Pakistan : Terrorist Wahabi Islamic Rep Pakistan 6

[Guest]

[url="http://www.hindustantimes.com/To-spite-Zardari-Pakistan-military-foiled-peace-talks/H1-Article1-574317.aspx"]To spite Zardari, Pakistan military foiled peace talks[/url]

When the prime ministers of India and Pakistan met in Thimpu in early May, Yousuf Raza Gilani indicated he had the full support of Pakistan’s military to resume the dialogue with India. But by the time the foreign ministers of the two countries met in mid-July, the men in khaki had become opposed to any dialogue. Three developments, say sources in both countries, led them to change their minds. The first was the political resurgence of President Asif Ali Zardari. The Pakistan military has sought to marginalise him at the expense of Gilani and their favourite politician, ex-prime minister Nawaz Sharif.



But Zardari’s recent successes in working out long-standing disputes between the Centre and the provinces over water and finance, and the holding of genuine elections in Gilgit-Baltistan, have resurrected his standing at the popular level.

[Naresh]

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[url="http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/Politics/Nation//articleshow/6179494.cms"]Qureshi refuses to budge on 26/11, launches attack on Krishna[/url]



NEW DELHI : A day after an extraordinary slanging match in Islamabad , the India-Pakistan peace process was in shreds, having suffered a huge

setback, with Islamabad virtually reneging on a painstakingly drawn-up engagement sequence aimed at normalizing ties.



The finger-pointing between the two sides continued on Friday, keeping ties on the boil as Pakistani foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi carried on with his belligerence displayed at Thursday’s press conference in Islamabad that he addressed with his Indian counterpart, S M Krishna.



Reviving memories of Musharraf ’s ‘Agra ambush’ which dealt a huge setback to peace talks, Qureshi lashed out at India for being “selective” and “not fully prepared ” and reversing gears at the last minute. He even got personal with Krishna, alleging that the minister lacked the mandate and was being tutored on phone all through the negotiations.



Shockingly, Qureshi’s tirade at a briefing held for Pakistani media in Islamabad came even before Krishna had left for New Delhi. The serious violation of etiquette drew a strong riposte from Krishna immediately after he reached Delhi. The Indian foreign minister retorted that the mandate given to him was clear and specific.



More than the bad diplomatic behaviour, what preceded it was a serious blow to the peace process. Qureshi turned bellicose after Pakistan’s failed attempt to force India to discuss Kashmir even when it doggedly refused to meet the precondition : strong and clear action against all perpetrators of the 26/11 attack.



Sources said the peace process was not going to be jettisoned because India did not have the “luxury of not talking to its neighbour” . Foreign secretary Nirupama Rao said on television that India wanted to continue the dialogue.



The stated intent apart, the fate of talks was in doubt in the face of Pakistan’s attempt to re-order the sequence of talks.



Times View



The Times of India has actively championed the cause of peace between neighbours India and Pakistan, and continues to do so because it believes peace is in the interest of the two peoples. However, the path to peace cannot be strewn with bad faith and blatant misconduct — both of which Pakistan foreign minister Qureshi has displayed in ample measure. Minister Qureshi spurned India’s hand of friendship at the joint media briefing on Thursday when he equated terror merchant Hafiz Saeed with India’s home secretary G K Pillai. He did even worse on Friday when he called a press conference, at a time when his guest S M Krishna was still in Pakistan, only to ridicule the Indian minister by claiming that Krishna was not empowered to take decisions, and was constantly on the phone with Delhi. This is simply not a peacemakers’s conduct. It is that of a schoolboy bully. Let alone furthering the cause of peace, Qureshi has only raised India’s hackles.



And since neither President Zardari nor PM Gilani has rebuked Qureshi so far for his misbehaviour, it appears the foreign minister has not been out of line with the establishment’s thinking. [color="#FF0000"]In that case, India can wait until Islamabad gets more sincere about peace. [size="5"]Meanwhile, let the message sink in — there can’t be progress in the peace process unless Pakistan shows greater sensitivity towards India’s hurt and anger at the fact that 26/11 masterminds are not just roaming free in Pakistan, but are preaching murderous hate against India. There can’t be any closure on 26/11 until there is justice.[/size][/color]



Pak wriggling out of talks under pressure from army?



New Delhi : The Congress leadership chose the “action on-26 /11 first” approach with Pakistan because it is loath to be seen as having forgotten the Mumbai attacks. It will not acquiesce in any attempt to change the order when Islamabad refuses to accept concrete evidence on ISI and Lashkar-e-Taiba chief Hafiz Saeed.



For Pakistan to suddenly try jumpstarting talks on Kashmir raises questions about its motives. Is it trying to wriggle out of the peace process under pressure from its army which is keen to push its Kashmir card again, while looking for an excuse not to take action against LeT and stop cooperating in the offensive against its other strategic asset, the Taliban, in Afghanistan?



Whatever may be the case, India cannot oblige Pakistan’s foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi. India’s foreign secretary Nirupama Rao told TV channels that the onus was on Pakistan to make amends. External affairs minister S M Krishna said all core issues and burning problems between the two sides were discussed and considerable work had gone into preparing for the talks. “There was no ambiguity. I have confined myself to the mandate I was given to me,” he said while officials later pointed out the Pakistani side was well aware of what was going to be put on the table.



Speaking on background, sources admitted to a “large hiatus” in expectations voiced by Pakistan and India’s “workmanlike ” approach to moving a step at a time. This did take the Indians by surprise and the Pakistani “all or nothing, take it or leave it” attitude was clearly intended to put Kashmir at the centre of the talks.



Indian negotiators made it clear that a grand announcement of resumption of composite dialogue could not happen on the basis of assurances that leads on the Mumbai attack will be followed. “Action on terrorism will help convince Indian people that Pakistan is serious. Most of India has not forgotten what happened and is demanding answers,” said sources. The Pakistani move seems to reflect increasing discomfort in Islamabad over the Mumbai investigations. With the needle of suspicion pointing firmly to ISI-backed Lashkar-e-Taiba , the probe could get too hot.



Qureshi’s deliberate move to keep up the tirade against India on Friday indicates Thursday’s events were not driven by the heat of the moment.



Cheers

[Guest]

[url="http://www.hindustantimes.com/7-members-of-a-Hindu-family-killed-in-Pak/H1-Article1-575553.aspx"]7 members of a Hindu family killed in Pak[/url]

Seven members of a Hindu family were killed when they were caught in a gun battle between two factions of the Bugti tribe in Pakistan's Balochistan province, media reports said on Wednesday. A couple and their five children were killed in the incident that occurred in Suhbatpur sub-division of Jaffarabad district, the reports said.



District police chief Javed Iqbal said the members of the minority Hindu community died during an exchange of fire between two rival groups of the Bugti tribe on Tuesday.



Ten members of the Hindu family were sleeping outside their hut when the gun battle erupted.



Shankar, his wife and their five children died on the spot while three others were injured.



Iqbal said the dead were residents of Bakhshpur town of Sindh province.



Police cordoned off the area on being informed about the incident and launched a search operation to arrest the tribesmen involved in the shootout.



Hindus of the area organised a protest on a nearby highway, blocking it with the bodies.



They shouted slogans against the administration for its failure to protect the lives and property of the community.

[Naresh]

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[url="http://www.geo.tv/7-24-2010/68892.htm"]Son of Mian Iftikhar Hussain gunned down[/url]



PESHAWAR: Mian Rashid Hussain, son of Khyber-Punkhtoonkwa Information Minister Mian Iftikhar Hussain, has been shot dead by terrorists in Nowshera on Saturday, Geo News reported.



Unknown armed men ambushed and shot Mian Rashid Hussain dead when he was taking a walk outside in Pabi Khan Sher Garhi area along with two companions who sustained injuries, source said.



Mian Rashi Hussain died instantly on the spot while two of his companions who sustained serious injuries were shifted to Lady Reading Hospital.



Interior Minister Rehman Malik condemning the incident, paid tribute to Mian Iftikhar Hussain for his courage.



Asfandyar Wali, Chairman of Awami National Party (ANP) said the provincial government will not be demoralized by such cowardly acts of the terrorists. By killing our children they cannot force us to mold our policies, he added.



Muttahida Qaumi Movement Chief Altaf Hussain also denounced the incident and expressed sympathies with Mian Iftikhar Hussain.



Senior Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Minister Bashir Bilour said the threats continue to pour in but even the death of children will not weaken our resolve against terrorism.



Cheers

[Naresh]

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[center][size="5"][color="#FF0000"]The Steady "March" of Pakistan's Infrastructure[/color][/size][/center]



[url="http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/the-newspaper/local/only-200-of-360-locomotives-operational%2C-says-bilour-170"]‘Only 200 of 360 locomotives operational’[/url]

KARACHI: Federal Railways Minister Ghulam Ahmed Bilour has said that Pakistan Railways has 360 locomotives out of which only 200 are operational, though they are not reliable.



The Railways needed 400 new locomotives to overcome the deficit, the minister said at a press conference at the divisional headquarters on Tuesday.

Points to Note :



1. In 2007-2008 Pakistan Railways had 545 Locomotives.



2. Now only 360! Did Pakistanis "EAT" 185 Locomotives?



3. Of the 360 only 200 are "OPERATIONAL".



4. Of the 200 "OPERATIONAL" the Minister says they are "NOT RELIABLE"!



Finally : 5. Where is Pakistan going to get money for the 400 Locomotives?



Cheers

[Guest]

[url="http://www.weeklystandard.com/blogs/wikileaks-pakistan-and-afghanistan-isi-intelligence"]WikiLeaks Unloads Classified Docs Showing Pakistan's Duplicity[/url]

The Times reports:



The documents, to be made available by an organization called WikiLeaks, suggest that Pakistan, an ostensible ally of the United States, allows representatives of its spy service to meet directly with the Taliban in secret strategy sessions to organize networks of militant groups that fight against American soldiers in Afghanistan, and even hatch plots to assassinate Afghan leaders.



Taken together, the reports indicate that American soldiers on the ground are inundated with accounts of a network of Pakistani assets and collaborators that runs from the Pakistani tribal belt along the Afghan border, through southern Afghanistan, and all the way to the capital, Kabul.

The reports suggest, however, the Pakistani military has acted as both ally and enemy, as its spy agency runs what American officials have long suspected is a double game — appeasing certain American demands for cooperation while angling to exert influence in Afghanistan through many of the same insurgent networks that the Americans are fighting to eliminate.



Behind the scenes, both Bush and Obama administration officials as well as top American commanders have confronted top Pakistani military officers with accusations of ISI complicity in attacks in Afghanistan, and even presented top Pakistani officials with lists of ISI and military operatives believed to be working with militants.

[Guest]

[url="http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/world/war-logs.html"]Pakistan Spy Service Aids Insurgents, Reports Assert[/url]

[Naresh]

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[center][color="#006400"][size="6"]Pakistan's Political Homosexuality[/size] – [size="4"]Ayesha Siddiqa[/size][/color][/center]



Cheers

[Naresh]

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Very, very Interesting and Breathtaking!



Just after Hillary Clinton put the blame of Water Shortages on Terroristan we now have an equaly stern message from Michael Kugelman!



[url="http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/the-newspaper/editorial/water-shortage-the-real-culprit-670"][center][size="6"][color="#006400"]Water shortage: the real culprit[/color][/size][/center][/url]



ON Jan 15, 2006, the Karachi Port Trust (KPT) inaugurated its new fountain — the Rs320m lighted harbour structure that spews seawater hundreds of feet into the air.



Also on this day — as on most others in Karachi — several million gallons of the city’s water supply were lost to leakage, some hundred million gallons of raw sewage oozed into the sea, and scores of Karachiites failed to secure clean water.



Over the next few years, the fountain jet would produce a powerful and relentless stream of water high above Karachi. Meanwhile, down below, tens of thousands of the city’s masses would die from unsafe water.



After several fountain parts were stolen in 2008, the KPT quickly made the necessary repairs and re-launched what it deems “an extravaganza of light and water”.



In an era of rampant resource shortages, boasting about such extravagance demonstrates questionable judgment. So, too, does the willingness to lavish millions of rupees on a giant water fountain, and then to repair it fast and furiously — while across Karachi and the nation as a whole, drinking water and sanitation projects are heavily underfunded and water infrastructure stagnates in disrepair.



And so, too, does Pakistan’s insistence — expressed vociferously in media editorials railing against ‘water theft’ and in politicians’ warnings about water wars — that India is to blame for Pakistan’s water woes. The story of the KPT fountain illustrates how Pakistan’s water crisis rages not because of the machinations of its upper riparian neighbour, [color="#FF0000"]but because of Pakistan’s own misplaced priorities and poor governance.[/color]



To be sure, India may well divert flows from the Indus Basin’s western rivers, which the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) allocates to Pakistan, and India does itself few favours by refusing to be transparent about such matters. (In this regard its agreeing to allow Pakistan to inspect two under-construction hydropower plants in Indian-held Kashmir is welcome.) Yet keep in mind that the IWT gives India the right to use some of the western rivers for agriculture, [color="#FF0000"]and the country has yet to exploit much of the cropland set aside for this purpose.[/color]



Additionally, the IWT apportions 135 million acre feet (MAF) of the western rivers to Pakistan, yet only 33 MAF of the eastern rivers to India. [color="#FF0000"]So even when India draws from the western rivers, [size="5"]Pakistan’s IWT share remains considerable.[/size][/color] At any rate, such talk is immaterial. What Pakistan needs most is not more water, but better water governance. The country’s existing dams, reservoirs and canals are falling apart.



According to water expert Simi Kamal, simply repairing and maintaining Pakistan’s leaky canal system would free up nearly 10 times more water than the quantity projected to be generated by the Diamer-Bhasha dam. Islamabad prefers, instead, to construct inefficient and expensive new structures. The Water and Power Development Authority’s Vision 2025 calls for several dozen new large water projects (including five dams and three ‘mega-canals’) within the next decade and a half.



Another governance problem is grossly unequal access to water in the countryside, where two-thirds of the nation’s population is based. [color="#FF0000"]Simply stated, Pakistan’s rural rich, who control most of the land, get water, while the rural poor, most of whom are landless or lack access to land, are denied water. The rules of warabandi, a rotational system meant to ensure equitable allocations of irrigation water among farmers, are undermined and exploited by large landowners — many of them politically connected.[/color]



Then there are the bad policies: underinvestment in urban wastewater treatment, repeated use of water-wasting irrigation, cultivation of the most water-guzzling crops, and the eagerness to lease out vast tracts of water-rich farmland to foreign investors.



None of this has anything to do with India. [color="#FF0000"]Indeed, while one could rightly deposit blame at the doorstep of misguided policymakers or feudal landlords in Pakistan,[/color] fingering India unnecessarily externalises an internal problem. In fact, the only genuine external culprit of Pakistan’s water crisis is global warming — and the effects of climate change on Pakistan’s water shortfalls could be mitigated if the country managed its existing resources more judiciously.



Still, in deference to those who insist Pakistan’s water crisis is India’s fault, suppose that India is indeed violating the IWT and diverting Pakistan-bound river flows. Now, imagine that India abruptly ceases all such behaviour.



What would happen next? [color="#FF0000"]According to the Blame India narrative,[/color] the floodgates to the lower riparian would burst open, and water would pour forth into Pakistan. Parched land and dry mouths would be satiated. Puddles would once again become ponds. Agricultural productivity would increase, water-dependent livelihoods would be saved and food security would make a triumphant return. [size="5"][color="#FF0000"]Wrong. None of this would happen.[/color][/size]



Instead, existing inefficiencies would be amplified, and current problems would be exacerbated. More water would accrue to large landowners, further depriving the rural and landless poor; more water would be lost to leaky canals and pipes; and more water would be wasted in irrigation, showered on water-intensive crops and contaminated by urban waste. In essence, if nothing is done to improve water governance, allowing more water to gush into Pakistan would simply intensify the country’s water crisis.



Resolving Pakistan’s domestically rooted water crisis will require domestically rooted correctives. Admittedly, some of them (more crop diversification) will be easier than others (more equitable land distribution) to implement successfully. Yet with groundwater tables plummeting throughout the country and 250,000 Pakistani children dying every year from waterborne disease, the stakes could not be higher.



As for India? It should follow suit, look inward, and address the factors driving its own domestically based water crisis (lest one forget, more than a third of New Delhi’s freshwater resources are lost to leakage).



If both nations can lessen their water stress, India would have less incentive to dip into western river flows and Pakistan would have fewer grounds on which to levy its water theft charges. Such an outcome would constitute a victory for Pakistan-India relations, and a defeat for the purveyors of the Blame India narrative. And perhaps the KPT fountain would no longer be the sole repository of water extravagance in Pakistan.



The writer is programme associate for South Asia at the Woodrow Wilson International Centre for Scholars in Washington, DC.



michael.kugelman@wilsoncenter.org



Cheers

[Naresh]

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Unexpected increase in budget deficit



Senate body asks FBR to explain shortfall

ISLAMABAD : The Senate Standing Committee on Finance and Revenues has taken serious notice of the unexpected increase in budget deficit and shortfall in the federal tax collection in fiscal year ending on June 30, 2010 and has sought explanation from the economic managers of the country, official sources informed here on Tuesday.



The Senate Standing Committee is scheduled to meet on July 29, 2010, where Ministry of Finance would give a detailed briefing on government’s economic performance during the last fiscal year 2009-10.



According to the official sources, the Committee in its notice has directed the Chairman Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to explain reasons for this shortfall in the upcoming meeting of the committee.



According to the sources, the budget deficit was to be kept at 5.1 percent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by the end of fiscal year 2009-10 as per IMF programme, however, due to the sudden increase of expenditures on war against terrorism and power sector subsidies, the budget deficit reached to a un-sustainable level of 6.2 percent of the GDP by the end of the fiscal year.

Cheers

[Naresh]

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[url="http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2010/07/29/story_29-7-2010_pg7_12"]Railways to close 120 more train services[/url]



LAHORE : The National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Railways has approved the closure of 120 train services in the next two years, as these particular train services are facing huge financial losses, a private TV channel reported on Wednesday. Chairman of the NA standing committee, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) MNA Ayaz Sadiq and Pakistan Railways (PR) General Manager Ashfaq Khattak, told the media, that the resources, which would be saved from the halted trains, would be used on the cargo trains, which delivered oil to independent power producers (IPP). “40 trains are making profits of Rs 9 billion [color="#FF0000"]whereas more than 100 trains would be closed because of annual loss of Rs 10 billion,”[/color] they said. Sadiq urged the federal government to waive the debts of PR as it was facing debts of Rs 50 billion. Khattak said that PR had been operating 26 cargo trains, which could earn a profit of Rs 17 billion [color="#FF0000"]but due to shortage of engines it was not possible to do so,[/color] the TV channel reported. daily times monitor



Cheers

[Naresh]

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[url="http://www.thenews.com.pk/top_story_detail.asp?Id=30340"]President of Pakistan, Sindh speaker among 147 water thieves : ADB[/url]



Sindh rejects ADB report; bank withdraws funding



ISLAMABAD : An Asian Development Bank (ADB) report has accused top Sindhi politicians including President Asif Ali Zardari, Sindh Assembly Speaker Nisar Khuhro and other Sindhi landlords of stealing canal water through Direct Outlets (DOs), a major source of water theft that is virtually turning the irrigated lands situated at the tail-end of water courses into barren tracts.



The report, a severe indictment of the political elite, said [color="#FF0000"]that in Nasir Division of Rohri canal where President Zardari’s lands are located, 354 per cent extra water is captured through Direct Outlets (DOs) by influential landowners and in this way they are getting 11.43 cusecs water per acre against the designated amount of 3.23 cusecs per acre. In case of President Zardari’s land, 138 per cent extra water is being granted for irrigation. Nisar Khuhro’s lands are being irrigated through 292 per cent extra water secured through DOs from main canals. Irrigation laws don’t permit DO to anybody. Anyone drawing water through DO is committing a theft,[/color] said an irrigation expert who recently retired from the Sindh Irrigation Development Authority (SIDA).



Although water scarcity and theft by the landed elite remains a burning issue in rural Sindh, it has hardly caught the attention of the mainstream media. Data furnished through media reports published in Sindhi language newspapers indicate that in the month of June only, anti-theft protests were organised at more than one thousand places.



The Sindh government, [color="#FF0000"]instead of looking into the matter, has disapproved the ADB report that was prepared to fund Sindh Water Resources Development and Management Investment Programme[/color] to be funded by the bank. [color="#FF0000"]Consequently, the ADB has withdrawn the funding offer, it has been learnt.[/color]



The report was prepared by a team of 17 national and international consultants who worked on it from March to August 2009. Murad Ali Shah, then Sindh’s irrigation minister who now holds the portfolio of finance, confirmed to The News that ADB had submitted a report but it was turned down by the provincial government. “There were numerous mistakes. Lots of things were wrong,” he said when contacted through telephone for his version. He refused going into the details about the individuals listed for capturing water through DO, including President Zardari.



President Zardari’s spokesman didn’t respond to telephone calls and messages dropped for his version. However, the report has mentioned his name, also of Nisar Khuhro.



MNA Marvi Memon, who heads a National Assembly’s sub-committee on climate change and had been working on water theft, said she had visited areas in Sindh and the Punjab and theft by landed elite was a common practice in both provinces. Marvi has directed authorities in both provinces to submit a report to her committee about how many landowners were receiving irrigation water through DOs. The sub-committee’s meeting will be held today (Wednesday).



The ADB report’s copy is available with The News. It said the capturing of water has been allowed through lack of enforcement and loss of management control. “It has changed the cropping patterns on large landholdings to higher water demand crops with lower economic returns to water (but higher financial returns on land),” said the report. It further states: “Despite the high flows, the level of elite (water) capture results in shortage of water for most farmers, creating opportunities for rent seeking that give an impression of power of irrigation officials when, in fact, they have lost effective control of the irrigation system and can only influence irrigation at the margin.”



Writing in reference to Rohri Canal/Nasir Division where President Zardari’s lands are located, the report states: “The large transfers of water from ordinary farms to influential landowners with DO and illegal outlets is not only inequitable but also economically damaging...Substantial economic costs have been incurred through misallocation of water.”



The ADB report has listed as many as 147 landlords benefiting through DO only in Nasir Division of Rohri Canal that include the names of President Zardari and Nisar Khoro. Although, the Sindh government has rejected the report, Professor Ejaz Qureshi who was then General Manager of Sindh Irrigation Development Authority (SIDA), now retired, endorsed the contents of the report. [color="#FF0000"]“They (government) have tried to hush it up but the report is based on facts.”[/color] Qureshi said DO is part of water theft and is hooliganism of grave nature. He said while a poor farmer receives water from water courses, the feudals get it directly through canals. “Due to this reason, sanctioned lands don’t get water.” He said that according to irrigation laws, there was no room for DO.[/color]



Marvi Memon, who is working on water theft, said: [color="#FF0000"]“This is downright criminal. In last 10 days, I have toured Sindh and Punjab to see why the poor people of both provinces are complaining of water shortages, how they are used in inter-provincial disputes, and how the elite with the connivance of irrigation bureaucracy steal their rights.”[/color]



Cheers

[Naresh]

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[url="http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2010/07/30/story_30-7-2010_pg5_1"]Financial Year 2009-10 : Government pays $3.136 billion in debt servicing[/url]



* Receives $3.647 billion from donors in same period



ISLAMABAD: The government reportedly paid $3.136 billion as debt servicing from July 2009 to June 2010, sources told Daily Times on Wednesday.



Out of the total payment, an amount of $2.380 billion was paid as principal amount and $756 million as interest on foreign loan. In June 2010 alone, the government paid $196.605 million as debt servicing i.e. $140.190 million as principal amount and $56.415 million as interest on foreign loan, the sources maintained.



From July 2009 to June 2010, the government received $3.647 billion external resources from foreign donors and other countries on bilateral basis, sources maintained. Out of the total foreign financial assistance, an amount of $3.001 billion came as foreign loan and $646 million as grant for different purposes.



Purpose-wise disbursement of external resources received in last fiscal year are; $5.16 million for Afghan Relief and Reconstruction Authority (ARRA), $192.57 million for Earthquake, $569.53 million for Industrial Development Bank (ST), $1.231 billion for Non-project Aid (BOP/Cash), $100 million assistance received as Commodity Aid, $51.52 million for Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), $986.03 million as Project Aid, and $511.34 million received as from Tokyo pledges. The sum-total of these disbursements of foreign loan/grants was equal to $3.647 billion.



The sources maintained that the government provided these figures to International Monetary Fund (IMF) for the month of June 2010 and for the whole fiscal year 2009-10. On the basis of these figures the IMF evaluates the economy of Pakistan.



External Budget Financing Loan: The government received a total of $3.001 billion foreign assistance in the form of loan in the last fiscal year, details of which are; $168.07 million for Earthquake Rehabilitation Authority (ERA), $569.53 for Industrial Development Bank (ST), $1.072 billion for Non-project Aid (BOP/Cash), $100 million loan received as Commodity Aid, $865.83 million as Project Aid, and $225.90 million received as from Tokyo pledges.



External Budget Financing Grant: In the outgoing fiscal year the government received $646.18 million foreign assistance in the form of grant from donors countries, financial organizations. Details of the grants are; $5.16 million for Afghan Relief and Reconstruction Authority (ARRA), $24.50 million for Earthquake Rehabilitation Authority, $51.52 million for Internally Displaced Persons (from war on terror affected areas), $159.36 million grants for Non-project Aid (BOP/Cash), $120.20 million assistance received for Project Aid and $285.44 million as Tokyo pledges.



The sourcing mentioning only Asian Development Bank, International Development Association, European Union and United Kingdom and they extended total of $1.231 billion foreign loan/grant in the outgoing fiscal year. The ADB extended $622.1 million in the last fiscal year as loan, and IDA forwarded $450.08 million loan in 2009-10.



While the European Union extended $12.26 million as grant for Sindh government in education sector, while the UK provided $147.09 million as grant for Pakistan in 2009-10, the sources told.



Cheers

[ramana]

Op-Ed by M.K. Bhadra Kumar in Hindu



The Politics of Taliban reconciliation

[Naresh]

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[url="http://uk.news.yahoo.com/5/20100731/tuk-cameron-terror-row-pakistan-cancels-45dbed5.html"]Cameron Terror Row : Pakistan Cancels Summit[/url]



Pakistan's intelligence agency has cancelled talks on counter terrorism in the UK in protest over comments made by David Cameron earlier this week.



The Prime Minister provoked an angry response when he told an audience in India that elements in Pakistan were promoting the export of terror.



It comes days ahead of a three-day visit to the UK by Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari, during which he is expected to stay with Mr Cameron at his country retreat Chequers.



Senior officers from Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) had been due to come to London for talks on counter-terrorism co-operation with British security services.



But Sky News sources have confirmed the meeting has been cancelled.



Answering questions following a speech in India, Mr Cameron said he wanted to see "a strong, stable and democratic Pakistan".



"But we cannot tolerate in any sense the idea that this country is allowed to look both ways and is able, in any way, to promote the export of terror whether to India, whether to Afghanistan or to anywhere else in the world," he added.



His comments triggered an angry response from Pakistani politicians, who pointed to the country's military offensive against militants on the frontier with Afghanistan and the many victims of terrorist bombs in Pakistan.



And he did not take advantage of several opportunities to scale down his rhetoric during subsequent press conferences and interviews before his return to the UK.



Neither Downing Street nor the Foreign Office would comment on the decision by the ISI not to visit the UK.



But shadow foreign secretary David Miliband said the cancellation was "clearly bad news".



"The Prime Minister's comments this week told only part of the story and that has enraged people in Pakistan," he added.



"It is vital he shows that he understands the need not just for Pakistan to tackle terrorism but that he will support them in doing so and understand the losses they have suffered."



Cheers

[Naresh]

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England Vs Pakistan : First Test at Nottingham :



England : First Innings : 354 – 104.1 Overs



Pakistan : First Innings : [color="#FF0000"]182 – 54 Overs[/color]



England : Second Innings :262 for 9 Declared – 75.3 Overs



Pakistan : Second Innings : [color="#FF0000"]80 - 29 Overs[/color]



[color="#006400"]The Valiant Soldiers of the Land of the Pure just Lost Narrowly to the English Kufrs [size="6"]by a miniscule margin of ONLY 354 Runs[/size][/color]



Cheers

[Naresh]

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A fine Review of a Book, which will hopefully be translated into English, with a few Lines on The World’s Greatest Constitutionalist and Democratic Leader who is also described to be possibly the Only Secular Leader of the Indian Sub-Continent :



[url="http://www.jang.com.pk/thenews/aug2010-weekly/nos-01-08-2010/lit.htm#2"]Checkered history[/url]



The book gives an unbiased and daring account of 'military interventions'



By Shahid Shah







Pakistan: Jamhooriat aur Fauji Mudakhlatein



Writer: Riaz Ahmed Shaikh



Publisher: Sanjh Publications, Lahore



Pages 176



Price: Rs200







In its 63-year old history, Pakistan has been under direct military rule for 33-odd years and, for the rest of the years, it has been indirectly controlled or influenced. Democracy in the country has yet to be nurtured. Riaz Ahmed Shaikh's latest book, titled 'Pakistan: Jamhooriat aur Fauji Mudakhlatein' (Democracy and Military Interventions) is an account of Pakistan's political history, which has been dominated by the military.



Riaz Ahmed has a Ph.D. in Social Sciences and is currently placed as Vice Rector at the Institute of Business and Technology (BIZTEK) in Karachi. The book is a collection of his research articles on the subject.



Narrating the formation of Pakistan, the writer says that the actual number of deaths that took place during the partition under religious extremism could be between 500,000 to 1 million, while more than 13 million people left their houses. This, he writes, is the largest number of people who migrated in one incident in the entire twentieth century.



Quaid-e-Azam remains a source of inspiration for the majority of the people of Pakistan but [color="#FF0000"]the writer argues that even Jinnah did not work for strengthening the democracy. "Instead of relying on the provincial governments and the leaders of the Muslim League, he showed confidence in the civil bureaucracy of the time and appointed Chaudhry Muhammad Ali as secretary general, who was actually using powers of the prime minister."



Jinnah refused to accept the existence of the opposition by dismissing the government of Dr Khan in the NWFP within one week of the creation of the country. After eight months of dismissal of Dr Khan's government, Chief Minister Sindh Ayub Khuhro was dismissed. Shaikh believes that by taking such actions, Jinnah actually crossed the constitutional limits as the Governor General and that this example provided the succeeding leaders to derail the democracy.[/color]



Direct intervention of the military in politics is dated back to 1954, when General Ayub Khan was inducted in the cabinet as the defense minister.



Three military rulers -- Ayub Khan, Zia ul Haq and Pervez Musharraf -- dominated most of the country's history. All of these three introduced basic democracy (BD) in their agendas. The purpose was to affect the mainstream politics and sideline the political leaders by giving more powers to the BD members and then the Nazims who had served the agenda of military rulers, as BD members thought only the dictators could save the system. These three generals appointed themselves as presidents of the country through referendums. They considered the transfer of power to the union council level as the spirit of the democracy. "It was actually controlled democracy," Dr Shaikh argues.



The book also gives an account of the fall of Dhaka on December 16, 1971. The control of Pakistan was given into the hands of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto who was handed over the power not because he had won an election but because of the army surrender in the war. Therefore, the military handed over the powers to the Pakistan People's Party, he writes.



Dr Shaikh also criticises the political leaders, as they failed to choose the real representatives of the people. In the elections of 1977, the PPP allotted more tickets to the feudal lords than it did in the elections of 1970. One of the reasons of the Bhutto government's overthrow in 1977 remains its military policy in 1972-73 which sought to reduce the political influence of the military. [color="#FF0000"]In April 1979, Bhutto was hanged. "Bhutto's death was a sign that the military would never accept his opposition."[/color]



According to Dr Shaikh, the Ayub era was good for economy, as it progressed at an average of 6 percent. However, unfair wages paid to the workers angered them and there were several protests by the workers in the late 1960s which caused Ayub's downfall.



The most dangerous policy of General Zia's military government was to include religious ideology to get the support of the people against the democratic powers. Between Zia's death and the military coup of Musharraf -- that is, between 1988 to '99 -- the country saw eight prime ministers, out of which four were caretakers. [color="#FF0000"]"The military gave shocks to the democracy after every two years."[/color]



Regarding the fourth and the most recent military coup of General Pervez Musharraf, the writer says that the military was not happy as it was not taken into confidence by the then prime minister who initiated peace dialogue with the traditional opponent India. When Atal Bihari Vajpai came to Lahore to sign the peace deal of Lahore Declaration, General Pervez Musharraf, the then army chief, did not attend the event, which showed he was annoyed by such motives. In order to damage the peace dialogue, a group of senior generals, led by Musharraf, started military operation against India in Kargil. "Had there been an enquiry against such controversial military operation, it would have been a sign of the triumph of democratic powers over the military."



The book further says that Pakistan has been interfering in the domestic issues of other countries and overlooked its own crucial issues. [color="#FF0000"]The country remained busy in unnecessary wars, which were not its own. "Today, the result of all these policies is in front of us. The country is faced with the worst kind of terrorism and has been financially bankrupt," he states.[/color]



Shaikh's argument is that [color="#FF0000"]the real duty of a country's army is to defend its geographical boundaries. On the contrary, in Pakistan, the military suffocates democracy, changes the constitution, damages institutions, enters two major and one minor battle and shocks the foundations of the country,[/color] upon which the country was based.



He exhorts the new government to forget that the majority of parliament has given them a chance to minimise the gulf between the institutions of civil democracy and the military.



He also advises the authorities to analyse their powers and requirements and avoid interfering in the internal matters of other countries unnecessarily.



Published by Sanjh publications, Lahore, in February this year, the book is a potential resource material for researchers, academics, students and journalists. It gives an unbiased, daring and clear picture of military interventions.



Cheers

[Naresh]

.



[url="http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/Politics/02-Aug-2010/Militants-fleeing-in-guise-of-flood-victims"]Militants fleeing in guise of flood victims[/url]



PESHAWAR – Taking advantage of the internal mass migration of people in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa due to heavy flooding, militants were trying to enter Peshawar and other districts of the province, sources disclosed.



Amid reports of movement of militants in the guise of flood victims, the law enforcement agencies (LAEs) have alerted the provincial Government while stressing the need for taking measures to beef up the security in the region. In the report sent to the Government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the LEAs have directed the authorities to register all those people who are migrating from the flooded areas to other parts of the province.



According to sources, the security agencies have asked the KP Government to register all the flood-affectees who are taking shelter in schools, rent houses and other safe places.



Due to heavy flooding playing havoc in many parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the law enforcement agencies have temporarily halted search operation against militants and their supporters. About 14 districts of KP have been badly affected by the recent flash-floods including Charsadda, Nowshera, Malakand division, Dera Ismail Khan, Bannu. The extremists have gone underground who are now intending to migrate to safe areas in the guise of flood victims.



As a result of unprecedented flooding in the Kabul and Swat Rivers, Pabbi, Charsadda, Nowshera, Swat and Malakand division have badly become inundated. The natural calamity has claimed lives of over 800 people so far whereas more than 45 bridges, in Nowhera and other parts of the province, have been washed away.



According to ISPR, Army has deployed 30,000 troops in the flood-affected areas and so far 19,000 people have been rescued with 3,000 people from Swat, 2,000 from Tank, 3,000 from Risalpur and 3,450 from Nowshera, Charsadda and Pabbi. The rescue operation is still underway.



Cheers

[Guest]

[url="http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/news/pakistan/44-karachi-shut-after-over-40-killed-in-clashes-fa-05"]Karachi shut after over 40 killed in clashes[/url]

Police and officials said that they also found evidence suggesting that militants had planned a suicide attack during Haider's funeral, scheduled for later on Tuesday.



“On the basis of evidence available at the moment, it (the killing of Haider) was carried out by the Tehrik-e-Taliban and Sipah-e-Sahaba,” Malik told reporters in Islamabad.

[acharya]

How dare Cameron call spade a spade?

When US is so eager to shove under the rug Pakistani complicity in fueling Afghan insurgency since 2002, it is refreshing that the British Prime Minister has courage and tenacity to call spade a spade.

More US and its allies ignore Pakistani duplicity, more it is going to come back to haunt them.

"The PAKISTANI MILITARY ORGANIZED AND SUPPORTED THE TALIBAN TO TAKE CONTROL OF AFGHANISTAN IN 1996“ as recent UN report on Bhutto killing confirmed. So Pakistan was in control of Afghanistan before and at the time of 9/11 attacks. Pakistan was, is, always has been and always will be the real problem and a terrorist threat to the world.

Pakistani governments have been given an intentional free pass for their role in creating this global menace.

Nobody forced Pakistani government to facilitate relocation of Osama bin Laden from Sudan to Afghanistan in 1996. Democratic government of Pakistan chose to do so of its own free will.

Ex-CIA official Bruce Riedel said in an interview on 1/29/2009 that ''In Pakistan, the jihadist Frankenstein monster that was created by the Pakistani army and the Pakistani intelligence service, is now increasingly turning on its creators. It's trying to take over the laboratory.'' Pakistani Army and Intelligence Service (ISI) chose to create this ‘jihadist Frankenstein monster’ with full blessings and financing by Pakistan’s democratic governments in 1990s.

Sandy Berger, Bill Clinton’s national security advisor told 9/11 Commission in March, 2004 that ’Pakistani Army was the midwife of Taliban’.

Declassified DIA Washington D.C., "IIR (intelligence Information Report) Pakistan Involvement in Afghanistan," dated November 7, 1996 states how "Pakistan's ISI is heavily involved in Afghanistan," and also details different roles various ISI officers play in Afghanistan. Stating that Pakistan uses sizable numbers of its Pashtun-based Frontier Corps in Taliban-run operations in Afghanistan, the document clarifies that, "these Frontier Corps elements are utilized in command and control; training; and when necessary combat“.

Declassified U.S. Department of State, Cable "Pakistan Support for Taliban" from Islamabad dated Sept. 26, 2000 states that "while Pakistani support for the Taliban has been long-standing, the magnitude of recent support is unprecedented." In response Washington orders the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad to immediately confront Pakistani officials on the issue and to advise Islamabad that the U.S. has "seen reports that Pakistan is providing the Taliban with materiel, fuel, funding, technical assistance and military advisors. [The Department] also understand[s] that large numbers of Pakistani nationals have recently moved into Afghanistan to fight for the Taliban, apparently with the tacit acquiescence of the Pakistani government." Additional reports indicate that direct Pakistani involvement in Taliban military operations has increased.