Terroristan - June 20, 2017

[RCase]

Here are all the results of this competition

https://icho2017.sc.mahidol.ac.th/winners.php

Since it was a chemistry contest, I would have expected Pakistanis to have made a clean sweep with their disproportionate advantage with handling chemicals and practical experiments - from acid attacks, to making IEDs, bums and atim bums.

[RCase]

Patient treated on same bed with dead person in Gujranwala hospital.

GUJRANWALA: At District Headquarters Hospital doctors put a patient on same bed for treatment that already had a body lying on it, today.
A resident of Aminabad in Gujranwala, Noor Muhammad was taken to the District Headquarters hospital when he was having trouble in breathing. Later Noor succumbed to death, and his body was not removed from the ward when another patient was place on the same bed for treatment. Later the hospital administration said they were forced to do so because of shortage of bed facilities in the ward. Can Ummah Brother , Qatar "help", as they have financially helped in Karachi. After all, Pakistan is "helping" them in meeting their "food shortage"

Isn't it true that profit also slept with dead woman? So what is the problem, hainji?

[Atmavik]

Alright, 'fess up. Which one of you time wasters punctured this paki balloon? First this khushi ki Khabar that made every paki's heart go garden garden:

Pakistani student bags bronze medal in international chemistry competition

For perspective, I know a little about Pakistan's math olympiad team.. They are taking part since 2005, most (90+ of the participants) get ZERO. In 2016 for example TOTAL team score (all 6 combined was ) 18!!! which (average score 3 - half got zero)..
For comparison .. EVERY indian student got more than 18!!! while Pak got Zero medals, India got something like 5 medals including one silver.
(Americans, routinely get close to 6 gold almost every year)

In all those years, there was just one student, (IIRC he got bronze or HM some time in the past) who got double digit score.

(Worse is Paki math team's ethics..those guys even cheat even in practice tests while some international coaches tried to help their team -- whole Pak does not have a single good math coach and in past other countries tried to help them)

BTW the math olympiad is going on right now as I mentioned in math dhaga.

For those who are unfamiliar:

- Any participant which is able to do one problem (out of 6) correctly gets HM award.
- About 50% students get Bronze/Silver/Gold Medal.
- The Gold/Silver/Bronze are awarded in the ratio of 1:2:3 .. as the numbers go.
So if there are 120 students taking part, 10 will get gold, 20 Silver, 30 Bronze.

Amber ji,

How do the Israeli students do in the Olympiad ?

Pakis might claim it as a Yahood-e-hanood sasish

[arun]

X Posted from the “Oppression of Minorities in Pakistan” thread.

Green on Green Intra-Mohammadden belief motivated sectarian violence sees Mohammaddens of the minority Shia aka Shiite sect targetted for death by their fellow Mohammaddens of the majority Sunni sect in Mastung in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan Occupied Balochistan:

4 Hazaras shot dead near Mastung as gunmen open fire on vehicle

At least four people belonging to the ethnic Hazara Shia community were shot dead when unidentified gunmen opened fire on their vehicle near Balochistan's Mastung area on Wednesday, police sources said.

A woman is among the slain victims. According to police sources, the incident was an act of targeted killing. …………………………

Balochistan has been experiencing incidents of violence and targeted killings since more than a decade. More than 1,400 incidents targeting the minority Shia and Hazara community have taken place in the province during the past 15 years.

While sectarian terrorism in Balochistan has disproportionately targeted the Hazara community, easily identifiable because of their distinctive physical appearance, other Shias — especially pilgrims travelling to and from Iran — have not been spared either.

[Falijee]

"Piss-Off" With Nawaz Cited As Reason For Nisar's Absence From Work !

Nisar’s absence from work linked to ‘differences’

ISLAMABAD - In a major development, Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan did not turn up for official work on Tuesday apparently because of bad health. Sources however insist that he had left his work because of his ongoing tussle with the party over the way of dealing with the Panama Papers case. A spokesperson of the interior ministry confirmed that Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan did not come for official work because of serious problem in his back. So, this (once ) de-facto PM,(and a 400% percent supporter of Ganja Sharif) , now a turncoat is now sulking like a "small child", citing medical reasons from his "absence from work" !

“I am not sure for how many days he would not be assuming his duties,” the spokesperson said, while responding to a question for how long he was away from work. State Minister for Information Marriyum Aurangzeb, ( now a "rising star" ) the other day, had rebutted some unconfirmed media reports that the interior minister was going to resign because of his differences with his party — PML-N, over the way of dealing with the Panama Papers case as well as its stance over the joint investigation team (JIT) report.

n the past, Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan had left his official work citing bad health and had stayed in London for many weeks ( the unofficial capital of Pakiland, and the preferred R&R destination of "tired" Paki politicos !. And in case of Nisar, a good place to buy "expensive wigs" ) following his differences with the party when he was the leader of the opposition in the National Assembly during the last PPP government.

The rifts between Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, one of the close aides to the prime minister in the past and senior leader of the PML-N, and some other cabinet members of the ruling party came into the open last Saturday. Nisar, the holder of a "foreign passport" has more options than the others !

Nisar, in the cabinet meeting had advised Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif against getting swayed by the opinion of the appeasers and avoid a clash with other state institutions including the judiciary and the military on the Panama Papers issue. He had clarified his position over the questions being raised on his loyalty within the party and said that his party had mishandled the Panama Papers case. But the government denied the reports that the interior minister had any disagreement with the party leadership and the majority of his colleagues over tackling the crisis. The facade of unity in Ganja's PML has to be maintained at all costs !

During the past few days, Nisar had issued at least four clarifications-cum-rebuttals against media reports about his movements and interactions - following the submission of the JIT report before the Supreme Court. Nisar like his other cabinet colleagues did not come in the open to defend Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and his family before and after the submission of the damning JIT report that alleged the Sharif family of having offshore wealth beyond their known sources of income. Nisar, being a "true" Paki politico, has not come out clean in his explanations . And is keeping his options open !

[Falijee]

"Women Entrepreneur " Nabbed In Pakistan

Woman arrested for running alcohol factory in Okara

OKARA: Police arrested woman for running and supplying alcohol factory in village Paracha today. The two women Fatima Sarwar and Tanveer Bibi has set up the factory and were supplying alcohol. Police conducted raid and arrested Tanveer Bibi with 25 litters liquor while Fatima Sarwar have fled the scene.Dibalpur Police have registered a case against suspects and started investigations.

Making and marketing of "Sharab" is of course "haram" in Islamic Pakistan , as everyone knows! But these two Paki Ayeshas , took undue risk, and went a bit "too far" and believed all this BS about "women empowerment", coming out of the mouth of Maryam Sharif, who is probably their "role model"

[Falijee]

Pakistan Army Gets Cutting-Edge Explosives Detectors from United States

The Pakistan Army received more than fifty new Fido X3 explosives detectors from the U.S. Embassy’s Office of the Defense Representative – Pakistan (ODRP). The Fido is a sophisticated hand-held device that will allow Pakistani soldiers to determine in less than ten seconds whether an item contains explosives or not.

The new Fidos will be added to those previously provided to the Pakistan Army, currently used in various counter-terrorism operations throughout the country, helping seize explosives and save lives. Brigadier General Kenneth Ekman, Chief of the U.S. Embassy’s ODRP said, Most likely will not be used against "good terrorists", which the Pak Army considers "allies" against its fight with India and Afghanistan !

He highlighted the U.S. partnership with the Pakistan Army in its ongoing efforts to combat terrorism, particularly in the Pakistan-Afghanistan border region.

In recognition of the sacrifices made by Pakistani military personnel in the line of duty, the US and Pakistan are also partners in a program to support amputees. This partnership will provide specialized medical equipment and training to allow Pakistan Army medical technicians to manufacture prosthetic limbs to improve the quality of an amputee’s life. The Paki Army and the Paki Govt have become "experts" on how to milk the system !

[Falijee]

“Most Shia boys were picked up upon their return from Iraq.” – Asad Butt

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) has, in their annual report, ‘State of Human Rights in 2016,’ noted that, among other human rights violations, in the year 2016, 728 Pakistanis were added to the ‘missing persons’ list – the highest number in the last six years. Asad Butt, the Vice Chairperson of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan in Sindh, tells Newsline that, “Among other cases of enforced disappearances, most of the Shia boys, from Karachi and other cities, were picked up upon their return from Iraq. They are suspected of having taken part in the Syrian war, despite the fact that their passports have not shown entry to the troubled country.” According to Butt, it has been noted that “in other cases of disappearances, men in plain clothes, who drove vehicles without registration number plates, were involved. But in the case of many Shia zaireen (pilgrims), uniformed police officials, the SSP, or the local SHO, or Rangers personnel, had come to make the arrests, but when the families approached the courts, the law enforcement officials refused to admit that they had picked them up. The families were assured, unofficially, that those detained would return after the investigations, but none of these assurances have been followed up on.”

Commenting on the role of the HRCP, Butt argued, “The problem in these cases is, that while the family members approach us [for help], but they decline HRCP bids to document these incidents. They are either scared about their own safety, or they think making it public could threaten the lives of those who have gone missing.” When asked about the number of Shia boys who have gone missing, he recalls, “there are six to seven cases that were reported from Karachi. Two boys from Naushehro Feroze were picked up; one was released, and the other is still missing. With the exception of Naeem Haider from Naya Golimar, the details of the rest have not been provided to the HRCP.”

Butt emphasises, “Irrespective of the activities these boys were involved in, whether they go to these sacred places for work or military training, or to fight, or anything else, what we demand is that the law enforcement agencies and security institutions should not flout the laws of the land. Just produce these persons in courts of law, charge them, gather evidence, and let the court decide.” The Deep State of Pakistan follows its own rules in this regard !

[sudhan]

Pakistan Army Gets Cutting-Edge Explosives Detectors from United States

Why do they need this, when they have perfectly good ADE 651s (dowsing rods).. where bomb detection is more of an art than science, hain?

[Falijee]

This Farticle Re-inforces The Wide Belief That At Least In The Paki Version Of Islam It Is Haram - At Least For Paki Ayeshas To Have A Bit Of Fun

'Hans gayi aur phans gayi': On the mechanics of laughter and sexual harassment

Men laugh on talk shows and in parliament when ‘women’s issues’ are discussed. Men laugh as they walk away, women laugh as they are left behind, children laugh as they keep their secrets. Even the dog, that is actually a dog, approaching the men on their benches in the dusk, slides its gums back as it rolls over hoping for scraps. Everyone laughs but the feminists. Who are humourless.

[Falijee]

Now British High Commissioner Roped In To Become Supporter Of CPEC

UK a supporter of CPEC, says envoy

QUETTA: Britain is a supporter of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), which has the potential to spur economic development not just in Pakistan and Balochistan but in the entire region, British High Commissioner to Pakistan Thomas Drew said on Tuesday. Did they expect the British Envoy to come and openly say "that he does not support CPEC " !

Speaking at the Quetta Chamber of Commerce and Industry (QCCI), he said Balochistan was a natural corridor for the Central Asian states, and the British High Commission would help members of the Quetta chamber to benefit from investment opportunities in different sectors in collaboration with the British international trade team ...

On the issue of visit visas, he said there was no condition that an applicant must know the English language fully well to acquire a visa. “We are soon starting an English language test system in Quetta after 10 years so English should not be a hurdle in obtaining the British visa,” he said, More Aam Abduls will now be lining up for Bartania Vijjas now , in the guise of political persecution

[Falijee]

100% Discount On Accommodation Offered In Pakistan Held Neelum Valley To "Revive Tourism"

‘Rent-free week’ in Neelum valley planned

MUZAFFARABAD: A temporary ban clamped by the administration on the entry of tourists in the picturesque Neelum valley of Azad Jammu and Kashmir in the wake of a cross-LoC attack on an Army vehicle in the area was lifted on Tuesday to the delight of nature lovers. Deputy Commissioner Chaudhry Mohammad Fareed told Dawn that the ban was imposed to avoid any slip-up by the tourists from the downstream areas, most of whom were not much familiar with the topography of the 200km long valley located northeast of the state capital Muzaffarabad.The Army vehicle was hit by the Indian troops with a mortar shell between Athmuqam and Karen at the weekend, resulting in the death of four soldiers. Will there be any "takers" on this fabulous offer is anybody's guess, unless they "dont mind" becoming collateral damage- or Ghazis !

The deputy commissioner announced that the valley would observe a “rent-free week” from Aug 1-7, in a rare show of hospitality towards its visitors from any part of the country.

The deputy commissioner however advised the intending travellers to confirm availability of accommodation during that period through their tested channels beforehand so as to avoid any problems in the face of likely overcrowding.

[Falijee]

Disgraced Paki Cricketer- Claiming To Be World's Tallest Also - Becomes A Father

World’s tallest cricketer becomes a dad

LAHORE – Pakistan’s fast bowler Mohammad Irfan has been blessed with a baby boy. The Burewala-based cricketer, who is currently facing a ban after being hit by a spot-fixing scandal earlier this year, took to Twitter Saturday morning to share the good news.

At 7 feet 1 inch, Mohammad Irfan is the tallest cricket player of all time.So, it would be "safe" to say that- because of the ban- he used his "bowling talent" other than on the cricket ground. And after 9 months, the results are there for all to see . Is he going to stop here or is going to be in the news for the next 6 or 7 years, based on the national average birth rate

Irfan has been banned from all forms of cricket for six months which could extend to a one-year ban, after his confession that he had failed to report two approaches made by bookies during PSL 2017. Someone has to bring home the bacon. And what harm is there if "some money" is made on the side . After all, no one was hurt, injured or died . It is a victim less crime !!!

[RCase]

Coming on the heels of Bakis assuming fake identities like a minister, judge etc., it is only time for this:

https://tribune.com.pk/story/1461739/ma ... d-karachi/
Man posing as army major arrested in Karachi

The ‘impostor’, identified as Zulfiqar, son of Ghazanfar, was taken into custody by the Preedy police while still in uniform and claiming to be an army major.

The police said Zulfiqar posed as an army man to defraud people.
They added that he lived in Defence. He runs a real estate business in Defence and Clifton.

What next? Baki posing as jernail, COAS?

[Peregrine]

Man kills sister’s groom on wedding day in Khanewal over dowry dispute

MULTAN: A wedding day in Khanewal district turned tragic on Tuesday night when the bride’s brother gunned down her groom a mere few hours after their nikah.

Police said 25-year-old Muzaffar, a resident of Shrine Sultan Baho in Jhang district, arrived at his bride-to-be Afshan’s home in Khanewal district along with the wedding procession (baraat) on Monday evening.

The nikah took place on Tuesday, but after a few hours, Bilal, Afshan’s brother had a heated argument with Muzaffar over the dowry and shot him dead.

A resident, Mushtaq, told the police that before the wedding procession set out for its return to Khanewal, the groom’s family had examined the dowry given by the bride’s family. They found some household appliances promised by the Afshan’s family missing and demanded money for them instead. But Bilal, the bride’s brother, became enraged and shot Muzaffar over the demands, claimed Mushtaq.

However, Sughra, a wedding guest, said before the wedding the woman’s family had demanded a pre-settled amount of money in exchange for their daughter. But after the nikah the groom’s family went back on its word and refused to give any money, Sughra claimed.

A scuffle erupted between Bilal and Muzaffar and the former shot the latter dead, she added.

Police said the suspect had escaped after the incident but teams had been dispatched for his arrest.

A case has been registered and further investigation is under way.

Cheers

[SBajwa]

International Math Olympiad Ranking of the countries

https://www.imo-official.org/results.aspx

[Bart S]

US lists Pak among terror 'safe havens'
http://www.rediff.com/news/report/us-li ... 170719.htm

[Falijee]

Canadian Government revokes group’s charity status, audit cites possible funding of Pakistani militants

Federal regulators have revoked the charity status of a Canadian Islamic organization after an audit uncovered problems including tax receipts that were issued for donations to a Pakistani group linked to armed militancy.

ISNA Islamic Services of Canada was stripped of its charitable status for “non-compliance,” according to records obtained by Global News. Authorities also revoked a related charity, the Canadian Islamic Trust Foundation.

Both are former affiliates of the Islamic Society of North America-Canada (ISNA-Canada), and shared its Mississauga, Ont. address. Politicians of all stripes have attended ISNA-Canada events, notably Justin Trudeau in 2013 and, in April, Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale.

The Canada Revenue Agency took action four years after the ISNA Development Foundation lost its charity status over fundraising for a Pakistani relief group linked to militancy in the disputed Kashmir region. Among the findings that led to the latest two revocations was that ISNA Islamic Services tax receipts had been issued for collections by a Toronto mosque for the “charitable arm” of a Pakistani group whose armed wing was fighting Indian forces.

It’s unclear why the CRA waited three more years before following through with the revocations of ISNA Islamic Services and the Canadian Islamic Trust, which came into effect on May 13. But in letters dated March 30, the CRA said that after reviewing the charities’ written responses to the audits, the government’s concerns had “not been alleviated.” According to the records, ISNA Islamic Services had failed to keep proper donation records and had funded two separate organizations, the Islamic Centre of Toronto, known as the Jami mosque, and the Islamic Book Service, without exercising control over either group.

It had also issued $340,000 worth of receipts for money collected by the Jami mosque. The arrangement allowed donors to the mosque, a non-charity, to obtain charitable contribution receipts — which would allow them to deduct the amounts for tax purposes. Some of the money was allegedly raised by the mosque for the Pakistani group the CRA said raised terrorism concerns.

As for the Canadian Islamic Trust Foundation, the CRA records said the organization had “allowed itself to be governed” in the interests of several for-profit Islamic housing co-operatives, including the former ISNA Housing Co-operative.According to the CRA, the Islamic Trust invested in the cooperatives despite cautions in disclosures to potential investors that there was no certainty they would be profitable or be able to pay dividends on shares.

Mark Blumberg, an expert in non-profit and charity law, questioned why the CRA was not allowed the inform the public about concerns about particular charities until their status had already been revoked.The system means Canadians are unaware of potential misuse of their charitable donations, he said. The British Charity Commission of England and Wales regularly distributes information to the public when it has significant concerns, rather than waiting until status has been revoked. The present Fed govt of Canada, led by Justin Trudeau is heavily dependent on Islamic and Arabic votes. And is also soft on "Islamic terrorism". His cabinet members include pro Pakistani, pro Khalistani and pro Saudi Cabinet Members !

[Falijee]

Trump Administration Names Pakistan Among Countries Providing ‘Safe Havens’ To Terrorists

Washington: The US on Wednesday listed Pakistan among the nations and regions providing “safe havens” to terrorists, saying terror groups like the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) continue to operate, train, organise and fundraise inside the country in 2016. In its annual ‘Country Report on Terrorism’, as mandated by the Congress, the State Department said that Pakistani military and security forces undertook operations against groups that conducted attacks within Pakistan such as Tehrik-e Taliban Pakistan. So far so good !

“Pakistan did not take substantial action against the Afghan Taliban or Haqqani, or substantially limit their ability to threaten US interests in Afghanistan, although Pakistan supported efforts to bring both groups into an Afghan-led peace process,” the State Department said. “Pakistan did not take sufficient action against other externally focused groups, such as Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) in 2016, which continued to operate, train, organise, and fundraise in Pakistan,” the report said.India, it said continued to experience attacks, “including by Maoist insurgents and Pakistan-based terrorists”. Indian authorities continued to blame Pakistan for cross-border attacks in Jammu and Kashmir, it said. Nothing new for people who follow events in that part of the world. This is "public shaming" of a" Non-NATO Major Ally" at the least . Whether it translates into reduction of aid, punitive action or arm twisting- under Trump's new policy remains to be seen.

In a separate chapter, the State Department listed Pakistan as one of the safe havens of terrorism. The State Department said that numerous terrorist groups, including the Haqqani Network (HQN), the LeT and JeM continued to operate from Pakistani soil in 2016.“Although LeT is banned in Pakistan, LeT’s wings Jamaat- ud-Dawa (JuD) and Falah-i-Insaniat Foundation (FiF) were able to openly engage in fundraising, including in the capital,” it said.

“LeT’s chief Hafiz Saeed (a UN-designated terrorist) continued to address large rallies, although in February 2017, Pakistan proscribed him under relevant provisions of Schedule Four of the Anti-Terrorism Act, thus severely restricting his freedom of movement,” it noted.

The United States and India worked together to designate JeM leader Maulana Masood Azhar, although the listing was blocked in the UN 1267 Committee, the State Department said. Other areas mentioned in the report as safe havens are Afghanistan, Somalia, the Trans-Sahara, Sulu/Sulawesi Seas Littoral, Southern Philippines, Egypt, Iraq, Lebanon, Libya, Yemen, Columbia and Venezuela. PTI. Iran absent from "list"

[Falijee]

Zahid Sindhi‏ @Zahid_Sindhi 13h13 hours ago

JustIN: Sindhi Nationalist Leader Riaz Chandio has been abducted by Pakistan Ranger & ISI.
@Amnesty @HRW @UN

Deep State in over-drive these days

[SSridhar]

Now British High Commissioner Roped In To Become Supporter Of CPEC
UK a supporter of CPEC, says envoy

GoI has to warn any country that supports CPEC.

[Falijee]

MQM Defector Mustafa Kamal Threatens Altaf Bhai - Long Distance

Won’t let Altaf step outside his house in London: Kamal

Pak Sarzameen Party (PSP) Chairman Syed Mustafa Kamal said on Wednesday that his party would protest in London and won't let MQM founder Altaf Hussain step outside his house. Addressing a press conference, Kamal said that his party workers did not die while collecting hides. He said that it was MQM founder and former party chief Altaf Hussain that had killed them."Will stand up and fight till the last breath," he said adding that "We will be victorious in the end." Kamal, once a right hand man of Altaf Hussein has broken from MQM rank and formed his own MQM style party with Sarkari support

"Till my last breath, I will not put weapons into the hands of our party workers," he said. "This better be the murder of a party worker of PSP," he added. A party worker of PSP was recently gunned down in the streets of Karachi by unknown persons riding a motor cycle ( the most popular method !) - Kamal is blaming Altaf for this killing and is vowing revenge now . !

Mustafa Kamal said that PSP would protest outside the residence of Altaf Hussain in London and won't let him come outside his house. The PSP chief said that he has set a time for his meeting with the British High Commissioner. Altaf is a British citizen . Unless, Kamal has his agents in London to "create trouble" , it is no use "complaining" to His Majesty's Representative in Isloo, or Karachi , unless he has "solid evidence" of Altaf's Bhai's hand in the killing

[SSridhar]

Bill Clinton offered $5 billion to not conduct nuclear test in 1998: Nawaz Sharif - ToI

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif said on Wednesday that had he not cared for Pakistan, he would have accepted former US president Bill Clinton's offer of $5 billion for not carrying out nuclear tests in 1998.

"I would have taken $5 billion from the US for not carrying out nuclear tests if I were not loyal to the country," Sharif, battling for survival in office over corruption and money laundering charges, said while addressing a political gathering in Sialkot in Punjab on Wednesday.

Pakistan had held the tests within days of India - under PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee - conducting the nuclear implosions at Pokhran in May 1998.

Sharif said this amid a growing chorus for his resignation as PM by his opponents after an investigation team, tasked by the Supreme Court to probe his offshore assets and companies revealed by the Panama Papers leak, found him and his children guilty of perjury , forging documents and concealing assets. Sharif warned his opponents that if he was being held "accountable" today , it would be their turn tomorrow. {The idea is that nobody should be held accountable}

[Falijee]

Karachi University In Need Of "Desperate Life Support"

Karachi University unable to pay staff, utility bills as financial crisis worsens

KARACHI: Karachi University's financial crisis has worsened so much so that the country's largest public university does not have enough funds to pay off its staff, research expenses, and utility bills. On Wednesday, several cheques handed to staffers bounced because of not enough amount in varsity's accounts. The institution's financial deficit has exceeded Rs700 million.The varsity needs Rs600 million on immediate basis to help run its aff
While the annual budget of the institution is Rs5 billion, the Higher Education Commission (HEC) provides Rs1.7 billion and the varsity collects Rs1.8 billion itself."Research work in the university has come to a halt due to insufficient funds," KU's Vice Chancellor Dr. Muhammad Ajmal said. "Instruments used for research in different faculties are not in working condition and the university is unable to replace them due to lack of funds."He added that the roofs of buildings allotted to numerous departments are in a shabby condition.Dr. Ajmal has appealed the center and provincial government to provide funds to the university on emergency basis. It could be a reflection of the financial crisis facing the whole Paki nation. Or, it could be a "targeted attack" against this institution known for not supporting Pakjabi policies of the Central Govt !

[Amber G.]

Amber ji,

How do the Israeli students do in the Olympiad ?

Pakis might claim it as a Yahood-e-hanood sasish

Sbajwa has put a link for historic standings of countries..
Just to put in perspective, countries like Israel, India, US, China, Korea, Iran, Russia, Singapore, European countries etc.. etc.. do take part and "standing" may mean something.

About half the countries score zero (or near zero).. countries like Botswana (or most African countries), Pakistan, Saudi Arabia fall in that group. So in practical terms their ranking do not mean much.. ranking of 100, 150 or 200 essentially means they got zero or near zero, so one can not say ranking of 100 is better than ranking of 101...
(For example, for Pakistan, except for one (or two ) students in the history (out of 60+ students who have taken part) have scored more than a single digit .. 90% have gotten zero).

It seems this year problem 1 for the contest was much easier, hoping that even those countries which routinely get zero may get some points .. (I will be curious to see how many Pakistani students do solve this easy problem.. I will post the result here when available )

[Falijee]

Pakistan pays $4.8b in external debt servicing
The Express Tribune

ISLAMABAD:
A Senate panel on Wednesday questioned the government’s strategy of taking new loans that has caused an exponential increase in borrowings as the cost of external debt servicing mounted to $4.8 billion in 11 months, which has almost doubled in the past four years.

From July through May of 2016-17, Pakistan spent $4.794 billion on repaying external loans and the interest on them, according to the Ministry of Finance.

This includes $3.6 billion in principal loan repayments and another $1.2 billion in interest payment. The figure is expected to cross $5 billion once the full fiscal year data is available.

In 2012-13 – which was the last year of PPP government – the cost of external debt servicing was only $2.6 billion. Since then, the external debt servicing is rapidly growing and is now eating over one-fourth of export proceeds of the country.The proceeds of all these previous loans were ostensibly to be used for the "economic development of Pakistan". But in reality went into the pockets of Presidents, Prime Ministers, Cabinet Members, Senior Bureaucrats and of course the Jernails and Kernails of the Fauj

However, the ministry did not provide a complete picture to the parliamentary panel and also ducked questions on interest payment on short-term foreign borrowings.Finance Secretary Shahid Mahmood requested an in-camera meeting to share details of the borrowings, although these figures are already publicly available in the Ministry of Finance’s own publications. The facade of "accountability"!

The government was borrowing more to repay the previous debt, which could create serious problems for the economy, said Mandviwalla, who was finance minister in the PPP government. Doubt that Pakistan can get out of the debt trap !

The finance ministry did not share a plan about how it will contain the debt. The only thing that the finance secretary said was that the Federal Board of Revenue should improve its tax collection.He also mentioned the declining foreign remittances that stood at $19.3 billion by the end of last fiscal year, but the committee did not agree with his arguments on remittances.

More Loans On The Way - This Time France Is "Obliging" Pakiland

Dar witnesses signing of loan agreements between Pakistan, AFD

Forex reserves decrease to $20.83bn

This looking for "good economic news" relating to Pakistan!

[Rajdeep]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b08xdh9r

Documentary about the child abuse revelations in Rochdale and other towns.

In this thread because its a perfect example of "jo La-whore mein ....."

For a change the real nationality of the abusers is mentioned and not brushed under the "asian men" garb.



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HpI8e03QPpA

[Falijee]

Paki Newspaper Editorial Suspects That There Was A Secret Agreement Between Raheel And Nawaz : Raheel Stays Out Of Domestics Politics And Ganja Will Use His Influence In Getting Him The Muslim NATO Job

Saudi-led alliance

IS retired Gen Raheel Sharif commanding a ghost army? Government representatives have insisted that so long as the terms of reference of the Saudi-led Islamic Military Alliance to Fight Terrorism are not finalised, Pakistan’s participation cannot be determined. But with the prime minister’s foreign adviser, Sartaj Aziz, once again struggling to answer questions in the Senate on Tuesday, it is obvious that the Pakistani government is not clear when these terms will be finalised. So why was an NoC issued to Gen Sharif, allowing him to proceed to Saudi Arabia to take command of an army that does not exist and to implement the orders of an alliance whose terms have not yet been finalised? Despite another round of questions by senators on Tuesday, Mr Aziz was unable to offer anything resembling an acceptable answer. Basically, IMO, it is an agreement between Ganja ( who will help him post-retirement) and Raheel promising to stay away from domestic politics and "harassing" Ganja politically !

It is possible to attribute the decision to issue Gen Sharif an NoC to a civil-military relationship that is forever shrouded in secrecy and in which the civilians are arm-twisted into making poor choices. But so long as the veil of secrecy remains, it is also possible to interpret the decision to send Gen Sharif to Saudi Arabia in other ways. Could the civilian government have struck a deal with the then army chief to provide him a job post retirement if he gave up on his rumoured ambition to secure a second term as army chief? More than civilian govt, it was Ganja who used his "influence" with the Saudis !

The problem with secrecy is that it breeds rumours and suspicion, especially when it concerns individuals at the very top of the de facto power structure in the country. The phrase ‘in the national interest’ is bandied about easily; surely, when it comes to Pakistan joining a foreign military alliance, with the possibility of troop deployments abroad, the national interest demands clarity and transparency. This so-called alliance is basically an Anti- Shia coalition. Nothing to do with fighting terrorism !

There is also a problem that the government refuses to acknowledge: parliament has debated and rejected the possibility of sending troops to a sectarian cauldron in the Middle East and the Gulf. Saudi Arabia is rightly a close ally of Pakistan and the ties between the two countries are deep and long-standing, but Saudi Arabia’s interests are not automatically Pakistan’s. As the war in Yemen and now the blockade of Qatar have indicated, the Saudi leadership, undergoing a generational change, is making questionable decisions. Is Raheel acting as a military and political advisor the "Young Crown Prince"

There is already speculation that recent sectarian attacks in the country are the militant Islamic State group’s purported retaliation against Pakistanis fighting in Syria. The warning signs are too big to ignore. Gen Sharif ought to unilaterally reconsider his position. If he does not, the government must consider ways to cancel the NoC he has been granted. Call Raheel and Ganja both for questioning and get to the bottom of the matter ! Easier said than done .

[Peregrine]

Pakistan treats US as a 'limitless ATM': Raymond Davis

WASHINGTON: Pakistan treats America like a "limitless ATM" and most of the US aid to the country goes to the military's kitty, a private US defence contractor who was responsible for one the worst bilateral tensions, has said.

"For Pakistan, no amount of money ever seemed to be enough. The economic aid it received from the United States became a drug it alternately loathed and could not live without," Raymond Davis said in his book "The Contractor".

Davis, 42, was arrested in Lahore in 2011 on charges of killing two Pakistani citizens and thus kicked off a huge diplomatic crisis between the two countries.

Having a first-hand experience of how the system works in Pakistan, the CIA contractor wrote that most of the US aid ended up with the Pakistan military and not with the civilians.

"As dysfunctional as the relationship between the United States and Pakistan+ was, it was made worse by the fact that most of the aid typically ended up in the hands of the Pakistani military, while much of its population continued to languish in poverty," Davis said.

In his book, Davis writes that the real power in Pakistan lies with the military.

"While Pakistan is said to be a parliamentary federal republic with a president who serves as head of state and a Prime minister who runs the government, everyone knows that the real power in that country lies with the military," he wrote.

"For more than half of the sixty-four years that had passed since its birth as a nation, Pakistan had been under military rule. It devoted nearly a quarter of its budget to defence spending. As recently as 2007, Pakistan had been under martial law. That same year, President Pervez Musharraf, a former four-star general, suspended the constitution, had the leader of the opposition party arrested, and dismissed the Supreme Courts chief justice," Davis said.

"In short, you did not want to cross the military in Pakistan," he said.

Between 1954 and 1959, the US gave Pakistan $1.28 billion.

"By 2011, the total amount of aid doled out by the United States+ had ballooned to $67 billion," he wrote in his book.

"After 9/11, the US, using Coalition Support Funds, also reimbursed Pakistan for any money it spent combating terrorism, a policy that was somewhat flawed because, while it was supposed to encourage the Pakistani military to fight local militants, it provided little incentive for it to do the job well," Davis rued.

"After all, if all the terrorists disappeared, so too would the seemingly limitless ATM that was the United States," he said in the book which gives graphic details of his arrest in Lahore and his subsequent release.

"Having grown dependent upon these annual disbursements of aid from the US and with fewer than two million of its 182 million citizens paying income tax, Pakistan had become the very definition of a "rentier state," a country that receives a disproportionate amount of its revenues from external sources, kind of like the ne'er-do-well child of fabulously wealthy parents," Davis said.

Cheers

[Peregrine]

Pakistan pays $4.8b in external debt servicing
---snipped---
Forex reserves decrease to $20.83bn

This looking for "good economic news" relating to Pakistan!

Falijee Ji :

Deeyar Berather Ji,

Please do not have faith in Clapistani Newpaper or other Websites. For Forex Reserves please refer to SBP Web site.

Here is the latest Forex position :

Domestic Markets & Monetary Management Department- (BILLION US$)
WEEK-END LEVELS1/ - LIQUID FOREIGN EXCHANGE RESERVES

END PERIOD : .............................: 14-Jul-17

NET RESERVES WITH SBP :...............: 15.4785

NET RESERVES WITH BANKS.............: 05.3515

TOTAL LIQUID FOREX RESERVES........: 20.8300

Thus Clapistani Forex Reserves are only US$ 15.487 ONLY of which I reckon US$ 5 Billion is from "Brother Islamic Countries", about US$ 2 Billion is from "Iron Brother" and another US$ 3 to 4 Billion is from Banks along with Sakuk and other Bonds.

Such is the "TRUE" position of Clapistani Forex Reserves.

Cheers

[Falijee]

Saudi-fication Of Pakistan Started In 1985 : Khuda Became Allah And Pakistan Became Al- Bakistan - Under Zia

slam’s Lesser Muslims: When “Khuda” became “Allah”

In 1985 a curious thing happened: a prominent Pakistani talk-show host bid her audience farewell with the words Allah Hafiz. It was an awkward substitution. The Urdu word for goodbye was actually Khuda Hafiz (meaning God be with you), using the Persian word for God, Khuda, not the Arabic one, Allah. The new term was pushed on the populace in the midst of military dictator General Zia-ul-Haq’s Islamization campaign of the late 1970s and 1980s, the extremes of which Pakistani society had never before witnessed. Zia overhauled large swathes of the Pakistan Penal Code to resemble Saudi-style justice, leaving human rights activists and religious minorities aghast.

In more recent times, the language wars break out every year during the holy month of Ramadan, when Muslims fast from dawn to dusk. Before the early 2000s, Pakistanis used a Persianized pronunciation of the word, Ramzan. Slowly, however, the Arabic Ramadan came to take hold – in television commercials and on billboards advertising restaurant deals for the best eateries to break the fast, in magazines and newspapers, in sermons, on talk shows and of course, from the lips of neighbors. Now, Pakistanis were supposed to wish each other Ramadan Kareem instead of Ramzan Mubarak.

Pakistan has long been torn between its Indo-Persian roots and the cultural imperialism of a much darker strain of Sunni Islam imported from the Gulf, particularly Saudi Arabia.

And of course, Pakistan depends heavily on remittances from Saudi Arabia. In the 2015-2016 fiscal year, remittances from the kingdom amounted to $5.9 billion, according to a State Bank of Pakistan report quoted in local newspapers, greater than inflows from any other nation. The UAE followed closely behind at $4.3 billion. What is religion without the money to enforce it? And Pakistan has reciprocated by sending the Sunni Raheel to fight the Shia Yemenis . And Ganja - at least on paper - calls himself a Barelvi Muslim , but going by his friendship , appears to be an out -and - out Salafist !

The intelligentsia, largely, loathe Allah Hafiz. They cling to the vanquished Khuda Hafiz even though it is no longer heard in the streets. They write obituaries for it in the opinion pages. When two such speakers exchange a Khuda Hafiz, an instant understanding is forged: Ah. The nuances of Paki Malsi

Two years ago, the Arabic obsession took a turn for the ridiculous. On the streets of Lahore, people were noticing vehicles with number plates that read “Al-Bakistan.” And therein lies the absurdity of this linguistic imperialism – the letter P does not even exist in Arabic. (Pepsi Cola, for instance, is spelled “Bebsi” when advertised in the local script in Arab countries.) Later, even the province of Punjab, where Lahore is located, was sacrificed when “Al-Bunjab” number plates reportedly began cropping up. Punjab means “land of the five rivers.” What Bunjab means is anyone’s guess. (Indeed, even Allah Hafiz isn’t properly Arabized – really, it should be Allah Hafidh.) Distinguished Pakistani linguist and academic Tariq Rahman, referencing Pakistan’s founder, commented on the phenomenon, “Plain Mr Jinnah, as he called himself, would be turning in his grave…In fact, I wonder why /p/ and /ch/ are not being abandoned altogether. We may lose our moon (chaand), but we will be better Arabs. Anyone for it?” It is also worth noting that the Pakistani national anthem is written in Farsi. If Pakistan is to truly become a colony of the Arabs, this will have to change.

The Iranis should object !

Author Mohamed Hanif, in his celebrated debut novel, A Case of Exploding Mangoes, says it best: “…All God’s names were slowly deleted from the national memory as if a wind had swept the land and blown them away. Innocuous, intimate names: Persian Khuda which had always been handy for ghazal poets as it rhymed with most of the operative verbs; Rab, which poor people invoked in their hour of distress; Maula, which Sufis shouted in their hashish sessions. Allah had given Himself ninety-nine names. His people had improvised many more. But all these names slowly started to disappear: from official stationary, from Friday sermons, from newspaper editorials, from mothers’ prayers, from greeting cards, from official memos, from the lips of television quiz show hosts, from children’s storybooks, from lovers’ songs, from court orders, from habeas corpus applications, from inter-school debating competitions, from road inauguration speeches, from memorial services, from cricket players’ curses; even from beggars’ begging pleas.” Once upon a time, Persian was compulsory in Pakistani vernacular schools. Now Arabic has replaced it !!

[Peregrine]

Fully Posted on the Analyzing CPEC Thread

Advancing CPEC by stealth

This newspaper carried a report back in May revealing a document that could be called the CPEC master plan. That report drew a sharp response from the government, particularly the minister planning who is in charge of all CPEC coordination. He argued that the report was “factually incorrect” and that the real long-term plan was under negotiation and would be released to the public upon finalisation.

Cheers

[Peregrine]

US accuses Pakistan of providing ‘safe haven’ to militants

The United States has once again accused Pakistan of providing ‘safe haven’ to terrorists, saying the country has not taken any substantial action against the Haqqani Network of Afghan Taliban.

“Pakistan did not take substantial action against the Afghan Taliban or HQN, or substantially limit their ability to threaten US interests in Afghanistan, although Pakistan supported efforts to bring both groups into an Afghan-led peace process,” the US State Department said in its annual “Country Reports on Terrorism”.

The report said while terrorist-related violence declined in Pakistan for the second straight year in 2016, terror groups like Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM) continued to operate, train, organise and fundraise inside the country.

The US State Department went on to claim that the al Qaeda in Afghanistan and Pakistan was seriously degraded as a result of Pakistan Army’s continued offensive against the terror group’s presence in North Waziristan, successfully restricting its freedom to operate in the region.

The report, however, said Afghanistan experienced aggressive and coordinated attacks by the Afghan Taliban, including the Haqqani Network and other insurgent groups, claiming a number of such attacks had been planned and launched from safe havens in Pakistan.

In a separate chapter, the State Department listed Pakistan as one of the safe havens of terrorists. The State Department said that numerous terrorist groups, including the Haqqani Network, the LeT and JeM continued to operate from Pakistani soil in 2016. “Although LeT is banned in Pakistan, LeT’s wings Jamaatud Dawa (JuD) and Falah-e-Insaniat Foundation (FiF) were able to openly engage in fundraising, including in the capital,” it said.

“LeT’s chief Hafiz Saeed (a UN-designated terrorist) continued to address large rallies, although in February 2017, Pakistan proscribed him under relevant provisions of Schedule Four of the Anti-Terrorism Act, thus severely restricting his freedom of movement.”

‘Important counterterrorism partner’

Terming Pakistan an important counterterrorism partner, the report highlighted terrorist attacks which targeted civilians, officials and religious minorities in the country. “Major terrorist groups focused on conducting terrorist attacks in Pakistan included the Tehreek-e Taliban Pakistan (TTP), Jamaatul Ahrar (JuA), and the sectarian group Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ),” it said.

“Islamic State’s Khorasan Province (ISIS-K) claimed several major attacks against Pakistani targets, likely conducted in collaboration with other terrorist groups.”

Afghanistan peace process

The report further highlighted Pakistan’s efforts to bring peace in Afghanistan through political reconciliation between the Afghan government and the Taliban.

“The Pakistan government supported political reconciliation between the Afghan government and the Afghan Taliban, but failed to take significant action to constrain the ability of the Afghan Taliban and HQN to operate from Pakistan-based safe havens and threaten US,” it said.

Cheers

[Virupaksha]

the article seems to have been written in 1988 . Please let me know if there have been any updates. This is US report-toilet paper game. pakistan sure appreciates the paper it was mailed in.

US - all gas, sab bakwas.

Pakistan hid laden for 10 years and Pakistan was given 30Billions for it , these being lesser terrorists - I expect US to pay jaziya of 10 B over next 10 years.

[Amber G.]

Did googling to see if there is any news about Pakistan's International Math Olympiad team.. best (and the only top) I can find is this
article from 2005 from Dawn ..
Pakistan made member of Mathematics Olympiad
(All you need is a team of 6 High-school students.. ready to go and participate in the olympiad.. there are 150 countries take part..Only Pakis would put that as an achievement as is "made member of IMO" )
From the same article another "achievement":

He said another major achievement of Pakistan was that it had been a member of Mathematique sans frontiers (mathematics without borders), also known as Kangaroos of Mathematics.

As far as IMO..

Pakistan had been invited for the first time in the 45 years history of the Olympiad to send an observer to the international moot in Mexico. (Pak did not have a team, one prof wanted to see what happens.. IMO said sure as long as you pay your airfare and hotel you can come and see what happens..Only Pakis will gloat that as an achievement..

(BTW I happen to know - Mircea Becheanu was hired as a coach for Pak, as they did not have a single qualified person in Pakistan )

[Peregrine]

X Posted on the Managing China Threat Thread

Pakistan tries to poke its nose into Doklam

NEW DELHI: Amid the Sino-Indian military standoff near the Bhutan-China-India tri-junction, Pakistan high commissioner Abdul Basit met the Chinese ambassador to India Luo Zhaohui. In what further raised eyebrows among Indian authorities, after his meeting with Luo, Basit was also learnt to have a sought a meeting with Bhutan's ambassador to India Vetsop Namgyel.

Top diplomatic sources confirmed to TOI that Basit called on the Chinese ambassador on Wednesday. They also confirmed that he was likely to soon meet the Bhutanese ambassador.

TOI has learnt that the situation at Doklam, where Indian troops have physically prevented the Chinese from constructing a road, was discussed in the meeting.

Basit is learnt to have wanted to discuss the situation with the envoys of both the countries. Basit has completed his tenure as high commissioner here and is expected to return to Islamabad next month.

Beijing is currently actively engaging the international community to drive home its point that it is India which is the aggressor at the Doklam plateau which is disputed between Bhutan and China. Unlike any other border transgression in recent times, the Doklam stand-off has even seen the Chinese embassy under Luo actively engage the Indian public to expound Beijing's position.

Political counsellor Li Ya recently released a video to address the concern of "some Indian friends".

More than a month into the "eyeball to eyeball" standoff though, it is still not clear how it'll all end as China publicly insists on an immediate and unconditional withdrawal of Indian troops. India has so far not engaged with foreign missions the way Beijing has. Or even if it has, it is not saying so. Until Wednesday, even the Russians had not been briefed about the situation.

Indian officials have warned against warmongering in the media but the fact is that it is the Chinese state backed media which has taken an unusually strident position on Doklam. They have also sought to exploit India's vulnerability in Kashmir by talking up the threat to India from Pakistan.

A noted Global Times columnist wrote recently that the India's logic in stalling Chinese road construction at Doklam could also be used by a "third country" to enter "India-controlled Kashmir" if it received a request from the Pakistan army. Basit's meeting with Luo may further fan that sentiment.

Despite the remark by Indian Army chief Bipin Rawat that India is ready for a "two-and-half front" wars, the government will be mindful of the threat from Pakistan in case there indeed is a flare up at Doklam.

Cheers

[sanjaykumar]

Indian officials have warned against warmongering in the media but the fact is that it is the Chinese state backed media which has taken an unusually strident position on Doklam.


The Chinese are sore because they caught India in trespass . Well they should not have been in traipse a$$ around Bhutan in the first place.

[arun]

X Posted from the CPEC thread.

Singapore based newspaper Straits Times’ Associate Editor Ravi Velloor on OBOR, CPEC and the Mohammadden Terrorism Fomenting Islamic Republic of Pakistan:

Pakistan is where OBOR hits the road

Despite its fulsome promise, the US$62b plan by China to boost Pakistan's infrastructure may not be all good for the flailing South Asian economy.

Ravi Velloor Associate Editor

For much of the world, the jury's still out on China's Belt and Road initiative, better known as the One Belt, One Road (OBOR) programme. While some countries have embraced it enthusiastically, others, such as the United States and Japan, have tried to be polite about it, going along warily without fulsome endorsement.

A few, India particularly, are openly disdainful, if not hostile to the plan. That's because they see it not as the Chinese grand design for globalisation that it is projected to be, but a Beijing plan to entrap the world in its grasp even as China looks for ready export markets for its tottering state-owned enterprises.

In the more than 60 nations that span President Xi Jinping's OBOR vision, none looms larger than Pakistan, possibly the Asian state strategically closest to Beijing after North Korea. The latest projected outlay for Chinese investment in that country under a plan called CPEC, or China Pakistan Economic Corridor, exceeds US$62 billion (S$85 billion) in loans and tied aid.

The vision is to link Kashgar in Xinjiang province to the warm water port of Gwadar in Pakistan's largest and most thinly populated province, Balochistan. In the bargain, Pakistan will get its biggest infrastructure boost since independence in 1947. China's strategic interest is to give itself all-weather access to the Arabian Sea bypassing the Strait of Malacca, a potential choke point that has India at one end and Singapore at the other, with Indonesia's Sumatra and the Malay peninsula in between.

While a good part of CPEC is about building road connectivity, the major investments are going into a series of power plants to shore up Pakistan's crumbling and hugely inefficient power grid that's made brown-outs of 12 hours a day common. The CPEC, according to available public information, will be built with not only Chinese capital, but Chinese labour and steel too. Because the so-called corridor traverses some intensely restive spots marked by periodic violence and terror attacks, Pakistan has raised a whole new army division to protect Chinese workers, marking a substantial recurring investment since pay and pensions tend to make up almost two-thirds of most military budgets in South Asia.

So far, so good. Few can take issue with Pakistan for accepting Chinese munificence, if indeed it is that, to fix its crumbling infrastructure. The dismal power situation had shaved off as much as 2 percentage points of growth annually, leaving the economy floundering at an expansion rate of less than 5 per cent, below potential. Having missed the services revolution that transformed next-door India because the poor security situation within its borders had made it risky to house outsourcing operations for Western firms, the energies of Pakistan's talented white-collar workforce had been unexploited to a large degree. As a result, India's significantly larger economy consistently outpaced that of its smaller neighbour, accelerating existing disparities.

SOLACE IN THE ARMS OF CHINA

What's more, Islamabad feels abandoned by Washington, which only in 2002 had deemed it a "major non-Nato ally". In the Pakistani narrative, the US used Pakistan to fight the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan, funnelling Saudi-funded arms to militant groups resisting the Soviets, then uncharitably abandoned it to favour India. In the wake of the 2008 terrorist attack on Mumbai, blamed on hitmen allegedly trained inside Pakistan, former US secretary of state Madeleine Albright referred to Pakistan as an "international migraine" with its combination of nuclear weapons, terrorism, extremism, corruption and poverty.

Little wonder then that Pakistan's Commerce Minister Khurram Dastgir Khan recently described China as "the only game in town".

Against that background it suited both Pakistan and China to tighten their decades-old strategic embrace. The Pakistanis, quite seriously, believe their relationship with China is, to use a phrase popularised by Beijing, "taller than the mountains, deeper than the valleys and sweeter than honey".

The problem is that too much of the CPEC plan is opaque, and not available publicly for a proper examination of its merits. This leads to apprehension that, especially in the light of South Asian neighbour Sri Lanka's experience with unviable Chinese investments that led it into a debt trap, Beijing's talk of a win-win means China wins twice.

The Chinese money for CPEC, it is increasingly clear, is largely on commercial terms. On the other hand, if power plants constitute a major chunk of the CPEC outlay, Islamabad may have a repayment problem when China eventually hands it a bill. Analysts point out that Pakistan has always sold power to its people at rates significantly below what it pays for the energy. Additionally, collection ratios are poor because of rampant power theft and defaults by companies owned by elite families. Unable to pay the producers in time, a problem of circular debt has ensued.

IN PAKISTAN'S INTEREST OR NO?

What's more, not everyone is convinced that the projects were conceived in Pakistan's interest. Some analysts say that four of the six thermal power plants being set up will run on imported coal, whereas Pakistan's plants have traditionally used furnace oil. There also is fear that at a time when oil prices seem set to tread the troughs for a substantial period, and solar energy is nudging grid parity with coal, Pakistan may be making the wrong choices.

It also has not gone unnoticed that China, despite the tight strategic relationship, has in past years generally not shown much appetite to invest in Pakistan. According to State Bank of Pakistan figures cited in the Pakistani press, total foreign direct investment (FDI) in the six months to December last year - the latest number available - was US$1.08 billion.

While that was a 10 per cent increase over the previous year, the jump was mostly on account of a single Dutch investment of US$460 million. Chinese FDI in the same period was US$48 million, about a tenth of what companies from the mainland put into India.

Still, it is not difficult to divine the Pakistani mindset. In the near term, Islamabad is clearly playing off its strategic sweet spot not just to power up its economy but also to allow China such a big say in it that it compels Beijing to also underwrite its security, if nothing else, to protect its investments.

The gap with India widened so much in the last two decades that it left Pakistan in pretty much the same situation that India finds itself in vis-a-vis China: a deepening sense of insecurity about the more powerful neighbour and fear of coming under its economic and political coercion. The sensible thing to do would seem to be to develop a closer economic relationship with India, not just on account of geography but also because Pakistani products are likely to be far more competitive against Indian goods rather than Chinese products. It is no secret though that the Pakistani deep state will not countenance this, even if Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif himself favours it.

For Pakistan, therefore, the CPEC plan - which apparently also envisages giving Chinese visa-free access and the Chinese language being promoted in a massive way across the country - marks a turning of the back on its broader South Asian heritage.

According to revelations made two months ago by Dawn, Pakistan's internationally respected broadsheet, the CPEC document talks of a national fibre-optic backbone meant to assist in the "dissemination of Chinese culture".

Yesterday, the newspaper said "the real game of CPEC is about granting access to Chinese enterprises to Pakistan's domestic markets, raw materials and the agrarian economy".

It is now up to China to make sure that the CPEC does not turn out to be one more lemon it sold to yet another vulnerable developing economy. Mr Ahsan Iqbal, the Wharton-educated Minister for Planning in Mr Sharif's Cabinet and a key architect of the CPEC programme, has called the earlier Dawn report "factually incorrect". More recently he told me on the sidelines of a conference that his department's assessments are that the projects under the plan meet the benchmarks for commercial viability.

If that is true, there ought to be no grounds to complain. But, if Beijing is seen to have stiffed its closest friends with unviable projects and burdensome repayment obligations, it will not go unnoticed around the world.

After all, OBOR is a 100-year project and public memory, while short, cannot be completely erased. In more ways than one, therefore, Pakistan is where OBOR hits the road.

A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on July 21, 2017, with the headline 'Pakistan is where OBOR hits the road'.

From the Straits Times:

Pakistan is where OBOR hits the road

[arun]

X Posted from the CPEC thread.

Excerpt from July 20, 2017 article in World Finance titled “Following China’s debt-paved Silk Road”:

……………….. the paving of the Silk Road with low-priced debt has got China into trouble in some regions, particularly following the collapse in the price of crude oil. In Latin America, for example, state-owned lenders have been forced to swap infrastructure-funding debt for the supply of oil as recipient countries run out of revenues with which to pay China back.

The policy has also backfired in other locations. As the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies pointed out in a definitive recent report, crisis-hit Venezuela provides a sobering example: in mid-February, China agreed no less than 22 new deals aimed at propping up the South American country’s fast-declining oil industry. Although the ever-hopeful President Nicolás Maduro characterised the deals as heralding “our country’s economic recovery”, it looks more as though China is taking control of its wells and refineries in an infrastructure-for-debt swap. …………………….

Following China’s debt-paved Silk Road

Taking on debt from the Peoples Republic of China on usurious terms and conditions for infrastructure projects whose primary purpose is to keep PRC project infrastructure enterprises, PRC Labour and PRC input suppliers humming along has brought even more baleful consequences for countries such as Venezuela whose citizens have been so impoverished that they now need to work as prostitutes in Colombia:

Venezuelans sell sex in Colombia to survive : Women fleeing poverty get the right to work as prostitutes

The Mohammadden Terrorist Fomenting Islamic Republic of Pakistan should take note of events in Venezuela as the day will not be long when muslimah wimmens sistahs may be forced to head westward to service Arabs as the adverse consequences OF CPEC aka Conning Pakistani’s to Enrich China, become reality.

[Peregrine]

X Posted on J & K Thread

Farooq Abdullah is like his Father who conspired with US Ambassador Chester Bowles and Adlai Stevenson to have a US Sponsored “Free Kashmir”. On JLN finding out Sheikoo was imprisoned!

'Approach US, China to mediate in Kashmir issue': Farooq Abdullah's remarks met with reproof

NEW DELHI: Jammu & Kashmir National Conference (NC) president Farooq Abdullah said on Friday that India should turn to third parties, such as the United States and China, to mediate in the Kashmir issue.

Advocating bilateral dialogue in the face of rising tensions along the Line of Control (LoC) between Indian and Pakistan, Abdullah said that violence and warfare were not the solution to the Kashmir dispute which has plagued both nations for nearly 70 years.

"For how long are you going to wait? Sometimes, you have to catch the bull by the horns. War means annihilation, as they (Pakistan) have atomic bombs, just like we do. The way (to resolve the issue) is through dialogue," Abdullah said.

The former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister added that India has many allies across the globe, who can be approached to act as intermediators to help settle the Kashmir issue.

"Use your allies to initiate a dialogue and find a lasting solution. US President Donald Trump has said he wants to settle the Kashmir problem, we didn't ask them to. China also said that it wants to mediate in Kashmir. Somebody has to be approached," Abdullah said.

Quoting former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's remark - "Friends can be changed, but not neighbours" - the NC leader said that arrogance and stubbornness would not let any of the nations progress and develop.

Abdullah's statement has not gone down well with the ruling BJP-PDP government in J&K.
"Condemn his statement. When he was chief minister, he'd talked of attacking Pakistan. Why this two-faced approach?" said J&K deputy chief minister Nirmal Singh.

Congress, which plays the role of Opposition in the J&K Legislative Assembly along with the NC, distanced itself from Abdullah's remarks, with party vice-president Rahul Gandhi refuting outright the possibility of third-party intervention in the Kashmir conundrum.

"The point that is being mentioned that a third party's intervention should be invited for the settlement of the issue, it's wrong. India is Kashmir and Kashmir is India. It's our internal matter and no other country should have any say in it," Rahul said.

Leaping into the fray, NC leader Omar Abdullah defended his father's statement.

"My father isn't a Congress party member and doesn't need it's permission or approval before he voices his opinion. It's called free speech," Omar said in a tweet, reacting to Rahul Gandhi's firm dismissal of third-party involvement in Kashmir.

Added Later : Jammu and Kashmir: In the Shadow of Imperialism - Maharaj K. Kaul - INDEPENDENT KASHMIR AND THE U.S. ROLE

Cheers