------------------------------------------------------------------- DAWN WIRE SERVICE ------------------------------------------------------------------- Week Ending : 11 March 2000 Issue : 06/11 -------------------------------------------------------------------
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CONTENTS =================================================================== NATIONAL NEWS + Nawaz's counsel assassinated + Shahbaz Sharif denies charges + CE backs Kashmir struggle: Security threats in region discussed + United States to issue more visas + Pakistan Muslim League moves to choose new President + Punjab not to deal with unlisted IPPs + Seminar told: Supreme Court ruling on Riba to be implemented + Missing boys are alive, claims Javed + Except Ejaz, all counsel agree to defend Nawaz + Govt cautious on privatization --------------------------------- BUSINESS & ECONOMY + Pakistan, Turkey to set up trading co + Three-year rolling plan to initiate new projects + 10% increase in drug prices likely + Economic Coordination Committee sets tobacco support prices + Central Board of Revenue may withhold refunds + Another IPP signs MoU with WAPDA on tariff cut + Textile exports up by 11.5% + 35% duty on 21 items of construction + First 3000-Horse Power railway engine rolls out of factory + Hubco moves to settle row with WAPDA --------------------------------------- EDITORIALS & FEATURES + The ramparts of Pakistani pride Ayaz Amir + War or peace Irfan Husain ----------- SPORTS + Miandad takes over as coach + The Pakistan Cricket Board denies making appointments + Security measures for third Test + Yousuf, Saleh to play in Asian snooker
=================================================================== DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS =================================================================== NATIONAL NEWS 20000311 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Nawaz's counsel assassinated ------------------------------------------------------------------- Sarfaraz Ahmed KARACHI, March 10: One of the counsel for Nawaz Sharif in the plane conspiracy case, Iqbal Raad, and two others were gunned down by three unidentified people at his practice chambers on Friday afternoon. Shahzad Adil Khatri, son of the late Sindh High Court judge Adil Khatri, and an office peon were also killed with Iqbal Raad in his office in the multi-storey Paradise Chambers near the High Court building on Shahrah-i-Iraq. The peon, Ghulam Abbas, who hailed from Ranipur, had joined Iqbal Raad only three days ago. Iqbal Raad, from whose office a some unknown persons had stolen the fax machine and other equipment a fortnight ago, died of a kalashnikov burst while he was in his seat, and the bodies of Khatri and Ghulam Abbas lay just outside the internal door of Raad's offices. Iqbal Raad, in his mid-50s, who has left behind his wife, three sons and one daughter, had been holding the post of advocate- general of Sindh until the Nawaz Sharif government was dismissed last year. Before being appointed AG, Mr Raad had showed interest in organizing the lawyers under the PML's legal wing. According to witnesses, three men went up to the office of Mr Raad on the second floor, after alighting from an beige-coloured Alto car, and sprayed all the three with Kalashnikov and TT pistol shots. The witnesses said that soon after they had completed their operation, the killers climbed down the stairs and pulled up the car to flee the scene. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000310 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Shahbaz Sharif denies charges ------------------------------------------------------------------- Reporter KARACHI, March 9: Final arguments by the prosecution in the Oct 12 plane hijacking case against Nawaz Sharif and six others will commence on March 13 as Shahbaz Sharif, the last accused, recorded his statement in the anti-terrorism court-1 on Thursday. Judge Rahmat Hussain Jafferi fixed three days (from March 13 to 15) for arguments to be offered by the prosecution. Among others Advocate-General Raja Quershi, and special public prosecutors Ilyas Khan and Barrister Zahoor represented the prosecution. The defence, represented by Khwaja Sultan, M.A. Malik and Justice (retd) Aftab Farrukh, will give its arguments from March 20 to 22. At the outset of the hearing, the judge called Shahbaz Sharif, the former chief minister of Punjab, in the witness box. When the judge asked him why the witnesses for prosecution were deposing against him, Shahbaz said that they (witnesses) had done so because they all were government servants and they had been tutored and tortured to do so. He went on to say that Colonel Khan had served him with a warrant of arrest on Nov 23 and told him to arrange a lawyer and contact his family. "However, I was not allowed to contact my family." Later, Mr Shahbaz deposed before the court that he had arrived at the Prime Minister's House in the morning on October 12. He said he had a scheduled meeting with the then interior minister and a notification to this meeting, which was attended among others by the then chief minister of the NWFP, had been issued on Oct 7. He said the meeting ended at 2:30pm. Later, Mr Shahbaz continued, he had a scheduled meeting with the ambassador of Japan and added that after this meeting, he came back to the PM's House and slept in his bedroom. He said he was still sleeping when the army entered the PM's House. He said a bedroom and an office had been allotted to him in the PM's House where he held official meetings. He said he was taken into custody by the army in his bedroom. Mr Shahbaz said he was kept in solitary confinement for 42 days in Rawalpindi and Murree to desist him from assisting his brother (Nawaz Sharif) in arranging his defence and also to file an appeal in the apex court against the military takeover in his capacity as chief minister of Punjab and being an aggrieved as CM with "Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif". Mr Shahbaz said he did not know about the charges leveled against him by the prosecution and the reason for his detention until he was produced before this court. He said the prosecution had miserably failed to establish its case against him and added that he was not even named in the FIR, which was lodged with a delay of 28 days. "My name was included in the case after two weeks as an afterthought and it shows that the prosecution has no incriminating evidence whatsoever against me," he said. He said that Lt-Col Atiquzzaman Kiyani, the complainant in the case, had stated in this court that even after interrogating as many as 150 people from different agencies he (the colonel) could not "find an iota of evidence" against him. "This fully exposes hollowness of the case of prosecution. I throw myself at the mercy of the court," he concluded. At this point, the advocate-general rose and drew the attention of the court to the testimony of prosecution witness Brig Javed Iqbal which, he said, inter alia mentioned that Shahbaz along with Chaudhry Nisar was standing at the lawns of the PM's House and he (Shahbaz) was talking by a mobile phone. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000310 ------------------------------------------------------------------- CE backs Kashmir struggle: Security threats in region discussed ------------------------------------------------------------------- Ihtasham ul Haque ISLAMABAD, March 9: A joint meeting of the National Security Council and the cabinet discussed here on Thursday the growing threat perceptions in the region and decided that the President Bill Clinton would be briefed about the hegemonic designs of India. According to official sources, Chief Executive Gen Pervez Musharraf, who presided over the meeting, said it would be a good opportunity to brief the US president about the latest situation obtaining in the region. He said Pakistan did not want to enter into the arms race by unproportionately increasing its defence budget as had been done by India. The sources said the chief executive also told the meeting that there was a need to inform the international community about the difference between terrorism and freedom movement. He said time had come when the people should know that fighting for the cause of freedom did not mean terrorism. He said India had always tried to mislead the international community about the freedom movement of the Kashmiris and wrongly termed it an act of terrorism. According the sources, the chief executive, who came half an hour late to the meeting because of an interview to a foreign newspaper, said Pakistan would continue to offer all kinds of political, moral and diplomatic support to the people of occupied Kashmir. According to a handout issued after the meeting, the CE said Pakistan "condemns all sorts of terrorism, including irresponsible statements and actions that are indicative of a terrorist mind- set." While rejecting the Indian media propaganda against Pakistan, he said the liberation movement in occupied Kashmir was totally indigenous. The UN is committed to enforcing for the people of occupied Kashmir their right to self-determination, but successive Indian governments had consistently been denying this right to them. Pakistan, he said, was extending moral, diplomatic and political support to the people of the Kashmir Valley who "are victims of state terrorism by the Indian occupying forces." Gen Musharraf told the joint meeting, which was also attended, on special invitation, by the four governors, that the Line of Control was spread over a porous mountainous region and despite "our best efforts it was not possible to stop movement of people in such a large area. "If over 700,000 Indian troops in occupied Kashmir, who, according to the Indians, are there to stop infiltration, cannot do so, why blame Pakistan," he remarked. With the exception of India, Gen Musharraf said, Kashmir had been universally recognized as the core issue hampering good relations between India and Pakistan, thus impeding peace, tranquillity and economic development in the region. "Our country welcomes all steps towards resolution of the dispute, including the third party mediation," he added. Abbas Sarfaraz, minister for housing and works, made a presentation on the housing programme at the meeting which approved the completion of 18 commercially viable projects spread all over the country. The marketing of these projects will be done through banking institutions, which would invite applications through media and process the same in a transparent manner. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000311 ------------------------------------------------------------------- United States to issue more visas ------------------------------------------------------------------- Shaheen Sehbai WASHINGTON, March 10: A Senate committee on Thursday approved a sharp increase in hi-tech visas for foreign workers in the US for three years and lifted visa restrictions for those who have obtained high degrees from the US universities. The move, likely to be approved by the full senate and the House of Representatives, will provide job opportunities to thousands of computer technicians from developing countries like India and Pakistan. The Senate Judiciary Committee increased 'H-1B' visa number from 115,000 to 195,000 a year. The bill would also ease restrictions from the foreigners who use visas to work in US universities and persons who have recently received advanced degrees from US universities. "The bottom line here is that US high-tech companies are struggling to fill cubicles with capable and educated workers," Senator Orrin Hatch, chairman of the committee, said at a committee meeting. "A Computer Technology Industry Association study concluded that this shortage of information technology professionals is costing the US economy $105 billion a year," he said, adding "we can prevent that loss by passing this bill." DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000311 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Pakistan Muslim League moves to choose new President ------------------------------------------------------------------- Faraz Hashmi ISLAMABAD, March 10: Around 50 members of Pakistan Muslim League Friday moved towards a consensus on the question of replacing the party president, the party sources said. They agreed to immediately convene a meeting of the PML parliamentary party in the suspended National Assembly to further discuss the proposal of replacing Nawaz Sharif as the party chief or from the office of the parliamentary party leader. The meeting, convened at the residence of Syed Fakhr Imam, also decided to set up a committee which would meet Mr Sharif in jail and persuade him to voluntarily step down from the party president ship. "The discussion has started," said Abida Hussain when asked whether there was any move to replace the party president. "Obviously we are not a bureaucracy, we are a political party and such decisions take time," she added. Abida said only the members of the parliamentary party would be called at the next meeting, as the Senate would cease to exist after March 20. Though majority of pro-Sharif members was present at the meeting, some fiery speech against him and his style of governance were heard, while his supporters kept mum, a member present at the meeting said. Fakhr and Abida had invited only 30 members but some Sharif supporters turned up at the meeting uninvited with a motive to stall the move of replacing him, sources said. However, most of the pro-Sharif members seemed convinced that change in the party leadership had become inevitable and they could not resist it any more, they added. Fakhr at a press briefing at the end of the meeting read out a resolution unanimously adopted by the participants. It read: "Fifty members of the National Assembly under suspension met at the residence of Syed Fakhr Imam and decided that the entire parliamentary party of PML will assemble shortly to further discuss the issues facing the country and the party. "While reiterating their adherence to democratic norms and their commitment to democratic values and principles all the members emphasized on the party unity and laid to rest all speculations regarding any split in the PML." DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000307 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Punjab not to deal with unlisted IPPs ------------------------------------------------------------------- Shaukat Ali LAHORE, March 6: Punjab will not purchase electricity from those independent power producers (IPPs) which are not registered with the Wapda, sources told Dawn here on Monday. Wapda had appealed to the provinces and commercial organizations not to use the power produced by IPPs which had not obtained permission from it. Referring to a recent Wapda report, the sources said there were about 38 IPPs producing power and selling it to various organizations. Many of them are using Wapda's distribution network, as well. "Under the rules only Wapda is allowed to handle the power distribution system or those IPPs which have obtained permission from the authority for this purpose", they said. It is believed that the IPPs, which are producing power primarily to supply to nearby industries, are at present supplying around 730MW power to other subscribers. "This is a serious breach of the electricity act which empowers only Wapda to generate power, or allow the private producers who explicitly seek a permission from it. No other agency is allowed to indulge in this business", Wapda sources said. It is understood that Wapda is facing a net loss of about Rs900 million because of the power business being undertaken by the IPPs not registered with Wapda. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000309 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Seminar told: Supreme Court ruling on Riba to be implemented ------------------------------------------------------------------- Bureau Report ISLAMABAD, March 8: Finance Minister Shaukat Aziz said on Wednesday that the Supreme Court's judgment on Riba would be implemented in letter and spirit to introduce a interest-free banking in the country. "A high-powered commission headed by I.A. Hanfi (the former governor of central bank) is finalizing its recommendations to bring every thing under the Islamic mode of financing," he said. Speaking at the concluding session of a seminar organized by the Institute of Policy Studies, he said: "Islamic banking is a well- known phenomenon in the world". He termed the SC's judgment (against Riba) landmark. "Pakistan is the only country in the Muslim world which is going to have an interest-free banking," he said, adding that the whole legal framework needed restructuring for the purpose. "Undoubtedly, it is a big challenge facing the government to have every thing interest-free," the minister said. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000309 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Missing boys are alive, claims Javed ------------------------------------------------------------------- Reporter LAHORE, March 8: Javed Iqbal, the alleged killer of 100 children, on Wednesday submitted before the trial court that the missing children were alive and that he did not murder any boy. Replying to questions put to him by the court comprising Additional District and Sessions Judge Allah Bakhsh Ranjha, he said not a single boy was murdered. The accused submitted a written statement spread on 20 pages in the court. He said the statement contained his complete version about the issue. The statements of all the four accused were recorded and the case was adjourned for final arguments. All the accused denied having killed anybody. The accused said the judicial confession was recorded under duress. Javed Iqbal said he staged this "tragedy" to highlight the issue of runaway children of poor families who become victim of evil people. Regarding the whereabouts of the missing boys, the accused said it was the police's responsibility to find them. He wrote on page No eight of the statement that the children disappeared due to the treatment by their families and were living with different people and 'surely' were compulsive homosexuals. He writes some children have returned to their homes but their parents are silent about it. He said it is the responsibility of the police to find the children who are still missing. He said four people out of the 100 presumed as missing could be proved to be alive. He said three of these children were his co- accused, Sajid, Sabir, and Nadeem, in the case. Another of them lived in Shadbagh and their photographs were among those of the hundred missing children. He said he was told by one of his friends, Ishaq Billa, who died in police custody during investigation of the case, that the fourth boy was also one of the 100 children. He said Ishaq's son could recognize the boy and he could be summoned by the court for confirmation of the fact. Regarding the judicial confession said to have been recorded by them before a judicial magistrate and the fact they were warned that the confession could be used against them, the accused said they were under pressure from the police and feared they would be killed in a police encounter if they did not make a statement before the magistrate as directed by them. They said they simply replied in affirmative to the suggestions made by the magistrate who read out a statement to them. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000305 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Except Ejaz, all counsel agree to defend Nawaz ------------------------------------------------------------------- KARACHI, March 4: All defence counsel, except Ejaz Battalvi, have agreed to defend ousted Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and six others charged in the PIA plane hijacking case being proceeded in the Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC-1), headed by Rehmat Hussain Jaffery. Leading defence counsel Ejaz Battalvi, Khawaja Sultan, Iqbal Raad and Khawaja Naveed had withdrawn from the case after the order by the ATC, imposing restriction on issuing statements of accused Nawaz Sharif and others before the scrutiny of the court. However, the court had made it clear that the accused might record their verbal statements after scrutiny of their written statement. The defence counsel met Nawaz Sharif, Shahbaz Sharif, Syed Ghous Ali Shah, Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, Saifur Rehman, Rana Maqbool, and Saeed Mehdi twice in the Landhi jail on Thursday and Friday and discussed the situation with them as directed by the court. Khawaja Sultan agreed to defend the accused before the ATC, but Ejaz Battalvi could not be persuaded by the accused and their family members. Ejaz Battalvi said he would remain defence counsel in this case and help their juniors, but would not appear before the ATC on Monday. Khawaja Naveed and Iqbal Raad said Khawaja Sultan could not meet Judge Rehmat Hussain Jaffery on Friday and Saturday. Meanwhile, the proceedings of the PIA plane hijacking case would resume on Monday before the ATC-1 for recording of spools of PIA flight PK-805 of Oct 12,1999 in which Army Chief General Pervez Musharraf and about 200 passengers were flying in from Sri Lanka. - PPI DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000310 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Govt cautious on privatization ------------------------------------------------------------------- ISLAMABAD, March 9: Indebted Pakistan has no plans to sell its assets hurriedly and will aim to get the maximum benefit from any sale, a government official said on Thursday. "The entire (privatization) process should continue at its own pace ... If you try to speed it up on your own, then there is a cost to it, there is no free lunch," said Altaf Saleem, chairman of the Privatization Commission. Pakistan has privatized very little over the past two years because of a change of government and what officials said were unfavourable market conditions. "Because we are dealing with national assets, it has to be realistic, it has to be cautious," Saleem said. Since assuming power on Oct 12, military ruler Gen Pervez Musharraf has made privatization a key priority of his government but has promised that the process would be transparent and in the security interests of the country. Saleem said Pakistan State Oil, country's largest petroleum distribution company, was under-going restructuring as first step towards privatization. "In Sui Southern and Sui Northern lot of work had already been done, and now with the gas regulatory authority in place, these are a step closer to privatization," Saleem said. Pakistan plans to sell between five and 10 per cent of the two gas distribution utilities as a first step towards privatization. "We have initiated the process of appointing a lead manager and on April 10 they will give us a timeframe ... We are targetting that this should happen in May or June," Saleem said. He said Pakistan also plans to hold roadshows in the Middle East in April to market the proposed privatization of some oil, gas, power and financial assets. Saleem said the government was also preparing a privatization law to give a legal framework to the sale process and to protect transactions from unnecessary litigation. The law was expected to be approved next month. "It was not that the process of privatization had a problem. It was that there was no legal cover," he said.-Reuters
=================================================================== BUSINESS & ECONOMY 20000307 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Pakistan, Turkey to set up trading co ------------------------------------------------------------------- Reporter KARACHI, March 6: Pakistan and Turkey can explore the possibility of establishing a Joint Marketing Company to access the markets of Europe and Central Asia and at the same time boost the bilateral trade. The suggestion was made by President of FPCCI Fazal-ur- Rehman Dittu during a meeting with a 13-member Turkish delegation on Monday at Federation House. The delegation comprised businessmen dealing in textiles, leather and leather products, marble, furniture and woodwork, automotive parts and construction. The president FPCCI further suggested that as textile exports from Turkey to the European Union will be free from any quota restriction, both the countries could establish joint collaboration with Pakistan supplying cotton yarn or fabrics for further processing and value-addition in Turkey. He also hinted at joint marketing of textiles, leather, chemicals, automotive parts, pharmaceuticals and other items to invest in Pakistan in the fields of construction, medical equipment, infrastructure, transport, textiles, communication, mining, irrigation and tourism. Dittu pointed out that lack of direct shipping was a major hurdle in boosting the two-way trade and said that Pakistan's exports to Turkey had declined from $69.96m in 1997-98 to $37.52m in 1998-99. The leader of the Turkish delegation agreed with the suggestion put forward by the president FPCCI that joint efforts needed to be undertaken as the bilateral trade did not commensurate with the depth of relations existing between the two countries. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000307 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Three-year rolling plan to initiate new projects ------------------------------------------------------------------- Ihtashamul Haque ISLAMABAD, March 6: The government has decided to start a "three years rolling plan" to complete important existing development projects as well as to undertake new projects in the absence of 9th Five Year Plan. Official sources told Dawn here on Monday that the 9th Five Year Plan will continue to be held in abeyance and will be replaced by a three-year rolling plan now being finalized jointly by the officials of the ministry of finance and the Planning Commission. The plan was expected to be ready by April this year. The 9th plan could not be completed despite the fact that two years have already passed due to various reasons including inter- provincial differences and centre/ provinces dissimilarity of views on many issues. The sources said that the construction of controversial Kalabagh Dam has been a major subject of discord with the provinces specially Sindh and NWFP which in fact delayed the finalization of the 9th plan. Both these provinces, sources said, had been raising serious objections over the proposed huge financial allocation for Kalabagh Dam. The issue was reportedly taken up in the last meeting of the National Economic Council (NEC) which was presided over by the ousted prime minister Nawaz Sharif where no consensus could be developed whether to start or abandon the project. The military government, sources said, has not decided any thing over the issue, with the result the launching of the 9th plan was further delayed and a decision taken to formulate a three-year rolling plan. The sources said that the paucity of resources was another reason that delayed the initiation of the 9th plan. Further decision has been taken that the size of the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP), which had already been cut from Rs 116 billion to Rs 100 billion, will not have anymore reduction despite the opposition by the officials of the ministry of finance. These officials said that since the funding position of the government was weak, the PSDP should be further slightly thinned. "Almost 96 per cent funds for PSDP and other development programmes are being provided by the foreign agencies and still some people are insisting to further cut the size of the PSDP", a source said. The problem, he said, was compounded when the government decided to have additional funds for poverty reduction programme for which Rs 15 billion had already been allocated and provinces given Rs 3.4 billion out of it. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000307 ------------------------------------------------------------------- 10% increase in drug prices likely ------------------------------------------------------------------- Bureau Report ISLAMABAD, March 6: The Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the cabinet reportedly agreed to the health's ministry's proposal for raising drug prices by 10 per cent at its last meeting. However, the ECC decided to refer the matter to the cabinet for a final decision, it is learnt. Official sources told Dawn that the committee had considered the proposal of the health ministry for the upward revision of drug prices. The participants of the meeting were asked not to discuss the matter with media persons until a final decision was taken by the cabinet. The spokesman for the health ministry, Matiullah Khan, denied to have any information on the subject. He said he did not even know if the ECC had considered the issue. The spokesman for the cabinet division, Zafar Iqbal, declined to divulge the recommendations of the committee. However, Health Director General Maj-Gen Ahsan Ahmed said the matter of drug prices' adjustment had been discussed by the ECC, but, he maintained, its reporting in newspapers at this stage would be a speculation. Sources said that in its proposal the health ministry had referred to the pharmaceutical industry's demand of raising the prices of drugs by 26 per cent. They added that this increase was calculated on the basis of rise in US dollar's exchange rate against Pakistan rupee since 1995 when the drug prices had been last raised. The ECC was told that the international pharmaceutical companies were running in loss as they were not allowed to increase drug prices. Some, it was said, were even winding up their business. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000309 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Economic Coordination Committee sets tobacco support prices ------------------------------------------------------------------- Bureau Report ISLAMABAD, March 8: The Economic Coordination Committee of cabinet (ECC) approved here on Wednesday new support prices of tobacco for different varieties of the 1999 crop. The minimum support price for Fine Cured Virginia type has been fixed at Rs 33.04 per kg, White Patta Rs 14.30 per kg, Dark Air Cured Virginia Rs 11.97 per kg and Burley Rs 26.04 per kg. The meeting, which was presided over by Minister for Finance Shaukat Aziz also reviewed in detail the latest economic data relating to trade, CBR's tax collection and monetary developments. On the basis of the February trade figures, exports were seen to have increased by 13% and imports were down by 8% over the previous month. Compared to the corresponding 8 months of the previous year, exports were up by 9.7 % and imports were up by 13%. For the month of February, the trade balance was negative by 93 million dollars compared with over 120 million dollars in February, 1999 and a negative balance of 256 million dollars in January this year. The ECC noted that the major increase in imports was due to the extra-ordinary increase in POL prices in the last few months. Import prices for major POL products have increased by more than 100% in the last 12 months. State Bank governor Dr Ishrat Hussain briefed the ECC about monetary developments and informed the committee that from July 1, 1999 to February 2000 the monetary growth was below the target for the year and was expected to remain within manageable proportions and the overall monetary position was satisfactory. The CBR chairman briefed the ECC about the revenue collection during the current fiscal. The ECC was informed that Rs209 billion was collected till February 2000 against the target of Rs362 billion for the full year. This indicated an increase of 18.4% over the same period last year. Keeping in view seasonal trends, the CBR expects to achieve its target. As announced in the chief executive's policy in mid- December, CBR has accelerated genuine refunds in order to minimize corruption. The refunds made by CBR were 18% higher than the corresponding period of last year and in February only the CBR made refunds of about Rs6 billion. The ECC was presented a detailed report on the prospects for sugar production in the country. The committee expressed its concern on the increasing trend of sugar prices. The committee directed the concerned agencies to monitor the situation periodically and to bring it to the ECC regularly in its meetings in the coming weeks. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000309 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Central Board of Revenue may withhold refunds ------------------------------------------------------------------- Correspondent ISLAMABAD, March 8: Central Board of Revenue is projecting to collect Rs360 billion in the current financial year, and has in eight months collected Rs210 billion. It still needs to collect Rs150 billion (at the rate of Rs38 billion per month), if no further downward revision is allowed by the government in the tax target for 12 months. CBR is facing an uphill task of collecting Rs38 billion per month during March-June, and the board is working on a plan to control refunds payment and speed tax-arrears collection. The need for these actions has been stressed by the CBR in their latest communications with the customs collectorates and income tax commissionerates. The first downward revision about a month ago brought down the current financial year's tax collection target from Rs380 to Rs360 billion. The CBR is now devising a strategy to curtail slippages in the collectible deposits of federal revenues, to ensure that these deposits do not slump and lead to requesting for another downward revision in the year's collection target. The finance minister has recently urged CBR to apply all possible means to meet the revised target. The strategy to curtail slippages is being chalked out in the light of decisions taken at two meetings held a fortnight ago at the CBR. These meeting, one chaired by the finance minister and the other by chairman CBR, deliberated on refunds and arrears of sales tax and income tax departments. The finance minister advised the Income Tax Department to pay out in 90 days Rs15 billion refund-assistance sanctioned by the government for export manufacturers. But at the same time the income tax and sales tax departments have been asked to curtail the slippages through refunds. The income tax regional commissioners, at their February 8 meeting decided that a refund target review be conducted for the rest of the financial year. The IT regional commissioners in this connection decided that the quantum of pending refund claims be processed within March 2000. Apart from this, a departmental monitoring of refund-clearance process is being put in place, which would also be processing the above Rs200,000 claims. The finance minister had asked the IT department during the February 13 meeting to speedily clear the large-amount claims of exporters, out of the Rs15 billion federal refunds fund. The IT Department is also computing figures of refunds clearance through the recently created Inter-Tax Adjustment System. This is being done to be prepared for monthly coordination with other departments which is meant to determine as to how much amount of the refunds released through this system has been put under observation. The under-observation refunds amounts have been on the rise over the current financial year and it has now been decided that the inter-departmental coordination be improved for dealing with claims which can be placed under the category of "excess" or "undue". To make this process efficient, the IT and ST departments are also stepping up their audit efforts. Though the new laws do not allow the two departments' officials to conduct audit visitation to the business places of the assessees for more than once in six months, the IT Department is planning to launch an on-the-spot assessment of all the new claims. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000305 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Another IPP signs MoU with WAPDA on tariff cut ------------------------------------------------------------------- Reporter LAHORE, March 4: Yet another IPP has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with WAPDA for reduction in its levelized tariff to US Cents 5.137 per kilowatt hour (KWH). Wapda Chairman Lt-Gen Zulfiqar Ali Khan and Fauji Kabirwala Power Company Limited Managing Director/Chief Executive Lt-Gen (retd) Muhammad Maqbool exchanged the authenticated documents on behalf of their respective organizations at WAPDA House on Saturday. It is the 12th IPP which has voluntarily reduced its tariff from US cents 5.578 per KWH to US Cents 5.137 per KWH. The revision of tariff will result in total saving of US $ 156 million over a period of 30 years. The project is based on low BTU and pipeline gas in Kabirwala near Multan. The plan has a capacity of 157 megawatts. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000310 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Textile exports up by 11.5% ------------------------------------------------------------------- Muhammad Ilyas ISLAMABAD, March 9: All the major export sectors registered a positive trend during the first eight months (July-February) of current financial year with the textile manufactures scoring a growth rate of 11.50%, according to detailed foreign trade figures released by the Federal Bureau of Statistics here on Thursday. Particularly heartening is the performance of the manufactured exports. Their share in total exports ($5.484 billion) at the end of the 8-month period stood at 87.22%, compared to 87.41% during the corresponding period of last year. Only marginal though, the improvement is significant in view of the sluggishness of the manufacturing sector persisting for quite some time past. Notably, the textile manufacturing sector seems to be coming into own, as indicated by the trade figures. In July-February (1999- 2000), textile manufactures totalled $3.55 billion - 64.72% of total exports. This shows 1.12% increase over the corresponding period of last year. However, underlying reason for the increase may be the pressure on exporters to sell their wares at any price. This, however, points to a curious aspect: export of cotton yarn. According to official statistics, the country exported $678.34 million worth of cotton yarn, up in dollar terms by 13.09%. But the quantity of cotton yarn (321,524 tons) exported during this period increased by 21.41%. Some observers here wonder whether the real value was depressed through under-invoicing? Even otherwise, experts point out that export of cotton yarn is no big deal because it constitutes only 8% value addition which in fact is negative in view of the power, labour and transportation consumed to spin yarn from raw cotton. As usual, cotton fabrics were the highest source of foreign exchange among textile manufactures. In value ($713.41 million) though, their exports went up by 1.61%, but quantitatively, these increased by as much as 23.40%. This shows a sharp drop in the unit price of cotton fabrics in spite of the economic boom in United States, a major market for our textiles. Further look at the statistics shows that quantitatively, the absorption of all our textile manufactures is on the rise, but the proceeds in terms of foreign exchange from such exports are much lower due to drop in their unit price. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000310 ------------------------------------------------------------------- 35% duty on 21 items of construction ------------------------------------------------------------------- Correspondent ISLAMABAD, March 9: The federal government has restored the maximum rate of 35% duty on the import of 21 items for the construction sector by removing the facility of zero-rate. The ministry of finance and economic affairs notification issued in this connection stipulates that the rate of 10% duty would continue to be applicable on those 21 construction machinery items which are certified as not locally made (NLMM). Falling under four main construction machinery categories, these items would now be levied the maximum rate of prevalent Pakistan Customs Tariff (PCT-1999-2000) and the fullest charge of the Sales Tax (15%), while the Withholding Tax and other taxes applicable rate for these imports would be the same under which these 21 items remained levied before their declaration as zero-rated. The notification No C 3(3) Mach./T.P/99, dated March 7, 2000, specifies that the first major category of the construction machinery to be affected by the withdrawal of zero-rated facility would be "pre-cast plant machinery". Under this category, six items now facing the maximum rate of duty (in case NLMM) would be the batching plants, gentry cranes, overhead cranes, tower cranes, steel vibrating tables, and steel vibratory moulds. Under the category of "ready mix concrete manufacturing plants", three items to be affected by the finance ministry notification would be concrete batching plant with minimum capacity of 40 cubic meters per hour, concrete transit mixer with capacity of six cubic meters, and mobile concrete pumps with minimum boom length of 32 meters, suitable to cater pump concrete up to four storeys. The notification also impacts in the same way three items of the construction machinery category "concrete block manufacturing plants", which are as follows: fully automatic plants with accessories, with minimum capacity of 30,000 concrete blocks per day, block laying machines, and fork-lifters with minimum capacity of five tons. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000310 ------------------------------------------------------------------- First 3000-Horse Power railway engine rolls out of factory ------------------------------------------------------------------- Faraz Hashmi RISALPUR, March 9: The first locally-assembled 3000-horse power diesel railway engine rolled out of the Railway Locomotive Factory here on Thursday. The Secretary, Pakistan Railways, Javed Ashraf, inaugurated the rolling-out of the engine by cutting a ribbon. The general managers of Pakistan Railways, Hamid Hassan and Iqbal Samad Khan; the first secretary of Japanese Embassy in Islamabad, Takahashi Hiroaki; representatives of Marubini of Japan, General Electric Company of the United States and Adtranz of Germany were also present. Earlier, Fahimuddin, managing director of the locomotive factory, addressing the gathering, termed the event a milestone in the life of the factory. He said the engine had been assembled at a cost of Rs160 million. He said the factory had already achieved 30 per cent deletion and planned to attain indigenous manufacturing capability of 70 per cent spare parts. The 3000-HP engine was the first out of the 20 the factory has to assemble or partially manufacture till March 2001, Mr Fahimuddin said and added 10 engines had been imported in the partially knock- down condition while the other 10 were in the completely knock-down condition. Because of an acute shortage of locomotives, he said, the railways had imported 10 other 3000-HP engines from the United States as part of the same project, involving a cost of Rs3.25 billion. The factory had earlier manufactured 23 2000-HP engines and the last such engine had rolled out of the factory in September 1997, he added. DEVELOPMENT: Mr Ashraf told Dawn that the government had decided to develop railways as a primary means of communication. He said the previous government had neglected the department in favour of road transportation, which, he added, was six times more expensive than railways. Mr Ashraf said the ministry of railways had planned to acquire 56 new engines, besides undertaking the rehabilitation of 48 others. He added that the government had agreed to ease financial burden of the Pakistan Railways to make it a profit- making and vibrant organization. The AG also submitted that the personnel of the elite police force, brought by Mr Shahbaz to Islamabad from Lahore, were there and they were used by Brig Javed Iqbal when he went to Islamabad PTV Centre to disarm a few soldiers there. As the accused left the witness box, the advocate-general rose and told the court that the prosecution was ready to commence its arguments. Khwaja Sultan, however, sought time for making preparations for the final arguments. The court rose for the day and decided to settle the matter in the judge's chamber. Subsequently, with the consent of both the sides, it was decided that the prosecution would commence arguments on Monday. The defence was also given three days from March 20 to 22 for arguments. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000308 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Hubco moves to settle row with WAPDA ------------------------------------------------------------------- Bureau Report ISLAMABAD, March 7: The Hub Power Company (Hubco) has expressed its willingness to reduce its internal rate of return (dividend) from 18 per cent to 15 per cent to end its tariff dispute with the Wapda. Informed sources told Dawn on Monday that Hubco Chairman Shaikh Mohammad Alireza had written a letter to Finance Minister Shaukat Aziz, expressing his company's readiness to reduce the shareholders rate of return. Previously, Hubco had offered to reduce this rate from 18 per cent to 16.4 per cent which was not accepted by the ousted PML government. They said that Mr Alireza had written to the minister that the government should accept the Hubco's latest offer with a view to settle the tariff issue out of court. The new offer was made two weeks ago after the approval of the Hubco board of directors, they added. They disclosed that Mr Alireza had met Mr Aziz in Devos (Switzerland) in early January this year and offered to reduce the company's rate of return. However, a formal offer had been sent to the GoP in a latest letter written by the Hubco chairman. He has also indicated to further consider lowering the rate of return, provided the government decided criminal charges, leveled by Nawaz Sharif government, against the Hubco. He said that so far no investigation had proved that Hubco was involved in corrupt practices, and had that been the case, the government, by now, would have brought certain evidences against it. The military government has also been requested to treat Hubco at par with other 12 independent power producers (IPPs) to resolve the tariff problem. The government has also been told that why the Hubco had been singled out by initiating criminal investigations against it and that why the other IPPs were excluded from it. The chairman, the sources said, was waiting for the reply of the government about his offer.Back to the top
=================================================================== EDITORIALS & FEATURES 20000310 ------------------------------------------------------------------- The ramparts of Pakistani pride ------------------------------------------------------------------- Ayaz Amir Reading of the euphoria in Pakistani official circles over the announcement that Clinton after all will be making a brief stopover in Pakistan too when he visits India and Bangladesh later this month, it is hard not to be struck by the obsequiousness which often surfaces in our dealings with the United States. A few crumbs of comfort thrown our way, that too as an after-thought, and the entire national security establishment is pushed into a state of rapturous delight. Clinton, we need hardly remind ourselves, will be coming to Pakistan for a few hours after spending full five days talking, feasting and sightseeing in India. And when he comes here we can bet he will read us a lecture, the main points of which will be democracy, terrorism (Osama bin Laden) and non-proliferation (CTBT). But there is no end to our delight because we think we have trumped the Indians (correct to an extent) and because the military government thinks Clinton's arrival, no matter if only for a few hours, will seal its legitimacy (a doubtful proposition). Suppose for a moment that Clinton had winged his way past Pakistan. Pakistan would have survived the outcome - because Pakistan, despite what moaners say, is not a castle built on sand - but the military government would have felt like the emperor in the story without his clothes. Therefore a strong, almost a desperate, pitch was made for Clinton to stop here, howsoever briefly. Now that he is coming we are relieved and grateful and in no mood to see the implicit insult that a people with slightly more pride than we seem to have, would have read in the brevity of his halt. Would Fidel, great Fidel, have put up with this? Forget Fidel, a constellation beyond our reach. Would Mahathir Mohamad have danced with joy because an American president was spending a few hours in Malaysia? But being without the one or the other, we are in a celebratory mood with no less than the Chief Executive saying, "It (the trip) vindicates the legitimacy of my government's stand and gives credence to our aim to put things right in our country." The US is a great power, Pakistan a problem-stricken country on the other side of the globe. Even so, there are areas of common concern between the two countries which would remain intact and valid even if Clinton were not to come to Pakistan. What then are we so excited about? Trying to put the best possible face on the projected stop-over we are stressing Clinton's role as peace-maker and saying that this is an historic opportunity for him to set the ball of peace rolling between India and Pakistan. Trying to fool others is a legitimate exercise in statecraft. But for self-deception, at which we are rather good, there can be few excuses. Beyond pious words and platitudes what is it that Clinton can do? Can he deliver a settlement on Kashmir? If not, whom are we kidding? We are also saying Clinton can lower the temperature between India and Pakistan. Perhaps he can but only for the moment because if the cause of tension-- the insurgency in Kashmir--remains, the temperature will rise again and Clinton by then will be preparing to say his farewells from the White House. Whether we pursue war or peace in South Asia, when the crunch comes we will be alone, as we were (barring Chinese help) in 1965 and 1971. And as we were in Kargil just a year ago. But to go on in this vein is futile. Pakistani rulers, for reasons yet to be adequately discovered by professors of political theory, have always felt heavily dependent on the US. General Ayub Khan was no exception. When he became self-appointed saviour of Pakistan, he was greatly taken with the US. It was only later that he turned to China in large measure because of his disillusionment with the US when it came to India's assistance after the Sino-Indian war of 1962. General Yahya Khan felt inordinately proud of his role as a bridge between China and the US in 1971. But when the same winter India and Pakistan drifted to war, Pakistan found itself helpless and alone. General Zia mortgaged the country's long-term interests by acting as a cat's paw for the Americans during the Afghan war. While the results of that disastrous engagement can be seen all over Pakistan, the US has moved on to other things. But our one- sided love affair with the US continues, partly out of economic necessity but partly for reasons more emotional than pragmatic. This scarcely means we should make a virtue of anti-Americanism. There is no call for that. But it does mean we should be realistic and not exaggerate our importance in American eyes. Our nuclear capability is no help in this regard. On the contrary, far from promoting realism it is having just the opposite effect by encouraging us to nurse delusions of grandeur. Deterrence should be kept ready but hidden as Israel has managed to do so successfully. But we have been wearing our nuclear ability on our heart-strings which is a mark of infantile behaviour. What is more, it has already led us into one costly misadventure. If it had not been for our nuclear explosions it is questionable whether we would have walked so recklessly into the Kargil conflict. What a sacrifice of blood and youthful lives and all for what? Echoes of the Kargil crisis have also reverberated in the hijacking case against Nawaz Sharif and his co-accused. In his statement before the trial court the former prime minister has traced his differences with General Musharraf to that conflict. Who lit the match that sparked it? What were the respective positions of the then prime minister and the army chief? A few privileged people would probably know but the public at large remains ignorant - which is not surprising given the historical record. To this day the contents of the Hamoodur Rahman Commission report on the tragedy of the 1971 war remain hidden from public view. I think no one has bettered Munir Niazi's description of what is wrong with Pakistan. How eloquent and full of pain his lament when he says that there is a sinister shadow on this country because of which, despite ceaseless activity, our journey is painfully slow. To this some people would add that in our national striving there is no journey at all and that all our ceaseless activity is taking place on the same spot. Let alone everything else, we have yet not resolved the conflict between dictatorship and democracy. The Urdu columnist Abbas Athar (who writes regularly in the Nawai Waqt) has done well to suggest that in any future governmental setup we should abolish the position of prime minister altogether because of the misfortune attached to it: one prime minister murdered at a public meeting, several others banished from political life after the first martial law in 1958, another taken to the gallows, one currently in exile facing charges of corruption, another undergoing trial on charges which carry the death penalty. In truth, misfortune dogs this office. Nawaz Sharif's statement in court makes sad reading. Whatever his sins, did he deserve to be put in a cold and dark cell in the first few weeks of his imprisonment? Even if the power clashes which periodically break out in Pakistan have an overwhelmingly mediaeval or Byzantine colouring, it would do us no harm to conduct them in a more civilized manner. When Bhutto was hanged the Economist ran a cover story with Zia's picture and the legend underneath: "We even hang our prime ministers." Bhutto's hanging did not enhance Pakistan's image. Nawaz Sharif's incarceration and the long line of armoured cars which bring him to court also do not redound to our greater glory. This does not mean Nawaz Sharif should not be tried for any wrongs he may have done. But two questions arise in this connection. (1) Who is to do the judging? Clean hands or tainted ones? And (2) Why can't justice be less vindictive in Pakistan? One last thing. Nawaz Sharif may have been highhanded in power (and there is no doubt he was) but hand it to him that he is being brave in adversity, no small thing in a country where strutting heroes all too often turn out to be paper tigers when they fall afoul of fortune. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000311 ------------------------------------------------------------------- War or peace ------------------------------------------------------------------- Irfan Husain AN outsider watching Pakistan Television or the plethora of Indian channels now crowding the airwaves can be excused for thinking that war between the two countries is imminent. Those of us who are used to this sabre-rattling have been to the brink - and beyond - before. This is not to say that the war hysteria being fanned on both sides makes it easy to go to sleep: terms like "limited war" and "hot pursuit" are gaining currency even with respected columnists. And to give explosive substance to this war of words, the Indian government has announced the intention of jacking up its defence budget by a staggering 28 per cent. Not a day passes without a bellicose statement by leaders at the highest level in both capitals. The Indian defence minister has gone so far as to claim that India would win both a conventional war and a nuclear exchange. Such irresponsible statements do nothing to calm jangled nerves. The fact that politicians and generals in power are even contemplating nuclear war is the stuff nightmares are made of. One frightening problem is that most of our leaders are too unsophisticated to comprehend the chilling implications of using nuclear weapons in densely populated areas: for them, atomic bombs are just bigger conventional explosives. They have neither the technical information nor the imagination to grasp the horrors of nuclear fallout on a vast scale. People on both sides of the great divide talk glibly of nuclear deterrence as a viable and even desirable doctrine, pointing to nearly half a century of cold war between the United States and the Soviet Union that finally ended in defeat for the latter without a shot being fired. They forget that there were elaborate fail-safe devices and systems in place on both sides to prevent the accidental use of nuclear weapons. Also, the vast distances that separated their territories gave leaders an opportunity to abort an attack that had been erroneously launched. India and Pakistan do not, alas, enjoy the luxury of geographical separation. The 28 per cent increase in India's defence budget works out to around three billion dollars, or the approximate size of Pakistan's entire annual military expenditure. Fortunately, General Pervez Musharraf has publicly stated that Pakistan will not attempt to match India's budget rise and will not be drawn into an arms race with our neighbour. One hopes this refreshing sanity will not be dissipated by the time the new budget is presented in the next couple of months. By any standard, the amounts being spent on armaments in South Asia are enormous, but set against the abject poverty that is rampant here, they assume obscene proportions. Year after year, both India and Pakistan sink billions of dollars into the black hole of defence expenditure. At the same time, both countries are at the very bottom of the international ranking for education, nutrition, health, housing and sanitation. Despite the obvious contradiction between widespread destitution in both countries on the one hand, and the vast unproductive defence expenditure on the other, successive governments in New Delhi and Islamabad have consistently shown a lack of will to settle their outstanding differences through negotiations. Both are so completely fixated on Kashmir that it would seem they have no other problems to deal with. Although leaders on both sides pay lip-service to the wellbeing of the unfortunate people of the valley, the truth is that they only covet the land and are willing to fight to the last Kashmiri to get it. Along the way, if a few hundred thousand Indians and Pakistanis are nuked to cinders, too bad. The mule-like obstinacy and unbending rigidity on both sides makes a peaceful resolution of the problem virtually impossible. Our stand can be reduced to an unshakable resolve to talk about Kashmir, and only Kashmir. India, on the other hand, repeats the mantra of "everything but Kashmir." After the October military take-over in Pakistan, the BJP has seized upon the unconstitutional nature of the present government as an excuse to refuse negotiations. Neither side has shown any imagination or vision in approaching this Gordian knot. And while this deadlock continues, the likelihood of both sides stumbling into war increases. Under these circumstances, both countries should welcome President Clinton's visit to South Asia as an opportunity to break the logjam in their relations. So far, India has been implacable in refusing to accept a third party playing a role on Kashmir on the grounds that problems with Pakistan must be resolved on a bilateral basis. But as it is now rejecting direct talks with General Musharraf's military regime, it makes sense to speak to Islamabad through an intermediary. Given the current thaw between Washington and New Delhi as well as our previously cordial relations with the US President Clinton is ideally placed to mediate between India and Pakistan. His nation has the clout and the credibility, and he has the personal charisma and the diplomatic skills required to make a breakthrough. This visit is the best chance South Asia has for peace in the foreseeable future. Even though Clinton's term of office is drawing to a close, his personal involvement in initiating a peace process will be crucial to kick-starting a dialogue between these obdurate and prickly foes. To create a conducive atmosphere for peace, it is important that both sides take some initial steps. Pakistan can use its influence with the freedom fighters in Kashmir to halt their attacks until Clinton's visit while India can stop its bellicose anti-Pakistan rhetoric and temporarily cease offensive military measures in the valley. While even such relatively minor initiatives may be too much to expect from our immature leaders, it is time they realized that far more than their frail egos is involved here. It is time, in short, to get real. This fleeting opportunity must not be wasted. Indeed, public sentiment has been whipped up to such an extent in both countries that it is difficult to discuss a rational solution to the problem that all three parties can live with. It is clear that none of them will get what they want, but then that's what negotiations are about. The Indians will not get all of Kashmir, and nor will Pakistan, short of an all-out war in which one side emerges as the undisputed victor. But in a nuclear war, there can be no winners. The Kashmiris will not gain complete freedom as most of them seem to want, although in an ideal world this would be the optimum solution. If all three parties grasp the fact that in the real world, you make compromises and gain a part of what you want, then we can start talking about solving this problem once and for all. But above all, they have to realize that posturing is no substitute for realistic, hard-headed policies.
=================================================================== SPORTS 20000311 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Miandad takes over as coach ------------------------------------------------------------------- Correspondent LAHORE, March 10: Former Pakistan captain Javed Miandad has been asked to takeover as coach of the cricket team after Intikhab Alam handed over his resignation to the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Ad Hoc Committee Chairman Lt-Gen. Tauqir Zia on Friday. Intikhab held a long meeting with the PCB chairman before tendering his resignation. The PCB advisory council, headed by Lt-Gen Tauqir Zia later held a meeting and appointed Javed Miandad to take over as coach of the team also for third Test between Pakistan and Sri Lanka scheduled from Sunday in Karachi. Later talking to reporters, Intikhab said that he decided to relinquish the job after he came to know that the PCB was thinking to remove him. He said that he could continue the job before the end of the on-going home series against Sri Lanka, but decided to quit as he felt he could not motivate himself after knowing that a change was in the offing. However, Intikhab Alam stated that he would continue his assignment as the ICC Match-Referee. Miandad, 42, was originally scheduled to begin, his tenure as coach from the Sharjah Cup, which starts on March 22. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000311 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Security measures for third Test ------------------------------------------------------------------- KARACHI, March 10: Security measures have been finalized for the third cricket Test to be played between Pakistan and Sri Lanka here at National Stadium from March 12 (Sunday). Karachi Commissioner Shafiq-ur-Rehman Paracha headed a meeting at the stadium on Friday and it was decided to ban for carrying all eatable items, including water bottles, radio and telescopic devices inside the stadium during the five days. The meeting reviewed security arrangements and expressed its satisfaction.-PPI DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20000308 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Yousuf, Saleh to play in Asian snooker ------------------------------------------------------------------- KARACHI, March 7: National Champion Muhammad Yousuf and Saleh Muhammad will represent Pakistan in the Asian Snooker Championship being held in Hong Kong in July. Pakistan Billiards and Snooker Association Joint Secretary Arif Tahirbhoy said here on Tuesday their former Asian Champion Muhammad Yousuf, won national title in Faisalabad, former world number three Saleh Muhammad who won runner-up. Pakistan team at the end of the year will figure in the World Snooker Championship being held in China in November.-APP ------------------------------------------------------------------- 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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