E-Paper PDF 24 October (ISB)

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Thursday, 24 October, 2019 I 24 Safar-ul-Muzaffar, 1441 I Rs 19.00 I Vol X No 114 I 16 Pages I Islamabad Edition

Won’t resign, PM iMran says g

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PreMIer SayS JuI-f’S azadI March drIveN by fOreIgN ageNda aNd wIll harM KaShMIr cauSe

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SayS OPP wIll be allOwed tO PrOteSt IN ISlaMabad aS lONg aS they reMaIN Peaceful

IMraN SayS cOurtS MuSt decIde whether tO SeNd Nawaz abrOad fOr treatMeNt Or tO allOw hIS daughter tO Meet hIM

PM Imran wishes Nawaz well, orders Punjab govt to ensure best medical facilities STORY ON BACK PAGE

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staff report

rime minister imran Khan on Wednesday said that he will not cave into pressure from the opposition parties who have been asking for his resignation and threatening to lock down the federal capital later this month.

Speaking to senior journalists and analysts, the premier talked about multiple issues, including unemployment, inflation and the joint opposition’s upcoming Azadi march.

The premier said that Jamiat Ulema-e-islamFazl (JUi-F) chief maulana Fazlur rehman’s protest is driven by a specific agenda and has the support of foreign powers. “His plan of protest has sent a wave of joy in india,” he said. “i cannot understand what maulana’s problem is or what the opposition is after,” he said, adding that despite everything the government would still allow the opposition to protest in islamabad as long as they remain peaceful. regarding the opposition’s demand for

his resignation, the premier said, “Let me be very clear that i will not resign on opposition’s demand.”

Questioning the timing of the march, he said that it would hurt the Kashmir cause. “india may use this opportunity to attack Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK). i have already directed Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa to ensure that troops are ready for retaliation,” he added. When asked about his dharna in islamabad in 2014, the premier said that he had staged the sit-in because he had proofs of election rigging in four constituencies.

“We came out on streets after exhausting all possible options, which platform has maulana used to address his grievances before coming out on streets? Attention is being diverted from the Kashmir issue because of this march. We must think who will benefit from all of this,” he added. responding to a question about media restrictions, he said they are free to give coverage to JUi-F and other opposition parties.

Commenting on incarcerated former prime minister Nawaz Sharif’s health, the premier said

that only a court of law could take a decision on the former’s treatment outside the country.

“Shehbaz Sharif says imran Khan will be held responsible if anything happens to Nawaz Sharif … i am not a doctor or a judge and the matter of maryam Nawaz’s meeting with her father would also be made by the court,” he remarked.

The prime minister added that he had directed Punjab Chief minister Usman Buzdar to provide best possible medical facilities to the former premier.

Talking about other issues, the prime minister acknowledged that inflation and unemployment remain a big problem which his government is trying to resolve.

The JUi-F chief, with the support of all major opposition parties including Pakistan muslim League-Nawaz (PmL-N), Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and Awami National Party (ANP), will march on the federal capital on October 31 to topple the Pakistan Tehreek-e-insaf (PTi) government, which he believes came into power through massive rigging in the 2018 elections.

Court turns down Maryam's request to meet Nawaz at hospital STORY ON PAGE 02

Smartphone malware targeting military, govt officials STORY ON BACK PAGE

Red Zone blocked as govt Pakistan to participate in decides to allow Azadi March four-party meeting on Afghan peace talks PMO SayS PM IMraN belIeveS IN g

deMOcratIc rIght tO PrOteSt

STORY ON BACK PAGE

STORY ON BACK PAGE

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02 ISLAMABAD Court turns down MaryaM’s request to Meet nawaz at hospital LAHORE

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STAFF REPORT

N accountability court on Wednesday rejected a request

by Pakistan Muslim LeagueNawaz (PML-N) Vice President Maryam Nawaz to be granted an hour to meet former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, who is currently admitted in Services Hospital.

The request was made during court proceedings in the ongoing Chaudhry Sugar Mills case where

the former premier is also a nominee.

During the proceedings on Wednesday, the court asked the NAB investigation officer, when a reference would be filed in the case, to which he responded that the reference had entered the final stages of preparation and would be filed after approval from the bureau’s chairman.

Subsequently, Accountability Judge Chaudhry Ameer Mohammad Khan extended the judicial remand of Maryam and her cousin, Yousaf Abbas Sharif, till Oct 25. A day ear-

lier, Sharif underwent a platelet transfusion at the hospital after the Bureau said his condition was stable and that dengue test results were negative.

However, doctors had termed his condition as “serious” despite the transfusion of three mega units of platelets within hours after his admission.

Sharif, who is serving a sevenyear imprisonment in Al-Azizia Steel Mills reference, was rushed to the hospital late Monday night after his condition significantly deteriorated. The decision to shift him to a

Thursday, 24 October, 2019

hospital was made after his personal physician, Dr. Adnan Khan, had raised an alarm about Sharif’s critical condition in NAB custody.

According to the medical tests carried out yesterday, the platelet count of the former premier “dropped from 16,000 to a critical level of 2,000” when he was brought to hospital, prompting the medical board members to go for “immediate transfusion of the platelets to save his life”, according to one of the board members.

Meanwhile, PML-N Spokesperson Marriyum Aurangzeb has rebuffed reports of Sharif going abroad for medical treatment. “There is absolutely no truth in reports of former premier travelling abroad for a checkup,” she said in a media talk.

62nd Children’s Literature Festival kicks off in Islamabad ISLAMABAD: The twoday 62nd Children’s Literature Festival (CLF), a flagship program of civil society organization Idara-eTaleem-o-Aagahi (ITA), kicked off with a number of interactive sessions and activities on Wednesday, at Lok Virsa, Islamabad. The festival, being held in sponsorship with Oxford University Press (OUP) Pakistan, Open Society Foundations (OSF), Oxfam, British Council, Ittihad Steel Mills, Female Education Trust Balochistan, Sightsavers and Millennium Education, was attended by a large number of students and their parents, teachers, academics, educationists and public.

Minister for Federal Education and Professional Training Shafqat Mahmood inaugurated the two-day event. He appreciated CLF’s efforts in providing an inclusive learning platform for children. The festival began with National Anthem sung by students of Al Maktoon and Pehli Kiran Schools in a jam-packed hall, followed by collective singing of CLF anthem ‘Humein Kitab Chahiye’ written by Zehra Nigah and composed

by Rakae Jamil. ITA CEO Baela Raza Jamil apprised the audience about the magic of CLF and how it has become a nationwide movement. She acknowledged the supporters of CLF and thanked CLF cofounder and advisor Ameena Saiyid for her active contribution to the cause of promoting learning for children. Oxfam Pakistan’s Country Director Mohammed Qazilbash lauded ITA’s efforts in promoting a culture of creativity, learning and self-discovery among children and youth in Pakistan. He also strongly advocated for women’s empowerment through quality education for girls to enhance their participation in the social, economic and political spheres. OUP Pakistan Managing Director Arshad Saeed Husain and OSF Senior Education Officer Nargis Sultana also expressed their solidarity to CLF. STAFF REPORT

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Firdous calls on Indian army chief to apologise over ‘false claims’ ISLAMABAD: Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Information and Broadcasting Firdous Ashiq Awan on Wednesday called on India’s Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) Gen Bipin Rawat to “apologise from the entire world over his fake claims of destroying terror launch pads inside Pakistan”. In a statement, Awan said that visit of foreign diplomatic corps to the Line of Control (LoC) on Tuesday has “buried Indian lie”. Those targeting innocent unarmed citizens are coward and brutal, she added. Awan further said that the international community will have to resolve the Kashmir issue as per the aspirations of Kashmiris and the United Nations resolutions. INP

Islamabad police use water cannons to disperse teachers’ protest ISLAMABAD: Capital Police used water cannons to disperse a protest of Basic Education Community Schools (BESC) teachers on Wednesday at D-Chowk. The BESC teachers were protesting over non-payment of salaries.

They also demanded the government to upgrade their status as permanent employees. When the government called on the teachers to end their protest, they started marching towards the Parliament House. Police used water cannons to halt protesters. The defiant teachers said that their protest would continue till their demands were not accepted by the government. “We have taught children in far-flung areas,” said one teacher. “Compensation is our right.” Another teacher said that he had not received compensation since the past eight months. STAFF REPORT

CMYK Thursday, 24 October, 2019

NEWS

naB Chief SayS anti-graft watChdog not taking politiCal revenge KARACHI

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STAFF REPORT

EITERATING his resolve to continue the accountability drive, National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Chairman Justice (r) Javed Iqbal on Wednesday said the anti-graft body would cross every hurdle to make Pak-

istan a corruption-free country “NAB has no connection with politics nor does it has anything to do with the government,” he stressed while speaking during an event.

“NAB is a state organisation and this is the reason why, to make appeals, amendments should be made in the rules of the Supreme Court.”

“We [NAB] are also not taking po-

ihC approves pre-arrest bail plea of akram durrani ISLAMABAD: The pre-arrest bail plea submitted by the former chief minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), Akram Durrani, has been accepted by the Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Wednesday. The high court conducted the hearing of the petition filed by the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam Fazl (JUI-F) central leader Akram Durrani. The IHC judge accepted the pre-arrest bail plea of Durrani till November 4 and sought a reply from the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) by issuing a notice. Akram Durrani had submitted the petition on Tuesday (yesterday) to seek approval of his pre-arrest bail by the Islamabad High Court (IHC) over the fear of his arrest by NAB authorities investigating into alleged illegal appointment of Pakistan Housing Authority (PHA) director.

In his petition, Durrani stated that he has replied over the questionnaire sent by the anti-corruption watch, whereas, the petitioner has also made NAB chairman a party in the plea. He served as the Chief Minister of KhyberPakhtunkhwa from 2002 to 2007. He served as federal minister for Housing and Works, in the Abbasi cabinet from August 2017 to May 2018. Last year, the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Chairman Justice (r) Javed Iqbal had ordered an inquiry against Akram Khan Durrani over misuse of power and illegal allotment of plots. Durrani was re-elected to Provincial Assembly of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa as a candidate of Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA) from Constituency PK-90 (Bannu-IV) in general election of 2018. On October 2, 2018, Akram Khan Durrani became the leader of the opposition in the Provincial Assembly of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP). STAFF REPORT

litical revenge from any individual or party.”

“The people, who were difficult to question in the past, are now in the custody of the law,” said Iqbal.

He informed the participants that during the last four months, over Rs4 billion had been recovered only from the province of Sindh.

The chairman claimed that NAB

wants to work for Pakistan and its people only. To make Pakistan corruptionfree, we need the support its people, he added.

“We believe in accountability for all. Do not indulge in corrupt practices assuming nobody knows anything. If there is evidence against any official, action will be taken against him or her,” he warned.

PML-N will expose’s PTI’s ‘destructive’ rule: Shehbaz LAHORE STAFF REPORT

Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) President Shehbaz Sharif has said his party will expose the “destructive” rule of the incumbent government on October 31.

Addressing a convention of party officials and ticket holders from Punjab, Shehbaz said that masses will head towards Islamabad on October 31 where PML-N will expose the destructive rule of the “imposed regime”.

Shehbaz also said that PM Imran enjoys overwhelming and unequivocal support of national institutions if Nawaz Sharif would have received only one-tenth of this support he would have made Pakistan the leading nation of South Asia. He expressed great displeasure and alarm over the “severe damage” to the country caused by the government.

The PML-N president said that China-Pakistan Economic

indian troopS Martyr three kaShMiri youth in pulwaMa SRINAGAR STAFF REPORT

In occupied Kashmir, Indian troops in their fresh act of state terrorism martyred three youth in Pulwama district. The troops martyred the youth during a search operation at Rajpora in Tral area of the district, Kashmir Media Service reported. The forces cordoned off the area before launching the search operation. On the other hand, a Junior Commissioned Officer of the Indian Army was killed after being fired upon by unidentified gunmen in Nowshera area of Rajouri district. Meanwhile, people continue to observe complete shutdown as a mark of silent protest against the Indian occupation and revocation of the territory’s special status. Shops and businesses establishments remain closed most of the time except for a few hours in the morning and evening while public transport is off the roads. As per reports, the government offices and educational institutions are open but attendance is too low.

Collective effort required to oust govt, says Bilawal Corridor (CPEC) was the single largest investment project ever brought to the country and the credit for it goes to Nawaz Sharif. He pointed out that PM Imran and his government damaged the relations with China to such an extent that support of Chief of Army Staff

(COAS) Qamar Javed Bajwa was required to revive the ties by taking him along on visits to China.

Earlier, Shehbaz chaired a meeting of the party’s Punjab chapter, wherein participants strongly condemned the delay caused in the Nawaz’s treatment.

PM’s office orders probe into MoFA security breach by Hareem Shah ISLAMABAD STAFF REPORT

The Prime Minister’s (PM) Office on Wednesday took notice of a high-security breach by TikTok user Hareem Shah whose video of posing inside the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) went viral on social media.

Hareem, who became an internet sensation after her videos with influential political leaders took the country by storm, can be seen walking around the conference room and finally sitting on the chair used by Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi.

The video, which is now doing rounds on the internet, has left both the government and civilians puzzled as to how she got access to consular-only premises and was provided full service required to record a video that, as expected, went viral.

Media reports state that the room is located on the FO’s fourth floor, where high-level meetings between Pakistani foreign ministry officials and dignitaries

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from abroad are held.

According to the details, the probe will use CCTV footage to determine how and why she was allowed to enter the conference room and record the video.

Furthermore, the entry logbook will also be

checked to ascertain if the TikTok star visited other places at the Foreign Office (FO).

Hareem; on the other hand, said that she made the video because she was allowed to as no one would do such a thing without permission. “I managed to get inside the premises and asked someone to please let me record the footage…I’m not aware of their position,” she told a local media channel soon after the incident.

It may be mentioned here that Hareem is not new to controversy or fame. She had previously gone viral with the help of a video with Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) member Fayyaz-ul-Hassan Chauhan and has a number of pictures with important political figures.

Although the video seems to be made without illintent, many questioned the level of security and professionalism of state organisations.

However, Journalist Mubashir Zaidi pointed out that people accepted Wajahat Saeed Khan inside the prime minister’s house but have taken an issue with Hareem Shah in the FO.

THARPARKAR: Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal BhuttoZardari said on Wednesday that collective effort will get rid of the “puppet government” and form a public government in the country. Addressing a rally in Tharparkar, he alleged that the federal government wants to end the rights of provinces and take over Karachi which they will not let happen. Bilawal said that today a “tyrannical, puppet and the selected government” is ruling again.

“Democratic and economic rights are under attack,” he added. “We all will get rid of this puppet government together and form a public government,” the scion of Bhutto dynasty asserted. The PPP chief said that the opposition will save Pakistan by sending off “selected” rulers and help the public by snatching their rights back from the federal government. He went on to say that “puppet government” and “political orphans” make fun of people’s poverty. “They have destroyed the economy while a deal on Kashmir has also been made,” he added. He announced that the next protest will take place on October 26 at the border of Sindh and Punjab. On October 22, Bilawal had said that Prime Minister Imran Khan is responsible for the economic crisis in the country.

The PPP chief had said that the incumbent government of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) had itself put the federal capital on lockdown. He also pledged to continue efforts to send the government packing.

It is worth mentioning here that PPP has maintained that they would morally support the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rahman’s Azadi March. “We all have agreed on one thing which is that PM Imran has to go,” Bilawal had said. STAFF REPOR

Alvi apprises Japanese premier of rights atrocities in held Kashmir TOKYO INP

President Dr. Arif Alvi on Wednesday apprised Japanese Prime Minister Shinz?

Abe regarding human rights atrocities and lockdown in occupied Kashmir which was stripped of its semi-autonomous status on Aug 5.

During the meeting, the president urged Japan to play its role in the restoration of fundamental human rights of the Kashmiri people.

He also stressed the need for both countries to work together to strengthen mutually beneficial relations particularly

in the fields of investment, trade, human resource development and people to people contacts.

Referring to the young Pakistani population, President Alvi also highlighted the inherent complementarities that could be exploited to benefit the two economies.

He felicitated the Japanese PM on the enthronement of Naruhito, the Emperor of Japan, and hoped that the new era would bring more prosperity and well-being for the friendly people of Japan. He also expressed his heartfelt condolences on the loss of precious lives caused by the recent Typhoon Hagibis in Japan and wished the injured early recovery.

Meanwhile, Japanese PM expressed his gratitude to the president for attending the enthronement ceremony and hoped that such visits will boost the bilateral ties.

Earlier, the president and first lady had attended the enthronement ceremony of Japan’s Emperor Naruhito during his five-day official visit to Tokyo.

The experts told that Pakistan-Japan cooperative relations have been on an upward trajectory with a huge potential for collaboration in myriad fields such as economic, trade, commercial, investment, I.T., agriculture, human resource development and tourism.

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04 LAHORE

Thursday, 24 October, 2019

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Punjab Police gears uP for azadi March LAHORE

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SHAHAB OMER

HE Punjab Police is all set to deal with Jamiat Ulma-e-Islam's (JUI-F) Azadi March and has imposed a ban on the casual leaves of all officials of the department in this regard whereas all police officials are to report to their respective offices with immediate effect, Pakistan Today

DETAILED SECURITY ARRANGEMENTS TO BE MADE ONCE PLAN FOR AZADI MARCH IS CLARIFIED BY JUI-F learnt on Wednesday.

According to details provided by well-informed sources, an order issued by the Additional Inspector General (AIG) Operations Inaam Ghani states, “In the coming days, it is expected that

political/religious parties will resort to protesting and try to stage a sit-in at Islamabad that can be detrimental to the peaceful atmosphere of the province.

During these activities, terrorists may get an opportunity to carry out their nefarious designs by targeting the participants of the protests/processions.”

“The responsibility to maintain law and order while foiling any terrorist activity rests chiefly with the police and keeping the expected upcoming developments in view, there is a dire need to ensure availability of sufficient strength of Pun-

jab Police to tackle any undesirable situation. Therefore, the authority has imposed a ban on all types of casual leave forthwith and till further orders,” the order adds.

It may be mentioned here that the Punjab Police has also requested the Lahore police for help by the provision of 10,000 personnel to ensure foolproof security arrangments.

The order has also been sent to all AIGs of police, special branch, training, criminal investigation department (CID), Elite Police Force (EPF), Punjab Highway Patrol (PHP), Punjab Traffic Police, the commandant, Punjab Constabulary Farooqabad, Lahore capital city police officer, all regional police officers in Punjab, special protection unit of Punjab Police, and all district police officers

(DPOs) in the province as well.

While talking to Pakistan Today, AIG Ghani said, “Moulana Fazl's programme is not clear. Departments of the police in all districts will make their own arrangements as soon as the plan is clarified. We will ensure that no one harms government property or the public.

The Punjab police have a strength of 2,05,000 force and all are deployed to control the law and order situation. The protest is in Islamabad so most of the force will be deployed there."

"We would not be arresting anyone who participates in the Azadi March.

Imposing a ban on leaves in this kind of a situation is normal practice. We also impose the ban on leaves during Muharram, Eids and other sensitive days,” he concluded.

OLMT trial run on Oct 28 LAHORE STAFF REPORT

After the completion of construction work on 13 stations, the first train under the mass-transit project, ‘Orange Line Metro Train (OLMT)’, will run from October 28, a local media outlet reported on Wednesday. The Metro train will run between DeraGujran to Anarkali, whereas, the concerned authorities decided to conduct its a test for running it through electricity after the completion of 13 high-voltage substations in Lahore, the provincial capital of Punjab.

Moreover, the construction work of

11 other stations will be completed by November, signalling that the first-ever mass-transit project will be made operational soon after coming out of its trial period to run the trains through electricity.

According to reports, Punjab Chief Minister (CM) Usman Buzdar will be the chief guest of the event for the launching of its testing phase.

Earlier, CM Buzdar chaired a highlevel session to review the OLMT project and testing phase of the Metro trains through a briefing by the officials.

The chief minister said that the citizens will be able to travel through Metro trains from January and its fares

will be very economical. Buzdar directed the concerned authorities to expedite the work to make OLMT project operational for the nationals.

The Orange Line project is a rapid transit system under construction in Punjab’s capital Lahore. The line will span 27.1 km (16.8 mi) with 25.4 km (15.8 mi) elevated and 1.72 km (1.1 mi) underground. The line will be served by 26 stations and is expected to handle 250,000 passengers daily. Though it is frequently mentioned as a part of the wider China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), the project is being financed by the government of Punjab.

Police maintaining process of reward & punishment LAHORE STAFF REPORT

According to the directions of Inspector General (IG) of Police Punjab Capt. R Arif Nawaz Khan process of punishment and reward is being maintained in Punjab police.

Officers and officials who perform well are rewarded while on accounts of inefficiency, slackness, trespassing power and corruption, strict punishments are also given in this regard.

British-era tram service to run in Lahore LAHORE STAFF REPORT

Provincial Transport Department has decided to introduce famous tram service of the British era in the provincial metropolis Lahore. This project will be jointly performed by a consortium consist of Chinese company CRSC International and Czech Republic’s Inekon Group consortium and will be completed in collaboration with the Transport Department. A memorandum of understanding was signed between the Transport Department and the Czech Republic along with Chinese companies in a ceremony. According to the agreement, both companies will work jointly with Lahore Transport Company in order to improve the public transport sector in Lahore and work on other projects as well. The modern based tram project will soon be launched in the city. In the first phase, a tram will run on 30 to 35-kilometre long track on Canal Road. Representatives of Czech Republic Inekon Group JospehHusek and Zhang Xiao Feng of Chinese Company CRSC specially participated in the ceremony.

CMYK

IG after personally hearing the appeals and show cause notices of DSPs from different districts of province issued orders respectively. According to the details, DSP Sabir Ali was found guilty of the charges levelled against him and was demoted to the Inspector rank.

DSP Sabir Ali appealed against his suspension but he was unable to give a satisfactory answer in an orderly way on which IG issued orders of his demotion as Inspector from DSP. As DSP In-

vestigation iii Faisalabad and SDPO Sadar Rajanpur Muhamad Azeem were found guilty in two different inquiries so the punishment decrease in salary and warning were given to them.

SDPO Saddar Multan DSP Ishaq Ahmad Sial was reprimanded after he was proved guilty in inquiry while DSP Saeed Ahmad, DSP Muhammad Waseem and DSP Khalid MehmoodTabassum show-cause notices were filed as charges against them were not proved.

CMYK Thursday, 24 October, 2019

NEWS

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chriStiaN priSoNerS deprived of reLigioUS edUcatioN iN pUNjab jaiLS LAHORE

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KK SHAHID

N September 3, Reverend Maurice Shehbaz, wrote his latest letter addressed to the President, Prime Minister and Chief Justice of Pakistan entitled, ‘Christian Prisoners and Pastors/Teachers of Prisoners are Facing Persecution in Prisons, Punjab’.The letter was also sent to federal ministers of interior and human rights along with the Punjab Chief Minister, Chief Secretary and Home Secretary. Rev Shehbaz is yet to receive a reply.

The letter is the latest in a list of pleas sent out by Rev Shehbaz and his Gujranwala-based Prisons Mission Society, underlining that Christian prisoners have been deprived of religious education in Punjab prisons over the past five years. The Prisons Mission Society, formed in August 2002, collaborates with around 250 churches nationwide to help inmates in the fields of education, health and other social sectors. Since 2015, a large part of their work has been dedicated to fighting for the religious freedom of the prisoners belonging to the religious minorities.

“The IG Prisons has completely banned religious teachings in the prisons since 2015, using security as an excuse. Pastors and reverends aren’t being allowed to go inside prisons. We [the Prisons Mission Society] have been barred

as well. They are denying the basic human rights to the religious minorities,” says Rev Maurice Shehbaz. Rev Shehbaz maintains that the persecution of the Christians in prisons isn’t limited to prevention of religious education.

“Prisoners are forced to give ‘fateek’ (bribe) to the jail staff, and Christian prisoners – even those who are under trial and haven’t been convicted yet – are forced to do sweeping work. We need to be given permission to access the jails and the Christian prisoners so that we can safeguard them, assist them and help them become useful citizens,” he adds. Contrary to the security reason given as the justification behind priests not being allowed to preach, Islamic teachings continue unabated in Punjab prisons. There are Christian inmates in 41 prisons of Punjab, with the vast majority concentrated in 12 jails. The two largest prisons of Punjab’s capital Lahore, Kot Lakhpat Central Jail and District Jail, have on average 10,000 prisoners. Of these, around 500 are Christians.

When contacted, a Lahorebased police officer confirmed that there are clear instructions not to allow members of the clergy from any religion inside the prison, as per the orders of Inspector General of Prisons Punjab Shahid Saleem Baig.

“Since the APS Peshawar attack [on Dec 16, 2014] there has been a strict ban on religious preachers inside the prisons. The ban was designed for the Islamic clerics because many of them were involved in passing on

Lodhi urges UN deputy chief to play role in ending Kashmir curfew NEW YORK

messages from the outside to terror convicts or giving inflammatory Friday sermons which created security problems in the prison,” the police officer said.

“This policy wasn’t designed against the Christian clergy at all, but the IGP says that if we allow priests inside the prison and not the Islamic clerics, they would be outraged,” the officer added.

Despite the rationale provided by the Punjab Police, Islamic education continues unabated inside the prisons. Those giving Quranic teachings in prison are government employees and jail staff, who are on the Punjab government’s payroll.

As a result, non-governmental organisations have taken it upon themselves to find a solution for the Christian prisoners’ religious education. “I’ve spoken to the IG prisons and he says that granting permission to Christian clergy for religious education isn’t possible right now, but the permission will be given when there is improvement in the security situation,” says Safdar Chaudhry, the Chairman of Rah-e-Nijat Ministry.

Chaudhry says he is familiar with the petition filed by Rev Shahbaz Maurice, but maintains that the reverend needs to take others on board. “Shahbaz Maurice didn’t contact the concerned people to take them on board. He did everything on his own. Organisations working on prisons should unite and then form the strategy. Because even if the permission given, who

KK Shahid is a Lahore-based reporter and a member of 101Reporters, a pan-Asia network of grassroots reporters

SeNior State Life officiaL jUmpS to death iN aLLeged SUicide caSe NEWS DESK A senior official of the State Life Insurance Corporation of Pakistan (SLIC) allegedly jumped to his death from the 11th floor of a multi-storey building on Karachi’s I.I. Chundrigar Road on Wednesday, according to police and sources. According to the details, 55-year-old Zafar Iqbal, who was serving as the deputy manager administration at State Life Insurance Building No. 2 opposite Habib Bank Plaza on I.I. Chundrigar Road was facing an inquiry over some “personal activities”.

Although the deceased’s family claimed that the incident was a murder, eyewitnesses report seeing the father of four jumping out of his own free will. Further, a guard deployed at the SLIC office tried to persuade Iqbal to refrain from ending his life but the latter did not heed him. The deceased body was shifted to the Dr Ruth Pfau Civil Hospital Karachi for autopsy. An investigation will be opened into the matter to ascertain the causes behind the death once the police obtain an autopsy report.

Sc rejects appeal against acquittal of chaudhry Sher ali in illegal land allotment case

FO tightens noose around diplomatic corps ISLAMABAD SHAMIM MEHMOOD

INP

The outgoing Permanent Representative to the United Nations Maleeha Lodhi on Wednesday paid her farewell visit to UN Under-Secretary-General Rosemary DiCarlo and informed her about Indian atrocities in occupied Kashmir. In a tweet, the representative said that she told the official that India’s illegal annexation of occupied Kashmir has triggered multiple crises in the region. “I told UN USG Rosemary DiCarlo in my farewell call on her that India’s illegal annexation of occupied Kashmir has triggered multiple crises in the region & urged the UN to play its part to bring an end to the cruel curfew & lockdown that has exacerbated the plight of the Kashmiris,” she wrote. “UN should play its part to bring an end to the cruel curfew and lockdown that has exacerbated the plight of the Kashmiris,” she urged. “In my farewell call on UN Under-SecretaryGeneral Rosemary DiCarlo I thanked her for the cooperation during my tenure that we received from the Dept of Political Affairs and I updated her about the grave situation in occupied Jammu and Kashmir.”

Lodhi further thanked the department of political affairs for cooperating with Pakistan during her tenure.

will pay pastors? We at Rah-e-Nijat are working on getting the funding for the education of Christian prisoners in Punjab,” he adds.

Sources within Punjab Police confirm that despite the official ban, a few trusted organisations are given access during festivals and for provision of basic necessities to the prisoners.

Peaceful Pakistan organisation’s Marian Sharaf Joseph, who is involved in church services, confirms that the Christian clergy visits the prisoners in the weeks leading up to Christmas and Easter.

“All Catholic parishes, from the archbishop to the lowest level, visit the prisoners on Saturdays and Sundays around Christmas. Sisters also go on special occasions and once a month to provide food supplies,” she says. Even so, while the clergymen manage to occasionally visit the prisons, the lack of formal facilities are preventing the Christian inmates from accessing religious education. “The lack of a uniform syllabus for prisons has been a problem as well. But Ejaz Alam Augustine [the Minister of Human Rights & Minorities Affairs and Interfaith Harmony in Punjab] did a session on Minority Day and said that the syllabus has been finalised and will soon be approved,” says Marian Sharaf Joseph.

An unannounced policy of the protocol wing of the Foreign Office (FO) has tightened the noose around diplomatic corps in the federal capital.

As a result, the foreign missions in Islamabad have been planning on meeting the prime minister to protest against the withdrawal of diplomatic tax exemptions.

Only the British High Commission and Canadian High Commission have been granted food quotas whereas the same has been denied to the diplomats of Jordan, Turkey, Maldives, Iraq, Palestine, Nigeria, Kenya, Azerbaijan and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Moreover, several foreign missions, including Poland, UAE and those from the European Union (EU) could not get their liquor quotas approved due to the work-to-rule policy being adopted by the employees of protocol wing.

According to sources with

the FO, these measures had been taken to prevent the misuse of privilege by foreign missions.

The tax exemption privileges for foreign diplomats, consular officers, and staff members are generally based on two international treaties: The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and the

Vienna Convention on Consular Relations.

Since all such services and privileges are based on the principle of reciprocity, this means that no privileges are granted to a foreign official unless other embassy and consular personnel receive the equivalent privileges in that country.

ISLAMABAD STAFF REPORT

The Supreme Court (SC) on Wednesday rejected a petition by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) against the acquittal of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Chaudhry Sher Ali in a case pertaining to illegal allotment of land. A three-member bench of the apex court, headed by Chief Justice Asif Saeed Khosa, noted that the accountability watchdog had been “unsuccessful” in presenting a case against the former Faisalabad mayor. During the hearing, Justice Khosa said that a link between the suspect and the persons whose lands were allegedly illegally allotted by him “could not be proven”. He said that not even one witnesses had said that they had recorded their statements under duress from Ali, adding: “If NAB’s own witnesses say this, why does the suspect even need a defense team?” “The suspect’s job is to prove his assets. It is NAB’s responsibility to prove assets that don’t belong to the suspect,” the chief justice remarked. The prosecutor said that Ali had made illegal allotments. However, the chief justice responded: “Being the mayor doesn’t mean that every wrong thing [done while he was mayor] will put on his account. He was mayor in 1983 and the case was formed in 2000.” Earlier in 2002, a Rawalpindi court had awarded a five-year jail term to Ali with a fine of Rs100 million on charges of accumulation of assets through corruption while holding a public office. He had also been disqualified from holding any public office or applying for any financial facility from a state-controlled DFI for a period of 10 years. In another case, he was sentenced to 10 years of rigorous imprisonment with a fine of Rs20 million.

Afghan rivals to meet in China after US talks stall BEIJING AGENCIES

China is organising talks among Afghanistan’s rival factions as part of efforts to end years of war after negotiations between the Taliban and the United States on the withdrawal of US forces broke down.

China, which shares a short border with Afghanistan, has been trying to encourage peace efforts and last month a Taliban delegation visited Beijing for

talks with government officials.

“China has invited a delegation […] to participate in the intra-Afghan dialogue,” a Taliban spokesman, Suhail Shaheen, said in a post on Twitter late on Tuesday. The so-called intra-Afghan dialogue is aimed at reconciliation between Afghanistan’s warring parties and has been running parallel to the talks between the insurgents and the United States.

Last month, US President Donald Trump halted the talks with the Taliban aimed at striking a deal for the US and

other foreign troops to withdraw in exchange for Taliban security guarantees, after the militants carried out a bomb attack in Kabul that killed 12 people, including a US soldier.

The United States has been hoping that its deal with the Taliban would pave the way for a ceasefire and power-sharing talks between the Afghan government and the insurgents.

The Taliban have refused to talk to the government, denouncing it a US puppet, but government officials have taken

CMYK

part in the intra-Afghan dialogue as private citizens.

Shaheen said the talks in China would be held on that basis.

“All participants will be attending the meeting in their personal capacity and they will share their personal opinions for solving the Afghan issue,” he said.

He did not give a date for the talks and officials at China’s embassy in Kabul were not available for comment.

The Afghan government was aware of China’s plan to host talks but it could

not comment at this stage, said deputy foreign minister, Idress Zaman.

A spokesman for former Afghan president Hamid Karzai, who attended intraAfghan talks in Russia in February, said Karzai’s office was aware of China’s plan for talks and Karzai would attend if invited.

A 60-strong delegation of Afghans, including government officials and representatives of civil society groups, held the second round of intra-Afghan talks with the Taliban in July in Qatar.

Thursday, 24 October, 2019

06 WORLD VIEW

What a US WithdraWal from afghaniStan WoUld look like Foreign aFFairs

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Carter Malkasian

VER the past two years, a bipartisan consensus has emerged that the United States should leave Afghanistan. This summer, President Donald Trump repeatedly claimed that he wanted out. So did the Democratic presidential candidates.

During a September debate, Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren promised to bring troops home without any deal with the Taliban, and former Vice President Joe Biden was just as strident, declaring, “We don’t need those troops there. I would bring them home.” But advocates of the mission argue that a full withdrawal courts disaster, paving the way for terrorist groups to reestablish a safe haven in Afghanistan.

That distaste for remaining in Afghanistan is widespread is unsurprising after 17 years of war. And U.S. involvement in active military operations in Afghanistan has greatly decreased since 2010 and 2011, when nearly 100,000 U.S. troops were deployed. The remaining 14,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan support local security forces with airstrikes, surveillance, and advising. Afghan soldiers and police do the frontline work of defending cities against the Taliban, while U.S. special operations devote significant effort to battling al Qaeda and the Islamic State (or ISIS). The United States has fought a relentless campaign against these groups, and many opponents of the effort can endure it no longer.

But what will actually happen if the United States pulls out of Afghanistan without a peace deal? Whether disaster will follow or the consequences will be manageable, U.S. policymakers should take the measure of the course of action now—lest they find themselves unwilling to bear the risks of withdrawal.

THE MESSY AFTERMATH: A Taliban advance would likely follow a U.S. withdrawal. The events of the years 2014 to 2016 offer a cautionary tale. During those

IF THE US WITHDRAWS, THE TALIBAN WOULD CONTROL AT LEAST HALF OF AFGHANISTAN years, the United States minimized airstrikes, because it believed that doing so could allow the Afghans to learn to fight on their own. Instead, the Taliban all but captured several provinces, including Kunduz and Helmand. Heavy casualties and desertions thinned the ranks of the Afghan military and police. In 2016, the United States went back to permitting airstrikes and thus stemmed the Taliban advance.

If the president decides, whether in 2021 or before, to fully withdraw from Afghanistan, those airstrikes would cease.

The United States would close all its bases and stop conducting surveillance in support of Afghan forces. All U.S. drones and troops would depart, including special operations forces and advisers. U.S. allies and coalition partners would undoubtedly pull out their 8,700 troops, too. Washington could continue to provide funding to the Afghan military at a reduced level, but Congress would be sorely tempted to eliminate such support once U.S. troops were out of harm’s way. Just how long a withdrawal would take is a matter of debate: the Obama administration once planned for a timeline of 30 months, but some have called for one that is even shorter.

Toward the end of the withdrawal process, the balance of military force within the country would tip. The Taliban’s leader, Mawlawi Haibatullah, would probably attack provincial centers such as Kunduz and Lashkar Gah. The Afghan army and police would not be able to defend these cities without U.S. air support. The following year, Haibatullah could escalate, striking big cities such as Kandahar and Jalalabad. Afghan special operations forces, the National Directorate of Security, and certain hardbitten tribal leaders would fight tooth and nail. But chances are good that a significant number of soldiers and police would flee, leaving the Taliban tide to overwhelm the big provincial cities’ defenses.

Kabul itself could then spontaneously

fall. Once tribal leaders, police, soldiers, and farmers sense which way the wind is blowing, the whole edifice of the Afghan state could collapse. Such was the sequence of events in 2001 and many times before, as Professor Thomas Barfield writes in Afghanistan: A Cultural and Political History: “The war did not have any decisive battles. Just as the Taliban had come to power by persuading people that they were winners without fighting . . . they lost the war in a reverse process.”

But Kabul also stands a decent chance of surviving. Afghanistan’s army might concentrate on defending the capital, and Tajik, Uzbek, and Hazara warlords—who once made up the Northern Alliance— could mobilize militias to help. Outside powers could oppose the Taliban: Russia, in defense of long-standing Uzbek and Tajik friends; Iran, to protect the Shiite Hazaras; and India, in order to contain Pakistani influence. None of these countries can be assumed to step in fully behind the government, but a total Taliban victory would be in none of their interests.

Regardless of Kabul’s fate, however, the Taliban would control at least half the country, including several cities, fertile croplands, and mineral deposits. Under such circumstances, al Qaeda, ISIS, and like-minded groups would gain access to territory and resources. Other foreign terrorists would join them in Afghanistan, where a perceived Taliban victory over the United States would serve as a beacon to foreign extremists.

A BEACON FOR TERRORISTS: There is scant evidence that the Taliban intends to attack the United States, even if it winds up in charge of all of Afghanistan.

Its leaders may even discourage terrorist groups from causing trouble. But the group is unlikely to physically prevent others on its territory from planning, preparing, and coordinating terrorist attacks—especially if there is no peace deal.

Over the years, former and current Taliban

members have admitted to me that they think of al Qaeda as a friend and feel they should not be asked to turn on it. In August, Taliban spokesman Sohail Shaheen claimed he knows of no proof that al Qaeda was responsible for 9/11. Some commentators argue that U.S. retaliation for 9/11 would compel the Taliban to break with al Qaeda. But many Taliban believe that they have defeated the United States. In their minds, they are the ones who taught us the lesson.

ISIS is a different matter, because the Taliban actively fights it. After a U.S. withdrawal, ISIS would be free from U.S. bombardment. The Taliban might then escalate its attacks against the group, or it could simply try to hold it off by maintaining a strong front against it. To that end, Taliban leaders would be wary of distancing themselves from al Qaeda, a potential ally in fighting ISIS. The experience of ISIS in Iraq and Syria between 2014 and 2017 offers an example of what can happen when a terrorist group has lots of territory. Control of Raqqa, Mosul, and other cities supplied ISIS with the space it needed to hide, meet, train, organize, and spread propaganda—all at a time when the group was under tremendous U.S. military pressure.

The period when ISIS held the most territory coincided with 35 ISIS-linked attacks in Europe and the United States, which killed or injured roughly 2,000 people.

After a full U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan without a deal, al Qaeda and other terrorist groups could mount or inspire more attacks on the United States.

But the exact nature and dimensions of a post-withdrawal threat are unknowable.

Furthermore, U.S. homeland defenses are much stronger than they were in 2001 and might foil a terrorist plot of a scale similar to that of 9/11. Why should the United States worry about an undefined threat that could issue from Afghanistan someday in the future?

The United States could instead refocus its efforts on resiliency, or the ability to endure an attack and its losses. But the time might not be right for such a mindset, and the shift might not be politically expedient. The right peace deal could make such a stance unnecessary. Still, the United States should recognize that the most direct route out of Afghanistan is to live with the threat of terrorism.

If the United States withdraws from Afghanistan without a peace deal, the Afghan people will be the most affected.

In the first year after a U.S. exit, Afghans would likely suffer an upsurge in violence as Taliban offensives intensified. Life in areas coming under Taliban control would be oppressive. The Taliban has recently tried to soften its policies, but as the terrorist organization expands its presence, women will most likely lose the freedom they have gained, the press will be silenced, and Afghans who have fought the Taliban will face retribution.

Over the long term, however, the ledger might balance out. If the Taliban takes over the country, violence would cease in areas under its control. That could make up for the loss of freedom and economic development. Afghans would be oppressed and deprived, but alive. By contrast, if the United States stays, war and all its effects—from airstrikes to suicide bombings—would persist, possibly indefinitely.

A U.S. withdrawal would not necessarily be disastrous for Afghanistan. It would, however, entail real risks that would require the United States to accept a degree of resiliency. Policymakers must decide how much risk they are willing to assume at this delicate point in U.S. history.

Iran - or its allies - from further attacks, and compensating to some degree for his strong aversion to a politically damaging war.

In both northern Syria and the Gulf, Trump’s instinct is to avoid or withdraw from military commitments that might hurt his re-election chances. As history has shown many times, US presidents feel little compunction about abandoning the Kurdish people entirely when expediency demands.

We need not extrapolate too much from that. The Saudi kingdom and the wider Gulf region are a very different matter.

For the House of Saud, recent events are even more of a humiliation. Central to the much trumpeted economic reform programme on which its future depends is the flotation of Saudi Aramco, the national oil producer, which it was hoped would reap billions that could then be ploughed into the wider structural adjustment agenda.

But the attacks of last month have shown investors that Saudi oil production is far from secure, putting the flotation in even deeper trouble than it was already.

AN ACCIDENTAL CONFLICT: For Tehran, by contrast, the policy of strategic escalation in response to the White House’s “maximum pressure” appears to have worked to some degree, having effectively posed the Trump administration the question “is this really what you want?” and received a sheepish “no” in reply.

But all this has achieved is seeing off the worst of the threat. Any concrete steps to deescalate US-Iran tensions while

Trump is in office seem vanishingly unlikely, so the chances of an accidental conflict breaking out – which in turn could develop into a devastating regional war with global repercussions - will remain on the cards for at least another 15 months.

In any event, what we are witnessing here is not the end of US hegemony in the region, but its malfunctioning. Under pressure from wider trends of domestic social liberalisation, American conservatism has gone feral, producing a president manifestly incapable of managing the global system constructed by Washington and its allies after World War Two. With his polling consistently negative and impeachment proceedings gathering pace, Trump palpably feels as though the walls are closing in, and is lashing out in more and more destructive ways.

From Syria to the Gulf – not to speak of the rest of the world - the question is the same as it was when he beat Hilary Clinton in 2016: just how much damage is this man capable of doing before he leaves office?

CARTER MALKASIAN was the senior advisor to General Joseph Dunford, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, from 2015 to 2019 and is the author of War Comes to Garmser: Thirty Years of Conflict on the Afghan Frontier.

Is Trump pulling out of the Middle East?

WHETHER THE US STRATEGY OF ‘MAXIMUM PRESSURE’ ON IRAN WAS SUPPOSED TO RESULT IN REGIME CHANGE OR A NEW DEAL, IN THE END IT HAS ACHIEVED NEITHER

Middle east eye DaviD Wearing

US President Donald Trump’s green lighting of a Turkish assault on Syria’s Kurds has rightly dominated the headlines over the past two weeks.

Less justified is some of the more breathless commentary around these events, where it is claimed that Trump has effectively handed the Middle East over to Vladimir Putin’s Russia.

The US retains a deeply structured alliance network encompassing key states from Egypt and Israel to the strategically vital Persian Gulf; an imperial presence incomparable in scope and value to Russia’s boot print in the ruins of Syria.

Even the suggestion that Trump is reducing that presence is a distorting simplification, as other recent events amply demonstrate.

Within days of Trump’s announcement of the withdrawal of under 1,000 troops from northern Syria, Washington also announced the deployment of a further 3,000 troops and additional air defence hardware to Saudi Arabia.

This comes on top of the 14,000 extra troops already sent to the wider Gulf region since May this year, on top of the pre-existing US presence, which includes an aircraft carrier strike group and nuclear-capable B-52 bombers.

What we are witnessing here is

plainly not Washington’s withdrawal from the Middle East, but more the incoherent flailing of an aggressively incompetent US president, together with the grave consequences for the region’s peoples that this inevitably entails.

TEHRAN HITS BACK: Trump’s Gulf escalation is the latest stage of a crisis in US-Iran relations entirely of the White House’s making. His withdrawal from the nuclear deal between Iran and the West in May 2018, despite Iranian compliance, was followed both by the military buildup just described and a significant ratcheting-up of economic pressure from spring this year, driven by the president’s hyper-hawkish former national security adviser, John Bolton.

After a year waiting on European mediation to resolve the crisis and break what was becoming an economic siege, the Iranian regime began to retaliate in calibrated but sharp fashion over the summer, with a series of minor but clear breaches of its commitments under the nuclear deal, along with barely deniable attacks on Gulf oil shipping.

Tehran was cut off from international capital markets and effectively prevented from exporting oil, causing its economy to shrink by around 9.5 percent and sending inflation north of 30 percent.

The spiral of escalation peaked on 20 June when Iran shot down a US drone which it claimed had violated its airspace.

When Trump ordered retaliatory air strikes, only to change his mind and call them off at the last moment, it became clear that he was not interested in using the

crisis to engineer a war for regime change, whatever Bolton’s own intentions.

The president may have hoped that economic pressure on Iran would force it to the negotiating table, handing the selfstyled dealmaker a diplomatic victory and bragging rights over Barack Obama.

But Bolton’s efforts to escalate tensions in pursuit of his own long-standing regime change agenda had created a crisis now threatening to result in a global oil shock, a major regional war, or both, thus imperilling Trump’s re-election chances.

Seemingly realising that Bolton had painted him into a corner, Trump sacked his adviser last month, at which point Tehran appears to have realised that it was winning the war of nerves.

A sophisticated and devastating attack on Saudi oil facilities followed days later, briefly knocking out 5 percent of global oil supply and causing the sharpest jump in prices for a quarter of a century.

Iran again denied responsibility, but promised huge and indiscriminate retaliation if it was attacked over the incident.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo described the attack on the Saudi facilities as an “act of war”, but no military response from the US was forthcoming.

MAXIMUM PRESSURE: Whether the US strategy of “maximum pressure” on Iran was supposed to result in regime change or a new deal, in the end it has achieved neither.

Trump’s latest deployment of troops and hardware to Saudi Arabia appears to be aimed at staunching his humiliation and that of his Saudi clients by at least deterring

David Wearing is a Teaching Fellow in International Relations at Royal Holloway, University of London and a specialist on UK foreign relations in the Middle East. He is the author of ‘AngloArabia: Why Gulf Wealth Matters to Britain’ and has contributed comment and analysis for the New York Times, the BBC, the Guardian, Sky News and others.

Thursday, 24 October, 2019

FOREIGN NEWS 07

russian forCes DepLoy at syrian borDer unDer new aCCorD AKCAKALE

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AGENCIES

USSIAN military police began patrols on part of the Syrian border Wednesday, quickly moving to implement an accord with Turkey that divvies up control of northeastern Syria. The Kremlin told Kurdish fighters to pull back from the entire frontier or else face being “steamrolled” by Turkish forces.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan echoed those warnings, saying his military would resume its offensive against Kurdish fighters if the new arrangements are not carried out.

Erdogan and Russian President Vladimir Putin reached an agreement Tuesday that would transform the map of northeast Syria, installing their forces along the border and filling the void left by the abrupt withdrawal of American troops. The Kurdish fighters, who once relied on the U.S. forces as protection from Turkey, were given a deadline of next Tuesday evening to pull back from border areas they have not already left.

Iraq, meanwhile, closed the door on the U.S. military’s attempt to keep the troops leaving Syria on its soil. Iraqi

Defense Minister Najah al-Shammari told The Associated Press that those troops were only “transiting” Iraq and would leave within four weeks, heading either to Kuwait, Qatar or the United States. Al-Shammari spoke after meeting U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper, who earlier this week had said the American forces from Syria would remain in Iraq to fight the Islamic State group. Iraqi’s military quickly said they did not have permission to do so.

The clumsy reversal underscored the blow to U.S. influence on the

China plans to replace Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam BEIJING: Beijing is drawing up a plan to remove Hong Kong’s beleaguered chief executive Carrie Lam, the Financial Times reported Wednesday, after nearly five months of pro-democracy unrest. The pro-Beijing leader has faced sustained criticism from protesters in the semi-autonomous city. So far the central government in Beijing has given its support to her and the Hong Kong police, calling the demonstrators “rioters” and condemning the violence. But according to the FT report, which quoted unnamed figures briefed on the deliberations, the Chinese government is drawing up a plan to replace her with an interim chief executive. However, sources told the newspaper that the plan would be dependent on the situation in the city first stabilising so that Beijing is not seen as giving in to violence. Lam’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the report.

Hong Kong has now been battered by 20 weeks of protests and with no political solution in sight, clashes have intensified each month.

Earlier this month, Lam — who has refused to grant any major concessions to protesters — invoked a colonial-era emergency law to ban face masks, setting off a new wave of protests and vandalism that shut down much of the city’s transport network. AGENCIES

ground in the wake of President Donald Trump’s order for U.S. troops to leave Syria. Those forces were allied to the Kurdish-led fighters for five years in the long and bloody campaign that brought down the Islamic State group in Syria.

Now a significant swath of the territory they captured is being handed over to U.S. rivals, and the Kurds have been stung at being abandoned by their allies to face the Turkish invasion launched on Oct. 9. The Kremlin pointedly referred to that abandonment as it

told the Kurds to abide by the RussianTurkish accord.

“The United States was the closest ally of the Kurds during the last few years, and in the end the U.S. ditched the Kurds and effectively betrayed them,” leaving them to fight the Turks, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, according to Russian newswires. “It’s quite obvious that if the Kurdish units don’t withdraw with their weapons then Syrian border guards and Russian military police will have to step back. And the remaining Kurdish units will be steamrolled by the Turkish army,” he said.

Turkey considers the Kurdish fighters terrorists because of their links to Kurdish insurgents in Turkey. It has demanded they retreat from the entire border region, creating a “safe zone” where Turkey could also settle some of the 3.6 million Syrian refugees on its soil.

Ankara would gain that goal under the new accord with Moscow along with the agreement last week with the U.S. that put a cease-fire in place.

Kurdish forces completed withdrawing on Tuesday from a stretch of territory 120 kilometers (75 miles) wide along the border and 30 kilometers (19 miles) deep between the towns of Ras al-Ayn and Tal Abyad.

Malaysia’s Najib clueless about millions banked in his account, lawyers say KUALA LUMPUR AGENCIES

Former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak did not know that millions of dollars transferred into his personal accounts came from scandal-linked state fund 1MDB, his lawyers said on Wednesday as prosecutors wrapped up their first case against the ex-premier.

Najib, who lost a general election last year, is facing dozens of criminal charges over allegations that $4.5 billion was stolen from 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), a state fund he co-founded in 2009. In the first case against him, Najib has pleaded not guilty to seven charges of criminal breach of trust, money laundering and abuse of power over allegations that he illegally received transfers totalling 42 million ringgit ($10 million) from SRC International, a former 1MDB unit.

Attorney-General Tommy Thomas said in his closing submissions on Tuesday that Najib acted

like an ‘emperor’ and misused his positions as prime minister, finance minister and adviser to SRC to obtain the funds.

Muhammad Shafee Abdullah, who leads Najib’s defence team, called for the case against his client to be dismissed. “We can prove that my client had no dishonesty, no knowledge that the money came from other sources other than the donation from the Arabs,” he told the court.

Najib was duped by Malaysian financier Low Taek Jho into believing that $681 million banked into his accounts in 2013 were donated by the Saudi royal family, rather than misappropriated from 1MDB as U.S. lawsuits have alleged, Muhammad Shafee said.

Najib later returned $620 million to the donor because the money was not utilized, the lawyer said. Referring to the SRC case, another defence lawyer, Farhan Read, said the alleged transfers occurred three years after the company was set up and questioned why Najib would

wait so long to secure the funds.

“In addition that he was the puppet master and emperor, it implies that he also has the gift of foresight,” Farhan said. “This puts too much on the accused, the evidence says otherwise.” Low, also known as Jho Low, faces charges in Malaysia and the United States over his alleged central role in the case. He has denied wrongdoing and his whereabouts are unknown.

Prosecutors wrapped up their case against Najib after hearing statements from 57 witnesses. A ruling on whether to acquit or call for him to enter his defence will be delivered on Nov. 11. The case has also drawn scrutiny to U.S. bank Goldman Sachs, which has been charged in Malaysia for allegedly misleading investors over bond sales of $6.5 billion that the bank helped raise for 1MDB. Malaysia has discussed a $2 billion to $3 billion settlement with Goldman Sachs, Bloomberg reported on Wednesday, quoting unnamed sources.

DeatH toLL rises to 15 as vioLenCe wraCKs CHiLe for 5tH Day SANTIAGO: Rioting, arson attacks and violent clashes wracked Chile for a fifth day Tuesday, as the government raised the death toll to 15 in an upheaval that has almost paralyzed the South American country long seen as the region’s oasis of stability. President Sebastián Piñera announced a program Tuesday night calling for modest boosts to the lowest incomes and increased taxes on the wealthiest as he sought to calm anger in the streets. About half of Chile’s 16 regions remained under an emergency decree and some were a under military curfew, the first — other than for natural disasters — imposed since the country returned to democracy in 1990 following a bloody 17year dictatorship. Unrest sparked last week when a relatively minor, less-than-4% rise in subway fares led to students jumping station turnstiles in protest. But the defiance exploded into violence Friday with demonstrators setting fire to subway stations, buses and a high-rise building.

Demonstrations escalated with wideranging demands for improvements in education, health care and wages, and spread nationwide, fueled by frustration among many Chileans who feel they have not shared in the economic advances in one of Latin America’s wealthiest nations. “I fight so that all that will end and so that all of us will have something fair,” said one protester, José Tomás López, a cook. He said he took to the streets “because I’ve seen how my mother lives, with a salary of not more than ($700 a month) to maintain my three siblings, and I know her debts and all her efforts to meet them.” Riot police used tear gas and water cannons Tuesday to break up marches by rockthrowing demonstrators in several parts of Santiago, while soldiers and police guarded other Chileans who formed long lines at supermarkets. “I’ve walked several kilometres searching for milk, but the supermarkets remain closed and neighbourhood stores have run out,” said Carmen Fuentealba, a retiree. Many stores, subway stations and banks were burned, damaged or looted during protests over the weekend, and some people have reported problems getting cash at ATMs. “It’s enough with this,” said store owner Fernando García. “They want to destroy it all. I don’t sleep at night because I fear that they’ll loot.” Shortly before the rioting broke out last week, Chile’s conservative president boasted in an interview with The Financial Times that Chile “looks like an oasis” in the region because it has a stable democracy and a balanced and growing economy that has been creating jobs and improving pay. AGENCIES

Kim orders South’s buildings at resort in North be destroyed SEOUL AGENCIES

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un ordered the destruction of South Koreanmade hotels and other tourist facilities at the North’s Diamond Mountain resort, apparently because Seoul won’t defy international sanctions and resume South Korean tours at the site.

Pyongyang’s official Korean Central News Agency said Wednesday that Kim had visited the resort and described its facilities as “shabby” and lacking national character. The report said Kim criticized North Korea’s policies pushed under his late father as too dependent on the South and vowed that the North would redevelop the site on its own.

Kim’s comments came during a prolonged freeze in relations with Seoul and are a major setback to liberal South Korean President Moon Jae-in, who met Kim three times last year while expressing ambitions to reboot inter-Korean economic engagement.

The prospects for that has dimmed amid a standstill in nuclear negotiations between Washington and Pyongyang,

which faltered after the collapse of a February summit between Kim and President Donald Trump where the Americans rejected the North’s demands for broad sanctions relief in exchange for a partial surrender of its nuclear capabilities.

The United States and North Korea resumed working-level discussions in Sweden earlier this month, but the talks broke down amid acrimony.

South Korean officials held back direct criticism on Kim’s remarks, saying they need to take a closer look at the North’s intent.

Lee Sang-min, spokesman of Seoul’s Unification Ministry, said the South will “actively defend the property rights of our people” and plans to accept any proposed talks with North Korea over the facilities.

He didn’t offer a specific answer when asked whether the South could do anything to stop the North if it begins to tear down the facilities unilaterally.

Experts are mixed on whether North Korea is really intending to independently develop tourism at Diamond Mountain or trying to dial up pressure on the South to restart the tours and upgrade the aging facilities. Tours to Diamond

Mountain were a major symbol of cooperation between the Koreas before the South suspended them in 2008 after a North Korean guard fatally shot a South Korean tourist there.

Seoul can’t restart inter-Korean economic activities without defying U.S.-led international sanctions against Py-

ongyang, which have been strengthened since 2016 when the North began speeding up its nuclear and missile tests.

Kim instructed officials to entirely remove the “unpleasant-looking facilities” built by the South after discussing the matter with South Korean officials and construct “new modern service facilities

our own way that go well with the natural scenery of Mt. Kumgang,” the KCNA said. ″(Kim) said that the buildings are just a hotchpotch with no national character at all, and that they were built like makeshift tents in a disaster-stricken area or isolation wards,” the agency said. “He made a sharp criticism of the very wrong, dependent policy of the predecessors who were going to rely on others when the country was not strong enough.”

South Korea’s government and companies have built about a dozen tourist facilities in the Diamond Mountain area to accommodate the tours that began in 1998. North Korea said it took steps to freeze and confiscate all South Korean properties at the resort in 2010 and 2011, after blaming Seoul for the continued suspension in tours.

Eerily silent now are the Kumgangsan Hotel, with its theater, karaoke room, mountain murals and crystal chandeliers, as well as the resort’s restaurants, spas and golf course. The resort drew only a fraction of the 500,000 tourists projected to come annually and it lost millions of dollars for the South Korean investors.

Thursday, 24 October, 2019

08 COMMENT

Institutions also need attention

Rule through Ordinances Are we shutting down Parliament?

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urInG a little more than a year, the PtI government has promulgated over 15 ordinances, thus subverting the core legislative duty of Parliament. Legislation through Parliament leads to a thorough discussion on a proposed bill, first at the level of the parliamentary committees and finally on the floor of the two Houses. the debate from multiple perspectives ensures that the interests of various stake holders are taken into account and possible flaws removed. an ordinance is no doubt a legal instrument. article 89 of the Constitution however requires it to be resorted to only when Parliament is not in session and a law to meet an unforeseen emergency cannot wait till the next meeting of the national assembly or senate. the President however is required to satisfy himself that circumstances exist that render it necessary to take immediate action by making and promulgating an Ordinance. the Constitution thus puts a heavy burden on the President. there is a widespread perception that the President is acting more as a party loyalist that an independent head of state, signing whatever paper is sent to him by the government, be it an Ordinance, a reference to the supreme Judicial Council or a notification to appoint eCP members favoured by the government. there is hardly any emergency requiring an urgent promulgation of the eight references cleared by the cabinet for presidential assent. One seeks an amendment to the naB Ordinane under which those facing charges of corruption worth rs50 million or more would only be entitled to be kept in ‘C-Class’ in prisons. this is seen to be clearly aimed at high-profile opposition leaders currently in jail on grounds that they have challenged in the courts. the idea is to torture them as long as they are in jail, even if they are finally cleared by the courts. the perception that the presidency is being turned into a factory for manufacturing questionable ordinances at the behest of the government could inflame tensions in the two houses and reduce the opposition’s incentive to work with the government even when there are genuine and shared interests to pursue.

Misplaced levity The PTI should be most worried about Nawaz’s and Zardari’s health

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nstead of dismissing the illness of ousted Prime Minister Mian nawaz sharif as a drama, the PtI government should be taking it seriously, for its own sake, even if not for that of Mian nawaz himself. those deriding the drastic fall in his platelets count should pay more attention to its own Punjab Health Minister, herself a doctor, who has said that the decline in his platelets count was dangerous. the PtI did not mock PPP chief asif Zardari’s being rushed to PIMs Hospital for tests, but it should also pay attention to his health.

It should be noted that both are elderly men, Mian nawaz having turned 70 last year, and Mr Zardari 66, with family and personal histories of heart disease. It should also be noted that ever since they were imprisoned, their families had been worried about their health. these fears, it now seems, are coming true. the PtI should do a coldblooded calculation of what would happen if either of these two were to pass on while in custody. While Mian nawaz has been convicted, at the moment he is being interrogated and is in naB custody for that purpose. Mr Zardari is merely a suspect. apart from the question of common justice, the PtI, being in office, should also look at the consequences for law and order of any untoward event. Irrespective of whether either is corrupt, both received large numbers of votes in the last elections, and their passing while in office might provoke some of their followers to clash with the administration. What effects that might have on market sentiment is also something the PtI would do well to calculate, especially at a time when it is trying to act as a booster for the economy. the PtI has to eschew the petty vengefulness that seems to characterise its thinking at present, and take seriously the ailments from which opposing party leaders suffer. apart from anything else, the ungracious levity shown has been as far outside our tradition of dealing with illness as is the mistreatment of prisoners. tormenting the unwell is reprehensible enough, but chortling over how maltreatment has caused illness is unseemly. the PtI leadership should act, not just to ensure proper treatment of the unwell, but to prevent over-enthusiasm in its own ranks.

Dedicated to the legacy of the late Hameed Nizami

Arif Nizami Editor Aziz-ud-Din Ahmad

Umar Aziz

Asher John

Joint Editor

Executive Editor

Deputy Editor

Lahore – Ph: 042-36300938, 042-36375965

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Institutions which lose priority are on the road to ruin MuhAMMAd ZAhid RifAt

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number of institutions have been established and created at the federal and provincial levels from time to time. such institutions are given and assigned specified and specialized tasks and responsibilities. such institutions so established and created enjoy priority from the respective federal and provincial governments. But such priority diminishes with the passage of time as Initial priorities are reduced and turned into lesser or no priorities . Institutions which start suffering from low or no priority or due attention, are seen withering away and going down the drain. their decaying state quite obviously causes great disappointment and concern among those working in such institutions. the federal and provincial governments, as the time passes, forget that such institutions also need due and proper attention to continuing working and delivering according to the assigned tasks and responsibilities. How can any institution continue working and functioning properly and efficiently when there is no priority, no attention and accountability at all.

One such national level institution which is apparently suffering from lack of due priority and attention on the part of the federal government is the Pakistan national Council of the arts (PnCa), Islamabad.

PnCa was set up in 1973 to spearhead the development of arts in Pakistan, to build a robust arts ecosystem by creating an environment conducive for the flourishing of the arts where the arts are accessible to everyone, and the artists as well as the art groups have and enjoy commitment, financial support and resources and are able to excel at home and on the world stage also.

PnCa, as per its assigned task, as such is responsible as the one and only national institution of its kind for promotion of culture, art, music, film and theatre.

Following its creation, the PnCa was placed under control of the Ministry of Culture, then after some years shifted to the Ministry of

Information, Broadcasting, national History and Literary Heritage and now is under the national History and Literary Heritage division. such shifting and change of administratively controlling ministry after every some years, only indicated lack of due priority and attention of the federal government. the incumbent Federal education Minister, who hails from Lahore, holds the additional charge of the national History and Literary Heritage division. according to the information available, he has not visited the national art Gallery/PnCa even once all these months. this is a sad reflection on his lack of interest in the art and culture as such. the First national exhibition was also held in 1973 immediately after its establishment. It was supposed to be an annual feature but unfortunately only seven exhibitions were held in the first 42 years of its existence. the 9th annual exhibition was held only in december 2017 after lapse of some 14 years.

Presently, the search for the new director General of PnCa is on, after the last director, syed Jamal shah, stepped down couple of weeks back. the national History and Literary Heritage division had announced the vacancy first on the PnCa website and then in the national newspapers. the advertisement was reportedly published in only a couple of newspapers in a hush hush manner. as a matter of fact, it should have been published in all national urdu and english dailies, since PnCa is a national art and culture institution and the interested candidates could come from any corner of the country. the advertisement itself made interesting reading, as it did not mention pointedly that the candidates applying for PnCa top slot should have adequate knowledge about visual and performing arts besides academic qualifications and experiences.

It said that the appointment would be made on contract basis for two years but the selected candidate shall cease to hold the office of the PnCa director General on attaining the age of 65 years, while the maximum age limit for the prospective candidates was 63 years. the prospective candidates, through the vacancy advertisement, were also required not

to have been convicted/declared by competent court of law/authority of any offence of moral turpitude/ undischarged insolvent/insane or of unsound mind and not to have been dismissed from any services of Pakistan. according to the reports, a former director of the PnCa Visual arts division is in the race for the PnCa top slot. she is being backed, supported and patronized by a Lahore-based relative of the Federal Minister, about 77 years old, as usual. the aspiring candidate had a troubled career before she retired in 2016. she was charge-sheeted in January 2014 on as many as 16 allegations attracting ,the major penalty of dismissal of service as she had failed to provide her educational degrees to the PnCa despite the passage of several years, and for overstaying abroad and misguiding her organization on a number of occasions.

But she was not dismissed from service as she had managed to escape all this through her connections in higher echelons of power and continued in service enjoying all privileges and benefits till her retirement finally in 2016. she is even debarred from applying for the top slot of PnCa as per the vacancy announcement provisions as such because she was only charge-sheeted and not dismissed from service consequently. However, the prevailing circumstances are in her favour as she is enjoying all the support from the official and other quarters concerned. Will she be given another chance to run and ruin the great national institutions as she had been doing while she was previously there is another big question?

Besides her, there are other people working in the PnCa who are promoting themselves at the cost of the organization by supplying official documents containing a lot of secret information to the outsiders.

Will the prime minister order an inquiry into PnCa affairs to ensure transparency, accountability and merit to which his government is committed and save the great national institution from going down the drain?

Muhammad Zahid Rifat can be reached at zahidriffat@gmail.com

Supply risk in hospitality sector With the government emphasizing tourism, its supply chain must be looked at AbdullAh JAnJuA

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n recent developments, Pakistan is becoming a hub of the tourism industry, and the government is taking many initiatives to promote it in the country. tourism is thus a burgeoning industry for our country, and many challenges lay ahead for us, which need to be addressed before this industry can attain its full potential. the hospitality industry is viewed as the core of tourism, be it be for the local or international tourist. to ensure maximum levels of satisfaction in the hospitality industry, its supply chain needs to be optimized and calibrated enough to ensure smooth, uninterrupted services. the supply chain of the hospitality industry faces many challenges and risks which shall be highlight below. the northern areas of the country are pretty enticing, and people find it very fascinating to visit them. Particular areas located at mountain tops are not well connected by road infrastructure; hence, they use animals as means of transportation of raw materials. transportation via animals is slow, which leads to longer lead times; also, the ingredients (especially for food) are more prone to getting spoiled if not transported under suitable conditions. since the tourists require the best quality and services, the industry cannot risk running out of stock. therefore, large quantities are supplied and stocked, making them incur more expense to accommodate the high demand. since these are perishable items and due to the harsh conditions if it is not appropriately managed, then you have effectively wasted the investment if they are not demanded. Furthermore, the packaging needs to be biodegradable to preserve the beauty of the land, and a focus on a green supply chain is needed. the lack of cooked food encourages tourists to bring their food and snacks, which results in littering at these areas.

Karachi – Ph: 021-35381208-9

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economic instability also impacts the sup- the companies destroy large shipments of meat ply chain of the country. due to price fluctua- if the freezers break down or there is a break in tions of daily consumable items, it becomes electricity suplly due to due to loadshedding. difficult to negotiate with the suppliers. Con- similarly, the suppliers of meat have to ensure tracts need to be more flexible to cater to price that their transpiration units have the approprifluctuation as prices cannot be fixed for a more ate equipment to meet up with long delivery extended period. In case of war threat or tense routes. Furthermore, during the eid season relations with the neighboring countries, the many suppliers do not provide the demanded food items that are being imported are af- meat to the industry as their tier 1 supplier sells the animals in the markets fected. the same is the for eid. Many times the case in the event of a natanimals are exported out ural disaster. the agriculof the country which reture and dairy sector takes sults in supply issue for a blow which results in Wherever there is an the hospitality sector. lower supply and higher We live in a digital prices. opportunity there will be world, where word of Global climate change risks and challenges. mouth travels fast, primais resulting in a change in through the social weather which ultimately There is a lot of potential rily media platform. Many affects the seasonal fruits. times the competitors sabMany hospitality indusin Pakistan hospitality otage the market and suptries have seasonal dishes industry and most of it is pliers. a very famous case on their menu and to enbe that in australia sure their standards they untapped. With passage would a woman took pictures of a use high-quality fruit. due which she claimed to variation in climate, the of time and induction of needle to have found in the strawquality fruit does not remain longer, as a result ornewer technology, supply berries she purchased. as a result and out of fear from ganizations are required to chain will be optimized the government, many disexclude the dishes due to destroyed their non-availability of quality and risks associated with tributors strawberry stock later only fruit.

Food, and in particular hospitality will be reduced to find out that it was just fake news. this resulted in meat, is a very core ingremore demand and less supdient which is exposed to ply, hence making way for many risks if not properly a few suppliers to take handled. the meat itself is an organic substance, and many microorgan- over the market.

Wherever there is an opportunity there will isms are already present it in. they can grow inside the carcass if it is not correctly kept. to be risks and challenges. there is a lot of potenensure optimal levels of high quality, tempera- tial in Pakistan hospitality industry and most of ture freezers are used, which are very expen- it is untapped. With passage of time and inducsive. If such a facility is not present for the tion of newer technology, supply chain will be meat, its quality will deteriorate rapidly and optimized and risks associated with hospitality could result in health issues for the consumer. will be reduced.

Islamabad – Ph: 051-2204545

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Web: www.pakistantoday.com.pk

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Email: editorial@pakistantoday.com.pk

Thursday, 24 October, 2019

COMMENT 09 Editor’s mail K-Electric - Hopeless customer support

Send your letters to: Letters to Editor, Pakistan today, 4-Shaarey Fatima Jinnah, Lahore, Pakistan.

E-mail: letters@pakistantoday.com.pk Letters should be addressed to Pakistan today exclusively

I had the opportunity to visit an IB in Malir area for change of name on the K-electric bill which after almost 4 hours of struggle and wait finally went through with a receipt given. this month the bill came with a rs. 20,740/- deposit added to bill and no change of name done for which the whole exercise was done. Customer care and billing complaints emails provided 6 days to answer this query asking to visit the IB for such matters. I am simply appalled on a company making rs 38billion profit from the customers over billings and such deposits without adjusting the deposit from previous owner and in turn giving no such services at the comfort of customer emailing or phone calls and wanted them to go through hell visiting their IBs for such matters. authorities to correct this mentality of their support staff and make living better for customers.

SyEd FaRHan QadRi Karachi

Pakistan’s diplomatic powers

Maulana’s Azadi March Things come full circle for the PTI ZAEEM MuMtAZ bhAtti

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LL across the third World, it is debated that there is always a tug of war going on between the two limbs of the establishment: the civil establishment and miltablishment. they wage a secret battle against each other, attempting to gain an upper hand over the other. the proponents of democracy argue that democracy is not allowed to flourish freely, let alone take roots.

On the other hand, it is argued that politicians are generally power-hungry and corrupt. they accumulate massive wealth at the cost of the common man and sacrifice the national interests at the altar of corruption and nepotism. they cannot be allowed free rein. It goes without saying that in guided democracies, the fundamental rights often suffer setbacks. What to talk of third World countries, us President donald trump often complains that the us establishment thwarts his ambitions and policies. His hunch is that it is behind the launching of the impeachment inquiry against him and is intent on ousting him from power. amidst the Panama scandal, the long march and dharna by the PtI and Pat, Imran Khan came to power riding on a wave of populism. the PtI’s rallying cry was to nip corruption in the bud. Opposition parties rejected the whole election outright and termed it “a soft coup” and an outcome of “election engineering”. the JuI(F) was more vociferous in its protest than other parties. Maulana Fazal-ur-rehman tried his level best to prevail upon them to support him to make a bid to topple the government.

However, at the time, the PML(n) and the PPP could not be persuaded, and they decided to sit in Parliament, lest democracy should suffer.

It goes without saying that the PtI inflated and raised expectations of the man in the street, who considered Imran Khan a panacea for their ills and troubles. It is a pity that the ruling party has miserably failed to deliver on any of its promises during the 14-month of its rule. It has virtually made a mess of the economy.

October is a month marked by revolutions, turbulence and disruptions. If we go back in time, this month left indelible marks on the political history of Pakistan. the first Martial Law in Pakistan was imposed on 7 October 1958, in which the nascent Constitution of Pakistan, 1956 was abrogated, thereby opening the way for future military autocratic rule. It is one of the myriad reasons that democracy failed to fully take root in Pakistan. the fourth coup d’état in Pakistan occurred on 12 October 1999, suspending the Constitution and overthrowing the civilian government of Mian Muhammad nawaz sharif.

Interestingly, Maulana Fazal-ur-rehman also chose the month of October for achieving his ambitions, announcing he would carry out a long March towards Islamabad on October 27.

When the government taunted him for choosing

this date deliberately to downplay the impor- ercised restraint even in the face of provocation. tance of the Black day to be observed against the 2011 attack in swabi district on Maulana’s the forced occupation of Indian-held Kashmir, possession is a case in point, when 26 of his he had to readjust his plan. He announced that companions were martyred. after observing the Black day, his party would However that may be, a bare perusal of arstart marching the very same day, arriving at Is- ticle 256 would reveal that JuI(F) does not by lamabad on October 31. Initially, the PPP any stretch of imagination fall within the exdithered, but on second thoughts, has decided on pression of a “private organization capable of throwing its full weight behind the Maulana. functioning as a military organization”, exposthe PML(n) appears to be divided on the issue. ing it to punitive action by the state. apparently, nawaz sharif in his letter, presumably authored JuI(F) members are not armed to the teeth and

by Pervaiz rasheed, quite unambiguously ex- there is not a chain of command that is inherent pressed his intention to join forces with the for the functioning of the military. should the Maulana. and yet, shahbaz sharif continued to government pay heed to its advisers, it would hum and haw. He seemed in two minds about land itself in a legal mess. Besides, its actions joining the cause, probably out of the fear that would be viewed with skepticism. the already fledgling democracy might take a hit to sum up, things have come full circle. and ultimately be derailed, the PtI, headed by should there be any bloodImran Khan, and Pat by shed. Of late, he has antahirul Qadri, marched nounced to take part in the on Islamabad and held a azadi March of Maulana sit-in spanning 126 days Since the Maulana Fazal-ur-rehman for the in 2014 against the then day of 31 October. Yet, he ruling party, the PML(n). is determined to fulfil fell short of announcing during that period, the his mission, any his wholehearted support country witnessed its to the proposed dharna. tumbled down, obstruction or disruption economy needless to say, it is one PtV attacked and clothes thing to eat one’s cake and hung outside the supreme caused to his quite another to have it.

Court and Parliament. procession could However, shahbaz sharif the proponents of the wishes to have it both JuI(F) argue that now it lead to disastrous ways: to reap the benefits does not lie in the mouth and to avert the conseof the PtI to turn around consequences, which quences. It is widely held and call the long march that the PML(n) joined and sit-in an attempt to would not augur well the long march of the upend democracy. they for democracy, the lawyers’ movement for also maintain that they the restoration of judiciary are well within their funeconomy and the in 2008 at the 11th hour, damental rights enshrined in the Constitution under when nawaz sharif sesurvival of Pakistan articles 15 and 16 to uncured assurances from fordertake a long march and mer Chief of army staff, stage a sit-in. the oppoGen ashfque Pervez nents are trying to find Kiyani.

Quite recently, a video of JuI(F) went viral, hidden hands, in the belief that the Maulana is in which uniformed members could be seen a mere cog in the machine, or at best an “agent holding batons, indicating their preparation for of change”. regardless of the motives attriba showdown with the security forces. Criticism uted to the Maulana, Imran Khan is hoist with is being heaped on the Maulana that he has a his own petard. the Maulana is simply giving private militia with an agenda to topple the gov- Imran Khan a dose of his own medicine. Howernment. and under article 256 of the Consti- ever, the apologists of the PtI don’t see eye to tution, it is illegal and unconstitutional to do so. eye with this by coming up with the countertherefore, the government should consider ban- argument that this time around both security esning the JuI(F), taking a cue from article 17(2) tablishment and civil establishment are on the of the Constitution read with the Political Par- same page. However, they appear to be oblivities Order, 2002. On the other hand, the ous to the political history of Pakistan. since the Maulana is determined to fulfil Maulana is of the view that the role of the guards is spelled out in the manifesto of the his mission, any obstruction or disruption JuI(F), and has never been objected to by the caused to his procession could lead to disaselection Commission of Pakistan. as for the trous consequences, which would not augur baton-carrying members of JuI(F), they would well for democracy, the economy and the surswing into action only when someone attempts vival of Pakistan. to disrupt its procession violently. In order to Zaeem Mumtaz Bhatti is a lawyer based in buttress their contentions, JuI(F) leaders have contended that never before have these baton- Lahore. He tweets at @zaeem8825. He can be carrying jawans indulged in violence. they ex- contacted at zaeem.bhatti89@gmail.com.

PaKIstan seems to play pivot diplomatic roles in the region. realizing the fact that there is no military solution to the afghanistan conflict, united states of america (usa) called for Pakistan to mediate the talks with afghan-taliban.

In response, Pakistan took this regional responsibility immediately amid hopes of establishing peaceful and prosperous relations with usa and afghanistan. eventually, Pakistan hosted an afghan-taliban delegation in Islamabad with the agenda to resume us-taliban talks, which was appreciated by world leadership at large.

Moreover, Khan’s leadership is ready to mediate the hotbubbling relations between saudi arabia and Iran, which can clearly be seen from his recent quick visits to Iran and saudi arabia. also, it is greatly important to highlight here that during every visit to any country, Kashmir issue took its place in the discussion. strategically, Pakistan strives to attain regional peace and stability. In addition, it would help Pakistan furnish its regional diplomatic importance and regain the trust of usa that would definitely result in high moral and monetary cooperation from us side. also, it would strengthen the relationships of Pakistan with other Muslim countries, in particular. Hopefully, Pakistan would find some diplomatic ways in coming future to raise its voice for the syrian and Palestinian Muslims!

FaHad KHan nauddero

Welcome to Pakistan! tHe duke and duchess of Cambridge met President arif alvi and Prime Minister Imran Khan in Islamabad on tuesday as part of their ongoing tour of the country. a guard of honour was presented to Prince William and Kate Middleton as they reached Pakistan. the royal couple will visit along with their three children on an official tour, which is expected to repair Pakistan’s international image a great deal. Over the course of the visit, Prince William and wife Kate Middleton will meet a wide variety of people, including children and young people, leaders from government, business and the charity sector, inspiring conservationists, and well-known cultural figures and sporting stars. the royal couple were greeted by PM Imran at his residence and met President alvi at aiwan-e-sadr. the trip was the first of its kind undertaken by any member of the British royal family to Pakistan in 13 years. we Pakistani welcome you with the core of over hearts. aRooJ MaLiK Lahore

Cricket woes Our cricket team despite its share of errors and issues won the OdI series against the sri Lanka team. However, we lost badly to same sL squad in the t20 series, which apparently is our stronger forte. We as a nation were disappointed and took out our anger at the team management and players for this dismal showing in the t20s. We forget that victory is not a matter of chance but of choice. One off win can be a matter of pure talent clicking or chance, but to consistently showing top performance, the team and the management must be on the same page. there must be unity and synergy among players and understanding between team and management. the best way to achieve such harmony, synergy and professionalism is to stop political interference in professional sports. unfortunately, in our country, we destroyed hockey due to such political interference and now are set to do the same to cricket. In the past, the head of PCB were always and still are appointed by the political governments, which leads to favoritism compromising merit and performance. When PMLn removed the PPP appointed chairman PCB, replacing one political person with another, the matter landed in court. the current government continued the trend of appointment of chairman by the PM. However, the only difference is that the PM chose someone who has relevant experience and background. still the process is compromised and not good for developing a strong professional team in the long run. In addition, our players have not had the chance of playing international cricket at home for ten years now. this is a huge setback, that not only diminished players’ morale, but also limits the amount of crick our teams get to play at international level. the Prime Minister needs to establish contacts with old players of his time of other countries and seek their help in bringing International Cricket in Pakistan.

RaJa SHaFaatuLLaH islamabad

Thursday, 24 October, 2019

10 FOREIGN NEWS

uk prime minister mulls early election over Brexit impasse LONDON

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AGENCIES

RITISH Prime Minister Boris Johnson was weighing Wednesday whether to push for an early election or try again to pass his stalled European Union divorce deal, after Parliament blocked a fast-track plan to approve his Brexit bill before the U.K.’s scheduled departure from the bloc on Oct. 31.

Lawmakers backed the substance of Johnson’s divorce deal in principle late Tuesday but rejected the government’s plan to fast-track the legislation through Parliament in a matter of days, saying it didn’t provide enough time for scrutiny.

The government is now waiting for the EU’s response to its request for a three-month extension to the Brexit dead-

line. European Council President Donald Tusk said in a tweet that because of Tuesday’s votes in London he would recommend that the other 27 EU nations grant Britain a delay to its departure to avoid a chaotic no-deal exit in just eight days.

European Parliament President David Sassoli echoed that sentiment, saying that European leaders should accept the Brexit extension because that will “allow the United Kingdom to clarify its position and the European Parliament to exercise its role.” But in London on Wednesday, talk quickly shifted to holding an early election. British Justice Secretary Robert Buckland told the BBC that Parliament’s failure to break the logjam means “we are left with the option of a general election … That seems to me to be the only way to break this impasse.” Britain’s next scheduled election is in 2022. If Johnson

wants an early election, he needs to win a vote in Parliament to call for an election or lose a no-confidence vote, which so far opposition parties have refused to call.

The main opposition Labour Party, whose leader Jeremy Corbyn met with the prime minister on Wednesday, said it would “support a general election when the threat of a no-deal crash-out is off the table.” But some lawmakers urged Johnson to push on with the passage of the Brexit bill, saying it could pass if lawmakers had time to study it properly.

“I would have thought it can be done in a matter of weeks,” said Labour lawmaker Richard Burgon. Johnson won a major parliamentary victory on Tuesday when lawmakers in principle backed his Brexit plan, voting 329-299 to pass a bill to implement the divorce agreement that Johnson struck with the EU last week.

WASHINGTON AGENCIES

39 people found dead in truck container in southeast england

LONDON: Police in southeastern England said 39 people were found dead Wednesday inside a large cargo truck believed to have come from Bulgaria. The truck, which is said to have entered Britain via the Welsh port of Holyhead on Saturday, was found by ambulance workers at Waterglade Industrial Park in Grays, a town just by the River Thames around 25 miles (40 km) east of central London. “This is a tragic incident where a large number of people have lost their lives. Our enquiries are ongoing to establish what has happened,” Essex Police Chief Superintendent Andrew Mariner said.

“We are in the process of identifying the victims, however, I anticipate that this could be a lengthy process.” A 25-year-oldman from Northern Ireland who was driving the truck has been arrested on suspicion of murder. He remains in custody.

He has not been charged or identified. A cordon has been put in place and access to and from the industrial park remains closed.

“We are working with Thurrock Council (the local authority) to mitigate against any impact our investigation scene will have locally.” Mariner said. Prime Minister Boris Johnson pledged in a tweet to work closely with Essex Police to establish exactly what happened. “My thoughts are with all those who lost their lives & their loved ones,” he said. Police have not formally linked the deaths to people trafficking but a link is assumed because of the way the victims were crammed into the truck container. The tragedy recalls the death of 58 migrants in 2000 in a truck in Dover and the deaths in 2015 of 71 migrants from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan found suffocated in the back of a refrigerated truck abandoned in the emergency lane of a highway near Parndorf, Austria, close to the Hungarian border. Smaller numbers of migrants have occasionally been found dead in trucks in Britain in recent years. Bulgarian authorities said they could not yet confirm that the truck had started its journey from Bulgaria. “We are in contact with our embassy in London and with British authorities,” foreign ministry spokeswoman Tsvetana Krasteva said.

Jackie Doyle-Price, who represents Thurrock in parliament, said in a tweet that “people trafficking is a vile and dangerous purpose … Let’s hope they bring these murderers to justice.” AGENCIES

Facebook Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg is again appearing before Congress to face questions about his company’s massive market power, privacy lapses and tolerance of speech deemed false or hateful.

Zuckerberg has been summoned to testify at a hearing on Wednesday by the House Financial Services Committee on Facebook’s plan to create a global digital currency, which has stirred opposition from lawmakers and regulators in the United States and Europe. But the full range of policies and conduct of the social media giant with nearly 2.5 billion users will be under the public glare.

It’s the Facebook chief’s first testimony to Congress since April 2018.

The company seems to spark public and official anger at every turn these days, from its shift into messaging services that allow encrypted conversations to its alleged anti-competitive behaviour to its refusal to take down phoney political ads or doctored videos.

Lawmakers from both parties and top regulators including Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell have criticised Facebook’s plan for the new currency, to be called Libra. They warn that it could be used for an illicit activity such as money laundering or drug trafficking.

Rep. Maxine Waters, the California Democrat who heads the Financial Services panel, this summer asked Facebook to not move forward with the currency and a digital wallet called Calibra that would be used with it.

Waters has called Libra “a new Swiss-based financial system” that potentially is too big to fail and could require a taxpayer bailout.

Several high-profile companies that had signed on as partners in Facebook’s governing association for

But minutes later, legislators rejected his fast-track timetable by a vote of 322-308, saying they needed more time to scrutinize the bill. Without speedy passage of the bill, Britain won’t be able to make an orderly exit from the bloc on Oct. 31, a central vow of Johnson’s three-month-old Conservative administration.

House of Commons leader Jacob Rees-Mogg conceded Tuesday that “it is very hard to see how it is possible” to leave the EU with a deal on Oct. 31.

Johnson had grudgingly asked the EU to delay Brexit to comply with a law passed by Parliament ordering the government to postpone Britain’s departure rather than risk the economic damage that

could come from a no-deal exit.

All 27 other EU leaders must agree to an extension, which would be the third time Britain’s departure date has been postponed. Johnson has not abandoned his Brexit deal, which sets out the terms of Britain’s departure from the EU after almost five decades of membership. It will form the centrepiece of his Conservative Party’s campaign if there is an early election. Johnson hopes an election will give his Conservatives a majority in Parliament so he can push through his plans. “One way or another, we will leave the EU with this deal to which this House has just given its assent,” Johnson told lawmakers after Tuesday’s votes.

Zuckerberg appears in Congress as Facebook faces scrutiny

Libra have recently bailed, spelling a potentially rough road for the project. But many experts don’t believe it’s doomed.

Zuckerberg, in written testimony prepared for the hearing, aimed to reassure lawmakers that his company won’t try to evade financial regulators as it readies Libra. Facebook “will not be a part of launching the Libra payments system anywhere in the world unless all US regulators approve it,” he said. That’s a stronger statement than Facebook official David Marcus made to Congress in July when he said the company will not activate Libra until it has “fully

addressed regulatory concerns and received appropriate approvals”. Marcus leads the Libra project.

Zuckerberg is striving to defend Libra and alleviate concerns that the currency could sidestep regulators. Analysts say Libra could avoid regulation and launch in countries where it’s not getting pushback, but this doesn’t appear to be Facebook’s intention.

Instead, Zuckerberg is pushing an optimistic vision of Libra and what it could mean for people around the world who don’t have access to bank accounts. While some critics see the recent exodus of some Libra partners as evidence of the plan’s likely failure, US regulators appear to view it as enough of a threat that they are considering the possibility of the Fed launching its own competitor currency.

“At the Federal Reserve, we will continue to analyse the potential benefits and costs of central bank digital currencies, and look forward to learning from other central banks,” Lael Brainard, a member of the Fed’s board of governors, said in a speech last week.

There is concern among regulators that the massive reserve created with money used to buy the new currency could supplant the Fed and destabilise the financial system, and that consumers could be hurt by Libra losses.

Zuckerberg also played the China card in his remarks, urging regulators to act quickly.

“While we debate these issues, the rest of the world isn’t waiting. China is moving quickly to launch similar ideas in the coming months,” he said.

Raising voter fears helped Trudeau to victory in Canada

OTTAWA AGENCIES

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau pulled off a second consecutive election win on Monday with a late change in tactics designed to scare progressive voters who showed signs of abandoning Liberal candidates, four Liberal campaign sources said.

As polls indicated he could lose, Trudeau ditched his “sunny ways” per-

sona that had swept him to power in 2015 and started hammering away at three smaller parties on the left, warning their supporters that if they didn’t vote Liberal, the progressive vote would splinter and allow the opposition Conservatives to take power.

During the last two weeks of the campaign, Trudeau repeatedly told supporters that voting for the rival New Democrats, Bloc Quebecois and Greens would result in a progressive opposi-

CMYK

tion, not a progressive government.

“We’re doing this because it works,” one Liberal official said of the strategy as the campaign reached its climax last week. He and the three other Liberal aides and strategists in this story declined to be named because they were not authorized to discuss campaign strategy. Rival parties lately complained about what they saw as fear-mongering by Trudeau, who won a healthy minority and should be safe for the next two years.

“The Liberals like to talk progressive, but they govern conservative,” Jagmeet Singh, leader of the New Democrats, said on Oct 15. “I want people to dream big. Don’t settle for less.”

Former Liberal prime minister Paul Martin used the same fear-inspiring technique in the last week of 2004 election, during which he managed to fight off a challenge from the Conservatives.

“It’s absolutely a legitimate strategy by people who want to drive votes toward them based on fear of the worst result,” said Tim Murphy, who was Martin’s chief of staff at the time.

Former Liberal deputy prime minister John Manley said Monday’s results in the populous province of

Ontario, where the party held onto virtually all of its seats, showed the tactic had worked. Support for the New Democrats, seen as a major left-leaning challenger in some seats, fell markedly in the last few days, allowing Trudeau to stay in power, he noted.

“You’d rather people voted enthusiastically for you rather than against someone else, but at the end of the day, who won?” Manley said in a phone interview.

Neither the Liberal nor Conservative campaign spokespeople were immediately available for comment.

The victory was all the more remarkable because Liberal campaign officials had heard from the first day about deep dissatisfaction with Trudeau from long-time supporters.

Trudeau came into the campaign trying to shake off the effects of an ethics scandal and ran into further problems when photos emerged of him wearing black face.

“Some people are telling me ‘Normally I would vote for you, but a vote for you is a vote for (Trudeau) and I’m not voting for him come hell or high water’,” said one Liberal legislator who declined to be named.

Thursday, 24 October, 2019

businEss 11

FBR pRoposes imposition oF tuRnoveR tax in seZs

CORPORATE CORNER

ISLAMABAD GHUlAM ABBAS

ISLAMABAD: Soheil Zali has been appointed as the new Chief Executive Officer of Tradewind Pakistan. PRESS RElEASE

KARACHI: The First MicroFinanceBank Limited-Pakistan (FMFB-P) collaborated with Saeeda Mandviwalla of TONI&GUY Karachi to provide vocational training, mainly entrepreneurial and leadership skills, to beauty parlour owners and technicians. PRESS RElEASE

t

HE Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has proposed the imposition of a turnover tax on those investing in Special Economic Zones (SEZs), Pakistan Today has learnt.

Sources said in order to impose 1.5pc turnover tax, the revenue board has proposed amendments in the existing 'Special Economic Zones Act, 2012', which offered the investors exemption from taxes for 10 years.

"The FBR's move has caused worry among the investors who have already purchased land and are setting up their units in the zones," sources said. "FBR Chairman Shabbar Zaidi fears that the zero tax in SEZs may facilitate tax avoiders."

According to insiders, the Board of Investment (BoI) had earlier agreed to "no turnover

tax" for export-oriented companies in SEZs. However, FBR is still reluctant to leave the tax.

Currently, the FBR, BoI and the Ministry of Planning, with an aim to lure foreign investors, are finalising an "incentive package" for the SEZs. Since the FBR is concerned about losses in revenue, it is reportedly opposing tax exemptions to investors in the economic zones.

According to sources, in a recent consultative meeting between the above-mentioned par-

ties, the FBR had stated that in case a complete exemption is given to all those firms investing in the SEZs, there could be issues related to revenue and competitiveness in the country.

Despite the reluctance on the part of FBR, the BoI, under the proposed relief package to SEZs, had proposed no turnover tax for export companies; 25pc corporate tax exemption for 35 years (if exports are more than 75pc of gross revenue); no income tax for expatriates till 2040 and 100pc tax exemption on locally- sourced raw material used for export/import substitution sectors.

However, after the consultative meeting, it was decided that the FBR would share its response after internal consultation with the taxation wing.

According to sources, major investors in SEZs may react in case the government introduces any tax or duty against the earlier announced act.

Moody’s finds telco regulations in Pakistan politicised, unpredictable ISLAMABAD STAFF REPORT

ISLAMABAD: In an effort to raise awareness about breast cancer, Ufone collaborated with Pink Ribbon Pakistan to organise an informative session at its headquarters. PRESS RE l E A S E

'FBR CHAIRMAN SHABBAR ZAIDI FEARS THAT COMPLETE TAX EXEMPTION IN SPECIAL ECONOMIC ZONES MAY FACILITATE TAX AVOIDERS'

The Investor Service of Moody’s Corporation – a financial services company – in its latest report about telcos said that regulations in the telecommunication sector of Pakistan are “less predictable and often politicised”. Drawing parallels between South Asian countries, the report stated that in Singapore, Indonesia and Malaysia, the regulations are stable and predictable, while in Thailand, India, Bangladesh and Pakistan, they are much less so.

“In Pakistan, there has been a history of government-enforced network closures (now declared illegal) for security reasons and the imposition of withholding taxes,” the report

noted. “In a number of South and Southeast Asian countries, the dividends that telecommunication companies pay to their government owners represent a greater cash drain than spectrum payments. However, the direct ownership of telecommunication by the Pakistani government is negligible which means that the dividends being paid to the government are also negligible.”

The report stated that while spectrum payments in governmentrun auctions are higher in absolute terms, on a relative basis dividends account for a larger percentage of aggregate revenue for telcos in several countries.

“Government-owned incumbent telcos in Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia pay the highest divi-

dends to their respective governments, while privately-owned telcos in India, Thailand and Bangladesh pay more in spectrum auctions,” said Moody’s Vice President Nidhi Dhruv.

The report also said that there is an inverse relationship between spectrum payments and dividend payments to the government, which in turn translates the governments being the key beneficiary either way. At the same time, regulatory frameworks in the countries where telcos pay high dividends are generally stable and predictable, which means that the telco companies that pay higher amounts to the government also reap certain benefits in the form of regulatory support.

On the financial side, high capital

spending, dividends and spectrums have resulted in neutral or negative free cash flow for telcos in the region, the report highlighted. “Moody’s expects these trends to continue through at least 2021, and does not expect the telcos will be able to generate enough cash to pay down debt and reduce their elevated leverage.”

For Pakistan, the report labelled free cash flow to be neutral.

The report said that despite the pressures of higher dividends and spectrum payments, the telcos still have flexibility in certain areas. “Telcos have flexibility to cut back on dividends to shareholders to conserve cash. They have limited flexibility to cut back on capital spending given the intense competition in the industry. And they have no flexibility on spectrum prices and cannot reduce the amount of spectrum they purchase without reducing their network quality. In addition, operators must meet their annual spectrum payment obligations in order to use that spectrum they purchased in government-run auctions.”

MarKEt Daily LAHORE: Haleeb Foods once again joined hands with Shaukat Khanum Memorial Hospital (SKMH) to organise an awareness session for its female workforce and family members. PRESS RElEA S E

Stocks extend rally, KSE-100 ends 247 points higher KARACHI STAFF REPORT

ISLAMABAD: Oxfam and Hashoo Foundation recently partnered to launch the ‘Women Entrepreneurship Development’ project to address the country’s plastic bag pollution crisis and to explore sustainable solutions to counter its effects. PR E S S R E l E A S E

Investors of the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) witnessed a positive trading session on Wednesday, as indices remained in the green zone all day long amid improved volumes.

Foreign investors remained net buyers for the fourth consecutive session on Tuesday, buying shares worth $1.85 million.

Gaining 440.80 points, the benchmark KSE100 Index marked its intraday high at 33,639.76.

It closed higher by 240.73 points at 33,439.69.

The KMI-30 Index surged by 589.96 points to settle at 54,092.83, while the KSE All Share Index accumulated 209.64 points, ending at 24,304.12. Out of the total traded shares, 180 advanced, 118 declined, while the value of 16 re-

mained unchanged.

The overall trading volumes improved from 83.59 million in the previous session to 116.94 million. Worldcall Telecom (WTL 0.98pc), Lotte Chemical Pakistan Limited (LOTCHEM -0.12pc) and Quice Food Industries Limited (QUICE +12.31pc) led the volume chart. The scripts had exchanged 12.56 million shares, 6.77 million shares and 6.65 million shares respectively.

Sectors that helped the index stay in green included oil and gas exploration (+95.55 points), Fertiliser (+52.27 points) and banking (+44.33 points). Among the companies, Engro Corporation Limited (ENGRO +41.54 points), Oil and Gas Development Company Limited (OGDC +29.94 points) and MCB Bank Limited (MCB +28.19 points) remained the top contrib-

utors to the index.

The refinery sector added 3.05pc to its cumulative market capitalization. Pakistan Refinery Limited (PRL +6.52pc), Byco Petroleum Pakistan Limited (BYCO +3.57pc) and National Refinery Limited (NRL +2.24pc) closed with decent gains.

Rafhan Maize Products Limited (RMPL +2.78pc) announced earnings per share of Rs156.49 for the third quarter of FY19 (Rs131.01 in 3QFY18) along with an interim cash dividend of Rs100. Power giants Lalpir Power Limited (LPL +0.53pc) declared an EPS of Rs1.35 for 3QFY19 (Rs0.22 in 3QFY18), Pakgen Power Limited (PKGP +2.35pc) announced an EPS of Rs2.10 (Rs0.22 in 3QFY18) and Nishat Power Limited (NPL 0.00pc) posted an EPS of Rs3.78 (Rs2.78 in 3QFY18).

Engro suggests radical reforms to make fertiliser subsidy equitable LAHORE ABDUllAH NIAZI

Engro Fertilizers has urged the government to focus on creating a smart, pointed subsidy system for fertilisers that would benefit agriculturists most in need of the subsidy.

At a closed-door media meeting in Lahore, Engro Fertilizer Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Imran Ahmad presented suggestions for the government on how to enact an equitable fertiliser subsidy that would be of use to the poorest farmers who need it the most.

"Today I am here not to present Engro's case or list the ways in which we are being wronged or hurt by the govern-

ment's actions, but rather to make an appeal for small farmers who are the backbone of our agrarian economy," he told the meeting.

The Engro CFO pointed to the fact that 52pc of the farmland in Pakistan is owned by big landlords, who make up a mere 10pc of total farmers according to the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS).

Furthermore, the remaining 90pc of the farmers who hold 48pc of the agricultural land in Pakistan have landholdings that are less than 12.5 acres in size.

The large land gap that exists in Pakistan would mean that any across the board effort to decrease the price of fertilisers would benefit the big landholders in Pakistan.

In their presentation, Engro suggested that the best possible way to enact a subsidy would be to create a smart subsidy based on the size of landholding.

"Currently, the government spends Rs44 billion ($300 million) on the import of Urea and LNG. Even after the Urea is imported, since the government cannot compete with the prices of the local manufacturers, it subsidises the commodity across the board, causing Rs21 billion hit to the fiscal deficit. This is money that can be spent much more wisely through smart subsidy.”

He lauded the government for initiating 13 projects worth Rs240 billion in the agricultural sector. “However, it needs to implement the plan presented in NFIS.”

According to Engro's calculations, if Rs44 billion being spent on fertilizer import is used smartly, the government could even provide free urea to the smallest, poorest farmers in the agricultural diaspora. Farmers that own holdings up to 5 acres can get free urea in this money, and if the ceiling is increased to holdings of up to 12.5 acres, the government could provide urea at a discount of Rs860 at Rs1,180 per bag compared to the Rs2,040 per bag it is currently going for.

If the import is stopped and the local industry is allowed to manufacture at full capacity, it could not only more than fulfil the demand, but even an across the board subsidy would mean a fall in urea per bag prices by around Rs360.

"However this is not what we want.

We want the full benefit to go to the poorest farmers, and they are who I am here to talk about today," the CFO said. "These are our customers at the end of the day, and we have to look out for them."

The smart subsidy system being encouraged by Engro would be a stickerbased subsidy mechanism, executed through a web portal which would enable fertiliser marketing companies to generate unique codes for their products. Under this system, farmers could redeem 25 bags per CNIC and the remaining subsidy proceeds could be dispersed into the farmers' easy paisa account. The system has already been quite successfully implemented for phosphates in Punjab.

Thursday, 24 October, 2019

12 businEss 'Govt’s reforms to strengthen economy, boost investors' confidence' ISLAMABAD

as pm Hails eConomiC team, laRGe-sCale manuFaCtuRinG Continues to sHRink ISLAMABAD

STAF REPORT

Planning, Development & Reform Minister for Makhdoom Khusro Bakhtiar has said that the incumbent government's recent reform measures will strengthen the country's economy, noting that investors' confidence is rebounding as the economy has embarked towards growth. The minister was talking to Australian High Commissioner Dr Geoffrey Shaw in Islamabad on Wednesday. Planning Secretary Zafar Hasan was also present during the meeting. Discussing the bilateral relations and foreign investment in various sectors of Pakistan, especially in Gwadar, Bakhtiar said that the ongoing phase of the China Pakistan Economic Corridor will bring about socio-economic benefits for the people.

He maintained that the corridor offers enormous potential to boost the national economy and reduce poverty, adding that the CPEC's second phase would focus on poverty alleviation, agriculture and industrial cooperation. The minister informed the Australian high commissioner about the steps taken by the government for the welfare of the people. "The government is focusing on the promotion of ICT, artificial intelligence, tourism and agriculture," he added. Bakhtiar said that the development of less-developed areas is among the top priorities of the government. "Therefore, we have put in more resources for the marginalized areas of Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, southern Punjab and interior Sindh." High Commissioner Dr Geoffrey Shaw expressed pleasure at the government's emphasis on socio-economic welfare of the people and for making interventions to achieve sustained economic growth and development. He said that Pakistan and Australia can expand the scope of bilateral relations by cooperating in various sectors.

Huawei launches foldable phone in China SHENZHEN

C

GHUlAM ABBAS

ONTRARY to Prime Minister Imran Khan's claims that his "economic team has turned around the national economy", the large-scale manufacturing (LSM) in the country is continuously showing a worrisome decline, which may result in massive layoffs in the industrial sector.

After a slight improvement in the sector during January, February and March, the LSM industry is continuously witnessing a fall, resulting in more cuts in jobs and reduction in production across the country.

The LSM output shrank for the ninth month in a row, as its index dipped by 7.06 per cent in the second month (August) of the current fiscal year (FY20), the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) reported.

As per the PBS data, in the first month (July) of the current fiscal year, LSM index shrank by 3.28pc.

Cumulatively, the LSM index fell by 6.04pc in the first two months of FY20 compared with the period last year. In the fiscal year 2018-19, LSMI sectors had dipped by 3.64pc as against the growth target of 8.1pc, whereas the government has set LSM target of 3.1pc for the year 2019-20.

The negative growth in LSM is mainly attrib-

LSM OUTPUT SHRANK FOR THE NINTH MONTH IN A ROW, AS IT DROPPED BY 7PC IN AUGUST FY20 utable to a decline in the production of petroleum products (-14pc), automobiles (-12.82pc), nonmetallic mineral products (-12.58pc), fertilizers (-9.96pc), pharmaceuticals (9.81pc), chemicals (5.63pc), engineering products (-5.43pc), iron and steel products (-5.10pc) and textile (-0.08pc).

The production data of 11 items under the Oil Companies Advisory Committee registered a negative growth of 0.66pc, while 36 items under the Ministry of Industries and Production shrank by 4.89pc and 65 items under the provincial bureaus of statistics dipped by 1.5pc.

The LSM index constitutes 80pc of manufacturing and 10.7pc of the overall GDP. In comparison, small-scale manufacturing accounts for just 1.8pc of GDP and 13.7pc manufacturing.

The LSMI data cited lower Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) expenditures compared to last year, deceleration in the private sector construction activities and consumer spending on durable goods as reasons behind the slowdown.

The impact was more noticeable in the con-

nEPRA jacks up power tariff by Rs1.66 per unit ISLAMABAD

struction-allied industries as demand for housing moderated amid rising building materials prices and higher cost of financing. Automobile prices witnessed multiple upward revisions due to currency depreciations, which kept potential buyers at bay. On a year-on-year basis, the auto sector posted a negative growth in almost all variants during the second month of current fiscal year.

The production of tractor dipped by 36.3pc, trucks 58.8pc, buses 38.38pc, jeeps and cars 41.71p, LCVs 10.76pc and motorcycles 12.86pc, respectively.

On the other hand, the pharmaceutical sector also suffered due to a considerable lag in regulatory adjustments in prices. The pricing issue was in addition to the weakening of the local currency, which added to the distress of an importdependent sector. In the pharmaceutical sector, the production of syrups declined by 36.82pc, tablets by 4.95pc, capsules 2.9pc and injections 7.49pc, respectively.

Similarly, lower sugarcane production and carry forward from last year’s inventories further dampened the prospects of the sugar industry. In the non-metallic mineral products, cement production was down by 12.12pc in August. Besides, production of cooking oil and blended tea dipped by 9.71pc and 35.86pc, respectively.

However, vegetable ghee production increased by 0.66pc in August.

pakistan committed to achieving all FatF targets by next year: minister ISLAMABAD

AHMAD AHMADANI

AGENCIES

INP

Huawei Technologies Co Ltd started taking orders on Wednesday in China for its eagerly awaited foldable smartphone, as it ramps up marketing at home to make up for weak overseas sales amid US trade sanctions. The launch of the 5G Mate X smartphone has been delayed twice this year, as Huawei, the world’s No.2 smartphone maker, was forced to deal with tech supply disruptions caused by a US trade blacklist imposed on the firm in May. The move has dealt a blow to Huawei’s smartphone sales in Europe, its key overseas market, but the company saw its third-quarter revenue rising 27pc thanks to solid sales in China and higher shipments of models launched before the May ban. The new smartphone, a competitor to Samsung Electronics Co’s Galaxy Fold which went on sale last month, will be launched officially on Nov. 15 in China at prices starting from 16,999 yuan ($2,403), a Huawei spokesman said. Its global launch plan remains under review, Huawei said. Washington alleges that Huawei, also the world’s biggest telecoms gear maker, is a national security risk as its equipment could be used by Beijing to spy – something the Shenzhen-based company has repeatedly denied. Still, the ban has meant that Huawei has not been able to license the latest version of Android from Google, the Alphabet unit, which has impacted its latest Mate 30 smartphone range that it launched in September.

He Gang, head of Huawei’s mobile phone division, said on Wednesday the company has already sold more than 200 million phones so far in 2019, hitting that milestone more than two months earlier than it did in 2018. Huawei’s 5G Mate X was originally set for a June launch but the company delayed it, saying that it was running certification tests with various carriers.

The National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) has notified Rs1.66 per unit increase in the electricity price on account of monthly fuel price adjustment (FPA) for the month of August 2019.

According to the NEPRA notification, the authority has assessed an increase of Rs1.6615/kWh in the applicable tariff for exWAPDA power distributing companies (XWDISCOs) on account of variations in the fuel charges for the month of August 2019. However, this per unit increase in electricity price will not be applicable to all the consumer categories except lifeline consumers and it will be shown separately in the consumers’ bills on the basis of units billed to the consumers in the month of August.

Similarly, DISCOs will reflect the fuel charges adjustment in respect of August 2019 in the billing month of November 2019.

As per NEPRA, the ac-

tual fuel charges in August were Rs4.8660/kWh while NEPRA determined reference fuel charges were Rs3.2045/kWh. “Due to variation in fuel price, electricity price has been increased by Rs1.6615 per unit,” the notification read.

NEPRA made this decision after obtaining details of the actual fuel charges from the Central Power Purchasing Agency Guarantee Limited (CPPA-G).

The authority, while going through the “generation mix” data, noted that costlier energy of around 505 GWh at Rs12.511/kWh was generated from furnace oil-based power

plants, whereas efficient coalbased power plants like Engro Power Gen Thar, Port Qasim and Sahiwal Coal were not fully utilized.

Pursuant to the provisions of Section 31(7) of the Regulation of Generation, Transmission and Distribution of Electric Power Act 1997, (NEPRA Act) read with the mechanism/formula determined by the authority in the tariff determinations for ExWAPDA DISCOs for the FY 2017-18 and notified in the official gazette, NEPRA has to make adjustments in the approved tariff on account of any variations in the fuel charges on a monthly basis.

Economic Affairs Minister Hammad Azhar said on Wednesday that Pakistan was committed to completing all the points in the action plan of Financial Action Task Force (FATF) by next year.

Addressing a news conference in Islamabad, Hammad Azhar said Pakistan's progress has been duly recognised in the organisation's September report. He said the country has made significant progress on many points of the FATF action plan in a short period of 10 months. The minister noted that till last month, only five action items remained to be completed, while 22 items out of 27 were largely or partially completed. Azhar said some circles wanted to merge the action plans of Asia Pacific Group and International Cooperation Review Group of FATF, which could have made the situation quite difficult for Pakistan as the action items could have exceeded to over a hundred. "It was neither logical nor feasible for Pakistan." "It has been now decided that Pakistan will get the entire period of Asia Pacific Group for compliance, which is a success for the country," he stated. "On the other hand, Pakistan will get time till October next year for the action plan of the International Cooperation Review Group." He said a dedicated secretariat is being established for issues pertaining to FATF. In addition, he added, a cell has also been established in all relevant government departments to comply with the FATF requirements. The minister said Pakistan's final report would be submitted to FATF in January next year.

imran calls for inclusion of provinces in establishment of sEZs ISLAMABAD APP

Prime Minister Imran Khan said on Wednesday all the initiatives to set up special economic zones (SEZs) would be spearheaded by the federal government while taking the provinces fully on board.

Chairing a meeting to review progress on the establishment of SEZs across the country, the prime minister directed that no effort should be spared to ensure the colonization of SEZs on a war footing.

He also directed the officials concerned to address issues pertaining to land availability, creation of jobs and wealth so as to help turn the wheel of the economy.

"We should remain competitive by providing incentives on the transfer of technology and relocation of industries from China, in line with the incentives being provided by other regional countries," he stressed.

The prime minister said the present

government had brought about a significant improvement in the ease of doing business in the country. There was a need to devise an effective awareness strategy to inform the people about the on-ground progress and emerging socio-economic opportunities which would be available after the SEZs' operationalization, he added.

The meeting was briefed on the provision of utilities, revision in the existing legislative framework for incentivization, facilitation of foreign and local investors and effective coordination between the centre and the federating units for smooth and effective implementation strategy.

It was informed that funds to the tune of Rs2.8 billion would be provided for the provision of electricity to Bin Qasim, Dhabeji, Rashakai and Hattar SEZs during the financial year 2019-20, while four PC-I had already been submitted for facilitation in the provision of electricity.

Moreover, additional arrangements were being made for the provision of

110MMCFD gas at the cost of Rs3.75 billion to different SEZs (out of total 689MMCFD requirement until 2023).

The meeting was also apprised of the revisiting efforts in the existing legislative framework regarding the uniform treatment for all local and foreign investors to ensure 100pc foreign ownership and repatriation of profit as well as dividends.

A new legislative framework was being devised to encourage exports and local manufacturing which would check unemployment, current account deficit and facilitate the transfer of technology, it was added.

Work visa and visa on arrival facility for 67 countries had already been extended, the meeting was further informed.

It was also recommended to ensure 'plug n play' infrastructure in all SEZs to attract foreign manufacturing companies to relocate their facilities to Pakistan.

Planning Minister Makhdoom Khusro Bakhtiar, Power Minister Omar Ayub

Khan, Adviser to Prime Minister on Commerce Abdul Razzak Dawood, Special Assistant on Information and Broadcasting

Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan, Special Assistant Nadeem Babar and Board of Investment Chairman Syed Zubair Haider Gillani.

PM says COaS met businessmen ‘after his permission’ BUSINESS DESK: Prime Minister Imran Khan has said that Chief of Army Staff Qamar Javed Bajwa had met the businessmen after his permission. In a meeting with journalists in Islamabad on Wednesday, the prime minister acknowledged that inflation and unemployment remain a big problem which his government is trying to resolve. Earlier this month, a delegation of at least 20 businessmen, comprising heads of various private companies, called on army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa at the General Headquarters to inform the top general of the economic crisis being faced by the country.

“The meetings with the army chief was aimed at addressing the burning issues being faced by the business community in the country,” said a business leader, adding that uncertainty, lack of clarity in government policies, negative growth in large scale manufacturing were the key issues that were discussed on the occasion.

Filmmaker Jami says was raped by ‘media giant’ 13 years ago

KARACHI

Mehwish hayat Louds using truck art for the rights of the girL chiLd

By HAsAn KAzmI

t

HOLLYWOOD BOLLYWOOD

HE Ministry of Human Rights initiative “Truck Art for Awareness and Advocacy for the Rights of the Girl Child in Pakistan” mesmerizes stakeholders.

“The biggest achievement of this intervention is that Truck owners, Truck drivers and Truck artists own this initiative” says Samar Minallah (Anthropologist/ Pioneer of the Truck Art for Awareness intervention in Pakistan “Ministry of Human Rights, Government of Pakistan stands tall for upholding all constitutionally enshrined rights of the girl child” Dr Shireen Mazari, Federal Minister for Human Rights This year marked over 25 years of the International Day of the Girl Child. The Ministry of Human Rights, government of Pakistan, through the Huqooq-ePakistan Programme, in collaboration with the European Union held a launch event on 11th October 2019 at Lok Virsa in the country’s capital, Islamabad.

20 Newly painted trucks transverse across Pakistan to ensure the right message reaches the right audiences. Trucks, moving billboards, here are becoming vehicles for spreading awareness regarding educating girls, and truck art is making its way to bridge communication gaps between key stakeholders involved in ensuring rights are given to the girl child “Let’s pledge to give girls a better brighter future” said Mehwish Hayat, the appointed

Goodwill Ambassador to the Rights of the Girl Child by the Ministry of Human Rights, in her talk engaging with the participants of the launch event.

“The brightly painted trucks through Pakistan’s indigenous truck art support us in creating awareness as well as amplifying a message to begin advocacy from within the grassroots of Pakistan from the remotest of areas” says Minallah.

She further added that Hayat Khan, a truck workshop owner, extended great cooperation in this regard and played a pivotal role in convincing other truck drivers to change the paintings on their rides.

The Launch evnt was attended by over 400 participants.

A gathering with all relevant players present to commemorate the Day of the Girl Child. The event marks not only the beginning of a new era of the amplification of the rights of the girl child but also is a testiment to the fact that the Pakistani society is proud of its traditional art forms and the role community members like truck owner, drivers and artists are taken up for the cause.

staff report

Filmmaker Jami has said that he has been a very strong supporter of the #MeToo movement against sexual harassment because he had himself been subjected to rape 13 years ago by a well-known ‘media tycoon’.

Explaining from an insider’s perspective of how harassment takes place and how harassers get away with rape and sexual violence, the filmmaker recalled the painful memories and the difficult times he went through after the alleged incident on Twitter.

“Why I am so strongly supporting #MeToo?” Jami shared. “Because, I know exactly how it happens now – inside a room, then outside courts and inside courts.”

“I froze not sure why yesss it really happens and happened to me. Till this day 13 years ve passed I curse myself why I didn’t take his eyes out but I was so close to this guy a friend, I couldn’t believe what is going on,” Jami wrote.

He said that he could not retaliate despite having strong posture as his system just shut down due to shock.

Jami refrained from naming the alleged perpetrator but claimed that he was a media tycoon who was well known for book and museum launches.

He also added that he confided in a few close friends but was confronted with the toxic culture of being dehumanised as he was a man and ended up brushing things under the bed.

“I told them so many times with the name of this tycoon but (they took me) as if I’m a

joker or something. Yes, highend friends, top-end friends in media didn’t do anything,” added Jami.

He shared that although he spent six months or so in therapy with medication, nothing seemed to work and he had to leave the country to ‘reboot’ but was traumatised again by his abuser who brazenly showed up to an intimate family affair. “He came to my father’s funeral also and instead of crying for Papa (who got to know before dying that I’m destroyed), I was hiding inside my own home – telling mother who was also busy with her pain – to run out and stop him from coming in,” the Moor director wrote.

“Till this day, I don’t have the courage to come out and name him. It is super tough. I know my own buddies will laugh and joke(at me),” he wrote.

Saying that the attack on the #MeToo movement had acted like a trigger for him to come out, Jami maintained that he was “writing this now because #MeToo is under attack and I’m ready to partially vomit out my own experience.

It’s all true what the victims say and how they say, or hide.

It’s all an exact same pattern.”

Talking about a recent case of a college professor committing suicide on alleged claims of harassment, Jami added, “So one wrongful death doesn’t mean all victims are fake and liars. I’m pissed that they are attacking the movement and victims. So, I’m coming here today after 13 or so years to say 99.99 per cent survivors are telling the truth always. No doubt ever!”

Cows don’t have upper front teeth WaThey do have molars in the top back of their mouths though. Where you’d expect upper incisors, cows, sheep, and goats have a thick layer of tissue called a “dental pad.” They use that with their bottom teeth to pull out grass. Check out these 13 fun facts about the human body you’ve always wondered about.

Thanks to 3D printing, NASA can basically “email” tools to astronauts Getting new equipment to the Space Station used to take months or years, but the new technology means the tools are ready within hours.

Only a quarter of the Sahara Desert is sandy Most of it is covered in gravel, though it also contains mountains and oases. Oh, and it isn’t the world’s largest desert—Antarctica is. Don’t miss these other 30 geography facts everyone gets wrong.

Jeremy renner's murder-suicide details alleged by nannie and Friend

Guillermo del Toro's 'Nightmare Alley' Confirmed For Buffalo: Toldja

Further allegations come to light regarding claims that Jeremy Renner wanted to kill his ex-wife and himself back last November.

The allegations stem from a heated and nasty custody battle involving Renner with his ex-wife over their young daughter.

While a previous report from TMZ cited the allegations regarding the murder-suicide were from his ex-wife, now Radar Online has obtained documents that cite a former nanny and friend of Jeremy Renner that corroborate the allegations.

The new details go over how Jeremy Renner was with a friend at a nightclub where he talked about suicide and his exwife, and then back at the house where his nanny said she witnessed the talk and even Renner firing a gun.

The report does mention that Jeremy Renner denies the allegations, as he said the nanny was fired at the time and was "recruited" to make false accusations, and at the same time, says the friend was a former fling, whom he saw only a handful of times before ending the relationship.

Confirming my scoop from this past July, local news outlets now confirm that Guillermo del Toro will be filming Nightmare Alley in Buffalo, NY. Worth a mention is that yours truly is from Buffalo, NY, and I am well, well connected within Hollywood, as, among other things, I revealed the title for The Avengers: Endgame a full year prior to the release of the flick and even before the release of Infinity War. Regarding the Nightmare Alley news, it's my understanding the local film people were in a state of panic over me releasing the news, which caused local news outlets to spin things like I was guessing, which wasn't true at all. The various news sites even went so far as to state it wasn't happening, and a source of mine who works in the local movie scene tried to tell me it wasn't happening as well, which of course, I knew was pure spin. Now the outlets, which of course never cited me, like The Buffalo News and Channel 4, confirm Nightmare Alley will film in Buffalo.

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war: Hrithik roshan sought help of tiger shroff’s trainer as he struggled with medical problems He is one of the best action heroes in Bollywood and is also considered the top fitness icon but Bollywood actor Hrithik Roshan has struggled with back pain and aches. The trainer has now revealed that Hrithik not only had pains but “genuine medical problems” while working on action sequences for his latest hit, War. A Mid Day report said that Hrithik approached Tiger Shroff’s trainer Kuldeep Shashi as he prepared for Siddharth Anand’s War. “Hrithik had a lot of genuine medical problems; not mere aches and pains. I told him that he was in pain because he had been executing an action in the absence of a team [of physiotherapists and nutritionists]. When you have a team, they look after you. When I travel with Tiger, I am focussed on him and his stunts. I’m constantly guiding him.

A trainer will push you to execute movements, but you need a physiotherapist to keep you from executing movements that are detrimental,” the tabloid quoted Kuldeep as saying.

Thursday, 24 October, 2019

14 SPORTS

Sterling, Mbappe light up ChaMpionS league with hat-triCkS while SpurS ClaiM key win MANCHESTER

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AHEEM Sterling and KylianMbappe both scored second-half hat-tricks in UEFA Champions League action on Tuesday as Manchester City, Paris Saint-Germain and Tottenham Hotspur all recorded big victories.

Juventus, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich laboured to wins on a night which brought 30 goals in eight games, a third of which were scored by Premier League clubs. Sterling's three goals came 11 minutes apart in the second half as Pep Guardiola's City thumped Atalanta 5-1 at the Etihad Stadium to maintain their perfect record in Group C. The Italians had earlier taken the lead from RuslanMalinovskyi's 28thminute penalty, but they were soon overrun and remain without a point in their debut Champions League campaign. Sergio Agueroequalised from a Sterling assist and the Argentine scored a penalty to put City ahead before the break. Sterling then took over, although City finished with 10 men as Phil Foden was sent off late on.

"I should have had four.

RiyadMahrez put me through and I was looking to put one on a plate for him.

But I went through and should have finished it," Sterling admitted to BT Sport.

City's will seal a place in the last 16 if they win away to Atalanta next, as nearest rivals Shakhtar Donetsk and Dinamo Zagreb played out a 2-2 draw in Ukraine earlier. YevhenKonoplyanka and Brazilian substitute Dodo netted for Shakhtar, with Dinamo's goals coming in between from Dani Olmo and a MislavOrsic penalty.

Compared to Sterling, Mbappe took a sluggish 22 minutes to score his three goals in PSG's 5-0 romp away to former European Cup runners-up Club Brugge in Belgium in Group A. Mauro Icardi scored twice for the French champions, who were without the injured Neymar but had Angel Di Maria in exceptional form -- the Argentine set up four goals.

According to sports statisticians

Opta, the last player to come off the bench and score a hat-trick in the Champions League was Spaniard JosebaLlorente for Villarreal in 2008.

"I wanted to start and I thought I was going to start, but the coach made his choice and I had to accept it. I also wanted to show that it's difficult to get by without me," Mbappe told French broadcaster RMC Sport.

PSG have a maximum nine points, are yet to concede a goal in Europe this season and will be through to the last 16 with a win at home to Club next month.

REAL EDGE GALATASARAY: Below them, Real Madrid are up to second after claiming their first win in Europe this season. Eden Hazard set up Toni Kroos for a first-half strike that handed them a 1-0 victory over Galatasaray in Istanbul.

Meanwhile, there was a welcome win for Mauricio Pochettino'sTottenham, who crushed Red Star Belgrade 50 in north London, three weeks on from their 7-2 humiliation at the hands of Bayern Munich at the same venue.

Captain Harry Kane scored twice for Spurs either side of a Son Heungmin brace and an Erik Lamela goal as they moved up to second place in Group B on four points. "We know we have had a tough run of results and that was the perfect way to respond," said Kane.

Postponed Clasico set for December 18 but La Liga could appeal MADRID AGENCIES

The rearranged Clasico between Barcelona and Real Madrid will be played on December 18 despite opposition from La Liga, the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) confirmed on Wednesday.

Spain's most prestigious fixture, which was due to take place at Camp Nou on Saturday, was postponed last week because of violent pro-independence protests in Catalonia. La Liga had proposed December 4 or 7 and have said they are considering an appeal.

"The league does not agree with the decision," La Liga said in a statement.

"It is studying the documentation to decide whether to appeal, against whom and before what bodies." An earlier statement from the RFEF read:

"The decision of the Competition Committee has taken place after analysing in recent days the proposals of both clubs, who were invited to agree a date and decided on December 18.

"It has also analysed a report from the RFEF Competitions Area as well as numerous reports submitted by La Liga, which are not binding.

"At today's meeting, the Committee also analysed the latest reports from both clubs, who maintain their initial proposal to play the match on 18 December."

It means Barcelona, who wanted the match to go ahead as originally planned this weekend, will face a testing few weeks before Christmas.

In December, they are already scheduled to play away at Atletico Madrid, Inter Milan in the Champions League and Real Sociedad, who sit fourth in La Liga.

Real Madrid will play away at Club Brugge in the Champions League and then Valencia, just before travelling to Barca. But both clubs swiftly settled on Wednesday, December 18 last week, hours after being instructed to agree a new date by the RFEF. La Liga, who originally proposed the postponement, disagreed, claiming December 18 would clash

with fixtures in the Copa del Rey and harm the economic interests of the clubs involved.

COMMON SENSE: "The decision to change the date of the most important La Liga match cannot be left to the decision of the two participating clubs," La Liga said on Friday, adding that they have a responsibility to "maximise income" from television rights.

La Liga initially suggested swapping the two Clasicos, with the first one being played at the Santiago Bernabeu in Madrid, and then proposed the weekend of December 7, when Barcelona and Madrid already have fixtures.

Their last proposal was Wednesday, December 4, which comes just after Barca play away at Atletico Madrid. Barcelona coach Ernesto Valverde said on Tuesday he hoped the two clubs would not be drawn into a political "war" between La Liga and the RFEF, who have clashed on various issues in recent years.

"I would like common sense to prevail," Valverde said "I would like there to be a date settled and for the internal wars between La Liga and the RFEF not to involve us." Barcelona, who visit Slavia Prague in the Champions League on Wednesday, moved top of La Liga last weekend, one point ahead of Real Madrid.

rummenigge slams ‘careless’ bayern as injury strikes hernandez MUNICH: Bayern Munich chairman KarlHeinz Rummenigge has slammed their "careless" performance following a nervy 32 win at Olympiakos as the German giants lost another centre-back to injury with Lucas Hernandez damaging ankle ligaments. "I don't think the performance we produced will bring us serious success if we don't get a handle on things," Rummenigge bluntly told the squad at the post-match banquet. After three straight wins in Europe, Bayern are on their way to the knock-out stages for a 12th season in a row. However the stuttering away win came at a price as Hernandez suffered a "partial rupture of the inner ligament in his right ankle", the club confirmed Wednesday. The 2018 World Cup winner, the most expensive signing in Bayern's history, is expected to be out "for weeks" with fellow centre-back NiklasSuele already sidelined for at least six months after tearing knee ligaments on Saturday.

Two goals by Robert Lewandowski turned Bayern's fortunes in Athens on Tuesday after hosts Olympiakos grabbed an early Youssef El-Arabi goal. CorentinTolisso scored Bayern's third goal midway through the second half with a curling long-range shot. However, the German defence looked far from solid, especially after Olympiakos midfielder Guilherme beat goalkeeper Manuel Neuer to set up a tense final 10 minutes. AGENCIES

Dybala double rescues Juventus against lokomotiv Moscow TURIN: Maurizio Sarri praised Juventus for not losing their heads as Paulo Dybala's quick-fire second-half double rescued a come-from-behind 2-1 win over Lokomotiv Moscow in their Champions League Group D clash in Turin on Tuesday. The Italian champions had trailed the Russians with 13 minutes to go in the Allianz Stadium after AlekseiMiranchuk had put the visitors ahead after half an hour. But Dybala pulled the hosts level on 77 minutes and added a second two minutes later to keep Juventus on course in Group D with seven points after three games. Sarri's side had drawn with Atletico Madrid and beaten Bayer Leverkusen 3-0 in the last two games. Atletico also have seven points, after beating Leverkusen 1-0 in Spain on Tuesday, with Lokomotiv third with three points. "It became a difficult match when we conceded this goal," said former Chelsea boss Sarri. "But we did well not to lose our heads. We knew we could get back into the match. AGENCIES

Russia anti-doping boss expects lengthy Olympic ban MOSCOW AGENCIES

Russia's anti-doping chief is predicting a lengthy Olympic ban for the national squad, lashing out at Moscow authorities who he says handed over falsified lab data to international investigators.

The accusations are the latest scandal to hit Russian sport after the country was banned from competing in several international competitions over state-sponsored doping. "Russia's Olympic squad will be prevented from participating fully in the Olympic Games in Tokyo.... I think that this will also happen at the (Winter Olympic) Games in China," the head of Russia's RUSADA agency, Yuri Ganus, told AFP in an exclusive interview.

The best-case scenario in his view is very limited participation "by certain athletes, by invitation", as happened at the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics.

He expects other penalties too, including restrictions on holding interna-

tional tournaments in Russia, exclusion of Russians from international sports federations and fines.

STATE CONSPIRACY? In September, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) demanded Russia explain "inconsistencies" in electronic data it handed over which listed results of tests carried out under the laboratory's previous leadership. The data handover was supposed to demonstrate Russia's desire for transparency after the scandalous revelations that RUSADA facilitated state-sponsored doping between 2011 and 2015.

Russian sports minister Pavel Kolobkov sent a letter of explanation to WADA about the data it queried on October 8. But Ganus -- who says he has not had access to that letter -- suggests the scale of the data manipulation is such that these explanations are likely to be insufficient.

On October 23, WADA's Compliance Review Committee, which has powers to recommend sanctions, is set to meet experts who have analysed the data and

looked at Russia's explanations.

The walls of Ganus's office in central Moscow are covered with posters promoting clean sport and messages of support from counterparts around the world.

He insists his organisation had nothing to do with the data manipulation because it did not have access to the database in question. He believes that high-ranking officials must have carried out the fraud since the laboratory data was "under the control of Russia's Investigative Committee."

The powerful agency is leading criminal investigations into laboratory employees who were allegedly involved in state-sponsored doping. But Ganus wonders what those investigations could hope to achieve now the credibility of authorities has been so undermined in his eyes.

He hints that officials may have intervened to protect top athletes from the revelation of their use of doping.

"Whose names were in there? What was there in the data? This data was in-

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formation about athletes' test samples.

"Who were the people who were able to infiltrate the Investigative Committee, what state powers did they have? This is extremely serious," Ganus says. The falsifications took place "on the eve of the transfer (of the data) to WADA".

PUTIN'S SUPPORT: Ganus, whose appointment as head of RUSADA in 2017

was supposed to drag Russia out of a morass, now sees the country at a crossroads. "This is a blow to the current generation of athletes and to future generations as well," he says.

"It's a tragedy."

In recent months Ganus has issued harsh criticisms of Russia's sporting authorities, accusing Russian media of attempting to discredit him and inventing a Western conspiracy against Moscow.

"All my statements are aimed at us making the right decisions," he says.

"Russia cannot continue any more with its old methods which have made the doping crisis worse." "We need to get rid of the idea that the West is trying to put pressure on us," he says. "Russia needs to put its own house in order."

The country needs "new heads of the sporting organisations," he says, stressing that this "should include" a new sports minister. In the fight to clean up sport, he is "counting on the support of the president" Vladimir Putin.

Thursday, 24 October, 2019

SPORTS 15

uSMan QaDir, pakiStan'S new legSpinning hope LAHORE

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AGENCIES

ELL me which wristspinner we have in this country, Misbah-ulHaq demanded to a packed press conference room on October 9.

"24 first-class teams have been playing for many years. Tell me one wristspinner who's been playing whom we aren't picking. Just give me one name.

One name who has been playing in domestic cricket who we have not been ignoring in favour of Shadab [Khan]."

When a journalist, perhaps facetiously - certainly timidly - whispered "Usman Qadir", it caused a ripple of laughter to break out in the room. Even Misbah, uncharacteristically irascible on the day (who wouldn't be having suffered a whitewash?) allowed himself a smile before returning to the point he had been making.

"Where has Usman Qadir been playing? Has he been playing first-class cricket? We can only pick the players we have. We need to groom players right from the outset, and we have agreed to give any opportunities to any wristspinners who are available so we can groom a back-up. We don't have a back-up for Yasir [Shah], nor for Shadab. We just don't have anyone available."

Twelve days on, Misbah, looking somewhat closer to his usual, unflappable self, sat in the same room, in front of

more or less the same journalists, reeling off the names of the men selected for the two series in Australia next month. It was a barnstormer of a squad announcement; there were so many surprise picks Khushdil Shah and Kashif Bhatti for example - that journalists were sent scurrying to obscure domestic scorecards they had never previously taken an interest in.

Others, like Mohammad Irfan and Imran Khan Jnr, tested their memories; when had they last played for Pakistan?

Meanwhile, Misbah droned on with the enthusiasm of a geography teacher talking about the formation of sedimentary rock. "Musa Khan, Shadab Khan, Usman Qadir, WahabRiaz."

Wait, what? Usman Qadir? That chap who had left Pakistan to try and qualify for Australia? The player who had, finally disillusioned by the lack of opportunities afforded to him in Pakistan, declared he didn't "want to play for Pakistan"? The very mention of whose name had caused Misbah to literally LOL? What happened in those two weeks, then? Well, for starters, Usman came back to Pakistan and played in the T20 Cup in Faisalabad. While he didn't set the world - or even Faisalabad for that matter - alight, the paucity of legspinnersMisbah had correctly pointed out meant Pakistan couldn't exactly be picky. He took four wickets in three games for Central Punjab, and, by all ac-

counts, impressed the selectors, who felt his experience of playing in Australia might be useful in the T20Is. Still, Usman hadn't enjoyed the best year with Western Australia since declaring he wanted to qualify for their international side. The Big Bash League, in particular, for which Perth Scorchers coach Adam Voges had so eagerly signed him, was a significant anti-climax for a bowler that had so impressed the league's most successful side they had broken with normal convention to sign him. Just six wickets in seven games with an economy rate of 8.45 saw Usman lose his place in the team. A speeding fine that caused the WACA chief executive to express her disappointment just as he was losing form didn't help, and he was let go by Western Australia at the end of the season.

Not even an Australian citizen yet, international selection was nowhere near in sight. The return to Pakistan, eventually, came in circumstances far more important than how well he used his wrist to turn a cricket ball, and for more devastating than the trivial comings and goings of form.

On September 6, Usman's father Abdul Qadir - you know the one - died suddenly of a cardiac arrest in Lahore.

The man who had kept stalling Usman's desires to go and play for Australia Abdul Qadir always wanted his son to give himself the best possible chance to

play for Pakistan - had a tenuous relationship with the PCB in his final years, and while many felt it was nepotism that had gained Usman his chance in the first place, the 26-year old considered the connection had as much hindered his career in Pakistan as helped it.

"Unfortunately, I have a big name with me," Usman told ESPNcricinfo in December last year. "It's quite difficult if I talk about my father. I don't want to do that. In Pakistan I didn't play lots of cricket. That's why I did not get opportunities. So that's why I moved to Australia." Why he wanted to play for Australia then, he had said, would take two or three hours to answer.

Since his father's passing, however, Usman is believed to have become more sympathetic to playing for the land of his birth, more determined to follow in the footsteps of the man who inspired him to take up the game, and who wished, more than anything else, to see him play inter-

UAE looking into wicketkeeper Ghulam Shabbir's disappearance DUBAI AGENCIES

The beleaguered UAE national team was dealt another blow after it emerged wicketkeeper Ghulam Shabbir left the squad and country without explanation in the midst of the World T20 qualifiers.

Shabbir did not show up for the team meeting ahead of Monday's game against Hong Kong, which UAE won by eight wickets. He was also missing from the UAE's fixture against Jersey on Tuesday, which saw them beaten by 35 runs.

"At 11am yesterday we had a team meeting, and Ghulam Shabbir did not show up for it," Peter Kelly, the UAE team manager, was reported in the National as saying. "He did not show up for the bus in the afternoon [when the team left for the Hong Kong match].

ECB are doing due diligence. We are obviously concerned for his well being.

We went out of our way to contact any next of kin that we could, as well as any numbers we had for him.

"We also searched hospitals to make sure he was OK. We also got people to go and check if he was at home.

Since that point, we have managed to find out that he has left the country.

What we do know is that he is safe, but we don't know the reasons that he has gone."

The UAE is already without four players, provisionally suspended as part of corruption investigation. Mohammad Naveed, Qadeer Ahmed, Shaiman Anwar and Ashfaq Ahmed are the play-

ers currently suspended - the last after Monday's victory against Hong Kong by the Emirates Cricket Board. Naveed, Ahmed and Anwar have been charged various breaches of the ICC's anti-corruption code. There is no suggestion yet that Shabbir's disappearance is linked to the corruption probe.

"It is out of his nature, and we are unsure why he left, and why he chose to not tell people," Kelly said. "He was not a part of the anti-corruption investigation. "For the past 24 hours or so, we have been trying to find out if he is OK. We have managed to get to the point where we are. Where we go from here, we [don't know]. We do know he is OK, and he has left the country. That is all we know so far."

The last two days have thus seen UAE's 15-man squad cut down to 13.

Whether they can be replaced in the middle of the tournament is currently unclear.

Ex-captain Sourav Ganguly appointed BCCI president MUMBAI AGENCIES

Sourav Ganguly has promised a new start for the BCCI and to do what's best for Indian cricket. He was speaking in Mumbai soon after assuming charge as BCCI president, marking the formal end

to the tenure of the Supreme Court-appointed Committee of Administrators.

Wearing his captain's blazer - he is the first India captain to head the board in 65 years - he pointed to the similarities in the circumstances under which he became captain, in the wake of the matchfixing scandal, to pledge a clean

administration. "I'll do it the way I know, with no compromise on credibility and corruption. That's the way I led India."

Though his term is only for 10 months, he spoke of the issues piled up in his inbox. "Things need to be brought back in place, reforms need to be done, huge amounts of money need to be paid to state associations."

"We don't know what's happened in the past three years, we weren't part of it [BCCI], there were no AGMs or working committee meetings. We'll take note of everything and do what's best for Indian cricket."

Ganguly pledged his support to India captain ViratKohli, calling him "the most important man in Indian cricket". "He wants to make this team the best in the world… We have to sit with him and see what he wants. We'll support him in every way."

Ganguly accepted his election result from the board's electoral officer N Gopalaswami in the presence of the three outgoing CoA members and the state associations' representatives. Gan-

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guly and the other four office-bearers will now take over the board's running from the CoA - currently comprising Vinod Rai, Diana Edulji and Lt Gen (retd) Ravi Thodge - which was supervising the board for the past 33 months.

"I'm totally satisfied because we are leaving the BCCI to the governing council and the administration," Rai said after Ganguly's formal assumption.

"Five former players in the administration could never have been better. The president is one of our most successful captains, he has had five years at the CAB and is now taking over at the BCCI. There is no one better than him to take this position.

"We are agnostic about the family [relations of the office bearers] and other things. Our job was to hold the elections as per the constitution and we have done that."

"I'm very happy that a former cricketer is taking over as president," Edulji said at the headquarters before the meeting began. "I'm sure he will take the BCCI to greater heights."

national cricket.

"I was desperate to play international cricket for a long time," Qadir told the PCB website. "That was my central goal.

It was my dad's dream to see me play for Pakistan one day. I can't be as good as my father but I've worked on what he taught me. I didn't know how to bowl the slider, and I still don't know how to bowl the googly like he did, but I'm trying to master it. I have a bit of experience of bowling legspin to Australian batsmen, and should I get the chance, I'd love to prove my worth."

Should Usman earn his maiden international cap in Australia on this tour, there will be millions watching on the other side of the world, transfixed by the son of the man who taught them legspin was an art worth cherishing. The call-up comes a few weeks too late for the man himself to watch on with them, but wherever he is, you'd imagine he'd be feeling pretty vindicated right about now.

pSl’s women edition on the cards, says urooj Mumtaz

Pakistan women cricket team chief selector UroojMumtaz has hinted towards a women’s edition of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) in the near future. Speaking to a local media channel, Mumtaz said that before heading towards women PSL, Pakistan is working on improving cricket structure and quality of cricket at home to make it attractive for other players. “We are planning towards a women edition of PSL. We are improving our structure and quality of cricket and hopefully in near future there will be something happening on the PSL women side,” she said. The Pakistan Cricket Board introduced PSL in 2016 and since then the league has produced and highlighted and brought forward the best talent from Pakistan cricket. NEWS DESK

bangladesh women team arrives in pakistan for limitedovers series The Bangladesh women cricket team arrived in Lahore on Wednesday to play a limited-overs series in Pakistan. Pakistan women and Bangladesh women will feature in a three-match T20I series and two oneday internationals at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore. The T20Is will be played from October 26 to 30, while the two ODIs will be played on November 2 and 4. The visiting team was welcomed by Pakistan Cricket Board officials on arrival at the airport. All the matches of the series will be played at Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore. The entry for the matches will be free. Families can show CNIC at the gate to enter and watch the match. School, college and university students have specially been invited for the matches. The Bangladesh men's team is scheduled to tour Pakistan in January -February next year. NEWS DESK

Thursday, 24 October, 2019

NEWS

Red Zone blocked aS goveRnMent decIdeS to allow aZadI MaRch PMO SAYS PM IMRAN BELIEVES IN DEMOCRATIC RIGHT TO PROTEST ISLAMABAD STAFF REPORT

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HE Islamabad police has placed containers to block off the capital city’s NADRA and Serena roundabouts in order to secure the Red Zone, as the government on Wednesday decided to let the anti-government protesters of Azadi March proceed to the capital territory “as long as parameters laid out by courts for lawful protest are not breached”.

Reportedly, the Red Zone will be cordoned off with barbed wire and water cannons will be deployed to block protesters’ entry. All entry and exit points of the city will also be sealed, police officials said, adding that Islamabad residents who plan to join the protest will be restricted to their districts.

US troops from Syria to leave Iraq in 4 weeks BAGHDAD AGENCIES

U.S troops withdrawing from northeastern Syria to Iraq are “transiting” and will leave the country within four weeks, Iraq’s defense minister said Wednesday.

Najah al-Shammari made the remarks to The Associated Press following a meeting in Baghdad with visiting U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper, who arrived as Iraqi leaders chafed over reports the U.S. may want to increase the number of troops based in Iraq, at least temporarily. Iraq’s military said Tuesday that American troops leaving northeastern Syria don’t have permission to stay in Iraq in a statement that appeared to contradict Esper, who has said that all U.S. troops leaving Syria would continue to conduct operations against the Islamic State group from Iraq to prevent its resurgence in the region. He later added that the troops would be there temporarily until they are able to go home, but no time period has been set. Esper said earlier on Wednesday that the U.S. has no plans to leave those troops in Iraq “interminably” and that he plans to talk with Iraqi leaders about the matter.

A security plan has been devised by authorities, according to which Islamabad will be divided into three layers of security. Police personnel will be deployed in the first zone, Frontier Corps in the second and Rangers in the third.

Earlier in the day, the government decided to let the anti-government march protesters enter Islamabad.

The decision was made after a team delegated to negotiate with the joint opposition’s Rehbar Committee

presented its recommendations to the prime minister.

A brief statement issued by the Prime Minister Office (PMO) said: “It was decided that the government, with its firm belief in upholding democratic ideals, would allow the proposed Azadi March, if it takes place within the ambit of law and the Constitution as interpreted in the decisions of the Supreme Court of Pakistan and Islamabad High Court.”

“The prime minister believes in the

democratic right to protest,” a spokesperson for PMO said.

Meanwhile, the committee formed by the prime minister to hold talks with the opposition rejected Rehbar Committee’s demand for the premier’s resignation.

According to sources, the rejection came during a meeting of the government’s committee headed by Defence Minister Pervaiz Khattak and comprises of National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser, Senate Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani, Speaker Punjab Assembly Pervaiz Elahi, Asad Umer, Minister for Education Shafqat Mahmood, and Minister for Religious Affairs Noorul Haq Qadri.

According to reports, the committee reiterated that the government recognizes the opposition’s right to peaceful protest but a march towards federal capital is inadvisable amid the current situation of the country and the region, adding that the government is serious about resolving issues through dialogue.

It has emerged that the committee has decided to hold a meeting with the joint opposition in addition to a sperate meeting with Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) President Shehbaz Sharif.

PM Imran wishes Nawaz well, orders Punjab govt to ensure best medical facilities ISLAMABAD STAFF REPORT

The government’s chief spokesperson, Firdous Ashiq Awan on Wednesday said that Prime Minister Imran Khan has directed the Punjab government “to ensure that Nawaz Sharif gets the best possible care in accordance with the wishes of his family”.

In a post on Twitter, she said that the prime minister had sought a detailed report from the Punjab government regarding the former premier’s health.

Awan further said that the premier had “prayed for Sharif and wished him a speedy recovery”. Nawaz was shifted to Services Hospital late on Monday night after his condition deteriorated which was confirmed by his fresh examination conducted by the government.

The head of the multidisciplinary medical board at the Services Hospital, Professor Dr Mahmood Ayaz, said that the former premier’s body had experienced a drastic drop in the cells that are responsible for coagulation of blood (platelets).

“Yesterday we had carried out a transfusion of platelets. Today, his condition has improved measurably. Our board convened today and has recommended some more tests. We will be in a better position to comment once those results are in,” he said.

When asked whether the board has been able to ascertain why Nawaz had experienced such a sudden drop in platelets, Dr Ayaz replied in the negative, saying that blood tests had been ordered for that very purpose.

“The board will convene again this evening. We hold meetings twice or thrice a day so that there is nothing lacking in his diagnosis and subsequent treatment.”

Dr Ayaz said that the platelet count was being monitored and that if it is deemed necessary, another transfusion will be done to maintain the desired level of platelets. He said that Nawaz’s health, otherwise, “is just fine”.

NAB CONDEMNS ‘BASELESS ALLEGATIONS’: In a press release issued on Wednesday, the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) “strongly condemned the irresponsible and baseless allegations” that Nawaz’s transfer to the hospital had been delayed.

“As soon as Nawaz Sharif was shifted from Kot Lakhpat Jail to the sub-jail in Lahore, in order to combat any emergency medical situation, a modern cardiac ambulance had been arranged from the Punjab Institute of Cardiology (PIC) along with three doctors.

“Furthermore, certified doctors had been placed for round-the-clock availability at the NAB Lahore dispensary and we had already obtained Rescue 1122 ambulance services,” said the NAB statement.

The anti-corruption watchdog said it “strongly rejects” all such “baseless, fabricated, and contrary to the truth political propaganda” that suggests otherwise.

NAB also rejected the notion that Nawaz was not allowed to meet with his personal physician Dr Adnan or to seek treatment. The Bureau recounted the three times Dr Adnan had met Nawaz: October 11, 19 and 21 during which it said samples

for various tests had also been collected.

“It is medication prescribed by Dr Adnan alone that Nawaz Sharif has been regularly taking. These were sent on a daily basis in a packet along with food,” said the statement. NAB, in its statement, also said that Nawaz had himself elected not to avail the medical facilities at standby for his use, including doctors, paramedical staff, ambulances, etc.

“He remained averse, whilst in NAB’s custody in Lahore, to a checkup by any doctor other than Dr Adnan. Even to obtain blood samples, special paramedical staff from Sharif Medical Complex was called over. “Therefore the allegations to the contrary made by certain elements are nothing more than a figment of one’s imagination.”

The Bureau, in its statement, sought to clarify that on Monday, while Dr Adnan alerted NAB at 8:41pm of unsatisfactory lab results, he failed to provide a copy of the reports, and it was only through his tweet at 9pm that the results were known.

NAB said that as soon as it sprung into action to shift Nawaz to the hospital, Nawaz kept on vehemently opposing the move. It noted that the formation of a board, arrangement of a special room along with a special route for the journey was all arranged expeditiously and Shahbaz Sharif was given permission to meet him upon which Nawaz agreed to go.

“More than an hour was then spent in preparation to go to the hospital, including packing etc,” said the statement, adding, “All the details are available on record.”

Smartphone malware targeting military, govt officials ONTARIO AGENCIES

A security firm has claimed that fake smartphone apps laden with malware are targeting Pakistan’s military and government. A report released on Wednesday by Canadian company Blackberry identifies new espionage campaigns attempting to steal sensitive data from mobile devices.

Blackberry says it doesn’t know who is responsible for the campaigns but says it likely involves state-sponsored hacking groups.

The report says one of the fake apps promised news about Kashmir. India imposed a security lockdown in August on occupied Kashmir, detaining thousands and cutting off telecommunications for days. Other fake apps mimicked a pornography website, a dating chat service and a disaster relief organisation, the Ansar Foundation. The apps often utilised Google’s Android operating system and were distributed through email or on social media messaging services such as WhatsApp. Blackberry, a former mobile phone giant now shifted to the security business, says the campaigns reflect a global trend of hackers targeting mobile devices because people use them for work and in their personal lives. “I don’t think we saw examples where they were targeting specific individuals,” said the company’s Brian Robison. “It was more of a broad stroke.” Blackberry’s report also outlines ongoing smartphone malware campaigns in other parts of the world in which hackers appear to be acting in the interests of the Chinese, Iranian, Vietnamese and North Korean governments. One common thread among the different campaigns: they interwove mobile malware into more conventional strategies targeting desktop computers. Robison said many people have been falsely lulled into thinking their phones are more trustworthy. “We put a lot of trust in the public app stores to try to keep us safe,” he said.

Pakistan to participate in four-party meeting on Afghan peace talks ISLAMABAD STAFF REPORT

Foreign Office (FO) Spokesperson Dr Mohammad Faisal on Wednesday said Pakistan will take part in the upcoming round of a fourparty meeting on the Afghan peace talks which are scheduled to be held in Moscow.

During a weekly press briefing at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Dr Faisal said Additional Secretary for Afghanistan and West Asia Muhammad Aejaz will represent Pakistan at the meeting.

“Pakistan has been a part of all

efforts and processes so far to discuss and facilitate peace and reconciliation efforts in Afghanistan,” he said, adding: “Pakistan’s role is particularly noteworthy in crystalising international convergence for a peaceful resolution in Afghanistan.”

In July, a round of the fourparty meeting on the Afghan peace process was held in Beijing.

This had been the third meeting of the trilateral forum, which includes China, Russia, and the United States, but the first to involve Pakistan.

At the time, US reconciliation

envoy Zalmay Khalilzad had said the US, Russia, China and Pakistan had endorsed the need for a comprehensive and permanent ceasefire in Afghanistan, which should start simultaneously with the intra-Afghan talks.

Earlier this month, a high-level Afghan Taliban delegation visited Pakistan. The visit had coincided with Khalilzad’s trip to Islamabad who had come to Pakistan for the first time after the US President Donald Trump abruptly halted the talks with the Taliban last month.

In response to a question regarding the upcoming talks, Dr

Published by Arif Nizami at Plot # 7, Al-Baber Centre, F/8 Markaz, Islamabad. Ph: 051-2204545. Email: newsroom@pakistantoday.com.pk

CMYK

Faisal today said: “The next round is being held in Moscow at an opportune moment as it would provide an important opportunity to review the currently stalled peace process.” He added that Pakistan will continue its efforts of “wholehearted support as its part of shared responsibility for making the international peace efforts successful in Afghanistan”.

In a separate development, a spokesman for the Afghan Taliban confirmed on Wednesday that China has invited their delegation to attend an “intra-Afghan” conference in Beijing, Outlook reported.