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Week Ending : 01 November 1997 Issue : 03/44
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Asif's link with drug mafia being investigated
PM accepts CJ's demand Says decision in national interest
Pakistan, India agree to remove irritants
Leghari opens automated trading at KSE
SAARC to open up trade avenues
Govt cuts 5pc merit seats in medical colleges
---------------------------------
TCL GDR listing on Luxembourg Stock
Double-digit inflation edges up
Foreign debt swells to Rs2,240bn
Forex reserves up by $80m
Positive signals for Gulf-SA gas project
IMF: asking for too much, too soon
Weak governance, corruption two major ills: WB's view
Removing impediments to foreign direct investment
Devaluation and its attendant travails
Stocks back on rails, index recovers 60 points
---------------------------------------
Good governance Ardeshir Cowasjee
Weddings Hafizur Rahman
Away from it all Rifaat Hamid Ghani
Give me back my vote! Irfan Husain
Remembering the Raj Omar Kureishi
Role of the Raj Kamil Siddiqi
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Historic win for S. Africa on Pakistan soil
We lost because of our batsmen, says skipper
Wasim Akram to replace Saeed Anwar
Akram tells players to enjoy game
Teams getting tuned up for 4-nation cup
Jahangir to play in Hong Kong
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971028
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Asif's link with drug mafia being investigated
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Staff Correspondent
LONDON, Oct 27: The government is said to be trying to establish
Asif Ali Zardari's connection with the drug mafia in its bid to get
his British bank accounts frozen.
A source accompanying the prime minister's official delegation said
a former chief secretary of the NWFP, Khalid Aziz, has been sent to
the United States to seek interviews with Pakistani drug traffickers
now serving sentences in various US jails. "We are hoping that some
of them might agree to give confessional statements involving Asif
Zardari. Mr Aziz will try to meet drug barons like Ayub Afridi and
Malik Mushtaq through the State Department."
Mr Aziz was suspended on corruption charges by the Benazir
government.
The source said the joint secretary of the Ehtesab Cell, Hasan
Waseem Afzal, was currently in London to collect further evidence
about the alleged British bank accounts of the leader of the
opposition.
Under British law, a bank account can only be frozen if it is
established that it contained laundered drug money.
Meanwhile, two officials of the British Home Office, who had gone to
Pakistan to examine the "evidence" regarding Zardari's involvement
in drugs have returned and are preparing their report.
The source said during their stay in Pakistan, the government
arranged their meeting with four convicted drug traffickers who had
given their statements to Ehtesab Cell claiming Zardari's link with
the mafia.
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971101
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PM accepts CJ's demand Says decision in national interest
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Raja Zulfikar
ISLAMABAD, Oct 31: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif said on Friday the
government had implemented the recommendations of the Chief Justice
of Pakistan for elevation of five judges in the Supreme Court "in
the larger interest of the country and its future."
In a nationwide address from the floor of the National Assembly, the
Prime Minister explained that he could not be a party to another
confrontation which would only plunge the people into confusion once
again.
"My mission does not permit me to engage in polemics and I want to
see a prosperous Pakistan. Let me do my work. Let me plan for
future. Let me put the economy on the right track. I have no time to
lose. I do not want to get involved in confrontation of egos and
wills," Mr Sharif said.
He said he had talked to the chief justice many times for
cooperation in an attempt to curb the incidents of terrorism and
sought his guidance for quick justice for the people. He also listed
some of the past events which called for immediate provision of
justice to the people.
Mr Sharif recalled that he had avoided to engage in any written
controversy with the chief justice so as to save time. The last many
weeks had been spent in exchange of views and efforts to reconcile
opinions, he said.
The 22-minute speech of the prime minister contained a litany of
complaints against "conspirators" who, he said, had struck whenever
the country was put on the road to progress. In 1960, the prime
minister reminded, the conspiracy began just when progress had
started and, eventually, the country was divided. In 1990, his
government had tried to improve the lot of Pakistan but once again
an artificial crisis was created which destroyed everything. "And
now again hurdles are being created at every step aimed at
improvement," the prime minister protested.
The prime minister, however, made it a point to talk high of
parliament, saying it symbolised the will of the people. "For the
sustenance and strength of democracy, it is essential that each
institution should remain within its own sphere without assuming the
function of the other."
He said: "Parliament is the creator and guarantor of the
Constitution. If parliament is removed, it would spell the end of
democracy. Parliament has a central place in democracy. All other
institutions perform ancillary functions and guarantee the supremacy
of the Constitution."
The prime minister listed the measures his government had taken for
pulling the country out of the crisis when he took over. He said
economy was supported and Pakistan was saved from being declared
bankrupt.
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971026
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Pakistan, India agree to remove irritants
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Nasir Malick
EDINBURGH, Oct 25: Pakistan and India on Saturday agreed to resolve
all procedural difficulties to resume a meaningful dialogue between
the two countries and directives had been issued to the foreign
secretaries of the two countries to sort out matters during their
stay in Edinburgh.
The decision was taken during a 75-minute breakfast meeting between
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and Indian Prime Minister Inder Kumar
Gujral here. The two leaders also held a 20-minute one-to-one
meeting.
The breakfast meeting, hosted by Nawaz Sharif, was the third between
the two during the last five months. The last meeting was held in
New York in September when Nawaz and Gujral were there to attend the
UN General Assembly session.
"They (the two prime ministers) have directed the (respective)
foreign secretaries to meet in Edinburgh to resolve the procedural
difficulties in resumption of a meaningful dialogue," Pakistan
Foreign Secretary Shamshad Ahmad told reporters after the meeting
which started at 8.30am.
Talks between India and Pakistan were stalled in New Delhi after
India refused to form eight working groups, the formation of which
was agreed earlier between the two countries at foreign secretary
level talks in Islamabad.
The issue of forming these working groups, including one on Jammu
and Kashmir, was raised by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif during the
talks.
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971028
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Leghari opens automated trading at KSE
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Staff Reporter
KARACHI, Oct 27: President Farooq Leghari inaugurated the Karachi
Automated Trading System (KATS), which will introduce computerized,
screen based trading system at the Karachi Stock Exchange (KSE), at
a local hotel on Monday.
A delegation of the Federation of Euro-Asian Stock Exchanges (FEAS),
currently visiting Pakistan in connection with a general assembly
meeting scheduled to be held in Lahore, were also present at the
inauguration ceremony held under the aegis of the KSE.
In his inaugural speech, the president termed the KATS, "a
significant development in our capital market which indicates that
our stock exchanges are modernizing their systems so that our
capital market will in the near future be ranked amongst the best in
the region." Referring to the trend of liberalization and reliance
on the private sector in the development of the capital market, Mr
Leghari said that great opportunities and great responsibilities
went hand in hand.
He said that the liberated private sector must fulfil its
obligations to the society and hoped that the KSE would keep the
investors interest foremost.
"Your success or failure will be determined by the bonds of trust
that you create with the investors," he stated. On its part, the
government, would continue to support the growth and development of
the market, he added.
Referring to the poor treatment of the investors in the past, he
said the fact that the market place would exact its own penalties
does not absolve the government or the stock exchanges from acting
to protect the investors' interest. The president was confident that
the recently reviewed legal framework of the Corporate Law Authority
would lead to speedy resolution of investors' complaints.
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971029
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SAARC to open up trade avenues
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Hasan Akhtar
ISLAMABAD, Oct 28: The South Asian Association for Regional
Cooperation (SAARC) is to open up trade and economic avenues in
order to enlarge advantageous regional links by pursuing a
strategy which may enable the region to move into a freer and more
open economic relationships as it enters the 21st century.
Naeem Hasan, Sec Gen SAARC, responding to press reporters' questions
on Tuesday at the end of the second conference of the SAARC
parliamentarians, said the seriousness to develop free trade
relations among the member countries was 'quite apparent' at the
SAARC Summit at the Maldives.
Hasan however, cautioned that there was still a long way to go
before the region could turn into a free trade area. He pointed out
that participants in the Maldives Summit felt confident that
transition from SAPTA (SA Preferential Trade Agreement) to SAFTA
(South Asian Free Trade Agreement) could be achieved three years
ahead of its target of 2005.
He conceded about the political difficulties the region was
facing. All the same he admitted that the examples of development
through regional cooperation was evident from ASEAN to
European Community, reminding how much still remained to be
attained. 'We have just started on the road,' he observed, but he
appeared hopeful of meeting the target.
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971031
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Govt cuts 5pc merit seats in medical colleges
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Azizullah Sharif
KARACHI, Oct 30: The Sindh government has curtailed 5 per cent merit
seats in all the five medical colleges under its control in the
province, it is reliably learnt.
The decision would render about 70 students (30 in Karachi's two
medical colleges and 40 in three medical institutions of Jamshoro,
Larkana and Nawabshah) ineligible for admission to all the five
medical colleges of the province.
The process of admission to all the government-run medical colleges
will begin on Nov 10 while the last date for submitting admission
forms is Nov 24.
Officials say admission policy in all the five government-
controlled medical colleges has been finalised and will be made
public in the next few days through prospectuses now under print.
In the fresh admission policy, the government has retained the
number of reserved seats in the medical colleges which comes to 223.
This gives ministers and senior officials clout and authority to
oblige the powerful and rich families to get their sons and
daughters admitted to the medical colleges who in open merit would
not be eligible, sources say.
Another main feature of the new admission policy is 50 per cent rise
in the tuition fees for the first year MBBS students who in the next
academic session will pay Rs 2,400 instead of Rs 1,600 for the year.
Moreover, there will be no entrance/aptitude test for admission to
all the five medical colleges during the forthcoming academic year,
although principals of medical colleges have strongly recommended
it.
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971028
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PTCL GDR listing on Luxembourg Stock
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Staff Reporter
KARACHI, Oct 27: The management of Pakistan Telecommunication
Company Limited (PTCL) has obtained official permission to list its
Global Depository Receipts (GDR) on the Luxembourg Stock Exchange
shortly with a view to attracting foreign investment.
The management has already appointed UBS as its financial advisor to
assist and arrange for the speedy listing of its GDR. A press
release of the company said, adding "the entire listing process is
expected to be completed by the end of the first quarter of 1998".
Pakistan's central bank and the Corporate Law Authority (CLA), have
already approved two-way conversion of the PTCL shares into GDR,
which eventually lead its listing on the Luxembourg and other
European Union stock exchanges.
"The two-way conversion will allow foreign investors to convert
their holdings in PTCL shares or government exchangeable notes due
2,002 into GDRs and GDRs into shares on repatriable basis", the
press release adds.
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971028
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Double-digit inflation edges up
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Our Reporter
KARACHI, Oct 27: The double-digit inflation, which has been recorded
for the last four years, edged up during 1996-97 and all measures of
price fluctuations including GDP deflator indicated an average rise
in the rate of price inflation by one to two per cent over the last
fiscal year.
The 1996-97 annual report of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP)
attributed the price hike to several upward adjustment of
rupee\dollar exchange rate, government borrowing for budgetary
support and slowdown in economic growth.
The other important reasons for inflationary wave were rise in gas
and electricity rates, imposition of central excise duty at 10% on
gas distribution, increase in support price of various agricultural
commodities, upward revisions in petrol prices, imposition of
withholding tax and service charges and withdrawal of subsidies on
basic food items.
The Consumer Price Index (CPI) in 25 urban centres rose by 11.8%
during 1996-97 as compared to 10.8% in the preceding year.
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971028
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Foreign debt swells to Rs2,240bn
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Mohiuddin Aazim
KARACHI, Oct 27: The fiscal 1996-97 gave a major setback to the
economy as the growth in GDP fell to 3.1 per cent from 4.6 per cent
in 1995-96, frustrating an ambitious target of 6.3 per cent.
The fall in GDP growth is attributable to an overall decline in the
performance of various sectors of the economy that pushed inflation
(based on consumer price index) to 11.8 per cent � against 10.8 per
cent in 1995-96 and much below the target of 8.5 per cent.
In terms of the sensitive price indicator, inflation jumped to 12.4
per cent against 10.7 per cent last year. The poor performance of
the economy and a population growth rate of 2.8 per cent prevented
any substantial increase in the per capita income. It rose from Rs
16,441 in 1995-96 to Rs 18,318 in 1996-97.
These highlights on the state of economy are recorded in the 1996-97
annual report of the State Bank of Pakistan released on Monday.
While terming 1996-97 "one of the most difficult and disappointing
years in the economic history of the country," the report observes
that "the policy package that accompanied the budget 1996-97 did not
succeed in achieving the...macroeconomic targets."
But it terms the growth prospects for 1997-98 brighter. "Inflation
control and further easing of pressure on the balance of payments
will crucially depend on the continuation of prudent demand
management, particularly in meeting the annual revenue targets."
The report says that the total national debt (including foreign debt
of $29.6 billion) climbed up to Rs 2240 billion or 89.5 per cent of
GDP on June 30 this year. The figures for June 30 last year were Rs
1,921 billion or 88.5 per cent of the GDP - a rise of 16.6 per cent
or Rs 318.5 billion.
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971031
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Forex reserves up by $80m
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Staff Reporter
KARACHI, Oct 30: Pakistan's foreign exchange reserves rose by $80
million to $1.639 bn on Oct 25 from $1.559 bn on Oct 18.
According to the State Bank of Pakistan, the approved foreign
exchange as reported by its Issue Department totalled $1.1437 bn on
Oct 25�showing almost no change over the Oct 18 figure of $1.1438
bn. But the balances held outside Pakistan as reported by the SBP
Banking Department climbed up to $495.821 million on Oct 25 from
$415.394 million on Oct 18.
Senior bankers and financial analysts link the $80 million increase
in the reserves held outside the country to enhanced export earnings
and overseas placement of funds in cash and short term securities by
some banks instead of bringing it into the country where lending
rates have crashed drastically.
They also attribute it to the recent release of $208 million first
transche out of a $1.56 bn IMF loan. Bankers and financial analysts
hope that an expected increase in export earnings in the wake of Oct
15 rupee devaluation and a cut in oil and power machinery import
bill may further augment the reserves.
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971030
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Positive signals for Gulf-SA gas project
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Shafaat Yar Khan
DUBAI, Oct 29: Three prominent oil officials have unanimously agreed
that the Gulf-South Asia gas project that links Qatar and Pakistan
will materialize and described it as the "best geo-political and
economic option".
Nasser Jaidah, director New Projects, Qatar General Petroleum
Corporation, confirmed his country's commitment to the surface-
submarine Gulf-South Asia gas pipeline (GUSA) which is designed to
carry 1.6 billion cubic meters per annum of Qatari gas to Pakistan.
Jaidah reiterated that the project was now ready for implementation
following the agreement on all relevant procedures.
On his part, K.M. Wajahatullah, deputy managing director, Sui
Southern Gas Company Ltd of Pakistan emphasized the urgency of the
project which would supply Pakistan with a substantial portion of
its gas requirements to meet the growing demand, particularly in the
electricity generating sector. In a statement published in monthly
'Emirates News', the Pakistani official disclosed that the oil
consortium, headed by Crescent International Petroleum Company Ltd
signed a memorandum of understanding with the concerned authorities
in Pakistan in 1992, but official contacts stopped in August 1994
due to intensive negotiations between the consortium and the Qatari
authorities, expressing optimism that the project which is vital to
his country would materialize in the very near future.
On the other hand, George Quincey Lumsdan, JR managing director,
Gulf-South Asia Gas Project and consultant of the consortium that
joins Crescent Petroleum, Trans Canada pipeline, Brown and Root and
Itochu, disclosed that the consortium had finalized all procedures
and agreed on the details with concerned authorities in Qatar prior
to launching the project in the very near future.
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971027
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IMF: asking for too much, too soon
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Sultan Ahmed
THE IMF has set its seal of approval on the economic agenda of the
government, and particularly its financial policies, and committed
itself to provide $1.56 billion as loans on very low interest during
the next three years.
But immediately, the country has been put on the watch list. Hence
instead of the $300 million eagerly awaited as the first tranche
only $208 million are to be released.
The government in return has committed itself to a great many things
from tightening budgetary control and improving law and order to
spending far more on the social sector and strengthening the social
safety net.
The question now is: Can the government which is marked for its
lacklustre performance in its first eight months accomplish all that
or most of that?
The fact is that three of the previous Enhanced Structural
Adjustment Facility (ESAF) agreements had been breached by Pakistan.
The Stand-by agreement, which followed the abounding of the last
ESAF agreement midway last year, has also been jettisoned as
Pakistan could not keep its commitments, beginning with reducing the
budget deficit to 4 per cent of the GDP last year.
The President of the World Bank, James Wolfensohn, now says the gap
between the government's income and expenditure is a high 8 per cent
and that has to be addressed urgently, particularly when the scope
for reducing official expenditure is small.
The issue between the government and IMF or the World Bank is not
one of policy or programmes. The policies are those prescribed by
the IMF and World Bank over the years or those formulated by
Pakistan in the light of the IMF framework, which is much too
explicit. And they are good for the country, and in fact urgently
essential in view of our galloping population growth which will
cross 150 million by the year 2000, just three years from now.
The issue is performance, real sustained performance or earnest
implementation of commitments even in the face of obstacles.
The issue is the political will of the government, the extent of
real bureaucratic operation and the ability of the government to
mobilise public opinion in support of making a success of the new
agenda.
The government cannot afford to fail again as the consequences can
be disastrous.
What matters now is not only the $935 million to be obtained under
ESAF at half a per cent interest and $732 million to be received
under the Extended Fund Facility at around 4.5 per cent, but also
the IMF certificate of good economic health of the country and the
competence of the present economic managers and the confidence it
has been able to generate in foreign leaders and international
donors.
The certificate shows we are on the right track and but for this
certification our low credit rating can go further down and our
international risk rating rise higher.
What is striking about the whole package is that all commitments and
proposals are inter-dependent, and if one key element fails all
other elements will falter or fail.
And to ensure that the government stays on track, the IMF has
prescribed targets not only for the whole three-year period but also
for the current year.
That means as the next financial year begins, it will set specific
targets for that year. In fact, the next annual budget will have to
be finalised with the full approval of the IMF so that it would meet
its varied targets, beginning with four per cent budget deficit on
which will depend a great deal of other factors.
If economic growth this year is not 5.5 per cent (the earlier
official target was 6 per cent) revenues can fall, exports drop,
inflation rise, savings shrivel further, and the balance of payments
deficit can become larger, instead of the 4 to 4.5 per cent of the
GDP which the IMF stipulates.
And if inflation does not come down to 7 per cent at the end of
three years, beginning with 10.5 per cent this year, savings will
not rise to 15 per cent from the current 12 per cent. And without
higher savings there will be no real growth in investment which has
invariably been negated by the rise in inflation. To achieve these
targets, the right political, administrative and bureaucratic
environment has to be created. The IMF has for the first time spoken
of good governance as an imperative for economic progress.
The IMF calls for fundamental reforms in tax administration and the
civil services as well as broadening of the taxation base and
agricultural income tax not on the basis of landholding but of
income.
Will the government really subject agriculture to taxation in the
manner taxes from other incomes are? Will it influence the
provincial assemblies packed with feudal lords to pass legislation
for that purpose and honour it?
It would be even better for the government to amend the constitution
and make agricultural income tax a federal tax instead of letting
the provinces mess that up. As long as the farmlords do not pay
their share of the taxes, trade and industry may not pay full taxes
and they may find a viable moral base for tax evasion.
The government has also committed itself to spend far more on
improving education, health care and expanding population planning.
And that implies that the government will spend far more on the
social services and promotion of human capital formation.
The IMF expects the government to do far more to protect the
increasingly polluted environment and pass a new environmental
protection law and enforce that through the federal, provincial and
local governments.
Of course, the IMF wants far less corruption so that the money spent
by the government is not wasted or embezzled. Mr Wolfensohn has also
spoken of the urgency for eliminating corruption to make the best
use of scarce resources. And this has become one of the major
pursuits of World Bank now in the aid-receiving countries.
The IMF wants the foreign exchange market in Pakistan to be deepened
and exchange rate policy guided by market developments. But last
week the government opted for the hefty devaluation of 8.7 per cent
despite the fact the difference between the official and non-
official rates of exchange was barely two per cent.
What this implies is that if the rupee goes down in the open market
vis-a-vis the dollar or other currencies, the rupee must be devalued
correspondingly, or even more to avoid further devaluation too soon
after that. So the government has to take steps to protect the rupee
instead of letting it go down easily.
After calling for all these market-oriented measures the social cost
of the reforms has to be kept to the minimum and the social safety
net strengthened. Otherwise there can be social convulsions, and the
whole ESAF programme can crash as it had done too often before.
What all this calls for is the government to work with clockwork
precision. And to achieve that the prime minister has to seek the
full cooperation of the ministers, and the officials down to the
lowest level. And he has to mobilise the support of the provincial
governments where the chief ministers have to play a similar role.
It also necessary for the prime minister to enlist the support of
all the political parties, and it is the obligation of all parties
to make a success of this programme. Ms Benazir Bhutto argues that
she was reviving the economy or restoring it to health when she was
ousted from office.
But the fact was the shape of the economy was not good in her time
as well. Otherwise the last ESAF would not have been scrapped and
the Stand-by agreement that followed with the IMF not left simply
standing and non-operational.
In fact, if the present agreement fails, and the country is left
with no economic alternative the whole political system may become
irrelevant and counter-productive. Of course, the government may
find some financial relief if the process of privatization makes
rapid headway and the funds from that are used for reducing the
ballooning debt, particularly the more costly internal debt.
The PM is in a hurry in that area and wants banks and DFIs to be
privatised by March next year and all other enterprises by June,
while the chairman of Privatization Commission, Khawaja Mohammad
Asif, wants the process to be completed by the end of next year. But
then he had himself said in August last he could complete the
privatization within a year.
The new deal with IMF is certainly very helpful for privatization.
And the earlier the economy returns to normality and growth picks up
momentum, the better for getting good prices for the enterprises and
the best buyers. Meanwhile law and order should improve and
corruption decrease, all this is a tremendous challenge for Mr Nawaz
Sharif.
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971027
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Weak governance, corruption two major ills: WB's view
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Ihtasham ul Haque
THE WORLD BANK believes that Pakistan's economy has suffered due to
weak governance and rampant corruption which has created long-
standing macro-economic imbalances.
President of the World Bank James D. Wolfensohn, publicly talked
about these ills, in private too is reported to have advised the
government to seriously address these issues that is eroding the
country's economy and depleting resources.
Moreover, the Bank believes that unsustainable fiscal deficits have
led to high inflation and a steadily rising interest burden
resulting from increased bank borrowing.
To finance its current accounts deficits, which was 6.6 per cent of
GDP in 1995-96 and 6.4 per cent in 1996-97 (up from 3.2 per cent in
1994-95, Pakistan has increasingly resorted to short term financing,
including greater dependency on foreign currency deposits that now
amount to $9.5 billion dollar.
This situation, the president of the bank, feels is more vulnerable
to external shocks and also increases the vulnerability of the
financial system.
Mr Wolfensohn who held top level meetings with the President, the
Prime Minister, the finance minister, deputy chairman Planning
Commission and other important officials, is said to have made it
clear that it would become difficult for his organisation to
continue supporting Pakistan in case corruption was not reduced if
not completely eliminated.
He called for removing the culture of corruption, which should be
started from top to bottom and not vice versa as was the case at
present.
Beside corruption and weak governance, he also discussed in detail
with Pakistani authorities, the affairs of the commercial banks,
advising them to 'get tough' against the defaulters to recover Rs
140 billion from them.
He was of the view that the recovery of this huge amount was
necessary for re-lending to deserving businessmen and
industrialists.
Insiders said that Mr Wolfensohn was informed about the harsh
reaction in the public over the sacking of 7,500 UBL employees. A
seven-member National Assembly committee on finance led by Sardar
Mansoor Hayat Tamman also met the World Bank President and is
believed to have expressed its concern over the issue, specially by
saying that it was causing great political backlash for them
specially when they visit their respective constituencies. They
called for not pushing the issue so strongly.
The World Bank chief reportedly took a hardline and said that
without eliminating the root cause of the problem, Pakistan's banks
could not be made financially viable and that their problems would
continue to be compounded if they were not checked.
The Pakistan government was constrained to allow the banks to sack a
large number of employees because it was seeking $250 million
financial and banking sector loan from the World Bank which would
not have been offered unless there was a certain restructuring of
the banks including the closure of more than 1,200 branches through
out the country.
Mr Wolfensohn was told that the National Bank of Pakistan has
already taken an initiative to reduce its number of branches.
The Bank's President has also reportedly expressed his concern over
the 20 per cent reduction in the development budget which has been
slashed from Rs 95 billion to Rs 78 billion.
Nevertheless, the Bank has indicated to provide $800 million during
the current financial year compared to $600 million in 1996-97.
It has increased annual funding level by $200 million which is a
sign of satisfaction over the economic policies being pursued by the
government. Also the bank is thinking seriously of clearing $1.9
billion assistance in the pipeline.
If that is done, it will remove the funding difficulties of the
government, specially to undertake development work without cutting
the PSDP every now and then.
Then the IFC, the subsidiary of the World Bank, has reportedly been
directed to offer enhanced assistance for the private sector. The
officials of the bank termed the private sector of Pakistan as "the
safest one" compared to many Third World countries as its
enterprises did not default in repayment of loan and had never
requested for rescheduling their loans.
The IMF's clearance has paved the way for the World Bank to announce
that it will provide $800 million. Next, according to the
government's claim, would be the foreign commercial banks to extend
substantial help to the government to pay off its foreign debt
liability of $1.4 billion by December this year.
But the important thing is that the World bank has almost given a
clean bill of health to the Pakistani economy despite expressing
some of its strong apprehensions on corruption, good governance and
weak financial health of the banks.
It believes that the Nawaz government has initiated a comprehensive,
multi-year reform programme to accelerate growth, and improve the
balance of payments and fiscal situation.
However, the Bank thinks that Pakistan faces several development
challenges as it moves into the 21st century and strives to join the
ranks of the middle income countries.
Pakistan's own experience, and the experience of other countries
that have succeeded in growing rapidly, clearly demonstrate that
macroeconomic stabilisation is essential to achieve sustained rapid
growth, but it will be difficult to achieve this stabilisation
without structural reforms.
The bank is also of the view that improvement in export performance
and balance of payments and reduction in inflation rate require
bringing the fiscal deficit down to a sustainable level.
Pakistan's inability to accomplish this in recent years has resulted
in further accumulation of public debt and crowding out of private
investment.
According to the World Bank, distortions in the tax system have also
adversely affected the efficiency and competitiveness of the private
sector, while inefficient public expenditure have reduced the
developmental impact of the budget. The bank calls for reduction in
the difference between income and the expenditure of the government
by about 20 per cent.
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971027
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Removing impediments to foreign direct investment
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Dr Syed H. Akhter
COUNTRIES of every political or ideological hue are now rolling out
the red carpet to welcome multinational corporations (MNCs). Gone
are the days when MNCs were seen as either exploiters of
irreplaceable resources or as ominous threats to national
sovereignty.
These negative views, prevailing mostly in less developed countries,
evolved partly because of the massive resources MNCs controlled and
partly because they had become a convenient scapegoat for the inept
handling of economies by local politicians and bureaucrats.
Today these same MNCs are courted, invited, and offered incentives
to come to a country and make foreign direct investments (FDI) in
different sectors of the economy.
This change in attitude has been one of the most significant
developments in recent years.
The metamorphosis came about when people realized that in many cases
it was not the MNCs that were exploiting the country's resources but
graft-prone politicians who mishandled economic policies for their
own aggrandizement.
The goals of every country from the most advanced to the least
developed are to develop economically and improve their competitive
position in the global economy. Technological developments that have
brought the world closer and created a global village have also
created expectations of a better life. Public officials now realize
that they have to deliver to the populace a standard of living that
is superior to the one provided by their predecessors.
Economics is on everybody's mind and economic agendas have ascended
to the top of the list.
Multinational corporations have what every country needs to achieve
economic goals - capital to invest, technology to produce and market
products, and management expertise to bring diverse resources
together.
They control more than 20 per cent of the world's Gross Domestic
Product, around 30 per cent of global trade, and more than 90 per
cent of the world's foreign direct investments (FDI). When the come
to a country they bring with them a new approach of doing business,
which is more in tune with the latest developments in management and
marketing thought.
They increase competitive pressure on local firms and force them to
improve their performance.
They also demonstrate that corporations should be run by
professional managers, not by people whose experiences and skills
are sufficient merely to run a neighbourhood retail shop.
This is an important lesson that MNCs can teach in less developed
economies.
The governments of Bhutto and Sharif have done what they could
cosmetically to attract FDI into Pakistan.
Full-page Ads in leading newspapers in the US and other countries
have appeared frequently, and numerous conferences have been held to
attract FDI into Pakistan, but to no avail. Their efforts are
commendable, but misdirected. Multinationals do not invest in a
country because of one-page Ads in magazines or newspapers. Nor do
they invest based on the promises of politicians. Their investment
commitments are business decisions based on cost and benefit
algorithms.
They want to know how their investments will help them achieve
organizational goals and how they will be able to achieve a
sustainable competitive advantage in the global marketplace. A one-
page Ad may attract their attention but will not persuade them to
open their wallet, unless the country has something valuable to
offer.
Overall, Pakistan has not been very successful in attracting FDI.
Export for the year 1995-96, when the total inflow crossed the magic
number of $1 billion, FDI in Pakistan on a yearly basis has
historically been under $500 million. The major foreign direct
investors are the US and the UK followed by Japan, Korea, and the
UAE. The US and the UK generally account for more than 60 per cent
of the total inflow of FDI into Pakistan. In 1995-96, the US
invested $319.8 million and the UK, $331.7 million. From 1991-92 to
1996-97, the stock of FDI into Pakistan from the US reached $1.1
billion and from the UK, $631 million.
The total stock of FDI during this period was slightly over $3
billion, not an encouraging amount.
What is significant for Pakistan is that it has neither been able to
increase the inflow of FDI nor diversify the source countries or the
sectors into which investments flow. This is the result of
structural impediments, and unless these impediments are removed, no
amount of glossy Ads or tall promises will succeed in increasing the
inflow of FDI into the country. Capital flows to countries where
there are production and marketing opportunities and where returns
can be maximized. Pakistan, in its current state, does not offer
these options.
However, if it were to remove the following four structural
impediments it would be able to increase the inflow of FDI into the
country. The impediments are market size, regional integration,
literacy, and political turmoil.
Market size
One of Pakistan's drawbacks is that it does not have a large market.
A rough indicator of market size is Gross Domestic Product, which
for Pakistan was $52 billion in 1994. On a per-capita basis this
translates to roughly $414. Although per- capita GDP hides the real
potential of different market segments, it does reveal the general
purchasing power of the people. In addition to a low per-capita GDP,
the distribution of income in Pakistan is highly skewed, with a
small minority enjoying a large share of income.
*From a marketing perspective, the purchasing power of this group is
not sufficient to support huge investments in consumer and
industrial products.
Thus, to increase the inflow of FDI into Pakistan, the size of the
market will have to be increased, which can be achieved through
regional integration.
Pakistan needs a bold vision, a vision that redefines enemies and
friends. Neighbouring countries, whether India today or Afghanistan
tomorrow, are not Pakistan's real enemies.
The real enemies are poverty, illiteracy, and environmental
degradation, which all the regional countries can work together on
to eradicate. Regional integration, by allowing unrestricted
movement of products between neighbouring cities such as Lahore and
Amritsar, will bring the two markets closer and will allow firms to
sell their products in both markets while saving on transportation
costs.
The creation of a large combined market will increase the
attractiveness of Pakistan as well as India to MNCs.
What Pakistan and its neighbours need to focus on is enlarging the
size of the market through regional integration. Allowing people and
products to move freely will be the first step towards the regional
expansion of markets.
Literacy
The future of a country is increasingly being determined by the
educational attainment of people living within its borders. As such,
Pakistan will have to redirect its resources from building
cantonments to building schools. There is no other choice. Pakistan
and India cannot afford a war. For these two countries to go to war
would be stupidity, pure and simple. What they need to do is to
improve the conditions of their populace by giving them quality
education. An educated workforce is a valuable and efficient
workforce.
The skills needed to run a modern factory today are different from
those of a decade ago. Basic education is a must to work in today's
factories, be it cobbling shoes or assembling microchips. Besides
providing basic education that improves the quality of the
workforce, Pakistan also needs to focus on professional education to
increase the supply of managers who are familiar with the art and
science of management. Together, productive workers and well-trained
managers will improve the attractiveness of Pakistan for FDI.
Countries, like people, are often defined by the lowest common
denominator. Pakistan is no exception. Pakistan is not considered a
safe country to invest in. This view is held not only by foreigners
but also by locals. Recent news of investments by the Bhutto family
in overseas real estate testifies to this fact. For MNCs both safety
of investments and profitability are important.
When people cannot go to work because of strikes, it results in a
massive loss for companies as well as for the country. Every lost
workday costs millions of rupees. A culture of harassment by law
enforcement officials, a system of corruption and lawlessness, and
other such maladies need to be rectified.
A country exists as a social system to provide opportunities for
mutually beneficial exchanges. Neither calling strikes nor giving
free reign to public officials to extort money and harass people can
solve a country's problem. The MNCs do not want to bother with such
headaches.
They know that what they have to give a country where they want to
go and this happens to be anywhere today. Pakistan is only one of
many locations where they can make investments.
Pakistan will have to set itself apart from others by offering a
distinctive locational advantage. Only then will the flow of FDI
into Pakistan increase.
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971027
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Devaluation and its attendant travails
--------------------------------------------------------------------
R.M.U. Suleman
THE RECENT decision to devalue the national currency has left many
questions unanswered and this has been the subject of an animated
discussion and debate. There are some, like Dr Hafiz Pasha, who
insist that the government decision was pre-planned and not a
hastily devised crisis move dictated by IMF-led international
groups.
The Deputy-Chairman of the Planning Commission, Dr Pasha, has just
said that the government would not have to mobilize additional $3.40
billion or Rs 152 billion as a result of the recent 8.7 per cent
devaluation of Pakistan currency. The government, he hoped, would
manage the impact of the devaluation by keeping the inflation rate
under control, and by getting additional $1 billion from exports.
He further stated that the inflation would have to be contained to
meet the objective of the devaluation and implied that the
government was capable of achieving this laudable macro-economic
goal. In a way, all this adds up to wishes being horses help beggars
ride.
Dr Pasha did not agree with the independent economists that the
government now needed huge additional funds to cover the increase in
the debt-servicing of its foreign loans, which is already provided
for in the budget. One of the major consideration to devalue the
rupee, Dr Pasha pointed out, was to arrest declining trends in
exports that were specially witnessed in the month of September, the
opening month of the crucial cotton export season.
We will also be able to get additional $600 million to $700 million,
he hoped, due to increase in cotton production and over $300 million
from the export of the manufactured goods. Then he referred to a
bumper rice crop along with sugarcane crop. The fact of the matter
is that with the best of intentions, projections of exports based
mainly on agricultural crops can go completely awry.
With the devaluation, the Deputy-Chairman believed, the competitive
edge, specially against India and Thailand in rice, and garments
would be achieved. He said that the devaluation would also help
narrow the trade deficit of the country.
Defending the devaluation, he said, "we are now in the era of
competitive devaluation and that, if the South-east Asian currencies
have been forced to go for devaluation, Pakistan could not be an
exception". Dr Pasha, however, assured that there would be no
further devaluation during the remaining three quarters of the
current financial year. This is contrary to the widespread belief
that the equilibria exchange rate of the Pakistan rupee has
virtually no bottom.
Nevertheless, he conceded that if further devaluation were to be
resorted to, it would be a definite liability on the budget because
there did not exist any more of what he termed a "cushion in the
budget". This devaluation was, however, a planned move and not a
crisis move", he insisted. Compared with other countries, he said,
Pakistan was in a comfortable position since we had household
foreign currency deposits which also include our workers'
remittances compared to corporate money like that of Malaysia and
other countries.
According to nine eminent economists and economic observers, on the
other hand, the devaluation of the rupee is symptomatic of the
desperation which afflicts the government of Pakistan on the
economic front. This has been done at a time when no adverse market
signals existed to prompt this move. The dollar was stable in the
open market, growth in imports had been steady and recent
devaluations in East Asia did not affect the competitiveness of
Pakistan's exports for the simple reason that the structure of East
Asian exports is completely different from that of Pakistan,
consisting as they mainly do of substantially fabricated
manufactured goods unlike Pakistan's exports dominated by
agricultural products or their most rudimentary processing.
The immediate impact of devaluation, according to them, will be
distress caused by inflation, regardless of the safety cushions
claimed to be provided by government. Since liberalisation in 1991,
governments in Pakistan have been using inflationary policies to
tide over their multifarious problems simply because the impact of
inflation is different for different segments of society. For the
elite who rule the roost, there is a cushion in the form of foreign
currency accounts, the stocks market and real estate. The majority �
daily wage earners or those on fixed salaries in rupees � therefore
bear most or all of the brunt of devaluation.
The situation has become particularly alarming in the last few years
as import of food items � wheat, edible oil, sugar and tea � have
increased rapidly. The argument that devaluation will help
Pakistan's exports is also dubious. Since September 1996, the rupee
has devalued by 23.3 per cent whereas exports registered a
historically low growth of 4.4 per cent. Structurally inflation in
Pakistan is highly correlated with the value of the rupee,
therefore, very soon the inflationary impact of inflation will again
appreciate the real exchange rate. Rather than tackling the issue of
domestic inflation, successive governments attempt unrealistically
to realign the real exchange rate.
The adverse impact of devaluation must be clear to the government
also. Then why has it resorted to devalue the currency? In all
probability, this devaluation has been undertaken at this time to
fulfil IMF conditionalities; since the IMF board meeting on the 20th
of October was to approve the $1.6 billion ESAF loan to Pakistan.
This, coupled with the recent retrenchment of more than 7,000
employees of UBL, demonstrates the extent to which Pakistan is
pandering to the wishes of the international financial agencies, a
result of decades-old policy of dependent capitalist development.
As the underlying issue is one of debt management, the government,
it is claimed, should draw up a concrete strategy. Lurching from
crisis to crisis at the end of the very first quarter of the fiscal
year is not only unsustainable but inflicts a huge cost on the
people of Pakistan and seriously devalues the overseas worth of
Pakistan labour living and working at home.
Since the early 1980s, the macro-economic stabilisation and
structural adjustment programmes imposed by the IMF and the World
Bank on developing countries (as a condition for extending them
foreign exchange credits that amount to no more than the
rescheduling of their external debt) have led to the impoverishment
of hundreds of millions of people. Contrary to the original spirit
of "economic reconstruction", the structural adjustment programme
has largely contributed to destabilizing national currencies and
ruining the economies of the developing countries.
Internal purchasing power has collapsed, famines have erupted,
health clinics and schools have been closed down, hundreds of
millions of children have been denied the right to primary
education. In several regions of the developing world, economic
reforms have been conducive to a resurgence of infectious diseases
including tuberculosis, malaria, and plague.
The restructuring of the world economy under the guidance of the
Washington-based international financial institutions increasingly
denies individual developing countries the possibility of building a
national economy; the globalization of macro-economic policy economy
transforms countries into open territories and national economies
into 'reserves' of cheap labour and natural resources. The
restructuring of individual national economies weakens the state,
undermines production of essential food items for the internal
market and bankrupts national enterprises.
When applied simultaneously in more than 100 countries, these
reforms are conducive to the 'globalisation of poverty' and a
worldwide compression of wages. In all these countries the
privileged social minority has accumulated vast amounts of wealth at
the expense of the large majority of the population.
The new international financial order feeds on cheap labour and the
destruction of natural environment. While "the debt crisis is
officially over" at least from the standpoint of the international
banks and financial institutions, the so-called 'lost decade' of the
1980s constitutes for many indebted countries, the beginning of a
new phase of economic and social devastation marked by sectarian
excesses in Pakistan, caste violence in India and all pervasive
rapid criminalisation of economic activity.
There is a close relationship between the application of the IMF-
sponsored reforms and the subsequent outbreak in many parts of the
developing world of social unrest, ethnic strife, religious
fundamentalism and civil war. The Western media has obscured and
carefully distorted the inner causes of political and social
collapse.
Whereas the G-7 rhetorically deplore the derogation of fundamental
human rights, no linkage is established between the outbreak of
civil war and the prior disintegration of the state under the burden
of debt-servicing and structural adjustment. Poverty and
unemployment breed social unrest.
The plummeting standards of living, which accompany the IMF's
economic medicine exacerbates social tensions and divisions within
national societies. The evidence confirms that the manipulation of
market forces under the guidance of the Washington-based financial
institutions, has also contributed to upsetting the fabric of
national political institutions.
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971101
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Stocks back on rails, index recovers 60 points
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Staff Reporter
KARACHI, Oct 31: Stocks were back on the rails on Friday on active
short-covering both by local and foreign investors at the lower
levels aided largely by Press reports that the government has
indicated to elevate five judges as desired by the apex court but
there was no official word on the issue. KSE 100-share index
recovered 60 points at 1,875.01.
The market capitalization also swelled by Rs 15 billion at Rs
565.013 billion as compared to Rs 550.074 billion a day earlier as
highly capitalized shares Hub-Power and PTCL rose sharply.
The opening was, however, distinctly weak, what the dealers called
extension of the overnight sell-off, but as the news of judges
elevation reached the rings investors were back in the rings,
lifting share values from the current lows on active support.
Although news from the Asian stock markets were bearish, reflecting
fresh decline on the Hong Kong market and its early impact was also
visible here, but mid-session positive news from Islamabad brought
investors back in the rings, dealers said.
"The perception that end of the current row between two pillars of
the government could put the market back on the rails is shared by
all and that is perhaps why investors are back in the rings even on
unconfirmed news of official willingness," dealers stated.
They said weekend rally is always considered a good omen for the
market as it generally leads the market to another improved
performance.
Some leading floor brokers said the weekend rally could be deceptive
as news from the leading Asian stock markets are not encouraging and
their weakness could have sympathetic negative impact here as it did
on Tuesday, which eroded 171 points from the index just in one go.
Analysts said Friday's proceedings indicated that some of the
institutional traders were more active than in the previous sessions
and their strong presence might have some positive reason behind it.
"Support the market at any cost," these are standing orders for some
of the financial institutions, a loud whispering in the rings
suggests, they said. "Massive covering purchases in the pivotals
show that it could not be work of foreign funds alone," they added.
To put the market back in the plus column at the weekend session is
a big gamble and only those could take it who have the capacity and
the resources to absorb losses, they stated.
Whatever are reasons behind the snap rally, but one thing is clear
that the market could respond bullishly to any positive news,
irrespective of heavy odds, some others said.
Energy shares under the lead of Hub-Power led the market advance,
while all others were also actively traded under the current
favourites.
PSO and Shell Pakistan, which have declined sharply during the
recent sell-off, led the list of gainers, recovering Rs 13.60 and Rs
16 on active follow-up support. Both closed with most of the initial
fall recouped.
KESC, Southern Electric, Sui Northern, Sui Southern and Kohinoor
Energy were among the other leading gainers, which also turned out
large volumes.
Chemical shares followed them rising sharply under the lead of Fauji
Fertilizer and Engro Chemicals, which rose by Rs 5.50 to Rs 7 amid
active trading. Reckitt & Colman and Lever Brothers were among the
other MNCs which rose by Rs 1.50 to Rs 25.
Bank shares also showed good rallies on active support at the lower
levels and generally finished recovered under the Faysal Bank and
some others.
Adamjee Insurance came in for strong support from some foreign
investors and was quoted higher by Rs 4.50 and so did Rupali
Polyester.
Losses on the other hand were fractional barring sharp setback in
Sitara Chemicals, Crescent Steel and Cherat Paper, which fell by Rs
2 to Rs 5.
Trading volume fell further to 66.483 million shares from the
previous 84 million shares owing to absence of leading investors.
The most active list was again topped by Hub-Power, sharply higher
by Rs 1.95 on 23.398 million shares, followed by PTCL, up Rs 1.40 on
22.686 million shares, ICI Pakistan, firm 40 paisa on 6.433 million
shares, Southern Electric, higher 90 paisa on 2.279 million shares,
and FFC-Jordan Fertilizer, steady 15 paisa on 2.124 million shares.
Other actively traded shares were led by Sui Southern, higher Rs
1.90 on 1.532 million shares, followed by Sui Northern, firm Rs 1.80
on 1.039 million shares, KESC, steady Rs 1.10 on 0.627 million
shares, Dhan Fibre, lower 10 paisa on 0.522 million shares, Bank of
Punjab, higher 65 paisa on 0.411 million shares, and Ibrahim Fibre,
firm 30 paisa on 0.301 million shares.
DIVIDEND: CPC Rafhan Maize, final cash at the rate of 40% for the
year ended June 30, 1997, on a pretax profit of Rs 319.032 million,
Indus Bank, interim 10%, and Ismail Industries, interim 12.5%, for
the same period.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
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971026
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Good governance
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Ardeshir Cowasjee
"TO the extent that command is a species of egoism, it tends
naturally to grow. Man, says Rousseau, is a limited creature, his
life is short, his pleasures know bounds, his capacity for enjoyment
is always static, and it is no good his raising himself in his own
imagination, for he continues to be small.
"The State, on the contrary, being an artificial body, knows no
fixed bounds; the greatness which belongs to it is unlimited, and
can always be increased by itself." (On Power, Bertrand de
Jouvenal).
There have been in this country so many 'limited creatures' who have
proclaimed, and many others who continue to proclaim (and always
more than one at any given time), 'I am the State'. That is why we
are now left with what we have on the ground, half the State, with
over 100 million hungry, living below the poverty line, over 70
million living without potable water, one of the highest birth rates
in the world and the highest in South Asia, one of the lowest
literacy rates in the world and the lowest in South Asia, and in
debt up to our sorry ears.
Could it be that after our sole statesman died our leadership has
been flawed? Could it be that, though we have had the 'Oxford
educated', they were, and are, to the man and woman, all uneducated
in the profound sense of the word?
We have now a president devoid of moral authority, incapable of
inviting the prime minister and the chief justice to sit together
with him, and of setling the non-issue that has been made into an
issue paralysing both government and judiciary. The prime minister
reiterates, ad nauseam, that he has the mandate of the people. Yet
he is incapable of comprehending that the mandate has been given to
him to do good by the country and its people and not merely to
massage his ego. He stands tall only because he has been put where
he is by the people who voted him in with their feet. But, tall as
he may be, he is incapable of going over and extending his hand to
the one, or to the several, with whom he has differences. Instead of
meeting and talking, he sends messages through intermediaries, most
of whom are completely capable of warping his words by accident or
by design and of fanning rather than dowsing the fire. In my column
last week, 'The bare bones � autumn 1997', I reproduced what former
senior executive vice president of the World Bank Shahid Husain had
said to me: "...in the entire government, the man with the best
foresight is the prime minister himself. In meetings, I have seen
him show far more common sense than those around him." This provoked
calls from various inscrutable men who asked how it is possible that
Shahid could be right on that score. Why not? One only has to look
at those with whom he persists in surrounding himself.
We have a chief justice who has named the five senior judges he
wishes elevated to the Supreme Court. The prime minister and his
coterie do not want two of them moved away and up. Neither the prime
minister, nor any other man in the government, dare write to the
chief justice naming those not wanted and why. For what is written
would be justiciable.
The prime minister has very selfishly, shortsightedly, and knowingly
created and nurtured dissension amongst our judges of the Supreme
Court. In theory at least, it is the higher judiciary that he fears
may block his way to becoming an absolute ruler. Many of this
court's judges are able men. Three of the Supreme Court justices we
have had here in Karachi sitting as the chief justices of our Sindh
High Court � Justices Ajmal Mian, Saiduzzaman Siddiqui and Nasir
Aslam Zahid are known and respected for their incisive minds, their
dedication and the regard they have for the people and their rights.
They are not easily provoked, but the fact that they have been is
depressing and speaks volumes for the guile and wile of our greedy
politicians.
As law minister we have a brilliant lawyer who is totally out of his
depth in the murky world of politics. Why is he allowing a mess to
be made? Why does he not come back home? He does not need to live on
the dole, as most ministers choose to do. My lawyer Khalid (dubbed
Cicero by me to the ire of many) is a very careful man who, before
he opens his mouth to talk to me, makes it quite clear that all that
he is about to say is in the strictest of confidence. This binds me
to silence.
Then there is my friend, the clever magician, the Jadoogar of
Jeddah, who has been in high politics more or less continuously for
the past thirty-two years, since the days of Ayub when he started
off as attorney-general. He has made and unmade many a judge and
many a government. Up to this day he is a member of the government,
an ambassador at large. He flies the flag and is consulted by those
on all sides of the many divides. He remains as equally disturbed as
are most of us who care for the supremacy of the judiciary.
One memorable incident occurred in the days when Asif Nawaz
commanded 5 Corps, stationed at Karachi. He, Sharifuddin and I were
dining together. I turned to Asif and told him that as he was on
track to becoming COAS, should he then ever feel like embarking on a
misadventure, ever feel constrained to take over and promulgate
martial law, to save the country in the name of the people, he
should immediately send for Sharifuddin who would find the law to
fit his crime. While Asif pondered, Sharifuddin graciously bowed,
and handed him his visiting card.
What we have seen and heard since August has been demeaning. It has
taken us back far more than two months. Neither side is faultless.
The prime minister's modus operandi is simple. There is no middle
ground in his make-up. It is either saaday naal or saaday khilaf, it
is either 'us' or 'them', but the 'us' is never the people, it is
always 'us' the mandate holders.
We accept that Nawaz Sharif can only be as wise and mature as his
background, his age, his education, his experience, his Wah, Mian
Saab, wah men, and his desk-thumpers allow him to be. He has broken
the court, and this can only be disastrous for the people and for
the country and most of all for him, as it will ultimately work
against him. He obviously is ignorant of this fact, his foresight
has its limits. He has forgotten the old tale of the Abbot of
Aberbrothok, Ralph the Rover, and the Inchcape Rock.
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971029
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Weddings
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Hafizur Rahman
AS the weather cools and cools the rush of the wedding season takes
on an almost frenetic tone. Every Sunday our little grand- daughter
counts the tinsel-decorated cars that roam the roads. With every
Sunday their number increases.
It will reach the climax during Christmas which, though a Christian
festival, still casts a nostalgic spell upon us. Moreover it is the
holiday time in schools and colleges, and also for many of those in
government service who want to avail themselves of their remaining
leave.
Even recluses like me and my wife have to attend some weddings � the
wedding proper if not the numerous ceremonies now connected with it.
Some of the weddings are a source of delight while others are just a
formality for us, and, therefore, a bore. What I don't like at my
age is going with a baraat in what is now called a motorcade.
It's a nuisance keeping up with the procession of cars, especially
if the leading car is in a hurry to get there without bothering if
the others are following or have lost their way. Once we got into
the wrong procession and ended up at a graveyard! No, we didn't die.
The procession I had got into on the way was a funeral. My wife was
very annoyed because we had to go home for dinner.
Invitation cards have already started arriving, both from Islamabad
where we now live, and other towns, even Karachi. Which reminds me
of the wedding of an officer of the Press Information Department
some 20 years ago. He was very fond of sucking up to senior
officers, whether they had to do anything with him or not, but had
neither the heart nor the means to entertain. So, those who lived in
Karachi his wedding card invited them for the wedding to a hotel in
Rawalpindi. His patrons in Islamabad were informed that the valima
was in a hotel in Karachi. Actually he got married in Lahore where
the circle of his acquaintance was the narrowest. What a pity that
weddings are no longer gatherings of relations and close family
friends as they once used to be. The craze to invite so-called VIPs
is nowadays the worst feature of these functions. Instead of due
consideration being shown to the guests, and the focus of attention
being the bridegroom, the VIP saunters in as a sort of guest of
honour and steals the show, detracting from the sentimental nature
of the occasion.
Marriage is said to be the most significant event in a man's life.
That is, if it is his only marriage and is not followed by three
more. The significance is provided by his being joined in holy
wedlock with a woman. Nowadays, with VIPs infiltrating the wedding
ceremonies the bride's place has been taken by these worthies so far
as the memorableness of the occasion for the groom is concerned.
Soon, I think, we shall start receiving wedding invitations on which
the inscription will run something like this: "Begum & Chaudhry
Turra Baz Khan volunteer to suffer your company (for the sake of
numbers only) at the wedding of their son/daughter. The
President/PM/Governor/CM has graciously consented to spare time from
his multifarious state activities to preside. The function will be
followed by a speech from the Chief Guest on the political
situation. N.B. In view of security, please bring your ID card with
you, though even that may not guarantee your entry into the
reception. Slogan-shouters need no invitation and are welcome."
A friend and I really felt like walking out of a wedding in
Islamabad some years ago. It was only the thought of going home to a
derisive family which prevented us from doing so. The groom's
father, our friend, was an old politician and a former federal
minister, who had invited both the President and the Prime Minister
as if one of them was not enough to mar the festivity of the day.
We got a cursory handshake from our host and then he disappeared to
await the exciting moments: the arrival of the two most important
personalities in the country. Some of his lesser relations did not
even get a handshake and were herded into a secluded part of the
hall.
During the next hour or so we saw nothing of our friend and host who
was busy fluttering around his two super guests and catering to
their needs. There were mutterings of protest from some of the
lesser relations who probably thought that the cold shoulder of
their host should have been compensated by a warm handshake from at
least one of the two VVIPs. But they had no such luck. The poor
bridegroom too must have felt pretty neglected by being deprived of
the limelight. All that he got was being video-filmed with the VVIPs
and the dubious honour of eating at the same table with them.
I always wonder why the President and the Prime Minister accept
these wedding invitations when they are merely on official (or
political) nodding terms with their hosts. If it is not possible for
them to go as ordinary guests, what with security and all, couldn't
they make an excuse and send a gift and their good wishes instead?
Must they convert what should be a purely family occasion into a
kind of public rally?
That is not all. Outside the capital, with provincial authorities
striving to out-do themselves, the roads to the wedding reception
become a nightmare for the normal traffic, with the citizens hurling
dirty abuses at the system and its bosses. (I wish they could hear
what the people have to say. It would open their eyes to their so-
called popularity!).
The hard-worked policemen have to stand by on the roadside for hours
on end, probably cursing all and sundry and their own sorry fate.
The local authorities of course try their best to ensure that the
visit of the VVIP who, in a democracy, should be Public Friend
Number One, turns into a public nuisance.
Is it possible to restore the familial beauty of our wedding
receptions? Or don't we want them that way? Let only those be
invited who are connected with the two families in some intimate
manner. These receptions are not PR dinners to which some
personalities have to be asked for form's sake, or because we want
to curry favour with them. Their presence at weddings in most cases,
is superfluous as that of the uninvited guest who sneaks in there
for a free meal.
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971030
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Away from it all
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Rifaat Hamid Ghani
KARACHI and Islamabad make a fascinating juxtaposition. Tiny
Islamabad the official capital � unlike the enormous port city of
Karachi which completely misses out on the beauty of the sea �
exploits the panoramic background of the Margalla hills to the hilt
and is beautifully set.
The only inhabitants one is ever aware of there have the outlook of
the members of a small, select exclusive country club. The rest of
the world is as unreal to them as they are to the rest of the world.
There is nothing wrong with that kind of social serenity except that
it does not offer the best perspective when it comes to running the
affairs of an over-populated developing country.
Karachi also has its elite of power and money but that elite is
under constant pressure and in constant contact with the teeming
millions. It may not ever be a part of them, but they are aware of
each other. And so while Islamabad breeds envy and smugness, Karachi
breeds aggression and the consciousness of a threat. Once you reach
Islamabad you have escaped from it all and what may be a roller
coaster ride is metamorphosed into something as gentle and soothing
as the incline of the Margalla Hills.
What messages have the CJ, the PM, the President and the COAS been
exchanging? In Karachi that is the subject of common social
discourse. There is an urgent general concern. But in Islamabad
unless you were in the position where you either knew and heard
about it or could venture an informed guess, it really didn't matter
much. The common concern is that it may entail a change of post, a
transfer and a new boss for the bureaucrat and his family. Issues do
not matter � it is only the particularities that their resolutions
may involve. Yet islamabad is where the action is.
The attitude towards the fraternity of the pen is quite different
too. Karachiites are more accommodating. In Islamabad neutrality is
a kind of unforgivable deviation. Journalism is relevant only in
terms of whether it supports 'you' or 'the adversary.' There is a
preferred line of argument and journalists ought to report and
analyse accordingly is how well-informed sources see things. The
simple word for it is bias. One can escape it occasionally in
Karachi in discussion, but very seldom in Islamabad. Journalists
love their gossip, though, and the kind of succulent titbits that
may fall from the table of the rich and the powerful.
For a truly professional journalist, the atmosphere in Islamabad is
not supportive. What the freedom of the press signifies is something
the typical government servant and his dependants would rather do
without. In Karachi the journalist is kept going by doses of
appreciation from the disinterested common citizens, the simple
anonymous public. They may be as critical as anyone in Islamabad of
sloppy journalism or careless reporting, but they never forget the
positive role of the watchdog, and have no wish to see it chained.
It's hard for the elusive entity, the general public in Islamabad,
to grasp this. And should the press be seen as losing credibility,
the Karachiite reacts with alarm, whereas the man in Islamabad
cannot help but show a 'told you so' triumph.
The army too is a completely natural part of the scene in 'Pindi-
Islamabad. The visibility of its presence in what started off as a
garrison town is nothing out of the way. In Karachi it always spells
tensions.
But no matter where a Pakistani may be living, all eyes this week
are focused on Islamabad and its marble edifices within which the
direction of governance is being sorted out. If only the
protagonists would see what the average citizen does so clearly:
people may be disenchanted with things as they are, but that does
not make them more receptive of change in the wrong direction or
moves that may confer the unchallengeable powers of a dictator on
anyone: a judicial activist or a political charlatan.
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971101
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Give me back my vote!
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Irfan Husain
I KNOW the Chief Election Commissioner probably won't allow it, but
I want to go on record as a voter who wants his vote back.
When I voted for Nawaz Sharif last February, I did so reluctantly,
on the "lesser of the evils" principle. Let me reiterate my reasons
� more to convince myself that I was right at the time than to
justify my decision to others. For obvious reasons, I could not vote
for the PPP, the party I had been supporting since its inception.
The sleaze and incompetence finally became too much for even the
most ardent PPP loyalist, resulting in the party's rout last
February. Nor could I bring myself to vote for obscurantist or
ethnic parties. The choice was thus reduced to either staying at
home, or voting for the Muslim League. After much agonizing, I opted
for the latter course because I thought that Nawaz Sharif had
learned something from his days in the wilderness, and despite his
personal failings � and they are many � he would be good for the
economy.
When the magnitude of his victory became apparent, I thought my
decision had been justified. For the first time in years, a leader
had won the kind of majority necessary to free him from the horse-
trading and blackmail that razor-thin majorities or bare pluralities
had earlier inflicted on the system. In my optimistic scenario, I
had imagined that Nawaz Sharif would use his majority to bring about
structural reforms in the economy. I had no illusions about his
liberal credentials and thus did not expect him to address the
problems of women and minorities, but then what had Benazir Bhutto
done for them? Basically, I voted for five years of sanity,
stability and economic progress.
What did we get instead? A totally unnecessary constitutional
crisis, a wheat shortage, a devalued rupee, a stagnant economy, a
repressive TV censorship code and no improvement on any front. The
reason I am asking for an adjustment in the final election result is
that I want the PML total to be reduced by my vote, so that no
matter how remotely, I cannot be held responsible for what this
government is doing. But even if the Election Commission were to
give me the opportunity to change my mind, what would I do with my
vote? And no rude answers, please. The fact is that there is simply
no party or politician I would want to vote for. This is a sad
comment on a country of 140 million in the fiftieth year of its
independence. Unfortunately, we have developed a political system in
which only crooks and charlatans seem to thrive. The few genuinely
good people who have tried their luck have been sidelined, or have
left of their own accord after being betrayed and disillusioned.
Last week, the stock market fell 50 points in one trading session on
the basis of a rumour that the army was moving in. This is another
comment on the fragility of our system: here we have an elected
government enjoying a two-thirds majority in Parliament, but which
can still be shaken by speculation because of its own bungling. Like
the Pakistan cricket team, Nawaz Sharif and his merry men are
perfectly capable of snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. And,
to mix a metaphor, of shooting themselves in the foot with high
calibre weapons.
Speaking at the recent Commonwealth summit in Edinburgh, Nawaz
Sharif unburdened himself of his vision of the next century.
According to him, the 21st century should be "an era of tolerance,
harmony and mutual respect for all the various cultures and creeds
that had for centuries enriched the South Asian landscape." Fine
words, but how about translating these sentiments into reality right
here and right now? How about a little tolerance for pop groups and
men with long hair wearing jeans?
For a start, the ridiculous censorship policy announced for the PTV
can be withdrawn before we become a bigger laughing stock in the
world than we already are. And since Nawaz Sharif is suddenly so
keen on harmony between different creeds, how about doing away with
the pernicious system of separate electorates that has done so much
to drive a wedge between the majority and minority communities?
In this space, I have often bemoaned the slow but steady unravelling
of the democratic system. Throughout my adult life, I have supported
and strongly advocated parliamentary democracy as the best
dispensation for a country as divided as Pakistan is. I still feel
it is an excellent system, but I wonder, for the first time in my
life, if we are capable of making it work. The excuse that frequent
military intervention had not permitted democracy to take root is no
longer valid: after nearly a decade of unfettered democratic rule,
things are getting worse, not better. By any yardstick, the level of
governance has been falling, and unresolved problems continue to
accumulate. Politicians are too busy settling scores or looking
after personal interests to address the issues that confront us.
Apart from hot air, the only sure thing to come our way from
Islamabad is an unending increase in prices and taxes.
Against this dismal backdrop, it is legitimate to ask whom one can
possibly vote for. We know all the actors on the political stage,
and are aware of their capabilities and their limitations.
Unfortunately, the latter far outweigh the former. There are no
attractive options available, and as we have seen, the "lesser of
the evils" principle is not a good guide. So where do we go from
here? If Nawaz Sharif with his crushing majority allows himself to
get mired in irrelevancies, what hope is there for another
politician with a mere plurality?
The reason why we cannot make the system work lies in our psyche: an
intolerant and undisciplined nation, we are incapable of realizing
that power has certain limits and imposes certain responsibilities.
Once installed, our leaders fall instant prey to hubris and
arrogance, and view advice with suspicion, and a difference of
opinion as a personal insult. Sycophants and yes-men thrive in this
atmosphere, and before very long, the most populist leader is cut
off from reality. This has happened so often that one is forced to
wonder if we will ever get a leader who can overcome this syndrome.
Unfortunately, we do not have the time to give each leader several
chances of getting it right. Anyway, on present evidence, it seems
most unlikely that they ever will.
This depressing conclusion takes me back to my earlier question:
which party or leader can a person with a conscience possibly vote
for?
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971027
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Remembering the Raj
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Omar Kureishi
THE relationship was clearly spelt out and understood and
reluctantly accepted: the ruler and the ruled. The British in India
were in India strictly for themselves. The White Man's Burden was
understandably heavy. It contained all the loot that they took out
of the country.
It is the worst kind of deception to maintain that they were in
India for our good, on a civilising mission as if we swung from
trees. Those of us whose formative years were spent living under the
Raj still smart from the humiliation of being second or third class
citizens in our own country. Those were angry times but also
exhilarating times, there was a sense of purpose and a great belief
in our destiny. If things haven't worked out as we had idealized
they would, it just goes to show that it is better to travel
hopefully than to arrive.
I look back on those days with the same nostalgic yearning as
Tennyson must have felt looking at the happy autumn fields that
inspired his moving poem about idle tears that gathered from the
heart and rolled to the eyes. But the British had only a walk-on
part though they were the catalysts for my political awakening.
Actually, one had very little to do with them. They lived in their
own world and we lived in ours.
I had Muslim, Hindu, Parsi, Christian, Sikh and Buddist friends but
not a British friend. If our paths did cross, it was on the cricket
field. I went to a British school in Bombay and the principal was a
Mr. L. M. S. Brooks, a carrot-haired Scotsman with whom I got on
famously since I was the school's cricket captain. One of our
fixtures was against Ralli Brothers and their captain was a man
called Glover, a tall, strapping Englishman who fancied himself as a
fast bowler. He had a run-up that began from the near the sight-
screen and he would come in to bowl, all arms, in leaping strides.
Sadly the end-product did not match his ferocity. I hit him for
three straight sixes, the last landing on the statue of a
distinguished deceased Parsi city-father.
I remember this well because I considered hitting those sixes as an
anticolonial statement. One of our annual fixtures was against the
Bombay Gymkhana, the "for Europeans only" club. This match too I
considered to be a part of the anti-imperialism struggle. They had a
South African who could have passed for Sidney Greenstreet. My late
brother Shanoo (father of Hanif Kureishi, the playwright and
novelist) and I opened the innings. I hit the Sidney Greensmith
look-alike for a six, the first ball of the match. The ball cleared
the ground and landed on the tram-lines. The South African went red
in the face and threatened to report me to the principal for being
irresponsible. No one hits the first ball of a match for a six he
choked with rage. Shanoo and I both made hundreds and we won the
match and the annual fixture was cancelled thereafter.
Whether they admitted it or not, the British were racists and did
not socialize with the natives. They had their own clubs and these
clubs became the object of much antagonism. Their existence played a
big part in rallying the Indians. Even the "toadies" and the "ji-
hazoors" were not admitted even as guests. But a strange
transformation came over the Britisher once he was west of the Suez
Canal. He became a human being and those one met in England bore no
resemblance to those who were the burra sahibs in India.
All this is so much water under the bridge but it conditioned my
attitude to the West. The only way to deal with the West is on equal
terms otherwise the West's instinctive arrogance and sense of
superiority will swamp you and put on the back-foot. It is
interesting that the Indians handled the visit of Queen Elizabeth as
ungracious hosts. They snubbed the Queen on quite a few occasions
and made life extremely hard for her entourage, the behaviour
bordering on the boorish. The British media expressed their
disapproval in the mildest language and were almost apologetic. They
chose, instead, to fry Robin Cook.
The Pakistan leg of the Queen's visit went off without a hitch and
we proved to be impeccable hosts. The British media took this for
granted and no attempt was made to contrast the two legs of the
visit and there was no public thanks to the government and people of
Pakistan for according their sovereign such a warm welcome.
I am not suggesting for a minute that we should have behaved as the
Indias did. The Queen cannot be held responsible for the
humiliations of colonialism. She, in fact, came on the throne when
the British Empire was in an advanced stage of dismantling. She is,
in any event, a gracious lady and deserved our respect and
affection.
But we could have pointed out, delicately, to Prince Philip in
particular, that his uncle Lord Mountbatten did his damndest to have
a still-born Pakistan and many of our troubles can be directly
attributed to his blatant partisanship and his cozying up to Pandit
Nehru. History should not be erased. It should remain, so that we
can learn from it.
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971031
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Role of the Raj
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Kamil Siddiqi
WHEN Taj Mahal was being built, the Indian subcontinent was regarded
as "Golden Sparrow" by the outside world, especially by European
nations. Simultaneously was being built the Saint Paul's Cathedral
in London. Both the monuments stand today to show the world the
subcontinent's erstwhile superiority in architecture and civil
engineering over that of England. Taj Mahal is among wonders of the
world.
The subcontinent in the eighteenth century was a great manufacturing
as well as agricultural country, and the products of the Indian loom
supplied the markets of Asia and Europe. It is, unfortunately, true
that the East India Company and the British parliament discouraged
Indian manufacturers in the early years of British rule in order to
encourage the rising manufactures of England. They employed the arm
of political injustice to keep down and ultimately strangle a
competitor with whom they could not have contended on equal terms.
It is a painful episode in the history of British rule in the
subcontinent, but it is a story which has to be told to explain the
economic condition of the people of the subcontinent. Once bitten
twice shy: the Indians are, to this day, in hatred with everything
foreign. The "anti-foreign" campaign by a large segment of Indian
society indicates the rancour the British rule has created in the
hearts of so many Indians. This hatred is not unfounded. From being
one of the most prosperous nations in the world, the Indians were
rendered downtrodden within two centuries of British rule.
At the advent of East India Company in the subcontinent England had
nothing of value to offer India in the way of products comparable in
quality or technical standard with Indian products, the only
important industry then developed being manufacture of woolen goods,
which were of no use for India. Therefore, precious metals had to be
taken out to buy the goods in India. As soon, however, as domination
began to be established � by mid-18th century � methods of power
could be increasingly used to weight the balance of exchange and
secure the maximum goods for the minimum payment. The margin between
trade and plunder from the outset never very sharply drawn, began to
grow conspicuously thin.
The East India Company was abolished in 1858. The empire was
transferred from the Company to the Crown, but the people of the
subcontinent paid the purchase-money. The Indian debt, which was� 51
million pounds in 1857, rose to 97 million in 1862 and 200 million
pounds in 1901. The development of railway construction with State
aid and guarantees for the private companies undertaking it, as well
as later with direct State construction, enormously swelled the
debt.
The system adopted was one of a government guarantee of 5% interest
for whatever capital was expended by British investors in the
construction of the railways. It is evident that this system
encouraged the most extravagant and uneconomic expenditure. This was
reported by the former Finance Minister, W.N. Massey, to the
Parliamentary Enquiry on Indian Finance in 1872 in these words:
"Enormous sums were lavished, and the contractors had no motive
whatever for economy. All the money came from the English
capitalist, and so long as he was guaranteed 5% on the revenues of
India, it was immaterial to him whether the funds that he lent were
thrown into the Hooghly or converted into bricks and mortars ... It
seems to me that they are the most extravagant works that were ever
undertaken."
England's nineteenth century role as "the workshop of the world",
and, increasingly, as a major source of overseas capital investment
must also be analyzed in relationship to her Indian Empire.
The American writer Brook(s) Adams tells us exactly how this
happened: "The influx of Indian treasure, by adding considerably to
the nation's cash capital, not only increased its stock of energy,
but added much to its flexibility and the rapidity of its movement.
Very soon after Plassey, the Bengal plunder began to arrive in
London, and the effect appears to have been instantaneous, for all
authorities agree that the "Industrial Revolution" began with the
year 1770... Plassey was fought in 1757, and probably nothing has
ever squalled the rapidity of the change that followed. In 1760 the
flying shuttle appeared, and coal began to replace wood in smelting.
In 1764 Hargreaves invented the spinning jenny, in 1768 Watt matured
the steam engine, and in 1785 Cartwright patented the power loom...
But, though these machines served as outlets for the accelerating
movements of the time, they did not cause the acceleration. In
themselves inventions are passive, ...Waiting for a sufficient store
of force to have accumulated to set them working. ...Before the
influx of the Indian treasure, and the expansion of credit which
followed, no force sufficient for this purpose existed."
Bengal certainly was a very rich and prosperous province before the
British came, but within 187 years of their rule, turned into a land
of poverty-stricken masses, starving and dying. As a matter of fact
Bengal had the first full experience of British rule in India, and
that rule began with outright plunder, and a land revenue system
which extracted the uttermost farthing not only from the living but
also the dead cultivators.
The English historians of India, Edward Thompson and G.T. Garrett,
tell us that "a gold-lust unequalled since the hysteria that took
hold of the Spaniards of Cortes' age filled the English mind. Bengal
in particular was not to know peace again until she had been bled
white."
The result of all this, even in its early stages, was the famine of
1770 which swept away over a third of the population of Bengal and
Bihar. But it was all in the cause of progress, and Bengal can take
pride in the fact that she helped greatly in giving birth to the
Industrial Revolution in England.
It may be said that a great part of the costs of transition to
industrialism in western Europe were paid for by India, China and
others. The Historian Montgomery Martin giving evidence before a
committee of the British Parliament in 1840, said: "India is as much
a manufacturing country as an agriculturist; and he who would seek
to reduce her to the position of an agricultural country, seeks to
lower her in the scale of civilization."
The self-sufficient village community, with its traditional division
of labour, could not have continued in its old form. But the change
that took place was not a normal development, and it disintegrated
the whole economic and structural basis of Indian society. A system
which had social sanctions and controls behind it, was a part of the
people's cultural heritage, was suddenly and forcibly changed, and
another system, administered from outside the group, was imposed.
India did not come into a world market but became a colonial and
agricultural appendage of the British structure.
In 1830 Sir Charles Metcalfe, one of the ablest of British officials
in India, described these village communities as follows: "The
village communities are little republics having nearly everything
they want within themselves, and almost independent of foreign
relations. They seem to last where nothing else lasts. This union of
the village communities, each one forming a separate little state in
itself ... is in a high degree conducive to their happiness, and to
the enjoyment of a great portion of freedom and independence".
The breakup of the old system created new problems, and probably the
beginning of the new Hindu-Muslim problem can be traced to it.
===================================================================
971028
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Historic win for S. Africa on Pakistan soil
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Ilyas Beg
FAISALABAD, Oct 27: In an appalling display of poor batsmanship,
Pakistan team crashed to a dismal score of 92 in the second innings,
37 minutes after the lunch interval on fourth day to lose the third
and last cricket Test to South Africa by 53 runs on Monday. With
that South Africa also won the three-Test series 1-0. It was an
abject surrender by the Pakistan side.
Needing only 142 runs for a win in the last two days' play, the
Pakistani batting never got going and the players continued to come
to the crease, play rank, bad shots and get dismissed! Young right-
arm paceman Shaun Pollock was the wrecker-in-chief of the Pakistan
batting. He was richly rewarded with a haul of five wickets for 37
runs as he sent down 11 lethal overs.
He swung the ball both ways and never allowed the Pakistani batsmen
to settle down. Only exception being wicketkeeper Moin Khan, who
fought all alone but could not avert the inevitable.
Off-spinner Pat Symcox, who had batted very well in both the innings
of this Test by scoring 81 and 55, respectively, mopped up the
Pakistani tail. In his 9.3 overs, Pat Symcox claimed three wickets
for eight runs and deservingly won "Man-of-the-Match" award.
With only lastman Mushtaq Ahmad at the crease on other end, Moin
Khan had a wild swing at the third delivery of Symcox's 10th over
and was caught at mid-wicket boundary by Alan Donald. It was all
over bar shouting.
All the South African fielders ran to pick stumps, bails and other
things as souvenirs of this historic win, hugged and embraced each
other in absolute delight for registering a hard-earned win on
Pakistani soil. A crowd of over ten thousand, which thronged the
Iqbal Stadium to watch Pakistan team registering an easy win, saw in
bewilderment a procession of seasoned Pakistani batsmen and was
bitterly disappointed by this totally unexpected defeat. Many
enthusiasts who roamed around the stadium to enter into it were
lathi-charged by police."
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971028
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We lost because of our batsmen, says skipper
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Sports Reporter
KARACHI, Oct 27: A dejected Pakistan captain Saeed Anwar blamed his
batsmen for the unexpected defeat in the third and final cricket
Test against South Africa.
"None of us applied ourselves. It was a devastating sight to see
batsmen going and returning after playing reckless shots," Anwar
said from Lahore.
Anwar stated that none of the batsmen except Inzamamul Haq fell to
good balls. "It was just senseless and irresponsible batting and
nothing else.
"The batsmen will have to change their attitude and commitment as we
will be against three best one-day teams followed by a three-Test
series against the West Indies in the next six weeks," he said.
Anwar said he too was to be blamed. "I played very badly in the
entire series. This is not supposed to be a performance from a
leader but the factual position is that I am undergoing a bad patch
which is bound to hit a professional.
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971028
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Wasim Akram to replace Saeed Anwar
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Sports Reporter
KARACHI, Oct 27: In wake of an upsetting and demoralising 53-run
defeat in the third and final Test against South Africa, Pakistan
administrators have apparently decided to hand over the charge of
the team back to Wasim Akram.
"Saeed Anwar is already struggling with the bat and he is too good a
batsman to be wasted like this," sources on condition of anonymity
said.
The 14-member team for the quadrangular cup is expected to be
announced on Tuesday at Lahore. The team had been finalised two
weeks ago but was delayed because the authorities had kept a
watchful eye on the performance of Saeed Anwar.
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971029
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Akram tells players to enjoy game
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Sports Reporter
KARACHI, Oct 28: Reappointed Pakistan captain Wasim Akram gave some
comfort to the upset and dejected cricketers when he told them to
simply enjoy the game.
"I have told them to enjoy cricket and leave the rest on me. I will
handle all the pressure and criticism if it is directed at the
national team," Akram said from Lahore.
Akram, who replaces Saeed Anwar, said he had a brief meeting with
the players "but I can figure out that they are lost somewhere. I
have to have a detailed meeting with them.
"What I plan to inject in their minds is that winning and losing is
part of the game. One day we will win and the other day we will
lose. This is sport and no team can have a monopoly or dominance
over it," said Akram.
Akram admitted that it was a difficult time as the morale of the
team was down and a tough forthcoming challenge is ahead. "But we
are capable of bouncing back and I have all the confidence in my
players. With an injury-hit team, we won in Australia and similar
was the situation when Pakistan qualified for the finals of the
Independence Cup in India."
Akram was unsure of his tenure as captain. "It has not been defined
by the authorities. All they told me was that I am the captain. But
for how long, that I don't know," he said, adding: "Captaincy is not
the end of the world and I am not bothered if I play under Saeed or
anyone else. I just want to enjoy."
Outgoing captain Saeed Anwar was more modest when approached for his
comments. "Wasim Akram was the original captain. Since he was out,
me or Ramiz Raja were handling the team. Now since he is back, he is
incharge of the side.
"There are absolutely no hard feelings. He is an experienced captain
and the best choice for a captain's role because he leads from the
front and with example."
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971031
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Teams getting tuned up for 4-nation cup
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Sports Correspondent
LAHORE, Oct 30: All teams participating in the Quadrangular One-Day
International Cricket Tournament were tough, but the most dangerous
of them was the world champions Sri Lanka.
This was stated by the South African team manager S K Reddy while
talking to reporters on Thursday at the Qadhafi Stadium where all
the teams practised under floodlights.
Reddy said Sri Lankan were champions and they also managed to
maintain their supremacy after winning the World Cup in 1996. He
said that West Indian team who had won World Cup twice would have
upset any side. He said South African had always faced tough fight
from the Carribeans.
Reddy said Pakistan team had the services of seasoned players and
the home ground and crowd advantages would also support them.
He said South African captain Hansie Cronje was confident about the
victory of the team. He, however, admitted that his team would miss
three players McMillan, Kallis and Schultz who due to one reason or
another had stayed at home. "They are good all-rounders and badly
needed by the team for one-day game" Reddy said. But he said South
Africa was still a well balanced side.
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971031
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Jahangir to play in Hong Kong
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Sports Reporter
KARACHI Oct. 30: Doubles squash is a totally different ball game for
it is as much taxing and demanding as the singles, said legendary
Jahangir Khan, who would be returning to international competition
after retiring in glory by leading Pakistan to victory in the 1993
World Team Championship in Karachi.
"I would be partnering with Zubair Jahan Khan, currently ranked
tenth in the world in the five-day World Doubles Championship
scheduled in Hong kong from Dec 14, stated record holder of ten
successive win in the British Open.
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