SSridhar wrote:Gagan wrote:FoDP: Friends of Development in Pakistan.
Friends of Democratic Pakistan. It started off as FoP and somebody hit upon the bright idea of inserting 'Democratic' while the short reign of democracy lasts.
Sunday, November 01, 2009
Load-shedding continues across the country and in some rural areas stretches to 12-hours or more. A power shortfall standing between 1000 to 3000 MW is being reported. Industry struggles to survive while smaller units continue to fold up. Many ask, as we turn our clocks back, whether the
daylight-saving time introduced last year has achieved anything at all. Originally marketed as a means to save power, there is no evidence at all that it has had any impact on this. Certainly the power cuts which have become a part of life take as much of a toll as ever before. Published studies meanwhile say that even in developed countries, daylight saving brings on average power saving of just over two per cent or less. Even this level is unlikely to have been achieved in our country, given that people simply switched dining and sleeping times to coincide with light levels rather than the other way round.
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Over the past few weeks it has, in the northern half of the country, meant that children set off for schools in darkness and many complain of difficulties adjusting to the altered times of sunset and sunrise. Perhaps then the time has come to abandon this practice and find other ways to solve our energy crisis.
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Islamabad, October 31: Visiting US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, through her blunt and tough talks, urged Pakistan during her recent visit to realise the ‘existential threat’ posed by the extremists and work towards normalising situation with India, which would then help the country counter the numerous problems facing it.
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an editorial in one of the leading English dailies of the country seconded the top US Diplomat’s view.
An editorial in The News said it was obvious that having a less hostile relationship with India would benefit the people on both sides of the border and help allay the otherwise heightened tension.
“Overcoming the militant threat and entering in to a less acrimonious relationship with India would benefit most citizens. There are segments that would stand to lose, but ways must be found to prevent them from subverting the interests of the majority. They have done so repeatedly through the decades since 1947,” the editorial said.
“If we are honest, we cannot deny that much of what she (Clinton) said was true. For reasons buried in ideology, many of us, whether we draw influence from the right or the left of the political spectrum, have difficulty in suggesting that an alliance with the US could benefit Pakistan,” the editorial went on to add.
The editorial concluded that Islamabad must utilise the opportunity, arising after Clinton’s visit, to lay out a more open relationship both with the US and India in order to pull the state of the vicious circle that it has entered into.
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Gagan wrote:Chidambaram's 'final warning' to Pak: Stop sending terroristsIn a very strongly worded speech, Home Minister P Chidambaram has issued what he called a final warning to Pakistan.
Speaking at a public meeting in Madurai, the Home Minister said if Pakistan tries to send terrorists into India again, India would give a crushing response.
"I've been warning Pakistan every time, to not play with us again and to stop with the Mumbai game. I'm warning Pakistan for the last time. If Pakistan attempts to send terrorists into India again, India will not only foil those attempts but also give them a crushing response," said Chidambaram.
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Sunday, November 01, 2009
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Anyhow, Hillary Clinton was brilliant in her presentations. She exuded charm as well as a seasoned politician’s grit to present her point of view in a forceful manner. It was a treat to watch her in action though there were moments when she had obvious difficulty in fielding a few difficult questions. Some of the points she made should make us think about why we are trapped in a deadly war within our own frontiers. After all, the army operation in South Waziristan – Rah-e-Nijat – is continuing and reports that insurgents could be fleeing to North Waziristan indicate that many more battles have yet to be fought.
As an aside, let me say that watching Hillary Clinton again made me sad to think how our leaders seem incapable of communicating their thoughts to the people and articulating the policies of the government or their respective parties in a rational and persuasive manner. This shortcoming is particularly pronounced in the present leadership of the Pakistan People’s Party.
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Naturally, we have at this time an onslaught of opinion on relations between the US and Pakistan, with some specific reference to the Kerry-Lugar Bill. Simultaneously, our bilateral relationship is being filtered through the on-going war on terror and the spate of bombings in Pakistan during the dreadful month of October. (Would November, that begins today, be less lethal?)
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Turning a new page would logically demand an ability to think and analyse the entire situation without being obsessed with positions that had been taken earlier. It is in this area – the capacity to learn from history and contemporary developments – that we tend to be very deficient. Whether the Americans can do this, with their think tanks and academic wisdom, should not concern us too much. We must define our own sense of destiny and this is a very critical moment in the life of our nation.
For instance, we need to look at some crucial issues that were also raised by the US Secretary of State
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Our present difficulties call for a serious – that is, without any jingoistic flourish – examination of the path that we have traversed so far.
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For instance, Hillary Clinton said in Lahore on Thursday that Pakistan could “take off like rocket” if ties with India normalise. This is definitely a very complex and emotive issue but, in the final analysis, we have to decide what is in our best national interest. The larger focus, however, was on how we have dealt with militants and religious extremists. The US Secretary of State has contended that the leadership of Al Qaeda was in Pakistan. She said: “I find it hard to believe that nobody in your government knows where they are and couldn’t get them if they really wanted to”.
Be that as it may, and our authorities must have responded to such allegations in bilateral negotiations, the fact that parts of our tribal belt were controlled by the Taliban is certified by the present army operation in South Waziristan. In a larger context, the influence that religious extremism has had on our society is also a threat to the survival of Pakistan as a modern and democratic polity. Is this not time to locate the mainsprings of this militancy and devise strategies to promote liberal, progressive and democratic values?
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But there are bound to be far-reaching consequences of the existing – and increasing – degradation of our social sector. A number of reasons have combined to make the lives of a large number of our citizens intolerably difficult.
Let me conclude with a reference to the Global Gender Gap Report 2009 of the World Economic Forum, released this week. In a survey of 134 countries, Pakistan is placed at 132 – down from 127 in 2008. Only Chad and Yemen are lower than us in the context of equality between man and woman. There is little comfort in learning that India, at 114, is even lower than Bangladesh (94) and Nepal (110). Is this not something that our talk shows should be talking about?
The writer is a staff member. Email: ghazi_salahuddin@hotmail.com
LAHORE/KARACHI: The citizens exchanged greeting messages of “Happy Time Change” through their cell phones on readjustment of time after the end of daylight savings on November 1.
The clocks were reversed across Pakistan by one hour after a span of seven months.
Those celebrating this occasion are of the view that not a single moment of happiness be wasted in the prevailing tense situation.
Sunday, November 01, 2009
BARA: Seven soldiers of the Frontier Corps (FC) were killed in an improvised explosive device (IED) attack on a security forces convoy in Bara subdivision of Khyber Agency on Saturday.
Officials said the Frontier Corps (FC) personnel were carrying ration to a security post in the Sur Ghar area when their vehicle struck a roadside bomb. The blast was so severe that it killed all the seven soldiers occupying a truck on the spot and destroyed the vehicle.
The slain personnel belonged to Mehsud Scouts.
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The troops resorted to aerial firing soon after the explosion and cordoned off the area in search for the attackers.{Undoubtedly to fend off the predator Jinn}
It was the deadliest attack against security forces since the launch of the ongoing military operation “Bia Daraghlam” (here I come again) in Khyber Agency in September this year.{Aaya ram gaya ram...}
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Bara Tehsil of Khyber Agency was under the control of militant outfit Lashkar-e-Islam (LI), led by Mangal Bagh, for the past few years.
In a bid to flush out the outlawed groups and destroy the dens of criminals and kidnappers, security forces launched an operation in the district bordering Peshawar. The Army joined the action initially but later withdrew and only the FC forces are now carrying out the operation there. Security forces have claimed killing over a hundred militants and arresting more than 150 so far.
AFP adds: The bomb killed seven soldiers and wounded 11 others, officials said.
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Military and security officials in Peshawar said two vehicles carrying rations for the troops were destroyed in the explosion, which occurred about 15 kilometres west of Peshawar.
abhijitm wrote:
he just didnt say how
abhijitm wrote:
We continue to strongly believe that the terrorists are out there to sabotage the peace process between Pakistan and India... Our two countries should not be driven and dictated by them," Qureshi told Malaysian news agency Bernama in an interview.
SSridhar wrote:abhijitm wrote:he just didnt say how
He didn't say that. In Tamil he said, 'it will be a sledge-hammer retaliation . . .'. But, Chidambaram, for all his haughtiness, speaks very carefully. He is not given to loose usage of words. So, amidst all pessimism to which I usually subscribe when it comes to tall claims of Indian leaders, I have some hope.
shiv wrote:Just wondering if this is merely part of the good cop bad cop approach. MMS has just offered talks - coinciding with the Clinton visit. PC is merely saying that the offer is not out of weakness or fear...
SSridhar wrote:
He didn't say that. In Tamil he said, 'it will be a sledge-hammer retaliation . . .'. But, Chidambaram, for all his haughtiness, speaks very carefully. He is not given to loose usage of words. So, amidst all pessimism to which I usually subscribe when it comes to tall claims of Indian leaders, I have some hope.
Karan Dixit wrote:"Every morning as we leave our houses we pray, and we ask our family members to pray that we get back safe and sound," said Mohammad Rahim, who runs an electronics business in the city center. "That is what every Pakistani does."
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091101/ap_ ... _capital_1
As Islamabad's military operation against pro-Taliban militants in South Waziristan entered its third week, Lieutenant General Nadeem Ahmad, chief of the government's Special Support Group, told reporters on Sunday that between 244,000 and 250,000 people living in the region have migrated to the neighboring towns of Dera Ismail Khan and Tank for their lives.
The army says it has killed hundreds of militants since it launched the offensive code-named "The Mother of all Battles" three weeks ago. Pro-Taliban militants, who have carried out retaliatory attacks across Pakistan, deny the claim.
Pakistani authorities suspect that Americans involved in training of the Punjab Police at the Sihala Police College may have been involved in espionage near the Kahuta nuclear site located close by. However, US diplomats strongly deny this.
A credible government source said at least one Pakistani security agency has clearly indicated in its report submitted to the government that the Americans might have installed radiation detection devices at their Anti-Terrorism Assistance Programme (ATAP) camp situated in the college to monitor activities in the Kahuta nuclear site.
“Concerned authorities may be asked for a joint survey of the ATAP Camp by incorporating technical experts to assess if any interception equipment to detect radioactive rays has been installed or not,” the report said.
The report also revealed that following US pressure, the Ministry of Interior vide its letter number 1/41/2003-Police dated June 29 also granted a no objection certificate (NoC) for import of explosive material by the office of the ATAP.
Like the case of Inter-Risk, now banned, the Interior Ministry issued the NoC for the import of explosives without getting any security clearance from the intelligence agencies.
Interestingly, initially the Interior Ministry decided to issue the NoC but it was subject to clearance by two intelligence agencies — the ISI and the IB — which sought clarification about the quantity and type of explosive and detail of courses.
Consequently, the Sihala College administration was approached, which sought details from the ATAP camp. But instead of providing the details, Robert A Clark and Bob of the ATAP Camp contacted the US embassy, which used its influence and managed to get the NoC bypassing the rules.
The ATAP base camp is located just nine kilometres away from the Khan Research Laboratories (KRL) and housed within the premises of the Sihala college but even the commandant of the college is not allowed to go there. Of late, the US embassy wanted additional space apparently for training purposes but the Punjab government refused to oblige the Americans.
Top authorities in the Punjab government also confirmed to The News that US Ambassador Anne Patterson not only personally met Chief Minister Punjab Shahbaz Sharif but also wrote to him requesting for additional space at the Sihala college.
They offered additional training to the Punjab Police in the field of firearms and raids. “But we politely refused to offer any additional space,” the source confided to The News, admitting that serious questions are being raised about the presence and conduct of US trainers already present at the Sihala college. A senior spokesman for the Punjab, when approached, confirmed this.
Interestingly, in the last several months no training course for the police officials has been conducted by the ATAP at the college, but American’s presence is well pronounced. Commander of the police academy Nasir Khan Durrani also formally wrote to the top authorities in the Punjab to express his concerns over the activities of the ATAP officials.
Sources also said that US embassy officials were also found visiting the camp quite regularly. They revealed that two Americans working at the Sihala ATAP Camp along with four other Americans of the US embassy were intercepted near Kahuta in July 2009 by security officials of the KRL.
They were detained for 2-3 hours as they could not satisfy the KRL security personnel regarding their visit to the sensitive region.
However, a retired assistant director of the FIA, working with Americans at the ATAP Camp, was sent to take them back who, introducing himself as an FIA officer, freed the Americans and took them back to the camp. The sources disclosed that those Americans along with Pakistani staff riding on 4×4 vehicle, tried to trespass into the restricted area of Kahuta.
The Interior Ministry spokesman was not available to offer any comment on suspected spying of the country’s nuclear programme by Americans or to explain why the Interior Ministry issued an NoC to the Americans for the import of explosive material without getting clearance from security agencies.
The Interior Ministry spokesman, Rashid Mazari, never returns any call from The News. He was contacted by different staffers of The News Investigative Wing during recent weeks but he never responded.
The US embassy spokesman, however, when contacted denied that the US personnel involved in the police training activities at the Sihala Police College were involved in spying of the Khan Research Laboratories. He also denied the installation of monitoring and bugging devices there and explained that the ATAP officials were imparting training to the Pakistan police with the permission of the Government of Pakistan. When further probed, he said, “I don’t know where your story is going.” He added, “The key point that I emphasize here is that all things are being done with the (permission of) Government of Pakistan”.
When asked about the suspected installation of radiation detection devices there, he said, “I am not aware of any radiation detection devices there. There must be some bomb detection equipment for the Pakistani police.”
At one point, he asked The News correspondent, “Do you seriously think that the Government of Pakistan is going to allow us to install radiation detection devices there? Of course not, so I hope that I am not going to read tomorrow that you are going to write.”
He added that the Government of Pakistan was intimately involved and suggested The News to speak to the official spokesman of the Interior Ministry.
When asked about the reported trespassing of American officials and diplomats, he said he was neither aware of it nor had heard anything about it. He explained that the Pakistani diplomats in the US could travel anywhere without any restriction. On the contrary, the United States diplomats have to inform the Government of Pakistan when they desire to travel outstation. “Your diplomats don’t have to do this.”
Meanwhile, the US embassy while responding to a report on Tuesday expressed disappointment at media reports claiming that the Sihala law-enforcement training facility was being used to train foreigners on Pakistani soil.
“The report was factually incorrect and mischievous. The 512 Pakistani police officials who have trained at Sihala could easily set the record straight,” the embassy clarified in a statement published in the newspapers on Wednesday.
It said the US, since 2003, had helped train federal and provincial police officials in a variety of counter-terrorism measures at Sihala. The embassy stated the Pakistan government had proposed using the Sihala training facility, adding there was no “monitoring” equipment located at the facility.
It said that the administration of the Punjab Police College has repeatedly visited the facility, and added that the current commandant has complete, unrestricted access to the facility and all the personnel trained at the facility are Pakistani law enforcement personnel and no foreigners are trained there.
By Ansar Abbasi
Muppalla wrote:Taliban, al-Qaeda sling US, German guns: Report
Pro-Taliban and al-Qaeda-linked militants have reportedly been outfitted with state-of-the-art American arms and other weaponry made in the US-allied states, including Israel, Germany and India.
The pro-Taliban militants in Pakistan were equipped with expensive and expertly-crafted firearms made by the German arms manufacturer Blazer, Deutsche Welle reported on Wednesday.
The rifles are priced at USD 2,960 (EUR 2,000) a piece and are characterized with heavy-duty outer parts and ‘lifelong’ durability. The weapons are well suited for operational purposes in mountainous areas such as the tribal Pakistani region of South Waziristan, which borders Afghanistan.
Gerard wrote:It’s time to end this futile tit-for-tat with India
In his latest situation report on Afghanistan, submitted to the US president Barack Obama, Gen Stanley McChrystal suggests that Indian influence is “jeopardising US efforts to defeat the Taliban and al Qa’eda extremists”.
Indian political and economic influence is increasing in Afghanistan, including significant development efforts and financial investment. [I]ncreasing Indian influence in Afghanistan is likely to exacerbate regional tensions and encourage Pakistani countermeasures in Afghanistan or India.
Given the opportunity, India assists anti-state elements in Balochistan and North West Frontier Province (NWFP), and when some of them attack Mumbai, India wants to hold Pakistan responsible.
It’s time to end this futile tit-for-tat with India
Muppalla wrote:250,000 displaced in Pakistan's Waziristan offensiveAs Islamabad's military operation against pro-Taliban militants in South Waziristan entered its third week, Lieutenant General Nadeem Ahmad, chief of the government's Special Support Group, told reporters on Sunday that between 244,000 and 250,000 people living in the region have migrated to the neighboring towns of Dera Ismail Khan and Tank for their lives.
Muppalla wrote:Taliban, al-Qaeda sling US, German guns: Report
Pro-Taliban and al-Qaeda-linked militants have reportedly been outfitted with state-of-the-art American arms and other weaponry made in the US-allied states, including Israel, Germany and India.
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ISLAMABAD -- An onslaught of militant violence has transformed Pakistan's capital from a sleepy oasis to something of a city under siege, with its tree-lined streets barricaded, schools shuttered and jittery residents wondering when the next attack will come.
The fear shows how Taliban and al-Qaida-led insurgents based along the Afghan border have brought the war into Pakistan's political and diplomatic heart, something they hope will force the government to halt a new army offensive into their stronghold.
The unease has been heightened by the range of targets attacked despite a nationwide security clampdown. Suicide bombers hit the International Islamic University and a U.N. office in Islamabad; militants took officers hostage for 22 hours at army headquarters in the neighboring city of Rawalpindi; commando-style raids paralyzed the eastern city of Lahore; and bombs have ripped through markets in the northwest.
More than 300 people have been killed, most of them Pakistani civilians. And no one expects the attacks to end soon.
While Islamabad was occasionally hit, its 900,000 people and several thousand foreign residents still considered themselves largely untouched by the war. But just over a year ago, a truck bombing devastated the J.W. Marriott Hotel and showed the city was well and truly in the militant cross hairs.
"Every morning as we leave our houses we pray, and we ask our family members to pray that we get back safe and sound," said Mohammad Rahim, who runs an electronics business in the city center. "That is what every Pakistani does."
With many people choosing to stay at home, owners of restaurants and shops popular with foreigners and wealthy Pakistanis say their earnings have dropped by 50 percent in the two weeks since the start of the latest government offensive.
Many schools remain closed following the university attack, while principals try to secure them against possible future attacks. Workers are busy building thick concrete barriers to stop suicide car bombers.
Islamabad's main diplomatic enclave, which is fenced off from the rest of the city, has become a neighborhood of fortresses, with compounds sealed off behind concentric rings of barbed wire, blast walls and heavy metal gates. Armed men - whether from government security forces or the small armies of private guards at each compound - are everywhere.
In the face of the attacks, the resolve of the country's politicians, army generals and people to take the fight to the militants in their border sanctuary of South Waziristan appears to be holding. But unqualified support for the offensive is complicated by the unpopularity of the government and a belief that the violence would stop if America pulled out of Afghanistan.
In more than a dozen interviews Thursday and Friday, conspiracy theories alleging the involvement of neighboring India or the United States in the attacks were frequently aired.
QUETTA: In an apparent reaction to the recent arrest of 10 Iranian Revolutionary Guards personnel by the Frontier Corps (FC) last week, the Iranian Marine Security Agency on Sunday arrested eight officials of the Fisheries Department in the Jiwani coastal area.
Officials in Gwadar confirmed that eight personnel, including a marine inspector, had been arrested by the Iranian Marine Security Agency while on a routine patrol.
The Pakistani officials have been charged with illegally crossing into the Iranian territorial waters.
The arrested officials, including Marine Inspector Abdul Salam, have been moved to Chabahar, an Iranian port city, for further investigation. Pakistani officials said the arrested personnel had not been released until late on Sunday, despite repeated requests.
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Jundallah emerged seven years ago in Iran with claims to fight for the rights of minority Baloch Sunnis in Iran, who it said were denied basic rights by the dominant Shia regime in Tehran.
However, both countries managed to settle the dispute diplomatically the government Islamabad directed authorities in Quetta to release all the detained Iranian officials.
It is the first time that the Iranian officials have arrested such a large number of Pakistani government officials on charges of illegally crossing the border.
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