silenceâ. Zaman claimed that Abdullah did not belong to Al Qaeda but was a Taliban leader. His family had been freedom fighters and one of his brothers is in the Pakistan Army, Zaman claimed.
Zaman, who is a member of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), was questioned on the fact that party chairperson Benazir Bhutto had no objection to the operation in the tribal areas. He replied that Bhutto was not in the country and hence did not know what exactly was going on.
Balochistan girls launch hunger strike for missing persons cause
QUETTA: In an unprecedented move, girls in Quetta started a hunger strike on Monday in front of the press club here in support of a cause and people they are not directly related to. Hailing from middle class families, these girls say they intend to bring the increasing forced disappearances in Balochistan to the attention of the media and the international community.
Although none of the protestersâ friends or family has gone missing, the girls say they want to set a precedent of solidarity with the families of missing persons. âAs the affected families are already deeply traumatised, it is not merely their obligation to protest the mysterious disappearance,â Hani Baloch, the camp leader, told Daily Times.
She contends that although the number of such disappearances is increasing in Balochistan, the state and the human rights organisations in the country are turning a blind eye. They decided on starting a hunger strike, she said, in the hope that drastic measures would mobilise more people to support the cause. Hani says the phenomenon of people being picked up and thrown into torture cells is a grave issue which has plunged the lives of several Baloch families into misery.
Although families of missing persons have observed hunger strikes in front of press clubs and High Courts in Quetta and Karachi, and in front of the Supreme Court in Islamabad, this new variant of the hunger strike is targeted particularly at sensitising the unaffected segments of society.
âIf the family next door to you has been victimised, you could be next. Therefore, we want everyone to join us and move the spymasters of the country against their extra-constitutional activities,â said Hani.
In the next phase of their strike, the camp leader says one member of their group will continue the hunger strike unto death.
Taking such a defiant initiative has not been free from trouble for Hani and her peers. She complains that spies called her up anonymously and said they would kidnap her if she did not give up the strike.
Meher Baloch, another participant of the camp, appealed to international human rights organisations, including United Nations bodies, for help in procuring the immediate recovery of several hundred people who have allegedly been kidnapped by state intelligence agencies.
According to Meher, 22, the missing persons do not belong to any specific area, age group or profession. âIn an operation in the Mand area in March this year, security forces even detained a psychologically disturbed old man, and later four young boys who were out on a picnic.â
She asks, âHow can a disturbed old man launch a rocket? Can an eight-year-old boy drop a bomb on government installations? Are the 12 women arrested from the Splenji area all terrorists?â
Meher says the government is victimising Baloch citizens for no apparent reason and is itself fuelling resentment against the state. âThe government is gaining nothing by conducting these operations but is earning the hatred of the Baloch people.â
As their hunger strike camp makes explicit, Baloch people from across the province, and beyond, have gone missing. One prominent name in the list is Ghulam Mohammad, chairman of a democratic party called the Balochistan National Movement (BNM). Others include Wahid Qamber (from Tump), Sher Mohammad Baloch (Karachi), Saleem Baloch (Karachi), Zakir Majeed (Khzdar), Fazal Baloch (Turbat), Faiz Mohammad (Dazeen Thump), Qadir Marri alias Shadi Khan and Khan Mohammad Marri (Marri tribal area).
Working on a non-political platform they have titled the Baloch Women Panel, the protesting girls say they have not been prompted by anyone but believe it to be their responsibility to come out of their homes to express solidarity with the families of missing persons.
Zahoor Shawani, president of the Balochistan chapter of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP), told Daily Times that even the judiciary had proved totally helpless in front of the intelligence agencies. Something needs to be done urgently to empower the judiciary and curtail the âlimitless powersâ of the agencies that have allegedly taken people into custody, he added.
âSeveral petitions have been filed with the Balochistan High Court regarding the disappearances. Despite issuance of court orders, no representative from the intelligence agencies bothers to appear before the court. HRCP is very concerned about the immunity enjoyed by these agencies.â
Ali Ahmed Kurd, vice chairman of the Pakistan Bar Council, told Daily Times that after the recent âhistoric verdictâ by the Supreme Court, the biggest challenge ahead of the judiciary now was to recover all the missing people.
âIt is not important to count how many people are missing. The intelligence agencies are not entitled to âkidnapâ a single person. This practice is reminiscent of the SAVAK of Mohammad Raza Shah, the last king of Iran,â he says. âHowever, people have reposed a new trust in the judiciary. All eyes are focused on it. It is time the judiciary rose to the occasion and granted justice to the families of these missing persons.â
21-year-old girl tortured, raped and killed in pakistan
LAHORE: A 21-year-old girl was brutally tortured, raped and strangulated to death by unidentified people in Harbanspura police precincts on Monday.
According to Edhi sources, the killers had dumped the girlâs body in the graveyard of Fayyaz Park a few yards away from Lal Pul. Sources said residents of Fayyaz Park told Edhi Ambulance Services about the body. They said Edhi officials took the body to the city morgue for autopsy and told the police about it.
According to Edhi sources, the girl was severely tortured, because they had found her with a broken arm and leg. They added that though the girl was dressed in a Shalwar Kameez, her condition pointed towards the possibility of rape.
They said the killers had killed her by strangulation. Police collected all circumstantial evidence from the spot where the body was found and lodged a case against the unknown killers.
Retired, father of 10 killed over toilet in pakistan
LAHORE: âHe could have given up everything on his fatherâs word, but they killed him merely over a bathroom,â said Nadeem, the eldest son of Muhammad Akram, who was killed on Sunday night over a property dispute over the construction of a toilet.
Akram, whose funeral was held on Monday, had asked his father Muhammad Shafi and elder brother Muhammad Aslam on Sunday to remove a toilet that was inconveniencing him on which a scuffle broke out and Akram was shot and critically injured. He died on the way to hospital. Akram was buried in a graveyard in Misri Shah.
Nadeem said his family lived in his grandfatherâs four-marla house in Tezab Ahata, Misri Shah along with his grandfather Shafi and uncle. He said that in 1994, his grandfather had disowned Aslamâs children Shahid Aslam, Amir, Razia, Khalida, Rashida, Fehmida and Hameeda for being disobedient to him. He said that later, Aslam had gone to Oman and upon return several years later, told them that he had been arrested in Oman. Nadeem said his father had reconstructed the entire house about seven years ago and retired from the Pakistan Railways five years ago.
Nadeem said that his father and uncle could never get along well and frequently argued over various domestic matters. He said their scuffles had also been taken to a punchayat (council of local elders) on December 15, 2005, in which it was decided that Akram would reconstruct the house and Aslam would pay him Rs 100,000 to him till March 15, 2007, after which Akram would give Aslam possession of a 225 square feet portion of the house. Nadeem said Aslam tried to gain possession forcibly without paying the settled amount. He said this had resulted in frequent scuffles between the two families in which neighbours had to interrupt.
Nadeem said that on Sunday, his grandfather talked with Akram to discuss the house issue during which Shafi abused Akram for not obeying his orders. He said Aslam and his two sons entered the room and started beating Akram. Nadeem said he called up his friends, but Aslam and his sons pelted bricks on all of them, injuring his brothers, Naeem and Wasim, and one of them shot his father in the leg and hit him on the head with a brick. He said neighbours intervened to settle the matter.
Nadeem said after about an hour later, his cousins, Amir and Shahid, returned with a police team from Misri Shah Police Station. He said the policemen abused him and his three brothers and tried to arrest them, but they fled to Naulakha Police Station where the duty officer advised him to go to the Misri Shah Police Station. He said that when he and his brothers returned, they found their father badly injured and in critical condition. They rushed him to Kot Khawaja Saeed Hospital but he died on the way.
Union Council-18 nazim: UC-18 nazim Amir alias Guddu said both the families were extremely poor and did not have money to arrange a funeral which was arranged by members of the UC. He said Akram had been calm during the punchayat whereas Aslam had been aggressive. He said the assailants had called police for their help. He said representatives of the UC had prevented the police from arresting Akram and had tried to take him to a hospital but he died on the way.
Police: Misri Shah Investigation duty officer said police was trying to arrest Amir and Shahid and hoped that they would be arrested in the next couple of days. Shafi and Aslam refused to comment.
PTV MD, federal law secretary responsible for Lal Masjid killings
LAHORE: A petition was filed in the Lahore High Court (LHC) on Monday seeking the Federal Law secretary, the Federal Information secretary and the Pakistan Television (PTV) managing director (MD) be held responsible for the Lal Masjid killings.
The petitioner stated that they had provoked the Lal Masjid inmates by producing the mosqueâs chief cleric, Abdul Aziz, before the media in burqa. Petitioner Amjad Abbas of Gujranwala submitted that during the operation on the Lal Masjid after the arrest of Abdul Aziz, Abdul Rasheed Ghazi was ready to surrender and agreed to settle the issue through dialogue, but the government deliberately resorted to create bloodshed.
Petitionerâs counsel MD Tahir submitted the security personnel who arrested Abdul Aziz had disgraced and humiliated him in the worst manner. He stated further that after arresting Aziz they had him (Aziz) to wear burqa and unveil his face before the media before telecasting his interview.
He submitted that this act of the respondents had earned a bad name to Muslims across the world. He maintained that this attitude of the respondents provoked the Jamia Fareedia students. He said the madrassa students preferred to be âmartyredâ than to surrender before the authorities and to face humiliation. Tahir submitted that it was a conspiracy against the Muslims around the world and a bid to give opportunity to non-Muslims to raise fingers against Islam.
He said the respondents made all efforts to hurt the feelings of the Muslim of Pakistan. He blamed the respondents for the killing of hundreds of innocent female students. He termed the crime punishable under the Pakistan Penal Code.
He prayed that the officials who monitored the operation, instead of settling the matter in a peaceful way preferred to kill the âinnocentâ students along with alleged militants. He prayed that interview of burqa-clad Abdul Aziz should be declared as illegal, inhuman and a violation of fundamental rights and against interest of the nation.
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Pakistan News And Discussion-11 - Naresh - 07-31-2007
<!--QuoteBegin-Mudy+Jul 30 2007, 07:57 PM-->QUOTE(Mudy @ Jul 30 2007, 07:57 PM)<!--QuoteEBegin--><b>Musharraf has a deal with CJ: NSA Narayanan</b>
What Narayanan is up to? Trying to create problem in Pindi HQ.
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<b>Mudy Ji :</b>
Mush the Tush has a Deal with Benazir (Daughter of Haridas & Grand Daughter of Lakhi Bai), with Nawaz and Shahbaaz Sharif, with Osama bin Laden, with Al-Qaeda, with Talban, with MMA, with the Chinese, with the USA and finally even with the Devil.
Thus he also has a Deal with Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhary.
<b>Mush the Tush does not have a Deal with Hindu Majority India</b>
Q. E. D.
Cheers <!--emo&:beer--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/cheers.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='cheers.gif' /><!--endemo-->
Pakistan News And Discussion-11 - Guest - 07-31-2007
Pak warns US
<!--emo&
--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/tongue.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='tongue.gif' /><!--endemo--> <!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->Anti-terror Bill will affect bilateral ties: Pak warns US
By ANI
Sunday July 29, 07:04 PM
Washington/Islamabad, July 29 (ANI): The new counter-terrorism Bill passed by the US Senate that proposes new conditions on the issue of providing assistance to Pakistan has been criticised by Islamabad, <b>and the latter has cautioned that any such move would affect the bilateral ties.</b>
"The draft Bill adopted by the US Congress on Implementation of 9/11 Commission Recommendations contains references and provisions that cast a shadow on the existing cooperation between Pakistan and the United States, regardless of the fact that the bill emphasises the importance attached by the United States to long-term strategic relationship with Pakistan," Pakistan's Foreign Office spokesperson Tasnim Aslam said in a statement.
<b>Terming the Bill as 'disappointing', Aslam said it was reminiscent of Pressler Amendment which led to the US snapping military aid to Pakistan in 1990.</b>
Meanwhile, US President George W. Bush will be signing the draft Bill enacting it into a law.
"The provisions require Pakistan to make demonstrated, significant and sustained progress towards eliminating terrorist safe havens from Pakistan," said Gary Ackerman, chairman of the House Subcommittee on the Middle East and South Asia.
A report by Dawn stated that the Bush administration is not comfortable with the proposed restrictions on American assistance to Pakistan, but finds it very difficult to purge it from a Bill that is tied to the recommendations of the 9/11 Commission.
The Bill terms Pakistan as an "important partner" in helping the US remove the Taliban regime in Afghanistan and combating international terrorism in the frontier provinces of Pakistan, post 9/11, and <b>also notes that Islamabad maintains a network for the proliferation of nuclear and missile technologies.</b>
"It is the sense of Congress that the national security interest of the United States will best be served if the United States works with the government of Pakistan to stop nuclear proliferation," the Bill adds. (ANI)
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Pakistan News And Discussion-11 - Guest - 07-31-2007
Hand over Dawood Ibrahim to us, US tells Pakistan
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->The US' Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) have sought assistance from Pakistan's Interior Ministry, Anti-Narcotic Force (ANF) and the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) to hunt down Dawood in the Islamic nation, The News quoted sources as saying.
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<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->However, only the Interior Ministry has responded to the request of the US agencies so far, saying that any such help was impossible since no such person by the name of Dawood Ibrahim lived on Pakistan soil.
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Pakistan News And Discussion-11 - Guest - 08-01-2007
Captured Pak Army officer fought Kargil
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->Khanâs importance to the security agencies reportedly also lies in his family background. <b>He is said to be a close relative of Lt Gen Mohammad Aziz, a top Pakistani officer. </b><!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Pakistan News And Discussion-11 - Guest - 08-01-2007
<b>Re-elect Musharraf to avoid martial law: Fazl</b><!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->* MMA leader fears repeat of âEast Pakistan tragedyâ * Says no general will be allowed to seize power from Musharraf
* Sees no harm in Benazir-Musharraf deal âif sincereâ
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Now terrorist are supporting Mushy.
Only Imran is barking.
Pakistan News And Discussion-11 - Guest - 08-01-2007
<b>15 militants killed in Waziristan</b><!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->MIRANSHAH: Security forces on Tuesday killed 15 militants and arrested two of their injured colleagues in fierce nightlong clashes in North Waziristan, the army and locals said.
The bodies of the 15 killed militants were brought to Miranshah while the two arrested men have been admitted to a hospital, military spokesman Maj Gen Waheed Arshad told Daily Times. âThe militants attacked the Banda checkpost, two kilometres south of Miranshah, and 15 of them are confirmed dead. Two security personnel were injured in the shootout. Gen Arshad said that up to 200 militants were spotted on hilltops around Miranshah and the security forces were pounding their positions. âWe use air support for surveillance of the militants and use it as a weapon too,â he added.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
counting .....
Pakistan News And Discussion-11 - Guest - 08-01-2007
<b>Four cops injured in Swat blast</b> <!--emo&
--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/biggrin.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='biggrin.gif' /><!--endemo-->