------------------------------------------------------------------- DAWN WIRE SERVICE ------------------------------------------------------------------- Week Ending : 29 July 2000 Issue : 06/29 -------------------------------------------------------------------
Contents | National News | Business & Economy | Editorials & Features | SportsThe DAWN Wire Service (DWS) is a free weekly news-service from Pakistan's largest English language newspaper, the daily DAWN. DWS offers news, analysis and features of particular interest to the Pakistani Community on the Internet. Extracts, not exceeding 50 lines, can be used provided that this entire header is included at the beginning of each extract. We encourage comments & suggestions. We can be reached at: e-mail dws-owner@dawn.com WWW http://dawn.com/ fax +92(21) 568-3188 & 568-3801 mail DAWN Group of Newspapers Haroon House, Karachi 74200, Pakistan Please send all Editorials and Letters to the Editor at letters@dawn.com (c) Pakistan Herald Publications (Pvt.) Ltd., Pakistan - 2000 DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS
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CONTENTS =================================================================== NATIONAL NEWS + Musharraf hits out at UK, says report + CE pledges continued support to Kashmiris: + Chinese FM meets Musharraf + Countrywide reshuffle in bureaucracy + Nawaz given 14 years Rigorous Imprisonment (RI), fined Rs20m + Nawaz plea dismissed in Attock court trial + Provinces allowed to issue 'NOC' to private security agencies + Pakistan wants APHC role in dialogue: FO welcomes G8 declaration + French MPs warn of 'domino effect': N-proliferation + Japan's PM to visit Pakistan from Aug 20 + Chief Executive assures Madaris of non-interference + Moin sees elected government in three years + India-Pakistan talks likely in October + Dispute with Sabre: PIA clarification + Customs agents observe token strike + Dispute with Sabre: PIA seems set for out-of-court deal --------------------------------- BUSINESS & ECONOMY + No compromise on tax survey: Talks with Lahore traders today + State Bank of Pakistan intervenes to check dollar rise + CBR yet to frame charges against suspended officers + Chief Executive warns tax-evaders of tougher penalty + Combined Income Tax, Sales Tax at 1.5% urged + Spot $ selling at Rs53.25: Forward premiums move up + Customs agents strike on Thursday + EoI invited for sale of cement company + Incentive for investment soon + Inputs cost shies away investors + Wheat issue price in NWFP increased + LSE member CDC accounts unfrozen --------------------------------------- EDITORIALS & FEATURES + Information technology Ardeshir Cowasjee + Core issue, my goat Ayaz Amir ----------- SPORTS + Outplay Pakistan by 57 runs: Sri Lanka lift U-17 Asia Cup + Pakistan look forward to playing against India + Pakistan Cricket Board hiring agent to watch team
=================================================================== DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS =================================================================== NATIONAL NEWS 20000728 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Musharraf hits out at UK, says report ------------------------------------------------------------------- LONDON, July 27: The chief executive, Gen Pervez Musharraf, has hit out at Britain for not cooperating with efforts to root out corruption in his country, The Times reported on Thursday. The newspaper quoted Gen Musharraf as saying that attempts to locate the property of wealthy Pakistanis, including former prime ministers Nawaz Sharif and Benazir Bhutto, had met with flat refusals. "We are extremely disappointed with the British government not to assist us, a poor country, which has been plundered," Gen Musharraf was quoted as saying by the newspaper. "We have got no information whatsoever from Britain." Gen Musharraf also said that statements from Britain and the Commonwealth, condemning his Oct 12 takeover which ousted Mr Sharif, were "unfair", and stressed that he wanted Pakistan to remain in the 54-nation grouping. "I am a bit disappointed in the statements from the Commonwealth, from (British Foreign Secretary) Mr Robin Cook, against what happened on Oct 12," he said. "We have been in the Commonwealth. We would like to be in the Commonwealth." The Commonwealth barred Pakistan from taking part in its councils and has expressed concern at the lack of progress towards the restoration of democratic rule. Mr Musharraf, however, said he was more concerned about cleaning up political and economic life. "Pakistan has in the last 11 to 12 years gone down in all important areas. Economically it has taken a nosedive. All institutions are in total disarray. They have been politicised and corrupted." He also said that signing the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty was "not featuring very high on my agenda." "It is a priority, though not a top priority," he added according to the Times, report.-AFP DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000728 ------------------------------------------------------------------- CE pledges continued support to Kashmiris: ------------------------------------------------------------------- Bureau Report ISLAMABAD, July 27: The Chief Executive, Gen Pervez Musharraf, on Thursday reaffirmed Pakistan's resolve to support the Kashmir freedom struggle under all circumstances. Inaugurating an envoys' conference at the foreign office, the CE highlighted the historical perspective as well as Pakistan's commitment to principles, and underlined the centrality of the Kashmir issue to peace and security in the region. "Pakistan has consistently pursued a negotiated, just settlement of the Kashmir dispute," he stated, adding that the issue was the source of tension in South Asia as acknowledged by the international community. The CE emphasized the role of the foreign policy as "first line of defence" and said Pakistan's foreign policy was based on norms of peace, justice, friendship and cooperation, according to a press release. Identifying the country's security concerns which governed the policy, he stressed the role of Pakistan missions abroad for advancing its economic and trade interest, and the welfare of Pakistan's expatriate community. Earlier in his welcome remarks, the foreign minister assured the CE of the ability of the foreign office to vigorously implement the government policy. The conference has been organized to discuss with the envoys important aspects and specific issues of the foreign policy. Pakistan's ambassadors to Beijing, Berlin, Brussels, New Delhi, Paris, Riyadh, Tehran, Tokyo and Washington; permanent representatives in New York and Geneva as well as ambassadors- designate to Kabul and Moscow participated in the conference. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000726 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Chinese FM meets Musharraf ------------------------------------------------------------------- ISLAMABAD, July 25: Chinese Prime Minister Zhu Rongji reaffirmed in his greetings to Chief Executive Gen Pervez Musharraf the importance attached by the Chinese leadership to developing the close cooperation between Beijing and Islamabad. Mr Zhu's goodwill message was conveyed by Mr Tang who called on the CE on the last day of his three-day visit to Pakistan on Tuesday. Reciprocating the Chinese PM's felicitation, the CE reiterated Pakistan's desire to strengthen the friendship and cooperation between the two nations which was based on shared interests and on the similarity of views on regional and international issues.-H.A. Underscoring the significance of dialogue to resolve all outstanding problems between India and Pakistan, the Chinese FM said that "use of force will lead them nowhere", adds APP. ABDUl SATTAR: Foreign Minister Abdul Sattar termed the Pakistan- China relationship "ever-green and ever-growing" like a thick forest. He said this while talking to newsmen at the airport where he saw his Chinese counterpart off for Lahore. Mr Sattar said Kashmiri leadership could decide about mode of their struggle but expressed confidence that its decision would be in the best interest of their freedom movement. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000729 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Countrywide reshuffle in bureaucracy ------------------------------------------------------------------- Ansar Abbasi ISLAMABAD, July 28: In a major countrywide reshuffle in bureaucracy, the government on Friday transferred 94 officers belonging to district management group (DMG) and police service. The move has been made in consequence of the recently unveiled "rotation policy", framed to ensure that the officers of these two most important groups, should serve at least in two provinces under the federal government during their career. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000723 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Nawaz given 14 years Rigorous Imprisonment (RI), fined Rs20m ------------------------------------------------------------------- Rafaqat Ali ATTOCK, July 22: The accountability court here on Saturday sentenced deposed prime minister Nawaz Sharif to 14-year rigorous imprisonment and disqualified him from holding public office for 21 years on corruption charge. The court ruled that Nawaz Sharif had failed to justify the expenses made on the purchase, maintenance and operation of MI-8 helicopter, and fined him Rs20 million. Nawaz Sharif will undergo three-year imprisonment more if he fails to make the payment. Saifur Rehman, the co-accused facing the abetment charge, was acquitted by the court which ordered that Saifur Rehman should be released if he was not required in any other case. "He [Nawaz Sharif] is convicted under section 10 read with section 9 (a)(v) of the NAB ordinance, is sentenced to rigorous imprisonment for a period of 14 years and a fine of Rs20,000,000." Judge Farrukh Latif observed that holders of public office and leaders were expected to be honest and above board. "Nation expects that its leaders should be beyond suspicions. Corruption is undesirable but when it is committed by a person who has held public office, it is much more undesirable as it has far-reaching effects on the society." Kulsoom Nawaz and other family members of both Nawaz Sharif and Saifur Rehman were present in the jampacked courtroom when the judgment was announced at 3.40pm. No prominent Muslim Leaguer, except secretary-general Saranjam Khan, Chaudhry Jaffar Iqbal and Ahsan Iqbal, was there to hear the verdict. Under the National Accountability Bureau Ordinance a person convicted by the accountability court is entitled to challenge the verdict within 10 days in the high court. The section 10 of NAB Ordinance reads: "A person who commits the offence of corruption and corrupt practice shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to 14 years, or with fine, or with both, and such of the assets and property of such person which is found to be disproportionate to the known sources of his income, or which acquired by money obtained through corruption and corrupt practices, whether in his name or in the name of any of his dependents or benamidars, shall be liable to be forfeited to the appropriate government." The section 9(a)(v) reads: "If he or any of his dependents or benamidars owns, possesses, or has any right or title in any movable or immovable property or pecuniary resources disproportionate to his known sources of income, which he cannot reasonably account for." The prosecution case was that in August 1993, Nawaz Sharif got imported the helicopter from Moscow on wet lease for 60 days at the rate of $550 a flying hour. In October the same year, he purchased the helicopter in consideration of $800,000. >From July 1993 to June 1997, Nawaz Sharif spent $1.377 million and Rs8.8 million on the wet lease, purchase, maintenance and operation of the helicopter. The amounts spent were disproportionate to his known and declared sources of income, and thus he had committed an offence punishable under section 10 read with section 9(a)(v) of the NAB Ordinance. Saifur Rehman was charged with abetting the principal accused under section 9(a)(vi). The court held that since the charge against Nawaz Sharif under section 9(a)(vi) was not proved, therefore Saifur Rehman could not be burdened with the criminal liability of abetment. Saifur Rehman was also charged with dishonestly manipulating the sale-deed benami>es< so that the ownership of the principal accused of helicopter remain concealed and he might be able to evade the wealth tax thereon. The court held that benami contract was not illegal, therefore, it Saifur Rehman had abetted in the manipulation of the sale-deed which was otherwise legal and not unlawful, no offence was committed by him. The helicopter case began on May 12. The prosecution produced 15 witnesses, including Sartaj Aziz and Haleem Siddiqui - both ministers in the then cabinet of Nawaz Sharif. The prosecution's case was pleaded by Raja Mohammad Bashir and Mohammad Ilyas Siddiqui. Farouq Adam, prosecutor-general of accountability, also addressed the court on a number of occasions. Nawaz Sharif, who is serving two life sentences handed down in April in the plane hijacking case, boycotted the proceedings on the ground that he did not accept the law under which the accountability court had been set up in the 16th century Attock Fort. Saifur Rehman too boycotted the trial in its early stages but participated in the proceedings later. He not only recorded his statement under Section 342 of the Cr.PC, but also submitted 22- paged arguments. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000728 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Nawaz plea dismissed in Attock court trial ------------------------------------------------------------------- Shujaat Ali Khan LAHORE, July 27: A five-member bench of the Lahore High Court on Thursday dismissed ousted prime minister Nawaz Sharif's writ petition challenging his trial in the Attock Fort. After hearing the petitioner's counsel, Barrister Aitzaz Ahsan, for four days at the preadmission stage, Chief Justice Falak Sher, who headed the bench, asked Deputy Attorney-General Sher Zaman Khan to briefly touch upon the issues raised. The bench rose and reassembled soon afterwards at 1.15pm and the CJ announced that "it has opted not to interfere in the matter in constitutional jurisdiction lest anybody's case is prejudiced. The petition is dismissed". Mr Ahsan took the verbal order to mean that the grounds in the dismissed petition remain available to the petitioner to agitate in his appeal against his conviction in the impugned trial. If the same points are raised in the appeal, however, it might have to be heard by a much larger bench as there is a five- member bench judgment dismissing a somewhat identical petition filed by former Sindh minister Dr Farooq Sattar, who has challenged the dismissal in the Supreme Court through Dr Abdul Basit. Earlier, when the DAG argued that if Mr Sharif's counsel could travel from Lahore to Karachi to defend him in the place hijack case, why could they not go to a much nearer Attock Fort, the CJ remarked that probably they would have no objection if a chairlift was arranged for them from the Marriot Hotel, Islamabad, to the Fort. The NAB chairman might consider providing them one if they applied to him, the law officer replied. "Is there no Sheraton in Pindi?" the CJ earlier asked. In his short rebuttal, Mr Zaman Khan said the petition primarily challenged the federal government's power to order an accountability court to hold a trial at a particular place (Attock Fort) and the NAB chairman's authority to file a reference with the Attock court. Both the powers were fully covered by Sections 16 and 18 of the National Accountability Bureau Ordinance, he added. The government could direct any accountability court to sit anywhere in Pakistan and the NAB chairman could file a reference with any accountability court in the country, he observed. Asserting that the issues raised in the present case have broadly been settled by a five-member bench judgment on Dr Farooq Sattar's petition, the DAG said the main thrust of Mr Ahsan's argument was that the trial had been prejudiced by mislocation of the court. This ground could be taken in appeal. The Attock Fort had a large number of barracks and only one barrack had been declared a detention centre. Everybody was free to enter the Fort so long as he was prepared to identify himself and undergo body search, he said. The DAG said it was the Section 352 of the Criminal Procedure Code which required trial in an open court. However, the government could ignore the provision under Section 33 of the NAB Ordinance. He also pointed out that the petition had been first filed in the LHC's Rawalpindi Bench and a single judge, Justice Khalilur Rehman Ramday, had called for written comments while referring it to the chief justice for consideration by a larger bench. Mr Ahsan earlier argued that the petitioner was not responsible for delay in the consideration of his petition. He would have restricted the scope of his argument if he had a right to rebut the respondent's case. The petition was not confined to one case and the court could still grant relief by restraining the Attock accountability court from proceeding with other cases, he said. Distinguishing the case of Mehram Ali, the lawyer said he was accused of some 30 killings and invoked constitutional jurisdiction after fully participating in the trial. Mr Sharif stayed away from the trial and sought constitutional remedy when it was still in progress. The present petition did not question the qualification of the presiding officer of a special court but the very constitution of the court, he argued. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000725 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Provinces allowed to issue 'NOC' to private security agencies ------------------------------------------------------------------- Bureau Report PESHAWAR, July 24: The government has authorized provinces to issue 'No Objection Certificate' to parties intending to establish private security agencies, official sources told Dawn here on Monday. "The provinces have been authorised to issue NOCs but we are a bit cautious at the moment to avoid legal complications in the future," secretary of home and tribal affairs department Mir Laiq Shah told Dawn. Several number of applications are pending with the home and tribal affairs department which is apparently adamant to issue NOCs without having a legal cover. In this connection, the home secretary said: "We are in the process of preparing a law which would be promulgated through an ordinance by the provincial governor". The provincial governments would issue NOCs for their respective areas whereas federal government would issue NOCs to the parties intending to set up security agency in the federal capital. According to home secretary, concerned federal authorities have been requested to provide the copy of the law to be promulgated through an ordinance by the provincial governor. In the meantime, said the sources, provincial home and tribal affairs department was also working on the preparation of a summary on the subject for the perusal of the provincial governor. Among the applicants who have applied for establishing private security force in the Frontier province also include the NWFP police, according to sources. Presently, a total of 24 security agencies are working in the Frontier province including Frontier Constabulary Security, Fauji Security Services and Askari Guards. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000727 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Pakistan wants APHC role in dialogue: FO welcomes G8 declaration ------------------------------------------------------------------- Hasan Akhtar ISLAMABAD, July 26: The Foreign Office said on Wednesday that while it was for the freedom fighters to determine the course and strategy of their struggle, Pakistan would be willing to associate the All Parties Hurriyat Conference as the recognized representative of the Kashmiri leadership in any dialogue with India. FO spokesman Riaz M. Khan told a press conference that any differences among various Kashmiri groups on their strategy was part of a political leadership process. Pakistan, he stated, supported their objective to exercise their right to self-determination, as was recognized by the United Nations and a large international opinion. He said that Islamabad's offer to Delhi to hold dialogue without preconditions was yet to get a response from India. However, the dialogue with Kashmir as its central issue should be sincerely meaningful and result-oriented. The spokesman denied that the recent visit of Chinese Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan to Pakistan was linked to any event in Kashmir. But Kashmir was the main issue in talks that Mr Tang had held with the chief executive and the Pakistan foreign minister, Mr Khan said. The Chinese FM had briefed the CE and the Pakistan foreign minister on the talks that he had held last week with the Indian government leadership, he said. The CE, he said, would attend the UN General Assembly's millennium summit in New York in September and added that the CE would also meet various leaders but no meeting with the Indian prime minister has been planned so far. He said the Japanese PM might be visiting Pakistan soon. The G-8 declaration calling for Pakistan-India dialogue is welcomed, the spokesman said, since such endorsement from major world powers could be helpful. The spokesman said that the Pakistan government had not sponsored Jamaat-i-Islami chief Qazi Hussain Ahmad's visit to the United States which has been undertaken at the invitation of the Islamic Council of North America. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000727 ------------------------------------------------------------------- French MPs warn of 'domino effect': N-proliferation ------------------------------------------------------------------- CAIRO, July 26: Two members of France's parliamentary committee on defence warned here on Wednesday that nuclear weapons were spreading around the world like dominos, with proliferation outweighing efforts at restraint. "India went nuclear only because of China," Pierre Lellouche, a deputy from Paris, told reporters near the end of a fact-finding mission to countries faced with the race in nuclear arms and other weapons of mass destruction. "In doing that it posed a major strategic threat to Pakistan, which is in an inferior position in conventional forces," he said. Pakistan and India joined the club of nuclear countries when they tested exploded atomic bombs. And the "domino effect" is also relevant in the Middle East where, he added, "Iran's future nuclear weaponry is the consequence of Israel's nuclearization." Israel, which has neither confirmed nor denied experts' claims it has 200 nuclear warheads, considers Iran a long-term threat and refuses to sign the nuclear non-proliferation treaty. That angers Egypt and other Arab countries, which object to Israel's reported monopoly on nuclear weapons in the Middle East. It was even possible that Pakistan's acquiring the bomb may fuel the arms race in the Middle East, Lellouche said. "On the Israeli side, there is the dimension of Iraq, Iran and probably Pakistan, which enter into the equation," he said. However, unlike in the case of Pakistan and India, he said, there was an Arab-Israeli peace process that diminished the risks of nuclear confrontation in the Middle East.-AFP DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000729 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Japan's PM to visit Pakistan from Aug 20 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Bureau Report ISLAMABAD, July 28: Japan's prime minister Yashiro Mori will visit Pakistan from Aug 20 to 21, a foreign ministry statement said here on Friday. It said during his visit, the Japanese prime minister would hold talks with chief executive Gen Pervez Musharraf on bilateral cooperation, mutual interest, regional and international issues. He will also call on President Rafiq Tarar. "Pakistan attaches a high degree of importance to its relations with Japan, which is a major trading partner and one of the biggest foreign investors in Pakistan," it said. Sources said Mr Mori was likely to take up the issues of Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT), and Islamabad's return to democracy - key areas of Tokyo's concern - with Gen Musharraf. Japan imposed sanctions, including a freeze on non-humanitarian grants and loans, after India and Pakistan carried out a series of nuclear tests in May 1998. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000729 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Chief Executive assures Madaris of non-interference ------------------------------------------------------------------- Faraz Hashmi ISLAMABAD, July 28: The chief executive, Gen Pervez Musharraf, was briefed on Friday on a set of recommendations formulated to integrate around 12,000 Madaris in the country into the mainstream education system. The briefing was given by National Security Council member Dr Mahmood A. Ghazi at a meeting presided over by the CE. Dr Ghazi told Dawn that the NSC would finalize these proposals shortly. An official study showed that 10,000 to 12,000 Madaris were graduating 35,000 to 40,000 students every year, he said. The total budget of these institutions is over Rs1.5 billion which is more than the total spending of all the universities in the country. Dr Ghazi dispelled the impression that large portion of this amount was being injected by various Muslim countries. He said this amount was mainly raised through donations or the overseas Pakistanis, adding that very few of these institutions were producing militants. He said these institutions were producing Ulema having no knowledge of modern sciences. "Unless you know nothing of what is around you how can you help in transformation of society." Asked how he would integrate the institutions being operated by different sects, he said that all of them agreed on broader issues and that there would not be much difficulty in introducing a common syllabi of modern sciences in those institutions. He said the government would help Madaris acquire trained teachers for imparting modern education. The recommendations have been prepared after deliberations, analysis and interaction with a number of Madaris by a select committee of educationists and scholars, a press release said. At a meeting, Dr Ghazi said, the religious scholars had realized the need for including science, mathematics, vocational training and computer courses in the syllabi of Madaris. Dr Ghazi also gave a number of proposals for the improvement of the Zakat and Ushr system. The CE said the majority of Deeni Madaris were contributing greatly to improving knowledge of Islam among people, and imparting quality religious education to them. "The exercise being conducted by the government is in no way directed at undermining the autonomy and independence of these institutions, nor is it an attempt to interfere with the curriculum of religious subjects," the CE reiterated at a briefing. The CE said that the aim of incorporating the right blend of modern science subjects in their syllabi was to help students graduating from religious institutions to have equal opportunities in attaining employment as compared to those from other institutions. The CE directed that the proposals should be discussed with the scholars managing these religious institutions. The recommendations for improvement of the Zakat and Ushr system should also be discussed with them before being presented for consideration before the NSC, he added. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000729 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Moin sees elected government in three years ------------------------------------------------------------------- Reporter LAHORE, July 28: Interior Minister Moinuddin Haider expects that a strong, elected and democratic government will be put in place before three years given to the military by the Supreme Court end. The minister was speaking at a seminar on "Towards viable democracy" organized here by the National Democratic Institute here on Friday. He said democracy had never taken roots in Pakistan but added he would not go into its reasons for it. He said holding elections, forming assemblies and government did not constitute democracy. "The form is there but democracy is missing. The people have never been empowered and political clout has remained confined to a few families which has given birth to dynasties. Political clout is transferred from father to daughter and from husband to wife. There is no democracy within political parties," he stated. He said institutions vital to democracy had been destroyed by so- called democratic governments. The financial institutions had been plundered, the police were in a shambles and the judiciary attacked by the elected governments. The minister claimed that the seven-point agenda given by the chief executive had given the country a direction. He said it was the responsibility of all -- the judiciary, the Press, the armed forces, the educated elite and politicians -- to help implement this agenda to embark upon a journey to viable democracy. He said criticism for the sake of criticism would slow down this journey. He admitted that the pace of accountability was slower than public expectations and could not be called "across the board" so far because certain segments had been left out of its ambit. But, he said, the day would come when everyone would be brought into the net of accountability. He said those who had left the country would be brought back. "We have told developed countries that if they want good governance in Pakistan, they should help us bring fugitives to justice," he added. He said the military regime was taking effective measures to stop drug-trafficking and smuggling and eliminate weapons and militancy. He said Pakistan would not be known as a soft state unless we addressed these issues. The general also dilated upon several measures taken by the military to reform the electoral process to improve the quality of elections. He said those who had misused their office would be excluded from the local government polls. He said new faces would be allowed to enter politics and serve the people. He said the measures taken by the military would lead the country to viable, durable democracy and continuity of political process in which development could take place. Replying to a question, Gen Haider said the regime did not plan to include politicians in the present set-up as stated by the chief executive himself. However, he said, he could not say anything about the future. He said no one, including the armed forces, could have interfered with political process if those responsible for running democracy had acted responsibly. Senate (suspended) chairman Wasim Sajjad advised the military government to refrain from amending the Constitution. "The Constitution is far more a sacred document and a basis for a consensus in the country. Please don't touch the Constitution. It was prepared after putting hard work into it and only a very special majority, in Pakistan and other countries, is allowed to change it. I urge you to consult political parties and others to prepare your suggestions and put them before parliament whenever it comes into existence for amending the Constitution. Don't do it yourself because you will destroy the consensus and damage the document," he pleaded. He said non-representative rule was harmful to both short and long-term national interests. The former Senate chairman said that it was true to say that the democratic system had been unviable to a certain extent. But it was because of one single factor: sense of insecurity experienced by successive governments in the past 15 years. This sense of insecurity emanated from the fear of possible military intervention and change of allegiance by the (ruling party) legislators. The sense of security made the rulers try to please everybody. He said the previous government of the PML, which enjoyed a two-thirds majority in the parliament, was motivated by this sense of insecurity to pass the 13th and 14th amendments to the Constitution to take away presidential powers to dismiss governments and dissolve assemblies and to prevent legislators from switching their loyalties. He said the armed forces were always behind the dissolution of the assemblies and dismissal of successive elected governments by presidents under the article 58(2)(b). He said the significant factor was that all political parties represented in the parliament unanimously supported these amendments. He stressed the need for creating a sense of security in the elected governments so that they could take decisions on merit. He said it was in the interest of the country to return to democratic rule as soon as possible. It would restore Pakistan's credibility and image and public confidence. He said democracy could be restored earlier than the period of three years allowed to the military by the Supreme Court. The chairman said no government should be dismissed on charges of corruption or other such allegations. Some sort of corrective mechanism within the system should be developed and allowed to work to rectify the faults in democracy. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000728 ------------------------------------------------------------------- India-Pakistan talks likely in October ------------------------------------------------------------------- Mahmood Zaman LAHORE, July 27: New Delhi would like to go very cautiously and watch the actual on-ground gains before spelling out a time schedule for parleys with Islamabad, a senior Indian diplomat told Dawn here on Thursday. The diplomat added that the earliest the talks could resume was October. "By then our side will have fully ensured that the intrusion has actually come to a halt," he said. Explaining, he noted "intrusion in Kashmir is very difficult after snow starts heavily falling and the it will be known to us by early October whether there is a real cessation of hostilities". The diplomat said he was mindful of the fact that most of the Jehadi organizations were not subject to any state discipline and had their own priorities. He added that most of these organizations had spirited young men and were capable of stepping up fighting with the Indian forces to continue the freedom movement. The severe condemnation of the Hizbul Mujahideen's decision by the rest of the Pakistani religious groups fighting Indian troops in occupied Kashmir, is also a matter of concern for the Indian diplomat. The diplomat understands that a dialogue has to re-start to address several other issues like promoting trade and an increased exchange of tourists. "If the two countries negotiate on such peripheral issues first, it will amount to easing tension and cooling emotions on both sides with the passage of time and this will help solve the main question". As for the high Indian emotions on the occasion of the Hizbul Mujahideen announcing a unilateral ceasefire, the diplomat says "this development is more important than the Lahore process because this amounts to delivering (to the Indian side) right on the ground". The ceasefire, according to him, is the second major event after the withdrawal from Kargil in July 1999. Nevertheless, he feels that the success of the move (ceasefire) will depend on the government of Pakistan backing it fully and for a longer period of time. The onus also falls on the All-Party Hurriyat Conference to guarantee that the ceasefire holds. Only then New Delhi will be able to express its willingness to hold talks. It was the APHC which has to ensure that conflict in the valley is over. If the APHC was not capable of "delivering" to New Delhi, then it is no better than Farooq Abdullah whose government had been unable to stop violence and intrusion in Kashmir, the Indian diplomat said. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000729 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Dispute with Sabre: PIA clarification ------------------------------------------------------------------- KARACHI, July 28: The Pakistan International Airlines on Friday confirmed that it was filing a strong defence and counterclaim to Sabre's claim, and contesting the issues on their merits in the arbitration before the International Chamber of Commerce International Court of Arbitration. A PIA press release issued in Karachi said the dispute between PIA and Sabre (arising out of an agreement reached by the management of the national carrier during the government of deposed prime minister Nawaz Sharif), are the subject of an arbitration reference before the Paris-based ICC's International Court of Arbitration which is to take place in London. "This procedure is strictly confidential," the press release said. It said that reports in a section of the national press regarding PIA's position and intentions with regard to its dispute with Sabre are "inaccurate, misleading and whatever the source, it is neither authorised by PIA nor informed, as to the national carrier's position and intentions." The managing director PIA, Sher Afgan Malik, who is in London to attend the annual Farnborough Air Show, reviewed matters concerning the issue between PIA and Sabre with the airline's solicitors. He is returning home from London late Friday night.-PPI DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000728 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Customs agents observe token strike ------------------------------------------------------------------- Reporter KARACHI, July 27: Work at all customs posts of the country, including Karachi Customs remained at standstill because of one day token strike observed by customs clearing and forwarding agents on Thursday. Official sources disclosed that no bill of entries were filed by private and commercial importers except five entries belonging to the ministry of defence were processed. Similarly, exports trade was totally at halt and there were no payment of duties except some pending securities amounting to Rs3 million were deposited in the bank, sources said. At oil terminal payment from Pakistan State Oil (PSO) was rejected, however, Rs100 million from National Refinery was allowed and accepted. According Karachi Customs Agents Group (KCAG) sources, work at all other customs posts of the country, including air, sea and dry ports remained at standstill. However, Additional Collector, Karachi Customs conveyed a message of the CBR chairman CBR to KCAG office-bearers, wherein he expressed his resentment over a token strike of the group. The country-wide one day token strike of customs agents is estimated to have costed Rs1 billion to national exchequer, in revenue losses and allied economic costs. Meanwhile, Finance Secretary government of Sindh, Wajid Rana, who earlier refused to see KCGA delegation is now going to meet them on Saturday. The President of KCGA, Javed Ahmed Vohra, addressing a press conference in the groups offices announced that with consultations with others customs groups of the country a three-day country wide strike will be observed from Aug 4. PPI adds from Lahore: Lahore Customs Agents Group on Thursday observed one day token strike for the removal of sales tax and warned the government that if tax was not withdrawn, then they would go on an indefinite strike. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000726 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Dispute with Sabre: PIA seems set for out-of-court deal ------------------------------------------------------------------- Dawn Report KARACHI, July 25: PIA is understood to have decided to concede a $50 million claim by US aviation giant Sabre, despite directions by the Chief Executive General Pervez Musharraf, to vigorously defend PIA's interests in its legal battle against Sabre, it was learnt here on Tuesday. Managing Director of PIA Sher Afgan Malik has flown from Tehran to London with a team of legal experts to hasten an out of court settlement with Sabre, after Dawn exposed the deal on July 16 and Gen Musharraf reportedly directed the next day at a briefing here that interests of PIA be strictly safeguarded.
=================================================================== BUSINESS & ECONOMY DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000728 ------------------------------------------------------------------- No compromise on tax survey: Talks with Lahore traders today ------------------------------------------------------------------- Faraz Hashmi ISLAMABAD, July 27: Reacting to traders' decision to go on a three- day countrywide strike from July 28, an official spokesman said on Thursday that the government would not accept any demand which would undermine the process of documentation of the economy. "Anything which undermines the process of tax survey or documentation of the economy would not be accepted," Dr Viqar Masud, Secretary, Finance, said on Thursday. Though the government was not ready to budge on the issue of reduction in turnover tax from 2 per cent to 0.75 per cent, Privatization Commission Chairman Mian Altaf Saleem, who was also a member of the official team which negitiated with traders, had been asked to visit Lahore and Karachi to hold talks with other trade bodies, Dr Masud said. Mr Saleem would proceed to Lahore on Friday where he would hold talks with other traders' associations and seek their suggestions for the simplification of procedures, he said. Mr Saleem would then visit Karachi and talk to the traders community there, Dr Masud added. The talks had not been initiated to bargain with the traders but as an effort to create an "enabling environment" where traders could comply with the proposed tax regime, Dr Masud said. The talks had reportedly failed on the traders' demand for reduction in the turnover tax from 2 per cent to 0.75. A representative group of traders had given a call of a three-day countrywide strike after the failure of the two-day talks with the government here on Wednesday. Dr Masud said the process of consultation with the traders had not been stalled and even on Thursday, negotiations were held with a select group of traders in the ministry of finance. He said it was a continuous process and it would go on till all the issues were resolved. He said the government was holding in-house discussions to give maximum possible facility to the traders in complying with the tax survey. The government, he maintained, was ready to accommodate all genuine demands of the traders without compromising the process of documentation of economy. Dr Masud said the government's effort to hold talks with more traders and widen the scope of negotiations reflected its " keen desire" that all genuine problems of the traders should be addressed. Strikes and other pressure tactics would not force the government to give up the process of documentation of the economy. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000728 ------------------------------------------------------------------- State Bank of Pakistan intervenes to check dollar rise ------------------------------------------------------------------- Mohiuddin Aazim KARACHI, July 27: The State Bank on Thursday had to intervene in inter-bank foreign exchange market to keep the exchange rates within a desired level. Senior bankers said SBP intervened when the dollar shot up to Rs53.65: after the intervention the dollar slipped and settled around Rs53.35. Bankers said the intervention was very mild and SBP had hardly poured in $1.5-$3.0 million into the market but they admitted that it helped in checking the rise of the dollar against the rupee. It was the first intervention after the lifting of an unofficial cap on inter-bank exchange rates on July 20. "It changed the entire sentiment," remarked treasurer of a big local bank. "Exporters started selling their export proceeds and importers slowed forward bookings." They did so after testing an undisclosed benchmark of exchange rate that SBP officials would not like the market to cross. For most of the market players it was Rs53.50 to a dollar. Bankers said in addition to intervening in the market SBP also carried out a random inspection of treasury operations of about half a dozen leading local and foreign banks. The purpose was to verify whether foreign exchange transactions of these banks were backed by commercial needs or they were involved in speculations - or were trading between themselves for the sake of profit making. There was no official word on the outcome of the inspection but bankers said SBP auditors raised specific questions about certain dealings of some of these banks. They said though the banks claimed all of their foreign exchange deals were backed by commercial transactions SBP auditors asked them to prove the same within a couple of days. While lifting the cap on exchange rates last week SBP had made it clear to all banks that their foreign exchange deals must be backed by commercial transactions. That is banks should refrain from trading of foreign exchange between themselves. Some bankers claim this has added to the panic instead of defusing it in the inter- bank market. They say the volatility in inter-bank exchange rate may subside after an initial surge in the dollar if the SBP allows banks to start the trading of foreign exchange. But this seems unlikely at present because a low net foreign exchange reserves of less than one billion dollars is discouraging SBP from taking risks. Bankers said the twin measures of intervention and inspection of some banks sent a strong signal to all banks that SBP was keeping a close eye on inter-bank activities. This refrained some banks from being erratic and exchange rates stabilized at a level acceptable to State Bank. In the kerb market the dollar rose to Rs55.72 and Rs55.78 for spot buying and selling on Thursday up 18 paisa overnight. Currency dealers said the dollar was short in supply because of lower supply by overseas Pakistanis who were expecting further depreciation of the rupee. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000728 ------------------------------------------------------------------- CBR yet to frame charges against suspended officers ------------------------------------------------------------------- Ansar Abbasi ISLAMABAD, July 27: The central board of revenue (CBR) has not yet initiated disciplinary proceedings against its officers suspended on corruption charges two months back. Lack of evidence is said to be the main cause of delay. The CBR chief on May 27 had suspended 1,045 officials, including 300 from income tax and customs groups in grade 17 to 21, on charges of corruption and malpractices. But, none of them have so for been issued even the charge sheet. "We have not yet even framed charges against any of the officer," a CBR source, who has been engaged in the suspension exercise, told Dawn. He admitted that the authorities were finding it hard to bring up concrete evidence against the officials that could stand the independent inquiry and ultimately justify the CBR's action. Framing of charges, serving of these charge sheet and constitution of committees for initiating inquiry against the accused officers are the three main steps required to be taken during the disciplinary proceedings, he said. But nothing has been done so far, he added. There is a great realization within the bureaucracy that indecent haste was shown by the CBR administration in compiling the list of "corrupt" officials and in their suspension. In an apparent effort to separate the wheat from the chaff many innocent officials might have been victimised because of the personal liking and disliking of those involved in the exercise, a source commented. He said initially the government had decided to dismiss, straight away, these officials by issuing a stringent legislation but later the decision was reviewed and the authorities were convinced to suspend them and give them a fair trial. The chief executive, the sources said, was even told that most of the suspended officials would be reinstated as the CBR would not be able to back these suspensions with concrete evidence that could stand a fair trial. The framing of charges is also said to be a tedious and technical job. The uncalled for delays in disciplinary proceedings, they said, would further spoil these cases because of possible tempering of records by some well connected suspended officers. The CBR chief, who is also revenue division secretary, had acted under the newly-promulgated ordinance - Civil Servants (Special Power) Ordinance 2000 - to suspend the 1,045 officers. Under the rules, the secretary will issue charge sheet to officers in grade 17 to 19 and in case of grade 20 and above he will seek the chief executive's approval before issuing the charge sheet. The officials in lower grades will be issued the charge sheet by their respective regional bosses. The officials were suspended initially for a period of six months. The suspension period can be extended by the revenue division secretary. Though the Civil Servants (Special Power) Ordinance, 2000, was issued to ensure swift proceedings against the corrupt, there is no time limit set by the ordinance for the completion of the inquiry proceedings after the suspension of an officer. However, once the inquiry committee is constituted it is required under the law to give its recommendations as to impose penalty or exonerate the accused within 30 days. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000729 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Chief Executive warns tax-evaders of tougher penalty ------------------------------------------------------------------- Ihtashamul Haque ISLAMABAD, July 28: The chief executive, Gen Pervez Musharraf, reiterated on Friday that the government would not withdraw the GST or discontinue the tax survey. Presiding over a meeting, he directed the finance ministry and the CBR to go ahead with the GST and the survey launched on May 27. The three-day strike by traders from Friday was discussed in detail, official sources said. The CE told the participants, including Finance Minister Shaukat Aziz, to make sure that an additional Rs100 billion must come in the kitty in the current fiscal through the rationalization of taxes and the levy of turnover tax. The CE said he was not against holding dialogue with traders but he made it clear that there would be no reduction in the rate of turnover tax, as is being demanded by the traders. If the salaried class and other businessmen could pay their taxes, why were the traders not ready for it and opposing the GST and the survey, he asked. He also sounded a warning to the tax evaders and those concealing their income, saying they should either pay their taxes or get ready for a "tougher" punishment. He hoped that more and more people would opt for the tax amnesty scheme which is restarting on Aug 1. He approved an increased rate for the new tax amnesty scheme which is likely to be continued for another two months. When the CE was told that traders were asking for a 0.5 per cent turnover tax instead of the proposed 2pc and that too without any documentation, he said: "No way to withdraw the decision of documenting the economy". The CE was categorical in saying that those who were opposing the documentation of the economy would have a "very tough time" and that gone were the days when governments succumbed to such pressures. Sources in the ministry said a number of traders bodies had expressed willingness to meet the finance minister to sort out various issues. These bodies said they were not interested in observing the strike. A senior official in the ministry said it was difficult to hold talks with each organization, adding that the minister would be meeting some groups on Saturday and that a similar meeting had already taken place in Lahore on Friday. "Had there been a federation level body or the organization like the All Pakistan Textile Mills Association, the problems relating to the turnover tax or the tax survey would have been resolved by now," he said, adding that it would be better for the traders to give up the strike. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000726 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Combined Income Tax, Sales Tax at 1.5% urged ------------------------------------------------------------------- Correspondent ISLAMABAD, July 25: Trade leaders have asked the government to scrap the GST and income tax rates for the retail sector below the turnover slab of Rs5 million, and deduct a combined income/sales tax at the rate of 1.5%. They met the Finance Minister Shaukat Aziz here on Tuesday and discussed the issues relating to the taxation plan concerning the retail sector for the financial year 2000-2001. The finance minister is reported to have told the traders that the government wanted to take steps in coordination with the trade sector to ensure early implementation of the tax measures contained in the Federal Budget 2000-2001. The minister is also reported to have informed them that long-term policy decisions have been made to implement sustainable tax policy, which could not be ensured without the cooperation of the trade sector. Some of these were most important measures without the implementation of which the aims of revenue generation budgeted for the current fiscal year would not be realised if the majority of the trade sector continued to remain out of the tax net. The government wanted to complete the chain of registered taxpayers by documenting the turnover of the retail sector. The trade leaders, however, pleaded that the rate of turnover tax (2%) was too high for the retail sector majority with annual sales less than Rs5 million. They also wanted reduction in the income tax rate and asked the finance minister to agree to a formula under which the total tax rate, both under the sales tax and income tax schedules for the retailers, should not exceed 1.5%, and that should, on payment, be deemed as final discharge of tax liability on the part of retailers. Apart from this, they also asked the minister not to carry out the pronounced intention of the government to render the traders of 13 major cities, where the documentation survey is currently being conducted, ineligible for declaring their income tax as final liability under the Self-Assessment Scheme-2000. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000726 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Spot $ selling at Rs53.25: Forward premiums move up ------------------------------------------------------------------- Mohiuddin Aazim KARACHI, July 25: The removal of the unofficial cap on inter-bank exchange rate last week has raised premiums on forward sale of dollars: the six-month premium shot up to Rs1.75 and three- month premium Re1.0 above the spot price on Tuesday. Bankers say before the removal of the cap six-month and three month premiums were being quoted at 95 paisa and 50 paisa above the spot price. Even one-month forward premium has doubled from 20 paisa above the spot price to 40 paisa. Bankers say the sharp increase in forward premiums means that the foreign exchange market is still erratic. "Forex rates would possibly take a week or so to stabilize," said treasurer of a big foreign bank. "The reason why forward premiums is shooting up is that there is still some panic in the inter-bank market." Bankers say even a nominal buying of dollars by a bank turns other banks panicky and they also make a bee-line for buying pushing exchange rates up in the process. On Tuesday, the US dollar oscillated between Rs53.10-Rs53.25 in the inter-bank market up from Rs53 on Monday. The greenback was unofficially pegged at Rs52.30 before the removal of the cap on Thursday afternoon. In the open market the greenback closed at Rs55.38 and Rs55.43 for spot buying and selling. Bankers close to the State Bank said the SBP was keeping a close eye on the activities in inter-bank market to ensure that banks were not manipulating exchange rates after the free float of the rupee. Money changers say the volatility in inter-bank exchange rate is reflecting in kerb market rates as well. Senior bankers say the removal of the cap on exchange rates is likely to speed up conversion of the remaining frozen foreign currency deposits. Up to July 24 deposits worth $8.0 billion had been converted-$6.2 billion in to rupees and $1.8 billion into dollar bonds. Of the $11 billion foreign currency deposits frozen after nuclear blasts in May 1998 $1.5 billion worth of deposits were in shape of swap funds. Part of the remaining $1.5 billion are collateral for loans. The rest of the amount is to be converted one day or the other into rupees or dollar bonds. The pace of conversion is expected to rise because the removal of the cap on inter-bank exchange rate has pushed up the conversion rate for encashment of frozen foreign currency deposits by 80 paisa. The conversion rate is worked out by the State Bank everyday on the basis of weighted average exchange rates of the previous day of more than a dozen big local and foreign banks. Before the removal of the cap the conversion rate was Rs52.30 to a dollar that has now risen to Rs53.10. Senior bankers say whereas the State Bank has lifted the cap on exchange rate it is still using the monetary tool of moral suasion to keep banks from indulging in excess buying of foreign exchange. Moral suasion means persuading the banks informally for doing something or refraining them from doing something else-whatever the case may be. Bankers close to the SBP say the SBP is keeping a close watch on inter-bank foreign exchange market adding that if the exchange rate shoots past a certain level then the central bank may start using other monetary tools to keep them from rising further. Whereas it is literally impossible-or it should be-to say what benchmark the State Bank authorities have in their mind but top bankers are of the opinion that if the dollar crossed the Rs53.50 mark within this week it might invite the SBP intervention. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000725 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Customs agents strike on Thursday ------------------------------------------------------------------- Reporter KARACHI, July 24: Over 5000 customs agents all over the country will observe one-day token strike on Thursday, as a mark of protest against non-acceptance of their demand for deferring the imposition of the general sales tax for a period of six months. This has been stated by the president Karachi Customs Agents Group (KCAG), Javed Ahmed Vohra, on Monday, in a letter addressed to Governor Sindh Mohammadmian Soomro. After expressing his displeasure over the attitude of the bureaucracy for not allowing the office-bearers of the group to have parleys with him (Governor), President KCAG stated, the emergent meeting of the general body called on July 22, has resolved to observe one-day token strike on Thursday. "We did our best to resolve such sensitive issue which involves country's external trade through dialogue but the denial for a meeting with you (governor) upset our members, who were left with no other choice but to go for a token strike, followed by indefinite strike from August 1, 2000, if the matter was not amicably decided," the KCAG president maintained. He also briefly explained to the Governor Sindh about the legal lacunas in the way of imposition of GST on the services of customs agents and stated that the Sindh Ordinance NO VIII of 2000, couldn't be applied mutatis mutandis to the value of services. Vohra said that customs agents on providing their services for the clearance of goods at customs point act as procurators in obtaining Rs63 billion annually collected through customs duty on import and exports worth $20 billion per annum. Consequently, a one-day strike by customs agents will stop the clearance of incoming and out-going (imports/exports) goods at the customs posts all over the country which will result in revenue loss to a tune of Rs0.2 billion in customs duty and $20 million on account of non-clearance of export economy. Besides, other revenue losses will include on account of sales tax and withholding tax (income tax) at import stage for non-clearance of Bill of Entry. Indirect losses will include transportation and idle work force at sea and air ports of the country. A spokesman of the group told Dawn that transporters have also assured them to participate in their one-day peaceful strike of Thursday. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000725 ------------------------------------------------------------------- EoI invited for sale of cement company ------------------------------------------------------------------- ISLAMABAD, July 24: The Privatization Commission on Monday invited interested parties to participate in the bidding for the purchase of assets belonging to Associated Cement (Rohri) Ltd. According to PC sources, the bidding will be held on Sept 16, 2000 at 1000 hours at the Privatization Commission Office, Islamabad in accordance with the methodology detailed in bidding documents. The sources said that in order to facilitate maximum participation from the prospective bidders the bidding schedule has been extended up to Sept 15. Expression of interest to participate in the bidding along with investor profile should reach the office of the Privatization Commission in a sealed envelop clearly marked "Expression of Interest for A.C Rohri" latest by 1500 hours by Aug 28, the sources added. The PC sources said that the parties who submit "Expression of Interest" will be provided an opportunity to carry out due diligence/inspection of assets offered for sale from Sept 1 to 7. They said that a pre-bid conference will be held at Privatization Commission Office in Islamabad on Sept 12, at 1100 hours. The bidders will be required to deposit earnest money as per the Bidding Documents in the form of a bank draft/pay order in favour of "Privatization Commission, Government of Pakistan", payable at Islamabad by 1500 hours, Sept 15 with the Privatization Commission, the sources added. PC sources said Information Memorandum was available w.e.f. June 22 upon payment of Rs300. The bidding documents are also available from the office of the PC from June 22, during office hours between 0800 and 1500 hours on any working day against non-refundable payment of Rs10,000 or equivalent through Bank Draft or Pay Order in favour of "Privatization Commission, Government of Pakistan," payable at Islamabad.-APP DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000727 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Incentive for investment soon ------------------------------------------------------------------- Ikram Hoti ISLAMABAD, July 26: Overseas Pakistani expatriates are being offered a package of incentives for investment in certain areas of the country. Official sources revealed to Dawn here on Wednesday that the incentives would be offered in a package which would contain facilities, both fiscal and infrastructural. These facilities would be in addition to those already enjoyed by the entrepreneurs under the time-bound notifications, or have been specified sectorwise, from time to time. The fiscal incentives pertain to import duty, sales tax and central excise duty. Sources said that though new sales tax exemptions would not be allowed, incentives attached to the already exempted areas and sectors would be made more attractive for investment. Introduction of new items, participation in the expansion in the hi-tech sector and projects for improving exportable goods quality would be the main areas where fiscal incentives would be offered. They added that the customs duty related incentives would include concessions on raw materials, equipment, parts/ accessories and machinery under a unit-based package which would be sector and area specified in terms of volume of concessions and the level of investment. The ministry of commerce and the Central Board of Revenue will be coordinating during the next fortnight on this issue for determining the investment levels and volume of incentives. For technical assistance, later on, the Engineering Development Board is also to be engaged in this exercise, said the sources. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000727 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Inputs cost shies away investors ------------------------------------------------------------------- M. Ziauddin ISLAMABAD, July 26: The high cost of industrial inputs has dampened foreign and local investors' interest in the privatization process. In a report sent to the foreign donors on why the privatization process in Pakistan has not taken off even after a decade-long efforts, the government has stated that the process has been constrained by a number of factors including a lack of depth in the domestic capital market and a lukewarm international investor interest in this process. The not-so-active interest of the international investors in the privatization process has been attributed by the government to the high country risk, economic sanctions, lack of depth in domestic capital market and high cost of industrial inputs, such as electricity, oil and credit. Legal and legislative constraints, large and entrenched labour unions, problems of natural monopolies in utility sectors, high sale proceeds expectations, ambiguity regarding strategic sale process - transfer of management with minority shareholding - have also had their adverse impact on the process, officials believe. The privatization has to date generated about Rs57 billion (approximately $1.7 billion) from the sale of over 100 units so far, including automobile, cement, engineering units, fertilizer and chemicals plants, rice mills, various other small and medium- sized industrial units, commercial banks and power plants. But most of the major privatizations are still under process and therefore, the proceeds are expected by the government to rise to $3 billion in the next three years. Work on two major commercial banks, United Bank and Habib Bank has been started. Similarly, the government stake in different development financial institutions (DFIs) and mutual funds is also planned to be divested in the next one year. In the utilities sector, work on the divestment of government stake in the thermal generation and distribution, in assets of Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA) and Karachi Electric Supply Corporation (KESC) is under way. Work on further disinvestment along with management control to a strategic investor for Pakistan Telecommunication is also at an advanced stage. Meanwhile the government has decided to take the following steps to make the privatization process more meaningful: 1) Provision of legal system and information disclosure of biding procedures; 2) establishment of a system to examine in advance financial status and management background of the purchasers, and business and operational plans after privatization; 3) a monitoring section will be established in the privatization commission to give necessary advice for proper operation of the privatized companies so that privatization leads to efficient operations; 4) guidance and support by the financial sector will be provided for business management after privatization and; 5) vocational training system would be improved so that the surplus workers can easily change jobs. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000729 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Wheat issue price in NWFP increased ------------------------------------------------------------------- Correspondent ISLAMABAD, July 28: The NWFP government has enhanced the issue price of wheat by Rs 50 per 100 kg for the Federally Administered Tribal Areas, Chitral and Kohistan. Sources in the chief executive's secretariat toldDawn here on Friday that the NWFP had told the federal government that it had fixed the new issue price, for the current year, to meet expenditure incurred on account of transportation and procurement of eheat. The sources said the Director, Food, NWFP, had stated that following the increase in support price from Rs 240 per 40 kg to Rs 300 for the same, as well as enhancement of wheat price by the federal government, the provincial authorities had agreed to revise ex-godwon sale price of wheat. In FATA, Chitral, Kohistan, Battgram (dealers), 100 kg wheat (with bag) would now be available at Rs 820 against the existing rate, Rs770, the sources added. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000727 ------------------------------------------------------------------- LSE member CDC accounts unfrozen ------------------------------------------------------------------- Correspondent ISLAMABAD, July 26: Securities & Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) has unfrozen the accounts in Central Depository Co (CDC) of Tanvir Malik, a member of Lahore Stock Exchange (LSE) but restrained him from transactions with two of his investors, M/s Nisar Elahi alias Danka and Iftikhar Shafi without SECP's permission. The SECP had frozen the member's CDC account and suspended some other members including Tanvir Malikafter sharp drop in share prices in the second half of May, and over-exposure and default in the Karachi Stock Exchange (KSE) and LSE. To prevent the crisis further, trading at the two exchanges had to be suspended for a day each. A committee was subsequently formed by SECP Chairman, Khalid A. Mirza, to look into the crisis and determine responsibility of market-players including stock brokers for the run on the stock market. Danka and Iftikhar Shafi had gone to the court against the freezing of the accounts and the court had directed the Commission to take expeditious decision on the measures adopted by it to deal with the crisis and provide relief in appropriate cases. The Commission, the SECP Commissioner, Tariq Iqbal Khan told Dawn, decided to take action on the basis of information received from the inquiry committee tentatively pending receipt of full report from it. He scheduled a hearing on July 18 and summoned Tanvir Malik. He, however, did not appear. A second hearing was held on July 25. This time, in addition to Tanvir, a representative of CDC too was present. The SECP decided to unfreeze Tanvir's CDC account in order to save the public and investors from any inconvenience or loss but restrained him from any dealing with M/s Nisar and Iftikhar without prior approval of the Commission. This decision, Khan explained, was considered necessary in view of the fact that most of the dealings of Tanvir were with them, the Commissioner explained. The SECP also heard Haji Hanif Musa, who was removed from membership of KSE, after having declared default during the May crisis. In his case, certain transactions were un-earthed as a result of the inquiry over which the Commission has issued a restraining order. The Commission has given the KSE three days in order to give it the opportunity to prove that the transactions relating to general investors conducted by him just before declaration of default were bonafide. A final order would be passed on the basis of the report to be received from KSE.Back to the top
=================================================================== EDITORIALS & FEATURES DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000723 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Information technology ------------------------------------------------------------------- Ardeshir Cowasjee WHY is it that all government decisions are based on circumstances or happenings as they existed fourteen centuries ago? Could it be ignorance stemming from lack of education? The prime vital issue of the nation's education has from the birth of the country been the last on the lists of priorities of all our governments. The majority of the ministers who have been given the education and science and technology portfolios have not only been unconnected with either the field of education or of science and technology but have largely been uneducated men, the word uneducated' being here used in the profound sense of the word. For instance, in the last two governments, the second for both Benazir and Nawaz, Benazir's federal education minister was one Khurshid Shah, building contractor by profession, and Nawaz's, of all people, the proven corrupt and uncouth Ghous Ali Shah. And this in a land where the world's first university was established in 700 BC at Taxila, the ruins of which still stand at a few miles distance from the capital city. By comparison, the government of General Pervez Musharraf has chosen an educationist as its education minister and the science and technology portfolio has been handed over to a scientist, Professor Dr Atta-ur-Rahman. Professor Rahman, in a speech delivered at Islamabad last Friday, told his audience that good governance is not possible without there being a merit-based challenging education system." If Pakistan wishes to forge ahead, he rightly said, education must be the main priority. Worthy of remark is the startling fact that the total GDP of all the Islamic countries put together is half that of Germany and a quarter of that of Japan in spite of the fact that the Islamic countries control 74 per cent of the world oil business. This low GDP rating is the result of a low level of education, the only area in which countries such as Germany and Japan have the advantage. Now for the bad news. Information technology and the Internet are controlled by the antiquated inefficient Pakistan Telecommunications Company Limited which is overstaffed, and is incapable of even publishing a telephone directory which lists current information. The present board members of PTCL who direct the affairs of the company are: Bureaucrat Abu Shamim Arif, Secretary Information Technology and Telecom Division, a flip-flop non-technical man; Zafar Ali Khan, Secretary Privatization Commission; Major General Mohammad Tariq, described as Signal Officer in Chief'; Mohammad Yunis Khan, Secretary Finance Division, Finance Ministry; Arshad Mahmud, Member Finance PTCL; Akhtar Ahmad Bajwa, Member Operations PTCL; Dr Altamash Kamal of Xibercom; Dr Awais Kamal, Managing Director of LT Engineering and Trade Services (Pvt) Ltd; Syed Mazhar Ali, Chairman IT Commission; Zafar Usmani, CEO Mobil Oil Pakistan (Pvt) Ltd; Fakir Aijazuddin, Chairman Arts Council Lahore; Barrister Rafiuddin Ahmed of Orr Dignam; Syed Zahoor Hasan, Associate Dean of LUMS; Asghar Dawood Habib, Chairman Habib Sugar. These men have been asked to provide an undertaking one clause of which states: I am not a defaulter in repayment of any loan amounting to Rs.1 million or more as adjudicated by a court of competent jurisdiction or a tribunal within the meaning of Section 187(1) of the Companies Ordinance 1984." This ipso facto means that if one of them is a defaulter to the tune of Rs.999,999 he is qualified to sit on the board. Another undertaking stipulates : I shall, to the utmost of my capability, ensure and safeguard the interests of the government in PTCL during the tenure of my directorship. Any lapse shall make me liable to be proceeded against under the relevant laws." With due respect to all, it is difficult to conceive of a respectable responsible individual putting his pen to either of these two undertakings? After all, there is no compulsive reason, no guns are held to any heads. Should they not be guided by the dictates of their consciences and what is good for the people? More bad news. PTCL is establishing two National Access Points (NAP) in Karachi and Islamabad to block Internet telephony and pornographic websites." (APP, July 13.) The NAP aims at directing all Internet traffic in and out of the country through two PTCL controlled gateways. Whilst this is still a proposal, it is increasingly obvious that elements within PTCL, with the tacit support of our insecurity agencies and other government elements, are trying to push it through as fast as possible. This must be vehemently opposed. It is fundamentally faulty and has the potential to cause catastrophic damage to the information infrastructure of the country. One fundamental and obvious principle of network design is the provision of multiple pathways. The more pathways there are, the more robust the resulting network. To some extent we already have this redundancy in our exiting Internet access, but rather than introducing additional pathways to the Net, the NAP proposal aims at reducing these to two choke points to be controlled by our very own PTCL, an organization renowned for its unreliability, inefficiency, incompetence, and zero-level customer service. Within the next few years, global services will permit direct satellite access. If the NAP logic is followed, these services would also be illegal in Pakistan. Is this what a country endeavouring to leapfrog into the information age should be doing? NAP also raises the question: are we serious about attracting foreign investment in information technology (IT) when we have an organization intent on controlling and dictating as to which pathways the people may use to access the net? Even the relatively totalitarian UAE now allows direct rooftop-to-satellite Internet connectivity, completely bypassing the Etisalat Infrastructure. And here we are, proposing the reverse. PTCL itself admits that it has no way in which it can estimate the revenue lost to Internet telephony. The number being thrown around is $ 2.8 million per year which is at best an exaggerated guesstimate, and a figure which amounts to less than a fifth of one per cent of PTCL's total revenue. Is this miniscule loss sufficient justification to thwart and sabotage a national objective - the swift expansion of IT in Pakistan? With two years to go until PTCL's monopoly expires, is it not time that it started to experience the real world, where markets dictate tariffs, where better technologies replace the obsolete, where customers decide what services to use, where only the efficient and competent survive? Rather than all this, PTCL is aiming at retaining its monopoly over international data traffic and hoodwinking the nation in the process. NAP also smacks of Big Brother. In a country such as this, it is likely that NAP will be used to block access to information that someone decides will damage national security' or the ideology of Pakistan' or the national moral fibre'. Does not NAP itself raise national security concerns by providing enemies within and without with exactly two large targets to take out if they wish to cut off the entire country's access to the Net? That there are minds in Islamabad in this 21st century which are seriously considering this proposal is, sadly, not surprising. After all, not so long ago capital minds did consider e-mail messages from MQM supporters abroad sufficient cause to ban the Internet in Pakistan. However, all should take heart from the fact that Pakistan has survived the fax machine and the satellite dish, both of which were delayed for years as the same convoluted reasoning was used against them as is now being used to justify NAP. The ball is in the court of Minister Herr Doktor Professor Atta-ur- Rahman, in charge of information technology and of the dreadful PTCL. Academically, he was a First Division student, he has a PhD and a Sc D from King's College, Cambridge, of which college he was a Fellow from 1969 to 1973 when he was discovered by one of the greatest scientists of Pakistan, Dr Salimuzzaman Siddiqui, and brought to the HEJ Research Institute of Chemistry at the Karachi University. At HEJ he was responsible for buying certain equipment from Japan. When the Japanese offered him a kickback of around Rs.25 million, he asked them to donate the amount to his Institute, which they did. He is a cousin of the people's barrister, Mohammad Gilbert Naim-ur-Rahman, and grandson of our good judge, Sir Abdur Rahman. We can surely trust him to take the right decision as to NAP or no NAP. He would surely rather continue to meely direct the affairs of HEJ, which he still does, than to additionally remain a minister and do wrong. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000728 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Core issue, my goat ------------------------------------------------------------------- Ayaz Amir ANYONE using the term 'core issue' which has been made current and fashionable by a generation of tight-minded diplomats and security experts (God save us from them), deserves to receive a kick on his shins. If Kashmir was solved tomorrow would Pakistan and India rush into each other's embrace and forget the atavistic memories of the past? Kashmir is not the core issue between us. Size and geography are and will remain so 500 years from now. Not out of any innate wickedness but because of its sheer weight, and the sense of false destiny which afflicts a country when it moves from one stage of development to another, India will want to exercise hegemony over the subcontinent. This is the nature of power and has nothing to do with morality. In the subcontinent, after all, India holds the position which the Soviet Union held in Europe after the second world war, which China has in East Asia today, which Napoleonic France had on the continent after the wars of the French Revolution. Size, numbers, the computers of Bangalore, a mythologized view of its past and the long-legged beauty contestants (ravishing so many of them) who give India's rising middle class the illusion of first world rank and mobility will all fuel India's drive towards regional bossdom. It will remain in Pakistan's abiding interest to resist this ambition. How we resist it is up to us. We can do this crudely as we have been doing for the past 52 years, achieving little in the process except international fatigue and opprobrium, or, calling up a wisdom which has yet to be discovered, we can do it subtly, keeping India hard-pressed and occupied (to the extent that we can achieve this) while avoiding at all costs getting caught in a corner. India is the elephant of the subcontinent. We should be the gnat buzzing round its ears. So far of course the genius of our higher military command has seen to it that it should be the other way round: India reaping the rewards of subtlety while we have been getting the country into pitched elephant battles. The 1965 war, the '71 imbroglio, the involvement in Afghanistan with our eyes closed (which means that whereas we should have been involved, we should not have been blind to our long-term interests), and Kargil: even Ares, the god of war, inured to the spectacle of human folly, would be aghast at the stupidity pitch-forked into these ventures. From the British our military command inherited a conventional mindset. Although we call the Chinese our friends, from them we have learned nothing of Maoist warfare. American military aid in the fifties is partly to blame for the military attitudes we adopted, American tanks and planes giving our political and military leadership the illusion of superiority over India. Of the atmosphere reigning at the time, Brian Cloughley, no enemy of Pakistan, in his informative and well-written account of the Pakistan army has this to say: "...the army had a high opinion of itself without having done very much except expand a bit and conduct some mediocre training with its new American equipment." Partly of course we were victims of our own myths, seriously believing at one time (although mercifully no longer) that one Muslim was good enough for ten Hindus. Hard though it may be to believe this, in the order for Operation Gibraltar signed by Field Marshal Ayub Khan (who deserved his rank about as much as Uganda's Idi Amin did his) it was said that as a rule Hindu morale could be expected to crack under the impact of a succession of hard blows. This was then; it should be different now but it isn't, Kargil being the decisive proof of the military command's continuing love affair with set-piece thinking. The folly of Kargil lay not in betraying the Lahore Declaration or breaching any other barrier of abstract morality. The prosecution of war can dispense with such niceties. Its folly lay in the fact that it committed Pakistan to a battle which it could not, under any circumstances, win and which was unrelated to any political objective. You fight a war to achieve a political aim. What were we hoping to achieve in Kargil? Forcing India to the negotiating table? Internationalizing the Kashmir issue? Kargil has done more to obscure the Kashmir issue and damage the cause of the Kashmiri people than anything else in recent memory. A few more internationalizations like this and Kashmir will be swept into the rubbish-can of history. The best thing going for Pakistan was the uprising in occupied Kashmir. At relatively little cost to us, a goodly part of the Indian army was tied down in Kashmir. We should have kept it like that without resorting to loud rhetoric, at which we as a nation excel, or acquiring too high a body profile. Indeed, instead of appearing obdurate, which also comes easily to us, we should have espoused moderation and the virtues of dialogue, all the while keeping our head low and extending, as we have been doing since 1989, practical help to the Kashmiri struggle for freedom. Our moral and diplomatic support the Kashmiris can do without. It is our practical help that is of any use to them. But holding on to these different strands would have required the subtlety and quickness of the gnat. We went for elephant tactics and ended up with Kargil. Our image took a battering and what had been an intelligent and, until then, a sustainable policy of inflicting maximum damage at little cost became a millstone round our neck, the freedom struggle in Kashmir becoming confused with "cross-border terrorism". What did Assad do in the Levant? While avoiding war with Israel he kept the Israeli army bogged down in Lebanon. The Hizbul Mujahideen of Lebanon were the Hizbollah, funded and armed by Syria and Iran. Through the Hizbollah and not directly was relentless pressure kept on the Israelis, ultimately compelling them to vacate South Lebanon. This did not prevent the Americans from talking to Assad. In fact, much as they disliked him (for he was a hard nut to crack) they had to take him seriously. Globalization or not, steeliness pays. But Assad never made a pantomime of the Lebanese resistance. The Maulana Masood Azhars of Lebanon did not have the freedom of Syria, going about toting guns and making vitriolic speeches. Resistance to Israel was serious business conducted seriously without any of the crass irresponsibility and empty showmanship which have cast Pakistan as the prime villain of fundamentalism in the western media. Even the Hizbollah cultivates a careful and restrained public image. Some of the Kashmiri fighters, or at least those who periodically appear in Pakistan, the Mast Guls and the Syed Salahuddins, look like dangerous buccaneers. This does their cause no good. To some extent this is a denominational difference. Throughout the Islamic world the Shia beard, which is what we see in Lebanon, is closely cropped. The Sunni beard which is to be seen in Afghanistan and Kashmir is fuller and often more threatening. Image being king in the global village, some change is called for here if only to deny grist to the mills of western sensationalism. A few words finally regarding the Hizbul Mujahideen announcement of a ceasefire in occupied Kashmir. I don't know all the facts and so I could be wholly wrong but I cannot see the Hizb making this announcement without Pakistani approval, tacit or otherwise. What lends support to this impression is the restrained and sensible reaction to the ceasefire announcement from the Pakistan government. Had the Hizb pulled this off on its own, panic buttons would have been pushed in ISI headquarters in Islamabad. But if Pakistani approval is there, American involvement cannot be far behind. It all fits in then, doesn't it? General Musharraf cosying up to the religious parties by allaying their fears over the anti-blasphemy law and then, to the dismay of the spineless liberati, incorporating the Islamic provisions of the suspended Constitution into the interim 'military' constitution. All this done so as to protect the government's flanks and prepare the stage for the props being rolled out in Kashmir. We seem to be getting subtle after all. Already, at a stroke, the spotlight has shifted from the issue of cross-border terrorism to the Hizb announcement. This is the first smart move from this side after a year of floundering during which Pakistan's stock touched rock-bottom, what with our nuclear firecrackers and the folly of Kargil.
=================================================================== SPORTS DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000726 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Outplay Pakistan by 57 runs: Sri Lanka lift U-17 Asia Cup ------------------------------------------------------------------- Khalid H. Khan KARACHI, July 25: Sri Lanka, displaying brilliant all-round performance, outplayed Pakistan by 57 runs to clinch the inaugural Under-17 Asia Cup Cricket Tournament at the National Stadium here on Tuesday. The islanders, after winning the toss and electing to bat first on a placid pitch, rattled up 230 in 44.3 overs. The hosts, in reply, were bowled out for a disappointing 173 in 40 overs. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000726 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Pakistan look forward to playing against India ------------------------------------------------------------------- Reporter KARACHI, July 25: The chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Lt Gen Tauqir Zia said on Tuesday that he was confident that India would tour Pakistan later this year. Although he has not received tour confirmation from BCCI yet despite a reminder sent last week. He, however, said if India refused to play three Tests and as many one-day internationals in Pakistan, he would have no objection in playing the series on neutral ground. "We can play the series in Sharjah, Dhaka or Kuala Lumpur. I have no problem. But that would be the last option. He was replying to a question if the PCB had prepared a contingency plan in case India cancelled the tour as in the past. Two days after the Indian series, Pakistan jet off to New Zealand for three Tests and five one-day internationals. The general added that Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has expressed its desire to play the inaugural series against Pakistan. But he said the dates they have given clash with Pakistan's international commitments. Bangladesh wants to play in November when Pakistan would be hosting England or in January when Pakistan would be busy against India. The general, nevertheless, said if the series ended in cancellation from Indian side, Pakistan would make itself available to Bangladesh for the series. He said Pakistan would not press for a home series and would be prepared to play in Bangladesh. He said one of the options available was to organize either a five- nation Super Sixes or Super Eight tournament. He gave no further details. General Zia, who is also the chairman of the Asian Cricket Council (ACC), said Pakistan was ready to organize and defend its Asian Test Championship title in front of its crowd. He, however, said the dates and venue have not been finalized. He said the Asian Cricket Foundation (ACF) has been given the task to prepare the schedule of the tournament and the event management. He said the ACF's output would be discussed in mid-August in Sharjah before it is decided when and where the Asian Test Championship has to be organized. The general defended his decision to finalize a three-match series against Sri Lanka in September in the desert city of Dubai. He also dispelled impression that his decision was an indication to Cricketers Benefit Fund Series (CBFS) that Pakistan would reduce its visits there. "The series against Sri Lanka would serve as a warmup for the ICC knock-out tournament in Kenya. The team would proceed to Kenya from Dubai. The CBFS has no objection because they have been informed that the series was a warmup exercise besides being a promotional and development activity," he said. The PCB chairman, on Pakistan Under-17's defeat in the final, said the boys played well and deserved encouragement. But he didn't mince words in expressing his dismay at the team management. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000726 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Pakistan Cricket Board hiring agent to watch team ------------------------------------------------------------------- Samiul Hasan KARACHI, July 25: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has decided to appoint a 'mole' to keep an eye on the outside-the-field activities of the players during home and away tours. According to sources, the appointment is expected to be made in the first week of August and his assignment would begin with the Singapore tour. The spy will shadow the team, stay in the same hotel and keep an eye on the cricketers, like who they meet, where they go and when they return to the hotel. ------------------------------------------------------------------- You can subscribe to DWS by sending an email to <subscribe.dws@dawn.com>, with the following text in the BODY of your message: subscribe dws To unsubscribe, send an email to <unsubscribe.dws@dawn.com>, with the following in the BODY of you message: unsubscribe dws ------------------------------------------------------------------- Back to the top.
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