E-paper PakistanToday 22th February, 2012

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Rs 17.00 Vol III No 236 19 Pages Karachi — Peshawar Edition

Friday, 22 February, 2013 Rabi us Sani 11, 1434

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It is a tragedy to be a refugee in one’s own country. – Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor Engineer Shaukat Ullah

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Sherry charged with blasphemy!

NEWS Friday, 22 February, 2013

Shahzain Bugti acquitted in illegal weapons case

QUETTA: Shahzain Bugti and several others were acquitted on Thursday in an illegal weapons case due to lack of evidence. Bugti, along with his guards, had been arrested on December 22, 2010 by security forces after arms and ammunition were seized from his convoy at the Buleli check post. The arms recovered included 48 Kalashnikovs, four rocket launchers, thousands of rockets, mortar shells, five anti-aircraft guns and 70,000 of rounds.

Additional district and sessions Judge Nauroz Khan acquitted the accused on the ground that the prosecution had failed to produce concrete evidences against them.

During the hearing in the additional district and sessions judge court, ten witnesses appeared. INP

Loyal leadership needed to steer country out of crisis

MULTAN: Multan police have registered a blasphemy case against sherry Rehman, pakistan’s ambassador to the United states.

According to details, the case was registered on a complaint made by Faheem gill, a businessman of Multan. in his complaint, gill has alleged that Rehman had committed blasphemy while participating in a programme aired on a private television channel on november 30, 2010.

The complainant said Rehman was speaking on the country’s blasphemy laws and had made some statements which were tantamount to committing blasphemy.

Multan’s senior superintendent of police ghulam shabbir Jafri said the case had been registered and the complainant had also been made part of the investigation.

He added that evidence was being collected with regard to the case. INP

Don’t get us wrong, army wants timely polls: spokesman RAWALPINDI

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STAFF REPORT

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) chief Nawaz Sharif said the country is passing through a tough phase and loyal and capable leadership is required to steer the country out of crisis. He expressed these views while meeting with Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Secretary General and former provincial minister Dost Muhammad Khan on Thursday. According to reports, PMLN Senior Vice President Ameer Muqam and PPP Swat President Liaquat Khan were also present in the meeting held at Punjab House. Dost Muhammad Khan said he would formally announce joining PML-N in a public rally in his area soon, adding that PPP is not Zulfiqar Bhutto’s party anymore but has become “Zardari Limited Company”. On the occasion, Nawaz said next general elections will be a milestone for the future of the country. He appealed to the masses to cast their votes wisely. ONLINE

KARACHI: MQM legislators protest against the revocation of the Sindh People’s Local Government Ordinance in front of the Speaker’s desk on Thursday. ONLINE

isp e l l i n g the impression that the military aimed at benefiting from the postponement of the general election, inter-services public Relations (ispR) Director general Major general Asim saleem Bajwa on Thursday said the pakistan Army wanted free, fair, transparent and timely general election in the country.

Talking to a group of journalists, Bajwa said the military had been supporting the incumbent democratic setup for the past five years and would continue to do so in the future as well, adding that delay in holding general elections would not benefit the army in any way.

He said the imposition of the governor’s rule in Balochistan was a political decision made by the federal government. in the same manner, revoking the governor’s rule or not calling the army

in Balochistan would also be a political decision.

Moreover, he added that it would also be a political decision if the provincial government was restored in Balochistan.

To a question, the ispR Dg said the army had waged a war against terrorist organisations across the country, adducing that the country was in a state of war and urged all institutions to unite in the fight against terrorism.

To a question on the law and order in Balochistan, Maj gen Bajwa said the army was in no way reluctant to go into Balochistan to restore peace.

He said 19 new checkposts had been established in Quetta that would be manned by Frontier Corps (FC) as part of efforts to strengthen security in the wake of attacks on the Hazara community.

“A targeted operation led by the FC and supported by the police and intelligence agencies in underway in the province,” he maintained.

Bajwa rubbished assertions that the armed forces were in contact with any militant organisation, including the lashkar-e-Jhangvi, making it clear that the army was fighting a war against ter-

rorism in all its form and manifestations.

Commenting on the role of the inter-services intelligence (isi), Bajwa said it was operating within its constitutional parameters and during the last four months it had carried out 130 intelligence operations in Balochistan and prevented several terrorist incidents.

He especially mentioned an operation in which 39,000kgs of explosives were recovered in August last year.

Asked about the deployment of army in Balochistan, he said not even a single soldier was deployed anywhere in Balochistan during the last five years.

To a question, he said the country was in a state of war and there was need for a united and comprehensive response by all institutions.

He appreciated the role of media, the Foreign Office and the military leadership for mature handling of the issue of indian incursions across the line of Control (lOC).

Regarding extradition of Faqir Muhammad, he said, “Our Foreign Office is contact with Afghan Foreign Office in this regard.”

New province will give Punjab dominance, weaken state structures: Rabbani ISLAMABAD: pakistan people’s party (ppp) leader Mian Raza Rabbani, who is also a member of the senate standing Committee on law, Justice and parliamentary Affairs, has opposed the creation of a new province, warning that the move would give rise to new national, sub-national, ethnic and linguistic tensions that would weaken state structures and would be a recipe for destabilisation. in a dissenting note to the 24th Constitutional Amendment Bill, designed to provide for the creation of a new province of Bahawalpur-Junoobi punjab presented in the senate on Thursday, Rabbani said the dominance of punjab, in one form or another would increase in the federal structure, as the new province would require representation in the senate, which would loose its character.

He warned that the creation of a new province would give rise to new bitterness. He pointed out that the creation of a province was a historical process, and that provinces should not be carved out on the basis of administrative convenience.

“This will further aggravate the national, ethnic, linguistic and natural resources questions,” he added.

“Though it will be a political slogan for elections but it is not the opportune time,” he said, adding that national decisions should be based on stronger reasoning. He pointed out that the internal political situation was fluid and polarised. “The country is plagued by terrorism, extremism, sectarianism and regionalism,” he said.

Rabbani said there were extreme nationalist forces, particularly in Balochistan, working for arrangements outside the scheme of the constitution. With the creation of a new province, he said, such forces would stand encouraged. INP

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The decision to hand over the operation of Gwadar Port to China is purely on economic and commercial basis and no country has the right to object to this deal. – FO spokesman Moazzam Khan

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NEWS

MQM hit wheRe it huRtS theM MoSt MQM CRIES FOUL AS PPP-DOMINATED SINDH ASSEMBLY REPEALS SPLGA-2012

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iran to build refinery, supply gas to Pakistan in food barter ISLAMABAD: Iran has agreed to help build an oil refinery for Pakistan and supply its energy-hungry neighbour with natural gas in a barter deal for food, Iranian media reported on Thursday. Officials from the two countries agreed on Wednesday that Iran would help Pakistan State Oil (PSO) build a refinery and accept wheat, meat and rice as payment for fuel produced, Fars news agency reported a Pakistani energy official as saying. Iran, which has huge reserves of gas but exports little due to sanctions, has also agreed to complete Pakistan’s part of a longplanned gas pipeline and accept payment in food for gas supplied through it. “We had very good meetings and we had a lot of bilateral talks especially on Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline project and setting up oil refinery at Gwadar with PSO,” Pakistani official Asim Hussain was quoted by Iran’s state news agency IRNA as saying after a meeting with Iranian oil minister Rostam Qasemi.

Iranian media said Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari would sign a memorandum of understanding for the 400,000 barrel per day (bpd) refinery at Gwadar, on the coast of Pakistan near the border with Iran when he visits Tehran next week.

Pakistan is increasingly reliant on fuel imports, while western sanctions have made it difficult for Iran to export crude oil or repatriate the funds from what it can sell. Iran has already laid its part of a long-planned gas pipeline to Pakistan. But Islamabad, under pressure from Washington, has been slow to start work. Tired of waiting, Iran has now agreed to help build the 750-km pipeline across Pakistan, deputy minister of petroleum for gas, Javad Oji was quoted by Iranian oil ministry website Shana as saying after Wednesday’s meeting. Oji said the two sides had agreed that the pipeline would be completed in time to start delivery of 21.5 million cubic metres of gas per day to Pakistan by December 2014. AGENCIES

n what was widely described as a political U-turn, the pakistan people’s party (ppp) restored the 1973 Magistrate system in the province by enacting the sindh local government Ordinance 1979 to repeal the controversial sindh people’s local government Act 2012 (splgA-2012) in the sindh Assembly on Thursday.

The move, which is perceived as a political summersault by the ruling ppp to woo its anti- splgA-2012 voters in interior sind, did not set well with the treasury-turned-opposition lawmakers from the MQM who lashed out at their former allies for deepening the urbanrural divide in the province.

While MQM’s Faisal sabzwari made the ppp accountable for its fast-changing approach towards the local government system, information Minister sharjeel Memon said the splgA-2012 was repealed to fulfil the wishes of “the people of sindh”. “We came to power through the votes of the people so we had to remove this bill to fulfil the wishes of the people of sindh,” he told reporters after the assembly session. Thursday’s pro-

ceedings were marred by a huge outcry from 51 MQM legislators protesting the passage of a bill that, after getting the assent of the sind governor, would repeal the splgA-2012, thus reviving the magistrate system in the province. seeming to have finally realised that its sindhi nationalist political rivals, led by the pakistan Muslim league-Functional (pMl-F), were taking a huge political mileage out of the controversial act, the ppp resorted to what MQM’s sabzwari said “stabbing MQM in the back” by repealing the law. ppp stalwarts pir Mazhar, Agha siraj Durrani and sharjeel Memon said the new law was a “political compromise” made in the “broader national interest”. They said the splgA-2012 was also “not bad”.

However, MQM lawmaker sabzwari minced no words and blasted the majority ppp for what he termed an “astounding” move and a “political somersault”.

“The majority is not always right and justified,” he said.

Before the bill was passed into law, as the MQM members protested on the floor in front of speaker nisar Khuhro, who spent most of the time struggling to calm down the disenchanted lawmakers. leader of the House Chief Minister Qaim Ali shah also silently witnessed the

( QUETTA BOMBING CASE

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KARACHI ISmAIL DILAwAR

SINDH LOCAL GOVT ORDINANCE 1979 RESTORED IN THE PROVINCE

What good are checkposts if terrorists sneak through, SC asks FC COURT ACCEPTS AG’S REQUEST TO KEEP PRESIDENT, PM’S REPLIES SECRET ISLAMABAD ONLINE

The supreme Court (sC) on Thursday asked the Frontier Corps (FC) commandant how the Quetta carnage had occurred despite the presence of six FC checkposts in the area.

A three-member sC bench resumed the hearing of the suo motu case regarding the attack on the Hazara community in Quetta. Chief Justice of pakistan (CJp) iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry chaired the bench.

The Balochistan home secretary, Attorney general irfan Qadir, The defence ministry’s director, Commander shahbaz and Quetta Capital City police Officer (CCpO) Zubair Ahmed were present in the court.

The CJp said that despite the presence of police and FC, such a big tragedy had taken place, asking who was responsible for the killings. He said that illegal vehicles were being used in sabotage activities.

He said that after imposing governor’s rule, the prime minister and the Balochistan governor were equally responsible. After packing up democracy in the province, the people cannot get rid of terrorism, he added.

The Ag presented a joint report on behalf of the president and the prime minister in the court, in which details of the government’s strategy to deal

with such incidents in future was described. The sC also agreed to a request by the Ag for keeping secret the replies of the president and prime minister.

Commander shahbaz tabled a report on behalf of the defence ministry in which it was told that the Military intelligence (Mi) was not a field agency, whereas the inter-services intelligence (isi) had the institutions to fight against terrorism. The Quetta CCpO told the court that he had information about terrorist attacks, and police had been on red alert for the last five months, but added that he did not have any prior knowledge regarding the particular incident.

Justice Khilji Arif Hussain said that a lot of funding was at work behind terrorism. “it can be eradicated by tracing out the source of this background money,” he said adding that the whole world had controlled terrorism but in pakistan, the organisations concerned did not have the courage to fight it.

He said that the supreme Court had earlier ordered to install CCTV cameras in big cities including Quetta, blocking unregistered mobile phone siMs, and confiscating illegal vehicles, but the government had not implemented the instructions. The court directed the attorney general to hold a meeting with the Balochistan home secretary and the Quetta CCpO, and review the reports submitted by secret agencies in this regard so that the responsibility may be fixed on officials who had shown negligence. The court instructed the Quetta CCpO to take solid measures for the protection of not only the Hazara community but also all people. The bench adjourned the proceedings until February 26.

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proceedings when the MQM lawmakers turned the House into a fish market, with some tearing copies of the order of the day and hurling them into the air.

The joint opposition including the national people’s party (npp), pMl-F, pMl-likeminded and others, seemed to enjoy the rumpus between the former coalition partners, who confronted each other amid full-throated slogans of “long live Altaf” and “long live Bhutto”.

The ear-splitting desk-thumping and noise made law Minister Ayaz soomro use three microphones to make himself heard while moving a motion to introduce the bill, which the MQM claimed, was tabled without taking them on board.

Reacting to Thursday’s legislation, npp’s Arif Mustafa Jatoi and pMl-F’s nusrat seher Abbasi said the annulment of the “black law” was the success of the opposition achieved through its joint political pressure.

The information minister, however, said the act was not annulled because of “any protest or pressure” but due to the displeasure of ppp workers. The ppp leader said the MQM’s allegations were unjustified.

As their counterparts from the MQM walked out of the house, the ppp lawmakers deplored the “un-parliamentary attitude” of their former allies, who “should have the moral courage to listen to the views of the other side”.

The day’s proceedings witnessed ppp’s re-elected Finance Minister Murad Ali shah and sadiq Memon sworn in by the speaker. The House was adjourned until Monday.

Pakistan to become a ‘failed state’ if current scenario persists

LAHORE: punjab Chief Minister shahbaz sharif on Thursday said if the current law and order situation persisted, pakistan may turn into “a failed state”.

Talking to media personnel, the CM said widespread killing of innocent citizens had brought democracy and the existing set-up into question.

He said terrorism was at its peak in the country, adding that if concrete action was not taken against those responsible, the country’s foundations may begin to shake.

The pakistan Muslim league–nawaz (pMl-n) leader said world powers had used militants in the 1980s to fight their so-called war against soviet communism and now the same militants were viewed as terrorists by those powers. sharif said it was heartening that the country’s media was proactive and critical. He went on to say that the real power of the media and the judiciary would become evident in the upcoming general election. ONLINE

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This is a dastardly attack, the guilty will not go unpunished. —Indian PM Manmohan Singh tweets after Hyderabad bombings

NEWS Friday, 22 February, 2013

Drones not only killing ‘particular people’ but rescuers as well: LHC LHC CJ SAYS INNOCENT CHILDREN AND WOMEN ARE BEING KILLED IN DRONE ATTACKS LAHORE ONLINE

lahore High Court Chief Justice Umar Atta Bandial on Thursday said the drone attacks were not only being conducted on “particular people” but the Us is also attacking those who come to rescue the victims.

He said this during the hearing against drone attacks.

The application was submitted

by Jamaatud Dawa chief Hafiz saeed. The lHC CJ said that innocent children and women were being killed in these attacks, which was a sheer vio-

lation of human rights. The court asked AK Dogar, the lawyer of the applicant, that it may be told to the court with reference to Un charter, international and the country’s law that the court could issue what kind of instructions to the government within the ambit of constitution and law.

To which, Dogar said that when human rights were violated on a large scale then the court could instruct the government to protect its citizens. He said the drone attacks were being conducted with the permission of the

LAWYER SAYS DRONE ATTACKS ARE SPREADING MAYHEM AND CHAOS IN PAKISTAN government. He said the Us had started an undeclared war against pakistan and around 3,000 people have been killed in drone attacks in pakistan, somalia and Yemen.

The lawyer said that the drone attacks were spreading mayhem and chaos in pakistan.

FATA is the part and parcel of the country, he added. The former officials of Us state Department were saying that although drone attacks were illegal but the pakistani government was not performing its duties in a befitting manner in this regard, he said. On which,

the CJ asked Dogar that the federal government had raised objection that the drone attacks were related to the defence and security of the country, which did not fall under the court’s jurisdiction. On which the lawyer said that the government could not get rid of its responsibilities about killing of innocent people in drone attacks by terming it a security matter. He said that a report revealed that approximately 500 companies in the Us were making drone crafts and shells, adding that it had become one of the largest industries in the Us.

3 British Muslims guilty of plotting biggest attack in uK LONDON AGENCIES

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HRee British Muslim men were found guilty on Thursday of planning a string of bombings that prosecutors said could have been deadlier than the July 7, 2005, attacks on london’s transport network. irfan naseer, 31, irfan Khalid, 27, and Ashik Ali, 27, were convicted of being “central figures” in an extremist plot to set off eight rucksack

Court orders arrest of former MNA, 2 Punjab MPAs LAHORE ONLINE

The Additional District and sessions Court here has issued arrest warrants for one former member of the national Assembly and two former members of the punjab Assembly for holding dual nationalities. When the lahore district and sessions judge started hearing the case, he was informed on behalf of the election Commission of pakistan that former MnA shehnaz sheikh, and former MpAs Amna Battar and Rana Asif had enjoyed luxuries during their tenure. The eCp requested the court to order withdrawal of their facilities as they had been disqualified for holding dual nationalities. The judge had summoned the parliamentarians numerous times but they failed to even make a single appearance.

Therefore, the judge ordered that the three be arrested by February 25.

‘uK won’t return Koh-e-Noor’ NEW DELHI ONLINE

British prime Minister David Cameron on Thursday said a giant diamond his country forced india to hand over in the colonial era that was set in the late Queen elizabeth i’s crown will not be returned. pakistan also claimed the ownership of the most precious diamond in the world as it was picked up from lahore before partition and the British army gifted it to the Royal family. speaking on the third and final day of a visit to india aimed at drumming up trade and investment, Cameron ruled out handing back the 105-carat Koh-e-noor diamond, now on display in the Tower of london. One of the world’s largest diamonds, some indians – including independence leader Mahatma gandhi’s grandson – have demanded its return to atone for Britain’s colonial past.

bombs and possibly other timed devices in crowded areas.

The three men, all from Birmingham, central england, had denied charges of engaging in conduct in preparation of terrorist acts during their trial at Woolwich Crown Court in london.

Despite a series of bungles by the conspirators, police said it was the most significant terror plan uncovered in Britain since the 2006 plot to blow up transatlantic airliners using bombs in drinks bottles.

Two of the men – naseer and Khalid – traveled to pakistan for terror training while naseer also helped others to travel to the country for the same purpose, the court heard.

The group was heavilyinfluenced by the teachings of American-born al Qaeda preacher Anwar al-Awlaki, who was killed by a drone strike in Yemen in september 2011, police said. naseer was found guilty of five charges, Khalid four, and Ali three, all between December 25, 2010 and september 19, 2011.

Zardari urges alternative to drone attacks ISLAMABAD NNI

president Asif Ali Zardari has once again urged the United states to revisit its policy of drone attacks in pakistan’s tribal areas.

Talking to a delegation of Us senate Foreign Relations Committee headed by its chairman senator Robert Menendez on Thursday, he termed drone attack as “counterproductive”, which were causing great damage at popular level, stressing the need to find a way out.

The president said the sacrifices offered by pakistan in the fight against militancy must be acknowledged and appreciated. He said pakistan’s armed forces were doing a heroic job despite all odds, but stretched as they were in the tribal areas‚ they needed to be assisted with resources for long term and sustained counter-terrorism operations.

About pakistan-Us rela-

tions‚ Zardari said that ties between the two countries were multifaceted, and it would not be proper to see them through one prism only‚ be that Afghanistan or any other.

Reiterating that pakistan looked forward to increased trade through market access instead of aid, the president said that pakistan also wanted increased Us investment in pakistan in energy‚ agriculture and livestock sectors.

Referring to pakistanindia relations‚ the president said that pakistan had liberalised trade with india and wished to establish friendly‚ cooperative and good neighbourly relations with it and peaceful resolution of all outstanding disputes.

Menendez praised the role played by pakistan and the sacrifices offered by its armed forces‚ security agencies and the people in the fight against militancy. The president also hosted a lunch for the delegation.

haj gets expensive due to dollar hike ISLAMABAD: Haj this year would cost approximately Rs 63,000 more as compared to last year due to increase in the rupee-dollar parity and enhanced air fares. Minister for Religious Affairs Syed Khursheed Shah, during a pres conference said, depending on the distance from Haram Sharif in Makkah‚ there would be three categories of accommodation; White‚ Green and Blue. He said Haj expenses for the White category would be Rs 285,000 from south, including Karachi‚ Sukkur and Quetta and Rs 295,000 the north. ONLINE

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KESC should generate maximum power from its plants to meet the power needs of the city and steps should also be taken to generate cheaper power. – Minister for Water and Power Ch Ahmed Mukhtar

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Weather updateS

Karachiites sweat blood as 6 more gunned down KARACHI

STAFF REPORT

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28 C 0

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Fajr Sunrise Zuhr asr maghrib Isha 5:45 7:01 12:46 4:03 6:30 7:47

Quetta tragedy: 37 injured shifted to Karachi KARACHI NNI

At least 37 people, who were injured in saturday’s destructive bomb blast at Kirani Road area of Quetta, have been flown into Karachi on board a C-130 military aircraft to be provided with medical treatment. The critically injured 37 people were shifted to a private hospital here from pakistan Air Force (pAF) Base airport early in the morning.

A high-level team of doctors and members of the bereaved families were also on board the plane. Meanwhile, a woman succumbed to her injuries during the air travel thus raising the death toll to 114. Majlis Wahdat Muslimeen (MWM) sources said a woman named Afshan, passed away during the journey from Quetta to Karachi.

Fresh rains hit Sindh, Balochistan KARACHI ONLINE

A new weather system entered pakistan overnight causing intermittent showers in most areas of sindh and Balochistan on Thursday. According to media reports, several areas of sindh that experienced overnight downpour, included sukkur, larkana, nawabshah, Khairpur and Jacobabad. The rain drastically lowered the temperatures and people once more pulled out their warm clothes to fight the chilly weather.

Meanwhile, people in most rain-washed areas were facing problems due to power outages. According to the pakistan Meteorological Department, the rain spell was expected to last for the next 48 hours.

He metropolis witnessed killings of six more people including an operative of a political party during the last 24 hours in the sustained pace of violence here on Thursday. The recent incident took place in the area of Ranchhore line where an unidentified youth was shot to death. Malir’s Jam goth also saw the killing of a 24-year man in a firing incident.

An unknown youth was gunned down in Orangi Town-5 and a political activist identified as Aamir was killed near Haider Chowk, Orangi Town.

Meantime, two bodies bundled into gunnysacks were recovered from Crown Cinema, Mauripur, and Askari park, old vegetable market. some unidentified miscreants lobbed a cracker outside a political party’s local office located in north Karachi near Baba Morr that left three people injured. The city’s area of Kharadar buckled under massive tension when two groups exchanged fire late night on Wednesday. Meantime, police arrested from Manghopir a target killer, shafiq, who was involved in the killing of 34 people including political personalities.

Also, special investigation police conducted an operation in Manghopir and arrested Haroon Bengali along with his accessories involved in over 50 activities of bhatta (extortion). Firearms were also seized from their possession.

ANF SEIzES 44.8 kg HEROIN AT cITy pORT: Anti-narcotics Force (AnF) has foiled a major smuggling bid and recovered 44.8 kilograms heroin from the Karachi seaport. According to details, on a tip off, the AnF team checked a suspected container (espU2009705) at the Karachi seaport.

During the search of container, 44.8 kg heroin was recovered which was concealed in cartons of towels. The drug was being smuggled to Africa. The timely operation of AnF foiled the plan of smugglers. An FiR has been registered against the culprits and further investigations are underway.

1,109 gUILTLESS wOMEN kILLED IN 2011: lawyers for Human Rights and legal Aid (lHRlA) president Zia Awan said on Thursday that 110,9 guiltless women could not safeguard their lives and became murder victims during 2012 in pakistan. “The core reasons for women being at the disadvantage of getting abused and cursed include the feudal and patriarchal

mindset of society increasing inflation and lack of education," Awan said in a statement issued on the occasion of the international Day of social Justice.

He said gender inequalities were founded everywhere from home setup, work environment, education system, law and policies. Referring to Madadgaar national’s Database, he said it was reported that in 2012, the

SHC SEEKS REPORT FROM POLICE, RANGERS KARACHI: The Sindh High Court (SHC) chief justice has sought a report from the law enforcement agencies on their performance in curbing the ongoing incidents of targeted killings and money extortion.

Chief Justice Mushir Alam on Thursday ordered the Sindh IG police and the Sindh Rangers DG to submit details of cases registered since October 6, 2011, to date along with challans and FIR numbers.

Karachi, the home to 180 million people and hub of Pakistan’s economy, has been plagued by the incidents of politically and religiously motivated killings, gang war and dacoities, prompting the Supreme Court to take suo moto notice which is being pursued by the apex court and the Sindh High Court. NNI

cases of women murders had the highest rate among all kinds of women violence. Awan showed great concern over the increasing cases of women murders and said that 736 women were murdered in 2011.

3 TTP MEN ARRESTED KARACHI: Police have arrested three alleged members of the banned outfit Tehrik-i-Taliban (TTP) here on Thursday.

According to details, the police conducted raids in the Orangi Town area on a tip off provided by an arrested accused of the TTP. During the operation, the police arrested three accused and recovered drugs and arms from their possession. The accused were shifted to undisclosed location for further investigation. INP

Sindh on strike against attack on Qambar Pir JACOBABAD ONLINE

strike is being observed in different cities of sindh amid call of protests against yesterday’s attack on a prominent spiritual leader near Jacobabad which left his grandson dead.

According to media reports, shafiq Hussain shah, the grandson of religious figure pir of Qambar sharif sain Hussain shah, was killed and 10 others were injured when a bomb blast ripped through a religious gathering near Jacobabad city in sindh.s The Hussain remained safe in the roadside blast which occurred as his motorcade arrived at the venue of a rally. police said a remote-controlled devise was used to initiate the blast.

Meanwhile, the spiritual leader's car was badly damaged by the blast.

The attack angered Hussain’s followers and caused tension in several cities of sindh. protesters took to the streets and forced

businesses and shops to close down in various cities of the province.

The sunni Tehrik called for a day of mourning in the province.

Religious organisations have announced to observe three-day mourning in Khairpur and larkana and also gave protests calls in

sukkur, Hyderabad, Dadu and other cities. Meanwhile, police have arrested two suspects in connection with the blast.

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KARACHI Friday, 22 February, 2013

‘ticket mafia’ in railways last nail in the coffin PR EMPLOYEE UNION KARACHI DIVISION PRESIDENT MUQADAR ZAMAN SAYS ONLY 15 PERCENT EMPLOYEES ARE ENGAGED IN THIS BUSINESS spective destinations, but many of them could not get tickets after the station management informed that seats were not available. An agent, who was standing outAAmIR mAJEED side Adjustment Counter at Cantt station, told this AKing advantage of the Hazara commu- scribe that tickets were only available in black. The nity protest, the pakistan Railways (pR) agent, who was a junior grade employee of pR, while employees in the city have started the busi- requesting anonymity, said that the reservation office ness of black marketing of railway tickets of the railway station concerned had been provided with the opportunity after many amid shortage of seats in trains days to mint money from the pasand the existence of a large numsengers and they did not want to ber of passengers. Although, the miss this golden chance. “The train service was restored two tickets of Allama iqbal express, days after the Hazara community Millat express, pakistan express ended their protest in the country and night Coach were available yesterday, but tickets were not against a commission of Rs 500 available despite the fact that raileach per ticket, while one ticket of way stations in the metropolis reKarakoram express was sold at the mained close for three days and rate of Rs 2,500 while its actual no one had visited the offices for amount is only Rs 1,500 from advance booking of railway tickKarachi to lahore," he added. ets due to the uncertainty which A passenger, who was standing prevailed all over the country. outside the Adjustment Counter, The tickets at city's railway narrated his story as follows: “My station were only available in name is Khalil Ahmed and i am a black at exorbitant rates. A large resident of lahore. i came to number of agents were seen dealKarachi to attend the wedding of ing with passengers, who were one of my cousin but i had no idea refused tickets by station adminthat it can cost me heavily. istration, outside the station i approached a man who was premises. Magically these agents SHOAIB ADIL came back with tickets when they RAILWAY KARACHI DIVISION DCO sitting in Adjustment Counter after the reservation office were given Rs 500 extra while excluding the transportation fee. A large number of claimed that there is no ticket available in Karakoram people reached the city's railway station after three-day express. When i arrived here i met with a person closure of train service in the country to reach their re- namely Jumman but he also refused to give me ticket

KARACHI

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I have fired a few people who have been proved guilty in relation to black marketing of tickets and now there is no one in Karachi division railways who will dare to get involved in this business

but on his refusal a man standing at a walk through gate to check luggage of passengers called me and demand Rs 2,500 for a single ticket. i gave him the amount and after 10 minutes, from the hall beside Adjustment Counter, he appeared with the ticket," he added. When Jumman, who was sitting in Adjustment Counter, was approached for comments, he said that he was a railways employee too and he had to oblige his colleagues. “When a railway employee came to me and requested me for a ticket, then i could not refuse him as i have to survive in this environment,” Jumman said, while adding that, “i have no idea whether they are selling the ticket in black or whether are really helping their relatives.” pR employee Union Karachi Division president Muqadar Zaman said that a few employees of the railways were involved in this business. “if i was asked to reveal the ratio of the railway employees involved in black marketing of tickets, then i will say that only 15 percent employees in Karachi are engaged in this business,” he added.

“These people usually stand in parking lots of Cantt and City railway stations and when a passenger reached the reservation office, he would have a ticket in his hand,” he said, adding that “There is a constant decline in black marketing of railway tickets in Karachi after shoaib Adil assumed charge as DCO, but still few people are involved in this black business.”

Railway Karachi Division DCO shoaib Adil

when contacted said that the Railway police was involved in this business. He said that no pR employees were involved in this business, but the Railway police could not be stopped. He further said that he had talked to ssp Railway police and requested him to take action against railway police personnel, who were running this business, but he paid no attention to the request and black marketing of railway tickets had been continuing. Moreover, i have fired a few people who were proved guilty in relation to black marketing of railway tickets and now there was no one in Karachi division railways who would dare to get involved in this business, he added.

Family planning vital for mother, child health KARACHI APP Family planning is not just about population control but it is also and more importantly about the health of mothers and children. in the present circumstances, family planning had almost always been viewed with scepticism in this country, therefore it was heartening to see that the total fertility rate, meaning the number of children per woman on average, had declined to float around four, down from the previous mark of six. Maternal and child morbidity have also declined but remained in the high range, as according to World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates for 2011, the infant mortality rate was 65 per 1,000 live births as compared to 90 per 1,000 in 1999, whereas maternal mortality ratio stood at 276 per 100,000 in 2011 from 450 in 1999.

KARACHI: Raw iron imported from Australia is being shifted to raw material yard of Pakistan Steel through a conveyor belt. onLIne

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Morality may consist solely in the courage of making a choice. — Leon Blum

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eight SoLDieRS KiLLeD iN PAPuA JAKARTA: The Indonesian army says eight soldiers have been shot dead in two separate attacks by armed men in restive Papua province. A spokesman told the BBC one soldier was killed when a military post in mountainous Puncak Jaya district was attacked - two attackers also died. Seven soldiers died when they were ambushed not far away shortly after, said Jansen Simanjuntak.

Insurgents calling for independence have been active in Papua for decades. It is one of the country's richest provinces in terms of natural resources - but also one of the least developed. Thursday's attacks were the biggest to hit the military this year. Mr Simanjuntak said that in the first incident, in the village of Tingginambut, one soldier died instantly when he was shot in the chest and that another was injured. In the second, nine soldiers who were on patrol were ambushed by unidentified assailants. Mr Simanjuntak said there were no plans yet to send additional troops to Papua, but that additional police had been deployed to find those responsible. Rear Adm Iskandar Sitompul said he believed one group had carried out both attacks. "They are believed to be old players who always try to disturb the situation there,'' he told the Associated Press news agency. Papua became Indonesia's easternmost province in a controversial election in 1969 that many Papuans say was a sham.

The poorly armed Free Papua Movement has battled for independence ever since. The Indonesian government says it is too dangerous for foreign journalists to travel to the restive province, although human rights groups say that it is Jakarta's way of keeping journalists out, says our correspondent. AGENCIES

BuLgARiAN PARLiAMeNt ACCePtS govt’S ReSigNAtioN SOFIA: Bulgaria's parliament has accepted the resignation of prime minister Boiko Borisov's government, which stepped down after a series of nationwide protests over high energy prices turned violent.

The move opens the way for an early general election. President Rosen Plevneliev will now ask parliament's three biggest parties if they want to form a government to rule until an election due in July. But both Borisov's GERB party and the main opposition Socialists have said they have no interest in participating in a caretaker cabinet, and analysts say that means Plevneliev could schedule an election by as early as April. "Only a parliamentary election can show the will of Bulgarians," outgoing deputy prime minister Tsvetan Tsvetanov told the chamber before the vote. Borisov stepped down after more than a week days of nationwide protests against high power prices and falling living standards. Tens of thousands of people staged daily rallies across the country, shouting "Mafia!", "Garbage!" and "Resign!" Demonstrations continued after the announcement on Wednesday night, when around 2,000 people marched towards parliament, separated by policemen from a group of Borisov supporters who called for his return to power. The mass demonstrations were sparked by soaring electricity prices but quickly changes focus onto wider frustration with high unemployment, low salaries, corruption and power monopolies. The country is the poorest in the European Union, and unions say the unemployment rate is up to 18 percent. Violent clashes between protesters and police on Monday and Tuesday left 28 people injured. "I will not participate in a government where the police beat people up or where threats for protests replace political dialogue," Borisov told parliament on Wednesday. AGENCIES

CHOn BURI: A US marine drinks the blood of a cobra during a jungle survival exercise with the Thai navy on Thursday. AGENCIES

Deadly car bomb kills 53 in central Damascus DAMASCuS

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T least 53 people, most of them civilians, have been killed in a powerful car bomb targeting the ruling Baath party headquarters in central Damascus on Thursday, activists said.

The official sAnA news agency also reported the blast in the central Mazraa neighbourhood on Thursday, saying a "large number" of civilians were killed or wounded in what it described as a "terrorist attack". it did not say what caused the explosions. The pro-regime TV station Al-ikhbariya showed images of what appeared to be at least four dead bodies on the ground and cars on fire. The footage shows firefighters trying to douse cars on fire and lifeless bodies lying on the grass of a public garden. eyewitnesses at the scene said a car had exploded at a security checkpoint between the Russian embassy and the central headquarters of the ruling Baath party of president Bashar Assad. Ambulances rushed to the scene of the blast, which also shattered windows and sent up a huge cloud of smoke visible throughout much of the city, eyewitnesses said. "it was huge, everything in the shop turned upside down," one local resident said, speaking on condition of anonymity for fear of retribution for speaking with foreign media.

Al Jazeera’s Rula Amin, reporting from Beirut in neighbouring lebanon, said the explosion took place in a heavily fortified area. "The city is under very strict restrictions. people who have come out of Damascus have been telling us about how many checkpoints are

there within the city limits, inside the neighbourhoods and between different areas; especially around the headquarters of the Baath party, the security installations and the presidential palace," Amin said. "so it seems that whoever was behind the attack had managed to go through many checkpoints until they got to the point where they can explode the car."

The explosion comes amid reports of fierce clashes over the past few days between the opposition and regime forces around Damascus, as rebels tried to make advances in the city. The car bombing was followed soon after by a mortar attack on a military headquarters, both government-sponsored media and opposition activists reported, without giving information on casualties. A security official reported another blast the capital's northeastern Barzeh neighbourhood. He had no other information and spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to brief the media.

Thursday's blasts followed two mortar attacks in as many days on the capital. On Wednesday, two mortar shells exploded near a soccer stadium in Damascus, killing one player. The day before, two mortar shells went off near one of Assad's three palaces in the city, causing only material damage. Damascus has so far mostly avoided the large-scale violence that has destroyed other syrian cities, though deadly car bombings have targeted government buildings in the capital.

The latest development came as a major opposition meeting was underway in Cairo, the egyptian capital. in a communique drafted for Thursday's meeting, the opposition syrian national Coalition said it was willing to negotiate a peace deal to end the conflict in syria but that Assad cannot be a party to any settlement.

Millions strike in India over high prices NEW DELHI AGENCIES

A strike by millions of low-skilled workers in india has seen banks close and public transport disrupted, amid reports of two deaths in the north.

An estimated 100 million indians, angry about rising prices, low pay and poor working condition, walked off their jobs on Wednesday, on the first day of a two-day strike organised by eleven major trade unions.The strikers are demanding a legal minimum wage, fairer contracts and improved working conditions.

"Workers are being totally ignored and this is reflected in the government's anti-

labour policies," said Tapan sen, general secretary of the umbrella Centre of indian Trade Unions. earlier this week, prime Minister Manmohan singh, who is facing the worst economic slowdown in a decade, had asked for the strike to be called off.

However, the strike went ahead after the government refused to bow to union demands to reverse recent reforms aimed at opening sectors, including retail and airlines, to greater participation by foreign investors. "We want the government to take note of this," said Akhtar Hussain, vicepresident of the Bharatiya Mazdoor sangh, or indian Workers' Union.

"We need our demands to be met. The government needs to be more serious."

Al Jazeera’s sohail Rahman, reporting from gurgaon, in the state of Harayana, said the strike's impact could affect the government's future agenda as it decides "how high up on the agenda issues of minimum wage and workers' rights will be discussed at the lok sabha (the lower house of parliament)". in many areas public transport was not running, banks were closed and most shops and offices kept their shutters down. Mumbai was largely unaffected but banks and insurance companies were closed there too. in Bhubaneswar, the capital of Odisha state in the east, protesters set fire to effigies of singh and ruling Congress party leader sonia gandhi. several trains were stranded at stations

as protesters blocked railway tracks. in the western state of gujarat, close to 8,000 state-owned buses were off the roads, officials said. One labour leader was reportedly killed in the northern city of Ambala.

He was squatting along with a group of workers near the local bus depot as part of the strike when he was hit by a bus in his bid to stop it from leaving the terminal, the Times of india reported.

"The incident took place around 4 am this morning when narender singh, a bus driver by profession, tried to stop the vehicle which was being taken out from the Ambala Depot despite the strike," said inder singh Bhadana, the district president of the Haryana Roadways Workers Union.

uS DetAiNS PALeStiNiAN oSCAR NoMiNee LOS ANGELES AGENCIES

Us immigration officials briefly detained the palestinian director of the Oscarnominated documentary 5 Broken Cameras on his way into los Angeles for sunday's Academy Awards. emad Burnat said that when he arrived at los Angeles international Airport from Turkey with his wife and eight-year-old son late on Tuesday, he was told he did not have the proper proof that he was a nominee. "last night, on my way from Turkey to los Angeles ... my family and i were held at Us immigration for about an hour and questioned about the purpose of my visit to the United states," he said in a statement. "Although this was an unpleasant experience, this is a daily occurrence for palestinians, every single day, throughout the West Bank." Burnat had earlier spent nearly six hours at an israeli checkpoint as he attempted to drive to Amman to catch his flight to the Us. His detention in the Us was first reported by filmmaker Michael Moore, a friend of Burnat's, who said he received an urgent text message from Burnat from a holding pen at the airport. According to Moore's blog post, the director told Burnat to give Homeland security his name and cell phone number to have him explain why Burnat was in the Us. Burnat had just been in the Us two weeks earlier doing interviews alongside his co-director, israeli activist guy Davidi. The Us Customs and Border protection (CBp) did not comment on the case but said in a statement that it "strives to treat all travellers with respect and in a professional manner, while maintaining the focus of our mission to protect all citizens and visitors in the United states. "Travellers may be referred for further inspection for a variety of reasons to include identity verification, intent of travel, and confirmation of admissibility." 5 Broken Cameras features footage Burnat shot in his occupied West Bank village, Bilin - from everyday activities with his family to protests against the occupation and shootings. The title refers to the number of smashed cameras since he began filming. Bilin, a village near Ramallah, has organised weekly protests since 2005 when israel began construction of its separation wall a high concrete wall with guard towers and razor wire - meant to mark the border between israel and the West Bank. The route of the wall, however, is not along the internationally-accepted "green line" that marks the border; instead, it winds deep into the West Bank in some areas.

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World Scouts Day is an occasion to renew commitment towards the noble values for which the movement was founded. – President Asif Zardari

NEWS Friday, 22 February, 2013

Man killed, 17 injured in Peshawar bombing pESHAwAR: A man died and 17 others were injured in a bombing at a mobile phone market in Hashtnagari peshawar on Thursday. police said unidentified miscreants had planted a high-intensity explosive device inside the market. As many as 20 people were injured in the bombing. One of them succumbed to his injuries at a hospital. police said 17 wounded people have been admitted to the lady Reading Hospital peshawar, adding that three of them were in a serious condition.

The explosion also destroyed a number of shops in the market. The assistant inspector general (Bomb Disposal squad) said that two to three kilogrammes of explosives were used. He said that it was a remotecontrolled device. no terrorist outfit has claimed responsibility so far, but the officials believed that the Taliban militants were behind the bombing. police have arrested five suspects and shifted them to an undisclosed location for interrogation. However, their identity could not be disclosed. STAFF REPORT

CeC removes objections on Nisar’s fake degree notice

PESHAWAR: Police and rescue workers collect evidence at the blast site in Mobile Plaza at Hashtnagri Phatak. INP

Not all of PM’s directives being implemented in Punjab ISLAMABAD: Chief election Commissioner (CeC) Fakhruddin g ibrahim on Thursday retracted his letter following a strong protest lodged by national Assembly Opposition leader Chaudhry nisar Ali Khan. According to details, nisar called the CeC via telephone and conveyed his reservations regarding the letter from the election Commission of pakistan (eCp) to lawmakers on fake degrees eCp had written letters to as many as 249 parliamentarians including, nisar, asking them to submit verified degrees within 15 days. eCp further warned lawmakers that if their degrees were deemed fake, criminal proceedings would be initiated against them. nisar criticised the eCp initiative and said that eCp should not humiliate the parliamentarians in this regard. He further said that he would submit his degrees even if he was disqualified. Moreover, he said that parliamentarians paid taxes on their salaries. nisar further stressed that the eCp’s sole responsibility was to hold free and fair elections in the country. in light of nisar’s protests, the CeC removed objections on the opposition leader and the matter was resolved amicably. ONLINE

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He punjab government has put the directives issued by the prime minister on the backburner, clearly manifesting the tension between the provincial government and the centre, pakistan Today has learnt.

Both the chief minister and the prime minister issue directives which are mostly during public gatherings or during visits to various districts. These directives are actually instructions for carrying out development work such as building schools or a dispensary. The directives issued by the prime minister are directed to the chief secretary who then routes it to the provincial departments concerned. A senior official said that the implementation and Coordination (i&C) Department disseminates the orders to the relevant department, and then follows up on it to check what orders have been implemented. “Any scheme, gift or facility that the pM announces in a public gathering or during a visit becomes

his directive issued by his secretariat.

The punjab government receives tens of such directives on daily basis because the pM is always announcing things, issuing orders,” he added. planning and Development (p&D) Department Chairman Javaid Aslam is the focal person of the punjab government on implementing the pM’s directives. However, sources said that the bureaucracy had ignored the pM’s directives, and recently invited the displeasure of higher-ups after which a meeting was called in at the p&D Department to look into outstanding pM’s directives in punjab. p&D Chairman Javaid Aslam had to chair the meeting on Monday (yesterday), however, it did not take place because he was in islamabad. sources on good authority said there are around 29 pending directives which have been taken up in Monday’s meeting. “Most of the directives are concerning the departments of health and higher education, and deal with construction of schools or dispensaries, with some dating back to 2009,” the source added. important directives include building of girls’ schools in various districts, pro-

vision of safe environment in hospitals, and withdrawal of cases against pakistan people’s party (ppp) workers in the wake of Benazir Bhutto’s murder. such directives involve the Home Department. interestingly, the last directive was issued in 2010, yet the issue is still pending and has been finally taken up for consideration even though with a lapse.

An i&C official however said that the department “only works as a post office and distributes the directives to the relevant departments”. “it is the department’s responsibility to initiate action or get it done,” he added. The official further said that the directives were not binding on the departments. p&D Chairman Javaid Aslam however said the bureaucracy had no political motive. “it is just that various schemes or directives need funds for completion. it is not the provincial regime or the bureaucracy which can finance it from its own kitty. We only seek funds from the federal government for completion of a directive,” he said. To a question, he said the s&gAD deals with the directives, while the p&D is involved only when funds are required.

‘Arbitration court’s decision will benefit Pakistan’ ISLAMABAD: legal expert and analyst Faisal H naqvi on Thursday said the decision of the international Court of Arbitration in Kishan ganga dispute that india can only divert limited water would benefit pakistan in the long run. in an interview with Radio pakistan, he said india wanted to divert water at its whim but now the court would decide the quantity of the water to be diverted.

He said india also wanted draw down flushing for desilting, but this plea has been rejected by the international Court of Arbitration, which has held that this could be done only during an emergency.

He explained that had indian point of view been accepted it would have deprived pakistan of huge quantity of water throughout the year as india has plans to build many dams on Jhelum and their desilting one after the other would have devastating impact on pakistan.

To a question, naqvi said pakistan also brought the court’s attention to environmental issue of possible impact of reduced water availability on national park on this side of the line of Control. He hoped that in its final award the court would take care of this aspect as well. APP

BU students vow to work for country’s peace SHABASH PAKISTAN AIMS AT REAWAKENING PATRIOTISM AND ‘PAKISTANIYAT’IN YOUTH ISLAMABAD PRESS RELEASE

More than 100 students from Bahria University (BU) on Thursday vowed to save the country by becoming ambassadors of peace, as the school of leadership conducted the third and final session off their nationwide campaign named shabash pakistan. shabash pakistan is a nation branding

movement started by the school of leadership. The movement aims at reawakening patriotism and ‘pakistaniyat’ in the youth. The programme would help them manoeuvre their strength to the path of creating a positive image of pakistan in the international arena. school of leadership did it in a different way. The methods were unlike the conventional educational and personality building methods. The young blood was taught in an interactive and participative manner, which is actually role playing in itself. everyone was made to prove their presence. They were mainly led by questions. All in all, it was a “learning with fun” journey, which turned out to be very fruitful.

The school of leadership is known for being pioneers of the training industry in

pakistan. They claim to provide a platform for individuals to discover and utilise their unquestionable ability to elevate their lives through conscious endeavor. The school helps brings about positive change in people’s (both young and old) personal, professional and social lives, which favourably impacts their families, organisations, communities and society at large. The school aspires to empower people through greater awareness of self, others and their environment, so that they are better able to steer their communities and organisations to higher levels of sustainable growth, impact and profitability. The school believes that the youth can be trusted to shape their own destiny, inspire their communities and craft a brighter future.

The trainer, Umair Jaliawala conducted the session in an interesting manner.

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By hanging Afzal Guru, New Delhi has given the people of Kashmir another monument of freedom. – Mirwaiz Omar Farooq

‘Pak should desist from acts contributing to trust deficit’ INDIAN PRESIDENT MUKHERJEE SAYS NEW DELHI WILL CONTINUE TO HELP AFGHANISTAN EVOLVE PEACEFULLY AND FIGHT TERRORISM AND EXTREMISM AFTER US DRAWDOWN NEW DELHI

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gAinsT the backdrop of the beheading of an indian soldier on the loC, indian president pranab Mukherjee on Thursday said pakistan should desist from acts that contribute to “trust deficit”. in his address to the joint sitting of parliament, Mukherjee said, “With pakistan, we have made progress towards normalisation of relations, strengthening mechanism for bilateral trade and facilitating greater people-to-people contact.”

The president said while india remained committed to taking the process forward, “it is also important that pakistan abides by its commitments and desists

from acts that contribute to a trust deficit”.

The president prefaced his remarks by saying that india continued to seek peace, stability, cooperation and economic development in the sub-continent. “We attach the highest priority to relations with our immediate neighbours”.

He also made it clear that as Afghanistan prepared for a political and security transition in 2014 and beyond, “we will continue to help Afghanistan evolve peacefully and fight terrorism and extremism”.

On China, Mukherjee said his government intended to work with the new Chinese leadership to reinforce the positive direction of the bilateral relationship.

“My government’s foreign policy continues to be driven by the objectives of creating an enabling environment for our

national development, ensuring the security of the nation and fulfilling our international responsibilities,” he said.

As regards to sri lanka, he said, “We are making efforts in our engagement with sri lanka, including in our efforts to resettle and rehabilitate the internally displaced persons there and to ensure a life of peace, dignity and equality for the Tamil people”.

On Bangladesh, Mukherjee said the government proposed to introduce a constitutional amendment bill in parliament to give effect to provisions of the land Boundary Agreement with the neighbouring country and its 2011 protocol, which will strengthen border management and the country’s security. noting that the strategic partnership with the Us had deepened with the progress across all areas of the relationship, he said, “We look forward to intensifying this engagement during the second term of president Barack Obama”.

He said india’s multi-faceted relationship with Japan, which was also a major partner in the country’s infrastructure development efforts, was making good

progress.

The “privileged and strategic” partnership india had built with Russia received a further boost during the visit of president Vladimir putin in December last year.

Mukherjee said india’s traditionally strong relations with europe would continue to develop. “The visit of president Francois Hollande to Delhi in February 2013, his first Asian destination as president, will further strengthen our friendship and broad-based strategic cooperation with France”.

“We intensified efforts to generate momentum for early reform of the Un security Council. We are also seeking concerted international action against piracy,” he said, adding that a piracy bill was introduced in parliament last year for prosecution in india of people committing piracy. noting that india also remained constructively engaged in global multilateral diplomacy, he said new Delhi hosted the fourth BRiCs summit in March last year and the ministerial meet of the indian Ocean Rim Association for Regional Cooperation in October last year.

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Judges stay away from courts as lawyers protest in Faisalabad continues FAISALABAD: lawyers’ protest in Faisalabad for the formation of a high court bench in the city entered second day on Thursday suspending all court proceedings. A large number of lawyers from the Faisalabad District Bar Association staged a sit-in at the District Council Roundabout, chanting slogans and carrying placards and banners demanding the formation of the high court bench in their city. The protest began on Wednesday when hundreds of lawyers ransacked the court premises. On the other hand, all judges have gone on a three-day leave in the wake of the violent protests, suspending court proceedings. NNI

Saudi Arabia beheads Pakistani man for drug trafficking RIyADH: saudi Arabia on Thursday beheaded by a pakistani man convicted of drug trafficking, the Ministry of interior said. According to details, Aqeel Khan Mohammed Riyad was convicted of attempting to smuggle heroin into the ultraconservative Muslim kingdom. He was beheaded in the capital. His execution brings the number of people beheaded in the country to 15 this year. ONLINE

Aitzaz drops LPg quota case

ISLAMABAD: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor Eng Shaukatullah and Balochistan Governor nawab Zulifqar Ali Magsi in a meeting with Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf at the Prime Minister’s Secretariat. INP

Democratic forces to foil designs to derail system: Kaira INFO MINISTER SAYS NAME OF CARETAKER PM WILL BE FINALISED AT APPROPRIATE TIME ISLAMABAD APP

information Minister Qamar Zaman Kaira on Thursday said conspiracies against democracy were not something new, but the democratic forces would foil all such efforts to derail the system. Talking to reporters

after attending a seminar on innovating pakistan and gulf Relations, he said, “let me assure you that elections will be held in the country as per schedule and no undemocratic change will ever come in pakistan,” he said. To a question, he said all the organs of the state were part of the government and investigation will be held to check why no ap-

propriate action was taken when intelligence agencies had warned against a possible attack on shias in Quetta. He, however, said that as the matter was sub judice he could not speak more on the matter.

To another question, he said that the leadership of pakistan people’s party had tried to end the politics of confrontation and it would be unfortunate if the approach of Chaudhry nisar Ali Khan prevailed and the pMl-n did not hold consultations with the pM to build consensus on a caretaker set-

up. He said that the role of caretaker prime minister would be very limited and he would not be able to make decisions about the future of the country.

About the consultations on the name of the caretaker pM, he said that constitution would be followed in this regard and a name would be finalised at an appropriate time.

To a question about end of governor’s rule in Balochistan, he said the decision would be made after consultation with all stakeholders.

ISLAMABAD: Barrister Aitzaz Ahsan on Thursday isolated himself from the lpg quota case. A three-member bench of supreme Court (sC) led by the Chief Justice iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry took up the case for hearing. pakistan Muslim league-nawaz (pMl-n) senior leader Khawaja Asif and Barrister Aitzaz Ahsan, counsel for lpg companies, appeared in the court.

Barrister Aitzaz Ahsan said that he could not pursue the case in the presence of chief justice. He announced that he was going to drop the case.

Furthermore, he sought adjournment of the case till the appointment of new a counsel. Following the request, the court adjourned the hearing till the second week of March. ONLINE

SC rebukes police’s role in Shahzeb Khan murder case CJP SAYS LAW MEANT FOR DISPENSING JUSTICE, NOT FOR SAVING ANYONE ISLAMABAD ONLINE

Reprimanding police over its progress in the shahzeb Khan murder case, Chief Justice of pakistan (CJp) iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry remarked on Thursday that “law is meant for dispensing justice, and not for saving anyone”. presiding over a three-member bench

COURT SEEKS COMPLETE DETAILS OF THE CASE; HEARING TO RESUME TODAY of the supreme Court (sC), the CJp remarked that the whole nation was following the case but the police was trying to abolish it. “if one brick is placed in a wrong manner then the entire wall goes twisted. policing is no more existing in the country therefore the crime rate and a sense of deprivation is growing,” he added. police inspector Mubin appeared before the court, while ibrahim satti rep-

resented the accused, shah Rukh. police presented the progress report on the case. in its report, police said the challan against the four accused persons had been completed and presented in the court.

The medical report has been received wherein shah Rukh has been declared adult and his year of birth is 1993, police said. it further said that an unlicensed pistol had been used in the crime, adding that the weapon had been seized. As per forensic report, a bullet was shot from the pistol and the vehicle used in the crime was owned by shahzad, who is shah Rukh’s brother. shahzad was driving the vehicle on a transfer letter, the report added. police further said in its progress report that

it was investigating the case from every angle. The CJp observed that maintaining a vehicle on a transfer letter was an offence. “Why action has not been taken on this count. Most of the vehicles are running on transfer letter in Karachi and that is why these vehicles are being used in crimes as well,” he added.

Justice Khilji Arif Hussain observed that the culprits are released due to wrong investigation by the police. The court expressed dissatisfaction over the report and sought a new report and record from the police again on Friday.

Reprimanding investigation Officer Mubin for not presenting the police file in the court, the CJ demanded that all files re-

lated to the case be presented in the court. “no walkover will be given. This case is a test for police and the court. Only inspector Mubin is left in sindh police for investigating the case? if he is isolated from investigation, the matters will improve,” the CJp said. The court directed that the police file be presented before it on Friday. “police came in the court but it left its precious file back home. What meaning we may derive from it,” the CJp remarked.

He further enquired that on whose bidding the police surgeon had declared the accused a juvenile. “no one will be allowed to influence the case. We want transparent investigation in the case,” he said.

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Education is an admirable thing, but it is well to remember from time to time that nothing that is worth knowing can be taught. –Oscar Wilde

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two-nation theory 2.0

COMMENT

It is Sunni vs Shia this time around

Friday, 22 February, 2013

Finalise deals with iran No compromise on country’s vital needs

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RAn is preparing to live with the sanctions imposed by the Us, eU and the Un over the next many years. it needs vital imports through barter. pakistan is suffering from power and gas shortages. Many pakistanis find iran’s offers of gas and setting up a refinery useful for the country. president Zardari said last year that pakistan was committed to early implementation of iran-pakistan gas pipeline project while pervez Ashraf maintained on Tuesday that the pipeline would be a “big leap forward” in resolving country’s crippling power crisis. That means defying the Us sanctions.

The proposed pak-iran pipeline will support approximately 4,000 megawatts of power generation per day, eroding pakistan’s electricity deficit that currently stands at 5,000 MW per day. The Us supported TApi gas pipeline cannot be built unless there is a modicum of stability in Afghanistan which may take years. Work on the iran-pakistan pipeline can on the other hand start immediately and be completed in 15 months. The deal for a $4 billion refinery in gwadar with an estimated capacity of about 400,000 barrels per day would help pakistan overcome shortages in petroleum products besides generating jobs in Balochistan. pakistan will be required to pay in the form of food products, particularly wheat, rice and meat instead of the forex which it is short of.

Washington has made it clear that it will impose economic sanctions on islamabad if it begins to buy gas from iran. The position, according to The Wall Street Journal, has been reaffirmed by the Us embassy in islamabad.

After the Us has withdrawn forces from Afghanistan, whatever incentive it has to help pakistan in the power sector is likely to diminish. supplies from iran on the other hand will fulfil the country’s needs for years to come.

Zardari’s postponement of Tehran visit in December has led some to conclude that the government is using the issue of pak-iran gas pipeline only as an election stunt. The president has to move ahead to finalise the contracts on pipeline and the oil refinery to prove that his government will not compromise on the country’s vital needs.

eC and parliamentarians Both should not go out of bounds

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He utility of an independent election commission cannot be over emphasised; merely overseeing the election process is an undertaking nothing short of a Herculean task. There are practically numerous little things that have to be carefully scrutinised, managed and executed, all in a manner that leave no doubt on the functioning of the election commission itself. However, as power comes intertwined with responsibility, there are a number of pitfalls one has to take care of. As the environment during elections is usually running on steroids, there are bound to be instances where even honest attempts at setting the records straight might be construed as a hit on one party or the other.

And as it happens this is exactly the case with the election Commission of pakistan and the parliamentarians. in a bid to bring more transparency, the eCp has sent notices to 249 parliamentarians to get their degrees verified. politicians have, however, taken it as an exception and termed the eCp to be biased, busy in ‘politician-bashing’ and ‘witch hunt’. They claim that this equals to pre-poll politicians bashing. The government is also irked by eCp’s decision to stop development funds, grants and hiring before the elections which the eC thinks could give an undue advantage to the government to change voters’ sympathies. Furthermore, the decision by the commission to publicise financial details about the families of parliamentarians has also not quite made it any favourite of theirs. parliamentarians’ claim that the commission is not playing fair does not stand on its own though the commission might have done better by keeping the notices discreet and had kept in mind their privacy, and in certain cases security. The eC, being a non-elected body, lacks the trust the people depose in politicians when they vote them into power. steps such as it has taken were sure to cause quite a bit of uproar. Accusations of indulging in ‘politician-bashing’ and ‘witch hunting’ were bound to ensue. some would even say the language of the notice issued to the politicians and the mere fact that it was released to media smacks full of bias against politicians.

The eC is treading troubled waters; it must not make it any more difficult for democracy to sustain and flourish by taking any unconstitutional step like delaying elections, neither should it opt for any arbitrary measure that could compromise the its integrity and impact the holding of elections.

The formation of a bipartisan committee by the House to plead for a more respectable treatment by the eC is a step in the right direction; however, politicians should not become a part of the problem and comply with the constitutional requirements. same goes for the eC as well.

Dedicated to the legacy of the late Hameed Nizami

Arif Nizami Editor Lahore – Ph: 042-36375963-5 Fax: 042-32535230 Karachi – Ph: 021-35381208-9 Fax: 021-35381208 Islamabad – Ph: 051-2287273 Fax: 051-2850505 Web: www.pakistantoday.com.pk Email: editorial@pakistantoday.com.pk

KUNwAR KhULDUNE ShAhID

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ven though the original twonation theory drowned in the Bay of Bengal, some of the most illustrious seamen and fishermen still hog the coastline vying to unearth the theory from underneath the water.

It is said of the theory that it didn’t even border on being watertight, and hence sunk with ease amidst the tsunami of 1971. And so after 41 years of staring at a gaping two-nation theory shaped hole with closed eyes, we now have its updated version that is significantly more impermeable than the original, which, if one were to be honest, would’ve drowned in a bathtub if one left the tap open for more than a minute.

The original two-nation theory threw all the commonalities between Hindus and Muslims of the Indian subcontinent out of the proverbial window, and showcased the fact that Muslims and Hindus are ostensibly two different nations and can’t for the love of god, live together. Two-nation theory 2.0 not only makes a scathing mockery of that assertion, but unlike the first version it actually underscores two veritably separate nations who despite having the aforementioned commonalties, and more, are as distinct as a pack of hyenas and a flock of lambs.

Unlike the Hindu-Muslim division, the Shia-Sunni divide is lopsided butchery. When juxtaposed with the genocide and massacre of Shias in Pakistan, the Hindu-Muslim differences in India seem like brotherly disagreements. And the Shia community in Pakistan can

only envy the discrimination that Muslims face in India. Furthermore, while Muslims can – and do – live safely in India, it is quite obvious that Shias can no longer feel secure in Pakistan.

When one community is being targeted, in what is barefaced ethnic cleansing, and the other community remains shushed about it at best and endorses it at worst, you know the division between the groups is unbridgeable.

Those that coined the original two-nation theory overlooked the fact that believing in the same god and the same prophet might not suffice in uniting you into one nation, and that is the raison d’etre behind two-nation theory 2.0.

Just like Muhammad bin Qasim’s imperialistic surge towards India in 712 AD is touted as the foundation of the Hindu-Muslim two nation theory, the Shia-Sunni two nation theory traces its origin back to the same epoch when Umayyads were busy sidelining the Shias in the hub of Islam. Their lead was followed appositely by the Abbassids, Ottomans and then the Mughals for the next millennium or so, as the Sunni hierarchies violently tightened screws on the Shias inhabiting their region.

In the context of the Indian subcontinent, it was the Fatwa-e-Alamgiri compiled by Aurangzeb “the great Mughal emperor” Alamgir and Shah “the spiritual light” Wali Ullah, who should be dubbed the founding fathers of two-nation theory 2.0 in our neck of the woods – that brought together some of the most renowned kafirometres in the world to declare the infidelity of the Shias. Recent fatwas by the likes of Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ), Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan (SSP) and Darul Uloom Deoband are the offshoots of the aforementioned compilation of fatwas.

The next father figure of two-nation theory in the Indian subcontinent is General Ziaul Haq, who hoarded Saudi riyals in exchange for granting the godfathers of Islam a playground to stage the two-nation theory 2.0 in all its blood and goriness. From the annihilation of 118 Shias in Therih in 1963 to the 22 massacred in Lahore and Karachi in 1978, Shia killings were witnessed before Zia became the caretaker of Islam as well. But it was under Zia that the two-nation theory 2.0 became ubiqui-

tous in madrassas, Islamic Republic of Pakistan transmuted into Takfiri Deobandi Republic of Pakistan and Shia discrimination metamorphosed into Shia genocide.

Modern day leading proponents of the ideology, like Malik Ishaq – acquitted more than 30 times over charges of homicide and terrorism – , Mahmoud Baber – “proud” murderer of 14 and Ahmed Ludhianvi – SSP chief and the embodiment of paranoia with regards to Shia – are the Jinnah, Sir Syed and Iqbal of two-nation theory 2.0. And these ideological guardians are hell bent upon creating a separate homeland for the Shias in graveyards all across Pakistan, which would rubberstamp their entry into heaven where God and his promised luxuries await them with arms wide open.

More than 20,000 Shias have been killed in Pakistan ever since the country’s inception, with more than 500 being executed in 2012 alone. The back-to-back blasts in Quetta over the past two months, killing over 200 Shias prove the verisimilitude of two-nation theory 2.0, as reaction from majority of the other half of the community – more than 50 percent of which endorse the theory by declaring Shias as non-Muslims according to a PeW study – ran the whole gamut from indifference to complaints over traffic blockade.

In a country where volcanoes of protests erupt over the killings of “Muslim brothers” in Palestine, Kashmir, Syria and Myanmar, the deafening silence from the Sunni half of the two-nation divide vindicates that Shias can no longer feel at home in Pakistan – the country whose founding father was an Ismaeli Shia himself.

As two-nation theory 2.0 widens the gaping cracks between the two communities and lays the foundation of a Shia exodus, it won’t be long before Takfiri Deobandi heavyweights find another target in the Islamic Royal Rumble of Pakistan. Two-nation theory 3.0 could see the Barelvis under the gun, followed by other sects, as the religion of ‘piece’ keeps on throwing constituent pieces out of its anatomy.

The writer is a financial journalist and a cultural critic. Twitter: @khuldune, Email: khulduneshahid@gmail.com

triple standards Corruption, over and over again

m J AKbAR

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HAnK heaven for little Doordarshans. An offshoot of the government-controlled TV behemoth, Doordarshan Bharati, broadcast a moving hour-long documentary on the late genius Ustad Amir Khan, at least 35 minutes of which was free from the excesses of a garrulous presenter and experts tripping over their own repetitions. This unknown channel had the pawmarks of its parent’s ethos: a logo like a design patch from a 19th century sari; a script font quivering in a style that was synonymous with deep emotion in the 1950s.

But whenever Doordarshan dips into that treasure house, its archives, there is magic.

This should be Doordarshan’s true public calling. it should eliminate news from its oeuvre, since it is run by politicians. news is almost always injurious to any government’s health. propaganda is safer, so Doordarshan is ordered to sell propaganda as news. Why should our taxes pay for political propaganda?

You can measure a government’s desperation by the effort it puts into disinformation.

Doordarshan reported the Augusta Westland scandal not, as others did, with evidence gathered by the italian police, but with stress on

some heavy breathing by our defence minister, st Antony of Kerala, who suddenly discovered the virtues of transparency and “experts” of the sort who claimed they had never witnessed such ministerial integrity ever before. There was, naturally, no mention of A K Antony’s shocking silence over the past 11 months when he repeatedly shrugged off details of the scandal brought to his notice.

Fortunately, the italian government did what the indian government refused to do: investigate on its turf. Antony remained curiously unmoved even when the name of a service chief popped up, with implications on the credibility and morale of the force. A Member of parliament, prakash Javadekar, wrote to him. Antony continued to do nothing. Why? Antony calls himself an honest politician. if, therefore, Antony was not protecting himself, who was he protecting?

The defence ministry’s explanation for inaction was silly. it sent a request for information to Rome through the external affairs ministry.

When it got nothing, it did nothing. But this was always an indian crime as much as an italian one. italy did not wait for information from india; why did india wait for italy? in any cover up, deft use is made of that extremely useful fish called the red herring.

A shoal of facts, mostly irrelevant, is thrown into the stream of information to divert the chase. let’s keep this simple.

What are we looking for? evidence of bribes through agents. The concern is not about the quality or specifications of the helicopter, which may all be very good indeed, but the fact that commissions were given to honour what former italian premier silvio Berlusconi has called the rules of the system. According to the confession by guido Haschke, the principal middleman, to the italian police, bribes began to flow from 2007 and continued till 2011. We know who was in power in Delhi then. Haschke

got 20 million euros, and allegedly passed on 12 million to sanjeev and Rajiv Tyagi, relatives of former air chief s p Tyagi. Why did the indian government look the other way?

There is at least one good political reason for Antony’s prevarication. it is reasonable to assume that he hoped that delay would push the investigation process beyond the general election in 2014. This government’s bliss is directly proportionate to voters’ ignorance. Antony’s shock at italy’s speed was evident on his face.

The manipulation of time is part of political strategy. CBi moves rapidly against an electoral adversary of the Congress like Jagan Reddy.

CBi becomes immobile when told to move in the coal block fraud, since friends and cronies of ministers are involved. Five months ago, after massive public outcry, CBi was given charge of “coalgate”. We have just learnt from CBi’s Director Ranjit sinha, who appeared before a parliament committee, that his agency has not yet received files he asked for. The distance between the two offices can be covered by a pleasant walk, but neither demand nor delivery was considered worth any hurry.

Jagan Reddy has been repeatedly denied bail on the specious argument that, despite being out of power, he might still have enough influence over officials to subvert their investigation. Compare this with the generosity towards Coal Minister shriprakash Jaiswal, who is suspected of being complicit in the scam; he is close to the owners of AMR iron and steel pvt ltd, one of the beneficiaries. Jaiswal was not even shifted to another portfolio, let alone dropped. Officials in charge of files report to him. should we be terribly surprised if CBi cannot get them?

Once there were double standards. We have raised the game to triple standards. But democracy has its own way of rescuing truth from a maze, and handing it to independent media, en route to the voter.

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You may have to fight a battle more than once to win it. –Margaret Thatcher

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COMMENT

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Friday, 22 February, 2013

Editor’s mail Send your letters to: Letters to Editor, Pakistan Today, 4-Shaarey Fatima Jinnah, Lahore, Pakistan Fax: +92-42-32535230 E-mail: letters@pakistantoday.com.pk Letters should be addressed to pakistan Today exclusively

eradicating sectarianism There is a dire need to work, round the clock, to eradicate the menace of sectarianism. Mere lip service paid after every shocking incident is not a proper way to address the issue. similarly, governor’s rule or military intervention is not a permanent solution to the problem. The steps having lasting impacts are required to be taken. The people go for the sit in when the government does not take any action by itself. it is essential for the survival of the democracy that justice should not be done but it should be seen to have been done. Quick action should be taken against the officers of the security agencies and the politicians, holding public office when they fail to perform their duties. They are employed to protect the lives and property of the people. if they cannot do that, they have no right to remain in the office.

The government can utilise the services of media, religious scholars, lawyers, teachers and the experts to launch an effective campaign against sectarianism. All the means should be used to mould public opinion against this menace. special anti sectarianism laws should be enacted and the implementation of the existing laws should be ensured. The opposition, the treasury benches and the security agencies should work together to achieve the goal. in the modern era, a democratic government is expected to take such steps without any sit-in. Our ruling political parties always call themselves democratic forces. perhaps they are not aware of the democratic values yet.

SULEMAN MANSHA Lahore

Mother Language Day

A new rivalry How the Indian Ocean is going to be important to all Umm-E-hAbIbA

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he indian Ocean is the third largest of the world’s oceans. it is surrounded by iran, pakistan, india, and Bangladesh to the north; Malay peninsula, sunda islands of indonesia, and Australia to the east; Antarctica to the south; and Arabian peninsula and Africa and to the West. in the southwest it joins the Atlantic, and to the east and southeast its waters mingle with the pacific. it provides major sea routes – also termed sea lines of communication (slOC) – connecting the Middle east, Africa, and east Asia with europe and Us. it was for this reason that even two centuries earlier Alfred Thayer Mahan, who was acknowledged as the most important American strategist of the nineteenth century, had highlighted the strategic importance of the indian Ocean by asserting, “Whoever controls the indian Ocean will dominate Asia; the destiny of the world will be decided in these waters.” The validity of that assertion came to fore more clearly at least from last century with the increasing importance of indian Ocean sea routes not only for the competing regional countries but also for many of the world powers. since then the potential of that rivalry in the region has only been increasing.

And, an almost ‘igniting’ factor has recently been added to that rivalry because of the geopolitical quest of the competing countries/powers to dominate the regional and extra-regional energy (oil and gas) resources as also its supply routes, and to deny those to the rivals. The fact that many of the Us’ strategists declared 21st century as ‘energy century’ clearly reflects that aspect of rivalry ingrained with the potential of conflict. incidentally, in the Asian region, the indian Ocean also bears the special significance of containing the slOCs for the heavy maritime traffic of the energy-producing and energy-consuming countries/powers respectively in its western and eastern littorals/regions – thereby further fuelling the chances of conflict.

This heightening potential of conflict is obviously a matter of very serious concern for pakistan, besides other effected countries; necessitating a very careful analytical evaluation of the related aspects/conflict factors, and the policy options for safeguarding own national interests. in the context of that evaluation, particular cognizance has to be taken of the current global and regional states’ struggle to gain maritime influence in this region. it is also worth noting that by now this competing struggle has also become complex due to the fact that in this region, which contains their economic and strategic interests, the competing stakeholders including Us, China, Russia, pak-

istan, india, and iran meet varyingly as partners and rivals. in this scenario in the indian Ocean region, therefore, it is of significance to have a very clear grasp of two of the related aspects; firstly, the policy/role of the involved powers/countries, like Us, China, and india; and secondly, the option(s) for pakistan to safeguard its own national interests in this ‘mêlée’ of the rival energy politics. since the slOCs in this region are probably the major ‘bone of contention’, it has to be registered that these are so becoming more and more contentious because these include half of the world’s maritime trade and energy supply lines.

Besides that, two of the world’s largest energy demanding and fastest growing economies, China and india, belong to this region; and their dependency upon these slOCs is likely to rise in future. in addition to that, the potential of conflict in this region is further heightening because this region also encloses some of the world’s oil choke points, which have high economic and strategic importance for the competing countries/powers. These include strait of Hormuz from which passes 35 percent of world petroleum supply, upon which West is highly dependent; strait of Malacca, upon which almost 80 percent of Chinese trade is dependent; Babb-el-Mandeb; and lombok strait. prowling and patrolling naval fleets of global powers in the ocean, emerging naval potential of the regional powers, increasing defence budgets – especially naval – to secure their trade and military interests, seem to be creating a perfect model of war of all against all in current geopolitical scenario. The Changing geo-energy and geo-political realities of the region and increasing interdependence of regional and extra-regional powers have turned it into an arena of intense economic, political and military competition.

Whether it is Us’ Asia pivot strategy to increase its troops and naval power in the indian Ocean and focus more here than on the pacific, or it is Chinese strings of pearls strategy to strengthen friendly relations and have strategic ties with neighbouring states to assure safety of its trade and energy routes, or it is indian ambitions to have a blue-water navy with the help of friendly states and indigenous developments, their goal is same, that is to maximize power to secure their maritime interests in the region to the exclusion of the competing countries/powers. in the given scenario, states like pakistan which do not have any global or even regional domination agenda are left with limited policy options. pakistan is a crucial littoral state of the indian Ocean as it is blessed with an area of 240,000 sq km called the exclusive economic Zone (eeZ) of pakistan. it is dependent on these sea routes for over 95% of its trade i.e., around 38 million tons and is likely to

reach 91 million tons by 2015; therefore, security of the sea routes is crucial for the economic life of pakistan. it also has to be kept in the reckoning that secure eeZ not only offers trade routes, but also vast and varied reservoirs of natural resources such as fishing and minerals etc which are considered to be lucrative for the economy of any littoral state. pakistan has two major maritime challenges to counter. First challenge is obviously from its traditional adversary india which, in a bid to transform its navy into blue water navy, has designed the induction of nuclear submarines, aircraft carriers, frigates and battleships beyond its legitimate needs. pakistan navy seems to be alive to the upand-coming threat. inauguration of Headquarters of the naval strategic Force Command (nsFC) in 2012 is an evidence of pakistan navy’s vigilance.

Recently pakistan took a good move in its strategic policy by handing over operating rights of gwadar port to its reliable neighbour. Harmony of pak-China strategic interests is likely to enable pakistan to counter threats from the regional rival pragmatically. india has endangered regional strategic stability in the indian Ocean by launching its nuclear submarine program. pakistan cannot pay india back in the same coin immediately; therefore, to have an alliance is the most viable short term solution. However, it would be irrational to remain dependent solely upon alliance.

While alliance is crucial, indigenous capability to complete its nuclear triad is a rational approach to counter indian threats, so that pakistan can neutralise threats to its security. pakistan does not want to get engaged in arms race but it cannot help defending its legitimate interests and maintaining minimum credible deterrence.

The second threat is from the use of maritime routes by non-state actors like terrorists, pirates and miscreants, which demands intense surveillance. pakistan navy has played a remarkable role in countering this challenge. it actively contributes to the world peace by persistent deployment of its assets in the Us-led coalition Task Force 151 which is tasked with preventing human trafficking, and smuggling of narcotics and weapons through sea routes. in future this region would possibly face proportional rise in maritime traffic, along with the variety and intensity of threats such as piracy, maritime terrorism, drug and human trafficking, pollution, accidents, possibility of inter-state conflicts. it, therefore, appears more likely that no single power may be able to dominate the indian Ocean, thereby necessitating a sort of multilateral setup so that conflict may be avoided and balance maintained.

The writer is Masters in International Relations, and a research analyst.

Mother language Day is celebrated on 21 February throughout the world as a symbol of love for mother language of a certain region but in punjab the case is different. Here this day usually goes unnoticed because a majority of punjabis have discarded the use of their mother tongue at all levels and have deliberately changed the language of their next generations. This apathetic attitude of punjabis towards their mother tongue is the outcome of 169 years old undeclared ban on education in punjabi in punjab.

We in punjab inherited a trilingual society in which english being the supreme both english and Urdu were made the language of learning and punjabi was allowed to survive only as a spoken language. But after the independence, situation altogether changed when influenced by anti-punjabi mindset propaganda punjabis discarded their mother tongue thinking it a language of sikhs and kaafirs and illiterates. This phenomenon has played havoc with punjabi society by depriving them of their god blessed identity. it is not a matter of mere identity of a certain people, the extinction of a language in its birth place is nothing less than a global cultural loss too, which must be avoided at any cast. punjab wants its language back. For how long the children of punjabi mothers would be deprived of their legitimate right to get education in their mother tongue? it is a proven fact that a child gets better primary education in his mother tongue? is it justified to usurp the right of the language of 60 percent of pakistanis by making another one the national language which is originally an indian language and owned as a mother tongue by not more than 7 percent of the whole population of pakistan?

TARIQ MAHMUD JATALA Lahore

hazara Shia genocide The Hazara community has been targeted second time in few weeks, the heinous attack killed 90 members of the tribe, and as a result tens of thousands of people have been protesting across the country. The tribe has yet again shown its trust in army; the protestors demand to call in army in Quetta. even the strategy to implement governor’s rule remained ineffective and couldn’t stop a big terrorist activity to take place. since 2002, more than 50,000 pakistanis have been killed in such attacks. The terrorists are targeting pakistanis since many years and by killing Hazara community people, the propaganda is definitely to divide the pakistani society.

Most of the political parties prevented military to operate freely in Quetta but it is an unfortunate fact that the government has failed in combating terrorism. in pakistan the debate of counterterrorism always remained focused to operations in tribal region and TTp. The attention should have been paid to other militant groups, as lately lashkar-e-Jhangvi claimed responsibility for the attack and remained active against shias.

The Hazara community should be appreciated for behaving prudently in understanding the lethal action and propaganda of hostile elements. They have called army but the government should be forced to take such steps because it is government’s responsibility to find the most appropriate and timely solution for the issue. politicians should not turn opportunist to exploit this critical moment for their own political motives. The best counterterrorism strategy would be a balanced blend of intelligence, law enforcement and military.

The supreme Court took suo motu notice but mere notice is not going to be enough; terrorists should be hanged. pakistanis should raise voice to detain terrorists but sectarian mobilisation should not be promoted. Terrorists are our common enemy and they are above and beyond any sect and religion.

ASHA KHAN Islamabad

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A ARTS

Friday, 22 February, 2013

Pattinson wants Cheryl back on ‘the X Factor’

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CTOR Robert Pattinson says it would be better if singer Cheryl Cole comes back to judge Britain’s reality show “The X Factor”.

Cheryl left the show in 2010 and rumours are rife that boss Simon Cowell had not asked her to return for the next season.

“I would like to see Cheryl back on the Britain’s ‘The X Factor’. It is never going to be the same now Simon is not there anymore - but having Cheryl back would be good for the show,” mirror.co.uk quoted Pattinson as saying. “It hasn’t been the same since the two of them left - and if there is a chance to get her back, Simon should. In fact, Simon should do both shows,” he added. NEwS DESK

Kate crowned 2013’s hat Person of the Year

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ATE Moss beat competition from Bruno Mars and Anna Hathaway to be voted as 2013’s Hat Person of the Year. Moss received 40 percent of the votes in the poll conducted by The Headwear Association, with Bruno getting 38 percent while Hathaway languished behind in third position with just 14 percent, the Daily Mail reported. A Headwear Association spokesperson said that the 39-year-old supermodel’s oftimitated London street style is legendary, and she is well known for her love of hats. Previous awardees include the Duchess of Cambridge, Johnny Depp and Brad Pitt.

NEwS DESK

As a major contemporary composer, Madonna should not let the eye dictate to the ear. — Camille Paglia

Lahore Litfest set to dazzle book lovers LAHORE

STAFF REPORT

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He inaugural of lahore literary Festival (llF), scheduled for February 23 and 24 at the AlHamra Arts Centre, is all set to become the country’s most beloved literary event.

The two-day programme includes panel discussions on Urdu and english literature, and book readings. speakers include eminent national and international writers, artists and journalists, including, among others, Ahmed Rashid, Ayesha Jalal, Bapsi sidhwa, Daniyal Mueenuddin, Hameed Haroon, intizar Hussain, Jeet Thayil, linda Bird Francke, Mohsin Hamid, nayyar Ali Dada, salima Hashmi, Tariq Ali and Zehra nigah.

We spoke to some people and asked them what they think about lahore’s debut literary festival, what they are most looking forward to and what they expect from the event. Here’s what they had to say: ALI NIzAMI, ARTIST: i am delighted that the lahore literary Festival has included panel discussions by renowned artists like Rashid Rana and Quddus Mirza, and eminent persons in the field of art and architecture like salima Hashmi, nazish AtaUllah and nayyar Ali Dada. i am really looking forward to attending the panel discussion titled ‘polemics of Time and space i and ii’ and meeting all these people. kAMAL AHMAD, FINANcIAL ANALyST: My interest in books and literature stems from my love for my girlfriend; she is an avid reader and constantly motivates me to read as well. i have to admit that the only reason i will be attending the lahore literary Festival is because of her.

nevertheless, when i looked at the event program on the llF website, some of the panel speakers, like Mohsin Hamid who’s Moth smoke i loved, have definitely sparked my interest.

USMAN SUFI, LOcAL ENTREpRENEUR: i think the lahore literary Festival is a great initiative, not just for book lovers, but also for entrepreneurs such as myself, who will get to showcase their products to the wide array of people who are sure to attend such events. Also, in the larger scheme of things, i think this will generate additional economic activity vis-àvis the publication of new books from existing and aspiring authors.

This coupled with the obvious promotion of pakistani literature that the llF guarantees will serve to be beneficial to our country on multiple fronts.

HASSAN NABI, STUDENT: Our country is going through a very difficult time and i think hosting an event like the lahore literary Festival is very brave us.

We need more occasions like these to prove to the world that we are a resilient nation and have a lot more to offer that corrupt politics and religious oppression.

The best part about the lahore literary Festival is that it is free and open to everyone.

SAROSH SIkANDER, ENvIRONMENTALIST: i am so thrilled that someone has finally organised a literary event in lahore. i flew back from Melbourne just to witness this almost historic moment. As a lahori through and through, and obsessive reader, i think for me the lahore literary

Festival promises to be quite an emotional experience. i still can’t believe that i will get to meet the likes of Ahmed Rashid whose political commentary surpasses any other, and Bapsi sidhwa, whose novels are simply a joy to read.

TAIMOUR MUBASHAR, ADvERTISINg ExEcUTIvE: i am really looking forward to the lahore literary Festival and i hope this initiative gets continued support from our government. i have had the pleasure of being taught by some of the speakers and i cannot wait to see them as part of the scheduled panel discussions. i wish that the next time such an event happens, we get to see an even more diverse selection of speakers and panellists.

SARA FAISAL, HOUSEwIFE: i have been reading various articles about the lahore literary Festival in the newspapers and am very excited about attending it. i don’t know which panel to attend as all of them seem so riveting, and i wished the event was for more than just two days. i hope this becomes into an annual affair as we need more of such events.

AHMED kALEEM, ARcHITEcT: The lahore literary Festival was a long time coming. i can’t believe it took us so long to realise that ideologically it makes more sense for any exchange on literature and discussion of literary ideas within pakistan to be rooted in lahore, considering that all great artists and writers hail from this beautiful city. i hope that this lahore literary Festival is the first of many.

nominations after steven spielberg’s presidential drama “lincoln.”

To recreate the world of pi, who is stranded on the boat with the Bengal tiger in the pacific after a shipwreck, the crew had to build a huge water tank of 90 by 30 meters in Taiwan.

Miranda says that was the only way to control the light and decide how the waves would move in a film where the ocean is nearly a character itself.

iReCTOR Ang lee wanted to offer filmgoers an “immersive” experience with “ life of pi,” his Oscarnominated 3D fable about an indian boy trapped on a boat with a tiger. Claudio Miranda helped him do it.

The Chilean-American cinematographer, a veteran of 3D filmmaking who himself is up for an Academy Award on sunday, says bringing Yann Martel’s philosophical

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novel to the silver screen was no easy task. “You just can’t put a boy and a tiger on a boat together, ever. You know that you’re going to be in the hands of visual effects to put the tiger in for you, and then just hope it doesn’t look like a cartoon,” Miranda told AFp. The film is up for 11 Oscars, including best picture, best director, best adapted screenplay and best cinematography, earning the second highest number of

“We just wanted to make it feel immersive. There’s something very different about water and 3D and how that feels,” said the 47-year-old Miranda, who previously did 3D camera work on “TROn: legacy.” “There was a big concern that they (the public) were going to be sick” due to the 3D movement of the water, he said. “There’s a lot of editing choices and horizon choices that make you feel less sick.” The extra work paid

ReALitY Show ReMAiNS KiM’S toP PRioRitY Socialite Kim Kardashian, who is pregnant with her first child with rapper Kanye West, says her reality TV show “Keeping Up With The Kardashians” is still her first priority.

The 32-year-old star said she will continue to film the show until at least season 10. “As everyone knows, we are extremely proud of the show and all of us are staying on through at least season 10. The show remains to be my number one priority and it is a big part of my life and I enjoy every moment of it,” Kim posted on her blog Wednesday, reports femalefirst.co.uk.

“It has given me such a rare opportunity to share more of my life with all of you and has brought my family closer to each other. I’m looking forward to the new season and beyond.” “The fact is that I have many goals that I still need to reach and accomplish and I (like so many of you) don’t know where my life will be in the next couple of years, but I’m looking forward to continuing this journey,” she further posted. AGENCIES

off: even though “life of pi” earned mixed reviews from critics, reviewers were nearly unanimous in their praise of the film’s stunning visuals.

“Ang is very experimental,” Miranda said of the Taiwanese-born director, already a best director Oscar

winner in 2006 for gay cowboy romance “Brokeback Mountain.” “He wanted to find new ways for storytelling. He felt like really exploring 3D.” Miranda said the success of his cinematography was due in part to his decision to break with some of the rules most follow when shooting in 3D. “There are a lot of rules on things on 3D and i looked at them and i said well, maybe, and maybe not. some

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people think that you need everything sharp and i don’t agree,” he explained.

For a scene near the film’s end, “everything falls out of focus naturally. if you’re bored with the story and you start looking around the screen, and you see something soft, your eyes are going to feel comfortable,” he said.

Among the most memorable scenes in the film is a religious ceremony in india twinkling with 50,000 candles — lit by 2,000 crew members — and a whale jumping in phosphorescent waters. The whale scene was in part inspired by a real-life experience, Miranda said. One night during filming, he and lee went to go swimming at night and quickly found themselves surrounded by phosphorescent plankton.

They loved the effect and decided to recreate it in what may be one of the film’s most beautiful scenes. Miranda, already nominated for an Oscar in 2009 for “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” says he’s thrilled about the 11 nominations “life of pi” has received, but regrets that young actor suraj sharma was not among them.

“What makes me really sad is that the boy, suraj, didn’t get anything,” he said. “This is a boy that is carrying the whole movie, acting with someone who is not there. eighty percent of the movie is just one actor.

He carries the whole ocean, he carries everything.” AGENCIES

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Cinema in India is like brushing your teeth in the morning. You can’t escape it. — Shahrukh Khan

ARTS Friday, 22 February, 2013

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Mila Kunis plans to leave hollywood

AFGHAN TEENS OF ‘BUZKASHI BOYS’ STARGAZING IN HOLLYWOOD T NEWS DESK

He teenage stars of an Oscarnominated short film from Afghanistan arrived in los Angeles for the Academy Awards after an internet campaign raised enough money to pay for their trip.

“Buzkashi Boys” actors Fawad Mohammadi and Jawanmard paiz will walk the red carpet and rub shoulders with Hollywood’s biggest stars at the Dolby Theater in los Angeles on sunday night.

The film focuses on two children growing up in Kabul who dream of becoming Buzkashi riders, horsemen who compete in the dangerous Afghan national sport similar to polo in which riders try to carry a headless goat across a goal line.

The film garnered U.s. director sam French an Oscar nomination for Best live Action short Film. its producers launched the campaign because, they said, they lacked a travel budget for the 14-year-old

actors. “i’m so happy and excited,” Mohammadi told Reuters at los Angeles international Airport after flying more than 18 hours from the Afghan capital. “i can’t say my feelings.” some 237 people donated money to the travel fund, which raised $11,751, eclipsing its $10,000 goal, fundraising website Rally.org said. Donations were received from 13 countries, including the United states, Afghanistan, india and germany. Turkish Airlines donated the tickets for Mohammadi, paiz and a chaperone.

Mohammadi, an amateur actor with piercing green eyes, gained international attention following the film’s release last year for his personal story as a fatherless youth who grew up selling maps of Kabul to tourists in its Chicken street market.

Both teens said they wanted to see all the actors during their week in Hollywood in which they also plan to visit amusement parks Disneyland and Universal studios. speaking of famous actors, Moham-

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madi said: “i can’t say ‘This one’ or ‘That one,’ (but) i want to see Rambo, sylvester stallone.”

One of the boys in the film is a street kid like Mohammadi, the other the son of a blacksmith forced to spend long hours in his father’s dark workshop sharpening ax heads.

French said the goal is to make the week-long trip culturally relevant for the teens. “Just the fact that we’re talking about something other than the war, other than bombs and bullets, i think is a huge step forward,” French said. “And hopefully we can show that these kids are like normal kids everywhere.”

Mohammadi and paiz will fly to Washington for screenings of the film on Feb. 27 and begin their journey back to Kabul on March 1. “ Buzkashi Boys,” which runs for just 28 minutes, is the first film to be produced by the Afghan Film project, a non-profit group that aims to train filmmakers in Afghanistan.

ilA Kunis has said that she is tempted to turn her back on Hollywood and start a family with her boyfriend Ashton Kutcher. The Black swan actress, 29, believes her industry is too “fickle” to offer lasting happiness. she told playboy magazine that she want to be a “present mum”. she rued that she’s never in the same place for more than two months, which will make it difficult to have a normal family. Mila, who has five upcoming films including Oz The great And powerful out next month, added that she doesn’t think she can do this for the rest of her life. she said that if that means she does one movie a year, and if people still want to see her by that point, then she will probably stay in the showbiz. “My only source of happiness can’t be dependent on something so fickle,” she added.

NEwS DESK

NOTABLE TWEETS ADRIANNE CURRY

Gym time, gonna run 5 miles & then spend 45 minutes destroying my legs and butt...sounds sexual, but it isn’t

Star prices and costs are a sheer wastage: Naseeruddin Shah

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AseeRUDDin’s as candid as an actor can be and it comes as a breath of fresh relief in a time when everything is controlled by the right choice of words. Talking about the future of Bollywood cinema, the actor says, “The distinction between art films and commercial cinema has been somewhat blurred with film like gangs of Wasseypur and Delhi Belly. But it’s still very much there. it’s the big film and small film nowadays. let’s just put it that way.” “The big film i fear is headed in the self destruct direction. Costs are getting ludicrous. This boom has to explode, the way it happened in Hollywood in 1960 with a film called Cleopatra. it cost 25 million dollars to make that film which at that time was the most expensive film ever made and it blew up in their face. A couple of studios closed down. it was rescued by a small film called easy Rider made with hand made cameras and which rescued Hollywood. i’m afraid something like that will happen because star prices and costs are a sheer wastage,” adds the actor. giving his views on the frenzy behind the 100 crore club, he says, “The greed has finally come out into the open. That’s ok. At least it has come out. every body talks about 100 crores, i don’t know why. We’ve been talking about 100 crore for last 100 years.” NEwS DESK

NEWS DESK ENNIFER Aniston has reportedly chosen her bridesmaids as she gears up to marry Justin Theroux.

According to reports, the actress has chosen Chelsea Handler as a bridesmaid because she is so “fiercely loyal” to her, the Herald Sun reported. It was widely expected that Aniston would pick her close pal and ‘Friends’ co-star Courteney Cox to be in her wedding party, but it seems that is not the case. Instead, the 44-yearold bride-to-be has asked Emily Blunt and ‘Chelsea Lately’ talk show host to be her bridesmaids.

“Now Jen is with Justin, things with Courteney are different. Jen wants to include some of her new pals and, though she will attend the wedding, she thinks that Courteney may have too much on her plate,” a source told Heat magazine.

Aniston thinks that Chelsea is brilliant. She’s the only friend who publicly defended her over Angelina Jolie getting together with her ex Brad Pitt in 2005, so there’s fierce loyalty there, the source added.

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COMMON Success has a simple formula: do your best, and people may like it. Sam Ewing

KAMILA SHAMSIE Very sorry I can’t be at @lhrlitfest this weekend.

The line-up is dazzling. #LitfestsBegetLitfests #KLF #LLF #MorePlease

SHERRI SHEPHERD Listening to an argument w one of the #DanceMoms...This is real!

Be careful when U say U want a reality show - all that glitters is not gold

DINA MANZO The Love channel on satellite is the best everso old school. Drivers near must think I’m out of my mind singing like I actually sound good

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Freedom is always and exclusively freedom for the one who thinks differently. –Rosa Luxemburg

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Drug overdoses on the rise for the 11th year

INFOTAINMENT Friday, 22 February, 2013

Sony unveils PlayStation 4 Sony today unveiled its next-generation gaming system, PlayStation 4, saying the console will be part of a new ecosystem focused on hardware, software, and “the fastest, most powerful gaming network.” The new console is the Japanese electronics giant’s first major game machine since the PlayStation 3 went on sale in 2006. Today’s unveiling is Sony’s attempt to steal the spotlight, at least until Microsoft unveils its next Xbox in June at the E3 video game expo in Los Angeles. Among the PS4’s revisions is an updated controller that adds a touchpad, motion control, and a “share” button. The controller also features a light bar, which means a new PlayStation camera can more easily track the device. Sony has struggled lately to keep up with Microsoft and other rivals such as Apple and Samsung. The company is promising nifty mobile devices, sophisticated digital cameras, and other gadgetry as part of its comeback effort. More details at Gizmodo and TechCrunch. NEwS DESK

Bullying can take toll beyond childhood Bullied kids are at greater risk of a range of psychological problems years later, a study suggests. “Psychological damage doesn’t just go away because a person grew up and is no longer bullied,” says a researcher. And that applies to both sexes, the study finds, challenging earlier research that suggested the long-term toll was more pronounced among girls. This study referred to “a much richer data set,” researchers say. “We were actually able to say being a victim of bullying is having an effect a decade later.” Children in North Carolina joined the study at age nine, 11, or 13. Researchers collected data by interviewing the kids and their parents, following 1,270 of them into adulthood, the Globe and Mail reports. Victims had “higher levels of depressive disorders, anxiety disorders, generalized anxiety, panic disorder, and agoraphobia,” the study says. They suffered 4.3 times the anxiety disorder risk of children with no bullying in their pasts, the New York Times reports. Bullies themselves faced a higher risk of antisocial personality disorders, while male victims and bullies faced 18.5 times the risk of suicidal thoughts. NEwS DESK

NASA’s Kepler discovers tiny planet system

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NEWS DESK

stronomers announced Wednesday they have discovered the smallest known planet. Dubbed Kepler-37b, the planet, roughly the size of earth’s moon, was discovered outside of our solar system and is the smallest ever found in space.

Although tiny and relatively similar in size to earth, experts say the planet likely does not have the ability to hold life. The temperature of the tiny planet is estimated to be 700 degrees Fahrenheit as it sits very close to its sun-like star. The small planet is also missing an atmosphere and there are no signs of a source of water. According to nAsA, the tiny planet almost certainly is rocky in composition. it was found in the constellation lyra and is the third planet to be discovered in that area. it is roughly 210 light-years away from earth and has been named Kepley-37b by nAsA. Over a year ago, Thomas Barclay of the nAsA Ames Research Center in northern California, discovered the tiny planet, which he immediately knew was not a moon. However, scientists weren’t so quick to agree with him as it took a year and an international team of researchers to announce that it was, indeed, a planet. still, the announcement has the astronomy community buzzing. One of the most famous planet-hunters, astronomer geoff Marcy of the University of California, Berkeley, said Wednesday’s discovery is “absolutely mind-boggling.” Marcy, who did not participate in the discovery said it is the latest indication that the universe contains a diverse set of planets that seem to come in all shapes and sizes. “This new discovery raises the specter that the universe is jam packed, like jelly beans in a jar, with planets even smaller than earth,” he said.

Astronomers have long posited that planets smaller than earth must exist, but until now they have not have

any definitive proof evidence. The tiny planet is far smaller than our solar system’s tiny planet, Mercury, which is about two-fifths the size of earth. The small planet is estimated to be one-third the size of our planet, according to nAsA. Thanks technology developed by nAsA, there has been an overwhelming number of new planet discoveries outside of our solar system in recent months. The space agency developed the Kepler space Telescope in 2009 in hopes of discovering earth-like planets. The telescope keeps track of over 150,000 stars, searching for planets similar to earth. According to nAsA, there have been 861 planets outside of our solar system discovered and the Kepler space Telescope has had a hand in discovering a large majority of them. nAsA’s Kepler space Telescope searches for planet candidates orbiting distant suns, or exoplanets, by continuously measuring the brightness of each star.

When a planet candidate passes, or transits, in front of the star from the telescope’s vantage point, light from the star is blocked, producing a dimming effect. Different sized planets block different amounts of starlight.

The amount of starlight blocked by a planet reveals its size relative to its star. even though the small planet is not habitable, Alan Boss of the Carnegie institution for science in Washington, who did not participate in the study, says the planet is a major milestone for nAsA scientists and astronomers around the world. “it does not detract from the fact that this is yet another mile marker along the way to habitable earth-like planets,” he said. The discovery comes as nAsA announced late last year that the successful completion of the Kepler space Telescope’s three-year prime mission and the beginning of an extended mission that could last as long as four years. The extended mission is set to focus on using the data collected over the past three years to begin discovering true sun-earth analogs — earth-size planets with a one-year orbit around stars similar to the sun.

Endangered sharks return to Bahamas ‘home’ NEWS DESK Oceanic whitetip sharks return home to protected Bahamas waters, surprising scientists. previously thought to be wide-ranging animals, a tagging survey has revealed that the sharks frequently revisit the same areas around the island. Conservationists have listed the sharks

as Vulnerable globally and Critically endangered in parts of their range. experts suggest that the island nation’s marine protected area is assisting the species.

The findings are published in the online journal plos One. Oceanic whitetips are named for the distinctive white flashes at the end of their fins. They are opportunistic

predators with powerful jaws and as such are considered one of the more dangerous sharks to humans, although the number of unprovoked attacks on people is small. “Of all the sharks that live in the open ocean they’re the ones that have really declined a lot in the last few decades,” said Dr Demian Chapman of stony Brook University, new York, Us, who led the study. “They’ve gone from being one of the most abundant large vertebrates on the planet to being considered quite endangered.”

The international Union for the Conservation of nature has listed the sharks as Vulnerable due to overfishing for their meat and leather, and accidental by-catch. “Oceanic whitetips frequently take bait meant for other species like tuna and swordfish,” said Dr Chapman, explaining that their fins are prized for shark fin soup. “Fisherman will take all of these sharks that were incidentally hooked and they will take their fins, and that is fatal to the shark.”

Fatal drug overdoses rose for the 11th straight year, federal data show, and most of them were accidents involving addictive painkillers despite growing attention to their risks. “The big picture is that this is a big problem that has gotten much worse quickly,” said Dr. Thomas Frieden, head of the CDC. In 2010, the CDC reported, there were 38,329 drug overdose deaths nationwide.

Medicines, mostly prescription drugs, were involved in nearly 60% of overdose deaths that year, overshadowing deaths from illicit narcotics.

As in previous recent years, opioid drugs—which include OxyContin and Vicodin—were the biggest problem, contributing to three of four medication overdose deaths. Frieden said many doctors and patients don’t realize how addictive these drugs can be, and that they’re too often prescribed for pain that can be managed with less risky drugs.

They’re useful for cancer, “but if you’ve got terrible back pain or terrible migraines,” using these addictive drugs can be dangerous, he said. Antianxiety drugs including Valium were among common causes of medication-related deaths, involved in almost 30% of them. NEwS DESK

Biggest piece of 55-foot meteor found so far: 7mm The numbers are pretty staggering: The meteor that rocked Russia last week was the biggest since 1908, at 55 feet in diameter, estimates NASA. But the largest meteorite found to date by scientists with Ural Federal University measures just 0.26 inches in diameter, reports the Wall Street Journal.

And a NASA scientist says something a little bigger should be out there: “When you have a fireball of this size we would expect a large number of meteorites to reach the surface and in this case there were probably some large ones.”

Viktor Grokhovsky, who works for UFU, agrees; his team has thus far plucked 53 fragments from the ice-covered Chebarkul Lake, reports the AP. Friday’s meteor left a 20-foot-wide hole in the ice covering the lake, and divers say they found nothing at the bottom. “They just don’t know what they are looking for,” says Grokhovsky, who believes a piece as large as two feet could eventually be found there. (In the meantime, a Russian politician is blaming ... John Kerry.) NEwS DESK

New Zealand has another wayward penguin Another penguin has managed the amazing feat of washing up on the shore of New Zealand, reports AFP. This one has been named “Happy Feet Jr.” after the original wayward penguin who captivated the nation in 2011. The juvenile royal penguin is in bad shape, unfortunately, though for good reason— vets think he traveled more than 1,200 miles from his Antarctic home over the last year, probably after getting caught in a current. “He’s in terrible condition, absolutely emaciated with his kidneys not functioning,” says one. “Hopefully we can reverse that, feed him up, and bring him back to good health, but it’s touch and go at the moment.” If he gets strong enough, Happy Feet Jr. would be released back into the wild, but closer to home. The same happened to the original Happy Feet, though that penguin’s fate remains unknown—its transmitter stopped sending signals after a few days of freedom.

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S SPORTS Friday, 22 February, 2013

taylor admits feeling pressure

WELLINGtON AGENCIES

Ross Taylor admits the huge standing ovations he's received since his cricketing comeback have only intensified the pressure on him to perform with the bat. According to stuff.co.nz website, the former new Zealand captain spoke on Thursday of his mixed emotions after scoring 100 off 117 balls in a losing cause in the second ODi in napier, which england won by eight wickets to send the series to a decider in Auckland on saturday.

Taylor scored 13, four, six and 22 in his four innings against england since his two-month hiatus following the captaincy drama. When he raised his bat for a hard-fought century on Wednesday, his seventh on ODi cricket, the relief was palpable at Mclean park. "There are a lot of emotions going through your mind and body. Obviously with what's gone on it was nice to know that i can still bat. i didn't feel great out there but it's even more satisfying to know that you can still score runs when you don't feel quite 100 per cent," he said. Taylor, who was jettisoned as skipper by coach Mike Hesson, has received standing ovations at every venue this summer and even provoked a banner: 'Taylor for prime Minister' in Wellington.

"Coming out in every game and getting a pretty amazing reception, it's not normal and you do put extra pressure on yourself, whether consciously or subconsciously. i think i did put a lot of pressure on myself," he said of his struggles before napier.

I want to wish both teams plenty of luck - just a little bit more for the Indians as they need it a bit more than the Australians do. – Sunil Gavaskar

Pakistan unchanged for final Test CAPTAIN MISBAH-UL-HUQ SAYS PAKISTAN WILL STICK TO THEIR TRIED AND TESTED TEAM CENtuRIAN AGENCIES

pakistan will stick to their tried and tested team for the third and final Test against south Africa, captain Misbah-ul-Huq said in Johannesburg on Thursday. “We are evolving with every game and we will play our best side,” said a subdued Misbah on the eve of the Centurion Test.

“All over the world, wickets are getting slower and even in Australia you don’t find wickets like this anymore, so it’s a matter of spending some time in the

middle and getting used to the conditions. “initially, it’s difficult to adjust but the more you play, the better you get, so we don’t want to make too many changes.” He said his side needed to put up a better show and, despite the match being a dead rubber, he emphasised the importance of Test cricket and said neither side would take the match lightly. “The south Africans know the importance of Test cricket and they want to win every game,” he said. “every team wants to win every game, and not just win the series, so both of us want it just as badly.” To give themselves a chance, Misbah said the batting unit needed to produce a better

on both their batting and bowling units.

“We’ve been working hard in the nets and hoping we’ll get better. everybody is trying their level best, especially in trying to combat the new ball.”

He hoped the harder pitch would benefit his seamers and that giant paceman, Mohammad irfan, would reap some rewards on the surface. “i think irfan will be effective on this wicket although he is new to Test cricket,” Misbah said. “He used to play in pakistan on seamer-friendly pitches and he is the kind of bowler that can surprise with bounce and pace.” Fast bowler Junaid Khan, who missed the newlands Test with a thigh injury, had recovered but was unlikely to play if he was not match fit.

The pakistan selectors were meeting later in the day and Misbah said he expected only one possible change.

performance and the team needed to capitalise on opportunities when they held the upper hand. “Our major goal is to win this Test but it’s not just about one innings. You have to bat well in both innings and post good totals to give a chance to your team and to your bowlers. “You also have to get a team out twice. You can’t just get them out once and then let the advantage slip out of your hands.” He said the touring side’s lack of experience had been exposed during the series but also paid credit to the hosts for exerting constant pressure

SA eye series sweep against Pakistan

guptill out of england tour

UNDER GRAEME SMITH'S LEADERSHIP, SOUTH AFRICA HAVE WON 21 SERIES - BUT NONE OF THEM HAS FEATURED A CLEAN SWEEP IN A SERIES OF THREE OR MORE MATCHES CENtuRION AGENCIES

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OUTH Africa will press for a clean sweep when they meet pakistan in the third and final Test starting at supersport park on Friday. After a comfortable 211run win in the first Test in Johannesburg, south Africa were made to work hard before clinching the series with a fourwicket win in the second Test at newlands in Cape Town. The second victory was achieved on a surface which captain graeme smith said did not suit his team, whose bowling attack is based on world-class fast bowlers.

Centurion has traditionally favoured fast bowlers and the south Africans will feel confident they can prevail again in conditions more familiar than those in which pakistan off-spinner saeed Ajmal took 10 wickets in Cape Town. Coach gary Kirsten told a south African website that the hosts wanted a pitch that was

more seam friendly than newlands. "We just don't want a pitch that turns a lot," he said. smith has been racking up captaincy records during the series, notching 100 Test captaincies in Johannesburg and a record 49th win as captain in Cape Town.

Under his leadership, south Africa have won 21 series - but none of them has featured a clean sweep in a series of three or more matches. With south Africa firmly entrenched as the number one team in the international Cricket Council rankings, players and management frequently talk of creating a legacy - and maintaining standards after a series has been won is one way of doing that.

With greater batting depth and the world's two leading fast bowlers in Dale steyn and Vernon philander, south Africa appear to hold most of the aces, although they will be without the tall Morne Morkel, the third member of what has been described as the best fast bowling trio in the world. Burly Rory Kleinveldt will replace the injured Morkel.

WELLINGtON AGENCIES

TEAMS SOUTH AFRICA (LIKELy): Graeme Smith (capt), Alviro Petersen, Hashim Amla, Jacques Kallis, AB de Villiers (wkt), Faf du Plessis, Dean Elgar, Robin Peterson, Vernon Philander, Dale Steyn, Rory Kleinveldt PAKISTAn (FROM): Misbah-ul-Haq (capt), Mohammad Hafeez, Nasir Jamshed, Azhar Ali, Younis Khan, Asad Shafiq, Sarfraz Ahmed (wkt), Umar Gul, Saeed Ajmal, Junaid Khan, Mohammad Irfan, Imran Farhat, Tanvir Ahmed, Ehsan Adil, Abdur Rehman, Faisal Iqbal, Rahat Ali Umpires: Billy Bowden (NZL), Steve Davis (AUS). TV umpire: Bruce Oxenford (AUS).

Match referee: Jeff Crowe (NZL).

new Zealand opening batsman Martin guptill will miss the Black Caps' home Test series against england to undergo surgery on an injured thumb, officials said on Thursday. guptill was already in doubt for the third and final one-day international against england in Auckland on saturday with a hamstring strain, but had been expected to return for the three-Test series against the tourists next month. physiotherapist paul Close said guptill was also suffering from a previously undisclosed injury to a thumb ligament and needed to undergo surgery. "We felt it was best to get Martin right for the tour to england in May and June, so the next couple of months were seen as the best window to have the surgery," he said. guptill went off injured during the first ODi in Hamilton but came back to score the winning runs for new Zealand in dramatic fashion, belting four fours and a six while playing on one leg to see his team home. The ODi series is tied at 1-1 after england won in napier on Wednesday.

South Africa won’t slack off!: Kirsten PREtORIA AGENCIES

While the third Test between south Africa and pakistan is a dead rubber, no extra motivation is required for the players, according to proteas coach gary Kirsten.

“We want to make sure that every time we go out onto the cricket field, as a Test playing side, that we’re highly competitive and a difficult side to beat,” Kirsten said in Centurion on Wednesday, with the proteas on the brink of a series whitewash. “it’s hard to say we won’t lose a game this year, but we like to think we’ll get very close to that.”

Kirsten said they were not looking at this match, or the series, in isolation and the team had bigger goals to reach.

“We set our blueprint a while back and that includes some long term goals. After last year’s success, this year is a very important one for us to maintain our levels of consistency.

“To represent your country is a massive thing and we will continue to pick a full strength team in every Test match i’m involved in.” With Morne Morkel injured, team management confirmed earlier in the week that Rory Kleinveldt was back in the side and Kyle Abbot would be the next seam bowling reserve. “it’s always tough for a guy who sits

on the fringes, but Rory has played three Tests now and he’s very much part of this team,” Kirsten said. “We don’t look at ourselves as a team of 11, but rather as a squad of 15, and i keep the players wellinformed of where they sit within the team. "i see it as a great opportunity for him to stake his claim as one of the premier fast bowlers in the country and he’s

relishing the chance.”

While much of the focus had been on south Africa’s consistently effective pace attack, Kirsten said the batsmen had played just as important a role and the difficulty of batting on south African wickets was not to be underestimated. “south Africa, without a doubt, has the toughest conditions for batting so i give credit to our batsmen for their performance on wickets which are doing a fair amount. “i think they do an incredible job and maybe we need to realign our yardsticks in south African conditions. Often they are measured on scoring hundreds or reaching totals of 400s, but in south Africa, sometimes 300 is a very good score.”

Despite being 2-0 up in the series, the proteas were still wary of pakistan, but Kirsten felt confident his team would once again react to the pressure. “We knew we would have a big backlash at newlands and be put under pressure but we responded brilliantly,” he said.

“We had individuals who stepped up, who had never had to step up before - our lower order batsmen made telling contributions and we needed them in that game. "i have no doubt they will put us under pressure again and we’re going to have to respond to that.”

KALLIS DONE WITH ODIS, T20S? CAPE TOWn: If Proteas coach Gary Kirsten has his way, then veteran allrounder Jacques Kallis will only play Test cricket in future. Kallis was on Wednesday again rested when Cricket South Africa (CSA) named the Proteas' ODI and T20 squads for the upcoming limited overs series against Pakistan.

Kirsten told the Beeld website Kallis should only play Tests from now on, with this year's ICC Champions Trophy and the 2015 World Cup possibly the only exceptions. "Jacques has provided wonderful service for South Africa in all forms of the game over the last 18 to 19 years, and I feel the time has come for him to focus only on Test cricket," said Kirsten. The 37-year-old Kallis has on a few occasions indicated that he'd like to play in one more World Cup. "I will have discussions with him to hear if he'd maybe like to play in the World Cup (2015) and this year's Champions Trophy, but we'll get to that later." The Proteas face Pakistan in the third and final Test in Centurion, starting on Friday. They take an unassailable 2-0 lead into the game. AGENCIES

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We believe Oscar Pistorius should be afforded due process and we will continue to monitor the situation closely. – Nike after suspending agreement with the athlete

Clarke wants more responsibility from batsmen CHENNAI

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M

iCHAel Clarke has given Australia's batsmen a stern warning that if they fail to capitalise on their starts in india, they will be more culpable than those who fall cheaply in the difficult conditions.

The first Test is set to begin on Friday in Chennai on a pitch expected to offer significant turn and reverse swing, and while the Australians have chosen an attack heavy on pace options, india will rely on a bowling line-up replete with spinners.

That provides a unique set of challenges for an Australian batting order that traditionally performs best against quicker bowlers, but Clarke is confident that the surface will allow for plenty of runs in the first couple of days. The Australian batsmen must find a way to push through to triple figures after they managed 11 scores in the 30 to 90 range during the two warm-up games, but no centuries.

"One of the things i spoke to the boys the other day about is that it's more crucial here if you get a start to go on and make a big score," Clarke said. "so if you make a fifty, a sixty, a seventy, and get out, you're more accountable there than the guy who made zero, because it is a really difficult place to start, especially against spin or walking in against the reverse-swinging ball. it's up to the guys who get a start to take

harbhajan Singh set to play 100th test

the team forward." To that end, big things will be asked of the top three of ed Cowan, David Warner and phillip Hughes. But the real keys are Australia's two most senior batsmen, shane Watson and Clarke himself, lower down at nos. 4 and 5. no player in world cricket has made more Test runs in the past two years than the 2247 accumulated by Clarke; nor has anyone bettered his eight centuries in that time, especially given that the list includes three double-tons and one triple-hundred.

Clarke's runs in that time have mostly come at no.5, but that was always with the

buttress of Michael Hussey as the next man in. now Hussey is gone and this is Australia's first Test series without him, leaving Australia's best batsman to be followed by Matthew Wade, the debutant allrounder Moises Henriques and the bowlers. Clarke said he had considered moving up the order but with the top four all openers at one time or another, he felt it made more sense to leave them in place. "i spoke to Mickey Arthur and Watto (shane Watson) about that," Clarke said.

"Again the result is what we think is best for the team. it can't be about the individual

player. Would it be better for me to bat higher? personally it might be, because i get in earlier, i get to face the new ball. But the decision is nothing to do with me. The same as it's nothing to do with Watto in regards to opening the batting. We think it's the right batting order to help us win this Test match. "i don't think anybody's restricted to a certain position. i think it's great that everybody in our top four has opened the batting for Australia. We have plenty of options there and it really means we should be very good against new-ball bowling, which is a great positive for our team. You need to definitely look at the success we've just had against sri lanka.

The order we have right now worked against sri lanka. i'm confident we can have success here as well."

But the big difference between the sri lankan series and this indian contest is in the conditions. The Chennai pitch sports not a blade of grass and the Australians felt it was ready to play on several days ago. There is no doubt that it will turn, though Clarke was not convinced it would be ripping from the first morning in the way that some indian pitches have in the past. "it's very dry, there's no doubt about it. i think it will spin. i still think it will be good for batting on day one and day two," he said. "i think this wicket is going to be conducive to spin bowling but also to up-and-down bounce off the quicks and i know the ball reverse swings all over india."

Govt plans colourful activity during spring festival LAHORE STAFF REPORT

CHENNAI AGENCIES

Harbhajan singh has said he is a bit nervous but he will be all right before he steps out to play against Australia on Friday, which will make him the 10th indian to have played 100 Tests. india don't usually divulge team news before the toss, but made an exception this time. it would not have needed such confirmation in the usual course, but Harbhajan has mostly been out of the side and has played only one Test in more than 18 months, and is making a comeback into the squad.

The landmark Test will come against Harbhajan's favourite opposition, Australia, and at a venue where 12 years ago he applied the finishing touches to one of the greatest turnarounds in Test history, finishing off as joint Man of the series against Australia. Harbhajan has taken 408 wickets from 99 Tests at an average of 32.27 and a strike-rate of 68.1. "it's a big game," Harbhajan said. "[The previous] 99 are gone. Obviously a bit nervous but i am sure i will be fine. i have faced these situations before. "i have gone through times when i was not doing well or when i was doing well and got too excited. These things happen.

Bit nervous to start with, but i will be fine. Once i get away with 100, we will see what needs to be done to play another 50-odd. probably i will have to work even harder."

Thousands of students of around 60 universities and colleges of lahore will take part in the new Colour of spring Festival being held from February 23 under the supervision of Chief Minister Youth Mobilisation Committee at Alhamra Cultural Complex gadaffi stadium.

Addressing a press conference here at the conferene ahll of the sports Board punjab, chief organiser punjab Youth Festival and Deputy speaker punjab Assembly, Rana Mashhood Ahmed Khan said that the new colour of spring festival will be an ideal opportunity for the youth to showcase their talent in various fields of fine arts. Also present was Chaduahry sohail Aamir. “CMYMC is striving hard for developing awareness among youth in different social problems and issues highlighting the role of youth,” he said.

He said: “We are taking every measure to give importance to the youth to channelise their energies in a positive manner and we firmly believe this festival will help in identifying the hidden talent of youth in various competitions which include drama, painting, photography, singing and calligraphy.” “Under the vision of

punjab Chief Minister punjab, Mohammad shahbaz sharif, we are providing a platform through sports to show to the outer world that we youth is capable to compete along side of worlds modern countries sportsmen,” he said.

Rana Mashood said punjab government will soon announce the dates of closing ceremony of punjab sports festival.

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Friday, 22 February, 2013

Chaminda vaas appointed Sri Lanka’s fast bowling coach

SPORtS DESK sri lanka Cricket has appointed Chaminda Vaas as national fast bowling coach for two years, after weeks of negotiations with the former left-arm fast bowler. Muttiah Muralitharan has also come on board with the sri lanka coaching staff in an advisory capacity, and has already been working with the spin bowlers in the side, in the lead up to the upcoming home series against Bangladesh. Vaas had expressed an interest in taking the role when slC approached him in January, but was underwhelmed with the pay the board had offered him. The parties eventually reached an agreement late on Wednesday evening. "We concluded successful negotiations with Vaas, where we discussed things like pay and his role in the coaching unit," slC chief executive Ajit Jayasekara said. "He will be the head fast bowling coach, with the present coaches Champaka Ramanayake and Anusha samaranayake working under him. He has taken so many wickets for sri lanka, and we are very happy to have concluded our talks to get him into the job.

Vaas will also oversee the country's pace bowling academies." slC had hoped to sign Muralitharan as a full-time coach as well, but as he still plays in various domestic Twenty20 leagues, he could not commit to that position. Muralitharan is the most successful bowler in the history of the game, leading the Test and ODi wicket-takers lists, with 800 and 534 scalps respectively. Vaas is sri lanka's most successful fast bowler, with 355 Test wickets and 400 ODi wickets. in addition to the coaching appointments, slC also appointed Michael de Zoysa as the new team manager for one year, filling the position vacated by Charith senanayake, whose deteriorating relationship with the board in recent weeks led to his replacement and resignation. De Zoysa has been involved in cricket administration with sri lanka's premier clubs, most notably sinhalese sports Club, has been a radio and TV commentator, and was also a tea industry executive.

Luck favours South Africa at Centurion S.PERvEz QAISER

s

OUTH Africa have a very good record at super sport park, Centurion where they play third and final Test match of the series against pakistan from Friday (February 22).

The hosts have won 13, lost just one and draw three in 17 Test matches at this ground. south Africa's only defeat at Centurion came against england in 2000. pakistan, on the other hand, have lost the only Test match played at this ground. south Africa defeated pakistan by seven wickets when two teams met only time at this venue in 2007.

Originally named Centurion park, super sport park, the home of northerns (northern Transvaal), is in easy access of Johannesburg, Midrand and pretoria.

One of the newer stadiums and Test venues in south Africa it has been described by various international captains as "One of the grounds with the best players’ facilities in the world".

The stadium’s appeal is the grass embankments which make up a large part of the seating area, ideal for good family cricket watching. Beach Cabana type hospitality chalets have been erected high on the grass banks for added corporate viewing pleasure. A pavilion at the north end of the ground completes the 22,000 spectator capacity.

Known for being one of the quicker pitches in south Africa, it also gives plenty of opportunity to batsmen, with the ball generally coming onto the bat. it has never been seen as a spinner’s paradise. The outfield is level, lush and fast with a drainage system on par with any in the world.

TEAM P W L D South Africa 17 13 1 3 Pakistan 1 1 HIGHEST InnInGS TOTALS: South Africa: 620-4dec in 130.1 overs vs India 2010-11 Pakistan: 313 in 96.5 overs vs v South Africa 2006-07 LOWEST InnInGS TOTALS: South Africa: 200 in 78 overs vs Sri Lanka 1997-98 Pakistan: 302 in 96.2 overs vs South Africa 2006-07 HIGHEST InDIVIDUAL SCORES: South Africa: 201* Jacques Kallis vs India 2010-11 Pakistan: 68 Younis Khan vs South Africa 2006-07 68 Imran Farhat vs South Africa 2006-07 BEST BOWLInG In An InnInGS: South Africa: 6-39 Monde Zoneki vs Zimbabwe 2004-05 Pakistan: 5-89 Mohammed Asif vs S. Africa 2006-07 BEST BOWLInG In A MATCH: South Africa: 10-91 Dale Steyn vs New Zealand 2007-08 Pakistan: 7-145 Mohammed Asif vs S. Africa 2006-07

SUCCESS% 85.29 00.00

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It's so encouraging to see the amount of work that's going in, to see the atmosphere there (at the factory) and how determined everyone is. – Lewis Hamilton ahead of the Barcelona's Circuit de Catalunya

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haas, Dolgopolov breeze through T MEMPHIS AGENCIES

OMMY Haas and Alexandr Dolgopolov were among the first round winners in the Us national indoor Tennis Championships in Memphis. sixth-seeded Haas, a runnerup in san Jose last week, defeated evgeny Donskoy 7-6(6) 6-4, while seventh seed Dolgopolov defeated Bjorn phau 6-3 6-4.

Former world number one lleyton Hewitt will join them in the second round after he saved match point on two occasions to edge past Yen-Hsun lu 2-6 7-6(3) 6-4. Hewiett's fellow Australian Marinko Matosevic is also through following a 7-6(6) 6-4 success over Japan's go soeda. American Donald Young progressed courtesy of

a bye after Xavier Malisse retired injured at 5-1 down in the first set. The women's competition saw a shock as second seed sofia Arvidsson was bundled out in the second round by new Zealander Marina erakovic, who was a 6-1 3-6 6-3 winner.

There was no such problem for top seed Kirsten Flipkens, though she was taken to three sets in a 7-5 3-6 63 victory over lesia Tsurenko. sabine lisicki, Heather Watson and Kristina Mladenovic - seeded three, four and eight respectively - also reached the third round. lisicki defeated Melinda Czink 7-6(0) 4-6 6-2, British number one Watson beat Andrea Hlavackova 2-6 6-0 6-3 and Mladenovic despatched Victoria Duval 6-1 3-6 63. stefanie Voegele won the first match on court, seeing off Claire Feuerstein 3-6 7-6(2) 6-1.

Cornet makes early exit in Bogota

Williams joins Azarenka on injury list in Dubai DuBAI AGENCIES

new world number one serena Williams, much like rival Victoria Azarenka, has been forced to withdraw from this week's Dubai Tennis Championships due to injury.

Williams was among the favourites for the title after replacing Azarenka at the top of the world rankings on Monday but on Wednesday confirmed her withdrawal due to a lower back problem.

"We were looking forward to seeing

BOGOtA AGENCIES

serena play, and are disappointed that this injury has ruled her out," said tournament director salah Tahlak.

"We wish her a speedy recovery and look forward to hopefully seeing her back in Dubai next year."

Williams had been due to face France's Marion Bartoli in the second round. Her withdrawal is a further blow for the tournament organisers after top seed Azarenka was also forced to pull out through injury on Tuesday.

Azarenka took her tally of career titles to 16 with victory over Williams in

Top seed Jelena Jankovic won her first match at the the Copa Colsanitas in Bogota, but second seed Alice Cornet exited in the second round. serbian Jankovic was a 6-4 5-7 6-2 winner over in the first round against American Julia Cohen in a mammoth encounter that topped three hours and 18 minutes.

Colombian wildcard Marian DuqueMarino also booked a place in the second round with a 6-3 3-6 6-4 success over estrella Cabeza Candela.

There was bad news for Cornet, though, as she failed to make the third round.

Brazilian qualifier Teliana pereira was her conqueror in a 7-5 (2)6-7 6-2 upset. eighth seed Timea Babos was also ousted in the second round by luxembourg's Mandy Minella, who claimed a decisive 6-4 6-1 success.

Maria-Teresa Torro-Flor will also line-up in round three after a 7-6(3) 6-3 triumph over Mathilde Johansson.

the Qatar Open final at the weekend, but that was not enough to ensure she could deprive the American of top spot when the new list was published on Monday.

Azarenka, who is unbeaten in 2013, withdrew with a foot problem suffered on her way to victory in Qatar last week.

Defending champion Agnieszka Radwanska is still fit and firing in Dubai and with Williams and Azarenka on the sidelines, the third seed is very much the firm favourite to retain her title this weekend.

The pole booked her place in the quarter-finals on Wednesday but not before being forced to come from a break down in both sets as she saw off 18-year-old Yulia putintseva of Kazakhstan 7-5 6-3.

Fourth-seeded Roberta Vinci of italy is also safely into the last eight after seeing off germany's Angelique Kerber 7-5 6-1, while sixth-seeded Czech petra Kvitova was made to fight hard for a 75 7-6 (7/1) win over former world number one Ana ivanovic of serbia.

Australia's samantha stosur, the seventh seed, was a 6-4 6-0 winner over Hsieh su-Wei of Chinese Taipei, while eighth-seeded Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark swatted aside China's Zheng Jie 6-0 6-1 and Russia's nadia petrova was similarly ruthless as she ousted spain's Carla suarez navarro 6-1 6-0. in the late match, fifth seed sara errani of italy had little trouble overcoming Romania's sorana Cirstea, winning 6-4 6-4 to set up a last-eight meeting with petrova.

Ferrer makes winning start SPORtS DESK Top seed and defending champion David Ferrer made a winning start at the Copa Claro, with a first round success over Agustin Velotti in Buenos Aires. The spaniard, making his first clay court appearance of the season, broke serve four times in 79 minutes for a 6-4 6-1 win. The only other seed in action, number six Fabio Fognini, also progressed with a 7-5 6-3 victory over guillermo garcia-lopez. The remaining two matches both guaranteed a home presence in the next round as both were all-Argentinean affairs.

126th FCC Annual Athletics conclude LAHORE STAFF REPORT

The 126th Annual Athletics Championship of Forman Christian College, lahore successfully concluded on Thursday afternoon.

Although no new records were set, the championship reflected the passion of students towards athletics.

Chief guest Adil J. Mansoor, CeO, excel group of Companies distributed the prizes. He promised continued support to the College in the field of sports.

Azher iqbal and Miss Anila sahar were declared the best Athletes.

Jahangir House won the championship Trophy.

2nd Best Athlete was Murtaza ibn Yacoob and shabnam nawaz while the Best Championship went to Trophy Kennedy Hall and March past Trophy was grabbed by Jahangir House prof. Tahir Masood.

LAHORE: The winners of the 126th Annual Athletics Championship of Forman Christian College with the chief guest.

LAHORE: The participants of the 126th Annual Athletics Championship of Forman Christian College perform at the college ground.

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The foundations David has laid down from his side of it are easy to carry on from. There is a template there for us to follow. – Alex Ferguson MEMPHIS: Denis Istomin plays a shot to beat John Isner in the US national Indoor Championships.

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Friday, 22 February, 2013

wAtCh It LIve PTV SPORTS 3rd test: Pakistan South Africa 01:30 PM

STAR CRICKET 1st test: India V Australia 09:00 AM

STAR SPORTS LIGA: de Bilbao v Real Sociedad 01:55 AM

Closed training sessions of Pak hockey team LAHORE STAFF REPORT

The management of the pakistan hockey Federation has decided to conduct closed training sessions and none one will be allowed to watch the training of the team.

The training camp of national senior probables preparing for participation in the 22nd sultan Azlan shah Cup is in progress at national Hockey stadium lahore since February 10. “The media-men are allowed to witness the training sessions of the probables from 1500 to 1530 hours, only,” said a spokesman of pHF here on Thursday.

gCu win Lahore Board inter-collegiate tennis LAHORE STAFF REPORT

Snow stops play for day at Dove Mountain

Thaworn launches 10th Asian Tour season SPORtS DESK

MARANA AGENCIES

Dove Mountain looked more like a winter wonderland than a high desert golf course on Wednesday after a blanket of snow forced play to be abandoned in the opening round of the WgC-Accenture Match play Championship. Just over three-and-a-half hours of golf was possible on a bitterly cold and breezy morning before driving rain, sleet and then snow led to matches being suspended at the elite World golf Championships (WgC) event. ice formed on the greens and, with further snow showers forecast for the rest of the day in Arizona's high desert, officials had no option but to call off play for the day after waiting a couple of hours to re-evaluate conditions. Almost two inches of snow covered the entire course, the driving range and the practice putting green at Dove Mountain's RitzCarlton golf Club after 23 of the 32 matches had started with none finishing.

"Once we got two inches of snow, even if it melted in the next hour or so, it would still take another hour-and-a-half ... to let the golf course drain where we could play," Mark Russell, the pgA Tour's vice president of rules and competition, said.

"We were just spinning our wheels, so we just decided to pull the plug on it. But i don't think we'll have any problem at all if the weather remains nice, finishing sunday on time." Officials later said the first round would resume, weatherpermitting, from 8.30am local (1530 gMT) on Thursday with the second round scheduled to start from around noon. ian poulter, the 2010 champion, was 3up on fellow Briton stephen gallacher after 12 holes and was stunned by the sudden change in the weather.

Asian Tour executive chairman Kyi Hla Han hailed "a great moment in Asia" as Thaworn Wiratchant got the tour's 10th season underway at the Zaykabar Myanmar Open. The region's premier Tour, which was launched as a players' organisation in 2004 similar to the pgA Tour and european Tour, is celebrating 10 years of excellence throughout 2013.

Han said: "it's a great moment in Asia. it has been a fantastic past nine years and golf is booming over here. The interest level in golf is high and we are looking forward to our next 10 years.

"When we started out in 2004, we offered over Us$12 million in total prize money and now, it's Us$44 million plus every year and growing. it's been a big move forward for the Asian Tour."

The Tour supremo was delighted to see three of the Tour's leading stars get the historic occasion underway at the Royal Mingalardon golf and Country Club. Thai veteran Boonchu Ruangkit

government college university won the lahore Board inter collegiate tennis championship beating punjab college lahore in the finals here on Thursday at gCU tennis court. Vice Chancellor prof Dr Muhammad Khaleeq ur Rehman has praised the performance of gC university players Muhammad Ahmad and imad Amer in the final as well as the championship.

Perez puts McLaren on top in Barcelona BARCELONA AGENCIES

and singaporean ace Mardan Mamat were in the opening match alongside Thaworn, who holds a record 15 Asian Tour wins. "Thaworn has been one of the leading stalwarts of the Asian Tour over the years and he deserves the honour of

hitting the first shot of our 10th season. it is also fantastic to see Boonchu still going at it as he struck our first tee shot in 2004 while Mardan was one of our early board members when we first launched the Tour.

new Mclaren driver sergio perez set the fastest lap on the second day of Formula One testing at Barcelona's Circuit de Catalunya on Wednesday. The Mexican, who has moved from sauber to replace 2008 champion lewis Hamilton at the team, completed 97 laps nearly one-and-a-half times the spanish grand prix race distance - with a best time of one minute 21.848 seconds on the soft tyres. perez did a series of shorter runs in the morning and then longer ones in the afternoon focusing on familiarising the driver with systems and procedures including the cockpit switches and radio messaging. sebastian Vettel had been the fastest before lunch, although testing times must be treated with caution since teams are working through different programmes, but was forced to end his session early.

Rugby camp to pick team for 7s tourney LAHORE STAFF REPORT

The pakistan Rugby Union held the first of two the national trail camp for the selection of the 7s team. The idea is to select a squad of players that will train together for 7s rugby.

A total squad of 16-18 players will be selected in this squad that will form the ncleus of players that will be selected for the national duty.

The 7s fixtures players were invited from all departments, provinces and clubs to take part in the event. The majority of the major players were from Army, punjab and police.

The trial camp is conducted by shakeel Malik, pakistan rugby full time development coach, a series of test were run to judge the players basic rugby abilities. The camp ended with a series of games played between pakistan greeen and pakistan whites and the series was won by pakistan green 2 games to one.

This year pakistan will play in West Asia Rugby 7s Championship in Dubai, UAe which is being hosted by the newly-formed UAe Rugby Union and then look at participate in the prestigious HsBC Asian 7s series, which will be held in 4 different location in shanghai China , Borneo Malaysia, Mumbai, india.

LAHORE: Development coach of PRU Shakeel Malik giving lecture to rugby players during national trial camp at the DHA Phase V K Block ground.

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Friday, 22 February, 2013

HYDERABAD

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T least 18 people have been killed and 52 wounded when bombs ripped through crowded areas of the indian city of Hyderabad in what the prime minister has called a ‘dastardly act’.

The bombs targeted a mainly Hindu district in a suburb of the city, a hub of india’s information technology industry,

which has a large Muslim population, and came with the nation on alert after the recent hanging of a Kashmiri separatist.

‘We have 18 people dead,’ a police officer who declined to be named told AFp. Another senior police officer at the scene of one of the explosions, Amit garg, put the number of wounded at 52. police said many of the injured were in critical condition in hospital.

‘This is a dastardly act and the guilty will not go unpunished,’ prime Minister Manmohan singh said of the attacks, the

deadliest to hit india since 13 people died in a 2011 bombing outside the High Court in the capital new Delhi.

But singh also appealed for ‘calm’ in the aftermath of the Hyderabad blasts.

City police said there had been three explosions, but Home Minister sushil Kumar shinde said he could only confirm two. ‘The two bombs were placed on two different bicycles and the distance between them was about 100 to 150 metres,’ shinde told reporters in new Delhi.

He said indian authorities had received

‘intelligence inputs in the (recent) days about the possibility of attacks and this information was shared with other states’. police said the blasts went off in quick succession.

Huge crowds gathered near the site of the explosions in the Hyderabad suburb of Dilsukh nagar as police struggled to collect evidence.

Meanwhile at the Osmania general Hospital, bloodied victims lay on stretchers as sobbing relatives pleaded for information about their loved ones.

HyDERABAD: PPP workers resort to aerial firing after the Sindh Assembly repealed the Sindh People’s Local Government Act 2012 on Thursday. INP

Australia offering asylum to 2,500 hazara families?

ISLAMABAD ONLINE

Pakistan demands custody of Maulvi Faqir ISLAMABAD STAFF REPORT

The Australian government has offered asylum to 2,500 families of the Hazara community, according to media reports quoting Australian diplomats and Un officials. Reportedly, a representative of the Australian immigration Department met with Un officials last week to make the asylum offer on humanitarian grounds.

However, the Australian High Commission denied the reports, saying Australia was not introducing a new programme to resettle the Hazara community out of pakistan. “Australia is not introducing a new programme to resettle Hazara community out of pakistan, as it was reflected in the media reports,” according to a spokesperson of the Australian High Commission. in contrast, Australia’s priority is to assist those refugees who are the most vulnerable, the spokesperson added.

“Though Australia has sympathies for the communities affected by sectarian violence, its humanitarian programme is not specific to any particular country but only for refugees,” the spokesperson said.

Refugees, including Afghan Hazaras, wanting to be resettled in Australia must be recognised by UnHCR as meeting the criteria for refugee status, because Australia only considers refugees referred to it by UnHCR, the spokesperson added.

At least 89 people of the minority community, including nine women and two girls aged seven and nine, were killed when a tonne of explosives packed in a water tanker detonated in the middle of a busy bazaar on February 16. it was the second deadly blast in the city in little over a month.

The government on Thursday demanded the Afghan government hand over Maulvi Faqir, a key Taliban leader, to pakistan as he was wanted to security forces in a number of terrorism cases.

Faqir had run away to Afghanistan’s Kunar province after pakistani forces launched a military operation in the tribal region where he was staying. last Monday, Afghan forces arrested him when he was on his way to Khyber Agency from Kunar.

He was suspected to be behind at-

tacks on military in Bajaur and later launching attacks on pakistani border posts from across the border. in his weekly press briefing, Foreign Office spokesman Moazam Khan on Thursday said pakistan had called for extradition of Maulvi Faqir and other wanted pakistani Taliban.

He said on Thursday night, Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar took up extradition of wanted Taliban with her Afghan counterpart Zalmay Rassoul.

To a query, he said Afghanistan will capture all those pakistani Taliban, who while sitting in Afghanistan, were engaged in anti-pakistan activities.

The FO spokesman said pakistan wanted to see a stable and peaceful Afghanistan, adding that Afghan soil should not be used against pakistan.

On gwadar port accord with China, Khan said handing over gwadar port to a Chinese company was a purely economic venture so no country should be “worried” about it. To another question, he said pakistan was committed to pursuing the iran-pakistan gas pipeline project. “We are enormously energy deficient. This project is in our national interest. We know the Us has reservations over this project… but we are determined to going ahead with it.”

Prosecution witnesses backtrack from earlier statements

(

18 dead, 52 hurt in indian bombings

( BENAZIR MURDER CASE

RAWALPINDI AmIR SAEED

Two prosecution witnesses have backtracked from their earlier stance against two senior police officers who were allegedly involved in the Benazir Bhutto murder case. The witnesses now claim that the said police officers had ordered hosing down the crime scene in ‘good faith’. The development surfaced on Thursday, when hearing of the case resumed in an antiterrorism court (ATC) in Rawalpindi. experts say following this development, hearing of the already delayed Benazir murder case might be delayed further. in statements registered earlier, the witnesses had said that they followed orders of the said police officers regarding washing of the crime scene. On Thursday however, they claimed that their senior ordered them to wash the crime scene in good faith, because all evidence had already been collected. During the course of hearing, Abdul Rehman, head of rescue 1122 Rawalpindi and former official of fire-fighting department ghulam Ahmed naz, were the main prosecution witnesses against the police officials booked for negligence and lack of security at liaqat Bagh on December 27, 2007. Malik Rafique, counsel for the police officers, said in order to avert any untoward incident the witnesses complied with the order of the police to wash the blood from the crime scene and it had been done in ‘good faith’. On the basis of previous statements of the witnesses, the FiA charged the police officers–the then city police officer saud Aziz and superintendent of police Khurram shahzad–for destroying evidence by ordering to clean the crime scene and for the breach of security of Benazir. earlier on January 29, the ATC judge had summoned the report of a commission constituted in February 2008 for initial probe of the murder case. The said commission, presided by the then punjab law secretary Farooq sheikh, had cleared the police officials from any accusation.

Both police officials were later implicated in the case after the investigation was transferred from punjab police to the FiA. The FiA again recorded the statements of the said witnesses. in 2010, ATC issued arrest warrants for police officers Aziz and shahzad, but later granted them bail.

On Thursday, the witnesses Rehman and naz, replying to questions from the defence counsel said the police had collected all incrementing evidence before washing of the crime scene.

They also admitted that they were not cross examined at the time when the FiA recorded their statements. Rehman, in-charge of rescue 1122, said the shocking news of Benazir’s murder enraged political workers and the police, in order to control the law and order situation, had ordered washing of blood from the crime scene.

NA passes ZAB medical university bill PIMS TO HAVE RIGHT TO AWARD MEDICAL DEGREES ISLAMABAD ANwER AbbAS

The national Assembly on Thursday passed the shaheed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto Medical University (piMs) islamabad Bill 2013, despite low attendance of treasury Mps and strong protests by the pakistan Muslim league-nawaz and Muttahida Qaumi Movement.

The fourth sitting of the 49ths session of the national Assembly opened with Deputy speaker Faisal Karim Kundi in the

PML-N AND MQM PUT UP STRONG RESISTANCE TO RENAMING OF PIMS chair and the lawmakers appeared least interested in the House business.

During the sitting, Federal Minister for Capital Administration and Development (CAD) nazar Mohammad gondal floated the shaheed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto Medical University (piMs) islamabad Bill 2013 to rename pakistan institute for Medical sciences (piMs) shaheed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto Medical University and granting it a status to award degrees. On the occasion, pMln and MQM members stood up and staged a strong protest. Holding posters of Quaid-

Published by Arif Nizami at Plot # 7, Al-Baber Centre, F/8 Markaz, Islamabad.

e-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah, legislators from the pMl-n and MQM started chanting slogans against the government, saying an insult of the founder of the nation would not be permitted.

Deputy speaker Kundi allowed the government to present the particular controversial bill, however Federal Minister syed Khurshid shah asked pMl-n Mp Zahid Hamid to initiate a debate over the bill if his party was willing to do so.

Rather than debating, the pMl-n lawmakers kept chanting slogans. Meanwhile, the ruling party initiated clause-to-clause reading of the bill that concluded with passing of the bill on basis of majority in the House.

After the passage of the particular bill, piMs University would have the right to Editor: Arif Nizami

issue medical degrees, which was earlier restricted to Quaid-e-Azam University. earlier, a calling attention notice over not handing over possession of plots to allottees in park enclave islamabad was taken up by the House.

Meanwhile, a standing committee report on the Capital University of science and Technology Bill 2012 was also presented in the House. During the last session of nA, the House witnessed careless approach by the governments MnAs and ministers, as most of them remained absent from proceedings.

At one instance, pMl-n MnA Hanif Abbasi pointed out the low quorum in the House, following which proceedings of the House were suspended for a short time. The House was later adjourned until Friday.