Rangers Chief: Karachi Worse Than Waziristan

KARACHI: A special bench of the Supreme Court heard the suo motu case on the killings in Karachi on Wednesday, DawnNews reported.

The special bench of the Supreme Court, headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar, includes Justice Anwar Zaheer Jamali, Justice Sarmad Jalal Usmani, Justice Amer Hani Muslim and Justice Ghulam Rabbani.

During the hearing, Director-General Rangers Major-General Mohammad Ejaz Chaudhry said that Karachi’s security situation was worse than that of Waziristan.

He further said that criminals frequently took shelter in the offices of political parties.

Moreover, Chief Justice Iftikhar asked why should former minister Zulfikar Mirza be summoned before the court.

He further said: What does the court has to do with political statements?

The hearing was later on adjourned to Thursday.

Furthermore, the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) is expected to brief the bench on unrest in the metropolis tomorrow.

Gearing up for revenge: Lyari don Arshad Pappu’s brother, cousin set free

By Salman Siddiqui

The two men sat on the floor of a room that looked more like a billet than a dera befitting the leading members of Lyari don Arshad Pappu’s gang.

The two men were released on the eve of Eid. They said, however, that freedom came only after they paid a packet to senior police officials, who had refused to let them go even though no charges were proven in court.

One of them, Pappu’s brother, named Yasir Arafat after the legendary revolutionary Palestinian figure, looked like a dehydrated parrot with a beard. His brother in arms, Waheed Baloch, sat in the corner with an expression of defiance made prouder by his worn-out threads.

The two men were released on the eve of Eid. They said, however, that freedom came only after they paid a packet to senior police officials, who had refused to let them go even though no charges were proven in court.

Thirty-year-old Arafat was facing 33 cases, including the murder of the defunct Peoples Amn Committee (PAC) chief Uzair Baloch’s father Mama Faizoo, five murders and various police encounters. He was caught in 2005, but when none of the charges stuck, his lawyer and friends bailed him out on Chand raat last week.

As Coca Cola bottles, tea and joints were served in the hash-hazy room, Waheed Baloch, who served nine years for killing Mama Faizoo, introduced himself as a cousin of Arshad Pappu. “My only crime, like Yasir, was that I had blood relations with Pappu,” he said, repeatedly stressing that he had nothing to do with the murder of Uzair’s father.

But the fact is that these two groups – Arshad Pappu’s and Rehman Dakait’s – have been on the warpath long before the PAC was formed. The history of bloodshed dates to the time when Rehman Dakait turned on his boss, Arshad Pappu’s father. The blood went bad between prodigal son and biological son. Later, Arshad Pappu went to jail and Dakait was shot dead in a police encounter in 2009. Nonetheless, there were men to keep the torch burning. Uzair Baloch took over Dakait’s group that continued to battle Pappu and his men.

Today, as Waheed emerges from nine years of incarceration, 45 years old, he has another battle to fight. Unless he exacts some form of revenge for the killings that have marked these years, he will not be able to face his eight children and wife who left Lyari and fled to Balochistan.

Karachi killings

The men have emerged to find a different Karachi. “Things weren’t this bad during our time,” said Arafat. Waheed has noted that in the current wave of violence many innocent Baloch have been killed.

They both claimed that they could “clear Lyari of the PAC goons” in just five hours if the government did not “side” with them and stayed out of “their conflict”. “The people who are with us haven’t taken up arms for 500 rupees like the PAC,” sneered Waheed.

The Pappu group members ridicule Zulfiqar Mirza’s claim that he was working for the good of the people of Lyari and the Baloch people. “Who are these people who Mirza is backing?” said Mohammad Yousuf, a group member who also served time. “They are not the sardars of the Baloch people like Arshad [Pappu].”

For Waheed, PAC chief Uzair Baloch is a nobody, whose father was a driver. “Baba Ladla is a kid in front of us. His dad Ghulam Hussain was just a low-level [electricity company] worker,” he said, rhetorically asking how these ‘low lifes’ could claim to be leaders of the Baloch and the people of Lyari?

Arafat and Waheed alleged that the Amn Committee not only had political backing from a powerful personality but that they were also minting money for him. The PAC denies the claim. “At least Rs100 million was being made a week in extortion rackets, land grabbing, gambling dens and the drugs business in Amn Committee-controlled areas,” said Waheed. “Where does it all go?”

He alleged that the one political bigwig has armed the PAC to the teeth. “The fact of the matter is that today Lyari has as many arms as the state of Afghanistan itself, all of which are with the PAC.”

Future course

Although it is clear that Arshad Pappu’s group is gearing up to settle old scores, Arafat chose restrained words when asked about a course of action. “We are the victims who have been kicked out of our homes. Our houses have been burnt down. So many of our people have been killed…I’m just hopeful that God would lead our path.”

Waheed was more direct. “I used to be a man like you, just making an honest living for my family,” he said. “I was a crane operator at the Karachi Electric Supply Corporation and worked there for 18 years. Just put yourself in my place and tell me what would you do if you came out of prison after nine years for a crime you didn’t even commit?”

It is more personal than political: “My father, a frail old man who fought with no one in his lifetime, was killed mercilessly on the footsteps of a mosque. Forty bullets were pumped into his body. We’ve lost count of the number of our brothers and people who have been butchered. So tell me, what do you think we will do next?”

Pak-US ties: Might is right

To mourn Osama bin Laden, as many in Pakistan are doing, is outrageous. He was a bloodthirsty terrorist with little regard for Muslim and non-Muslim life, alike. However, to mourn the circumstances of his killing, and the consequences it leaves behind for Pakistan is more appropriate.

The US stated that Pakistan was not told of the raid in advance because it could not be trusted. The decision to keep Pakistan out of the loop was, clearly, the correct one if the goal was to enhance the mission’s chances of success. Given that Bin Laden appears to have resided in Abbottabad for a number of years, either Pakistan has comically incompetent security forces or he was being harboured by elements within. However, the US raid into Pakistan was clearly illegal. Even the Americans would be hard-pressed to deny this. US forces entered Pakistani airspace without permission (and detection), conducted a raid on the compound and left. The opposite circumstances – Pakistani helicopters with commandos landing on US soil to deal with a terrorist without telling the US authorities – are laughably inconceivable.

After all, Pakistan is at best a junior partner, at worst a servant on wages who can be pushed around at the whim of the master without any regard for the rules. America is a wealthy, well-managed nation which looks after its citizens in a way which we simply cannot. Of course, what angers Pakistanis is the lack of concern for non-American lives. The invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan have resulted in the deaths of hundreds of thousands of civilians. Drone attacks have callous disregard for bystanders. On average there are 10 innocent deaths for every militant killed. So, the fallout of 3,000 tragic deaths on 9/11 has probably been at a cost in excess of a hundred times that number of Muslim lives, the large majority of which have been civilians. And there is barely an apology or a tear shed in America for these deaths.

Of course the major payoff to Pakistan has been aid; a total of over $18billion since 9/11 of which about $12billion has been in the form of military aid, the rest in economic aid. So this money flows to the armed forces, which have shown they are neither capable nor trustworthy. Congressmen in the US are asking why the US is providing funding to a nation that cannot be trusted.

America is a strong, well-organised country, hence, they flout international law and Pakistani sovereignty at their convenience, with Pakistani lives being collateral damage. As a consequence, Pakistan is left with the begging bowl and weakly managed institutions which deny us justice and sovereignty. It seems our government is in utter disarray and there is limited trust and communication between the government and armed forces. And even within the armed forces, it seems that there are splits. In other words, in contrast to the Americans, Pakistan is disunited and incompetent.

Pakistan should use this opportunity to learn lessons and take action that will put us on a better path. Firstly, there needs to be accountability for the fact that Bin Laden’s home was found on Pakistani soil in public view in a major city. We all know that running the army is a difficult job, particularly with much of it radicalised in the post 9/11 environment. But there is no excuse for incompetence of this magnitude, or indeed harbouring the world’s leading terrorist, whichever is the truth. So the right outcome would be for the army chief to resign for presiding over one of the worst national security lapses in our history. Secondly, Pakistan needs to re-evaluate its cooperation with America. As a principle, Pakistan needs to reassert sovereignty over its own soil. Thirdly, we should use Bin Laden’s death as a catalyst for a peace agreement. We need to bring elements of the Taliban to the negotiating table, however repugnant their ideology, and give them an opportunity to lay down their arms. Hilary Clinton is now hinting at this regularly. Pakistan should seize the opportunity to play a leadership role and help stop the ongoing carnage on our soil.

Turk NGO Appeals To UN To Check Indian Terror In Kashmir

A representative of student rights group in Turkey delivers a stinging rebuke on Indian assassinations of Kashmiri rights activists.

GENEVA, Switzerland-A Turkish NGO made a touching appeal to world diplomats gathered at the Human Rights Council in Geneva today, urging UN’s highest rights body to “ensure the rights of the people of Indian-occupied Jammu Kashmir.”

The statement was made by Altaf Hussain Wani, an activist for the Turkey-based International Islamic Federation of Student Organizations, IIFSO, which is an NGO registered with the UN in Geneva.

UN’s Human Rights Council is designed along the lines of UN Security Council in Geneva without the powers.

Mr. Wani’s statement came amid heightened activity by pro-Kashmir groups attending the 16th session of the Human Rights Council. Major NGOs attend the session along with governments and diplomats. The Council has recently suspended the membership of Moammar Gadafi’s government.

India’s position on Kashmir received a setback earlier in the day when 17-year-old Aneesa Nabi stunned government and NGO delegates with her appeal to her locate her abducted father. She addressed a seminar at Palais de Nations describing the gory details of how Indian soldiers killed her mother and severely injured her toddler younger brother. Diplomats pledged to contact the Indian government to help locate her father if is alive.

The Turkish NGO representative addressed government delegates in the main meeting hall of UN Human Rights Council. “Despite the tall Indian claims of zero tolerance toward human rights violations, the spree of killings continued in 2010 without a stop,” said Mr. Wani, reading a prepared statement during the general debate at the 16th session of the council.

The NGO drew the council’s attention to the miseries that rights defenders in Kashmir find themselves in.

“Peaceful demonstrations … have been met with unchecked violence by Indian security forces,” said Mr. Wani, adding, “The right to freedom of assembly and expression has been muffed. Indian authorities are deliberately silencing human rights defenders and muzzling the media to keep people in the world ill-informed about the ground situation in Indian-occupied Kashmir.”

“In this scenario, human rights activists … face the danger of losing credibility as human rights defenders” because India stops them from monitoring violations in Kashmir, the Turkish NGO said.

The point that caused the most consternation among delegates were the details of how India has physically eliminated Kashmiri rights activists who used to travel abroad to expose Indian genocide in Kashmir.

The IIFSO representative delivered a stinging comment on Indian assassinations of Kashmiri rights activists.

“Particularly we can mention the names of H. N. Wanchoo, Dr. Abdul Ahad Guru, Dr. Farooq Ashai and noted human rights activist Jalil Andrabi and Pir Hisam-ud-Din,” said Altaf Wani.

“During the last 20 years of conflict, over 100,000 Kashmiris have been killed, over 10,000 disappeared, over 9,000 women raped by Indian soldiers, and all due to immunity enjoyed by military and para-military forces due to draconian laws,” Wani said.

He specifically referred to four Indian laws that allow soldiers to escape with the worst crimes against Kashmiri civilians. These four laws are: Armed Forces Special Powers Act [AFSPA], Public Safety Act [PSA], Jammu and Kasmir Disturbed Area Act [JKDAA], and National Security Act [NSA]

Major international rights organizations, such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, have issued special advisories on Indian violations in Kashmir, making India liable to international action on human rights violations, he said.

Who are behind Shahbaz Bhatti’s murder?

In wake of continued terrorist acts in Pakistan, on March 2 this year the cold-blooded murder of the country’s Federal Minister for Minorities Affairs, Shahbaz Bhatti has intensified the debate that as to who are behind his assassination. Although Tehrik-e-Taliban-Pakistan, a militant group has taken the responsibility of Shabaz’s murder, yet Pakistan’s intelligence and security agencies are investigating in connection with some foreign hands or the possible involvement of Xe International, (formerly Blackwater) and indian intelligence agency RAW, specifically looking into the activities of a white foreigner who is acting as a “security consultant” in Islamabad. In this regard, some high officials of Pakistan have revealed that a third hand or party might be involved in the assassination of the federal minister for minorities.

Some intelligence officials told a Pakistani newspaper that they found suspect-the activities of the foreigner who was living under the umbrella of a NGO and running an office in sector G-11 of Islamabad. They indicated, “nobody knows what he is doing in Islamabad and on what mission”, he is. The paper explained that the foreigner also met with some security officers a couple of days back posing as “security consultant” and interviewed them regarding the current security situation of Pakistan, asking them whether Pakistan could face Libya-like situation in the near future. In this respect, a Pakistan’s renowned newspaper insisted, “the fact that the foreign hand that has been creating unrest in the country for a long time now could be behind the incident cannot be ruled out…links between foreign intelligence agencies like Indian RAW, Israeli Mossad and American CIA and militants have been suspected…RAW is even known for having provided financial and military support to spread violence in Pakistan.” In another report, the paper, while quoting “well-informed sources” disclosed that in 2010, the Obama administration deployed over 400 pro-India and pro-Israel CIA agents in Islamabad, Quetta, Peshawar, Lahore and Karachi, the country’s biggest cities.

Washington hired these contractors from private security companies like Blackwater, and leading Indian and Israeli businessmen including their secret agencies which have been clandestinely and heavily funding such companies to carry out secret operations in the Middle East, Asia and Africa as per their interests against the Islamic countries. Some reliable sources suggest that the Blackwater has hired 286 houses in different residential sectors of Islamabad for their suspicious activities. Regarding the killing of Shahbaz Bhatti, the police confirmed that the terrorists used 7.62 mm-AK-47 Klashnikov, an automatic gun and sprayed 35 bullets with two guns, adding that police recovered all the 35 empties from the scene.

It is notable that the terrorists threw on the road the pamphlets with Kalma-e-Tayyaba printed on them and also the name of the holy Prophet Mohammad (Peace Be Upon Him) after killing Shahbaz Bhatti. Th fact remains that no Muslim can ever think of dropping on ground such sacred material. Nevertheless, that condemnable act might also have been committed precisely to divert the investigations away from the real terrorists which belong to RAW, CIA and Mossad.

It is mentionable that through their secret agencies, the concerned foreign countries want to fulfil their multiple-nefarious aims against Pakistan by the murder of the federal minister for minorities affairs. In this regard, firstly, they intend to divert the attention away from the issue of Raymond Davis including his companions who are agents of the American CIA and were on an anti-Pakistan mission. Especially, Davis is part of the illegal activities of the Blackwater whose employees entered Pakistan in the guise of diplomats. Secondly, these covert agents of the related intelligence agencies want to distort the image of Pakistan in the comity of nations as they have already tarnished the country’s image through various subversive activities-are now working against Pakistan by taking advantage of the country’s deteriorated law and order situation which they have themselves created through their secret forces. Notably, in this context, the rulers and leaders of the western countries have strongly condemned the murder of the Federal Minister for Minorities Affairs, Shahbaz Bhatti, expressing outrage and termed it as “unspeakable”, “unacceptable” and a “dastardly crime”, and also called it an attack on the values of tolerance. In this regard, British Prime Minister David Cameron said that the assassination of Bhatti was “absolutely brutal and unacceptable”. He also stated that the minister’s murder showed what a huge problem we have in our world with intolerance. He further added, “I will send not only our condolences but our clearest possible message to the government and people of Pakistan that this is simply unacceptable.” US President Barack Obama pointed out that he was saddened by the “horrific” assassination. He said, “I am deeply saddened by the assassination of Pakistan’s Minister for Minorities Affairs Shahbaz Bhatti,” and “condemn in the strongest possible terms this horrific act of violence.” US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told a US Senate committee, “I was shocked and outraged by the assassination of Bhatti…I think this was an attack not only on one man but on the values of tolerance and respect for people of all faiths.” German Federal Foreign Minister, Dr Guido Westerwelle, expressed his shock and dismay over the assassination of Bhatti, and said, “he was the only Christian who was passionately committed to the rights of minorities in Pakistan.” Meanwhile, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Indian leaders have also expressed similar views. However, this is what the anti-Pakistan secret agencies wanted to achieve through the murder. Thirdly, the assassination of Shahbaz Bhatti was actually aimed at further creating rifts between different religious communities, accelerating sectarian violence in Pakistan. Fourthly, it is noteworthy that Pakistan is the only nuclear country in the Islamic World; hence the US, India, Israel and some western powers are determined to weaken it. Despite American cooperation with Islamabad, its main aim along with India and Israel remains to de-nuclearise our country whose geo-strategic location with the Gwadar port entailing close ties with China irks the eyes of these countries, therefore, they are in collusion to destabilise Pakistan. For this purpose, a well-established network of Indian army, RAW, Mossad and CIA which was set up in Afghanistan against Pakistan in order to support insurgency in the Khyber Pakhtoonkhwa and separatism in Balochistan have been extended. Fifthly, the major aim of these external secret agencies is to show that Pakistan is a prejudiced country where religious extremism is running high, and where people cannot tolerate other religious communities, particularly Christians. Sixthly, by creating such an aggravated situation, these secret forces are determined to isolate Pakistan with the efforts of Indo-Jewish and American lobbies which are already working on the anti-Pakistan agenda.

Nonetheless, while taking cognizance of the real aims of the external intelligence agencies in relation to the assassination of Shahbaz Bhatti, the patriot people of Pakistan must wake up in order to apprehend the secret forces which have been trying to weaken the country. For this purpose, foreigners such as covert operatives who are running clandestine networks in the country must be captured by our intelligence agencies with the cooperation of public as quickly as possible. In this respect, a comprehensive strategy must be prepared to secure the lives of all people as well the survival of the country.

‘Raymond Davis’ Is Linked To Terrorism In Pakistan

Gordon Duff & Raja Mujtaba

The Americans, mis-identified by the US Embassy as “diplomats” are believed involved in covert or “black ops” operations inside Pakistan, reportedly against the government of Pakistan, America’s primary ally in the region.

Protests throughout the city of Lahore, university students, various political parties, demanded stiff punishment for a group of Americans, one identified initially as “Raymond Allen Davis,” now “identity unknown,” held on a variety of charges including 2 counts of murder along with four American security contractors currently being sought after fleeing the scene of a vehicular homicide in a related incident.

“Davis” is accused of two counts of murder and terrorism related charges. The other four, named to police but withheld from the media, are being sought for questioning in relation to a vehicular homicide while moving in traffic to assist “Davis.” The four, though described by Davis and the American press to be “diplomats” are believed to be security contractors who entered Pakistan illegally under assumed identities.

The four not yet in custody, believed to be Americans, fled the scene after killing Ibadur Rehman, a local merchant, during a bizarre incident. The Americans, mis-identified by the US Embassy as “diplomats” are believed involved in covert or “black ops” operations inside Pakistan, reportedly against the government of Pakistan, America’s primary ally in the region.

The victim of the vehicle homicide, Rehman, a bicyclist traveling on Jail Road in Lahore, was struck and killed by a four wheel drive vehicle that was part of what “Davis” describes as a “mission” in his statement to police.

According to the statement, the two vehicles, the Honda rental with “cloned” plates driven by “Davis” and the “chase vehicle,” a 4 wheel drive vehicle not registered to the American consulate, containing a 4-man armed security team, were heading toward the Mozang Chungi district.

Mozang Chungi is a densely populated area of small shops and street vendors typically only used by local residents. Security sources in Pakistan state:

“No American tourist or diplomat would ever go there, certainly not two car loads of heavily armed private contractors equipped for a mission of some kind. The only possible reason to be there would be terrorism. The area has been attacked before by terrorists, taking advantage of the crowds and confusion. We suspect we may have stumbled on the source of previous terror attacks and, in fact, broken up what may have become another ‘Mumbai.’

“This is a classic terrorist cover, false identity, phony license plates, car filled with weapons, radios and surveillance gear.”

INTERNAL POLITICAL ISSUES

Pakistan is, itself, governed by contradictions and what most believe to be an ineffective and corrupt civil government led by President Zardari, tied to money laundering in Switzerland, and an Interior Ministry seen as at odds with the powerful military. Pakistan is a nation of huge economic disparity with extreme wealth held by a few and extreme poverty for the majority, especially tribal minorities that make up a significant portion of Pakistan’s population.

Many Pakistanis long for a return to military government, citing failures by the current President, husband of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, who was assassinated in 2007.

Accusations tying Pakistan’s Interior Ministry to “foreign elements,” US, India and Israel, intelligence agencies and private contractors, accusations alleging complicity in terrorism and money laundering tied to the massive drug trade in neighboring Afghanistan are commonplace.

REAL EVENTS UNCLEAR

“Davis,” in his statement to police, stated he fired in self defense. Weapons were said to be found alongside the bodies of the slain although counter-claims of weapons being “planted” fill the airwaves.

Autopsy results, as reported, indicate that both were shot in the back with special fragmenting anti-personnel ammunition, one receiving four hits to the back and the other three.

Witnesses report that two young Pakistanis were fired on by the American from inside his vehicle with a fully automatic submachinegun, firing through the glass.

Damage to the vehicle, a white Honda Civic, show shots to have been fired through both the passenger window and rear windscreen.

Media in Pakistan has given extensive coverage to the families of the slain, interviewing them and neighbors who indicate the slain had no criminal or “extremist” history and were respected in the community. In statements to the media, family members have demanded a “public hanging” for those involved, no “blood money” will be accepted. Islamic or “Sharia” law allows for cash settlements or “blood money” to be paid to family members of homicide victims in lieu of capital punishment or imprisonment.

DIPLOMATIC STATUS DENIED BY PAKISTAN

The man, held by Pakistan in the killing of two young men during a traffic altercation, is not “Raymond Allen Davis.” In fact, nobody seems to know who he is, including the US embassy in Islamabad.

Davis, and his four companions who have yet to be apprehended, according to police sources, entered Pakistan illegally, using assumed identities.

However, stories in the press in Pakistan and general belief by the “man in the street” say that the man being held is believed to be an American security contractor active in coordinating terror attacks inside Pakistan, working with Indian intelligence, the “RAW.”

The area of the city “Davis” and his four companions were driving to has been the repeated scene of terror attacks in this city of 7 million nestled on the Indian border, hundreds of miles from Taliban strongholds. Sources in Pakistan state that it simply isn’t credible that an American would be in the densely populated and poorest region of Lahore, especially an American with a false identity and rental car with license plates “cloned” from another vehicle 300 miles away.

“DAVIS” UNDER “SEMI-HOUSE ARREST” WITHDRAWN

Authorities in Lahore, Pakistan were allowing “Davis” to spend his nights at the American consulate and his days at a local police station. But now due to mounting pressures this arrangement has been cancelled. The United States government continues to demand the release of “Davis” though it has also refused to identify him or his associates or state their actual mission in Pakistan.

“Davis” is believed to be a native of Las Vegas, 36 years old with a military background in Special Forces. An internet search shows him to operate under a “one man” Florida based security company but there is, of yet, no known relationship between this entity and any State Department overseas mission.

A check of passport records show that “Davis” has traveled between Pakistan and Afghanistan 9 times during the past 18 months.

Shooting in Lahore – US official quick on the draw, kills two

LAHORE – An American national associated with the US Consulate in Lahore shot two young motorcyclists while another vehicle used by the US Consulate ran over a man in a bid to rescue the diplomat near Qartaba Chowk on Thursday.

The Old Anarkali Police managed to arrest the American, identified as Raymond Davis, after a brief chase following information that the US officials were involved in a shooting and rescue incident. Davis told police that he opened fire at the two motorcyclists – later identified as Faizan Haider and Faheem Shamshad – because he thought that they were going to rob him. He said the men had pointed a handgun in his direction and he believed they were going to shoot him.

Davis, who is said to be a technical adviser in the American Consulate, opened fire at the two men from inside his car, killing Faheem instantly while Faizan died of his injuries at Services Hospital. Witnesses Khalid and Naeem told Pakistan Today that after shooting the two motorcyclists, the American came out of his car and took their pictures from his mobile phone, adding that afterwards he called somebody on his wireless set and “spoke to the person in Urdu”.

Khalid and Naeem said that as they were trying to stop Davis from fleeing, a black Land Cruiser appeared on the scene. “The driver of the Cruiser steered his vehicle onto the wrong side of the road, running over a young motorcyclist, two women and three passers-by,” they said. The motorcyclist, identified as Ubaidur Rehman, died in hospital later.

They said that when the Land Cruiser reached the spot, Davis spoke to the occupants and later got into his Honda Civic car and fled the scene.Lahore Capital City Police Officer (CCPO) Aslam Tareen said that Davis had claimed that he shot at the two motorcyclists while resisting a robbery. The CCPO said that although the police had found foreign currency and two unlicensed pistols from the possession of the two deceased motorcyclists, but “they were not robbers”.

He said Davis used a 9mm pistol and failed to produce permission to carry the weapon, adding that two cases had been registered against Davis under Section 302 and investigations were underway. Haider’s cousin Riaz told Pakistan Today that his cousin was innocent, adding that according to his information, Haider and his friend chased and later stopped Davis’ vehicle because he had knocked down and injured a passer-by.

He said Haider was carrying an unlicenced weapon because “the family had enemies.” Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif has taken notice of the incident and ordered the CCPO to investigate the matter personally. After Davis’ arrest, reports kept making the rounds in the provincial capital that the police had released Davis. However, CCPO Tareen confirmed to Pakistan Today that Davis had not been freed and two murder cases had been registered in the Lytton Road Police Station against him.

He said that Davis would be produced in court today. Late on Thursday night, Faizan and Ubaidur Rehman’s families protested against the US officials in front of the police station. The protesters blocked Lytton Road, burnt tyres and shouted anti-American slogans.

Hand over Karachi to the Army Now

By Saeed Qureshi

The law and order situation and social peace, which was already precarious in Karachi, now with the target killing of GEO reporter Wali Khan Babar, has reached a saturation point. In addition to this deliberate brutal murder, several other citizens were also murdered today. The lives of these slain citizens are as precious as those of the prime minister and president of Pakistan

The GEO’s Ace and promising youthful reporter was known for his valor, deep dedication and passion for journalistic profession and hard work. He was merely 28 and was yet to see many springs in his life. His life was cut short by death squads rampaging and targeting the opponents and all and sundry at their own bidding without check.

A volatile province whose interior minister has the audacity to publically claim that “we are creating all this mayhem” and still remains in the high office because he is a close friend of the head of the state of Pakistan. It is a brazen slap on the face of the civil society. How can he be serious about maintaining peace and curb proliferating lawlessness when he claims to be one of those shooting at random?

The government in power, like other burning issues, has kept this most pressing and endemic issue of restoring order and peace in Karachi on the back burner. It has been stalling to seize this overly critical problem because its own stalwarts are part of the gang wars now spreading like a prairie fire. It is easy to issue condolence messages on the spur of the moment and forget the follow up actions when the heat and inflamed passions settle down.

The restoration of societal peace in Karachi is of paramount importance for its being the largest city and also the lifeline and jugular vein for the economy of the entire country. If its economy is choked and business activities, industries and port are either closed or run by fits and starts, then Pakistan is heading towards a total economic collapse.

The government is reluctant to hand over the task of restoring peace in Karachi to the army under the fear that it would pave way for the army’s take over. It would also be perceived as the government’s failure to provide safety and security to the life and property and other activities to the people of Pakistan. This is pure treachery and reprehensible self interest and a sordid bid for survival in power at an unforgivable cost of the unremitting orgy of blood of the citizens of Pakistan.

Even a child knows that Karachi has become a battlefield of the ethnic war being fought between three distinct communities, Muhajirs, the Pathans and the other fringe segments such as Punjabis, Baluchis and radical religious militants. The immigrants whose majority is illegal play their part by stoking the violence as paid agents. However, the main confrontation is between the Muhajirs and Pathans.

Muhajirs who came to Pakistan after partition of India in 1947and mostly settled in Karachi. The Pathans mostly economic workers came to Karachi for jobs and to earn a living. Initially they were peaceful. But later as a result of the Afghan civil war, the suburban localities where these Pushto speaking normally lived turned into flourishing markets for drug and weapons trade both for domestic consumption and illicit export.

The influential drug dealers started settling down in down town Karachi by buying businesses and property. They were joined by a huge influx of the Afghan refugees who also engaged in lucrative legal and illegal pursuits for making money. For drug dealers and weapon sellers, human life has no significance. The tragedy is that these monstrous elemens are backed and protected by politicians, bureaucrats and highly influential persons from other walks of life as they also get hefty shares from these unlawful and contraband businesses.

The Muhajirs initially swallowed this bizarre situation but when it started threatening and undermining their survival and ethnic solidarity they came out to stand up and face them in a tit for tat violent style. In due course they also organised and mobilized their own cadres to fight back and settle the scores for blood with blood. Both the communities have been engaged in attacks and counterattacks since 1984 when Altaf Hussain established the Muhajir Qaumi Movement later renamed as Muttahida Qaumi Movement.

The MQM has been accused of kidnapping and killing for ransom, target shooting and ambushing and torturing the dissidents from their own party. But usually the MQM’s such activities can be treated as retaliation or reprisals to the atrocities its cadres are subjected to. There are common yet unsubstantiated accusations against the MQM for taking Bhatta (extortion money) from the shopkeepers.

Before an open civil war breaks out, the government should move fast to hand over the task of restoring peace in Karachi to the army. The rangers and the police have failed in rooting out the crime and violence from Karachi. Invariably the action by the law enforcement agencies is to cordon the areas after the incidence of crime and then leave after some time. If the criminals, terrorists and sharp shooters are being aided by the politicians then it would be ridiculous and futile to expect of them to sincerely put out the flames of ethnic wars and stamp out deadly feuding.

The army has been neutral, has the light and heavy weapons, the training and organizational structure to effectively launch anti-crime blitz. It has the capability to clear the Karachi metropolis from the thugs, killers, mercenaries, the illegal immigrants, the warring gangs, the drug and weapon mafia, the sectarian terrorists and similar enemies of peace and for that matter of Pakistan.

The army knows how to deal with such a volatile situation. However, just by way of a feeler, it should impose a curfew with breaks, for a limited period of time (say two months) and set up military courts for speedy trials. The citizens should be encouraged to send their anonymous reports about the whereabouts and names of the criminals in their areas. This strategy would equip the army with most of the data about saboteurs, outlaws, bandits and rogue elements making easy their job of purging Karachi of these anti social elements and enemies of public peace.

While the known criminals with incontrovertible evidence can be dealt with by summary trials and face firing squads, those caught as suspects can be kept in custody, interrogated and if proven guilty should be given heavy jail terms or shot depending upon the nature and severity of the crimes. In this military action, no politicians and powerful individuals who incite and abet these criminals should be spared. They should also be given death sentences or incarcerated for their complicity

In the meantime, the government should convene all parties conference to hammer out a permanent solution to establish durable peace and order in Karachi particularly and elsewhere generally where, violence and terrorism is rampant and mushrooming by leaps and bounds without any let up.

If the government remained wedded to the merely churning out formal statements to crack down on the outlaws but does nothing on the ground, then barring recipients of perks and privileges, high profile jobs and wanton opportunities to enrich themselves, it would lose whatever trust or confidence the people repose in it.

Pakistan heads down China road

By Syed Saleem Shahzad

ISLAMABAD – Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari has visited China on several occasions since taking office in September 2008, but these visits have been more ceremonial than of substance, in part because his Washington-backed government had gravitated so close to the United States orbit that even the Chinese envoy in Islamabad publicly complained.

The Pakistani military establishment’s pro-China lobby, highly influenced by now retired General Tariq Majeed, frowned on this tilt towards the US, and was especially upset that the Americans were allowed to establsh a naval base in Ormara in Balochistan province, and that US defense contractors were given a free rein in the country. However, the post-Pervez Musharraf-era army was weak and didn’t have much choice except to turn a blind eye.

This situation continued until 2009, by which time the army had regained its influence in the corridors of power and had begun to prevail over the country’s decision-making process.

Hence, Zardari’s scheduled visit to China on November 11 takes on a special significance. Notably, he has not sought the counsel of his pro-US envoy in Washington, Husain Haqqani, who has consistently advised Zardari to keep his distance from Beijing. Instead, the president on Monday held a long meeting with Chief of Army Staff General Ashfaq Parvez Kiani.

Zardari will attend the opening ceremony of the 16th Asian Games in Guangzhou, as well as meet with his counterpart Hu Jintao and senior officials.

On the surface, the leaders will discuss the Washington-opposed plan for a fifth Chinese-built nuclear reactor in Pakistan. However, the underlying emphasis will be on new moves on the grand chessboard of South Asia.

“This is a time of strategic uncertainty,” a senior Pakistani strategic expert told Asia Times Online on the condition of anonymity. “Although there is a strategic alliance between the US and Pakistan, the recent visit by United States President Barack Obama to India, which aimed to benefit the American economy, was revealing of how economic and strategic ties between India and American will be in the future: when push comes to shove, the Americans will stand with India, not with Pakistan.”

This does not mean that Pakistan, guided by the military, is instantly going to fall into China’s arms and abandon the US, but it is certainly considering adjusting its current alignments.

“While the US has provided all sorts of financial and economic assistance to Pakistan in return for its services in providing NATO [North Atlantic Treaty Organization] a passage to Afghanistan and for fighting militancy in the tribal areas, America didn’t support Pakistan in regional conflicts with India,” the expert said.

“The US intervened to help resolve disputes between India and Pakistan, but in the end the formulas that emerged from Washington were aimed at creating a situation for dialogue and engagement – trade relations without any resolution of the Kashmir dispute.

“The only [US] goal was that Pakistan-India trade would resume and that would give the Americans a corridor from India into Afghanistan, and finally that dispensation would take India, geographically, into America’s strategic loop in South Asia and facilitate India’s role to work as an American strategic partner in Afghanistan and all the way up to Central Asia,” the expert said.

A changing world

From January to November 5 this year, there were 15 major militant attacks in Pakistan, a dramatic drop from 209 incidents in the same period of the previous year. According to the Canadian Press, the chronology of events shows that the first half of the year was marked by a visibly anti-state insurgency, as was the case in previous years. The frequency of attacks and the dynamics of conflict visibly changed after September [1].

Only two major attacks have occurred since then. These included suicide bomber strikes against a Sunni mosque in Darra Adam Khel in northwestern Pakistan on November 5, in which at least 67 people were killed during Friday prayers. There was also a Taliban suicide attack on a Shi’ite procession that killed 65 people in the southwestern city of Quetta on September 1, beside two other minor incidents against shrines in Karachi and Pakpattan.

This indicates that from September the violence become sectarian, or centered on tribal disputes. The attacks by the Taliban and al-Qaeda that played havoc in Pakistan in 2009 have virtually come to a halt.

Asia Times Online has documented the development of ceasefire initiatives between Pakistan and the militants (See Vultures are circling in Pakistan September 28, 2010). These were brokered with various main groups and at present only fringe groups like the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi are left to carry out attacks, and even these are sectarian in nature.

On the other hand, attacks against Afghanistan-bound NATO supply convoys in Pakistan have increased dramatically, to the extent that they have become almost daily.

The “understanding” between the security forces and militants has reached the stage where militants have pledged they will release all prominent prisoners without demanding a high price. These include former Inter-Services Intelligence official retired Colonel Ameer Sultan alias Imam (known as the “Father of the Taliban”) and Aamir Malik, the son-in-law of former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, retired General Tariq Majeed.

During Pakistan’s recent strategic dialogue with the US in Washington, Islamabad was directly urged to come out with a comprehensive action plan against the powerful Haqqani network in the North Waziristan tribal area. The network is a key player in the Taliban-led insurgency across the border in Afghanistan.

However, army chief Kiani is a fervent believer in dialogue with the network and sees it as a guarantee for peace in the future. The Americans have tried their level-best to reach out to the Haqqanis – Jalaluddin and his sons Sirajuddin and Naseeruddin – and the Taliban, but their talks to start talks have collapsed. This has been confirmed by Saudi and other officials involved in the process. Asia Times Online was the first publication to break the news of the failure, (See Taliban peace talks come to a halt October 30, 2010.)

Washington is still pressing Pakistan, though, to mount operations in North Waziristan, and is even prepared to use a stick if necessary. This could be done through international institutions in which the US has influence, such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank, the Asia Development Bank and the United States Agency for International Development.

The IMF’s assistant director for the Middle East and Central Asia Department, Adnan Mazarie, recently warned that if these bodies stopped their credit lines to Pakistan, it would go into default. The IMF is now warning that if Pakistan does not implement a “credible and irreversible plan to implement power sector reforms”, aid will be cut off.

China means business

Last Sunday, Pakistan’s Daily Dawn reported that Pakistan had set aside all competitive international bidding for the induction of power plants in the country and had decided to award a contract, without bidding, to a Chinese company for the construction of 1,100 megawatt hydropower project in Pakistan-administered Kashmir, at an estimated cost of US$2.2 billion.

Approximately 10,000 Chinese workers are engaged in 120 projects in Pakistan and total Chinese investment – which includes heavy engineering, power generation, mining and telecommunications – stood at $15 billion at the end of this year, up from $4 billion in 2007.

One of the most significant joint development projects of recent years is the major port complex at the naval base of Gwadar in Balochistan province. The complex, inaugurated in December 2008 and now fully operational, provides a deep-sea port, warehouses and industrial facilities for more than 20 countries.

China provided much of the technical assistance and 80% of the funds for the construction of the port. In return for providing most of the labor and capital, China gains strategic access to the Persian Gulf: the port is just 180 nautical miles from the Strait of Hormuz through which 40% of all globally traded oil is shipped.

This enables China to diversify and secure its crude oil import routes and provides the landlocked and oil- and natural gas-rich Xinjiang province with access to the Arabian Sea. With China formally in command of Gwadar port operations, it would, along with Pakistan, gain an important regional and strategic advantage.

Pakistan’s marriage of convenience with the US that began after September 11, 2001, with the US-led invasion of Afghanistan and the launch of the “war on terror”, has endured some rocky times.

Informed opinion in strategic quarters in Pakistan is that in the second half of next year, American aid packages, in the wake of the beginning of the US troop drawdown in Afghanistan, will be reduced or even stopped, and the US’s relations with India will bloom.

Pakistan wants to be ready for such a development, and is using China as a hedge.

Note

1. On August 23, three bomb attacks in northwest Pakistan kill at least 36. On July 9, a pair of suicide bombers kills 102 people and wounds 168 in the Mohmand tribal region. On July 2, twin suicide bombers attack Pakistan’s most revered Sufi shrine in Lahore, killing 47 people and wounding 180. On May 29, two teams of seven militants attack two mosques of the Ahmadi minority sect in Lahore, killing 97. On April 19, a suicide bomber apparently targeting police at a conservative Islamic party rally in Peshawar kills 23. On April 18, two burqa-clad suicide bombers attack refugees lined up to register for food in Kohat district in the northwest, killing 41. On April 5, a suicide bomber attacks a rally of an anti-Taliban political party in Lower Dir district, killing 45. On March 13, two suicide bombers targeting army vehicles in Lahore kill more than 55 and wound more than 100. On February 18, a bomb tears through a mosque in the Khyber tribal region, killing 29 people and wounding 50 more. On February 5, two bombs targeting the Shi’ite Muslim minority sect in Karachi kill 33 and wound 176 and on January 1 a suicide bomber drives a truckload of explosives into a volleyball field in Lakki Marwat district, killing at least 97 people.

Kashmiri militants plan joint campaign to breach LoC

Roshan Mughal

MUZAFFARABAD: Azad Kashmir-based militant organisations have initiated a joint campaign with the support of different politico-religious parties to mobilise the people for an en masse breaching of the Line of Control to protest India’s refusal to grant the right of self-determination to the people of Indian Kashmir.

The famous bridge at the LoC, which the organisers plan to cross

The Line of Control (LoC) is the de facto border that separates Indian and Pakistani parts of the disputed Himalayan state.

Militant outfits and politico-religious parties have already stepped up their efforts to mobilise the people for what they call ‘an unprecedented’ move in the face of continuing Indian atrocities in the region.

These parties, including the Jamaat-e-Islami, the Azad Kashmir chapter of PML-N, Muttahida Jihad Council and refugees’ organisations believe that the Indian troops would not be able to confront when tens of thousands of people would cross the LoC en masse.

In this connection, the United Jihad Council, an umbrella group of nearly a dozen Kashmiri militant outfits, is preparing its activists for the ‘decisive move’.

The Jamaat-ud-Dawa and the Azad Kashmir chapter of Jamaat-e-Islami are actively promoting the plan, believing that Indian troops would not open fire on tens of thousands unarmed civilians who would try to cross the LoC.

They believe that one million people can be amassed to breach the control line which has divided tens of thousands of mothers from their sons and sisters for decades.

The idea of breaching the LoC en masse has been conceptualised by jihadi and politico-religious parties in Azad Kashmir, following a new uprising against Indian rule on the other side of the LoC.

Pakistan has been calling for a peace resolution of the festering dispute with India. And critics say that the participation of banned militant organisations, such as Lashkar-e-Taiba, Jash-i-Muhammad and Harkat-ul-Mujahideen, in the LoC breaching could hurt any effort to this end.

No date has been finalised for the move, but Azad Kasmir President Raja Zulqarnain has been contacting mainstream political parties and the Pakistan government to seek their support.

Several similar attempts had been made in the past to cross the LoC, the most important ones being those in 1954, 1990, 1992, 1993 and 1994.

However, the first successful attempt was made on February 11, 1990 when thousands of youth breached the LoC at Chakothi sector on a call from the Jammu Kashmir National Students Federation (JKNSF). Indian troops had opened fire on the unarmed students, killing eight of them on the spot.