PTI Tsunami in Quetta

Chairman Tehreek e Insaf Imran has blamed Nawaz Sharif for the present situation in Balochistan while addressing a massive rally in Quetta. He said that Nawaz Sharif backtracked from the unanimously agreed boycott of the last general elections which in turn resulted in political isolation of Balochistan. If the Baloch leadership had participated in the elections the situation would have been very different. He said that that the Baloch leaders are reluctant to talk to the current parliament because they believe that the present leadership has come to power through fraudulent elections.

Khan emphasized that military operations cannot solve political disputes. He added that Pakistan’s strategy of military solutions to political problems has failed in both Balochistan and the Tribal areas and same is the case with India in Kashmir. Imran Khan said that he has come to initiate dialogue in Balochistan promising that Pakistan Tehreek e Insaf will address the problems of the province politically. Imran Khan said that he believes that the people of Balochistan have the first right on the resources of the province.

Imran Khan declared that PTI’s rally in Quetta will go a long way to end prevalent fear in Balochistan. Imran Khan said that the use of force to address political issues depicts absolute failure of the political leadership. He said that all inhabitants of Balochistan including Balochs, Pashtuns and the Hazara Community are disappointed and it is due to the inability of the leadership to establish long lasting peace in the province.

Imran Khan said that after coming to power PTI will sanction special development funds for the province until the socio economic development of the province is at par with the most developed regions of the country. He said that these funds will not be given through the ‘powerful’ but would be disbursed to the people through a strong local government system.

He said that 110 Billion Rupees were sanctioned to Balochistan in the NFC Award, but this money never reached beyond the powerful ministers and there are no signs of infrastructure development in the province. It is disappointing to see that the educated and capable people of Balochistan are leaving the country, he said. Imran Khan said that PTI will establish peace in the province by strengthening the police and liberating it from political influence and not by utilizing the FC. Imran Khan said PTI will reform the policing system across the country and this will lead to peace in all violence hit areas of the country including Balochistan and Karachi.

On the issue of missing persons, Khan said that this is absolute injustice and against all humanitarian principles. He reminded that PTI was the first political force to raise the issue of missing persons back in 2003. . He said that whenever a state commits such acts of injustice it leads to hatred and aggravates political crises. He added that PTI demanded release of Dr Aafia Siddiqui. He said that the Baloch leaders will talk to the PTI because the party delivers on its’ promises.

Towards the end of his speech, Khan challenged the current leaders that they cannot defeat ‘tsunami’ of the people even if they unite. He said that ‘tsunami’s’ next destination will be Rawalpindi.

PTI President Javed Hashmi, Vice Chairman Shah Mehmood Qureshi, President Balochistan Qasim Khan Suri, Sharif Jogzai and other leaders also spoke on the occasion.

WB gives $1.8 billion for Pakistan’s energy and water sectors

The World Bank has allocated an unprecedented amount of $1.8 billion for Pakistan’s development projects in the energy and water sectors. Finance Minister Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh made the announcement after holding a meeting with Vice President of the World Bank, Isabel Guerrero, on the sidelines of the IMF-World Bank annual spring gathering of economic leaders from around the world.

The financial institution has also expressed its willingness to assist with financing the multi-year Dasu dam project, to be built in the Kohistan area on the River Indus, with a 1,500MW power generation capacity. They have already approved the power generation enhancement project.

“The World Bank allocating this unprecedented amount in one year is a big sign of confidence in Pakistan’s ability to accomplish development for its people,” Dr Shaikh said.

The amount follows last year’s $1.2 billion in assistance, and will be spent on upgrades and completion of development projects in the energy and water sectors as well as infrastructure, social and reform programs.

“The World Bank vice president was appreciative of Pakistan’s economic performance in these difficult times of global economic and regional challenges,” the finance minister added.

Pakistan’s ambassador to the US, Sherry Rehman, also attended the meeting. “This signifies that both the international community and the financial institutions have a growing confidence in Pakistan’s dedication and ability to realise development for its people,” said Ambassador Sherry Rehman.

Vice President Guerrero expressed satisfaction with the measures Islamabad has taken to enhance its revenue generation, which has increased by 25% over the last nine months. Other measures include the continuing strong performance of the external sector, both exports and remittances and a healthy 4% GDP growth expected this year.

Dr Shaikh acknowledged the World Bank’s sustained cooperation with Pakistan, calling the financial institution a reliable development partner of Pakistan.

British MP’s advice to Pakistan

Renowned British politician and first Muslim and youngest member of British House of Lords, Lord Nazir Ahmed has said that Pakistan needed evolution instead of revolution.

He was speaking at a seminar on “International scenario, Pakistan and our Responsibilities” organised by Directorate of Student Affairs at Faisal Auditorium here on Tuesday.

Vice Chancellor Professor Dr Mujahid Kamran, Director Students Affairs, Chaudhry Iftikhar, senior faculty members and a big crowd of students attended the seminar.

Lord Nazir said Pakistan could become one of the best countries in the world as there are huge reservoirs of gold and coal and there is no lack of talent.

But, he said, true leadership will be required to achieve this goal.

He said that the current year is full of challenges as elections are taking place in other important countries like the US and France.

He said that the Western economies were touching their lowest in the last ten years and the US had gone under the debt of trillions of dollars.

He said that when the conditions worsen, the responsibility had to be put on somebody’s shoulder and Iran was likely to be attacked by the US or Israel in order to get votes.

He said that we are in favour of denuclearization of the region but it should be started with Israel.

He said that if Iran will be attacked, the Muslim nation should unite against these powers.

He said that the US had fixed the head money of Hafiz Saeed purposively to keep Pakistan in defensive position.

He said that the distance between super rich class and the poor is growing in Pakistan.

He said that our Ulemas should promote the message of love and friendship and avoid hate in the society.

He said that we would have to promote the culture of volunteerism in Pakistan.

He advised the students that revolution in education sector could be staged if they spared a little time in a week to teach a boy.

He said that Pakistanis were playing their role in the development of the United Kingdom and many Pakistanis and Muslims are working at key administrative positions in government sector, which should be considered a symbol of hope for the people in Pakistan.

While praising Professor Dr Mujahid Kamran, he said that through his efforts, Punjab University has not only become best university in Pakistan but also been ranked in the 15 percent of best universities throughout the world in the latest study.

He congratulated Dr Mujahid Kamran and his team for this achievement.

In his presidential address, Dr Kamran said that Lord Nazir is the first Muslim who became the member of British House of Lords and entered the House with the Holy Quran in his hand as according to its tradition, every member was accompanied by Bible or he/she had to touch Bible while entering the House.

He said that Lord Nazir responded non-Muslims with comprehensive arguments and courage on certain issues.

Earlier, Director Students Affairs Chaudhry Iftikhar welcomed the guests and highlighted the importance of the topic.

Doing it wrong is what US does right

By Ghalib Sultan
ZoneAsia-Pk 

So the Sisyphean manhunt for the perpetrators of 9/11 continues. After a decade of blood letting the chosen white people, United States of Paranoia still needs Patsies it can announce exorbitant bounties for and in the process air out the world’s worst kept secret: even after more than a decade of fighting the wildly ‘successful’ War on Terror they still don’t know what they are doing.

Hafiz Saeed, head of right wing religious group Jamat ud Dawah whose militant faction Lashkar-e-Taiba was accused of master minding the 26/11 Mumbai Attacks in India; woke up on Tuesday to TV channels abuzz with news of how much money he is worth. Ten million dollars offered by the US to anyone who can deliver Saeed dead or alive to the US authorities. This new declaration of love for everything Pakistan was made by US Undersecretary Wendy Sherman in India on Monday as a show of righteous indignation for why Pakistani authorities have all this time failed to convict Saeed and bring him to justice.

This announcement had an effect that the most imbecile of Pakistanis could have predicted: it turned the wanted man into a media darling, sky rocketing his popularity ratings and turning him into everyone’s favorite playmate of the year. After twelve years either the US is still in denial and believes that Pakistanis will gladly rise to the occasion and call their favorite Uncle Sam to deliver the rogue miscreant to or this announcement of head-money serves a different purpose.

This new development takes place the same month Zardari is supposed to travel to India for the first time after 26/11. The timing is unlikely to be fortuitous but the message left shining on the wall reads: ‘we’re with those guys now’.

If Hafiz Saeed was the bone of contention all along, America should have learned that bounty or no bounty the best way to capture wanted men in Pakistan is via stealth operations only. A man like Hafiz Saeed whose organization is purportedly widely buttressed by the infamous ISI itself and hasn’t been convicted in any court in this country, clearly enjoys high level support. This is something Indian analysts came out to discuss as well, shaking heads over the fact that of course announcing a bounty won’t make aspiring Pakistani assassins don ninja suits to capture a man who lives in Johar Town, Lahore and is seen holding large public rallies to discuss the latest ways of dressing mutton aka India.

Saeed argued that the US hasn’t announced the bounty because six US citizens died in the Mumbai Attacks (let’s face it US soldiers who die in action don’t fetch even close to a million dollars) but because he has been holding mass rallies against reopening the NATO Supply Route. This might sound more plausible given the current ferocity with which DPC and other right wing parties have been making threats about not being afraid to ‘spill blood’ if the routes re-open. Furthermore the opposition and government have both refused to own the decision to reopen those routes ending in a stalemate.

And yet turning up its nose at Pakistan and sidling to India just when Pakistan has found a novel way to assert its national sovereignty isn’t going to help matters for the US. If announcement of bounty on a man who roams freely and is not afraid to sneer at the US and challenge it to take him to court, only foments anti US sentiment, then the US possibly cannot hope to aspire towards a future relationship with Pakistan based on ‘mutual  respect and understanding’.

Ominous Silence

Recently the Parliamentary Committee on National Security decided to take Pakistan’s foreign policy to the floor of representatives and argue and debate relatively au courant terms of engagement with USA. While the opposition did sneer at the fact that these recommendations are not binding,non-state actors aka DPC,JI and Al- Zawahiri warned against re-opening NATO supply routes and announced that they won’t shirk from ‘spilling blood’ if the Parliament does give in to US pressure,the fact that for the first time national security and foreign policy was going to be debated and discussed instead of dictated was laudable,with millions of dollars riding on the big question of how far we are willing to go.

Yet the big question was relegated to the back burner at the fourth sitting of the joint session. While questions riddling the common man may not be big enough for our high handed politicians to address,recent developments in the country marked by an escalation of violence that doesn’t have Taliban written all over it is serious enough to have everything else take the back seat.

Karachi’s turf wars and ‘day of mourning’ turned into days of mourning for many families torn asunder in the ANP- MQM crossfire. Grievances festered to the point that henchmen came out to burn effigies of their bosses/representatives and demanded a ‘Swat like’ military operation in the pestilent localities of Lyari,Katti Pahari,North Nazimabad,Benaras,Shah Faisal,Korangi,Malir and Kasba which is in flames today. Rehman Malik splutters out condemnation and vows vengeance every time this happens,yet his faux crackdown did little than tweak whiskers the last time. They’re back,bigger,stronger and armed to their teeth,playing out the aftermath of post Soviet-Afghan war like it happened yesterday. The complicated politics of Karachi will not disentangle on its own like our government hopes it will. Even the top echelons are playing favorites in this cat eat mouse game. Maybe a stringent de-weaponisation crack down is what Karachi needs. Take the lion’s teeth away and it can only meow.

Sind’s epicenter might be a festering pustule,but is Punjab safe from the epidemic? Mass hysteria over endless hours of load shedding,ensued right after Punjab had come to terms with the fact that gas and CNG were relics of past glory. The government’s economic policy clearly isn’t geared towards bolstering the industrial sector as Faisalabad learnt last year;it isn’t agro or livestock oriented as one quarter of Pakistan thrust under the poverty line,that tries to forage for scraps to eat will tell you. A country that hasn’t yet experienced the organic shift from agricultural to manufacturing sectors can’t possibly have a thriving service sector either,it’s easier to picture our economy as a formless entity floating aimlessly in space towards a black hole.

Two provinces down,the third,the biggest in terms of land mass and smallest in terms of population has fingers crossed for balkanization of the region. The level of intrigue and mystique surrounding the third province is interminable. News of bounty being announced for the death of Punjabis straying in Balochistan filters out now and then and people are gripped with fear. The media and other political parties,with PTI at the fore of it have endless capacity and breath to waste on spewing criticism at the government and every preceding government in the past,reinforcing the point that balkanization might indeed be the best solution. Give the Sardars their barren play ground. A province where every provincial assembly member is given an amount set in millions for development in their constituency,but still posts an abysmal income per capita of USD 183 (PKR- 16287) per year cannot blame the federal government for the insurgency and having an ‘apathetic’ attitude towards the province. Not when the Sardars are known for smuggling weaponry worth millions from across the border and run a thriving black market with the parliament’s blessings.

KP once the adorned bride of the country is now the easiest target for terrorist activity,planting seeds of anarchy and home to the largest population of displaced people in the country. It is a province of diametrically conflicting facets where development has taken a back seat because drone attacks and military operations trying to weed out terrorists must rip the place apart first. The Northern Province has seen traumatic times in the past decade,from earth quakes,to floods,to mass terror and ensuing military operations. They have killed and been killed a thousand times over to the point where the peaceful stalemate of Kashmir is an enviable situation compared to Pakistan.

An ominous silence hangs like noxious fumes in the country poisoning corrupting and suffusing the air with mass hopelessness. Will this state of chaos lead to an ultimate implosion removing Pakistan from the equation,may be a revolution along the lines of Arab Spring which can only lead to more instability and is an unlikely possibility as it requires Pakistani’s to first and foremost unite. Building a state requires a skeleton of institutions,the sinew and muscle is later augmented by nurturing the body around the skeleton. What we need is not verbal diarrhea from political parties that have the ability of infusing hope in the populace or promises of rooting out corruption in nine days by politicians creating demigod like personas. It begs merit and sincerity to the people of the country. It requires the level of even headedness and authority that Lee Kwan Yew and Mahathir Mohammed displayed when their countries hit rock bottom. More importantly we the people need to realize we cannot be played against each other to fill some elusive character’s coffers or play out their fantastical ideologies. Pakistan isn’t a lost cause,not yet,not by a long shot. Our external affairs can take a back seat for the moment,we cannot act like jilted lovers and have no one to blame but ourselves,let’s take on the responsibility for slaying these self created dragons ourselves too.