Pakistan Today

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Pakistan among most poor countries per UNDP human development report

US killed over 1,500 Afghan civilians in 10 months PAGE 15

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Vol II No 132 32 Pages Lahore Edition

Govt plans to shock people with 14% power tariff surge ISLAMABAD Staff RepoRt

The government is planning to increase the power tariff by a massive 14 percent during the current fiscal year to avoid accumulation of another debt of Rs 67 billion under the tariff differential subsidy. An official said the government was reluctant to pass on the financial burden to a people crushed by high inflation. “However, the threat of another debt will force the government to make the hard decision. For the current fiscal year the government has a budget of Rs 50 billion for power subsidies,” the official said. Finance secretary Waqar Masud Khan told reporters on Friday that power sector reforms would be pursued even out of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) conditions. He said new management would be inducted in the distribution companies (DIsCOs) in the ongoing month to improve their performance. On a question regarding reported misappropriations in the electricity dues of government departments, the finance secretary said it was not possible because DIsCOs were empowered to disconnect power supply to defaulters.

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Saturday, 5 November, 2011 Zul-Haj 8, 1432

Pakistan to have a larger negative list if NTBs not removed by India Indo-Pak secretaries talks on Nov 14-15 g Secretaries to chalk out roadmap for trade liberalisation g Trade volume likely to increase to $6 billion from existing $2 billion g

ISLAMABAD

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vEN though Pakistan has shown commitment to grant the Most Favoured Nation (MFN) status to India, the trade between the two neighbouring countries is still likely to be regulated through a larger negative list until the non-tariff barriers (NTB) are removed by New Delhi to allow unhindered access to Pakistani products.

Commerce secretary Zafar Mehmood will be visiting India on a two-day visit on November 14-15 to hold parleys on the bilateral trade issues with his Indian counterpart, to work out modalities and roadmap for trade liberalisation and re-

moving non-tariff barriers. Talking to Pakistan Today, Zafar Mehmood said India would have to dismantle all NTBs to Pakistan’s satisfaction to get the MFN status. He said MFN did not mean any sort of preferential arrangement, rather it created a conducive environment for trading partners so that they could be able to do business. On the negative list, he said the government was ready to put more items on the list, provided the relevant manufacturers gave proper reasoning for putting it in the negative list. He said Indian goods would not be allowed to reach Afghanistan even after the grant of MFN status to New Delhi. The status of sensitive list under south Asian Free Trade Agreement (sAFTA) would remain the same, as import of 233 items would

not be allowed from India. An official source said Pakistan would be maintaining a larger negative list for trade with India until the NTBs were not removed.

Most of the products to be safeguarded would be from the steel, automobile and pharmaceutical sectors, which are less competitive than Indian products. Pakistani textiles products could create a niche in India provided NTBs were removed. India had granted MFN status to Pakistan in 1996, but due to NTBs, Pakistani goods could not make inroads into Indian markets.

Pakistan trades with India under positive list which includes 1,946 items, while India disallows export of 850 items to Pakistan. The bilateral trade between both countries is $2.6 billion,

Congress slips on promised civilian aid to Pakistan WASHINGTON: support on Capitol Hill for aid to Pakistan has plummeted amid accusations that some in the Pakistani government have aided anti-Us militants, the state Department said in a new report on Friday, but Us secretary of state Hillary Clinton advocated a strong linkage between lasting security and economic opportunity and urged Congressional support for continued economic assistance for both Pakistan and Afghanistan. she noted that reconciliation in Afghanistan offered the best hope for stability in the region. In a status report on Afghanistan and Pakistan Civilian Engagement, submitted to Congress, the chief American diplomat said assisting the two allied countries would secure American interests in the region.

Earlier, the state Department report said Congress had slipped on its 2009 promise to triple non-military aid to Pakistan over five years. The appropriations reached the promised level of $1.5 billion in 2010, but last year amounted to only $1 billion, the document said. It said, however, that the Obama administration intended for assistance to Islamabad to continue and wants to focus on “signature” projects in Pakistan. Us officials are currently looking to select a major new infrastructure project “that would both contribute to power generation and water management” in Pakistan, it said. The report said that Us civilian aid to Afghanistan peaked, declaring the Us would spend less on development assistance there as it withdraws troops from the country. ReUteRs

Jailed Aamer ‘shattered’

which is planned to be enhanced to over $6 billion in next three years. The trade negotiations between the two countries were revived in April this year after a gap of four years with the commerce secretary-level talks, in which both countries softened down their traditional stance. Commerce Minister Makhdoom Amin Fahim and Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar had said during their visit to India that Pakistan has no objection to granting MFN status to India. A positive gesture was shown

by New Delhi during the visit of the Pakistani commerce minister in september, when it assured support to Pakistan for getting approval from the World Trade Organisation for getting concessional access to European markets.

US reins in drones over diplomatic concerns

LaHoRe: Crowds hit the railway station as millions return to their hometowns to celebrate eidul adha. INP

While PM says no MFN to India yet, FO says no U-turn LAHORE/ISLAMABAD Staff RepoRt

As Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani on Friday said Pakistan had not yet granted India the Most Favoured Nation (MFN) status, the Foreign Office in Islamabad said Pakistan had not backtracked from its decision “as the cabinet has endorsed the decision to grant MFN status to India in principle”.

The FO statement came in reaction to a Reuters report which quoted unnamed Indian officials as saying that Pakistan was bowing to domestic business interests opposed to finalizing MFN status for India. Quoting an Indian official, who requested not to be named, the Reuters report said that business and political lobbies in Pakistan appeared to have forced the move to be put on hold, leaving India to “wait and watch” as to when the process

would resume. A media report from New Delhi quoted Pakistani High Commissioner in India shahid Malik as saying, “The process of normalisation is already underway and the grant of MFN status is part of that normalisation process. There is no question of U-turn about it.” Meanwhile, talking to reporters in Lahore, Gilani said it took time to reach such a historical decision and “we will give it the green signal after making careful calculations and observing the emerging situation without compromising on national interests.”

He rejected the impression that the government had sought the military’s approval on the issue, saying the PPP-led coalition government was a democratic government which decided issues on its own after taking into confidence all stakeholders “and in this case, the stakeholders are the chambers of commerce”.

Elaborating on the issue, the prime min-

ister said the cabinet had authorised the Ministry of Commerce to deepen trade ties with India and negotiations were underway in this regard. To a query, he said there could be no forward movement without taking stock of legal and procedural requirement in the cabinet.

Gilani said if China, which had border conflicts with India, could have economic ties and direct trade links with New Delhi, so could Pakistan. He was of the view that the government would take the matter before parliament on receiving a go-ahead from the Ministry of Commerce.Revealing more details, he said the government allies did not have any objections over bridging trade ties with India.

“We have just empowered the Ministry of Commerce to negotiate trade issues with India and of now there is nothing beyond it that,” he added. However, he evaded discussing basic dynamics of developing trade relationship with India.

WASHINGTON: The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) has quietly tightened its rules on drone strikes in Pakistan over concerns about their impact on tense relations with Islamabad, the Wall street Journal reported on Thursday. The disputes over drones became so protracted that the White House launched a review over the summer, in which Obama intervened, the Journal reported. The review ultimately affirmed support for the underlying CIA programme.

But a senior official said, “The bar has been raised. Inside CIA, there is a recognition you need to be damn sure it’s worth it.” The changes reportedly include granting the state Department greater sway in strike decisions, giving Pakistani leaders advance warning of more operations and suspending operations when Pakistani officials visit the United states.“It’s not like they took the car keys away from the CIA,” the Journal quoted a senior official as saying. “There are just more people in the car.” The Journal said the debate was sparked by a particularly deadly drone strike on March 17 that took place just one day after Pakistan agreed to release CIA contractor Raymond Davis. At issue in the debate over drones were so-called “signature strikes”, in which unmanned drones fire on groups of suspected militants without necessarily knowing all their identities, and which make up the bulk of operations. such strikes are seen as more controversial than “personality” strikes, which target alleged top militants, the Journal said. According to the Journal, many officials at the Pentagon and state Department privately argued the CIA pays too little attention to the diplomatic costs of airstrikes that kill large groups of low-level fighters. “such strikes inflame Pakistani public opinion. Observers point to the rising power in Pakistan of political figures like Imran Khan, who held large rallies to protest the drones and could challenge the current government.”

However, changing the handling of the drone programme does not mean the CIA is pulling back. The agency in recent weeks has intensified strikes in Pakistan focusing on the Haqqani network, a group believed to be behind a series of attacks in Afghanistan. The Pentagon and state Department have backed those strikes as serving Us interests. AgeNcIes

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02 News

Saturday, 5 November, 2011

lAHore

today’s

outsiders head for home to celebrate eid

NewS

world vIew

Bin Laden was ‘dead in 90 seconds’

Do assassinations work?

Quick Look

Story on Page 09

Story on Page 05

Story on Page 14

Pakistan won’t change stance on Kashmir: FO ISLAMABAD Staff RepoRt

Pakistan on Friday resolved to continue with its efforts aimed at improving relations with India but said that there would be no change in its principled stance on the core issue of Kashmir. Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar held important consultations at the Foreign Office with senior military and civilian officials from relevant official quarters on various foreign policy matters including ties with India and Pakistan-United states relations. With only a few days to go before the next sAARC summit scheduled to be held in Maldives on November 10-11 and where Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani will also meet Indian Prime Minister Manmohan singh at the sidelines, the consultations at the Foreign Office were however, focused on Indo-Pak peace process.

“As part of regular consultations, Foreign Minister Khar consulted all stakeholders on foreign policy issues including the resumed dialogue process with India, at the Foreign Ministry,” a Foreign Office statement said. “Foreign Minister Khar since taking charge of the Foreign Ministry has been regularly interacting with all stakeholders on important foreign policy issues,” it said with-

out mentioning the specific subjects that were deliberated upon.

An official requesting anonymity said the foreign minister discussed Pakistan’s agenda for the upcoming Indo-Pak prime ministers’ meeting. He quoted Khar as saying Pakistan would continue with its efforts for result-oriented talks with India but it expected the same response from the Indian side. The participants of meeting also discussed Pakistan’s decision to grant the status of the Most Favoured Nation (MFN) to India and they were of the view that the country’s interests must be safeguarded while giving the concession to India, said the official. “The foreign minister assured the meeting that the current government would not compromise on national interests as it attempts to expand trade ties with India. she made it clear Pakistan would not deviate from its stance on Kashmir,” the official said.

Another official, who also sought anonymity, said the ongoing efforts to repair the damaged Pakistan-Us relations were discussed. He said senior officials from different ministries and military authorities were of the view that Pakistan was willing to play a role in the ongoing reconciliation process between Kabul and the Taliban but it would not opt for more military operations in the tribal areas.”

DO NOT PRIVATISE THE STEEL MILLS! Pakistan Steel Mills employees hold lighted earthen-oil-lamps as they chant slogans against privatization during a protest outside Karachi Press Club. ONLINe

Award of RPP contracts does not reflect govt policy: SC CJP observes water and Power Ministry getting less than 100Mw of electricity after paying rs 20 billion

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UEsTIONING the award of the contracts for rental power projects (RPPs) in absence of a concrete policy, the supreme Court on Friday regretted that the Water and Power Ministry was getting less than 100 megawatts of electricity after paying Rs 20 billion to rental power companies.

A two-member supreme Court bench of Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry and Justice Khilji Arif Hussain was hearing a suo motu case coupled with two identical petitions filed by Minister for Housing and Works Faisal saleh Hayat and PML-N MNA Khawaja Asif alleging corruption of billion of rupees in RPP contracts.

During the hearing, the chief justice observed that the court was surprised how the Water and Power Ministry awarded the contracts to rental power companies without having any concrete policy.

In his arguments, Khawaja Tariq

Rahim, counsel for Water and Power Ministry and Pakistan Electric Power Company (PEPCO), submitted that a summary on RPPs was sent to the federal cabinet, which became a policy after being approved by the cabinet.

The chief justice asked if the ministry had given 14 percent instead of seven percent as mobilisation advance to rental power companies. He said the ministry calculated the rent of rental power plants for the next five years and did not realise what would happen if they could not produce electricity or not fulfil the requirements mentioned in the contract. “It seems whether they give production or not, they will get the rent for their equipment,” the chief justice noted.

Rahim said the case was not like that, adding that if these RPPs did not fulfil the requirement, they would have to pay 1.5 times in penalty to the ministry. The chief justice then observed that neither the petitioners nor the ministry were able to show the court the policy under which the RPP contracts were

awarded.

He said Reshma Rental Power plant was producing nothing but was getting enough money. The lawyer submitted that Reshma power plant would return Rs 3 billion to the ministry.

PML-N MNA Khawaja Asif submitted that according to present figures, Karkay Rental Power plant was producing 71MW of promised 231MW, Gulf was producing 68MW, while Naudero was producing nothing as its machinery was dysfunctional.

The chief justice observed that it meant they were getting less than 100MW in total.

Rahim submitted that RPPs were giving services and if they did not provide the same, they would have to pay penalty.

Justice Khilji Arif Hussain said how could the government ask for penalty if it could not provide the companies gas or oil.

Before adjournment, the court asked NEPRA how could it determine reference price without seeing the machinery and equipment.

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Saturday, 5 November, 2011

ArTS & eNTerTAINMeNT

ForeIGN NewS

Italy government hangs by thread as coalition crumbles Why ‘puss in boots’ is one cool cat…

SPorTS

News 03 CoMMeNT

Calls for overhaul of pakistani cricket intensify Double engine failure: Of the PIA and PR

american aid: We need to temper our indignation.

arif Nizami says: Imran Khan: Game-changer?: The pros and cons of the Khan.

White Lies: We hear that former President Musharraf has been preoccupied lately with the possibility of returning to Pakistan and throwing in his bit into the political cauldron. Since his arrest warrants issued back home are a major obstacle in his plans, he has been looking at various options.

Story on Page 19

Story on Page 17

Story on Page 20

Articles on Page 12-13

Recommendations on fuel levy adopted by Senate g

Sardar Abbasi criticises rs 34 billion tax for ‘impossible’ pipeline ISLAMABAD Staff RepoRt

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HE senate on Friday adopted recommendations of the standing Committee on Finance Revenue and Economic Affairs on the Petroleum Products (Petroleum Levy) (Amendment) Bill, 2011 and Gas Infrastructure Development Cess Bill, 2011 amid senator safdar Abbasi’s strong criticism of levying taxes of Rs 34 billion taxes on the consumers as a result of these bills.

“We are told that this amount is needed for the pipeline. No one can construct a pipeline in the present situation of Balochistan and Afghanistan. This all is a subterfuge to rob people of Rs 34 billion. We have been hearing of the TAPI pipeline for 17 years. I will not support the bill”, Abbasi said. Abbasi said the bills were introduced in the

Balochistan being pushed towards rebellion: Asma ISLAMABAD: Former president of the supreme Court Bar Association Asma Jehangir has warned that Balochistan was being pushed towards rebellion, which was dangerous for the integrity of the country.

Talking to reporters at the supreme Court on Friday, Asma held former president Pervez Musharraf responsible for the murder of Nawab Akbar Bugti and said he must be tried by a court of law. she said there was no insurgency in Balochistan or ethnic and sectarian war when Musharraf pushed Balochistan towards rebellion. she said it was wrong on part of former prime minister shaukat Aziz to dissociate himself from Bugti’s murder. INp

senate without approval of the cabinet as envisaged under rule 27(5) of Rules of Business 1973. Meanwhile, senator Muhammad Ishaq Dar, who presented the recommendations in the Upper House, said the senate’s committee concerned approved it with changes after the government’s assured the committee’s proposal will be made part of the law. “We knew that both the bills are not money bills and cabinet’s approval was essential for the bills but cabinet was by-passed by declaring them money bills. We are conscious that the government needs revenue to construct the pipeline and we agreed to support the bills with restrictions on government’s arbitrary powers to enhance levy”, Dar said.

SeNATe PASSeS crIMINAL LAW BILL TO STOP OIL AND GAS THeFT: The senate on Friday passed The Criminal Law (amendment) Bill, 2011 whereby a

person found guilty of oil and gas theft could be handed down an imprisonment of 14 years.

According to the bill, if anyone any person willfully tampers a pipeline or attempts to tamper or abets in tampering with a facility, installation or main pipeline for transmission or transportation, as the case may be, of petroleum, is said to commit tampering with petroleum pipelines or tampers or abets in tampering with petroleum pipelines for the purpose of theft of petroleum or disrupting supply of petroleum and he would be punished with rigorous imprisonment, which may extend to 14 years, but would not be less than seven years and with fine, which may extend to Rs 10 million. Minister for Petroleum and Natural Resources Dr Asim Hussain presented the bill in the Upper House for passage. The House passed the bill unanimously with minor amendments.

PR handing over 3 trains to private sector after eid LAHORE Staff RepoRt

Pakistan Railway (PR) has decided to hand over three passenger trains to private sector to continue its mail train operations.

According to the PR authorities, it has received a satisfactory response from private sector to get Allama Iqbal Express, Millat Express and Farid Express on contract, adding that PR would earn Rs 2000,000 per day from Allama Iqbal Express, Rs 700,000 per day from Farid Express and Rs 500,000 per day from Millat Express. sources said Allama Iqbal,

Farid and Millat Express will be handed over to private companies after Eidul Adha. They said that a briefing was given to Prime Miniter Yousuf Raza Gilani in this regard on Thursday by the PR authorities, seeking a formal permission.

The Allama Iqbal Express runs from sialkot to Karachi via Lahore, Fraid Express runs from Lahore to Karachi via Pakpatan, while Millat express runs from sargodha to Karachi via Faisalabad.

The PR will provide engines, track and bogies, while the rest of the arrangements will be the responsibility of the private stakeholders.

Meanwhile, Business Train has been handed over to the private sector, which will become operational in December. PR General Manager (GM) saeed Akhtar told reporters that the private sector will be responsible for commercial management, while the responsibility of operations of trains would rest with the PR. He said that the Business Train would be air conditioned, non-stop passenger train from Lahore to Karachi. sources said that an agreement has already been finalized with an entrepreneurs’ group named Friends for running Business Train and its revamping was underway.

Pakistan, IMF to review economy on 9th KARACHI ReUteRS

Pakistan, which opted out of an extension of a three-year IMF $11 billion emergency loan programme that ended in september, will meet International Monetary Fund officials from November 9-16 to review the economy, a Finance Ministry source said on Friday.

“We will meet with IMF in Dubai for article Iv consultations,” the official said, referring to annual talks the fund holds with each member government to assess the health of the economy.

Pakistan opted out of both the extension of the $11 billion loan programme and a new loan programme, saying it had no balance of payments crisis.

Analysts say the government is taking the risky move of choosing shortterm political gain over long-term economic stability.

Pakistan’s current account deficit in the first three months of the 2011/12 fiscal year widened to $1.209 billion from $597 million in the same period last year.

Jam Yousuf’s arrest warrant issued in Akbar Bugti case QUETTA INp

A court on Friday issued an arrest warrant against former Balochistan chief minister Jam Mohammad Yousuf in the Akbar Bugti murder case.

Judicial Magistrate Faisal Hameed issued the warrant. sources said a special crime branch team investigating the case had received the warrant.

Yousuf was co-accused in the case, including former president Pervez Musharraf, former prime minister shaukat Aziz and former Balochistan governor Owais Ahmed Ghani.

7 killed, two injured in crime across Lahore LAHORE Staff RepoRt

In various incidents of crime in the provincial capital on Friday seven people were killed and two were injured.

FeMALe PAF OFFIcer: A female squadron leader of the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) crashed her car into a family, killing a 3-year-old girl and her 10-year-old brother and injuring their mother near Rahat Bakery in the Lahore Cantonment.

The dead siblings, Minahil and Abdul Rehman, and their mother Nasira Bibi, were trying to cross the road when squadron Leader Mumtaz Begum driving her suzuki Mehran knocked them down, police said. Nasira Bibi was working at the house of a retired brigadier at the Generals

Housing scheme, located near Rahat Bakery. Cantonment police rushed the unfortunate family to the CMH, where the siblings passed away. Police have registered a case against the squadron leader. euNucH kILLeD: A 45-year-old eunuch was killed by unknown people inside his house in the Bhaati Gate Police precincts. Police said a local visitor called the police when the deceased Muneer did not open the door despite repeated knocks.

Police said it did not find any marks on the body but an autopsy report would provide further details.

MAO cOLLeGe SHOOTING: A dispute between two students of rival groups of the Muslim students Federation (MsF) at the MAO College, Lahore, claimed the life of an 80-year-old man, shahbuddin, who was a

resident of Islampura. Police said Babar Qureshi, a member of MsF faction loyal to the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PMLN), clashed with Hafiz Umer, who belonged to the MsF group of PML-Quaid. Police said Babar shot at Umer, who got injured, but the passer by was hit and died. Police said both students used to extort money from locals. Babar has been arrested. rOBBerS kILL:In Kahna Police precincts, robbers strangulated a 22-yearsold boy to death after snatching two buffalos from him. The deceased was resident of Ludhay Kay village and had left his home to graze his buffalos in the nearby fields.

When he did not return home until late evening, his family and local residents started searching for him and found his body in the fields. Police registered a case

against unknown men and handed over the deceased boy’s body to his family after an autopsy. cOuSINS SHOOT: Two cousins shot dead their common relative while playing cards in the Harbanspura Police area. The deceased sajawal was 20year-old and a resident of the Kotli Ghaat area. The two cousins, Ishtiaq and Ashfaq, escaped after killing sajawal. Police sent the body for autopsy and registered a case.

WATcHMAN SuIcIDeS: An 18-year-old watchmen committed suicide after hanging himself with a ceiling fan in the Model Town Police precincts. Rameez Hmad, a resident of Muzaffarabad, had been working as a watchman in the house of a Model Town

resident for two months. Police said reasons behind the suicide were not known yet, and that it was waiting for the autopsy report to know further details. cIA POLIce ArreSTS: The Crime Investigation Agency (CIA) Police arrested the incharge and two constables of a police kiosk at Lahore Airport for patronising a gang of robbers which looted valuables from airport passengers. The CIA police said it had arrested a robber who confessed his crimes and gave details of his accomplices. The police later arrested Chowki Incharge sub Inspector Muhammad sarwar, and Constables Azmat Ali and Khalid. senior police officials suspended the arrested cops and ordered an inquiry against them.

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04 News

Saturday, 5 November, 2011

Zardari halves PPP Punjab Minister for Textiles Makhdoom Shahbuddin appointed president of newly-formed PPP South Punjab chapter g

LAHORE

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N a significant development to cope with new challenges following the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PMLN) and Pakistan Tehreek-eInsaf (PTI) showdown to capture Punjab and probably to stir up the seraiki movement, the PPP central leadership has divided the PPP Punjab into two parts – PPP Central Punjab and PPP south Punjab.

PPP Co-chairman President Asif Ali Zardari appointed Minister for Textiles Makhdoom shahbuddin has been appointed the president of the PPP south Punjab. Imtiaz safdar Warraich, who was earlier the president of PPP

Punjab, has automatically taken charge of PPP central Punjab presidency.

Other appointments for various offices in PPP south Punjab would be made in couple of days. PPP Central Punjab organisation would remain intact. Analysts portend the move as an unprecedented step, likely to be followed by other political parties, to tighten the full grip on Punjab ahead of the coming election.

The decision was taken during a meeting chaired by President Asif Ali Zardari the president camp office in Bilawal House, Karachi on Friday.

The meeting was attended

by Punjab Governor sardar Latif Khosa, Jahangir Badr, Qamar Zaman Kaira, Babar Awan and other leaders of PPP

Punjab chapter. sources said the PPP Punjab leaders apprised the president of political situation following two massive rallies organised by the PML-N and the PTI. They also asked the president to form a counter-strategy against the activities of the PML-N and other forces in the province, sources said.

With the new division, the PPP south Punjab would constitute DG Khan, Multan and Bahawalpur. The remaining province will fall under the PPP central Punjab. President’s Coordinator in Punjab Naveed Chaudhry told Pakistan Today that the division was part of a longawaited plan and was done on administrative ground, dispelling an impression that

it was in connection with seraiki movement.

He said Punjab was a bigger province and the division would help the PPP to serve the people better. The twist in political chessboard is also seen as PPP’s roadmap to break Punjab into smaller provinces in order to improve administration and governance. According to reports surfacing a couple of weeks ago, Federal Minister for Kashmir Affairs and Gilgit-Baltistan Manzoor Ahmad Wattoo proposed the division of Punjab into three provinces. “Lahore, Gujranwala and Rawalpindi should comprise one province, Faisalabad, sahiwal and sargodha another and Bhawalpur, Multan and Dera Ghazi Khan as the third one,” Wattoo had said.

govt has disappointed the masses : Musharraf LAHORE Staff RepoRt

Former Pakistan president and All Pakistan Muslim League (APML) chief Pervez Musharraf said on Friday that the ruling government had sent the masses into disappointment, and the worst thing happening was that people were loosing faith in Pakistan.

Addressing the inaugural of the APML Lawyers’ Forum, Musharraf said that every person in the country was perplexed, as the dysfunctional government had failed to control mounting inflation, corruption, unemployment and the deteriorating law and order situation in the country.

The former president urged the masses to unite and release the country from the grips of turncoat politicians. He vowed that he would return to Pakistan on March 23 next year, adding the possibility of his early return. He said his party would get a new motivation

Mumbai attacks: Pak ready to send judicial commission NEW DELHI oNLINe

LaHoRe: prime Minister Yousaf Raza gilani talks to reporters on friday.

dengue kills 2 more LAHORE Staff RepoRt

Dengue virus claimed two more lives in Punjab, with the death toll reaching 310 in the province and 270 in Lahore.

According to the Health Department, 90 dengue patients have been reported in Punjab and 54 out of them in Lahore. The total number of dengue patients in Punjab has risen to 20,489 out of them 17,060 belong to Lahore. According to the information of the department, 493 dengue patients were admitted in different hospitals in Punjab, 390 of them were under treatment in different hospitals of Lahore.

Haroon elected ClAP president LAHORE NeWS DeSk

Haroon suleman Khokhar was elected president of the Christian Lawyers Association of Pakistan (CLAP) on Friday. Haroon bagged 70 votes while his rival candidate Tahir sahotra could muster only 35 votes.

Haroon was previously the vice president of the People’s Lawyer Forum Lahore chapter and is well-respected for his services to minorities, especially the Christian community living in Pakistan. sumera John was elected vice president while Adnan shamim Bhatti bagged the general secretary’s slot.

sc declares Faisalabad cPO ineligible ISLAMABAD Staff RepoRt

The supreme Court (sC) on Friday declared Faisalabad City Police Officer (CPO) Rai Tahir ineligible and ordered the Punjab government, chief secretary and the inspector general of police to examine his involvement in favouring an influential person accused of murder, and also appoint a new CPO in his place.

A two-member supreme Court bench comprising Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry and Justice Khilji Arif Hussain also ordered investigations and strict legal action against the CPO. The bench was hearing a

suo motu case on the killing of a 12-year-old child in Gulberg, Faisalabad, due to aerial firing in a marriage ceremony. Appearing on notice, Attorney General Moulvi Anwarul Haq told the court that under the Islamic injunctions the amount of blood money was 30,630 carrots silver, which is equivalent to Rs 3.2 million. He said that in case of a compromise or reprisal, the determination of the amount should be left on the parties. The chief justice noted that negotiations between the parties did not seem appropriate because the rich party would pressurise the poor party. He said that Islam provided balance. He reprimanded the Faisalabad CPO for not

Haj pilgrims facing US on the run problems again in Afghanistan, says omar Pakistani pilgrims are

again facing problems this year while performing the religious obligation of Hajj in Minna. According to a private television channel, the pilgrims were allotted camping-tents’ numbers but when pilgrims reached the location, there were no camps present. Due to lack of facilities, pilgrims are forced to sleep on roads. Last year, pilgrims faced similar problems which were associated with corruption by Ministry of Religious Affairs. MoNItoRINg DeSk

kABuL: Having confronted constant failure, the Us is looking for a safe exit from Afghanistan, Taliban supreme Commander Mullah Omar Mujahid said in his Eidul Adha message on Friday.

He said the Us and NATO had no bite left to extend the Afghan war after witnessing their soldiers return in coffins. He encouraged supporters to keep upto date with the progress of the Taliban through its official spokesmen, websites and press releases. oNLINe

helping the parents of the deceased child in the payment of blood money, and succumbing to pressure from a local member of Punjab Assembly (MPA).

He said that instead of taking legal action against the accused without any discrimination, the police officers were bent on saving their jobs.

The chief justice said that police did not record the statement of the MPA who was exerting pressure on the poor parents of the assassinated child. When the CPO tried to seek an apology, the chief justice replied that a poor person had been deprived of his child who will never come back, then how the court could accept his apology.

Pakistan High Commissioner to India shahid Malik on Friday met Indian Home Minister P Chidambaram and told him that Pakistan was ready to send a judicial commission to India to probe the Mumbai attacks.

The decision to send the judicial commission was made during interior secretary level talks between Pakistan and India. The Pakistani judicial commission will record statements of the investigating officer of the Mumbai attacks and the magistrate who recorded Ajmal Kasab’s statement.

‘PML-N to try Musharraf for unconstitutional acts’ ISLAMABAD: Leader of the opposition in the National Assembly Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan has said that on coming to power, the PML-N will hold former president Pervez Musharraf’s trial for dismissing an elected government and for his other unconstitutional acts. In an interview on Friday, Nisar warned that the country would not remain as it was if the army intervened in future. He said he was strongly opposed to generals who subverted the constitution to rule the country. Nisar said PML-N President Nawaz sharif consulted him and other party leaders before appointing General Musharraf as the army chief. He said Musharraf’s actions had affected the image of the army. He said after the dismissal of the Nawaz’ government, he had made it clear to the army that he would neither leave Nawaz nor join the PML-Q-led government. INp with his return to Pakistan.

He said the restructuring of the APML had almost been completed in 80 districts of the country.

Commenting on his coup on October 12, 1999, the general-turned politician said the foremost responsibility of every Pakistani was to ensure the

security of the country, and that he too took the step in the longer interest of the country. About the issue of removing the chief justice of Pakistan, he said, “I was bound to pursue the advice of the prime minister and whatever I did was in accordance with the constitution.”

time to change Us policy towards Pakistan: Ackerman WASHINGTON ageNCIeS

It is time to completely rethink the United states relationship with Pakistan due to Islamabad’s continuing to sponsor terrorist groups such as the Haqqani network and Lashkar-e-Tayyaba, said Us Congressman Gary Ackerman, a top democrat in the House Foreign Affairs subcommittee on south Asia.

During a Congressional hearing, Ackerman said, “There’s an old saying, well known to all of us, ‘the enemy of my enemy is my friend’.

Unfortunately, this is nonsense. The enemy of my enemy is my enemy’s enemy, that’s it.” He said, “To state what should be obvious, but somehow is not: Pakistan —

meaning both the nominally democratic civilian government and the unelected but ultimately decisive Pakistani military establishment — is not our friend.” “They are not our allies; they are not our partners; they are not on our team; they are not on our side. And no matter how much aid we give them, no matter what military capabilities we provide them, and no matter what promises, assurances or pledges we make to them, these facts are not going to change,” he added.

He said Pakistan is on its own side with 75 percent Pakistanis having an unfavorable opinion of the Us. “That is what $22 billion in our taxpayer’s money has bought us since 2002 in Pakistan,” he added.

Nawaz Sharif’s ‘fan’ kills classmate cHINIOT: An eighth-grade student was beaten to death by a classmate after he refused to allow the other to paste a sticker of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PMLN) President Nawaz sharif on his notebook on Friday. Police said the incident occurred in Government High school Patika Kamyaraan when Mohammad Rizwan wanted to paste Nawaz sharif’s picture on the notebook of his classmate Ahsan. The two exchanged abuses after which Rizwan hit Ahsan repeatedly with a stick in the head. Ahsan, the eldest child of his parents, died on the spot and Rizwan escaped.

Police have not registered a case as yet. INp

shahbaz sharif makes facebook debut LAHORE YaSIR HaBIB

Realising the power of social media network (sMN) in attracting the young users of Facebook and Twitter to politics, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) former president and Punjab Chief Minister (CM) shahbaz sharif on Friday made his debut on the social media network (sMN). shahbaz had kept himself at arm length from social media networks giving him less weight than former rival late former governor salmaan Taseer who re-

mained active on twitter till his last breath. But shahbaz could not resist the demand after the youth-infested Imran Khan show at Minare-Pakistan showed the potential for politicians to use facebook, twitter and other sMNs. “Imran Khan, stole the show on October 30 and became the icon of the youth, due to his active participation and presence on social media network. This is hard fact and the CM decided to join sMNs to get in line with new trends and find space in the youth,” analyst said. Considering it the demand of the times, the

younger sharif launched his official Facebook page.

Here are shahbaz’s official pages: F a c e b o o k : http://www.facebook.com/ sharif.shehbaz Twitter: https://twitter.com/CMshehbaz P r i n g : http://www.pringit.com/sh ehbazsharif/ Punjab government spokesman Pervaiz Rashid said the move was not PML-N official policy but everyone, including party leaders had right to use facebook and other social media networks to remain in touch with people.

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Saturday, 5 November, 2011

Master of loneliness and frenzy PAGe 08

Allama Iqbal remembered as modernism’s symbol g

Former foreign minister Kasuri says poet denounced ‘mullahism’ and stood against those people who used religion as a token of popularity LAHORE Staff RepoRt

I

N connection with Iqbal Day on November 9, the Markazia Majlise-Iqbal (MMI) organised a function at the Aiwan-e-Iqbal to remember the great poet and philosopher.

Former foreign minister Khurshid Mehmood Kasuri, senior columnist Ataul Haq Qasmi, former Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) chief Qazi Hussain Ahmed, MMI President Mian Afzal Hayat, Analyst sajjad Mir, Turkish scholar sawat Arguan and Pakistan Today Editor Arif Nizami attended the event. Iqbal was remembered as a symbol of true Islamic modernism, hope and struggle and was undisputedly declared as a motivational leader of the youth during struggle for independence.

Kasuri said what made Iqbal stand out was his vision of a separate land for Muslims. He said that the poet’s vision reflected his wish of unification of Muslims of the sub-continent. The former foreign minister said that it was the idea of unification which later transformed into a separate nation. Kasuri said Iqbal was a man of modern Islamic views, adding that Iqbal had denounced ‘mullahism’ and stood with those who used religion as

a token of popularity.

Qasmi, in his trademark column writing style, established that Iqbal was not only a man of current affairs but had showed unconditional love for God in his pieces. He said that Iqbal stood behind all progressive changes of his time and expressed reservations over hypocritical ‘mullahism’. The columnist said that Iqbal was a man who loved the creation of God, which was reflected eminently in his work.

Qazi highlighted the connection of Iqbal’s work with the Holy Prophet

(PBUH). He said that Iqbal had signified sunnat and that idealised the Prophet, which was obvious in his pieces. The former JI chief said that the poet was foresighted and demanded Islamic governance. While quoting Iqbal, he said that the Quran was the main source of knowledge not only for Muslims but for the entire universe. Qazi declared Iqbal as the poet of hope. He said that Iqbal had a special relation with the youth of all times, adding that Iqbal’s pieces helped the youth in depression and disappointment. The former JI chief said that

Outsiders head for home to celebrate eid

LAHORE Staff RepoRt

Like every year on eve of Eid, people from different parts of the province started leaving the city on Friday to celebrate the festivity with their loved ones at their hometowns.

This time on Eidul Azha, the federal government announced two Eid holidays from Monday to Tuesday but saturday and sunday got included as well due to weekend while Wednesday was Iqbal Day, which was a national holiday.

Employees of public-sector departments would enjoy leisure time for around 5 days while the private sector and provincial government employees would start their weekend from saturday.

Long queues of vehicles were observed at the city’s exit points at GT Road, Multan Road and Ferozepur Road with traffic jams being also reported. Rush at Badami Bagh General Bus stand, sikandaria Town Bus Terminal and Multan Road was witnessed

until late night where people were waiting for public transport. The mass exodus of around three million people from Lahore makes the provincial capital empty with only Lahoris left in the city.

People heading home were fleeced by transporters, which added to their miseries.

Due to shortage of trains, transport owners had a good opportunity to fleece people and maximise their profits. Limited vehicles also forced commuters to pay extra money to get good seats to have a comfortable journey. At main bus stands of the provincial capital, fares were almost the same. For Islamabad-bound passengers, the fare increased two days before Eid. The situation was not different for passengers who wanted to move to other 36 districts of the province.

People traveling with families seemed more worried about a comfortable journey, as they were not in a position to travel while facing hardships.

Those people who could afford over-

charging were found purchasing tickets but many people complained against illegal actions of transporters. Interestingly there was not even a single official of the City District Government Lahore (CDGL) to check overcharging.

Representatives of the District Regional Transport Authority, when asked about complaints of the people, said that apparently it seemed odd but overcharging was just to cover the expected loss. “The vehicles will return empty so who will compensate the transporters?” they questioned. The justification was not enough to address the complaints but this exercise will continue until Chand Raat. They said that a threemember team of DRTA was constituted to check overcharging and transporters violating the fixed fares, would be fined on the spot. People said that the country was already facing multiple crises in form of energy, floods, terrorism, price hike, adulteration and many other evils and overcharging had added to their miseries.

Iqbal’s work had always been used to motivate people, especially the youth, to work harder to achieve their goals.

Zaheer Naqshbandi said that in this age of lawlessness and disappointment, Iqbal’s work could be used as a great motivational tool. He said the poet’s work could be easily divided into two major parts. Naqshbandi said Iqbal’s work reflected the Quran and sunnah which he had molded together to insure progress of society. The Minhajul Quran leader said that Iqbal’s foresightedness, philosophical depths and knowledge of Islam

was seen in his work. He said that the beauty of Iqbal’s work was the equilibrium he kept between Western and Eastern cultures. Naqshbandi said that Iqbal truly represented progressive Islam, as his vision and ideas had helped Muslims at all times.

Arguan, quoting Iqbal prolifically in Urdu, said that Iqbal’s work had guided Turks through their extensive struggle.

He said that Iqbal’s work gained great popularity in the youth during the Turkish Independence Movement. The Turkish scholar said that the poet’s work was said to be next to Maulana Rumi in Turkey and he was known for his revolutionary work for progress of Muslims around the world. sajjad said that Iqbal worked on current affairs and had a special place for Muslim youth in his work. He said that Iqbal was eager to see progressive Muslim youth in the country. The analyst said that his work guided the youth in all matters equally, adding that Iqbal had always tried to pave new ways in upbringing of Muslims. He said that Iqbal was a revolutionist due to which he had a great belief in the power of the youth. sajjad said that Iqbal’s work gave hope to youngsters of all times and his motivation could be seen from his timeless work.

Nargis, Khusboo allowed to perform LAHORE Staff RepoRt

Lahore Civil Judge Zaigham Abbas Rizvi on Friday allowed stage dancers Nargis and Khushboo to perform in stage drama ‘Tera Jalwa’ after suspending an order of the Lahore district coordination officer (DCO), which had banned both stars for allegedly performing obscene dances.

Drama producer Malik Haris challenged the ban imposed by the DCO

and requested that he presented the drama after obtaining a no objection certificate from the censor board but the DCO banned the stars, which incurred losses to the drama. Petitioner’s Counsel Lahore Bar Association (LBA) secretary Farhad Ali shah claimed that once the censor board had granted NOC, the DCO had no jurisdiction to take such action. The civil judge also sought a reply from the DCO until November 18.

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06 Lahore

Saturday, 5 November, 2011

Dry weather on eid LAHORE Staff RepoRt

The Met Office on Friday predicted dry weather in most parts of the country, especially along the sindh-Makran Coast, during Eid. Dry weather was likely to prevail in Gilgit-Baltistan on November 7 and 8.

Cloudy weather prevailed in Lahore on Friday and the same was expected today (saturday).

The Met Office informed that scattered rain with thunderstorm was expected in Rawalpindi, Gujranwala, sargodha, Peshawar, Hazara, Malakand, Gilgit-Baltistan and Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) today (saturday).

Patients left stranded as doctors boycott hospitals

LAHORE Staff RepoRt

The doctors’ strike turned severe on its sixth day as they boycotted all operations in most of the public hospitals of Lahore on Friday except emergencies, ICUs and CCUs where they performed their duties wearing black bands. The doctors, on Wednesday,

were assured verbally by the commissioner that the FIR registered against five senior doctors of shiekh Zayed Hospital would be withdrawn but the promise did not materialise. Pakistan Medical Association and Young Doctors Association also held a protest rally outside sZH. A meeting of doctors’ organisations called at PMA House also passed resolution of solidarity

with the five doctors. They expressed reservations on the fact that police had not withdrawn the case against doctors despite the directions from the high ups. They suspected some hidden forces were trying to instigate the doctors against political government. PMA has also called a meeting of its 36 district branches to finalise a plan of action if their demands are not met.

‘Nawaz is thinking of sacrificing democracy’ CINeMA

LAHORE Staff RepoRt

Pakistan Muslim LeagueNawaz (PML-N) President Nawaz sharif is thinking of sacrificing democracy, as the PML-N considers citizens as sacrificial animals due to which it also wants to cut the Punjab Assembly’s (PA) throat, Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) Information secretary Kamil Ali Agha said on Friday. He was talking to journalists.

Kamil said that Lahoris were enjoying the CM’s tension, adding that the PML-Q had reached every corner of the country, which was proved

by Ghous Bakhsh Mehr’s victory. The PML-Q leader said that the PML-N was the biggest enemy of farmers, as it was politicisng the fertilizer issue. He said that Adviser to the CM Zulfiqar Khosa had drowned the lands of hundreds of thousands of other farmers in order to save his own lands and Justice Mansoor Ali shah’s report had proved it. Kamil criticised the Punjab government over high inflation and lack of anti-dengue measures, adding that Lahore Development Authority (LDA) gardeners and patwaris would not be able to save the PMLN’s drowning boat.

cattle market’s shifting affects traffic flow LAHORE Staff RepoRt

Traffic flow on the national highway has been adversely affected after shifting of the cattle market at shahpur Kanjran adjacent to Main Lahore-Multan Road and inadequate arrangements by authorities concerned regarding entry, loading, unloading, parking and exit of vehicles carrying sacrificial animals.

This phenomenon had created immense problems for commuters travelling on the national highway and people living in the vicinity, as traffic consistently remains choked at this point.

The City District Government Lahore (CDGL) had banned selling and purchasing of sacrificial animals within the city premises and established a sale point at shahpur Kanjran on Main Multan road. A large number of vehicles had started piling up at the main road, as they were denied entry into the market, which se-

verely affected the flow of traffic at the particular point.

The National Highways and Motorway Police (NHMP) was trying its best to maintain traffic discipline and flow of traffic. Extra duties were arranged at different points to prevent any inconveniency to commuters. Coordination with the City Traffic Police was also being made to tackle the situation and facilitate commuters the especially in the context that a large number of people will travel on the national highway on eve of Eidul Azha.

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Saturday, 5 November, 2011

Lahore 07

‘Cleanliness agreement with Turkey is a milestone’ LAHORE Staff RepoRt

Punjab Chief Minister Muhammad shahbaz sharif has said that the agreement signed between solid Waste Management and the leading Turk companies for maintaining cleanliness and beautification of Lahore on the pattern of Istanbul is a milestone and will help promote economic and trade activities between both the countries.

He was speaking at the departure of the Turk delegation to its country after signing the agreement with sWM on Friday. senior Advisor sardar Zulfiqar Ali Khan Khosa, Provincial Minister Mian Mujtaba shuja-ur-Rehman, Lahore Transport Company Chairman Khawaja Ahmad Hasaan and Planning and Development chairman were also present on the occasion. The CM said after Lahore, the same model will be replicated in other cities of province for disposal of garbage. Albarak Group of Companies Chairman thanked Punjab government and said that he considered Pakistan as a second home and Lahore will soon be made a clean and beautiful city through implementation of the project.

AVAILABILITY OF DOcTOrS DurING eID HOLIDAYS TO Be eNSureD: CM shahbaz said a comprehensive plan has been evolved to ensure availability of consultants and doctors in hospitals during Eidul-Adha holidays for looking after dengue patients and he as well as elected representatives will visit hospitals to monitor medical facilities for the patients and attendance of doctors during holidays.

Six gangs busted LAHOre: The Allama Iqbal Town Police on Friday claimed to have arrested 20 members of six-inter provincial gangs involved in dozens of robberies, street crimes and swindling.

The arrested robbers were identified as Riaz, Arshad, Babar and Din Muhammad of Babar Robbers Gang, Ali alias Kala and Rizwan of Rizwan Robbers Gang, shabbir, shahid, Abid and Tariq of vero Robbers Gang, Purtab, Muhammad Ali, Raheel and sufiyan of Purtab Robbers Gang. Staff RepoRt

MakeSHIft LIVeLIHooD: Men prepare rotis in a tandoor for cattle owners in the market close to Saggian Bridge

MURtAzA ALI

Yes, we have failed, admits BISE LAHORE Staff RepoRt

T

HE representative of boards of intermediate and secondary education (BIsE) of Punjab on Friday admitted before the Lahore High Court that the experience of computerised online system for compilation of results of intermediate and matriculation examinations had failed miserably.

The legal advisor of the boards said the online system had been shutdown and the results would be compiled manually in the future. He was answering the queries of Justice shiekh Azmat saeed during proceedings on a petition against the defective computerised online system which

had ruined the future of many students in Punjab. The petition was filed by senior advocate Muhammad Azhar siddique who had submitted that he had pointed the system’s flaws out in May 2010 but the government had not paid heed.

Justice Azmat ordered the BIsE to submit a written report by December 12 about the officer(s) and officials involved in the “failed experience of online computerized system”.

PuNJAB GOVT, LDA ASkeD TO SuBMIT rePOrT: The LHC asked the Punjab government and the Lahore Development Authority to submit a report by November 16 on a petition demanding alternate land or payment of 1 kanal piece of land acquired from a citizen, Muhammad Zulfiqar, 48 year ago

by LDA for a housing scheme.

FeDerAL GOVT ASkeD TO SuBMIT rePOrT ON BOkHArI’S AP-

constables thrashed by wedding guests LAHORE Staff RepoRt

A police constable was allegedly shot injured while his colleague was thrashed by guests at a wedding ceremony in the Gulshan-eRavi Police area on Thursday night.

The injured were identified as Muhafiz squad constables Hassan and Allah Ditta.

The police said that both officials of Muhafiz squad were posted in Gulshan-e-Ravi Police station.

Late on Thursday night, locals of Muhammadi street Nonarian Chowk informed the police about aerial firing at a marriage ceremony in the house of Bahadur Maseeh.

Constable Hassan and Allah Dita reached the scene, where wedding guests opened fire on them. Hassan received bullet wounds and Allah Ditta was thrashed for calling more policemen for help.

A heavy contingent of

police reached the scene upon information about the incident. Hassan and Allah Ditta were taken to services Hospital where doctors declared Hassan to be critical.

However, the accused party has claimed that the policemen had shot injured Bahadur Maseeh, over which they had retaliated.

According to Iqbal Town superintendent Police (sP) Muntazir Mehdi, 8 men were arrested after a case was registered under sections 324/392/342/353/186/14 8/149 of Pakistan Penal Code. He alleged that the arrested were responsible for selling liquor, injuring Hassan and keeping Allah Ditta as hostage.

He said that since the incident, he was being pressurized by influential persons to release the accused.

However, Gulshan-eRavi station House Officer (sHO) Nasir Hameed said no arrests had been made.

POINTMeNT: The LHC asked the federal government to submit a report by November 17 on a petition challenging the appointment of Fasih Bokhari as chairman National Accountability Bureau (NAB).

Petitioner-counsel Barrister Muhammad Javaid Iqbal Jafari contended that President Asif Ali Zardari had Bokhari, who has a serious corruption record, for his personal gains and had not fulfilled the legal requirement of consulting the CJ of Pakistan. cONTeMPT OF cOurT PeTITION AGAINST AN SHO: A contempt of court petition has been filed against station house officer (sHO) Islam Pura for non-compliance of district and session judge’s orders regarding registration of a case against Pakistani cricket stars Muhammad Amir, salman Butt and

Muhammad Asif involved in spot fixing case.

The petitioner Zubair Balqan advocate submitted that on November 3 the court had ordered the sHO to registered a case a criminal case against cricket stars under the charges of spot fixing and fraud but the respondent had failed to comply with the court orders.

‘MIND YOur OWN BuSINeSS, POLIce’: LHC CJ Ijaz Ahmad Chaudhry held on Friday that the judges, and not the police, would decide the applicability of law on offences and the police could not give legal opinions to the court. He also dismissed a petition filed by Nadeem alias Deema challenging the jurisdiction of District Public Prosecutor (DPP), sialkot to issue directions to the police for addition of sections to the report prepared under section 173 in a case.

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08 Lahore

Master of loneliness and frenzy

weATHer UPdATeS

29 °C High

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16low0C

Saturday, 5 November, 2011

They either hated him or loved him…it has been 9 years since Jaun elia passed away

SUNNY

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28°C I 15°C

28°C I 18°C

PrAYer TIMINGS Fajr Sunrise 04:57 06:18

zuhr 11:49

Asr 15:51

Maghrib 17:14

Isha 18:37

LAHORE

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1122 115 130 15 99200081-7 99203226 16 99212111 99211022-29 1139

HoSPITAlS MId CITY 37573382-3 ServICeS 99203402-11 MAYo 99211100-9 GeNerAl 35810892-8 SHeIKH zAId 35865731 SIr GANGA rAM 99200572 UCH 35763573-5 ITTeFAq 35881981-85 CMH 366996168-72 SHoUKAT KHANUM 35945100 JINNAH 111-809-809 AdIl (deFeNCe) 36667275 CHIldreN’S 99230901-3 deFeNCe NATIoNAl HoSPITAl 111-17-18-19

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111-000-118 1199

rAIlwAYS CITY STATIoN (INqUIrY) reServATIoN rAIlwAY PolICe

117 99201772 1333

AIrPorT FlIGHT INqUIrY PIA reServATIoN

114 111-786-786

H

XaRI JaLIL

Is was a façade of darkness and morbidity. His face was lined with stress and ill temper, and his behaviour was crude, harsh, and rough, often angering many who were close to him, while tolerated by several others because they loved him.

But despite this, the brilliant verses that fell from his lips and left indelible marks on the hearts of many, the verses that were punctuated with unique poetic metres and enriched with many words and phrases that he often coined himself; verses whose expressions jolted young people with their splendour of heavy existentialism, they will always remind us of one of the greatest poets of all times, especially in the subcontinent. November 8, 2002 was the day Jaun Elia, passed away, leaving many mourners and admirers behind, who flocked like lost sheep to his funeral.

Born Jaun Asghar in 1931, Elia later adapted his father’s last name. Jaun belonged to a very prestigious family of Amroha. Both his brothers Rais Amrohvi and syed Muhammad Taqi were well known in literary circles. His former wife, Zaheda Hina, is also a known scholar and columnist. He dabbled in communism during his youth and was averse to the partition of the country but succumbed later and shifted to Karachi in 1957 where he lived for the rest of his life. Once in Karachi, his poetry began to attract many fans. He was held in both admiration and opprobrium, being rather direct, outspoken and bold in his approach.

POeTrY: Perhaps the most dominant feeling that Jaun’s poetry betrays is his sense of loneliness. In fact it would not be wrong to say that he was in reality a lonely man, separated from his immediate family including his children, but at the same time being flocked around by several dozens of admirers.

He loved being the centre of attention, but at the same time yearned for solitude.

‘ajeeb hai meri fitrat, keh aaj hi maslan Mujhay sukoon mila hai tiray na aanay se’ (Strange is my nature, for today only I felt relieved, that you never came) ‘aik shakhs jo mujh se waqt le kar aaj aa na saka tou khush hoa hoon’

The most important facet of Jaun’s poetry is his use of colloquial words, inviting not just wellread poetry critics to read his work, but even the ordinary person. Most of his fan circles had young people in them, already dealing with their existential crises, and finding in Jaun someone who said exactly what they felt, His themes involved pain and suffering; yearning for a lover (Jaun often yearned for his ex-wife), his existential dilemma, romance and sex (often Manto-esqe in expression), and coughing up blood. This last was a known obsession with Jaun, sometimes rather darkly humorous for listeners.

In one of his write ups literary critic salmaan Peerzada, who has a strong hold on what Jaun is

about, writes: “He (Jaun) manages to produce the weirdest, yet convincing of praises for his beloved that one can imagine in Urdu poetry.

“kiss liye dekhti ho…aaina tum tou khud se bhi khoobsurat ho”

(a person who set time with me today made me happy by not making it).

(Why do you gaze into the mirror When you are even more beautiful than yourself?)

This indicates that Jaun was perpetually dissatisfied, never completely happy. In fact happiness to him was temporary but he was contemptuous towards grief itself too.

Who would say to his beloved that ‘you are more beautiful than yourself?’ What would that signify? still, it appears to be the most powerful way to eulogize the ‘mehboob’.”

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Openly nihilistic, sometimes Jaun mixed ‘love’ or obsession, with a fierce kind of destruction.

“Who mera khayal thee so who thee, Main uss ka khayal thaa, so main thaa, ab dono khayal marr chukay hain.”

(She was a perception of mine, so she was I was a perception of hers, so I was; But now both perceptions are dead.)

On top of everything, Jaun was a lover of theatrics since his youth so all his poetry performances (mushairas) were very theatrical in nature. He often said and did many things that struck a chord of black humour, rendering ripples of laughter or enjoyment within the audience. Jaun never took poetry recital as simply that. He raised it to another level, conversing with friends in the audience, turning it almost to a type of ‘rock concert’.

Once, it is said, he conducted more than half of the mushaira with his back to the audience, as if holding nothing but contempt for them. sometimes in his theatrics Jaun would become rude and harsh but still many of his fans would flock around him.

One person who was close to Jaun during one time of his life said, “Jaun Elia is often either seen as black or white. There is no grey it seems. They either love him or hate him. This is a biased view. In actuality, Jaun was a highly aggressive and even abusive individual so much so that many of his close friends left him, dejected by his behaviour. His poetry was great, but his personality had many defects which caused great pain to others. There was a vast difference in the man who wrote and the man who he was,” opined a former friend who wished to remain anonymous.

Meanwhile regarding the technical aspect, poet Pirzada Qasim has described him to be “very particular about language”. He said, “While his diction is rooted in the classical tradition, he touches on new subjects. He remained in quest of an ideal all his life. Unable to find the ideal eventually, he became angry and frustrated. He felt, perhaps with reason, that he had squandered his talent.” Jaun is also known to have invented new metres which have never before been heard in Urdu poetry.

Elia’s divorce with Zaheda Hina in the 80s left him worse off. He became an alcoholic and even more depressed and alone. More than often this reflects very palpably in his poetry. Darkness was Jaun’s life, a kind of sheath covering him.

He was bound to loneliness and misery, because of his own contradictions. Even his negative space was only just grey.

Today it is nine years since Jaun passed away. This scholar, biographer, philosopher and poet now lives in the minds of his admirers. But for many, even his memories are a bleak mist that shrouds his image. But one thing remains, he can never be forgotten.

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Saturday, 5 November, 2011

ALL PSO dues to be cleared by month end, minister tells Senate g

News 09

dr Asim Hussain says resources alternative to natural gas being controlled by cartel ISLAMABAD

A

Staff RepoRt

D M I T T I N G that alternative resources to natural gas were being controlled by a cartel in the country, Federal Minister for Petroleum and Natural Resources Dr Asim Hussain on Friday told the senate that all dues of Pakistan state Oil (PsO) would be cleared by the end of this month.

“I am running from pillar to post for clearing PsO’s dues and I have been assured by the Finance Ministry in this regard. If the amount owed by various departments to PsO is not recovered and its dues are not cleared, it will be disastrous for the country, as our economy is no more resilient to sustain further burden and I am seriously working on the issue and all dues of PsO will be cleared by the end of this month,” Dr Hussain told the Upper House in response to a supple-

mentary question raised by senator Azim swati.

To a question by Ismail Bulaidi about the total payable dues of PsO, Dr Hussain told the house that over Rs 38.8 billion were to be paid by government departments that included WAPDA, PIA, Pakistan Railways, Oil and Gas Development Corporation, National Logistic Cell, Pakistan Navy, Pakistan steel Mills, Pakistan Ordnance Factory, Wah and some others, whereas the total amount payable by non-government customers was over Rs 168.7 billion, including Rs 14.2 billion price differential receivable from the government of Pakistan.

He said the non-government customers included HUBCO, KAPCO, KEsC and other some other companies.

When senator Wasim sajjad asked the minister if he could assure the House in categorical terms that there would not be gas load shedding in the coming winter, the minister said he

could not assure categorically but efforts were afoot for equitable sharing of the shortfall.

He said that it was unfortunate that all alternatives to natural gas in the country were being controlled by a cartel. He added that his priority would be minimum gas load shedding in the country in winter.

In a written reply to a question by senator Tahir Mashhadi, the minister for petroleum told the House that around 131 exploratory wells were drilled and exploration licenses for over 30 blocks were issued in 2010 and various companies were being provided incentives for exploring gas and oil in the country and total licenses granted in the country were 133.

He, however, told the House that Pakistan was not importing oil from Iran and refinery was facing difficulty in opening a Letter of Credit (LC) due to the Us and European countries sanctions against Iran. He said the oil

produced by Iran was not compatible with refinery in Pakistan. senator safdar Abbasi raised objection that if Pakistan could not open the LC due to sanctions, how did it plan to actually import gas from Iran.

Dr Hussain said banks had neither flatly refused nor offered to open an LC and Pakistan was facing difficulties in this regard owing to the geo-strategic situation.

He added that the government would soon announce a new petroleum policy and if any member of the House wanted to give suggestions, he would welcome the proposals.

Meanwhile, the House admitted for further discussion an adjournment motion moved by Professor Khurshid Ahmad on the news item appeared in a section of press that rain and floodaffected wheat and rice was purchased, causing loss of Rs 1.75 billion to the national exchequer. Minister for Food security Mir Israrullah Zehri did not oppose the motion.

Indian army says not ‘correct’ to revoke IHK law afp

NwA, Mohmand to observe eid on Sunday MIRANSHAH/GHALANAI INp

Prominent Ulema in North Waziristan and Mohmand Agency have announced to celebrate Eidul Adha with saudi Arabia on sunday, a day before rest of their countrymen. The decision was announced in the two agencies by the Ulema at Friday gatherings.

LAHORE pR

Pakistan Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA) clarified a news item, appearing in a section of the media, regarding the increase in the cost of Neelum Jhelum Hydropower Project (NJHP).

The WAPDA spokesperson said the 969 MW NJHP was due to be created in 2016 with added safety parameters in wake of the 2005 earthquake. This includes the cost of the two Tunnel Boring Machines imported from Germany.

He said the initial project cost was based on the pre-earthquake design.

The cost of civil works had subsequently increased from Rs 41.03 billion to Rs 130.85 billion. The depreciation of the value of the rupee with respect to the Us dollar since 2006 has increased the cost by Rs 32.57 billion. The Interest During Completion (IDC) has increased from Rs 29 billion to Rs 58 billion. Also, the cost of security arrangements, not previously accounted, to secure foreigners, will be Rs 1.2 billion. The land acquisition, compensation of houses and environmental damage mitigation cost has increased from Rs 770 million to Rs 4.9 billion due to the AJK governments demand. The project is almost 27 percent complete.

MFN status to have repercussions, says Ijazul Haq

SRINAGAR A top Indian army official says harsh emergency laws in Indian-held Kashmir (IHK) should not be revoked until Pakistan ends its “interference” in the revolt-hit region. The draconian Armed Forces special Powers Act (AFsPA) was introduced in 1990 to give the army and paramilitary forces sweeping powers to detain people, use deadly force and destroy property.

IHK Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said last month that the law would be withdrawn in certain areas, but later appeared to row back on that under pressure from groups including the army. The act enables “the army to carry out counter-terrorist and counter- infiltration operations,” General KT Parnaik told reporters late on Thursday near the de facto border that splits Kashmir between India and Pakistan. “Unless we’re able to neutralise the (militant) infrastructure and unless we’re able to remove interference from Pakistan, it may not be correct for us to revoke it (the legislation), even partially,” he said.

Parnaik is India’s army chief for northern areas, including Kashmir.

Abdullah’s pledge was hailed as a significant step in normalising life in the Indian part of Kashmir, where the legislation is detested by locals. But after facing stiff opposition from the army and pro-India political parties, Abdullah said this week he had only announced an “intention” to revoke the laws and “didn’t announce a decision”. Abdullah said he will consult the army and top ministers before deciding on whether to partially withdraw the tough law.

wAPdA explains Neelum-Jhelum project cost increase

PESHAWAR Staff RepoRt

No BUYeRS...Yet: Sacrificial animals await takers at a temporary cattle market established in perhi area of Quetta. ONLINe

Prior permission required for hides’ collection: Malik ISLAMABAD: The authorities on Friday said prior permission from the Islamabad deputy commissioner would be compulsory for collection of animals’ skins and no one would be allowed to collect skins through chit system or other means. Interior Minister Rehman Malik chaired a meeting to discuss law and order and security related issues for Eidul Adha, falling on November 7 (Monday). The meeting decided that there would be a dedicated place for collection of animals’ skins and also decided to impose ban on excessive usage of loud speaker for collection of skins.

Malik directed the Islamabad Police to ensure fool-proof security arrangements for public and worship places, and important buildings on the eve of Eidul Adha. Staff RepoRt

speaking about the decision to grant India Most Favored Nation (MFN) status, Pakistan Muslim League-Zia (PML-Z) Central President Ijaz ul Haq said it would have serious repercussions.

Ijaz was addressing a press conference on Friday. He said the step was taken to appease the Us and Pakistan should have asked India to withdraw 700,000 troops from Indian-occupied Kashmir.

He said opposition parties needed to unite against the incumbent government. He said the state was on the verge of bankruptcy. He said looted money had to be brought back through a treaty with the swiss Government. He said the government had failed to implement the All Parties Conference resolution.

Bin Laden was ‘dead in 90 seconds’ LONDON oNLINe

six months after his death, a new book has claimed Osama bin Laden was shot dead within 90 seconds of the start of a raid on his Abbottabad hideout by Us commandos, and not after a 45 minute firefight, The Daily Telegraph reported.

Former elite Us Navy seal Team six commander Chuck Pfarrer claims in his book that bin Laden was shot dead “almost instantly”, challenging the official version of how the al Qaeda founder died. The Us Navy seal Team six carried out the raid in May. Pfarrer said, “Bin Laden was dead within 90 seconds of the start of the raid, not an extended firefight. Four suppressed rounds were fired.”

Claiming to have interviewed several men involved in the raid, he contradicted the official account of how the Us Navy seal

team landed and how one of their Black Hawk helicopters crashed.

In a statement about his book, Pfarrer said, “The sEALs entered the building after being deposited on the roof by the lead helicopter, not from the ground. Minutes after bin Laden was dead the lead helicopter, heading for a landing spot, lost altitude and sunk, tail-first, into the large walled enclosure east of the main hous.” He said if the naval commandos had been forced to climb stairs to reach bin Laden, as the official claim goes, Osama would have been able to arm and effectively defend himself. He said Amal bin Laden, Osama’s youngest wife, was wounded in the calf during the second round of fire when she shoved herself in front of the shooters. The book says bin Laden’s long-time deputy Ayman Zawahiri may have been responsible for leading the Us to his boss after he repeatedly sent a courier in and out of Osama’s compound.

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10 News

Saturday, 5 November, 2011

HeC approves 155 USAId scholarships LAHORE Staff RepoRt

tHe RIgHt WeIgHt? a vendor weighs a goat for a customer near National Stadium in karachi. ONLINe

Pakistan among most poor countries per UNDP human development report g

Country stands at number 145 among low human development countries ISLAMABAD

P

aRIf taJ

AKIsTAN is among the largest group of multi-dimensionally poor countries in the world, according to the Human development Report 2011 of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

Among the low human development countries, Pakistan is at number 145, whereas Bhutan, sri Lanka, India and China are among the medium development countries.

The report offers important new insights showing how sustainability is inextricably linked to basic questions of equity — that is, of fairness and social justice and of greater access to a better quality of life.

The Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) examines factors at the family level such as access to clean water and cooking fuel and health services, as well as basic household goods and home construction standards that together provide a fuller portrait of poverty than income measure-

ments alone.

Per the report, sustainability is not exclusively or even primarily an environmental issue, as this report so persuasively argues, but is fundamentally about how we choose to live our lives, with an awareness that everything we do has consequences for the 7 billion of us here today, as well as for the billions more who will follow, for centuries to come. some 1.7 billion people in 109 countries lived in ‘multidimensional’ poverty in the decade ending in 2010, by the MPI calculus, or almost a third of the countries’ entire combined population of 5.5 billion. This compares to the 1.3 billion people, which are estimated to be living on $1.25 a day or less.

According to the report, Niger has the highest share of multi dimensionally poor, at 92 percent of the population, followed by Ethiopia and Mali, with 89 percent and 87 percent respectively.

If a comparison is drawn of the figures given in the report of two south Asian states, Pakistan and Bhutan, around 27.4 percent of Pakistani popula-

tion is living in severe poverty compared to the 8.5 in Bhutan, while 11 percent population in Pakistan is vulnerable to poverty while in Bhutan it is 17.2 percent.

Providing insights into environmental problems in the poorest households, including indoor air pollution and disease from contaminated water supplies, the report stated that south Asia and sub-saharan Africa is home to over 90 percent of the multi-dimensionally poor people.

According to the report, Norway stands atop, whereas DR Congo, Burundi and some others are at the bottom. The United states, New Zealand, Canada, Ireland, Liechtenstein, Germany and sweden are among the top 10 countries in the 2011 Human Development Index if the Index is adjusted for internal inequalities in health, education and income, some of the wealthiest nations drop out of the top 20, with fall of the United states number 4 to 23, the Republic of Korea from 15 to 32, and Israel from 17 to 25. According to the report, Us and Israel dropped mainly because of income inequality and health care issues.

Yemen ranks as the least equitable, followed by Chad, Niger, Mali, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Afghanistan, Papua New Guinea, Liberia, Central African Republic and sierra Leone.

In Yemen, just 7.6 percent of women have a secondary education, compared to 24.4 percent for men, women hold just 0.7 percent of seats in the legislature and only 20 percent of working-age women are in the paid work force, compared to 74 percent of men.

E-2-3“In sub-saharan Africa the biggest losses arise from gender disparities in education and from high maternal mortality and adolescent fertility rates,” the report’s authors write.

“In south Asia, women lag behind men in each dimension of the GII, most notably in education, national parliamentary representation and labour force participation. Women in Arab states are affected by unequal labour force participation (around half the global average) and low educational attainment,” the report added.

The Higher Education Commission (HEC) National scholarship Management Committee has approved the award of 155 scholarships under the UsAID Funded Merit and Needs Based scholarship Programme.

HEC Executive Director Dr sohail Naqvi, presided over meeting of the scholarship Management Committee, which comprises HEC Adviser (HRD) Dr Riaz Hussain Qureshi, former GIKI Rector Dr Abdullah sadiq, Institute of Management science Peshawar Director Dr Nasir Ali Khan, university representatives and UsAID officials.

The meeting approved the cases of 155 candidates enrolled in the Institute of Management sciences, Peshawar, Quaid-iAzam University, Islamabad, shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Institute of science and Technology, Karachi, sukkur Institute of Business Administration, Lahore University of Management sciences, Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi and Institute of Business Administration, Karachi. The Us Government, in partnership with the HEC, initiated the Merit and Needs Based scholarship programme aimed at providing financial assistance to talented students otherwise unable to continue their advanced studies due to financial constraints. These scholarships have been available since 2004 in the fields of Business Administration and Agriculture at 11 participating universities/ institutions. so far, 1440 scholarships have been awarded.

Pastor booked for ‘land-grabbing’ KASUR Staff RepoRt

Kasur police registered a case against a pastor and his associates for encroaching upon the land of a lecturer under the pretext of Church land. The police registered the case in compliance of court order. College lecturer Mirza Iftikhar had purchased a piece of land measuring one canal and two marlas from a man named Nayyer David Masih in 1996. The land is situated near a church. One month back when the lecturer started construction on the plot, the Church’s pastor Muneer Phool allegedly demolished the boundary walls of the plot, saying that the land belongs to the Church.

The lecturer contacted police and Kasur District Coordination Officer (DCO) Irshad Hussain shah, who constituted a probe committee to resolve the issue. The pastor said that Nayyer David had sold the land illegally. He said he had no dispute with the lecturer but he wanted the Church land back. Additional session Judge Kasur Arif Mehmood adjourned the hearing of the case until January 11, 2012.

Restructuring the fractured and sinking govt departments g

experts say privatisation, not restructuring, is the only answer

ISLAMABAD MIaN aBRaR

Restructuring of the bleeding public sector enterprises (PsEs) has been overdue for months and years to get the state-run organisations overhauled, slimmed and revived so that they could follow the pattern and functioning of the thriving corporate sector.

However, this gigantic task would remain a dream because of the political compulsions of the ruling Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) to offer specialised jobs to its voters, supporters and sympathisers in these PsEs as political bribes, and in the words of Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani, “under the spirit of politics of accommodation”.

However, former finance minister Dr

salman shah thinks that the government lacked the capacity and will to reform the PsEs, as it had failed in all fields.

“How a government could reform the public sector entities when the prime minister appoints his political and bureaucratic cronies at top offices. These cronies can’t bring a fundamental change which is a must,” he remarked.

Elaborating his viewpoint, shah said that in order to revive the Railways, the model of the Motorways should be adopted.

“Like motorways, railway tracks should be allowed to run private luxury passenger and freight trains as is done in the rest of the world. Railway stations should be asked to form economic centres and provide services to the private sector passengers as well. Hotels, restaurants and other facilities should be made available at each railway station,” he said. About reviving the Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), shah suggested selling the airline’s shares to the private investors,

who should be made members of the PIA’s board of governors with decision-making powers.

Former advisor to United Nations on economic reforms, Umar Masud said the public-private partnership model was the only answer to the misery being faced by the country’s public enterprises.

“In the PIA, the management should give operations to the private sector and in return, the government should bag revenue.

As far as the railways are concerned, it should be completely privatised while a regulatory body should look after the affairs of the entity. This would revive the railways as a profit making sector,” he added.

Chairing a special meeting on restructuring the PIA, the prime minister had directed the cabinet committee on restructuring the PsEs to formalise its final recommendations, combining improvements in corporate governance, services and financing requirements. “Business as usual is unacceptable,”

the committee was told, however, it was not told whether both the blue-eyed captains who are calling all the shots as managing directors of the PIA and the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) would be removed and asked to fly planes or not.

Gilani formed a committee comprising Finance Minister Dr Abdul Hafeez sheikh and Cabinet Division secretary Nargis sethi, Principal secretary to the Prime Minister Khushnud Akhtar Lashari and Defence secretary syed Athar Ali. The committee will submit a report to the prime minister within a week outlining a roadmap for making a turnaround in the PIA. The prime minister said the members of the board of directors would be approved according to the recommendations of the Cabinet Committee on Restructuring.

During the meeting at the Prime Minister’s House on restructuring the Railways, Gilani also ordered the Finance Ministry and the Railways Ministry to guarantee monthly

disbursement of salaries and pensions to railways employees.

The finance minister informed the meeting that the financing agreement with the Banking Consortium would be signed within one week for funding the rehabilitation of 96 locomotives at a cost of Rs 6.1 billion. The availability of the locomotives would significantly improve the efficiency of the ailing department in terms of earnings and provision of travelling facilities to the people, the minister hoped. The meeting was also informed that all the non-economical Railways sections would be closed. The minister added that the provision of diesel for locomotives would be ensured and the credit limit from the Pakistan state Oil (PsO) would be doubled to ensure the mobility of locomotives.

Keeping in view the government’s efforts, one can easily assess that artificial measures would fall short to revive both the state-run enterprises, and only surgical changes can make these entities profitable units.

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Saturday, 5 November, 2011

New currency notes

delayed CSS result

The prime minister has extended one year time period for the old 500 rupee currency notes to be exchanged with the new ones, thus accepting the plea of various stakeholders and poor people living in far flung areas of the country where information reaches slowly. Indeed, it is a welcome move. Measures must be taken to gradually educate public about change of currency note through media, schools, post offices so that the information trickles down to the lower segments of society which do not have access to electronic and print media. It is hoped that hereafter sudden change of currency notes will be avoided.

IFTIKHAR MIRZA Islamabad

I am writing this letter in utter frustration over the failure of Federal Public Commission services (FPsC) to declare the written result of Css 2011. It has been almost eight months since the candidates attempted their last paper and have been anxiously waiting to know their fate. Each one of us pours our heart and soul, burning midnight oil, into the preparation spanning from six months to a year and while waiting for the result is painful, the delay in result only increases our agony and anxiety levels. Even our family members who are anxiously waiting for the result are going through unwarranted stress.

Many of the candidates may not make it and would like to go for a second or third attempt but with only a month remaining until Css 2012 application

The role of PCB The verdict by a court in London, indicting not just the former captain salman Butt, but two other players is a slap on the role of PCB under Ijaz Butt.

The problem in Pakistan is that this culture of tolerance for corruption and financial irregularities has only led to our loss of credibility internationally. Our failure to punish those caught in financial irregularities has contributed to evolvement of a culture where crime nourishes. Financial and moral corruption is as old as human history.

Through a process of evolution and reforms, morals and ethics are enforced by strict accountability, which alone acts as a deterrence for such crimes. Had the PCB chairman censured these players, when reports emerged of their involvement in irregularities, Pakistan and our players would have been spared this humiliation that we now have to endure.

PCB has a long history for not enforcing discipline amongst players. We failed to implement the report of Justice Qayyum and political recommendations by our ruling elite have also played a negative in encouraging indiscipline. Reports of selectors being accused in writing, demanding bribes for selection have not been taken seriously. It is not that cricketers from Australia, India, England, south Africa, West Indies etc are not involved, or have not been accused of such irregularities, but the role of their respective cricket boards in taking timely action that has prevented criminal proceedings from taking place.

It is the failure of PCB which sends a huge contingent of officials, including a security officer, for allowing our players to be exploited by cricket betting mafia which operates from India, south Africa and UAE. The presence in the PCB of former players with close contacts to the dons of betting mafia reflects poorly on PCB. In the case of these players, namely salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Amir, the role of chairman PCB and the political interference in running affairs of cricket need to be probed. It is the former chairman and members of the PCB governing body are responsible for letting this matter get out of hand.

MALIK TARIQ ALI Lahore

Editor’s mail 11 A party aged yet immature

submission starts and three months before the actual exams, reappearing candidates are in a limbo as they do not know which subjects need further work and concentration. Also, continuous speculation (a natural phenomenon) on part of candidates, makes us check the FPsC website regularly, only to be disappointed. Many phone calls have also been made to the FPsC office where the staff has only given different estimates every time with result no where in sight.

If shortage of personnel is the issue with an increasing number of candidates every year, the FPsC should have planned ahead and foreseen such eventuality based on continuous rising trend over the past years. We, who wish to serve our nation in the most prestigious central services, should be dealt with a

better and efficient mechanism than the Matriculation and/or Intermediate candidates of the provincial education boards. This would also attract rather than deter the most promising and ingenious youth of Pakistan.

We, the young candidates, are at a very important juncture in our lives where many of us have left our jobs and put a hold on taking up other options in hopes to make it to the most revered and coveted services. Therefore, I would respectfully request Mr Justice (Retd) Rana Bhagwandas, Chairman FPsC to personally look into the matter and ensure that the result is declared before Eid so agony is ended we can celebrate Eid in its true spirit.

A CSS CANDIDATE Lahore

New lion of Lahore After 15 years in politics, Imran Khan succeeded in succeeded in becoming a political force that could threaten the established political dynasties. Now the question that is being asked the most is whether Imran Khan will be able to win seats in the polls. Imran Khan has a strong appeal for the youth of Pakistan who are not in favour of the existing political lot that

Unnecessary expenses Last Monday marked the three-year completion of Asif Ali Zardari’s presidential leadership in Pakistan. For Zardari and his supporters this must be a day of celebration while for many others it may be to the contrary.

In either case, it does not justify the national entities to advertise their expression of joy and felicitations to the president at the cost of taxpaying citizens of Pakistan. I saw at least six such

have failed to solve the problems the country is facing. He has not specified how he plans to fix the myriad of problems we find ourselves in but what he has done is ring the bell for the sharif brothers’ government in Punjab.

S T HUSSAIN Lahore

distinct demonstrations covering about half a page each in leading newspapers, costing about Rs 500,000 each minimum.

If these institutions care so much about the president then they should simply send a cake or a bouquet to Zardari and save the cost on such ridiculous expenses.

I find it ironic that such steps are taken by these institutions due to their need to show their allegiance to the democratic ruler of the country while in the

time of the ‘dictator’ Musharraf such pretences did not exist.

HAWRA POONAWALA Karachi

Changing time “Pakistan and Us need to find common ground”, said our ambassador to the Us. It seems some of the extra encroachments have been removed.

Z AKAZMI Karachi

In case you missed the PTI rally or its coverage by the media, and couldn't even catch the re-run clips on your Tvs and are looking to find out whether it was a success or not, then I suggest listening to any of the N-League leaders and their views on the rally and its success. First off, a senior senator of the party ridiculed himself by appearing television and claiming that the number of chairs placed in the ground was less than that claimed by PTI, as if the rally was to be attended by chairs and not people. I mean if the N-League thinks that a rally's success is gauged by the number of chairs and not people then they do still have a shot at fame again and that is to gather one million chairs in their next convention, because when it comes to people, it seems tough for them to gather even fifty thousands anymore.

Then the post-rally response by NLeaguers was really pathetic and embarrassing for the remaining few fans of the party. Responding to Mr Khan's speech with comebacks like 'he has admitted to ball tampering in his book' and that 'people came from all over Pakistan and hence there were so many'. Why is it that political acumen is visibly so absent from the N Leaguers? First, they make the foolish decision to hold a rally just two days before PTI's rally and put themselves in competition with Imran Khan.

A competition that they were bound to lose and then when PTI gathered a crowd of over three hundred thousand despite obstacles by provincial government as compared to N Leaugue's government machinery assisted meager 20,000 in the city deemed to be NLeague's stronghold they start coming up with baffled responses and come backs.

As a political party the N League has taken one after the other politically bad and immature decisions throughout the past four years and that is one thing they need to manage and rectify in order to keep themselves alive in the changing political scenario, and not childish, baseless puns and allegations that are only causing them ridicule and embarrassment.

ZAFAR ZULQURNAIN SAHI Lahore

Sindh’s aging CM sindh is in the grip of all sorts of problems. Disorder abounds and social upheavals are surging. Reportedly sindh has emerged as the most ‘ill-governed” province in today’s Pakistan. A staggering truth about it is the advancing age of its chief minister who is more than 76 years old. Despite his physical decline he continues to rule the province. since the rulers bear responsibility for the well-being of the people and therefore for peace and order in the country, the president is appealed to appoint a dynamic man both physically and intellectually, with strong and stable mind because it is always the heart and mind which guides the action.

HASHIM ABRO Islamabad

Principles before policies

By Aun Ansari Disclaimer: This piece is a response to an article by Waqqas Mir, titled “PTI: All sizzle, no steak?” that was printed in this daily on 31 October, a day after the ‘human tsunami show’ by PTI in Lahore. efore I start off with my objectivity-intended-yet-grappling-with-emotions response, let me credit the author for raising some very pertinent concerns with regards to the politics of Imran Khan, and questioning the real cake that hides underneath the sugary frosting.

Questions are further raised on the concrete policy steps that are being proposed, or not proposed for that matter, to bring about the great change all PTI supporters seem to be rampaging about.

What the author fails to take into account though is what the supposed ‘change’ is in the first place.

Belonging to the so-called

B

‘generation X’ of Pakistan, I dream for my country to one day become a nation educated enough to appreciate and even contribute towards constructive yet rigorous political debates, particularly during the time of elections. something similar to the presidential debates we are accustomed to seeing in the Us. Needless to say the dream includes politicians and public representatives intellectually sound enough to hold such debates in the first place.

Unfortunately, politics in Pakistan is far from reaching that state of maturity. Debates for us very quickly transcend in to discussions on sita White, questions on morality of marrying a ‘gori’, references to heera mandi, motives for hair transplant, and an uncanny resemblance to Mr Bean among many other topics of great entertainment.

If the discussions are to get really intellectually stimulating, we may just delve in to an analysis of who has been a recent beneficiary

of the ‘politics of reconciliation’, and leave the inherent hypocrisy of showering praise in support of the same party you were not too long ago giving ultimatums to, to be implicitly understood. Its politics after all; and God forbid should anything be certain. The tragedy, however, is that rarely anything is principled either.

In the most developed countries of the world discussions on policy matters and a perception of a candidate’s competence at the public office greatly determines the potential to be elected. In such countries, however, there are some underlying assumptions about the integrity and motive of their public representatives. Assumptions which we are not at a liberty to take here in Pakistan.

Today, on the back of the grim political history of Pakistan, when people aspire for change their foremost hope is to find a leader or a political party that can honestly and earnestly work towards the betterment of the people and

not their own interests. Hence, the intent is where the change is aimed at. In a political culture lacking all principles, the supporters of PTI find in Imran and his party an approach that is principled and unwavering in the face of the bait of personal gain for its leaders.

The rhetoric that ‘Imran Khan is the last hope’ is evidence of the distrust amongst the people of the traditionally established parties and leaders. This is also a reason why the slogan doesn’t read ‘Imran Khan is the best option’, and why rulers of today and the past have always been blamed for corruption and not so much incompetence. The hope for change lies in the election of a leader willing enough to labour for the cause of his people and not mere power or money.

Commitment to the declaration of assets, de-politicisation of the police, halt to drone attacks, or the initiation of a political dialogue with the Taliban, are

amongst others the overriding principles for policies which the PTI looks to build on. What is more important though is their ability to practice what they preach and be consistent in their approach even when heavily criticised; their leaders declaring their personal assets being an example of the former, while holding on to their principle of dialogue with Taliban even when being labelled a Taliban supporter being evidence of the latter. In a country where politicians change their stance with the frequency with which one flips through the channels on a mundane sunday, this approach is in itself refreshing.

Policies are developed based on vision. In the opportunistic musical chairs played by most political parties in Pakistan, there has been little effort put in by democratically elected governments of late to set out a vision for the nation in the first place, let alone devising policies apt enough to help achieve it. That has been

the bane of Pakistan and its politics for decades now. How many ‘coherent’ policies have come about from any of the political party’s camps? How many were truly discussed and debated prior to their election? At least with PTI, no matter how generic or idealistic, there is still a vision in place to work towards.

This is certainly not to say that this is an end in itself. Considerable amount of effort and hardship need to be endured for any of the promises to come true. More importantly, the change will not come over night and the road ahead will be long with numerous hurdles and potential failures. For now though, many may just be content with having a leader with his heart in the right place. Based on history and the present, can you really blame them?

The writer is a Fulbright scholar pursuing a master’s degree in Communications Management at Emerson College.

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12 Comment double engine failure It’s about time that it’s fixed

T

he government is mulling measures to improve the working of the fast declining Railways and PIA, a task it should have taken up soon after it came to power more than three years back. Like a deaf man who fails to hear anything other than a blast, the administration’s attention was drawn to the Railways only after an old railway pensioner died while trying in vain to receive his much delayed pension and railway workers started stopping trains instead of running them.

In PIA, the financial collapse of the national flag carrier has forced the government to take notice. During the last three years, the government in fact has done its bit to further the decline of both the Railways and PIA by the appointment of cronies on key executive posts and governing bodies.

What needs to be done to reverse the decline of the two major national assets is to control corruption and introduce efficiency. One of the reasons behind the Railways’ decay is the endemic corruption from top to bottom. There have been reports of big guns leasing out Railways property for peanuts, purchasing engines and bogies that were found to be defective and hiring thousands of ghost workers. similarly the PIA, once one of Pakistan's most profitable and prestigious corporations, has been plagued by falling standards and declining profits. It has suffered most under cronies who through incompetence have brought the airline to economic collapse. The state of maintenance is extremely poor; there are engine failures, frequent delays in departures and cancellation of flights.

The Finance Minister has been asked to recommend professionals for the formation of a new board of directors for PIA. He is also to recommend the Railways Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Chief Financial Officer (CFO). This is a formidable task. His mettle will be tested when the PIA board of directors is formed sans cronies and relatives and top Railways executives appointed. It remains to be seen if he can defy political pressures to make suitable appointments. The PM has promised to chair a monthly meting on Railways’ turnaround.

Hopefully he will find time for these meetings despite his monthly visits to Quetta, frequent foreign tours and heavy agenda as the country’s chief executive.

Saturday, 5 November, 2011

Imran: game-changer? the idealist or the pragmatist

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By Arif Nizami

American aid only for the civilians

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espite the rather stringent fiscal conditions of the Us government and its rather troublesome relation with Pakistan, the Us has pledged a continuation of assistance to Pakistan. ProPakistan moves like these are bound to be not looked well upon by the Us Congress. After all, relations became severely strained after the 2nd May strike that took out Osama Bin Laden. And they got worse when the Us military chief went on to call the infamous Haqqani network a “veritable arm of the IsI.” Yet, the aid is going to have it detractors in Pakistan as well. First of all, the aid is going to be reduced from its quantum of $1.5 billion in 2010 to about $ 1.1 billion in 2011 and is set to remain at this level for the next year, though the exact amount is not yet known. What is really going to peeve off certain quarters is the fact that this is all primarily civilian aid.

To be fair, we need to tone down on our annoyance when it comes to American money. If they want, in this time of great fiscal constraints, performance-based aid for the military, should have nothing to lose. But of key importance is the diplomatic utility of not showing indignation. since we are not fighting America’s war but one that is in our own interests, pretending the world owes us something when we are helping ourselves is uncalled for.

Pakistan has been the recipient of huge amounts of aid for over a decade. Towards the end of the second Bush term, the Americans were hit by one of their worst financial crises. The bailout plan to deal with these, coupled with an extremely expensive war in Iraq and Afghanistan made all that aid difficult to make. But that was compounded by allegations of Pakistani complicity with the resistance in southern Afghanistan and, in certain cases, Pakistan itself. All criticism of changing American policies (and priorities) should be done keeping all of that in mind.

Dedicated to the legacy of the late Hameed Nizami

Arif Nizami Editor

Lahore – Ph: 042-36298305-10 Fax: 042-36298302 Karachi – Ph: 021-34330811-3 Fax: 021-34330900 Islamabad – Ph: 051-2287414-6 Fax: 051-2287417 Web: www.pakistantoday.com.pk Email: editorial@pakistantoday.com.pk

The sunday rally although a decisive show of strength revealed some chinks in the PTI’s armour. Imran Khan was successful in bringing those elements of the urban elite who though vocal about the failings of the rulers rarely participate in rallies or go out to vote at the time of the elections.

Those who are sceptical about the present political lot and are disillusioned with the performance of PML(N) government in Punjab and the poor governance record of the PPP-led coalition government are flocking around Imran Khan. They consider the PPP and other mainstream parties as corrupt and inept and Imran as a breath of fresh air.

In this sense, Imran is emerging as a third force to be reckoned with. Although he vehemently denies the charge, Imran’s detractors allege that he PTI is being propped up and perhaps financed by Pakistan’s ubiquitous establishment as an alternate to both Nawaz and Zardari.

The throngs of youth who attended the PTI sunday rally certainly do not fall under the category of “rent-a-crowd” which dominated Punjab Chief Minister shahbaz sharif’s much smaller rally last Friday.

Nevertheless, Imran Khan has a long way to go if he wants to emerge as a real game-changer in the next elections. While a significant section of Lahoris were present at his rally, there was only a sprinkling of the lower middle class, the urban poor and labour. These classes form the backbone of the PPP and the PML(N)’s support base.

Imran’s speech also lacked the specifics and the vision needed to extricate Pakistan from its present quagmire. Pakistan’s economic malaise needs bold decisions based on imaginative solutions rather than quick fix solutions to lure the voters.

His speech betrayed a certain sense of naiveté on his part. He created the impression that power shortages can be fixed by building dams and the economic mess can be fixed merely by eradicating corruption.

Easier said than done.

Imran Khan is a vocal critic of Pakistan’s role in the war on terror and of the Us policy in the region. He has taken a consistent stand against drone attacks and his party has organised a number of protests and dharnas (sit-ins) criticising the Pakistan government’s complicity in these attacks.

It is simplistic to assume that once the Us-led forces withdraw from Afghanistan,

or years, the Lahore urban elite loved to dub him as “Im the dim”, contemptuously dismissing Imran Khan as a dim-witted quixotic politician. The mammoth rally held by him last sunday at Lahore’s Minar-e-Pakistan, the historic venue where the Pakistan Resolution was adopted in 1940, proved them all wrong. Now the same liberal analysts have crowned Imran as a “game changer” in Pakistani politics.

Whether Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), the party the former cricketing hero heads, will be able to translate this outpouring of overwhelming support into a decisive political victory at the hustings is too early to predict. However, tremors across the political spectrum are still being felt.

Predictably, the PML(N) whose heartland has been challenged by Imran is not going to take it lying down. The party’s heavyweight and close confidant of the sharifs, Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, has launched a tirade against the PTI chief.

Alluding to his former wife Jemima Khan’s family lineage, Nisar alleged that Imran started his political journey from the house of Jews and that he was a cheat as a cricketer. Instead of facing the stark political reality that the PML(N) is losing its lustre in its till now unchallenged stronghold, its leadership is conveniently hiding behind the canard that Imran is being propped by the establishment.

By cancelling the much-touted Faisalabad rally the PML(N) has implicitly conceded that its game plan to pre-empt Imran’s show by holding its own rally two days earlier was a blunder. It has realised that with Nawaz sharif vacationing in London it will be difficult to muster sizeable crowds to match Imran’s show in Lahore.

Theoretically, general elections due in early 2013 are still more than a year away. Even if held earlier, Zardari will have them not before the senate elections due in March 2012.

The PML(N)’s strategy to force general elections before the senate elections or to somehow send the PPP government packing through an inhouse change before this deadline seems to be faltering under the Imran Khan factor. Its focus has now shifted from Zardari to countering Imran.

those who engage in suicide attacks against fellow Muslims and are openly clamouring for a theocratic Islamic state will suddenly become peaceful citizens.

Imran Khan is perceived as a politician with pro-Taliban leanings. In this sense, ideologically he is closer to the PML(N) and the Jamaat-e-Islami. And he is challenging these very forces by garnering support in urban Punjab.

Imran suffers from another major drawback: the lack of a slate of electable candidates and an effective party machine.

He is relying merely on his personal charisma to pull crowds. But this will not be enough to garner votes for his candidates in a general election. The repeat of the 1970 general elections in which the PPP candidates, mostly non-entities, defeated their well-entrenched opponents on the basis of the Bhutto charisma seems unlikely.

In a parliamentary system, the electability of the candidates is pivotal in winning elections. It was evident from the long list of political pygmies adorning the stage that the PTI has to do a lot of hard work in attracting good candidates.

Imran’s plank is that he is Mr Clean and hence would bring in only clean candidates. But as is true about electoral politics anywhere, electable candidates are not necessarily squeaky clean.

The PTI leader will now have to make a choice between idealism and pragmatism or a mix of both. Here lies the rub. If he is not careful and brings too many turncoats in the fold, his charisma in the eyes of his supporters could wear thin by election time.

Imran Khan has shown the will as well as the grit to attract crowds around his message. Whether he will be able to emerge as a third force will depend on how he plays his cards in the coming months.

He was being dismissed as merely a spoiler who would eat into the right wing vote, primarily PML(N)’s. But this was before sunday. The historic crowds at the rally have radically altered the political landscape.

The PPP that till now had been gloating at the obvious discomfort of the PML(N) in the face of Imran Khan’s growing popularity now has cause for concern. Imran is not merely a spoiler but has emerged as a force to be reckoned with.

The writer is Editor, Pakistan Today

whiteLIeS W By ess Aich

e hear that former President Musharraf has been preoccupied lately with the possibility of returning to Pakistan and throwing in his bit into the political cauldron. since his arrest warrants issued back home are a major obstacle in his plans, he has been looking at various options.

Apparently, he contacted Jeddah and asked that it lean on Islamabad to ensure that the general would not be put behind bars on arrival.

After all they did play a role in salvaging Nawaz sharif from a Pakistani prison and possibly from the gallows. Jeddah, so the story goes, has assured Musharraf that he would be provided security in Pakistan but cannot guarantee that he would not be arrested.

Word has it that the former President, once a Washington darling, has contacted several Us congressmen to get the same pre arrest assurance but with no luck. Unfortunately, his former American mates have no interest in preventing Musharraf from becoming an inmate.

s

ome dishes are symbols of political match fixing or so we are told. It is understood that an invitation to Mian Nawaz sharif’s Raiwind estate and partaking of aalo gosht or nihari there means that the invitee or caller has been taken into the hearth and home of this political clan. With the Chaudhrys of Gujrat the muragh cooked in all its variations, is an important sign of acceptance. In one hotly contested election, a rival shoe industrialist’s success was actually attributed to his strategy of out-smarting the Chaudhrys with his spread of chicken dishes.

Well, now Altaf Bhai too has his sym-

bolic dish of acceptance. People breaking bread with MQM are asked to have haleem at 90. In fact, after the release and departure of Moonis Elahi, the Chaudhry brothers requested that they pay the ritual respect to 90. They were promptly asked to reinforce the bond by joining the MQM clan in partaking of the symbolic haleem. And they did. ************* mran Khan’s jalsa at Minar-e-Pakistan last week has every one buzzing about the event. We hear that many out of job politicians, sitting on the fence, while keeping their eyes on opinion polls, have decided that

I

this was better than any formal opinion poll.

They are jumping to his side. However, while The Khan may think that his charisma, his record as a high achiever and now this jalsa are his major assets, he may be overlooking another major factor in his growing popularity. Apparently, Zaman Park, the symbol of Imran’s Jallundhri Pathan heritage, has another major asset. It is the outgoing women of Zaman Park and there are a huge number of them. Move over Jemima, these ladies have sprung into action and are working like an effective propaganda machine, spreading the Imran message.

For feedback, comments, suggestions and, most importantly, tips, contact us at whitelies@pakistantoday.com.pk

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Saturday, 5 November, 2011

Comment 13

Opposition sans caution

Make way for the Khan

the 90s called: they want their politicking culture back

the groundswell comes laden with the scent of change

By Aziz-ud-Din Ahmad

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he war cries raised by the opposition and the language it is using remind one of the days after 1988 through 1990s when PML(N) and PPP politicians indulged in no-holds-barred struggles. Political rivalry which is the beauty of a democratic polity is again being turned into personal enmity.

There are threats of removing the government though extraconstitutional means. This amounts to derailing the system which despite being faulty possesses the basic inner mechanism through which it can be improved over time.

All the normal avenues in a democracy to seek changes in government policies or putting curbs on its accesses are currently available. The constitution has laid down a clear formula for an in-house change and for getting rid of the administration at the end of its tenure through fair and free elections. Unlike the 1988-99 period, there is a genuinely elected parliament and the courts are both independent and assertive. The media is free as never before.

There is no restriction on the freedom of expression, association and protest.

Agreed that the courts are free not because of the PPP government but despite it.

After trying to block the restoration of the independent judiciary, the administration decided to put up with it under sufferance. It still plays antics with the courts, puts legal and administrative hurdles to delay court proceedings when these are likely to go against it. It tries to bypass court decisions maintaining

that the judiciary has no jurisdiction over the running of the administration.

The government sometimes commits excesses and its functionaries may not always abide by law. The government insists on appointing its blue eyed boys to important posts to help it bend or override rules. Despite all this, the courts finally, albeit belatedly, succeed in asserting their authority.

The media is free not because of the PPP or any other government but on account of its long struggle to break the chains put on it by successive autocratic regimes. While it should maintain at least an appearance of impartiality and avoid vindictiveness, a small section has all along sought the government’s removal by hook or by crook.

The mission undertaken is not entirely in consonance with media ethics.

The government however has made no attempt to muzzle its opponents. Keeping in view the breakneck competition, the media simply cannot afford to neglect pubic sentiment or cover up scandals in high quarters. It would lose viewers and readers if it did so and deprive itself of lucrative private sector ads that ensure its freedom from government pressure. so whatever an opposition leader says finds place in the media, the coverage being of course in consonance with the estimated popularity of the person and his party.

Unlike the past, there are no political prisoners except in Balochistan. No accountability machinery with an aim to target opposition has been put in place. The practice of punishing opponents through accountability courts that started in the 1990’s and reached its zenith under Musharraf has been abandoned. A new Election Commission has been created in consultation with the opposition.

There is freedom to express views both inside and outside Parliament. soon

after coming to power, the government appointed the leader of the Opposition as Chairman Public Accounts Committee, a job that he performed with exceptional courage without sparing any official or public office holder found involved in corruption or misuse of authority. There is no restriction on holding public meetings and protests and taking out rallies. There are no no-go-areas for the opposition anywhere in the country. This is how things should be in a democracy.

The opposition however continues to retain the tragic flaw that finally led to the dismantling of the democratic system in 1999. It displays political intolerance. Its impatience is leading it to the path of confrontation that totally disregards rules of game in a democratic polity.

Mian shahbaz sharif has again reverted to the language of vendetta that characterised the 1990s. He calls for hanging the opponents upside down and of dragging them in the streets. The vocabulary is reminiscent of the Punjab thana culture and indicates an inherently undemocratic mindset. The old charge of being a “security risk” is replaced by the supposed ‘irreversible damage to national economy’ if PPP was allowed to complete the remaining two years of tenure.

PTI Chief Imran Khan is more careful in the choice of vocabulary. He is however equally desperate to overthrow the government before the end of its tenure. He has threatened to issue a call for civil disobedience in case his demand for the declaration of real assets is not heeded by Zardari.

The political atmosphere evokes a sense of déjà vu. Is the opposition providing an opportunity to someone with Bonapartist tendencies to once again derail the democratic system?

The writer is a former academic and a political analyst.

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mran managed to do what all his political adversaries feared the most: he got together an incredible array of people in a rare show of strength and grassroots popularity under the shadow of Lahore’s Minar-e-Pakistan. While this may be a cause for immense celebration for the PTI and its large and diverse support bank, it throws up the most daunting of challenges that Imran has ever faced in his charismatic life: how to keep the momentum going, spread it throughout the country and ensure that this mammoth raw support is actually transformed into votes on the day of the elections.

No one ever doubted Imran’s appeal to the masses. His numerous conquests in the cricket field, his state-of-the-art cancer hospital, his contribution to creating the Namal University and his extensive and untiring efforts in the field of philanthropy are household subjects which have endeared him not only to the youth of the country, but to everyone who holds Pakistan and its interests supreme. But the political pundits had always drawn a line between his unprecedented national and international stature and the prospects of his success in the political arena. Imran, in one stroke on October 30, has erased that divide and has landed centre stage of the political world with a bang as his detractors are seen scampering for a place to hide.

A day after the historic rally, a friend called from Lahore. He started by reiterating that he had not been a PTI fan, but still decided to be part of the gathering. He reached the ground around 3.30 p.m. and found it almost full with people pouring in

By Raoof Hasan ceaselessly. He managed to find a place nor very far from the stage. To his right was a young boy who had travelled all the way from some far-off part of the swat valley. It was his passion alone that had brought him there.

On his right was a young girl, equally passionate about the Imran appeal, who was studying at LUMs. At his back sat a former governor of the state Bank with his family while in front of him were people representing varied social strata of the society. There was one common factor that set all of them apart: their natural exuberance and enthusiasm to be part of this epochmaking event. On his way back, he found the streets and roads around the arena choked for miles. By a fair guess, there were as many people who waited outside as there were inside the ground.

The Minar-e-Pakistan gathering has overnight changed the political landscape of the country. Pundits who were not giving Imran a chance in a million are now openly acknowledging the arrival of a new force in politics that represents the dominant and inalienable will of the people. They have remained buried under the putrid de-

Candid Corner

bris of the hereditary politics of a corrupt coterie of rulers for over six decades now. In the process, they have seen their country being systematically plundered and its wealth stolen to fill personal coffers. They have witnessed the collapse of its institutions and the bartering of its sovereignty for a few crumbs. They have seen more and more of its people sink below the poverty line. Instances of suicides and self-immolations have increased alarmingly as also those of people selling off their children or their kidneys so that they could survive a little longer.

Rule of law is scorned at and judicial injunctions made a mockery of. The cabinet is pockmarked by individuals granted reprieve through presidential pardons and those awarded doctorates in recognition of embracing as allies people who have introduced the culture of extortion, fear and revenge-killing.

It may take a while longer to see the back of this corrupt lot, but the Lahore gathering has rekindled the hope factor among people who had just about lost it. They recognise that the incumbent system has been rendered dysfunctional and is in need of serious repair, even overhaul, and they see in Imran a person who has the credentials, the integrity, the courage and the commitment to lead this surge. They are laden with this seething desire to break the chains of slavery and start living like free people again as was promised to them when Pakistan Resolution was passed at the point where Imran gathered his vast galaxy of support. It was like re-living that day, and its boundless passion, back in 1940.

There are challenges that Imran and his vast support-bank face. There is enough substance in his message, enough appeal in his person and enough hope in the future that he promises. He wants to replace the derelict system with a delivery-oriented mechanism that is based on getting the best to turn the country around and, with it, the fate of its people. The patwaris have to go, the thana culture has to be replaced and violence has to give way to harmony. Pakistan should be at peace with itself and its destiny investing in transforming the fate of its people who have languished endlessly in the shadows of intellectual, economic and emotional despotism and suffered at the hands of immeasurable misery and deprivation.

All of a sudden, post October 30, the vast landscape is resonating with hope that, after all, the days of sufferance may be over and the moment of triumph may be near. Not lost to symbolism, the day after the Lahore rally, Imran took off for China on an official visit. Among the numerous factors that have plagued Pakistan’s growth, one has been its lopsided dependence on the Us. The Lahore gathering and the China visit promise a change that Pakistan and its people have started dreaming about.

The writer is a political analyst and a member of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf. He can be reached at raoofhasan@hotmail.com

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16 Foreign News

Saturday, 5 Novermber, 2011

Arab League plan fails to calm Syria violence g

dozens killed in Homs, arrests in damascus suburbs US sees more outside pressure if Syria reneges on deal g

AMMAN

s

ReUteRS

YRIAN tank fire killed at least three people in the city of Homs early on Friday as security forces pursued a violent crackdown on protesters despite a government agreement with the Arab League to stop shooting and talk to its opponents.

The latest deaths followed a bloody day in Homs, where activists said at least 22 people were killed as tanks shelled the Bab Amro district and troops and snipers fired elsewhere in the city, a hotbed of protests and an emerging insurgency.

One witness, who asked not to be named, said he had seen dozens of bodies of civilian men with bullet wounds at the city's National Hospital, controlled by the security forces. There was no independent confirmation of the killings.

Tough media curbs have made it hard to verify events in syria since protests

against President Bashar al-Assad began in March, inspired by other revolts against Arab autocrats.

The state news agency sANA headlined its report on Homs: "Homs residents condemn the armed terrorists' acts and stress their ties to foreign agendas targeting syria's stability."

It quoted a woman named Ikhlas Ashour as saying gunmen had hijacked the shared taxi she had taken in Homs and after a short drive forced the passengers out, robbed them of their money and identity cards and killed all the men.

"It was an indescribably ugly scene, I felt like I was living a nightmare," she was quoted as saying.

Another resident, Ghayath Darwish, told sANA he and his father had been in a shared taxi in the city's Jab Abbas district when armed men intercepted it and killed some male passengers at random, "dragging away their corpses". sANA also said that 13 soldiers killed by "armed gangs" in Homs, the city of

Hama and the northwestern province of Idlib were returned to their families for burial on Thursday.

DeADLY STruGGLe: The violence in Homs, where tanks were bombarding for the second straight day, illustrates how difficult it will be to implement the Arab League plan in a country locked in a deadly struggle between Assad and foes of his 11-year rule. Fears that the unrest is taking a sectarian turn have mounted this week, amid reports of killings of members of Assad's minority Alawite community and counter-killings of sunni Muslims, who form a majority of syria's 20 million people. Assad's opponents say the only way to restore peace in syria is for the president to step down immediately.

The security forces do not appear to have changed course despite syria's acceptance on Wednesday of the Arab proposals for an army withdrawal from cities, the release of political prisoners and talks with the opposition. "We have already seen the regime's bloody response to the Arab

initiative today in the form of intensified shelling on Homs," Ahmad Ramadan, spokesman for the opposition syrian National Council, said on Thursday.

"If its forces keep firing on protesters, Arab states may be forced to take a more decisive position and support the case for international protection for civilians."

The renewed tank fire in Homs occurred hours before weekly Muslim prayers, often a focal point for protests.

"The wounded in Bab Amro are dying where they fall. The bombardment is so heavy that no one can get to them," samer, an activist who had fled the district, told Reuters by phone.

Activists also said dozens of people had been arrested in the early hours in the northern Damascus suburbs of Douma and Harasta. They said soldiers were entering Mouadhamiyeh, a suburb to the west of the capital. The United Nations says more than 3,000 people have been killed since the uprising against 41 years of Assad family rule began in

March. The authorities accuse Islamist militants and foreign-backed armed gangs of killing 1,100 soldiers and police.

Western sanctions and growing criticism from Turkey and Arab neighbours have raised pressure on syria to end the bloodshed. The Us said on Thursday it saw no evidence that syria was taking steps to fulfil the Arab League deal.

"This Assad regime has a long deep and continued history of broken promises and it has significant blood on its hands," state Department spokeswoman victoria Nuland said. "We have not seen any evidence that the Assad regime intends to live up to the commitments it has made," she said. Arab League secretary-General Nabil Elaraby briefed members of the syrian National Council on the plan in Cairo on Thursday.

"We did not talk with the secretarygeneral about a dialogue with the regime," council member samir Nashar was quoted by Egypt's MENA news agency as saying after the meeting.

China envoy loses cool over Indian map error NEW DELHI afp

The Chinese ambassador to India told a journalist in New Delhi to "shut up" in a heated exchange over a map that showed parts of India within China, newspapers reported on Friday. Reporters noticed that a map in a Chinese brochure about an investment in India showed the Indian border state of Arunachal Pradesh as part of China and also challenged India's claims in the Kashmir region.

"Peppered with questions on the map showing Arunachal Pradesh and Ladakh in China and Pakistanoccupied Kashmir in Pakistan, Zhang Yan told the journalist to 'shut up'," the Hindustan Times reported. Zhang later said the journalist "pushed, pushed, pushed" even when told it was "a technical issue" that would be rectified.

"We are working for friendlier ties with India... this will not help," Zhang said after his flash of temper at a news conference in a luxury hotel. Indian officials downplayed Thursday's incident, saying the map was not produced by the Chinese government.

BANGKoK: Motorists make their way through floodwaters on the edge of downtown Bangkok on Friday. AFP

latest China mine disaster kills 4, traps 50 BEIJING ReUteRS

An accident at a colliery in central China has killed four miners and trapped 50, state media said on Friday, in the latest disaster to hit the accident-prone industry.

The "rock burst" -- a sudden rupture of the rock face common in the mining industry -- occurred at the pit in Henan province while 75 miners were working underground, though 14 managed to escape soon after, Xinhua news agency reported. seven others were later rescued alive and emergency workers were trying to get the others out, the China News service added.

China's mines are the deadliest in the world, due to lax safety standards and a rush to feed demand from a robust economy.

In 2010, 2,433 people died in coal mine accidents in China, although this was an improvement on the toll of 2,631 a year earlier.

France to abstain in vote on Palestinian UN seat Foreign Ministry reiterates proposal to grant observer status as an intermediary response and urging pursuit of peace talks between both sides g

PARIS ReUteRS

France would abstain in a vote on a Palestinian request for full membership of the United Nations, the French foreign ministry said on Friday.

While France regarded the quest for Palestinian statehood as legitimate, the request for full UN membership had no chance of being accepted, notably because of Us opposition, the ministry said in an electronic media briefing.

"That is why, during a (UN) admissions committee meeting, France's permanent representative at the United Nations said France would have no choice but to abstain in the security Council," it said.

A vote was possible any time from Nov. 11 onwards, it said.

The ministry reiterated a French proposal that observer status be granted as an intermediary response and urging the pursuit of peace talks between Israelis and Palestinians.

France was among the countries that voted last Monday to grant the Palestinians full membership of the United Nations cultural agency, UNEsCO, based in Paris.

The Palestinians had gone to UNEsCO as a first step in their quest for statehood recognition in the over-arching U.N. system in september, which the Palestinians formally requested in september.

On Thursday, diplomats assembled at the G20 summit meeting in Cannes had suggested that several countries, including France, would abstain in a vote on that request.

The Palestinians' foreign minister said on Thursday that they will not accept anything less than full U.N. membership and do not want an upgrade to an observer state in the world body.

The Palestinian bid for statehood recognition in the U.N. system has drawn fierce criticism and sanctions from the United states and from Israel, which in 1967 captured territory the Palestinians now seek for an independent country.

Iran boosts anti-US rhetoric ahead of nuclear report g

Thousands rally to mark US embassy seizure

TeHrAN: Iran marked the anniversary of the 1979 seizure of the U.s. embassy on Friday with burning flags and chants of "Death to America", escalating its antiU.s. rhetoric ahead of the release of a pivotal U.N. report on its nuclear programme. Thousands of students burned the stars and stripes, an effigy of Uncle sam and pictures of President Barack Obama outside the leafy downtown Tehran compound that once housed the U.s. mission. The embassy was stormed by hardline students on Nov. 4 1979, shortly after Iran's Islamic revolution toppled the U.s.-backed shah, and 52 Americans were held hostage there for 444 days. The two countries have been enemies ever since. Tehran has raised the volume of its anti-American rhetoric since October when the United states accused Iran of plotting to assassinate saudi Arabia's ambassador to Washington. Iran calls the accusations false. Tension between Iran and the West is particularly high ahead of the publication next week of a report by the United Nations nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency, expected to suggest Iran is seeking nuclear weapons. Iran says its nuclear programme is aimed at peaceful generation of electricity, but its failure to allay suspicions that it is seeking a bomb has prompted the United Nations to impose four rounds of economic sanctions on Tehran.

For its part, Tehran accuses the Us and Israel of killing several Iranian nuclear scientists in recent years. ReUteRS

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Saturday, 5 Novermber, 2011

Foreign News 17

About 2,000 trekkers stranded near everest in bad weather KATHMANDU ReUteRS

About 2,000 foreign hikers have been trapped in bad weather on the slopes of a mountain near Mount Everest in a remote corner of Nepal for the past four days, officials said on Friday.

They have been forced to stay in the small hill resort of Lukla, the gateway to Mount Everest, which has been covered by thick clouds this week, forcing airlines to cancel flights to and from the remote region.

Lukla, which lies at a height of 2,800 metres (9,186 feet), is located 125 km (78 miles) northeast of the Nepali capital.

Tens of thousands of trekkers and climbers visit the solukhumbu region in northeast Nepal, home to Mount Everest, every year.

Many start and end their trek from the windswept resort where a small airstrip is carved into the rugged mountainside. Utsav Raj Kharel, chief of Lukla's Tenzing Hillary Airport, said tourists, who were not in physical danger, had been waiting for their flights back to Kathmandu for the past four days.

rebellion brews in India coalition over fuel price hike NEW DELHI ReUteRS

A top ally of Indian Prime Minister Manmohan singh threatened to quit the ruling coalition on Friday unless he reversed a rise in gasoline prices, testing the government's commitment to a move sorely needed to cut the fiscal deficit.

Trinamool Congress, a regional party, said it would wait for singh to return from the G-20 summit in France and reconsider the increase in petrol prices, the fourth time this year. If the party were to quit the coalition it would reduce singh's government to a minority at a time when it is already buffeted by corruption scandals and stubbornly high inflation. "When the prime minister is out of the country, I don't want to take a decision that can lead to the fall of a government," said Trinamool chief Mamata Banerjee, whose 19 lawmakers provide singh with a parliamentary majority. "Let the PM return then our party will go to him and tell him our view ... that if this goes on like this we don't want to stay in the government. We have tolerated enough but we are not willing to accept this burden on the poor any more."

In a first indication that the government could cave to its ally's demand, a source in singh's Congress party said on Friday that a partial rollback of the gasoline price rise was possible. Banerjee's threat could force the government to delay a rise in diesel, cooking gas and kerosene prices even though it desperately wants to cut subsidies to stay in sight of the 2011/12 fiscal deficit target of 4.6 percent of GDP.

MoSCow: Activists of the pro-Kremlin youth movement ‘Nashi’ (our People) carry their flags as they rally in front of the vvts All russian exhibition Centre, formerly known as vdNKh, on Friday marking the National Unity day. AFP

Italy government hangs by thread as coalition crumbles g

Berlusconi may already have lost working majority ROME

I

ReUteRS

TALIAN Prime Minister silvio Berlusconi's fate hung by a thread on Friday and desertions from his crumbling centre-right coalition may have already robbed him of the parliamentary numbers he needs to survive.

Berlusconi, caught in the crossfire from European powers and a party revolt at home, agreed at a G20 summit in France to IMF monitoring of economic reforms which he has long promised but failed to implement. But this may soon be irrelevant for the Italian leader, who will return to Rome later on Friday to face what looks increasingly like a

deadly rebellion by his own supporters.

With financial markets in turmoil over the situation in Greece and Italy viewed as the next domino to fall in the euro zone crisis, calls are mounting for a new government to carry through reforms convincing enough to regain international confidence.

Berlusconi has consistently rejected calls to resign and says the only alternative to him is an early election next spring, rather than the technocrat or national unity government urged by many politicians and commentators.

Yields on 10-year Italian bonds reached 6.36 percent by early afternoon, creeping closer to 7 percent, a level which could trigger a so-called "buyers' strike" where investors take

fright and refuse to buy the paper. Two deputies from Berlusconi's PDL party this week defected to the centrist UDC, taking his support in the 630-seat lower house of parliament to 314 compared with the 316 he needed to win a confidence vote last month. But at least seven other former loyalists have called for a new government and could vote against the 75-year-old media magnate.

"The (ruling) majority seems to be dissolving like a snowman in spring," said respected commentator stefano Folli in the financial daily Il sole 24 Ore. Other commentators spoke of an "inexorable" revolt against Berlusconi.

Even Defence Ministry undersecretary Guido Crosetto, a Berlusconi loyalist, said on television: "I don't know how

many days or weeks the government has left. Certainly a majority relying on a few votes cannot continue for long."

PATrONAGe: Berlusconi, one of Italy's richest men, still has significant powers of patronage and he and his closest aides are expected to spend the weekend trying to win back support for a parliamentary showdown on Tuesday. some rebels have already threatened to vote against Berlusconi in the vote to sign off on the 2010 budget.

Berlusconi faced concerted calls to resign when he lost a previous vote on this routine measure, which was almost unprecedented. Although it is not a confidence motion, he would come under huge pressure if he suffered a second defeat.

India opens rival bids for huge war plane deal NEW DELHI afp

India on Friday opened rival bids from France's Dassault and the Eurofighter consortium, which are competing over an estimated $12 billion contract to provide 126 fighter jets. The deal to supply war planes to fast-developing India has been fiercely fought over for four years, and the unveiling of the bids started the final phase of the decision-making process.

"The bids were opened today with the contract negotiating committee and vendor representatives present to examine and evaluate the proposals to determine the lowest bidder," defence ministry spokesman sitanshu Kar said. An official, who declined to be named, said that it could be some weeks before the successful bid is announced after the ministry has assessed the "life-cycle" maintenance costs of each plane and other contract details.

The bids were not made public and the two companies declined to comment. India in April pulled a surprise by cutting out Us bidders Boeing and Lockheed Martin -much to Washington's disappointment -- as well as dropping sweden's saab AB and the Russian makers of the MiG 35 from the race.

CANNeS: US President Barack obama speaks with British Prime Minister david Cameron (l) and British Finance Minister George osborne (C) during a round table meeting at a G20 summit in southeastern France on Friday. AFP

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Saturday, 5 November, 2011

Fallon spoofs Bieber: ‘(It’s not my)

THE EXCLUSIVE FASHION PARTY

Baby’

Bushra & Wajeeha

Lorna, Elizabeth, Shona & Emma

Faiza & Wajeeha Shella, Noreen & Samira with a guest

Afshan & Shafana

Saira & Obaira Sam, Aliya & Sofia

J

MONITORING DESK

UsTIN Bieber has tweeted that he’s trying to “focus on the positive” instead of the rumors and gossip, which may or may not be in reference to that paternity lawsuit he’s been hit with.

(If you’re just joining us, a 20-year-old has reportedly claimed she had sexual relations with Bieber last October in a bathroom backstage at one of his L.A. concerts, a tryst that she alleges resulted in a 3month-old baby boy. Bieber has called the allegations not only false, but malicious.)

Enter Jimmy Fallon, who was more than happy to take up the 17-year-old singer’s cause on ‘Late Night with Jimmy Fallon’. In a pitch perfect spoof on Bieber’s hit single ‘Baby’, Fallon croons from underneath his Bieber-esque wig and cap, “You said we did it and I’m the dad. My lawyers trippin’, ‘cause this looks bad. You

only said this to get my cash, and now selena Gomez is going to kick my ass. It’s not my baby, baby, baby, no!”

Other lyrical gems include, “You said...I only lasted 30 seconds, but that’s not true, that’s a lie - it was totally more like 45,” and, “Her claims I deny flatly; I ain’t that baby’s daddy.” Elsewhere, the real Bieber is also denying claim of something else - that dog he supposedly adopted with selena Gomez last month.

But the teen singer made it clear to Ryan seacrest on his radio show yesterday that he’s not responsible for the pup.

“It’s so funny because...I never got a new dog. I didn’t adopt a dog,” Bieber said emphatically. “A friend of mine did. It really has nothing to do with me. I don’t have anything to do with that dog. It’s not my dog.” And for those who didn’t hear him correctly the first 12 times he said it, Bieber added for effect: “I think he’s a cute dog, but he’s not my dog.”

Zainab & Noor

irley & Sh Dawn

Shafea with a friend

Sports fans hate on Nickelback... again DETROIT ageNCIeS

It seems Nickelback’s nasally rock ballads just don’t sit well with sports fans. supporters of the Detroit Lions are the latest to protest a possible performance by the Canadian band. (The Winnipeg Free Press published an open letter to the National Hockey League in August when word spread that Nickelback would play at its Face-Off festival.) The band is reportedly slated to perform during halftime at Ford Field, when the Lions take on the Green Bay Packers Thanksgiving Day. But a whole lot of Lions fans/Nickelback haters have signed an on-

Ra.One MUMBaI: Pa.one (Amitabh Bachchan’s face morphed on Shah rukh’s ra.one poster, SrK and his son Aryan went for ra.one first day first show...After half and hour..Aryan says: papa ghar chalo na stargold pe dabangg aanewali hai, ‘ra.one’ jokes are being circulated on social networking and mobiles through texts with huge enthusiasm. even a morphed poster of Shah rukh posing as a road

line petition begging the National Football League to reconsider. As of the time of this post on Thursday, more than 9,500 people had signed the virtual petition, citing: “This game is nationally televised, do we really want the rest of the Us to associate Detroit with Nickelback? … Is this some sort of ploy to get people to leave their seats during halftime to spend money on alcoholic beverages and concessions? This is completely unfair to those of us who purchased tickets to the game. At least the people watching at home can mute their Tvs.” One person who signed the petition wrote, “I’d rather drink bleach than listen to Nickelback and have them associated with Detroit.”

jokes do not bog SRK down side hawker selling ‘ra.one’ merchandise was forwarded on the web which amused most including Shah rukh himself! The actor without being offended chose to put up the picture on his own Twitter page! likewise, the actor stays unperturbed by the other SMS, twitter jokes as well. Shah rukh commented, “Some people have devoted their lives to writing about how ‘ra.one’ is not a good film. But I knew right from the beginning that this is not a film for everyone. Some will like it, some won’t. But I am glad, since people are discussing it; it pretty much shows how the film hasn’t been ignored. The worst thing is when people don’t even know if your film has come and gone. You should either like a film or not like it, you shouldn’t ignore it. If ‘ra.one’ is being talked about, it’s a good thing for us.” on comparison of his film’s collections to other khans’ blockbuster hits, SrK maintained a diplomatic stand as he said, “It’s unfair to compare two films as every star has a different sensibility, personality on the basis of which he selects a film. As far as collections are concerned, the figures are with trade analysts for all to see.” ageNCIeS

Aliya, Fozia, Zubia, Nadia, Marihah, Sofia, Sehar, Obaira, Lina & Sam

Sofia Khushi and obaira Ghafur showcased their budding talents in a fall make-up and clothes collection.

Keith Urban to have throat

surgery New YorK: Country singer Keith Urban is expected to have throat surgery this month, after a polyp was discovered on his vocal cords, according to his publicist. The surgery is considered a minor procedure, Paul Freundlich said in a news release. The musician will undergo “an undetermined period of recuperation that will require the postponement of the “All for the Hall’ benefit concert,” Freundlich said. Though Urban is still expected to perform at the Country Music Awards on November 9, he has had to “substantially scale back his appearances requiring multiple songs,” Freundlich added. “All other appearances will be rescheduled in the new year,” the statement said.

AGeNCIeS

MoNItoRINg DeSk: Apple has acknowledged a problem with battery life on the iPhone 4S and other devices running its new operating system. The company says a software update coming “in a few weeks” will address the problem. The company previously had not publicly acknowledged complaints about battery life on the phone, which surfaced soon after it was released october 14 and continued to grow in the weeks since.

“A small number of customers have reported lower than expected battery life on ioS 5 devices,” Apple said in a statement to AllThingsd, a part of the wall Street Journal network. “we have found a few bugs that are affecting battery life and we will release a software update to address those in a few weeks.” Comments on a thread started october 15 in Apple’s support forums to complain about battery life had grown to 217 pages by Thursday morning.

Introducing Apple’s iPhone 4S Siri: Apple’s new voice recognition Apple has declined to comment beyond its basic statement. Messages from CNN requesting information about the complaints were not returned. The poorer-than-expected battery life has largely been attributed to location-based apps and other power-draining features of the ioS 5 system. Some users have reported improvements when they disable timezone and GPS features, while others have said the improvements were minimal. The apparent glitch is the second time in a row that a popular iPhone has experienced a highly publicised problem in its early days. And the responses, so far, have been similar. The iPhone 4 suffered from what some called the death grip, causing users who held the phone in a certain way to lose phone calls. Apple denied that there was a problem before eventually saying that it did, in fact, affect a small number of customers. The company eventually offered free cases, which improved the phone’s reception.

Neither time has the problem affected sales in a major way.

The iPhone 4 is the most popular smartphone in the world, and the 4S is on track to perform just as well, starting with a reported 4 million sales in its first three days on the market.

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Veena says no to Asif

Lady gaga covers $1,500 magazine MONITORING DESK

MUMBAI

F

Fozia, Nadia, Sofia & Lina

Anika & Taliah

Leave it to super-size star Lady Gaga to break magazine records. Billboard reports that the larger-than-life pop singer currently graces the cover of the world’s largest magazine.

Art magazine visionaire’s ‘Larger than Life’ issue is an astounding 5 feet by 7 feet, and features Lady Gaga on the back and cover. The over-the-top issue has an over-the-top price to match: it runs $1,500! (The less-impressive standard size (36 inches by 49.48 inches) will cost Monsters just $375.) shot by Inez van Lamsweerde and vinoodh Matadin, the cover features Lady Gaga as an oilylooking mermaid with a gooey tail.

Gaga says of the image, “There is no oil too thick as to destroy the imagination.”

ageNCIeS

OUR days before the British courts declared former Pakistani cricketer Mohammad Asif guilty of match-fixing, on October 28, Pakistani actress veena Malik received a distress call from London telling her to immediately rush to the city to be with him. The actress shared a live-in relationship with him for a year and a half.

(Also see: Top 10 disgraced sportsmen) Apparently the much-married Asif wanted to mend bridges with veena. The actress says that the offer was firmly turned down. veena says, “It was a mutual friend from, London, Zahid Ali saab, who called me on October 26 stating that Asif wanted see me desperately and he wanted reconciliation. I declined. How can I turn back the clock? Asif and I shared a beautiful if stormy relationship. We were together until 2008 when I came to know about his match-fixing activities; I left him.”

“Even when we were together I tried to warn him against what he was doing. I am not surprised by the court’s verdict. But I am sad for him,” she adds.

Was the offer to return to the beleaguered cricketer tempting? “I can’t deny I still have feelings for him. Relationships don’t die,” admits the actress, and adds, “I’ve no hard feelings about any of my for-

mer boyfriends. My time with Asif was special. But I’ve moved on.” speaking about her ex-boyfriend’s wife, veena says, “Asif is a happily married man. I know his wife sanaa. In fact, when they were getting married, she called me up to find out about my relationship with Asif. I told her to please go ahead with the marriage.”

veena says getting involved with a married man is a complete no-no for her. “I would never do that to another woman.”

In fact, to avoid any temptation, veena says she even cancelled her trip to England.

“I was supposed to be there this week for an event. It’s best not to create situations where things can go out of hand.”

Why ‘puss in boots’ is one cool cat…

MONITORING DESK

Obaira & Sofia

Bucking the ‘Halloweekend’ trend this year, was ‘Puss in Boots’, the DreamWorks 3-D animated feature that promoted the ginger cat voiced by Antonio Banderas from supporting player in the ‘shrek’ films to star in his own movie, with salma Hayek as Puss’s rival and inamorata, the black-furred Kitty softpaws. DreamWorks Animation boss Jeffrey Katzenberg figured that the audience’s affection for Puss, plus Banderas’ appeal to Latino viewers, should make this tale of two kitties a hit and overcome any Halloween hex for films aimed at the family demographic. Armed with glowing reviews from critics (81% on Rotten Tomatoes) and a healthy A-minus Cinemascore from early viewers, ‘Puss in Boots’ did win the weekend at the North American box office with $34 million, according to preliminary studio estimates. That’s nearly three times the $12 million earned by another new movie, the science-fiction parable In Time, starring Justin Timberlake as a rebel running for his life against the clock, and close to seven times the $5 million cadged by ‘The Rum Diary’, Johnny Depp’s latest sodden tribute to his writer pal Hunter s.

Thompson. But it was the meekest opening for any homemade DreamWorks cartoon comedy of this millennium. (Jerry seinfeld’s 2007 ‘Bee Movie’ registered the previous low of $38 million; the 2006 Flushed Away, at $18.8 million, doesn’t count because it was a co-production with Aardman Films.) so something was messing with Puss‘s vibe. A black cat, and not Kitty softpaws, had crossed Katzenberg’s path and put a few jinxes on his movie. In a pre-release teleconference, Katzenberg noted that the top opening for a Halloween weekend had been ‘saw III’‘s $33.6 million in 2006. “We

believe we can exceed that benchmark,” he said. “Anything above and beyond that goes in the win column.” since most industry swamis were forecasting $40 million or more for Puss, Katzenberg’s figure seemed like the usual lowball prediction that studio executives make about their films’ opening gross. Yet Puss had to scratch and claw to exceed the debut take of ‘saw III’, and because Puss was budgeted at a relatively lavish $130 million (to a cheapo $10 million for the Jigsaw sequel), all bragging rights are revoked. Animated features needn’t grab the big bucks in their first three days of domestic release.

‘How to Train Your Dragon’, another DreamWorks start-up, opened to $43.7 million and earned nearly half a billion dollars worldwide. This summer’s ‘Kung Fu Panda 2’ weathered a mediocre $47.7 million weekend debut to reap $663 million globally and become the year’s top-grossing animated feature. (Cars 2 is second, with $551 million.) Paramount, the distributor of ‘Puss in Boots’, says it has a twoweekend strategy for the film in domestic theaters and big feline eyes toward a foreign-market smash. sequels are the cash kittens for animated features, but this one needs stronger numbers to green-light a Puss 2.

The coming mosnth should tell how many lives are left for the ginger cat.

Apple to Nasreen says Priyanka’s father is an address

iPhone uncouth idiot battery life issues

MUMBaI: Controversial writer Taslima Nasreen, who regularly tweets her opinion on sundry matters, has made Priyanka Chopra’s father her current target. She writes, “Priyanka Chopra’s father said, ‘Priyanka is like a son to me’. what an uncouth idiot man! daughter hatred not yet gone. I am waiting for the day when fathers would feel proud of their sons and say ‘my son is like a daughter to me’.” She ends by quoting feminist Gloria Steinem, “we’ve begun to raise daughters more like sons..but few have the courage to raise our sons more like our daughters.” ageNCIeS

Akshay, the

environmentalist MUMBaI: Angry with a driver for throwing out an empty pack of cigarettes on the road, the actor decided to stop him and teach him a lesson.

Celebrities endorsing social causes is not new.

But what Akshay Kumar did yesterday, definitely is. The star not only stopped a man from littering the city of Mumbai, but also posted a picture of the act on a social networking site urging others to keep the city of dreams free of garbage.

Talking about the incident, a very angry Akshay Kumar told Mumbai Mirror, “I had to drop my son to school. we had been talking about the numerous cars on road these days. And he was telling me how he wished that the roads were safe enough for him to cycle to school. After I dropped him, I was on my way to work. I was sitting in my car, in the usual Juhu traffic, when I saw a driver carelessly throw his empty pack of cigarettes on the road. I sat there quietly for about 5 seconds, before I just had to get out of my car, pick up the packet and throw the packet back at the driver’s face. I dared him to throw rubbish on the ground again. The man was very scared. He knew exactly what he had done. I know it for a fact that he will think twice before littering the streets of Mumbai again.” According to Akshay, the

growing economy would mean nothing if the city wasn’t clean. “This city has grown in so many incredible ways, but as long as we keep treating it with so much disrespect, nothing would matter.

The economic growth would mean nothing since nobody would want to live in a place full of rubbish,” said the actor. ageNCIeS

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Saturday, 5 November, 2011

Top seed Bartoli retires injured in Bali Page 23

Jailed Aamer ‘shattered’

Hard day for Pakistan as Sri Lanka edge ahead SCoReBoaRD

ISLAMABAD afp

Pakistan’s brilliant young paceman Mohammad Aamer is shattered at being jailed for deliberately bowling no-balls but will come back a clean player and a good man, a former mentor said Friday. The 19-year-old left-arm bowler, once regarded as the hottest new talent in the game, was sent to the Feltham young offenders institute for six months for his role in fixing part of Lord’s Test against England in August 2010.

Asif Bajwa, whose academy in the garrison city of Rawalpindi groomed Aamer in the early 1990s, said the youngster was “mentally shattered”. “I told him that he should be mentally prepared for this, but once he comes I will hide him from this cruel world and make him a better human being and a clean cricketer,” Bajwa told AFP, saying he spoke to Aamer on Thursday. “He is very worried about his future. I was talking to him on phone every day and I have told him that once he comes back I will not allow him to meet anyone, he needs mental peace,” said Bajwa. Aamer was the only player to plead guilty, a step which Judge Jeremy Cooke said “took courage” and saved him a nine-month sentence. Bajwa, 43, said the verdict was inevitable after such damning evidence but “very, very sad for a youngster”. But he refused to accept any blame for not better grooming the prodigy, instead pointing the finger at team management.

“As a young boy he was very disciplined and straight forward but once you come into the limelight, into international cricket, it’s tough to handle yourself,” said Bajwa. “I think 80 percent of the blame goes to the management of the England tour. Has anyone called manager Yawar saeed? Has anyone asked the security manager of the tour how unwanted people mixed up with the players? No one has done that,” he said.

SRI LaNka 1st innings (245-2) 4 t. paranavitana c Younis b gul 92 t. Dilshan c Younis b ajmal 144 k. Sangakkara c Younis b ajmal M. Jayawardene lbw b khan 39 17 a. Mathews c akmal b Rehman 39 k. Silva c ali b ajmal 15 k. kulasekara lbw b ajmal S. Randiv lbw b gul 1 17 D. prasad c akmal b khan 34 R. Herath not out 0 C. Welegedara b gul 11 eXtRaS: (lb5, nb6) 413 totaL: fall of wickets: 1-4 (paranavitana), 2-177 (Dilshan), 3-261 (Jayawardene), 4-300 (Mathews), 5-304 (Sangakkara), 6-330 (kulasekara), 7-331 (Randiv), 8-359 (prasad), 9-413 (Silva) Bowling: gul 29.3-10-76-3 (nb3), khan 27-4-94-2 (nb2), ajmal 51-4-132-4, Rehman 45-14-103-1 (nb1), Hafeez 1-0-3-0 oVeRS: 153.3 pakIStaN 1st innings 6 Mohammad Hafeez c Jayawardene b Welegedara 19 taufiq Umar st Silva b Herath 10 azhar ali not out 0 Younis khan not out totaL: (for two wkts) 35 fall of wickets: 1-8 (Hafeez), 2-35 (Umar) Bowling: Welegedara 5-1-11-1, prasad 4-0-9-0, kulasekara 30-14-0, Herath 5-4-1-1, Randiv 3-3-0-0 oVeRS: 20 toSS: Sri Lanka UMpIReS: Simon taufel (NZL) and Shahvir tarapore (IND) tV UMpIRe: Shozaib Raza (pak) MatCH RefeRee: David Boon (aUS).

SHARJAH

s

afp

RI Lanka removed Pakistan’s openers early to gain an upper hand on the second day of the third and final cricket Test against Pakistan at sharjah stadium here on Friday. sri Lanka, seeking a series-levelling win after losing the second Test by nine wickets in Dubai, removed Mohammad Hafeez (six) and Taufiq Umar (19) as Pakistan closed on 35-2 in reply to their rivals’ first innings total of 413. The first Test in Abu Dhabi ended in a draw.

Pakistan looked shaky from the start as Hafeez was dismissed in the fifth over of the innings, edging an outgoing delivery from left-arm paceman Chanaka Welegedara to slip for Mahela Jayawardene to take a simple catch. Left-arm spinner Rangana then struck in his third

SHArJAH: Sri lankan’s wicketkeeper Kaushal Silva (l) celebrates after stamping Pakistan’s cricketer Taufiq Umar (r). AFP over, inducing Umar to come out of the crease and had him stumped by wicketkeeper Kaushal silva, much to the disappointment of a holiday crowd of near 8,000 made up of Pakistan expats.

At close, Azhar was unbeaten on ten and Younis Khan yet to get off the mark, as Pakistan still trail by 378 runs.

Earlier, saeed Ajmal led Pakistan’s fightback with 4-132 after sri Lanka, well placed at 300-3, lost five wickets in the space of 59 runs before they were guided past 400 by a ninth wicket stand of 54 between silva (39) and Herath 34 not out. Umar Gul ably supported Ajmal with 3-76, but late additions to the sri Lankan total frustrated Pakistan who had the upper hand in the first two sessions. Pakistan knew they had to remove sangakkara to make inroads into the sri Lankan middle-order after they dismissed Angelo Mathews for 17 in the last over before lunch, caught behind off

left-arm spinner Abdul Rehman.

It was Ajmal who finally provided Pakistan with the prized wicket of the stylish left-hander when his delivery jumped on sangakkara, who failed to keep a pull down and was caught in the slip by Younis Khan after making 144. sangakkara, who also crossed 9,000 Test runs during the innings, showed pleasure at helping the team.

“It’s pretty encouraging to know that I crossed the 9,000 runs,” said sangakkara, only the second sri Lankan behind Jayawardene to reach the milestone. “My job is to keep scoring runs and every Test is a new challenge.” sangakkara hit 13 fours and two sixes during his 344-ball knock, which began in the first over of the match on Thursday. This was his second century of the series following an epic matchsaving 211 in Abu Dhabi. sangakkara put on 84 for the third

wicket with Jayawardene (39) and another 39 with Mathews for the fourth after sri Lanka resumed at 245-2.

Jayawardene managed to add just seven to his overnight score of 32 before being given leg-before off paceman Khan. Jayawardene hit two boundaries during his highest score of the series. sangakkara and Mathews negotiated Pakistan’s pace-spin attack with confidence, taking sri Lanka past the 300-mark in the penultimate over before lunch. But Pakistan struck in the last over before lunch as they got the second wicket in the session, with sri Lanka managing 55 runs in two hours.

Ajmal also dismissed debutant Kosala Kulasekara, leg-before wicket for 15, while Gul struck to remove suraj Randiv for one. Ajmal finally broke the ninth wicket stand by dismissing silva, while Gul wrapped up the innings when he bowled Welegedara for nought.

Calls for overhaul of Pakistani cricket intensify ISLAMABAD afp

ISlAMABAd: People read newspapers featuring coverage of jailed players at a roadside stall. AFP

A furious Pakistan demanded Friday that cricket makes good on promises to clean up corruption, declaring prison terms for three disgraced stars a wake-up call for a national sport in crisis. The spot-fixing scandal at the Lord’s Test against England in August 2010 was taken personally in a country where cricket is an obsession and a respite from the bitter realities of Taliban attacks, recession and corruption.

But when a British judge sentenced former captain salman Butt to 30 months, fast bowler Mohammad Asif one year and Mohammad Aamer to six months, Pakistanis were left wondering if they were really watching sport -- or just greedy men lining their own pockets. “We are made mugs for getting up in the middle of the night, lunatics for investing deep emotional attachment and fools for devising our own strategies,” wrote a local paper.

Millions of fans want to see Pakistan implement a 2012 deadline from the International Cricket Council (ICC) to end political appointments in cricket -- one of only three countries in the world where this still happens. Late Thursday, a few dozen local players and young men protested against the disgraced trio in the central city of Multan, setting alight por-

traits of the players and calling for a complete overhaul of Pakistani cricket. “Pakistan should completely start afresh with a new set of players because there are still question marks over a few of the others,” Tariq Neem-ullah Khan, a former local cricket player and political activist told the gathering. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), which has kept a low profile since new chairman Zaka Ashraf took over last week, said it was determined to eradicate corruption from the game after “a sad day for cricket in the country”.

But there were no high-profile apologies or resignations. “PCB is determined to ensure that any form of corrupt behaviour from Pakistan cricket is stamped out,” said spokesman Nadeem sarwar.

After the scandal broke, the ICC came down hard on Pakistan, last year threatening them with suspension if reforms were not implemented. The PCB said it has taken serious measures to prevent future misconduct and that “more would follow” as and when the need arises. “Ridding Pakistan cricket of any possible corrupt behaviour will remain a high priority,” it said.

Pakistan’s greatest cricketing hero, Imran Khan, who led the team to win the 1992 World Cup but is today an opposition politician, said the verdicts would be a wake-up call and that “from now on we should be ultra careful”.

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Saturday, 5 November, 2011

pCB rejects aamer’s claim The Pakistan Cricket Board has hit back at Mohammad Aamer for his claim that the PCB did not educate them. Aamer claimed Friday that the PCB did not educate him relating to anti corruption codes.

The PCB, in a statement, said: “we would like it known for the record that this claim is in total contradiction to the facts.” An official o of the board said that in March 2010 Aamer signed the Code of Conduct for players when he was issued his Central Contract. “The code of conduct clearly states that by signing the same, the player commits to abiding by all ICC rules regarding betting, match fixing, corruption, and any matter that could call into question the integrity of the game. Aamer acknowledged that he understood the code and his responsibilities under the same. Aamer also committed that he would abide by these rules and any others formulated in this regard,” he said.

‘I was offered millions to fix’ Former english wicketkeeper Paul Nixon has claimed that he was offered 'millions of pounds' to fix a Twenty20 match in england. The 41-year-old, however, did not elaborate on his claim but said he had spoken to ICC's anti-corruption unit when the incident happened. "I was offered enormous money, millions of pounds, to fix a Twenty20 game in england," Nixon, who retired at the end of last season, was quoted as saying in the daily Mail. "I had to speak to the anticorruption guys and they then went to work but people have to be caught doing it and that's tough. This has all done terrible damage to the game," he added.

fixing a global problem Pakistan’s former captain Shahid Afridi said Friday that match-fixing was a global phenomenon. “It’s not only in Pakistan, it happens in other countries too where the cricket boards bury the matter,” Afridi told the Times of India. Two other former Pakistan captains last night expressed their sympathy for Aamer.

“My heart goes for Aamer, who is young and committed a mistake,” said Pakistan legend Imran Khan.

“Aamer is young and I think that when he saw others doing it [corruption], he thought, ‘I can also get away with it. “when these players see corruption in their own society, they think they could also escape if they do something wrong,” he said. “But we should not hide ourselves behind such an excuse.”

another court awaits trio A local court in lahore ordered authorities to register a criminal case against former cricket captain Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir. The three cricketers were convicted of corruption and spot-fixing by a court in Britain. The additional district and sessions court in lahore issued the order in response to an application filed by lawyer Muhammad zubair Bulqan, who had asked the judge to direct authorities to register a case against the Pakistani cricketers involved in spot-fixing. Bulqan said the players had tarnished Pakistan's image in the world of cricket by indulging in spot-fixing. He said the offence the players had committed was not a tolerable one for the entire country. The petitioner said he earlier submitted an application to Islamapura police station for registering a case against the cricketers but officials had refused to act on his request.

aamer didn’t do it for money Mohammad Aamer had called his family in lahore on wednesday evening to ask them to pray for him and after the verdict his brother Saleem called on the Pakistani government to intervene. “Aamer is a kid, he can’t understand things. These six months are a lot for an immature kid,” Saleem said. Aamer’s mother fought back tears as she said: “He was innocent, he has not done the no-ball for the sake of money, he was forced to throw [a] no-ball.” Mohammed Asif’s father, Hasan deen, a dairy farmer, hit out at the sentence. “It is human beings after all who go to jail,” he said. “He hasn’t committed a murder. we haven’t made any great money from cricket. I know Asif will return home one day.”

Staff RepoRtS/ageNCIeS

Sports 21

BUTT FAMILy POSTPONES WEddING

Mazhar would stay with Afridi, says Salman’s father LAHORE

T

Staff RepoRt

HE family of disgraced former captain salman Butt was so griefstricken Friday over his 30-month sentence for corruption in Britain that it postponed his sister’s wedding. The 27-year-old bowler who once delighted millions of Pakistanis with his blistering talent woke up in a British prison with his name tarnished at home and abroad, convicted over cricket’s worst fixing scandal in more than 10 years.

Zulfiqar Butt made a sensational disclosure in a private Tv channel discussion by accusing that convicted bookie/match fixer Mazhar Majeed had friendship with former captain shahid Afridi and his son (salman Butt) has been trapped into spot fixing scandal by a conspiracy.

He said that Mazhar used to stay at Afridi’s residence but Iqbal Afridi, shahid Afridi’s brother, termed the allegations completely baseless. Zulfiqar further alleged that later on Afridi and Mazhar Majeed had fought over some financial matters and their friendship came to an end.

He alleged that no one was taking this into consideration. He challenged Afridi to come on a Tv channel and said he would debate it with Afridi who he alleged had closed ties with Mazhar Majeed. It is worth a mention that in this scandal Mazahr has been saying that he tried to trap Afridi many times but he failed to do so. similarly, Afridi is on

record saying that he had informed the PCB officials of the suspicious activities of Mazhar Majeed. some media reports also quoted Afridi as saying that Mazhar tried to contact him many times but he snubbed him.

When this scribe tried to seek Afridi's re-action to these allegations his phone was off. Then an attempt was made on Afridi's residence number where shoaib Afridi picked the phone. This scribe then phoned shahid's elder brother Iqbal Afridi who termed the allegations as rubbish.

Iqbal challenged Zulfiqar Ali Butt saying he should present the passport of Mazhar Majeed to prove when Majeed visited Pakistan. Iqbal Afridi further said first Zulfiqar Ali Butt has to establish whether Majeed ever traveled to Karachi. The scandal it seems has opened a new Pandora box and more allegations and counter allegations are expected to come on surface.

Meanwhile, Butt’s father said his lawyers would file an appeal in London on Friday, but that he was ready to die if his son’s guilt is proven.

Unlike the 19-year-old Mohammad Aamer, whom the judge said he corrupted, Butt grew up in relative luxury, the eldest of three children born to Zulfikar Ali Butt, who runs a farming business. “Our own friends conspired against us.” Zulfiqar did not explain the conspiracy any further but insisted the Butt family is not wealthy. “You can check our bank balance. We weren’t even able to build our own house,” Daily Telegraph quoted him as saying.

Butt’s sister Khadija added: “His mistake was to be at the wrong place with the wrong people. This is his only mistake.”

Zulfiqar Butt said his son’s conviction was a “big tragedy” for the family and that as a result, he had been forced to postpone his 22-year-old dentistry student daughter’s impending nuptials. “she was scheduled to marry in Lahore this month, but it has been postponed because the family is in a state of shock,” he said. “Her in-laws understand our grief,” he added. Butt’s sis-

ters on Thursday alleged that their brother had been made a scapegoat for a wider conspiracy and was innocent. “If salman’s involvement is proved and evidence is provided that he took money, I tell the nation that my son salman and I are ready to be hanged publicly,” Zulfikar said.

“I have brought up my children never to do such a thing.” salman was convicted of conspiring to accept corrupt payments and cheat at gambling, and was fined £30,937 ($49,560) in addition to his jail term.

The judge called him the “orchestrator” and that given his “leadership status”, he was “more culpable” than the other two bowlers also sentenced.

But Zulfikar described his son as a “practising Muslim who prays five times a day” and said he was in saudi Arabia on pilgrimage when salman telephoned to say that he had been charged after the Lord’s Test against England in 2010.

“I immediately asked him: Tell me on oath how much are you involved in this scam? He swore that he was not involved.

“My son does not tell lies. He is very kind and helpful. He never fought with anyone.

He is a good natured person. “He has been trapped in a controversy just to malign the game of cricket and Pakistan. Two other bowlers were also involved because they performed well. The assets of our national team have been sent to jail under a conspiracy.” The father said no one from the Pakistan Cricket Board had contacted the family and nor had anyone expressed sympathy.

Aamer’s family received death threats SPM Bucks qualify for Amar Cables T20 final LAHORE

Staff RepoRt

The targeting of Aamer and his family by underworld figures involved in illegal gambling in the subcontinent played a large part in dissuading Aamer from giving evidence as a witness in the trial of salman Butt and Mohammad Asif, and in his own mitigation hearing following his guilty plea.

Trial judge Mr Justice Cooke revealed the existence of “credible” threats as he sentenced Aamer to six months’ detention for his part in conspiring to fix elements of the Oval and Lord’s Tests, reported Britain’s Daily Telegraph.

As well as claims provided by the player and his family, Cooke cited supporting evidence from the ICC’s Anti-Corruption and security Unit.

Aamer’s family claimed to have revealed death threats after his involvement

in the fix was revealed by the News of the World, and earlier this year wicketkeeper Zulqainan Haider fled from the Pakistan squad claiming he had been threatened.

Aamer pleaded guilty to bowling two no-balls in the Lord’s Test but denied any involvement in wider corruption, something the judge did not accept.

“You have referred, in material pre-

sented to the court, to threats to yourself and your family, saying that there are significant limits to what you can say in public,” Mr Justice Cooke said.

“The reality of those threats and the strength of the underworld influences who control unlawful betting abroad is shown by the supporting evidence in the bundle of documents, including materials from the Anti Corruption and security Unit of the ICC.” In his guilty plea Aamer admitted only to fixing in relation to the Lord’s Test and claimed that he had come “under pressure” to take part in the conspiracy, and that failure to do so would have consequences for his career.

The judge rejected the plea because he had heard evidence of Aamer’s involvement in the wider conspiracy including the Oval, and of contact with an apparent fixer from Dubai. He did give him credit for pleading guilty, saying it had required “courage”.

Amjad Hussain Bukhari gives the Man of the Match award to romail Bashir while Amer Ilyas Butt and Aizad Hussain Syed look on.

LAHORE Staff RepoRt

Pakistan will take years to regain credibility eXpeRt CoMMeNt

GeoFFreY BoYCoTT This is tragedy, because there are a lot of good people in Pakistan who would not dream of taking dirty money to work with bookmakers I am glad that the spot-fixers are going to jail, but I would have sent them down for longer. You can forget all that stuff about rehabilitation: lock them up, I say, and throw away the key. Whether it is match-fixing or spot-fixing, this sort of cheating will destroy our game if we do not act. Cricket has always had a reputation for being more than just a sport. It stands for a decent moral code,

which is why the phrase “just not cricket” has become a byword for anything unfair or underhand. People like salman Butt and the fixer-in-chief Mazhar Majeed tarnish the whole sport, and other players by association. In my case, the link was particularly personal because Majeed used my name during his wild flights of fancy in the taped conversation with the News of the World’sundercover reporter. Majeed said he knew me, Mike Gatting and Phil Tufnell through a cricket charity. And unlike Brad Pitt and Roger Federer - two other names that this Walter Mitty character threw into his sales patter - I have to admit that I did meet him before a one-day match at Old Trafford.

He came up and introduced himself to me while I was checking into my hotel, and gave me his business card. Then he asked me a couple of questions about the match, just like so many people I meet every day.

I don’t mind talking cricket with people who are interested, whether it is at the ground or on the train home. But for Majeed to suggest that I was his friend just adds to my disgust at the whole affair. Fixing has been a problem in cricket for more than a decade now and we are still not getting to grips with it. I know deep down that other players have been involved. You hear some worrying stories when you spend your life following the

game, and yet you cannot prove them. Butt is the one who got caught and we should make an example of him. Mohammad Asif does not have any excuse either. He has been around for a long time and must know the difference between right and wrong. The only one I have sympathy with is Mohammad Amir. When you come into the team at 18 years of age, it is never going to be easy to tell your captain to get stuffed, even if he is asking you to do something that is clearly against the ethics of the game. But while Amir might have deserved a less punitive sentence than Butt, all four of them are getting off lightly. This sort of dishonesty ruins the whole experience of watching sport, and even playing it. soon we will find that every unexpected result, every interesting or unusual event on the field, is surrounded by a cloud of suspicion.

The whole Pakistan team will take years to regain credibility. Which is a tragedy, because there are a lot of good people in Pakistan who would not dream of taking dirty money to work with bookmakers. At the trial, Majeed referred to the off-spinner saeed Ajmal as one example of a player who would never get caught up in fixing of any kind. The case throws a spotlight on the ineffectuality of the International Cricket Council and the body they set up to deal with this problem, the Anti-Corruption and

security Unit. Who has the ACsU ever actually caught? It will claim that Marlon samuels, the West Indian batsman, was banned for two years as a result of its investigation. But even that evidence was picked up by Indian police, who were tapping the phone of a bookmaker.

All in all, it is not much to show for a decade’s work. Especially if you believe, as I do, that the spectre of match-fixing has never really gone away. The ACsU has spent too long as window dressing. I have no quibble with the education programmes it has introduced for young players. But the crackdown on mobile phones in dressing rooms hardly seems to have stopped the rot. Crooked cricketers will always find a way to get around those sorts of restrictions. sir Ronnie Flanagan, the head of the ACsU, said not to be too worried, because corruption was “certainly not rampant”. But I say that the ACsU should be doing what the News of the World was brave enough to do - and that is to go out and catch the wrongdoers. Use sting operations, if that is the only way to build a water-tight case. When the police are working against terrorism, and trying to prevent us from being blown up by a rogue bomb, they go undercover and infiltrate the criminal groups. I don’t see why this should be any different. teLegRapH

sMP Bucks qualified for the final of the second Amar Cables T20 veterans Cricket Tournament after beating sPM stags by two runs in the semifinal here at Ali Garh Cricket ground on Friday.

Batting first, sPM Bucks made 189 for eight in 20 overs. Tariq Ramzan scored 41 runs while Romail Bashir and shahbaz Muhammad made 31 and 26 runs respectively. shahid Anwar and Zia-ud-din took two wickets each.

In reply, sPM stags could manage 187 runs for nine 9 in 20 overs. shahid Anwar scored 68 runs while shakeel Malik and Khawaja Naseer-ud-din made 32 and 31* runs respectively.

Romail Bashir grabbed three wickets for 42 runs while Rehan Butt, Nadeem Baig and shahbaz Muhammad took two wickets each.

The final of the event will be played between Amar Cables and sPM Bucks at the LCCA Cricket ground on sunday.

In the end, chief guest Ali Garh Cricket club President Amjad Hussain Bukhari gave the man of the match award to Romail Bashir. Amer Ilyas Butt and Aizad Hussain syed were also present on the occasion.

Former Pakistani Captain Inzamamul-Haq and Khawaja Nadeem Ahmad will be the chief guests on the final.

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22 Sports INTEr-SCHOOL GAMES

organisers seek assistance from Punjab govt

Saturday, 5 November, 2011

NEW DELHI: West Indies cricketers warm up during a training session at the Ferozeshah Kotla Stadium. AFP

LAHORE Staff RepoRt

The Punjab Olympics Association Friday announced Rs 2.3 million budget for the organisation of the 4th Inter-school and Collegiate Games and have written to the Punjab government for financial aid.

Addressing a press conference here on Friday, President PbOA syed shahid Ali said that a large number of schools and colleges are taking part in the Games.

Malik Iftikhar, Tania Malik and Kh Idris were also present on the occasion. shaid said that the attention given to sports was not sufficient enough to produce international players. The meeting was also attended by a large number of officials of different institutes. Malik Iftikhar said that it was the duty of the corporate society and industrialists to come forward in support of sporting activities. Idris Haider informed that Khyber PK and sindh have also confirmed participation of 20-member contingent each. He said that the Games, which are to be held rom November 15 to 19, will be contested in 23 boys and 14 girls disciplines. Chief Minister Punjab Mian shahbaz shairf will be the chief guest of the opening ceremony while Punjab Governor Latif Khosa will be the chief guest of the closing ceremony. Tania Malik said that around 300 schools and college will be taking part in the games with just 75 teams have already been registered in the basketball event.

Pakistani weightlifting team leaves for France LAHORE Staff RepoRt

The two member Pakistan weightlifting team has left for France to take part in the World Weightlifting Championship.

The event is being held at Disneyland, Paris from November 5 to 13. PWF secretary Hafiz Imran Butt and weightlifter Irfan Butt will be representing Pakistan there. Hafiz Imran will be attending the world weightlifting congress meeting.

He will also act as referee while Irfan Butt will compete in the 77 kg body weight category. A Pakistani lady weightlifter Abdullah Kalsoom of KP, now settled in UsA, will join them from the states. she will represent in the 48 kg bodyweight category.

FIxING FIASCO

Rameez urges youngsters to learn lesson LAHORE Staff RepoRt

Former Pakistan captain Rameez Raja believes that the manner by which the fixing culprits were penalised would help clear the game of corruption. He believes that the incident has indirectly helped the Pakistan team gel together and play for a better future. In an interview with Gulf News, Raja, also a former Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chief executive, said: "It is sad news for Pakistan fans because they had already put the spot-fixing saga behind them, but suddenly it has erupted once again [through the court ruling].

"In a way it is a good thing that the game is being cleared of the mess. Pakistan can now look forward to a better future, especially since their performance in the last 12 months has been extremely impressive.

They seem to have learned a great deal from

this horrible experience." Elaborating on the lessons to the learned from the incident, which saw three of their most talented cricketers sent to jail by a British court on Thursday, Raja said: "I think this whole episode has sort of made the players gel together.

Also it has given them the bond. All that we now need to do is to prove the point to the world that we are to be recognised as a good cricket-playing country and that we need to perform in every game." Raja feels the controversy has also made the task ahead of the Pakistan team a bit harder. "This incident has also made it a bit tough on themselves because whenever they lose a match fingers can be pointed at them," he said.

"It is heartening to know that they have been able to absorb all the pressures and go on to perform out there. This is something really great for not only Pakistan cricket but also for world cricket too." Raja also wants the PCB to monitor the players and the game correctly at all levels. "From the board's point of view, I feel there should be zero tolerance when it comes to indiscipline," he said. "They should put in legislation at every level of the game from under-19 and first class cricket to ensure

that they boss the game in a proper manner.

I think it is also pertinent for the players to recognise their importance as ambassadors of the game and that there could be no other high than wearing the green cap or green blazer when you go out there and represent the country. "They should also create a healthy environment in the dressing room by making sure that you get the right people governing the cricket team."

When asked whether the Anti-Corruption Unit of the International Cricket Council needs to be made more powerful, Raja said: "I don't think that they can have the powers of a policeman or a police department, so I think they are out there as a deterrent. "I think at the end of the day they must be happy because they had put in a strong case against these three players and the court case going in favour of the ICC would obviously give them a lot of hope.

They need to keep an eye on everything."

EPL CrySTAL BALL rOUNd 11

Straightforward fixtures for the big guns g

Arsenal need a convincing win to herald the ‘turning of the corner’, while Chelsea need a backlash Comment KUNWAR KHULDUNE SHAHID

NeWCaStLe VS. eVeRtoN Newcastle’s win at stoke was probably their biggest win of the season and they are now officially in the running for a topfour spot. A consistent lineup, robust midfield, and the goal-scoring prowess of Ba make the Magpies a force to be reckoned with, as they host an Everton side devoid of any inkling of confidence and have Cahill and Distin as injury doubts.

Obertan is out for Newcastle.

Prediction: 3-1

aRSeNaL VS. WeSt BRoM Most sides come at the Emirates, decide to sit deep, do not allow any space behind and in turn frustrate Arsenal’s forwards.

Roy Hodgson would be looking to do the same, especially since they have a ‘long term’ striking absentee – pun intended.

Arsenal, nonetheless, need to ensure that they don’t follow-up the ‘wonderful’ at Chelsea with a ‘weird’ this time round.

Needless to point out van Persie’s importance, Walcott should, however, begin to instill some consistency after his stagger-

ing display at the Bridge.

Prediction: 3-0

VILLa VS. NoRWICH 9th hosts 8th in what promises to be an evenly matched encounter. The two midfield packs should cancel out one another, and the forwards won’t find it easy to outdo two well organised defenses, despite Bent and Agbonlahor being on song off-late.

Prediction: 1-1

BLaCkBURN VS. CHeLSea Back to back defeats have derailed the Blues who looked on song till Drogba got sent off at QPR, and the midweek result was also a set-back. Blackburn however, present an ideal opportunity do get their season back on track. Torres needs to take more responsibility in leading the attacking, and combine with sturridge and Mata to ensure they come out with all three points. Blackburn do have the potential of making things rugged though.

Prediction: 1-2

LIVeRpooL VS. SWaNSea Gerrard is out for this one, as Liverpool welcome swansea – a side that has impressed one and all, and has Graham fir-

ing on all fronts. Carroll has a chance to stake a claim for a permanent role in the starting lineup and suarez would look to continue his impressive run of form. If Liverpool can stop Graham and sinclair, they could win comfortably.

Prediction: 2-1

Chelsea need to

bounce back

MaN UtD VS. SUNDeRLaND United continue to eke out results in the league and in Europe, as they look to chase down a five point lead created

by City. Playing Rooney in midfield seemed to sort out the midfield issue, but created one in the forward-line in a leaf out of sophocles' Oedipus the King’s gamut of irony. sunderland meanwhile are showing signs of improvements with sessegnon coming to the fore. United, nevertheless, should have Rooney and Hernandez upfront to cause sunderland’s defense perpetual trouble; United’s backline is anyone’s guess though.

Prediction: 3-0

a swelling list of casualties themselves.

Aguerro, Balotelli and Dzeko should have their hands full in this one.

Prediction: 0-3

WoLVeS VS. WIgaN Both sides are without a win in their last 7 matches and a combined total of a single point in the same time span. This could be touted as an early ‘relegation six pointer’ as both sides struggle for inspiration upfront, despite having the personnel.

Prediction: 1-1

QpR VS. MaN CItY

BoLtoN VS. Stoke

City are soaring both domestically and in Europe. Doubts over silva might be a concern, but City’s ensemble of superstars should take care of QPR, who have

Bolton are giving Wigan and Black a run for shambolic eminence, but should be buoyed by a visiting side that normally doesn’t turn up away from home. N’gog

needs to tie up his laces as most of his teammates, including Petrov are on a downward spiral. stoke have their skipper shawcross as a doubt, but the Walters-Crouch partnership is working well. sticking my neck out, considering Bolton haven’t had a draw.

Prediction: 2-2

fULHaM VS. SpURS Two sides off the back of contrasting Europa Cup fortunes could play out a fast, fatigue-laden encounter. Fulham are struggling to string together back-to-back results – despite a decent array of forwards – and welcome a spurs side that rested their big guns in midweek, and have Bale and van Der vaart in breathtaking form.

Prediction: 1-2

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Saturday, 5 November, 2011

Sports 23

Sachin landmark eludes India in Windies series NEW DELHI Indian cricket captain Mahendra Singh dhoni (l) and west Indies cricket captain darren Sammy (r) pose with the trophy. AFP

Top seed Bartoli retires injured in Bali BALI ReUteRS

Top seed Marion Bartoli squandered two match points before retiring with an ankle injury in her opening match at the Tournament of Champions against spain’s Anabel Medina Garrigues on Friday. The Frenchwoman, who also retired in the final of the event in 2009, collapsed to the ground after injuring her right ankle soon after the start of the third set. she was writhing in agony as she received treatment and was eventually helped off the court, surrendering the match 4-6 7-6(7) 1-0.

Bartoli had stood just one point away from advancing but was left frustrated as her erratic serve let her down, prompting her to discard several rackets. After watching her spanish opponent save one match point, Bartoli double faulted on the second. “It happened in the tiebreaker,” Bartoli told Reuters.

“On one of Anabel’s dropshots I really felt my ankle blocked and my whole body went forward on it. “It started to hurt a few seconds after and when I got the match point on my serve I really struggled to put any weight on my foot. Everything falls apart from there,” she added. “I didn’t put any weight on it while I sat in my chair (before the third set) but when I began to walk to serve I realised how bad it was getting. Even if I won the match NUSA dUA: Marion Bartoli of France hits the ball point I wouldn’t be able to play tomorrow. against Anabel Medina Garrigues of Spain. AFP

T

watCh it LiVe STAR SPORTS C’wealth Bank Tournament of Champions 2011 11:00AM

TEN SPORTS Pakistan v Sri Lanka 3rd Test Day 3 11:00AM

STAR SPORTS

afp

HE fervent wait for Indian batting superstar sachin Tendulkar’s 100th international century is likely to overshadow the three-Test series against the West Indies starting on sunday. Tendulkar’s bid for an unprecedented century of centuries has been the talking point ever since he hammered his 99th international hundred against south Africa at the World Cup in March.

Millions of fans expected Tendulkar to achieve the feat on the recent tour of England, but the batting ace headed home without a threefigure knock in the disastrous series, which India lost 4-0. He was eventually ruled out of the subsequent home and away one-day matches against England due to a toe injury and has now gone eight games -- four one-dayers and as many Tests -- without a century.

The hosts will also look to redeem their Test image after the England tour where the whitewash saw them lose their number one Test ranking.

They also lost the tour one-dayers 30. India, however, returned to winning ways in the 50-over format when they blanked England 5-0 in the home one-day series last month. India also hope to use the West Indies Tests to assess the form and fitness of their key players ahead of next month’s highprofile tour of Australia. “It’s going to be an important series against the West Indies, especially after the dismal time we had in England,” said middle-order batsman venkatsai Laxman. “We want to come back strongly and regain the top position.

“It was great to see the one-day team respond so splendidly against England at home by whitewashing them.

“Hopefully, the Test team too will start off the season on a winning note, so that we will be high on confidence before leaving for Australia.”

Tendulkar, opener virender sehwag, paceman Ishant sharma and all-rounder Yuvraj singh have all returned to the squad after recovering from injuries sustained during the England tour. India, who won both the Test and one-day series on their tour of the West Indies in

AFC Champions League 2011 Final 03:00PM

on-song Hattaf in November Cup final LAHORE Staff RepoRt

May-July, will be searching for the right bowling combination to go up against Australia. The hosts have named four uncapped bowlers -spinners Ravichandran Ashwin and Rahul sharma, and pacemen varun Aaron and Umesh Yadav -- in their squad in the absence of key fast bowler Zaheer Khan and spinner Harbhajan singh. While Zaheer is recovering from a hamstring injury, Harbhajan was axed following his poor performance on the England tour where he bagged just two wickets in as many Tests.

The West Indies won the recent Test and one-day series in Bangladesh, but will find India to be a formidable unit in home conditions. The tourists will again be without hard-hitting opener Chris Gayle following his differences with the West Indies Cricket Board. He has not played for the West Indies since the World Cup earlier this year.

SQUaDS

WeSt INDIeS (fRoM): darren Sammy (capt), Adrian Barath, Carlton Baugh, devendra Bishoo, Kraigg Brathwaite, darren Bravo, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Fidel edwards, Kirk edwards, Keiran Powell, denesh ramdin, ravi rampaul, Kemar roach, Marlon Samuels, Shane Shillingford.

Coach: ottis Gibson (wIS) INDIa (fRoM): Mahendra Singh dhoni (capt), virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, rahul dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, venkatsai laxman, virat Kohli, Yuvraj Singh, Ajinkya rahane, ravichandran Ashwin, Pragyan ojha, rahul Sharma, Ishant Sharma, Umesh Yadav, varun Aaron.

Coach: duncan Fletcher (zIM)

Hataff on Friday routed Hira valves and qualified for final of the November Polo Cup. They will face Adisseo for the title.

In the last league match of the event, Hataff hammered Hira valves 10-1.

Abdul Rehman Monnoo and Mohammad samir Malik were the stars of the win with the former scoring six goals while the remaining four went samir’s way.

The only goals for valves side came by the end of the game through Nafees Bary.

On the other hand, Men’s store moved to the subsidiary final after winning two chukker encounters and will now face Newage. Men’s store first cracked FAs Tube Mills 4-1 and then thrashed Pak Punjab Carpet, which failed to score a single goal. Later, FAs Tube Mills after a tough fight beat Pak Punjab Carpets by half-a-goal margin as both the teams converted two goals each in the stipulated time. The matches were supervised

by Usman Haye, Adnan Jalil Azam, shah shamyl Alam and Mian Hussain Iftikhar.

Afghan FC, KeSC victorious in PPl LAHORE Staff RepoRt

Afghan FC and KEsC won their matches in the eighth Pakistan Premier Football League on Friday.

Afghan FC defeated Baloch FC by 4-1 at Govt. High school (Chaman). Zabihullah of Afghan FC scored the goals in the 7th, 58th, 65th and 82nd minute of the match while Amir Khan scored the only goal for Baloch FC in 77th minute.

In the second match, KEsC beat NBP by 1-0 at Peoples Football stadium Karachi. Akbar Ali scored the winning goal in 54th minute of the match.

MOST vALUABLE PLAyEr

RVP is the league’s MVP g

No other player can singlehandedly affect the ePl standings more than robin van Persie

A

FTER last weekend’s epic 5-3 triumph at stamford Bridge, Wenger, again, had claimed that his side had turned the corner. However, the 0-0 draw against Marseille on Tuesday not only brought under scrutiny the measurements and dynamics of this particular corner that the North Londoners endeavour to veer out of, it solicited a more germane question of how Arsenal would fair without their talismanic – an overused term, not so here – captain Robin van Persie.

After van Persie’s momentous treble at the Bridge, Arsenal had made a resounding statement of growth. Au contraire, the infertility at home against Marseille – a side struggling in the French Ligue 1 – was unambiguously the corollary of van Persie not being introduced into the game till the hour mark. By that time, the tone had been set at the Emirates in another one of those frustrating outings at home, where the Gunners dominate most matters on the pitch barring the goal count. With Arsenal’s reliance on their captain to score goals and provide moments of inspiration, van Persie domineers over his teammates in terms of sheer vitality. Even so, Arsenal’s position on the league table, their season targets and of course their reliance on

their captain connotes that Robin van Persie is the most valuable player in the EPL. Arsenal’s quest of finishing in the top four hinges on the performances – more relevantly, the fitness – of the Dutchman.

And hence, he could singlehandedly be the difference between Arsenal finishing in the lower echelons of the top half, or ending up within the proximity of the summit.

No other player comes close to matching the sway that the former Feyenoord man has on the shape up of the league table.

Whilst, David silva is the unanimously proclaimed ‘Player of the season’ so far and he wheels the play in City’s colours, if one were to hypothetically take him out of the City line-up it wouldn’t exactly be catastrophic and the table toppers would still finish close to the top. The same goes for Rooney, van Der vaart, and anyone you care to name from the Chelsea squad.

Even Liverpool don’t screen their emblematic ‘one man shows’ owing to a more balanced squad. If anyone comes close to matching van Persie’s impact on the league, it’s Cheick Tiote for Newcastle, but that is owing to the Magpies punching well above their weight, albeit deservedly. van Persie’s recent goal-scoring stats are staggering indeed; 12 goals

from 14 games this season, 28 goals in 27 EPL games this calendar year – he has scored 53 percent of Arsenal’s league goals in 2011; no other player has posted a higher percentage this season. It is criminal that he hasn’t even been shortlisted for the Ballon d’or award, when in all honesty his displays over the past year or so are next only to the big two of world football – Ronaldo and Messi. The personal accolades, however, are so intermingled, with the team accolades that sometimes the pool for handpicking the winner is blatantly obvious. The fact that there are eight Barcelona players in the shortlist divulges everything.

Following the unceremonious departures of the midfield duo of Fabregas and Nasri in the summer, van Persie’s presence became all the more ominous. While most Arsenal fans would venerate Fabregas’ exploits as the vanguard of their play, it was van Persie who stood out in the most significant occasions even in Cesc’s epoch. Fabregas – opulently dexterous though he undoubtedly is – quite often than not, failed to translate his supremacy against the big guns when the onus was on him. He was never fit enough to be the captain, with his lack of mental fortitude

Arsenal rely on

van Persie’s

brilliance

and his handling of his troops coming in question intermittently. van Persie however, is a befitting leader, one who comprehends the game, marshals his troops and doesn’t hide in the big games. The only glaring question mark rests over his fitness, which is why Wenger is doing is best to keep his captain wrapped in cotton wool and not being over-exerted. van Persie – originally a winger who also had the versatility to play in the hole – was initially touted as the successor to

Bergkamp’s throne and is now following the ‘goal-scoring’ footsteps of Ian Wright and Thierry Henry. But as things stand, with the Gunners’ potpourri of footballing struts, he is more paramount for the club than the aforementioned trio of Arsenal legends. And, Arsenal’s captain is clear as to where he stands on being a goal-scoring number 9 or the playmaking number 10, “I’m a nine-and-a-half” he told Arsenal magazine recently. kUNWaR kHULDUNe SHaHID

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Saturday, 5 November, 2011

Magistracy revived in Sindh

lJ hitmen kill lawyer in attack on ex-SHC judge’s house

KARACHI QaZI aSIf/ RaZZak aBRo

KARACHI Staff RepoRt

A lawyer was killed on Friday in an attack on the vehicle of former sindh High Court judge, Justice Zawar Hussain Jaffery outside the latter’s residence in Block-v of Gulshan Iqbal. Later, police managed to arrest two alleged assailants, who, according to sources, are affiliated with the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi.

They added that it was a sectarian attack as the judge is shia and so was the deceased lawyer. According to details, the judge was at his residence when a lawyer, Zainul Abideen, came to visit him. some assailants in Cultus car opened fire at the judge’s vehicle parked outside his home, injuring Abideen in the process. When the security guard of the judge opened fire on the escaping attackers, they lost control of their vehicle and rammed their car into the wall of a nearby house.

They tried to escape on foot, but by that time the police had reached there and arrested two of them following a brief encounter. The injured lawyer was taken to the Aga Khan hospital where he succumbed to his injuries.

The body was later shifted to the Abbasi shaheed Hospital. The arrested men were identified as Jameel and Muneer and one Kalashnikov, two Uzi sub-machineguns, a rifle, a rope, a knife and bullets were seized from their possession. The Crime Investigation Department took them into custody and shifted them to an undisclosed location. The sources said that the two men are members of the banned Lashkar-eJhangvi and important information could be extracted from them during interrogation.

Govt, banks convert rs 391b circular debt TFCs to PIB, T bills ISLAMABAD Staff RepoRt

To resolve a major anomaly, the government and banks on Friday swapped half of the Rs 391 billion-circular debt term finance certificates (TFCs) into five-year Pakistan Investment Bond (PIB) and the other half into one-year treasury bills (T bills). Briefing reporters, Finance secretary Waqar Masud Khan said the swap was performed by banks and the state Bank of Pakistan on Friday evening in Karachi. He said TFCs were issued at an exorbitant rate of 200 bases points above the KIBOR. The offered rate for PIB is based on the average of last two issued bonds, while the offered rate for T bill is the same as given to banks two days ago by the central bank. The banks have opted for swap as new instruments were liquid compared to the TFCs. The resolution of circular debt will resolve a major anomaly on which the International Monetary Fund (IMF) had major concerns, as it was not reflected in the federal budget of the last three fiscal years fro being parked outside the budget.

“The swap will increase the fiscal deficit by 1.8 percent of GDP and will be shown in this year’s budget,” he said, although he denied that it was resolved to get a better report from the fund in the upcoming week-long negotiations in Dubai. The swap would clear the liabilities in bank books and would allow them to continue financing for power sector projects. As with huge advances given to the power sector, the banks have refused further financing for power projects that was causing difficulties for the generation companies in fuel purchases.

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kaRaCHI: police personnel stand guard outside the house of former Sindh High Court Justice Zawar Hussain Jaffary after an attack on his house by suspected militants. ONLINe

Singh seeks meeting with Gilani in Maldives NEW DELHI INp

In a surprise move, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan singh has asked the Indian Ministry of External Affairs to send a request to his Pakistani counterpart Yousaf Raza Gilani for a meeting in Maldives on the sidelines of the eight-member sAARC summit on November 9 to 10.

Officials at the ministry had tried to persuade singh to wait instead for an invitation from Pakistan as they believed that a request should have come from Islamabad as it needed India’s help more after its strained relations with both the Us and Afghanistan. The Indian Prime Minister’s Office has directed the foreign secretary to send the request as singh wanted to personally thank Gilani on two counts – the immediate release of an army helicopter with four soldiers that had “mistakenly” crossed the Line of Control and Pakistan granting India the Most

Favoured Nation status. India had granted this status to Pakistan way back in 1996. In March, singh kept the ministry out of the loop when he directly faxed an invitation to Gilani to watch the India-Pakistan cricket World Cup match in Mohali. According to insiders, singh finds ministry officials always prejudiced against Pakistan and

hence prefers to take decisions on Pakistan without consulting them. It is also believed that singh is in a hurry to normalise relations with Pakistan to enable him to visit Islamabad next year between July and september to take crucial decisions on the issues of siachen, sir Creek and make substantive progress on Kashmir.

The sindh government has restored the magistracy system across the province following the lapse of the sindh Local Government Ordinance 2001 on Friday. sindh Chief secretary Raja Abbas issued a notification late on Friday regarding the appointment of commissioners in divisions of sindh and deputy commissioners in the province’s districts. The Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) has so far not come up with a statement on the development. After issuance of the notification regarding restoration of the magistracy, all old divisions and districts will be restored and Karachi will again have five districts. similarly, all DCOs would take charge of their districts as deputy commissioners.Official sources said there was a legal compulsion to restore the old magistracy, as the government had no other option at this stage.They insisted that the ruling political parties, especially the PPP and MQM, would continue to work on new local bodies’ system and whenever a consensus was developed, the new LG system would be enforced in the province through legislation in the sindh Assembly.

Earlier, a meeting between the PPP and MQM ended without any result and decided to again meet today (saturday) at the CM house for further discussion. sindh Acting Governor Nisar Ahmed Khuhro had issued the ordinance on July 9 regarding restoration of local bodies’ system 1979. On July 13, the sindh Assembly with majority passed these ordinance and converted in to acts. After reconciliation with the MQM, the PPP-led sindh government issued local bodies system’s ordinance on August 6. According to that ordinance, Karachi and Hyderabad were to fall under the sLGO 2001, while the rest of sindh was to fall under magistracy.

The development had led to massive protests in the province and the government subsequently withdrew the dual system on August 7, within 24 hours. sindh Governor Ishratul Ebad later restored the sLGO 2001 through an ordinance on August 7. This ordinance was valid for 90 days, the limit of which expires today, (saturday November 5).

If another arrangement is not made, the act of sindh Assembly will automatically come in to force, according to which the old condition of Karachi and Hyderabad and commissioner-ate system would restored.

The nazim system would be abolished.

During the meeting, MQM insisted that a session of sindh Assembly should be called immediately to get another act on local bodies system passed. But source said the PPP maintained that it was not possible to call a session of sindh Assembly in a day and pass a new act regarding the local bodies system. The press secretary to the sindh governor said the ordinance was issued on August 7 and its validity would collapse tonight after 12 midnight.

‘Pakistan’s N-weapons vulnerable to theft’ WASHINGTON afp

Pakistan has begun moving its nuclear weapons in low-security vans on congested roads to hide them from Us spy agencies, making the weapons more vulnerable to theft by militants, two Us magazines reported on Friday.

The Atlantic and the National Journal, in a joint report citing unnamed sources, wrote that the Us raid that killed al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden in May at his Abbottabad compound re-

inforced Islamabad’s longstanding fears that Washington could try to dismantle the country’s nuclear arsenal. As a result, the head of the strategic Plans Divisions (sPD), which is charged with safeguarding Pakistan’s atomic weapons, was ordered to take action to keep the location of nuclear weapons and components hidden from the United states, the report said. Khalid Kidwai, the retired general who leads the sPD, expanded his agency’s efforts to disperse components and sensitive materials to different facilities, it said.

But instead of transporting the nuclear parts in armored, well-defended convoys, the atomic bombs “capable of destroying entire cities are transported in delivery vans on congested and dangerous roads”, according to the report. The pace of the dispersal movements has increased, raising concerns at the Pentagon, it said. The article quotes an unnamed official from the powerful IsI as saying, “Of all things in the world to worry about, the issue you should worry about the least is the safety of our nuclear programme.” The Pentagon de-

Published by Arif Nizami for Nawa Media Corporation (Pvt) Ltd at Qandeel Printing Press, 4 Queens Road, Lahore.

clined to comment on the article but a senior Us military official told reporters in Washington on Friday that the Us remained confident Pakistan’s nuclear weapons were secure. “I believe the Pakistan military arsenal is safe at this time, well guarded, well defended,” said the military official, who spoke on condition of anonymity. The article, based on dozens of interviews, said the Us military has long had a contingency plan in place to disable Pakistan’s nuclear weapons in the event of a coup or other worst-case scenario.