Zardari had assured US, UK, Kayani of Musharraf’s immunity

 

ISLAMABAD: Former army chief General Ashfaq Pervez Kayani had played the most important role in brokering an immunity deal for former president General Pervez Musharraf in 2008, according to which Asif Zardari gave a firm commitment to the US, UK and Gen Kayani that indemnity for Musharraf would be forthcoming if he stepped down.
According to at least two leaked American diplomatic cables which had made their way to the international media on December 7, 2010, a series of political and strategic blunders by Musharraf had given cause and justification to both Asif Zardari and the then army chief General Kayani to work separately for his honourable exit.

In two separate cables written by then US ambassador to Islamabad Anne W. Patterson, details were given about how General Kayani (who had just been elevated as the army chief after Musharraf took off his uniform to retain the presidency), and Asif Ali Zardari, the leader of the majority party in the new National Assembly (after the 2008 polls), had systematically started to distance themselves from Musharraf.

In a ‘brief’ and ‘talking points’ prepared for Admiral Mike Mullen during his early 2008 visit to Pakistan, Ambassador Patterson states:

“As expected, Gen Ashfaq Kayani is taking slow but deliberate steps to distance the army from now civilian President Pervez Musharraf.” In a separate cable about a meeting of US Representatives Adam Schiff and Allyson Schwartz with Asif Zardari in May 2008, the American ambassador had given details of how the PPP co-chairman (who later became president following Musharraf’s exit) advocated an ‘honourable exit’ for Musharraf.

According to the cable, “Zardari blamed Musharraf for not taking enough responsibility for the war on terrorism in Pakistan”, which resulted in a marked increase in anti-US sentiments in the country.

“Anti-US feeling will go away when the old faces go away,” the leaked cable noted, adding that the American government should no longer rely on just Musharraf in fighting terrorism. In her own assessment of Musharraf’s public standing, Ambassador Patterson wrote in the cable that a year ago, his popularity was high. But “beginning with his decision to fire the Chief Justice (Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry) in March 2007, Musharraf has made repeated blunders culminating in a state of emergency and temporary suspension of the Constitution”. A detailed reading of some of these cables suggest that by this time all three major players, Asif Zardari, General Kayani and the American ambassador, had made up their minds that time was up for the former military ruler who had already been accused of involvement in the tragic assassination of Ms Benazir Bhutto.

According to one of the leaked cables, the US ambassador wrote on August 23, 2008, during her meetings with Asif Zardari, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani and General Kayani, immunity for General Pervez Musharraf was discussed besides some other issues. The US Ambassador met with Pakistan People’s Party leader Asif Zardari on August 23, 2008 with then prime minister Gilani on August 21 and with then army chief General Kayani on August 20, 2008.

“In separate meetings with Asif Zardari, PM Gilani and chief of army staff Kayani, the ambassador pressed for quick action on immunity for former Musharraf. Zardari and Gilani said flatly they were committed to providing immunity, but not until after the presidential election (now scheduled for September 6, 2008). Pushing immunity now, they believed, could jeopardize Asif Zardari’s candidacy. General Kayani expressed concern that if immunity becomes tied up with the ongoing debate over the judges’ future, it may never happen. Zardari plans to continue to slow roll action on the judges’ restoration but remains confident that Nawaz Sharif will not walk out of the coalition.

“Nawaz’s deadlines for action on the judges continue to pass unfulfilled; the next one is scheduled for August 27, 2008. The August 20 decision by Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) to back Zardari for president has strengthened Zardari’s hand against Nawaz Sharif. Nawaz is left with the option of walking out of the coalition, but having little prospect of forcing a new general election in the short term.

“Asif Zardari is walking tall these days, hopefully not too tall to forget his promise to General Kayani and to us on an immunity deal.”

According to the leaked diplomatic cables, “Asif Zardari told the US Ambassador that he was committed to indemnity for Pervez Musharraf.

The ambassador stressed that only the promise of indemnity had persuaded Musharraf to step down as president. We believed, as we had often said, that Musharraf should have a dignified retirement and not be hounded out of the country. Zardari (subsequently) cited a British anecdote about the Spanish empire and said: “Tell the most powerful man in the world that there is no way that I would go back on what I have said.” Zardari noted that he already had firmly committed to the US, the UK and chief of army staff Kayani that indemnity for Musharraf would be forthcoming.

As the ambassador urged him to do it quickly, Zardari said flatly that to do it before he was elected president would lose him votes, but he would pass both the legislation and a presidential pardon as soon as he was elected. Zardari then revealed that Musharraf had approached chief justice (Abdul Hameed) Dogar about issuing a restraining order against the impeachment motion, but Justice Dogar had refused. Zardari also alleged that Musharraf had planned to replace General Kayani as COAS if Dogar had blocked the impeachment. Zardari said he was trying to keep Nawaz in the coalition and was candid that he planned to tie up the judges’ issue for a long time. He added that parliament would debate the restoration of the judges; chief justice Dogar would then submit some rulings on the restoration of the judges; all this could take months. In the meantime, he was trying to persuade former Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry to become Governor of Balochistan.

Going by the same leaked cable which was written by the US ambassador, Zardari said he did not think Nawaz would leave the coalition, but he admitted the Pakistan Muslim League had become increasingly testy. He said that he had already agreed with Nawaz Sharif to curtail the powers of the president and then allow Nawaz to be eligible for a third term as prime minister; both measures would require constitutional amendments. Zardari said he also had leverage over Shahbaz Sharif, who through paperwork snafus, had been technically elected illegally for a third term as the chief minister.

This, too, would have to be resolved in parliament, Zardari said. “So I can give them something they want,” noted Asif Zardari, “that’s what politics is all about.”

According to the leaked cable, after an August 20 (2008) meeting with the visiting S/CT Coordinator Dell Dailey, General Kayani asked the ambassador to stay behind and discuss his concerns that Asif Zardari was delaying General Musharraf’s immunity bill. Kayani had heard the large meeting of coalition partners (chaired on August 19, 2008 by the newly returned Bilawal Bhutto) had discussed the judges primarily. Then they decided to take a 72-hour break to consult the party members.

General Kayani said he took Asif Zardari’s commitments to now ex-president Pervez Musharraf as the most important argument in persuading him to resign. Asif Zardari made very specific commitments to Kayani. Now, for Asif Zardari to delay makes him (Kayani) look bad within his own institution “and I have to take the Army along with me.” Kayani also noted that the delay does nothing for Zardari’s reputation for trustworthiness. If this issue gets conflated with the judges and with Zardari’s own desires to be president, it will become too complicated to pass, Kayani said.

The US ambassador met with Prime Minister Gilani and Interior Minister Rehman Malik for 30 minutes on August 21, 2008. Gilani said the PPP was going to provide immunity to Musharraf, but the timing was important.

They were afraid that putting forward immunity legislation would lose them votes for Asif Zardari‘s presidential campaign. The ambassador pressed on this issue, saying that Musharraf would never have agreed to resign without the promise of immunity. He assured the ambassador that he and the party did not want vengeance. Regarding immunity, Gilani said “many will say that we have done a deal with America, but I still understand that we have to do it.”

Six years later, Gilani revealed on Friday that an understanding had been reached with the establishment that Musharraf would be given an honourable exit if he resigned, instead of going through impeachment proceedings.

Cable operators offer lame excuse of security threat

 

ISLAMABAD: In response to the cable operators’ bogus excuses that they cannot show Geo because of security threats, a Jang Group spokesman has come up with a rejoinder.
The spokesman said it is a bogus excuse and a total lie. The incident in Sadiqabad was also totally stage-managed to create this excuse. No one threatens these cable operators when they show round-the-clock illegal Indian dances. No one threatens these cable operators when they show channels that have shown blasphemous content 60 times more than Geo.

The spokesman said as many as five channels also faced many court cases and police action in this regard but surprisingly, the cable operators do not receive threats for showing these channels. Even before Geo has shown it, two leading channels have already aired it many times.

The spokesman said a security threat was also raised as an excuse during the last government when cable operators suspended transmission of Geo News. The excuse of a security threat then was exposed as completely bogus when the Supreme Court of Pakistan told chairman Pemra that he could not leave the courtroom till the Geo News transmission was restored by cable operators all over the country. The result was that within three hours, Geo News’ transmission was restored all over the country.

The spokesman said cable operators, just like broadcasters, are operating on the basis of a licence that they have applied for and that Pemra has granted them. The basic term of the license is that no cable operator can itself suspend or disrupt transmission of a licensed channel unless Pemra directs it to do so. If a cable operator violates this term of licence, its licence is liable to be revoked. Even if security threat is accepted as genuine, this cannot be used as an excuse for a cable operator to violate the term of their licence by illegally suspending Geo’s transmission.

“What if a duly licensed mobile phone company suspends its mobile phone network for a week and uses security threat as an excuse when PTA wants to suspend its licence? What if a duly licensed commercial bank shuts down all its operations all over the country and uses security threat as an excuse when State Bank of Pakistan wants to suspend its licence? And what about our police that face life threat on a daily basis? Can police officers remain at home drawing the salaries on the pretext that they are facing security threats? And what about courts and honourable judges, especially those of lower courts, who are expected to try and convict dangerous criminals and terrorists?” the spokesman said.

He reminded that when Chief Justice of Balochistan High Court Qazi Faiz Isa summoned journalists and editors of all the newspapers of Balochistan and questioned them as to why they were publishing versions of terrorists, who claimed responsibility of killing policemen. When publishers of those newspapers produced before him evidence of serious threat that they are facing in Balochistan, Chief Justice Qazi Faiz Isa gave them a long summon. He said that don’t publish any newspaper if you cannot face any threat. He said if security threat is accepted as a valid excuse to break the law then there will be anarchy all over the country. The chief justice also said that if security threat is valid then he and his fellow judges in Balochistan should stop hearing cases and dispensing justice just because their lives were threatened.

The spokesman said the cable operators have decided to do their business in Pakistan within the prevailing environment. They cannot pretend that they are working in some European country. Lawyers, judges, police etc. everyone is facing security threat in Pakistan these days. This does not exempt people to just violate their legal obligation and use security threat as an excuse.

He said Geo itself received a most direct and serious threat in writing from terrorists who wanted their version and their ideology to be properly broadcasted. “Just because it received the threat, can Geo broadcast TTP’s version when it is murdering and beheading our soldiers? Will its licence not be liable to be revoked? Can any channel in Pakistan start showing TTP’s version round the clock just because it is facing security threats?”

The spokesman further said even if the threat being faced by cable operators is genuine, then it has nothing to do between cable operation (the licensee) and Pemra (the licensor) for correct and legal position is if any cable operator violates terms of its licence, e.g. by keeping transmission of Geo suspended when Pemra has directed them to show it, its licence is liable to be revoked. If a cable operator is receiving life threat because of some business dispute or professional rivalry or from some extortionist or criminals or even because of showing any channel of Geo, it is a matter between cable operator and police. If they are facing any threat then they should seek help from police and pursue remedies through law enforcing agencies. Instead of the path provided under the law they cannot just suspend valid transmission of Geo and thus violate a direction of Pemra.

The spokesman said suspension of Geo News by Pemra ended two weeks ago and Pemra has never suspended Geo Kahani and Geo Tez. Despite this, Geo News is either not being shown in 80 per cent areas of Pakistan or it has been pushed to last channels where it is difficult/impossible for viewers to find. Geo Kahani and Geo Tez are also not being shown.

He said the cable operators are deliberately refusing to show channels of Geo because they are being threatened for showing channels of Geo.The federal government and Pemra have only two options. Either what cable operators are claiming is a lie in which case they must take action against them to restore transmission of all Geo channels. Or if the federal government and Pemra believe that the excuse of cable operators regarding security threat is genuine they must make a candid public admission of it:

“a. All cable operators are liable to show Geo channels;

b. 80 percent cable operators are not showing it because some hidden force is threatening all of them from doing so;

c. There is nothing that the federal government can do about it because it simply has no writ to do anything about the people who are threatening cable operators.”

After that, at least Geo can claim compensation for the government’s failure to fulfil its obligations.

On the cable operators excuse that they are showing Geo at last numbers because it is their discretion on which number to show it and also that number of TV channels that have been licensed by Pemra is far in excess of the capacity of TV sets owned by ordinary people, the spokesman reminded that in 2010, when hearing a petition of Geo, honourable Supreme Court set up a one-member media commission to look, among other things, into the issue of shuffling and placement of channels. According to the commission report, cable operators are constitutionally required to show TV channels having nationwide viewership at starting numbers. This was a constitutional requirement and the right of the viewers. The commission also found that shuffling of channels, disrupting their signals, throwing them at last numbers etc. was illegal. The honourable Supreme Court adopted that report and made it part of its judgment.

In the latest petition of Geo News, honourable Supreme Court has once again reproduced from 2010 judgment and from the Media Commission Report and disposed off Geo News’ petition only when Pemra undertook to restore the channel to its original position. So it is not up to discretion of cable operators to decide to show Geo News at No. 3 position today and No. 93 tomorrow. According to the Supreme Court judgment each cable operator has a constitutional obligation to show Geo News and all Geo channels at their original starting numbers.

The spokesman said Pemra’s direction to cable operators also requires each licensee cable operator to restore Geo news transmission at its original position. This also shows that the discussion of their own discretion and capacity of TV set is bogus and mala fide.

The spokesman said all cable operators were showing Geo channels at certain numbers on 19th April. “Why is it that after Pemra received a complaint about Geo following attack on Hamid Mir on 19th April, cable operators are either blocking its transmission or are making every kind of excuse not to show it at its original position? Why is it all of a sudden cable operators are using excuses such as it being a matter of their own discretion and that TV sets do not have capacity to show all the licensed channels when there was no such talk before 19th April 2014?”

The spokesman said the original scheme put in place through Pemra Ordinance for regulation of electronic industry anticipated and sought to prevent this very problem by barring any broadcasters from owning or controlling a cable business and vice versa. The implementers of the scheme were aware that even if one TV broadcaster were given control over cable operation, it would use that power to damage competitors in the same way that the Geo’s competitors are doing today.

The spokesman said the real problem is that one media group that owns one news channel has purchased or, directly or indirectly, concluded a business deal with cable operators in the country while apparently cable operators are still continuing with their previous names and owners, in reality they are in the hands of one media group, the owner of which is openly boasting that Geo is finished, “I will keep Geo channels off air and because of lack of viewership they will not get any advertisements and they will go bankrupt anytime now.” The spokesman said all cable operators led by Khalid Arain are now employees of that group and they only do and say what the owner of that group instructs them to do.

Both Khalid Arain and owner of the media group use the name of hidden hands to get the Geo closed. They claim that they are acting on behalf of hidden hands. They also arrange meetings of cable operators with hidden hands.

The spokesman said if the apex court forms a commission, many secrets will come to the fore. He said the Pemra and the federal government are fully aware about the above dangerous development and are yet avoiding doing anything about it.

Govt to meet all requirements of IDPs, says Ishaq Dar

ISLAMABAD: In order to avoid donors’ fatigue, Pakistan will not make any formal request to multilateral or bilateral donors for seeking financial assistance to help over half a million Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in the wake of ongoing military operation in North Waziristan Agency (NWA).

Instead of seeking donors’ assistance, the government has decided to meet all requirements of IDPs through its own domestic resources.“Without seeking formal request to the donors, assistance of the multilateral and bilateral creditors and friends will be welcomed,” added the sources.

Pakistan’s military has launched operation against Taliban and their supporters to flush them out from NWA region that caused displacement of over half a million IDPs in Bannu area.“The government has taken the decision in principle that it will meet all requirements of IDPs from its own resources and formal request to donors’ assistance will not be sought. We have so far provided over Rs 2 billion and will also meet upcoming requirements.

The government has deducted one day salary of all public sector employees getting salary from federal budget that generated more than Rs 350 million,” official sources confirmed to The News here on Monday.

When contacted to Federal Minister for Finance and Revenues, Ishaq Dar confirmed to The News on Monday that the government was meeting all requirements would continue it for all IDPs in future as well.

However, high-ups in Finance Ministry told this scribe that the government so far released over Rs 2 billion for IDPs and more resources would be earmarked to meet their requirements.“We have also met financial requirements of Armed Forces to conduct this operation and will also meet the financial requirements for IDPs,” said the official.

So far 572,529 people, belonging to 44,633 families have been registered as Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) as a result of Operation Zarb-e-Azb, which started on June 15th. The UAE Government has released an assistance of $ 20.5 million for the IDPs on humanitarian grounds, while US has extended an assistance of $ 31 million. Finance Ministry has released Rs. 2 billion so far for providing relief to the IDPs. Economic Coordination Committee of the Cabinet has approved 60,000 tons of wheat costing Rs. 2.8 billion for distribution among the IDPs.

When inquired why the government was not making formal request through flash appeal of UN for IDPs assistance, the sources said that the government knew about donors’ fatigue keeping in view experience obtained by Islamabad as result of floods in 2010 and 2011.“This decision has been taken at the top level to avoid seeking official help from the donors but if someone comes forward they will be welcomed,” concluded the sources.

Vaccines have low risk of serious side effects: study

WASHINGTON: Some childhood vaccines are linked to serious side effects, but they are quite rare and do not include autism, food allergies or cancer, said a review of scientific literature Tuesday.

A host of vaccines commonly given to children under age six were the focus of the systematic review of rigorously conducted studies, published in the peer-reviewed US journal Pediatrics.

The report seeks to address a rising trend of vaccine hesitancy among parents in the United States and Europe, which has led to a resurgence of measles and whooping cough in some parts of the world.

"We found that serious adverse events that are linked to vaccines are really rare, and that when they do occur they are often not necessarily severe," said study co-author Courtney Gidengil, a pediatrician at Boston Children´s Hospital and professor at Harvard Medical School.

"We think this adds to the body of evidence that the benefits really do seem to clearly outweigh the low risk of serious side effects from vaccines," she told.

The study expands on a 2011 report by the Institute of Medicine that also pointed to some side effects linked to vaccines but found "few health problems are caused by or clearly associated with vaccines."

The Pediatrics report includes several vaccines that were not studied by the IOM, including those against hepatitis A, Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib), polio, rotavirus and the pneumococcal conjugate vaccine.

Side effects
Side effects of the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) and pneumococcal vaccines included the potential for fever and seizures.

The MMR and hepatitis A vaccines were also linked to a side effect called purpura, when small blood vessels leak under the skin.

There was some evidence that immune-deficient children given the varicella vaccine against chicken pox could develop infections or have an allergic reaction.

The rotavirus vaccines, RotaTeq and Rotarix, were associated with a risk of intussusception, a condition in which one part of the intestine slides into another part.

However, the risk of this condition was rare, amounting to between 1-5 in 100,000, the researchers said.

"Clinicians who immunize children regularly may have encountered these adverse events in their practices, particularly seizures associated with fever," said an accompanying editorial by Carrie Byington, vice chair for research in the pediatrics department at the University of Utah.

"Fortunately, the adverse events identified by the authors were rare and in most cases would be expected to resolve completely after the acute event."

 

NASA delays launch of satellite to track carbon pollution

WASHINGTON: A water flow problem on Tuesday forced the US space agency to postpone the launch of a satellite to track atmospheric carbon dioxide, a leading greenhouse gas.

The Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 was due to take off atop a Delta 2 rocket at 2:56 am Pacific time (0956 GMT) from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. But the operation was halted 46 seconds before scheduled liftoff time due to an issue with water flow to the rocket, NASA said.

The launch window on Tuesday was quite short, just 30 seconds.

The timing had to be precise so that the satellite could join the A-Train, a constellation of five other international Earth-observing satellites.

More details on the nature of the problem and a time for the next launch attempt were expected later Tuesday, NASA commentator George Diller said.

NASA´s previous attempts to launch carbon satellites failed in 2009 and 2011. (AFP)

ICC name hosts of mega events to be held from 2016 to 2023

DUBAI: The International Cricket Council (ICC) has announced the names of the hosts for its various mega events to be played between 2016 and 2023.

According to sources, cricket’s Big Three have distributed the hosting of all cricket events among themselves.

The World Twenty20 would be hosted by India in 2016 while Australia would host the Champions Trophy in 2017.

The One-day International World Cup would be played in England in 2019 and the World T20 would be held in Australia in 2020

Later, India will host two mega events – Champions Trophy in 2021 and World Cup in 2023.

300 CNG stations closed down in Punjab due to non-supply of gas

Islamabad: The All-Pakistan CNG Association (APCNGA) has said that more than 300 compressed natural gas (CNG) filling stations have been closed in Punjab, while thousands are on the verge of economic failure due to partial supply of natural gas and irrational pricing.

The number of closed down CNG stations have been increasing creating problems for the masses, increasing unemployment and decreasing the income of the government, said APCNGA Supreme Council Chairman Ghiyas Abdullah Paracha.

In a statement issued here, he said that the natural gas allocated for CNG industry is being diverted to other sectors so that their profits could increase. He said that CNG industry is being deprived of natural gas despite the fact that it is the only sector which has no other alternative while other sectors have substitutes.

ECP extends duration of Election Tribunals

ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Monday extended the duration of Election Tribunals from three to six months.

Eleven tribunals are working in the whole of the country currently and contract duration of these tribunals was one year, which ended on Monday on which the ECP decided to extend the contract.

The duration of Election Tribunal of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) has been extended by three months while Election Tribunal duration of the other three provinces has been extended by six months.Ministry approved the expenditures of Election Tribunals as ECP had sent the summary to the ministry. Notification of extension in duration of tribunals will be issued within one or two days.

Worst power outages on first day of Ramazan

 

 ISLAMABAD: All the claims of the federal government on reduced electricity loadshedding during Ramazan and zero loadshedding during Sehr, Iftar and Taraveeh prayers fell flat as the people across the country had to face the worst power outages on the first day of the holy month, making it hard for them to make preparations for Sehr and Iftar.
In the twin cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad, the people had to suffer almost 12-hour-long power outages. Before the start of Ramazan, the situation was better as there was only six-hour to eight-hour loadshedding. With the commencement of fasting, the situation got aggravated and the power outages had gone up to 12 hours.

In the adjoining areas of the twin cities like Taxila, Attock, Chakwal, Gujjar Khan, Mandra, Jhelum and others, loadshedding had made the lives of people miserable.In Lahore, power outages during Sehri, Iftar and Taraveeh timings continued, making people’s lives miserable on the first day of Ramazan.

In addition to the curse of erratic power supply, people complained about power failure after every hour throughout the day. They said they felt intensity of outages had increased during the last couple of days. Since 4:00am on the first day of Ramazan, the power supply became disrupted after every hour till 7:00pm, said Khalid Khan, a resident of Bhatti Gate. This type of loadshedding had not been done before Ramazan during the daytime, he said adding that such ‘constant’ power failures also led to water shortages in their area.

The data of Lahore Electric Supply Company (Lesco) indicates that power availability during Sehri, Iftar and Taraveeh is not in accordance with the claims made by the Ministry of Water and Power. Against the demand of over 4,500MWs, Lesco is getting just 3,400MWs during Iftar and Taraveeh timings.

Throughout the day, as per the official data, people living in Lesco areas were made to suffer from over 50 percent shortfall in electricity supply. Against the peak demand of about 4,500MWs, Lesco is getting jut 2,400MWs of electricity during the rest of the day. The menace of unannounced loadshedding is in addition to the power suspensions made under the load management plan.

Lesco said on Monday some variations might occur in the revised load management plan for Ramazan due to system overloading issues, especially on grid stations being fed from 220KV New Kot Lakhpat grid station.

Under the revised load management plan, the industry faces the biggest brunt of outages. As many as 12 hours of outages are being observed in textile industry, furnace, continuous process industry and steel re-rolling mills.

Meanwhile, power shortfall was recorded at 4,500MWs on Monday. Power generation was recorded at 13,500MWs while the demand for electricity hovered around 18,000MWs. Hydropower generation was recorded at 5,100MWs.

Other districts of the Punjab, including Faisalabad, Toba Tek Singh, Sheikhupura, Gujranwala, Gujrat, Multan, Bhawalpur, Rahim Yar Khan, were also the hit by loadshedding.The situation in rural areas of the Punjab was all the more serious as the people had to suffer more than 18 to 20 hours of loadshedding.

The power supply situation in other provinces was no different as in Sindh,particularly in the rural areas, the power outages had gone beyond the limit of human endurance. In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), the loadshedding issue had become so ugly that around 12 hours of prolonged and unscheduled power loadshedding was being carried out in the province.

In the upper parts of Hazara division, loadshedding added to the woes of the people who were fasting in sweltering heat.The local people complained that they were facing power outages at Sehr and Iftar. “The government had announced to reduce the duration of power outages during Ramazan,” said Mohammad Riaz, a shopkeeper.

He said the government should provide relief to the people in Ramazan and reduce the duration of power outages as the people were braving the scorching heat.“The people are fasting in scorching heat, so the government should provide them some relief,” he said.

Faiz, the leader of a traders body, said that they would take to the streets if the duration of power cuts was not reduced to less than five hours a day.“The government should provide relief to the people as they are fasting in sizzling heat without electricity that is out for hours at a stretch,” he said.

Senate adopts Protection of Pakistan Bill 2014

ISLAMABAD: The upper house on Monday approved the Protection of Pakistan Bill 2014.

Federal Minister Zahid Hamid presented the bill for approval during the Senate session presided over by its Deputy Chairman Sabir Baloch.

On the occasion, Senator Talha Mahmood of Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl called upon the government to hold out the assurance that the Protection of Pakistan Bill will be implemented on merit. It should also ensure that the bill will not be used against Madaris, he added.

He said it will have to be seen that no incident like Lahore Model Town gets repeated in future given the additional powers being extended to the security forces.

Ideological HQs of terrorists all over country: Pervaiz

 

ISLAMABAD: Minister for Information and Broadcasting Pervaiz Rashid said on Sunday that the military headquarters of terrorists were in North Waziristan but their ideological headquarters were all over the country and it was the responsibility of the political forces to eliminate the same.
He said the army was eliminating the military headquarter of the terrorists while thedemocratic forces were responsible for eliminating their ideological headquarters.Speaking in Geo TV’s special transmission “Jang Se Aman Tak”, he said the debate on who was responsible for the failure of the talks with Taliban was misplaced. He said this war was not against the government’s opponents but enemies of the state.

Well-known anchor Salim Safi hosted the programme in which PPP leader Qamar Zaman Kaira said both the government and the Taliban were responsible for the failure of the talks, though the government shouldered more responsibility.

He said the members of the government committee had admitted that their consultation process was slow. He said everybody in the dialogue committees was playing politics. He said the talks could have resolved the issue of terrorism but they were short of time.

ANP leader Afsaryab Khatak said the success of the talks process was doubtful from the day one. He said there was no one from the government in the government committee and no one from the Taliban in the Taliban committee to talk out the issue.

MQM leader Haider Abbas Rizvi said the Taliban were responsible for the failure of the talks as they continued carrying out attacks on Pakistanis during the talks process. JUI-F leader Hafiz Hamdullah said the establishment held the key to the success of the talks. He said those who had the authority did not let the talks succeed.JI leader Amirul Azeem said the government was responsible for the failure of the talks. He said the Taliban wanted to talk but the government did not.

Bilour seeks setting up of more camps for IDPs

PESHAWAR: Demanding establishment of more relief camps, former federal minister and senior leader of the Awami National Party (ANP) Ghulam Ahmad Bilour Sunday renewed call for properly handling the internally displaced persons (IDPs) of North Waziristan and providing them maximum facilities.

“The IDPs from Waziristan have been offering sacrifices for the greater cause of the country and nation and they should be extended wholehearted support,” he told a press conference. Ghulam Bilour, who is member of the National Assembly from Peshawar, said Pakhtuns were being killed in the name of religion. “On whose hand should I seek the blood of my sons, brothers and sisters - the United States, the rulers of my country, religious parties or jihadi organisations?” he posed a question.

Pakhtuns have been targeted since 1979 and their sufferings were long drawn, he added. He said the Pakhtuns were being pitted against each other through a conspiracy. “For God’s sake, they should not be killed anymore and there should be an end to this massacre,” he added.

He also appealed to the Ulema to help stop killing of innocent people in the name of religion. He said that at least 20 camps should be established for the IDPs in Bannu, Tank, Lakki Marwat, Dera Ismail Khan and Peshawar and they should be provided maximum facilities.

“The Sindh and Punjab governments and people should host the IDPs and extend them full support as they have been rendering sacrifices for the national cause. They left their homes and scenic valleys for the restoration of peace in the country, not for personal gain,” the ANP leader stressed.

To a question, he recalled that the ANP-led provincial government had made all arrangements for the IDPs from Malakand division.Ghulam Bilour said his party always stood for democracy and did not support dictators. However, he said he and his party was worried about the bad conditions of IDPs and killing and displacement of Pakhtuns.

The ANP leader said it was right time to bring an end to the sufferings of people from this part of the world and let them pass peaceful life. To a question about the issue of moon-sighting, he said he kept fast because of love for the Holy Prophet (PBUH) and followed the people of his city Madina where people were fasting.

“I didn’t follow Mufti Shahabuddin Popalzai or any other religious leader’s announcement,” he said, adding that the moon-sighting issue should be resolved with consensus and it should not be made a matter of ego.

Action against terrorists on both sides of border agreed

 

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and Afghanistan on Thursday agreed to launch indiscriminate action against the terrorists on both sides of the border.
This was decided during a meeting of Rangin Rahimi Dafdar Spanta, Afghan National Security Adviser, with Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif at the PM House. Matters relating to mutual and bilateral interest came under discussion.

The meeting was attended by Afghan delegation comprising Janan Mosazai, Ambassador of Afghanistan to Pakistan, Atiqullah Hatifmal, Afghan Deputy Foreign Secretary, Major General Asadullah Akramyar, Ministry of Defence, and Hakimullah Hakmatullah Foushanji, Director International Affairs. The Pakistani side comprised Adviser to PM on Foreign Affairs and National Security Sartaj Aziz, Special Assistant to PM on National Security Tariq Fatimi and Secretary Foreign Affairs Aizaz Chaudhry.

APP adds: Rangin Dafdar Spanta called on Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) General Raheel Sharif at the General Headquarters. During the meeting, views were exchanged on matters of mutual interest.

Besides, measures to enhance security cooperation, particularly in the wake of the ongoing operation Zarb-e-Azb along the Pak-Afghan border and the latest situation in Afghanistan, were also discussed.

Suicide bomber kills seven in Shiite area of Baghdad

BAGHDAD: A suicide bomber killed seven people and wounded dozens at a market in the a north Baghdad neighbourhood of Kadhimiyah on Thursday, security and medical officials said.

The blast struck at about 6:30 pm (1530 GMT) in the Bab al-Darwaza market in Kadhimiyah, which is home to the shrine of a revered Muslim figure.

 

Jackson fans mark 5th anniversary of icon’s death

GLENDALE: Dozens of Michael Jackson fans laid heaps of flowers Wednesday at the mausoleum where the pop icon is interred, to mark the 5th anniversary of his death.

Around 100 fans, some dressed as the self-proclaimed King of Pop, gathered at the Forest Lawn cemetery outside Los Angeles, where the 50-year-old died while rehearsing for a comeback tour.

"We love you Michael," read a banner on a giant red heart placed outside the small mausoleum in Glendale, north of downtown LA.

Jackson died on June 25, 2009 of an overdose of the clinical anesthetic propofol, administered by his doctor to help treat insomnia as the singer prepared for "This is It" shows in London.

His personal medic Conrad Murray was convicted of involuntary manslaughter in 2011 over the star´s death and jailed for four years. He was released in October after serving two years.

He had debts of up to $500 million before his death, but in the five years since, his executors have earned more than $700 million, according to a recent book, "Michael Jackson Inc.

"Money-making ventures have included the "This is It" movie of rehearsals for the doomed tour, a touring Cirque du Soleil stage show and two posthumous albums so far, with more to come. (AFP)

PPP won’t be part of campaign to derail democracy: Sharjeel Memon

KARACHI: Sindh Information Minister, Sharjeel Inam Memon Thursday said Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) will not be a part of the forces bent upon derailing democratic process in the country.

Addressing a program at Karachi Press Club (KPC) in connection with distribution of plot allotments to the journalists, he said Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) Chief and Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan have one objective but their approach is different.

To a question, he termed Tahirul Qadri’s movement for ‘revolution’ as untimely and unjustified, adding the mandate of democratically elected government of Pakistan Muslim League-N must be respected.

“Tahirul Qadri should first bring about a revolution in the country of his nationality–Canada,” he said, adding the government should be allowed to serve its full tenure.

He also took a dig at Tahirul Qadri over his unwillingness to disembark Emirates plane at Lahore airport, saying such moves can bring a bad name to the country.

Commenting on the Model Town issue, he slammed the incumbent government, describing its conduct as dictatorial.

To another question in connection with allowing entry to the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Sindh province, he said the Chief Minister has already announced a relief of Rs500 million. He said relief camps for collection of succour have been set up in various districts of Sindh from where truckloads of relief supplies will be transported to the IDPs in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Replying to a query in connection with PTI’s warning to resign from assemblies, Sharjeel Memon said rigging is no justification to roll back the ongoing democratic process in the country.

He said PPP will never allow closure of any media group and that any move to muzzle the freedom of expression will be thwarted. “Those who believe they can gag the voice of truth and render the journalists unemployed live in fools’ paradise,” he added.

The Information Minister announced construction of auditorium and press conference hall for Karachi Press Club this year. He said the KPC should identify the place, the requisite funds will be arranged by the Sindh Governemnt.

He also announced establishment of Endowment Fund for the journalists in the current year.

Later, he distributed plot challans among the members of KPC.

Portugal beat Ghana 2-1 but fall out of World Cup

BRASILIA: Cristiano Ronaldo scored the winner for Portugal as they beat Ghana 2-1 in Brasilia in Group G on Thursday but both sides still crashed out of the World Cup.

Ronaldo missed three chances with only goalkeeper Fatawu Dauda to beat that would have been enough to put his side into the last 16.An own goal from John Boye gave Portugal the lead before Asamoah Gyan equalised for the Black Stars.

Ronaldo scored the second half winner but he will be ruing the misses which left Portugal stuck behind second place United States on goal difference.

Germany won the group after beating he United States 1-0. (AFP)

Suicide bomber kills seven in Shiite area of Baghdad

BAGHDAD: A suicide bomber killed seven people and wounded dozens at a market in the a north Baghdad neighbourhood of Kadhimiyah on Thursday, security and medical officials said.

The blast struck at about 6:30 pm (1530 GMT) in the Bab al-Darwaza market in Kadhimiyah, which is home to the shrine of a revered Muslim figure.

SC orders arrest of main accused within a week

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court (SC) on Wednesday, while issuing an order to the Ministry of Interior to arrest the main accused allegedly involved in the anti-judiciary campaign within a week, expressed dissatisfaction with the Ministry of Interior’s report about the action taken in this regard. The apex court also summoned a report within a week about the arrest of the accused.
Justice Nasirul Mulk remarked, “We don’t want a blank report. Tell us what the outcome of this report is. How many accused have been arrested so far and what guidance has been given by them to the law enforcement agencies. Security personnel are present everywhere and they have not spotted anyone placing the banners.”

Justice Jawwad S Khawaja reply is not satisfactory. It means judiciary is insecure. Are there no CCTV cameras there? Are the entries not made on barricades? Is the state so much helpless that every one enters Red Zone and returns after doing whatever he wants?”

A three-member SC bench presided over by Justice Nasirul Mulk took up anti-judiciary campaign case for hearing Wednesday.Deputy Attorney General (DAG) Ahmad Saeed presented the interior ministry and IB report in the court. He made it clear that the government had made safe city project with reference to security which was annulled by the SC.

He said that IB report was secret.Justice Jawwad S Khawaja inquired what the secret was therein.The DAG told the court that IB report was based on the progress made in the case.The court remarked, “What progress is there that it has not been ascertained so far how many accused were there and what action was taken against those involved in placing banners.”

The DAG said that efforts were underway to locate prime accused. Two accused had been arrested and information was being taken from them. Give us one week and we will take action against the culprits and give report.”Justice Jawwad S Khawaja remarked, “It means we are not fully covered.The hearing of the case was adjourned till July, 2.

Officer of Grade-15, above can order to shoot suspect

 

ISLAMABAD: The Standing Committee of Senate for Interior approved amendments to the Pakistan Protection Ordinance (PPO) on Wednesday.
The meeting of the Senate committee was presided over by Senator Talha Mehmood in the National Assembly building. The committee unanimously approved the Protection of Pakistan (Amendment) Bill-2014 under which the authority to shoot a miscreant or suspected person will rest with the officers of Grade-15 and above.

Senator Zahid Hamid, briefing the committee, said that necessary measures had been taken to check the misuse of authority such as the affected person could approach the high court against the sentence of the special court. He said the bill would remain in force for two years initially. Every effort had been made in the bill to avoid the misuse of power.

Pervaiz Rashid, Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting, said that the person who would violate the law would be held accountable.“Incidents such as the Model Town take place in several countries frequently. The matter will be cleared when the joint investigation will be completed,” he said.

The Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) had insisted that the shooting power should be given to Grade-17 and above officers only.It was also decided in the meeting that Grade-15 officers would be empowered under the law to issue orders for shooting.