------------------------------------------------------------------- DAWN WIRE SERVICE ------------------------------------------------------------------- Week Ending : 17 February 2001 Issue : 07/07 -------------------------------------------------------------------
Contents | National News | Business & Economy | Editorials & Features | Sports
The 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 - 2001
DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS
CONTENTS =================================================================== NATIONAL NEWS + Musharraf to go to India if 'formally' invited + Bush urged to help resolve Kashmir issue + Membership of 24 PML leaders suspended + Malaysia signs accord for buying $20 million arms + Pakistan in better position in talks with IMF + Corruption weakening Pakistan: US report + UN official seeks world help for Afghans + More cases ready; Nawaz to repay loans + Asif ready to pay 90% property in 'his name' + 64 more names removed from ECL + Pakistan offers loan to Lanka to buy arms + Anti-Nawaz group seizes PML house + PPP to mobilize public opinion on tape scandal + SHC reinstates 62 CBR officials + Overseas Pakistanis begin getting NICs BUSINESS & ECONOMY + Defence budget not to go up: Cabinet agrees to cut expenses + WB team coming to investigate SAP scam: $400m involved + Riba-free banking not to affect dealings: CE + State Bank sucks in Rs15.5bn from money market + Distribution formula being worked out + Increase in interest rate not possible, IMF told + Export financing rate hike feared + State Bank calls for maximum use of ATM + Sale of bonds exceeds target + Consumer Price Index up by 4.88% + Record credit given to private sector + TCP's counter offer for wheat --------------------------------------- EDITORIALS & FEATURES + Is hammam main sab nangay Ardeshir Cowasjee + Taming the paper tigers Ayaz Amir + Rattling our cage Irfan Husain ----------- SPORTS + Government to ensure sports policy a success + Daunting task ahead for Kiwis against Pakistan + Pakistan to investigate World Cup ties, ICC told
=================================================================== DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS =================================================================== NATIONAL NEWS 20010213 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Musharraf to go to India if 'formally' invited ------------------------------------------------------------------- Correspondent NEW YORK, Feb 12: Chief Executive Gen Pervez Musharraf has said he is ready to travel to New Delhi for talks on the Kashmir dispute if he gets a "formal invitation". In an interview with an American weekly Newsweek, Gen Musharraf said: "There are some indications that Indian leaders want to resume bilateral talks. We are prepared to talk to them on Kashmir and all other issues. I am prepared to go to Delhi for talks if invited by the Indian government. "I keep hearing noises through sources that they want to talk. But I will go only if I have a formal invitation," Gen Musharraf said. The chief executive declared: "We want peace, but peace with honour and dignity. We have taken the initiative to ease tension by pulling out troops from the Line of Control and ordering our troops to observe maximum restraint. India has responded positively." Observers here pointed out that following the devastating earthquake in Indian state of Gujarat, help given by Pakistan to India's needs had helped Pakistan-India relations thaw. When asked about the rise of extremists groups in the country, Gen Musharraf told the magazine: "Ninety per cent of the people in this country are moderate and tolerant. The extremists only constitute about five or 10 per cent of the population. They are not a serious threat to this government or to stability. They are an irritant. "Pakistan is a moderate Muslim state. I'm a Muslim. [Gesturing at a general on a nearby couch] He is a Muslim. He may pray five times a day, and I may have a different approach, but the voices of the moderates are not heard. We have to let these voices be heard. "We haven't taken on these [extremist] groups head-on. We could have a shoot-out, but that is not our strategy. I do not want to be distracted from our main goals of restructuring Pakistan's economy." When asked about his plan to return power to the civilian government, Gen Musharraf acknowledged that the political reforms envisioned by his government could not be completed by the year 2002, but reiterated that "he was committed to transfer of power. "We are committed to the transfer of power. But if you think our reforms can be completed by 2002, I say certainly they can't. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20010217 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Bush urged to help resolve Kashmir issue ------------------------------------------------------------------- Correspondent WASHINGTON, Feb 16: The American Muslim Council (AMC) and the Centre for the Study of Islam and Democracy have written to President George W. Bush urging the US administration to do more to end the dispute between Pakistan and India over Kashmir as a "first step towards freeing the region of nuclear weapons". It also asks Mr Bush to encourage democratization processes in Pakistan, Nigeria and Indonesia, end American's uncritical and unlimited support for Israel, making land-for-peace as the basic principle in the peace process, stop the "economic strangulation of Iraq, and to re-evaluate the US approach to sanctions against Iran, Libya and Sudan because the strictures are hurting the civilian population in these countries." The AMC is an umbrella organization of several American Muslim associations and the Centre for the Study of Islam and Democracy functions as a think-tank. In their letter, which has not yet been replied to by the White House, the two organizations also seek the induction of American Muslims in the decision-making policy. They said the new administration should realize that the estimated six million American Muslims have a stake in the foreign policy of the country. They have asked the US to provide incentives to pro-democracy forces in the Muslim world while safeguarding the integrity of Muslim states. "As Muslim Americans, we want to work with you and your administration to build a diverse, united and compassionate America, and to bridge the gap between the US and the Muslim world," their letter says. The AMC has previously welcomed President Bush's move to permit federal-funding of faith-based charities, and the letter shows renewed interest in the proposal. The AMC has announced that it will hold its 10th annual convention in Alexandria, Virginia, from June 21 to June 24. The convention will open with a Muslim Day on Capitol Hill when members of the Council will lobby legislators, and the programme also includes a White House briefing. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20010217 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Membership of 24 PML leaders suspended ------------------------------------------------------------------- Ashraf Mumtaz LAHORE, Feb 16: Acting PML president Javed Hashmi on Friday played his final card to forestall the Feb 19 provincial general council meeting of the party by suspending the basic membership of over two dozen leaders who were active in organizing the meeting whose sole agenda was to elect Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi as provincial president. Acting president Mian Meraj Din, presidential candidate Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi, vice-president Arshad Lodhi, information secretary Binyamin Rizvi, Lahore President Akhtar Rasool and suspended MNAs and MPAs who have been working against deposed prime minister Nawaz Sharif are among those who have been hit by the decision. After a meeting at the residence of Sardar Zulfikar Khosa, Mr Hashmi told reporters that he had taken action against the said leaders in consultation with other leaders and in exercise of powers vested in him under Article 142 of the PML Constitution. He said in case these leaders desisted from taking any 'unconstitutional step' on Feb 19, the decision would be reviewed. "Otherwise, their basic membership will be cancelled", Hashmi said. Other leaders whose membership has been suspended are: Humayun Akhtar Khan, Mian Mohammad Munir, Kamil Ali Agha, Khurshid Kasuri, Fakhr Imam, Begum Abida Husain, Abdus Sattar Lalika, Tariq Aziz, Mian Abdul Waheed, Sikandar Hayat Malhi, Chaudhry Wajahat Husain, Chaudhry Tufail, Azam Cheema, Imtiaz Ranjha, Afzal Sahi, Chaudhry Mohammad Sadiq, Maj (retd) Tahir Sadiq, Mohammad Ramzan Bhatty, Mian Fazle Haq, Arshad Imran Suleri and Begum Mehnaz Rafi and Ms Nasim Lodhi. Mr Hashmi claimed that though he was party's acting president, he enjoyed all powers available to Mian Nawaz Sharif. He said the only power not available to him was appointing or removing anybody as members of the central working committee. Describing the Feb 19 general council meeting as unconstitutional and illegal, Hashmi directed all members to stay away. "What will be the status of their decision in case majority of the members participated despite a stay-away call from your side?", a reporter asked. Hashmi believed that everybody would stay away. He said any judgment by a committee of journalists on the authenticity of the council members would be acceptable to him. "Let them present the lists before the press". He reiterated that Zulfikar Khosa would step down as provincial president in case the Chaudhrys published the list of all 768 members they claimed to have signed the requisition notice. The acting PML president alleged that through the Feb 19 meeting the government was trying to create a new group of its supporters. He said since the rulers wanted to break up the PML, he was appealing to the members to abstain from the meeting. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20010211 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Malaysia signs accord for buying $20 million arms ------------------------------------------------------------------- Ahmad Hasan Alvi ISLAMABAD, Feb 10: Pakistan and Malaysia on Saturday signed two agreements for the sale/purchase of defence equipment worth $20.9 million. An official announcement, which gave no detail of the defence equipment or its total value, said that the two agreements were signed by senior officials of the Ministries of Defence of Pakistan and Malaysia. But a foreign news agency quoting Malaysia's Barnama news agency said that Malaysia was purchasing missiles and other weapons worth 79.4 million ringget ($20.9 million) from Pakistan. The weapons include anti-tank weapons system costing 30.8 million ringget and surface-to-air missiles costing 48.6 million ringget. The Malaysian defence delegation, led by Defence Minister Dato Seri Mohamad Najib Bin Tun Haji Abdul Razak, is on a five- day visit to Pakistan. Mr Najib, who also met Chief Executive General Pervez Musharraf earlier in the day, was present at the signing ceremony of the agreements. Earlier, the delegation visited Pakistan Ordnance Factories, Wah, and the Heavy Industries, Texila. On arrival at POF, the delegation was received by POF Chairman Lt-Gen Abdul Qayyum, who briefed the Malaysian defence team on Pakistan's defence potential, with particular reference to POF. The defence minister saw the entire range of POF products at the display room. The team was taken around various production units where it witnessed the accuracy of firing of small arms. The Malaysian defence minister expressed satisfaction at the quality of products manufactured at the POF and showed keen interest in the production process of various arms and ammunition. During the visit to Heavy Industries, Taxila, the delegation was received by its Chairman Lt-Gen Hamid Javaid, who gave a briefing on armoured personnel carriers (APCs) being manufactured by the organization. The defence minister was also shown the production line of Al- Khalid, Pakistan's indigenous main battle tank. The Malaysian defence minister showed keen interest in both these defence establishments and hoped for greater mutual cooperation in all the fields, particularly in defence production between the two countries. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20010217 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Pakistan in better position in talks with IMF ------------------------------------------------------------------- Jawaid Bokhari KARACHI, Feb 16: The spectre of durability of the IMF programme and one tranche-country image no longer haunts Pakistan despite the daunting IMF conditionality. Sources said the political and economic context in which talks are now being held with the IMF review team led by Sena Eken is different from the parleys conducted to negotiate stand-by arrangement (SBA) last year. First is the change in the US administration. Traditionally, Republicans have taken a softer line than the Democrats towards Pakistan. Despite giving a green signal to the IMF, sources say, the US abstained from voting when the executive board of the Fund met to approve the SBA in November. The indications are that the United States would "actively endorse" approval of the second tranche at the next board meeting. The local head of a leading international security house says, "It is not a game of numbers." He was referring to official assertion that key IMF targets have been met. He added, "It is now the political game" that is calling the tune. Pakistan's moves to negotiate a peaceful settlement of Kashmir dispute is a positive response to world public opinion. In the economic field, despite severe constraints, Pakistan has taken the required "prior actions" to qualify for the SBA, and has made substantial progress in meeting the SBA targets. Officials say some of the set targets are determined by the market conditions, which governments have no control over. In view of Pakistan's current good equation with the IMF, officials feel confident that they would be able to convince the review team why market-related targets remained illusive. In the talks, sources said the IMF review mission appreciated that Pakistan has met certain conditionalities, pointed out the missed targets, asked the reasons for it and inquired when and how they plan to make up for the lapses. It was the story of missed targets that made Pakistan opt for the SBA on "take it or leave it" basis. Financial analysts say that the IMF is likely to soften economic targets in the light of substantial progress on IMF programme spelt out in the SBA. They, however, do not see any revision of the major economic targets. They expect relaxation more on the timing of policy and structural benchmark. The perception in the capital market is that the core issue between the Fund and Islamabad is budget deficit. If the revenue targets are not met, it would result in short-term damage control of slashing development expenditure to meet fiscal targets - which they say is "a poor prescription by any standard." They do not agree with the finance minister's statement that development and poverty alleviation programme would not be axed. Analysts in a brokerage house say, a seasonal pick-up in commodity producing sectors in the second half of the current fiscal year and the extension of GST to agricultural inputs by March 31 may accelerate revenue growth, particularly in the last quarter. However, it is felt, that government would need to step up its efforts to meet revenue targets. Pakistan has made major efforts to stick to the IMF programme to qualify for the three-year Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility which would enable it to secure concessional credit from the Fund to move away from the threat of debt default to sustainable level of debt burden. They expect the IMF to appreciate what the government and the State Bank have delivered in a very difficult macro-economic environment in such a short time. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20010217 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Corruption weakening Pakistan: US report ------------------------------------------------------------------- Tahir Mirza WASHINGTON, Feb 16: Pakistan, China, Indonesia and the Philippines are described in a US think-tank report as states that are weakening in the face of rapid domestic change, internal conflict and widespread corruption. Overall, the report, compiled by the Asia Foundation, says Asian regional institutions are floundering in the wake of the 1997 financial crisis, and their recovery is tentative and could easily be threatened by a downturn in the American economy. The report, prepared for consideration by the Bush administration (and partly reported in Dawn on Thursday), points out that US trade across the Pacific exceeds that across the Atlantic and is growing rapidly. In 20 years, US private equity in Asia has grown from $300 billion to $400 billion, with the Asian information industry "exploding". In its summary of recommendations drafted by American experts - a separate section contains an input of Asian views - the report asks for a stable forward deployment in north-east and south-east Asia, with greater flexibility and in more dispersed locations; maintaining the one-China principle and "strategic ambiguity" about US actions, but promoting reconciliation across the Taiwan Straits; working with north-east Asian powers to support South Korean reconciliation with the North and continue the momentum (initiated by Mr Clinton) of US rapprochement with North Korea; and scheduling early and regular dialogue with Japan and China. It also urges the US to support the Indonesian government in its attempts to maintain national unity and work to strengthen Asian trends towards functioning open markets by preparing a new World Trade Organization round. The report suggests that the US should encourage continued movement towards openness in the remaining Asian authoritarian states with the aim of "eventual" democratization, and urge Asian governments to bring human rights abusers and corrupt officials to account. REGIONAL TIES: The Asia Foundation's report underlines the need to build bridges with America's regional alliances, and this theme indeed seems to run like a thread through many of the proposals and working papers produced for the benefit of the Bush administration. The director of the prestigious Woodrow Wilson International Centre, Mr Lee Hamilton, has also urged greater cooperation with allies to share some of America's concerns. Speaking at a function held by a private organization, Mr Hamilton, predicting that US diplomacy would become more complicated, said: "We will have great difficulty harnessing our power to advance our interests and achieve our goals. Since we cannot bear every burden, we will have to find new ways to join with other capable and like- minded nations. We will need to cooperate with our allies and utilize international institutions." He thought that the important actors emerging on the world stage that needed to be watched were China, Russia, India, Mexico, Brazil, the European Union and big corporations and non-profit organizations. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20010217 ------------------------------------------------------------------- UN official seeks world help for Afghans ------------------------------------------------------------------- Hasan Akhtar ISLAMABAD, Feb 16: United Nations Under-secretary General for Humanitarian Affairs Kenzo Oshima here on Friday called on the international community "to respond comprehensively" to the human tragedy that was unfolding in Afghanistan where millions of people were threatened by famine and drought and half a million have been forced to live in refugee camps. Addressing a news conference at the end of his 3-day visit to Afghanistan and his discussions here with senior Pakistani officials, the UN official said "Afghanistan is one of the worst places to live in. The humanitarian situation is already bad but it is threatening to get a lot worse very quickly. Already one million people are threatened by famine." Oshima, who assumed his office about two weeks ago, said that on return to his headquarters in New York after, he would report to the Secretary General, Kofi Anan and meet main donors to seek emergency aid for the suffering millions in Afghanistan. He would do everything possible to raise awareness about the enormity of the tragedy of the Afghan people, he said. He said that although the UN had made an appeal for $229 million for the relief and assistance of the war-stricken and drought-hit people of Afghanistan, pledges made so far were far below the needed requirement. He said leaving aside the inaccessible people in the remote areas and villages of the mountainous terrain, there were still about half a million internal refugees and displaced persons who needed immediate assistance. Oshima said although over the past few weeks the situation in regard to tents for shelter and food for the needy people had slightly improved, there was need for setting up food security programme on emergency basis. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20010215 ------------------------------------------------------------------- More cases ready; Nawaz to repay loans ------------------------------------------------------------------- ISLAMABAD, Feb 14: Government will not make a deal to pardon self- exiled former prime minister Benazir Bhutto or her jailed husband, who were convicted of graft in 1999, the military government's chief anti-corruption officer said on Wednesday. "The government is very serious in ensuring that the process of law is culminated in the cases against Benazir and Zardari ... (it) is not interested in any deal with them," Lt Gen Khaild Maqbool, head of the National Accountability Bureau, said. In fact, further charges against Ms Bhutto and her husband Asif Ali Zardari would be prosecuted, he told Reuters Television. In April 1999 a special court sentenced Ms Bhutto and Zardari to five years jail and levied an $8.6 million fine for receiving kickbacks from a Swiss firm. Ms Bhutto was out of the country at the time and has not returned, despite repeatedly stating her intention to resume her role as head of the Pakistan People's Party. Zardari is in prison. An appeal against their conviction is scheduled to be heard from February 26. Speculation of a deal increased after the government allowed Bhutto's successor, former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, to leave prison for exile in Saudi Arabia in December. Sharif was in power when Ms Bhutto and Zardari were convicted. But Gen Maqbool said the government had not dropped corruption charges against Sharif and his family. Sharif was ousted from office by a military coup in October 1999. MORE CHARGES FOR MS BHUTTO: General Maqbool said his anti- corruption body is currently seeking more evidence from British authorities and further corruption charges against Ms Bhutto would go to court. "We have finalised four corruption cases against Benazir and six against her husband Asif Ali Zardari and the court trial will start soon," he said. "The UK government is trying very hard to let us have the possession of 20,000 documents that pertained to corruption of Benazir Bhutto," he said. "After some legal process hopefully those papers should be with us." Gen Maqbool also said his body would reopen all cases against former prime minister Sharif if he returned before the end of the agreed 10-year exile he accepted to escape prison. Even after the end of his exile, Gen Maqbool said Sharif and his family would be responsible for unpaid bank loans. "Corruption and loan and default cases will remain against him ... some cases have to wait (for Sharif's return)," he said. Gen Maqbool's accountability bureau is investigating more than 700 cases, mostly against politicians. Last year the NAB started 237 cases in special courts, won most of the 100 court decisions delivered, and recovered 40 billion rupees of defaulted loans and illegal income. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20010216 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Asif ready to pay 90% property in 'his name' ------------------------------------------------------------------- Rafaqat Ali ATTOCK FORT, Feb 15: Asif Zardari, jailed husband of former prime minister Ms Benazir Bhutto, said on Thursday that he was ready to hand over all his properties to the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) if only 10 per cent of those properties, which NAB claims are worth $1.5 billion, is given to him. "If NAB is ready to give me 10 per cent of what it claims are my properties, I am willing to give NAB in writing to take over all whatever is in my name," Mr Zardari told journalists in an informal chat at the Accountability Court at Attock Fort. Asked if he would strike Nawaz Sharif-like deal with the government to come out of jail, he said he had no options. "If I was in a position to strike a deal I would have done it four years ago," Mr Zardari, who is in jail for the last 51 months said. "But let me tell you that if I strike a deal with the government, the doors of Bilawal House would be closed on me," he said. "They would not allow me to enter Bilawal House." He, however, said that if Nawaz Sharif had not struck a deal, the former prime minister might had been allowed to come out of jail. When pointed out that similar accountability process was initiated by the PPP government as well, Mr Zardari said: "Now I feel that PPP should have entrusted the task of accountability to somebody like Asma Jehangir." A senior journalist, on the occasion, asked him to stick to his words and remember them whenever PPP comes to into power. Mr Zardari asserted that the day was not far when PPP would again come into power. "This is our destiny." The suspended senator, who termed Muslim League and its allied parties as "anti-Bhutto forces, said: "Anti-PPP forces might be able to delay PPP's return to power but they cannot close corridors of power for the PPP permanently." He claimed that anti-PPP forces had joined hands to keep the progressive forces like PPP at bay. Asked if he believed that PPP was an anti-establishment force, then why it made compromises with the same institution for coming into power in 1988, Mr Zardari said that it was an attempt to allay their fears that "we are not fanatics and are human beings like them." Asif Zardari said that he still believed that PPP did a lot of good for the country in its second tenure and provided jobs to the people. Pakistan, he said, is a difficult country to govern. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20010215 ------------------------------------------------------------------- 64 more names removed from ECL ------------------------------------------------------------------- Bureau Report ISLAMABAD, Feb 14: The government on Wednesday removed the names of 64 politicians including Chaudhrys of Gujrat from the Exit Control List (ECL). Interior ministry sources said that the names which have been removed from ECL include former as well as suspended senators and members of the National and provincial assemblies belonging to different political parties. A few names have been deleted either because of the death of a person or owing to his escape abroad. These names also include some of those who have been convicted by the accountability courts. The names removed from the ECL include suspended/former senators Ahsanul Haq Paracha, Abdul Qayyum, Haji Gul Sher, Ilyas Ahmad Bilor, Mohammad Javed Mengal, Tariq Sultan and Zar Mohammad Malik. Suspended/former MNAs include Mian Abdul Mannan, Akhtar Abbas Barwana, Chaudhry Amir Hussain, Atta Mohammad Qureshi, Dilawar Khan Ghachi, Farooq Ahmed, Maulana Fazlur Rehman, Gohar Ayub Khan, Humayun Akhtar Khan, Dr Imran Farooq, Kanwar Khalid Younis, Mian Mohammad Munir, Sadeeq Khan Kanjo, Sardar Mohammad Yousaf, Munawwar Hussain Chaudhry, Riaz Hussain Pirzada, Shahid Abbas Shah Syed, Dr Sher Afgan, Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain, Tariq Poori and Rana Zahid Tousif. Suspended/former MPAs include Abdul Haleem Khattak, Abdul Rehman Khaitran, Abudllah Shadikheil, Akhtar Mengal, Malik Allahyar Awan, Asadullah Baloch, Alam Kabir, Bilal Mustafa Khar, Ahsanullah Khan, Faiq Ali Khan Jamali, Ghafoor Khan Jadoon, Ghalib Hussain Dhongi, Ghulam Mustafa Baldar, Habibullah Khan Kundi, Intizar Hussain Bhatti, Kamran Afzal Raja, Khush Akhtar Subhani, Maulana Manzoor Chinioti, Manzoor Ahmed Watto, Manzoor Hussain Wassan, Maqbool Ahmad Sheikh, Haji Maqsood Butt, Mir Jan Khan Jamali, Mohammad Ishfaq Walen alias Boli Butt, Maj (retd) Mohammad Aslam Khan, Mohammad Ayub Blaidi, Mohammad Khalid Javed Waraich, Mohammad Riaz Fitiana, Tariq Tarar, Mohammad Yousaf, Zahid Qureshi, Chaudhry Pervez Illahi, Kanwar Abbas Syed, Chaudhry Shah Nawaz Ranja, Shaukat Ali Chaudhry and Tariq Agha. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 2020010214 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Pakistan offers loan to Lanka to buy arms ------------------------------------------------------------------- COLOMBO, Feb 13: Pakistan has offered to lend Sri Lanka 20 million dollars to buy arms to battle a minority Tamil separatist rebellion, military officials aid on Tuesday. "We have been offered a 20 million dollar line of credit for military requirements," military spokesman Brigadier Sanath Karunaratne said. He said the offer was made during a visit to Sri Lanka last month by a senior official of the Pakistan army. Karunaratne said no decision had been taken on how the money would be spent. Pakistan has in the past supplied Colombo with ammunition for artillery, mortars and multiple-barrel rocket launchers.- Reuters DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20010212 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Anti-Nawaz group seizes PML house ------------------------------------------------------------------- Reporter LAHORE, Feb 11: A large number of anti-Nawaz people, who were armed, took control of the Pakistan Muslim League house on Sunday night, throwing away the name-plates of the deposed prime minister and other office-bearers. The operation was led by Chaudhry Tufail, secretary-general of the PML, Gujrat, and former legislator Imtiaz Ranjha. The Pakistan Muslim League house, Islamabad, has been under control of the anti-Nawaz group for the past few months. The Pakistan Muslim League house, Lahore, was also taken over by Sharif adversaries a few months back but its control was handed back after a public meeting there. Both pro- and anti- Nawaz leaders have been using the premises. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20010212 ------------------------------------------------------------------- PPP to mobilize public opinion on tape scandal ------------------------------------------------------------------- Reporter KARACHI, Feb 11: The Pakistan People's Party has decided to mobilize public opinion against the "false" conviction of the party chairperson. Demanding honourable acquittal of Benazir Bhutto and withdrawal of all references , the party demanded resignation of all those judges whose names had appeared in the tape and institution of cases against those involved in the "verdict." The PPP Executive Committee, which met in Bilawal House on Sunday with the party Vice Chairman, Makhdoom Amin Faheem, in the chair, also resolved to contact leaders of other parties and bar associations in this connection. PPP Deputy Secretary-General Mian Raza Rabbani, briefing newsmen said the one-point agenda of the meeting was to discuss and to formulate the party strategy on the "fixed" verdict and tape issue. "It is the considered opinion of the party that whenever the establishment had brought a Bhutto for trial, it had adopted a similar posture by creating a facade of fair trial despite trial by biased judges. "The tapes' contents and conversations of Khalid Anwar and Saif-ur- Rehman are sufficient proof that in handing down the verdict the due process of law had been circumvented," Mr Rabbani said. He claimed, all circumstances and the disclosures made in the tape led one to believe that it was a premeditated judgement. Mr Rabbani said the party had rejected Khalid Anwar's and Justice Qayyum's denial. Besides, he claimed, the two statements issued by Khalid Anwar were in a way an implicit acceptance that his reported conversation with the judge was in line with his duty as law minister. "The surfacing of the tape has created a grave situation and it has shaken the confidence of the common man in the judiciary." Therefore, he said, the judges whose names had appeared in the tape should resign, Benazir Bhutto be acquitted honorably and proceedings should be initiated against all those involved in "the verdict-fixing scandal". He also asked for clarification from the President why he had not taken action on the letter sent to him on Jan 26 by a deputy director of an intelligence agency. He also referred to the warning that Benazir Bhutto would be arrested if she returned home. He asked "what moral, legal, and political validity this judgment has after it has been revealed that the verdict was fixed and obtained under duress?" He also recalled the double standards being pursued by the government pointing out that a peaceful protest rally of PPP women in Lahore was dispersed by force and about 40 women and children were arrested. On Feb 8, a women's rally in Multan was also dispersed by force. The participants had been protesting against soaring prices and were arrested under MPO-16. On Feb 9, a party convention was teargassed and baton-charged and raids were being conducted to arrest part workers. "Another example of discriminatory attitude is the treatment being meted out to Asif Zardari after shifting him to Islamabad, where attempts were made to change the medical reports of three medical boards written by a team of doctors. Referring to the bomb blast in Rawalpindi and the law and order situation in Quetta, he said the PPP was of the view that law and order had collapsed in the country. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20010216 ------------------------------------------------------------------- SHC reinstates 62 CBR officials ------------------------------------------------------------------- Shamim-ur-Rahman KARACHI, Feb 15: The Sindh High Court on Thursday directed the government to reinstate 62 CBR officials, while declaring their suspension as unlawful. This was spelt out in a short order given by a division bench, comprising Justice Sabihuddin Ahmed and Justice Zahid Qurban Alavi while allowing the petitions of the CBR officials who had been suspended under Section 4 of the Removal From Service (Special Powers) Ordinance 2000, some 10 months ago. The bench was of the view that the no material was communicated to the petitioners or placed before the court, which could even remotely suggest that disciplinary action against the petitioners was contemplated on the basis of certain allegations. The bench held that the "continued suspensions of petitioners is ultra vires the powers conferred by Section 4 of the Removal from Service (Special Powers) Ordinance 2000 and is without lawful authority." The court ordered that the petitioners be reinstated while holding that the respondents shall, however, be at liberty to pass appropriate orders under section 4, whenever any material forming the basis of actions under section 3 comes to their knowledge and is communicated to the petitioners. Earlier on Feb 6, Advocate General Sindh, Raja Qureshi and Syed Tariq Ali, representing the federal government, had requested for a date on the ground that Ordinance V of 2001 had been legislated whereby certain amendments have been brought into the Removal from Service (Special Powers) Ordinance 2000, under which the impugned order of suspension had taken place. As such time was sought to examine the implications of the latest amendments, particularly the two provisions of the section 3 of Ordinance V of 2001. This contention was opposed by counsel for petitioners Barrister Dr Mohammad Farogh Naseem, and Khalid Jawaid Khan, who argued that the new ordinance did not affect the pending proceedings. On the contrary it enforced the case of the petitioners since section 5 of the new ordinance confirmed that charge sheets/statements of allegations were to follow pursuant to any inquiry, which meant that petitioners could not be suspended indefinitely. Barrister Naseem stated that the new ordinance did not change the provisions regarding suspension and as such was totally irrelevant in relation to the impugned action taken against the petitioners. Barrister Khalid Jawaid Khan had also opposed the contention for adjournment on the same ground. The bench had adjourned the matter to Feb 13 with interim order that if any action was contemplated against the petitioners in terms of the two provisions of section 3 of the new ordinance appropriate orders, along with material on which they are based should be placed on record. When the matter came up before the bench on Tuesday (Feb 13) Raja Qureshi placed a letter of the CBR, dated Feb 9, 2001, in which it was stated that since an appeal was pending in the Supreme Court against the SHC division bench judgment in OSDs matter, hearing in the present case might be adjourned. It was also stated in the letter that one week's time was not sufficient to provide the material on record and thus the matter ought to be adjourned. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20010214 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Overseas Pakistanis begin getting NICs ------------------------------------------------------------------- Bureau Report ISLAMABAD, Feb 13: The government on Tuesday formally launched the National Identity Cards for Overseas Pakistanis (Nicop) on Tuesday. The Nicop, to be issued for $100 for adults and $50 for children (below 18), will help overseas Pakistanis enjoy visa-free and unlimited entries without any limit of the duration of stay in Pakistan; purchase and sale of property anywhere in the country; open bank accounts in the schedule banks; obtain utility connections; and make capital investment for business. Moreover the card holders need not to register himself/herself in any police station in Pakistan for stay in Pakistan and for going abroad during validity period of Nicop. Interior minister Lt-Gen Moinuddin Haider was the chief guest at the launching ceremony organized by National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra) at its headquarters. At the ceremony almost a dozen cards were issued to applicants from USA, Germany, Holland etc. Those eligible to get the card include all Pakistanis holding dual nationality, ex-Pakistani nationals who have now given up their Pakistani nationality, individuals who claim their origin from areas in Pakistan and their families are residing in Pakistan and all Muslim individuals who claim origin from areas now in India but their families migrated to Pakistan during the partition in 1947. Speaking at the launching ceremony, the interior minister said that by issuing Nicop, Nadra had accomplished a difficult task. He said that the Chief Executive was very much interested in the completion of this project and it had given the CE a lot of confidence. "I see bright future for Pakistan through Nadra", the minister said. The minister also spoke about other projects being pursued by Nadra. He, however, referred to recent "Nadra fiasco" relating to the issuance of faulty voter lists. He said that the task of revising electoral rolls had been given to Nadra. He admitted that the voter lists did contain errors but held the media and the people responsible for making mountain out of molehill. He added that Nadra was creating an authentic database and national data warehouse for the people which would be used for multi- purposes both by the government agencies and private concerns. He said that Nadra had completed almost 90 per cent of the task concerning about the database. The minister also counted on other major projects like issuance of foolproof national identity cards, machine readable passports and Pakistan citizen cards for Pakistani workers in the Middle East. The minister said that taking advantage of the database created by Nadra the government would also create National Motor Vehicle Registration Authority. About the voter lists, he said the Authority was currently revising them to make them almost error-free. The minister disclosed that same voter lists would be used in the next national and provincial elections in the country. Secretary labour and manpower division Farhat Hussain expressed his pleasure over the launching of Nicop as it was widely demanded by overseas Pakistanis. Nadra chairman Maj Gen Zahid Ahsan said that Nadra was involved in a work which had no precedent in the world. He said the documentation of the country's population would help future policy-making of the country.
BUSINESS & ECONOMY DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20010215 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Defence budget not to go up: Cabinet agrees to cut expenses ------------------------------------------------------------------- Ihtashamul Haque ISLAMABAD, Feb 14: The federal cabinet here on Wednesday agreed in principle not to increase the defence budget and keep it "constant" as has been proposed by the Debt Reduction and Management Committee. "Most of the recommendations of the committee to reduce huge debt burden were appreciated by the cabinet members today. Now the government will implement these recommendations," said Finance Minister Shaukat Aziz, while briefing newsmen here. The finance minister said that the government planned to release the report of the committee by March 15, along with its policy statement on debt strategy following which the issue will be open for public debate in the seminars to be held in Islamabad, Lahore, Karachi, Quetta and Peshawar. He said a decision has been taken by the cabinet that non- development budget would be cut and from now onwards no development project could be undertaken by any ministry or division without the formal approval of the National Economic Council (NEC), Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec) and the Central Development Working Committee (CDWP). In the light of the recommendations of the debt committee, the finance minister said the government was now working on a strategy to effectively reduce both the public and external debt. The cabinet was told that debt was a very complex issue which needed to be resolved with all seriousness and by adopting consistent policies. He said that due to the impact of debt, social spending had been curtailed in the past but now the time had come when the government should not only try to cut down its debt but also make available considerable funds for social sector. Shaukat Aziz said the cabinet was informed that the fiscal and current account was very large and forcing the government to borrow more to pay off previous liabilities. "Over the years borrowing capacity has been stretched but without increasing revenues and exports," he said. The finance minister said a debt policy coordination office has been approved by the cabinet which would monitor all issues relating to local and foreign debt and give timely advice to the government on various issues. "This office will help us formulate any contingency plan to meet with the situation of high level of debts," the finance minister said. Dr Pervez Hasan, chairman of the debt committee who was also present on the occasion, said that debt was a very complex and serious issue which called for taking bold and correct decisions so that, "we could come out of debt trap". "Our debt is 6 times higher than our annual revenues and our 60 per cent of revenues go into servicing of debt," he said. Dr Ishfaq Hasan Khan, secretary of the committee, told reporters that there had been an increase of Rs647 billion in public debt during 1980 to 1990, while from 1990 to 1999 it registered an increase of Rs2169 billion. External debt, Dr Khan said, has increased by $10.2 billion during 1980 to 1990 while from 1990 to 1999, it registered an increase of $15.426 billion. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20010216 ------------------------------------------------------------------- WB team coming to investigate SAP scam: $400m involved ------------------------------------------------------------------- Rauf Klasra ISLAMABAD, Feb 15: The World Bank's Corruption and Fraud Investigation Unit (CFIU) is arriving in Pakistan to investigate alleged $400 million (Rs20 billion) embezzlement in the Social Action Programme (SAP-II), an authoritative source told Dawn. The CFIU and officials from Bank's Institutional Integrity Department will conduct investigations in collaboration with the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) and Auditor General of Pakistan. It will also review official documents and verify assets in all the four provinces and the federal capital territory under SAP-II. The source said the government has agreed to cooperate with the CFIU after a lot of reluctance and only after World Bank named it as "Field & Integrity Assurance Mission." The source said that the CFIU team comprised of two British and two Pakistan nationals besides a Canadian. The CFIU will examine Auditor General's observations (audit reports) which had pin-pointed the fraud and corruption in the Social Action Plan. Earlier, sources said, acting Country Director Pakistan and Afghanistan South Asia Region, Abid Hasan, through a letter had informed the Finance Ministry that the mission would be headed by Mr Terence Matthews (British national), head of investigation/ operations and include Mohammad Ashraf, procurement adviser (a Pakistani national), Peter Dent, senior forensic accountant (Canadian) and Duncan Smith, lawyer/ investigator (British) for conducting the entire operation. Mr Arif Yaqub, World Bank's senior financial management specialist at Islamabad office, will also be a member of the team and coordinate the programme. The Unit was set up in 1997 on the initiative of Mr James Wolfenson, President of the Bank, to "abate fraud and corruption" under the bank-supported operations. The unit was progressively staffed and has now been subsumed into the new department of the Institutional Integrity, reporting directly to the president of the bank. The mandate of the CFIU includes investigation of fraud and corruption involving the bank staff, suppliers, contractors and officials of member governments under the bank-supported operations. The source said the objectives of the CFIU were quite different from that of a regular supervision, procurement review and or financial management review mission. "The mission will focus on the expenditures where the findings of the Auditor General of Pakistan indicate actual and potential fraud," the source quoted World Bank as telling the government. "Additionally, other alleged irregularities conveyed to the bank by various independent sources would also be investigated." DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20010213 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Riba-free banking not to affect dealings: CE ------------------------------------------------------------------- ISLAMABAD, Feb 12: Chief Executive General Pervez Musharraf on Monday reiterated that international financial dealings and transactions as well as all foreign investments will not be affected by the introduction of riba free banking in Pakistan. "All such transactions and investments will be fully protected according to agreed terms," he asserted while addressing the fiscal conference to review macro-economic issues and budgetary position at the end of the first half of the fiscal year. The Chief Executive constituted a high powered committee comprising the Federal Ministers for Finance, Religious Affairs, Law & Justice and the Governor State Bank of Pakistan to study and examine all details relating to elimination of riba. The committee would formulate recommendations in the light of the judgment of the Supreme Court and also review the recommendations of the three committees already working in the ministries to identify areas where the decision could be implemented without delay and those requiring further study, planning and clarification. In his opening remarks, the Chief Executive observed that the process of elimination of riba demanded deep thought and formulation of an implementation plan that facilitates unhindered growth of the economy. He asked the committee to also study the models in Saudi Arabia and Malaysia, two Islamic countries which have handled their economy with efficiency and success. Commenting on the macro economic issues, General Pervez Musharraf identified increase in agricultural yield, water resource conservation and augmentation, improvement in the literacy rate and effective implementation of the poverty alleviation plan as the main thrust of the government's economic policies. He directed the concerned ministries to draw strategic plans in their respective areas that yield results in the shortest possible time frame. The conference reviewed the budgetary performance in terms of targets and achievements during July-December 2000 under various heads of income and expenditure. Satisfaction was expressed over the rate of inflation of 4.9 percent during the first six months with food inflation being only 4.3 percent during this period. Inflation target for the financial year ending June 2001 is 6 percent. The conference was informed that the rate of inflation was 9 per cent in India and 7.3 per cent in Bangladesh. Although increase in oil import accounted for 67 per cent of the trade deficit, substantial increase in non tax revenues, enhanced bank borrowings by the private sector, containment of money supply and increased activity in the manufacturing sector were identified as important indicators of an economic turn around. The rate of inflation has been the lowest in 20 years and dividends paid by the companies to the shareholders was the highest in five decades, the conference was informed.-APP DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20010216 ------------------------------------------------------------------- State Bank sucks in Rs15.5bn from money market ------------------------------------------------------------------- Mohiuddin Aazim KARACHI, Feb 15: Though Pakistan is yet to decide whether it should enhance its interest rates as demanded by the IMF, the State Bank has indicated that it would contain liquidity in the money market. Whereas it is to be seen if it leads to a tighter monetary policy, containing liquidity in the money market would shore up the rupee that has been on the fall for past few days. The SBP on Thursday kept the yield on treasury bills in one- week and eight-week repos higher than the previous cut-off on two-week and six-week repos. The SBP said it sucked in Rs15.5bn from inter-bank market in one- week and eight-week repos of treasury bills at 9.5 and 10.25pc at its open market operation, respectively. On February 1, SBP mopped up Rs12.35bn through two-week and six-week repos at 9 and 9.5pc. Bankers said outflow of Rs15.5bn from the inter-bank market pushed up lending rates adding that overnight call rate rose to 11.5pc from only two per cent on Wednesday. They said some banks also had to borrow overnight funds worth more than Rs2.2bn from SBP at its fixed repo rate of 13pc. They said a tight money market would shore up the rupee that has been on the fall for past few days due to buying of dollars by corporates and those going to Saudi Arabia for Hajj. The rupee closed 10 paisa down overnight at 59.42/59.44 to a dollar in inter-bank market. Bankers said the Thursday cut-off was a clear indication that the SBP had started further tightening of monetary policy on the demand of the IMF. But two senior central bankers said higher cut-off on T bills repos meant that the SBP would no longer keep the money market excessively liquid. They said they would not be surprised if the market interpreted this as a prelude to a tighter monetary policy. A visiting IMF review mission has told top economic managers that Pakistan needs to make its monetary policy a bit tighter and use interest rate - and not the foreign exchange rates as the anchor of the policy. Pakistan is yet to decide if it should take this seemingly bitter pill. Businessmen and economists say Pakistan can hardly gain anything by further tightening of monetary policy at a time when its economy is still struggling to get out of woods. Whereas the economic managers are trying to bring home this and some other points during the talks with the mission those engaged in the talks privately say Pakistan may have to accept the IMF demands. It is against this backdrop that the Thursday cut-off on the T bills yield has become so important for timely interpretation by the banks and other segments of the economy. Pakistan began tightening of its monetary policy in mid -September to keep the rupee stable after its free-floating on July 20 on the insistence of the IMF well before getting a 10- month $596m standby credit. The country has so far got the first tranche of $192m. The second tranche is due in March but to qualify for getting this the country has to do a number of things. Further tightening of monetary policy and liberalization of foreign exchange regime are just two of them. Sources close to ministry of finance say Pakistan may have to do both before the end of March. But they say the government would most likely take the business community into confidence before taking a decision. Businessmen and economist say if the monetary policy becomes tighter - and the interest rates go up the economy will be hurt in the following four ways: (i) Export finance rate will shoot up to unmanageable highs as this is going to be linked to the treasury bills yield and in the event of a tighter monetary policy T bills yield would move up. (ii) revival of sick units would become almost impossible and the industries already in the process of revival would fall sick again. (iii) banks would find it more difficult to recover their bad loans; and (iv) the cost of domestic debt servicing would rise thereby raising the budget deficit of the government and of state-run organizations. And to add insult to injury all this would render Pakistan unable to meet several key performance criteria set by the IMF under its standby credit. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20010217 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Distribution formula being worked out ------------------------------------------------------------------- Faraz Hashmi ISLAMABAD, Feb 16: The water reserves at Tarbella and Mangla will last up to February 28 after which only run of the river water will be available for meeting irrigation needs of the country, Dawn learnt here on Friday. The irrigation ministries of the provinces have already been informed about the situation that no stored water will be available after Feb 28, an Indus River System Authority official said. Wheat crop in Punjab is likely to miss the last watering, which the provincial irrigation department had planned from March 5 to 15. "We had planned to supplywater twice for wheat crop before harvest but now we would be able to supply only once," a senior official of the Punjab irrigation department said. Only 30 per cent of the total requirement of wheat crop has been fulfilled this year, he said, predicting a considerable decline in wheat production. The flow upstream River Jhelum at Mangla was only 4,000 cusecs while 18,000 cusecs were being drawn, he said. "The situation at Tarbella is worst as the water level has already dropped to the lowest ever in the last 25 years", the source said. "Water at Tarbella has never dropped to this level during this part of the year", another official at the dam told Dawn when contacted by telephone. "Tarbella is releasing 30,000 cusecs a day and only 12,000 cusecs is flowing down in the reservoir from the Indus River," he said. "With this rate of discharge the storage at the most will last only for two weeks." DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20010214 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Increase in interest rate not possible, IMF told ------------------------------------------------------------------- Bureau Report ISLAMABAD, Feb 13: The visiting five member IMF review mission headed by Ms Sena Eken has asked the nationalized commercial banks (NCBs) to increase rate of interest with a view to improving their financial health. "But we have told the mission members that there is hardly any space and potential available to increase the banks' interest rate", said the President of Habib Bank Limited (HBL), Mr Zakir. He told reporters at a briefing here on Tuesday that the IMF mission had met bankers and financial experts in Karachi on Monday where the issue of increasing banks' interest rate was discussed. However, he pointed out, that the IMF mission was told that it was not easy at this stage to seek change in the monetary policy, exchange rate policy and interest rate policy. "The rate of interest of banks at this stage cannot be increased". He said that economic recovery required that interest rate of the banks should not be very high so that business community did not feel hesitant to establishing their new industries in Pakistan. Finance Minister Shaukat Aziz on this occasion said that it was perhaps the first time that any IMF mission leader had met the bankers to discus various issues. He, however, said that nothing had been finalized with the IMF and that currently consultations were being held on various issues including the banking sector. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20010216 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Export financing rate hike feared ------------------------------------------------------------------- Sabihuddin Ghausi KARACHI, Feb 15: Central bankers have again dropped broad hints on Thursday of further pushing up the export refinance cost from nine per cent to 12 per cent plus before the end of the current fiscal year. Textile manufacturers and exporters received these signals on Thursday at the State Bank of Pakistan's Credit Committee meeting when the central bankers indicated of "withdrawing subsidy on the export refinance" and phasing it out by pegging its rate at 1.5 to two per cent above the treasury bills that bring it to 12 per cent plus. Business leaders, who attended the meeting, said the central bankers indicated pushing up the export refinance cost on selective basis. "The least value added item may be given export refinance credit at higher cost from March," one of the exporters said. "But then eventually, the export refinance has to be phased out completely," he said. "India has allowed export refinance at five per cent, virtually across the board," Mirza Ikhtiar Baig, a spinner and representative of the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry in the committee, said while informing the bankers that industrial production cost in Pakistan has become costliest in the region rendering it totally uncompetitive in the export market. "It is bound to throw the entire business out of gear," Shabbir Ahmad, a leading textile products exporter remarked. He said the entire production and export strategy was designed on the basis of eight per cent refinance cost. It has already been raised to nine per cent and now the central bankers are dropping hints of refinance cost going up further. According to the bankers, the flow of export refinance credit in the first half of this fiscal year increased by Rs6.1 billion as against Rs7 billion credit extended in same period of 99-00. "Pattern of the net credit under export finance scheme, though lower in quantum this year, showed consistency in terms of credit disbursement," a recent report of the State Bank says. In the preceding year (99-00), credit for export finance showed retirement upto October 99 and picked up in the subsequent months, while in the current year it started increasing from August 2000. Export finance credit increased by Rs1.7bn in first quarter of July-September 2000 and Rs4.4bn in the second quarter of October- December. In sharp contrast, exporters retired Rs3.7bn in the first quarter of last fiscal year and utilized Rs10.7bn export refinance credit in October-December 1999. Business leaders expect a meeting of the manufacturers, exporters, bankers and bureaucrats sometimes late this month or early next month to work out a strategy for maintaining Pakistan's competitive edge in the export market. The businessmen said, "the industry is groaning under the impact of oil price increase - five times in last one year, electricity rate hike, dumping of imported consumer goods and high financial cost. And now the crawling up of export refinance cost." DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20010215 ------------------------------------------------------------------- State Bank calls for maximum use of ATM ------------------------------------------------------------------- KARACHI, Feb 14 : Banks have been prohibited from making cash payment at any place other than the authorized place of business except through installation of an automatic teller machine (ATM). The State Bank of Pakistan notified on Wednesday that banks interested in installing ATM or sharing ATM facilities with other banks could do so without SBP's prior approval. The banks have, however, been advised to intimate the SBP in this regard 15 days in advance and it would amount to approval of the same if the central bank does not convey any reservations during the period. The decision had been taken to encourage the banks to make use of ATM and hence the Prudential Regulation No XV stood substituted, the SBP said.-APP DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 2020010214 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Sale of bonds exceeds target ------------------------------------------------------------------- Mohiuddin Aazim KARACHI, Feb 13: The State Bank on Tuesday raised Rs15.5 billion long term funds through sale of Pakistan Investment Bonds - thanks to growing interest of fund managers in these bonds. The amount is almost double the sale target of Rs8 billion, set earlier by the SBP. Bankers say since borrowing through the PIBs is treated as non - bank borrowing, the mopping up of Rs15.5 billion through the bonds would help the government cut its borrowing from banks. And that in turn would enable it to meet some key targets set by the IMF. The SBP said it had received bids worth Rs17.8 billion but it sold Rs15.5 billion bonds - and scrapped the remaining bids. It said the 10-year PIBs alone attracted Rs13.8 billion funds: three-year bonds raised Rs1.2 billion and five-year bonds Rs452 million. The SBP sold the bonds - through primary dealers - at a premium of 10 paisa for each hundred rupees. The bonds carried 12.5 per cent interest for three years; 13 per cent for five years and 14 per cent for 10 years. The investors would get the interest through six-monthly coupons. According to the primary dealers - the banks selected by the SBP for selling government securities - both state-run corporations and private corporates invested huge funds in PIBs. They said the buyers included State Life Insurance Corporation that bought about Rs5 billion worth of bonds. Some other state-run organizations that made heavy investment in the bonds included (i) National Insurance Corporation (ii) National Fertilizer Corporation (iii) Karachi Port Trust (iv) Workers Welfare Fund and (v) Employees Old Age Benefit Institution. Bankers said some insurance companies and investment banks were also among principal buyers of the bonds. Besides local and multinational private companies invested their provident and pension funds in the bonds. Bankers said even some commercial banks invested long-term funds in the papers. And the investors included at least two foreign banks on the list of the primary dealers. In all there are seven primary dealers: (i) Habib Bank (ii) National Bank (iii) Union Bank (iv) Citibank (v) ABN Amro (vi) American Express and (vii) Standard Chartered. Bankers said Standard Chartered alone sold more than Rs6 billion bonds. Bankers close to the SBP said the State Bank high-ups gave a big pat on the back of primary dealers for aggressive marketing of the bonds: but they admonished them for not being accurate in their earlier assessment about the demand for the bonds. It was on the recommendation of the primary dealers that the State Bank had lowered the sale target for the bonds from Rs14 billion to Rs8 billion. That the recommendation was not based upon real assessment of ground realities was evident from the fact that Tuesday auction generated Rs17.8 billion worth of bids for the bonds. Bankers said the SBP officials told primary dealers that draining out Rs15.5 billion from the market instead of targeted Rs8 billion was a bit of unprofessional approach. They were right. A number of local and foreign bankers told Dawn that it had put the relevance of pre-auction targets in question. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20010214 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Consumer Price Index up by 4.88% ------------------------------------------------------------------- Muhammad Ilyas ISLAMABAD, Feb 13: The inflation rate based on Consumer Price Index rose by 4.88 per cent during the period July-January, over the corresponding period of last year, according to Federal Bureau of Statistics, released on Tuesday. Indicating continuous spiral of inflation, other indices - Sensitive Price Index (SPI) and Wholesale Price Index (WPI) - increased even more, that is, by 5.35% and 6.71%, respectively. This is all the more disturbing because SPI measures the changes in cost of living for the lowest paid employees (up to Rs1500 per month). The WPI reflects the rising cost of industrial production as it includes raw materials and intermediate goods in its basket. According to the review, CPI, SPI and WPI had increased during the period July-January, 1999-2000 by 3.37%, 1.84% and 1.53%, respectively over the corresponding period of preceding year, thus showing a sharply rising trend in the cost of living since 1998. During the month of January, 2001, WPI registered the highest increase - 9.33% - as compared to January, 2000, while CPI and SPI soared by 4.67% and 6.46%, respectively. In January 2000, SPI and CPI had inched up by 0.62% and 3.43%, respectively, while WPI had declined by 0.41% over the corresponding month of 1999. When compared with December, 2000, however, all the indices are shown to have slowed during the month under report. While SPI increased by 0.15% only, CPI and WPI declined by 0.16% and 0.84%, respectively. Group-wise analysis of the CPI's behaviour shows a steep rise in prices of "transport & communication", "fuel & lighting" and medicines. In January 2001, their prices shot up by 14.56%, 10.85% and 7.81%, respectively, compared to corresponding month of the previous year. The rise in the prices of the former two groups was due to another hike in the petroleum prices. As regards the rise in prices of medicines, this is one of the perennial phenomenon attributable mainly to decisions of the ministry of health. Thanks to its peculiar composition, the group "food, beverages & tobacco" registered an increase of only 4.67%. When compared with December 2000, it is reported to have even dropped by 0.16%. CPI for the remaining groups increased during January. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20010214 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Record credit given to private sector ------------------------------------------------------------------- Ihtasham ul Haque ISLAMABAD, Feb 13: A high level meeting presided over by Chief Executive General Pervez Musharraf was told here on Tuesday that the nationalised commercial banks have extended a record Rs 90 billion in credit to the private sector during the first seven months of 2000-2001. However, the chief executive asked the presidents of National Bank of Pakistan (NBP), Habib Bank Ltd (HBL) and United Bank Ltd (UBL) who were also present in the meeting, to drastically improve their financial health so that they could be privatized as early as possible. He told reporters at a briefing after the meeting that the chief executive had issued instructions to the nationalised commercial banks to improve their service to customers, specially in the area of customer complaints in depositing payment for utility bills. The meeting, which was also attended by the State Bank of Pakistan governor and ministers for interior and labour, was told to focus on credit expansion for the private sector, so that greater economic activities could be undertaken. It was told that so far only oil and gas, textile and automobile sectors of the economy have been offered more credit. The finance minister said that UBL was given Rs 21 billion liquidity by the government while Rs 18 billion was offered to HBL to improve its financial health. "The meeting today decided that the government would no more be pumping funds into the nationalised commercial banks to improve their health. Rather they had been asked to recover their bad loans and improve their performance so that they could be made financially viable", he said, adding that the chief executive has asked whytax payers money should be offered to pay off banks' liabilities and that the banks should themselves sustain their own losses. Aziz told a reporter that the financial advisors for UBL, NBP and HBL were being appointed with a view to accelerate their privatisation process. RIBA: Minister for Finance, Shaukat Aziz, said here that riba (interest) free banking was an important issue which required careful handling to meet the deadline of June 30 given by the Supreme Court. "And that was why the chief executive has set up another high powered committee on Monday to look into the issue before finally start implementing the ruling of the Supreme Court on riba", he further stated. He told reporters at a briefing that the new committee would wait for the recommendations of all the three committees set up in the State Bank of Pakistan, Law Division and the Ministry of Finance to implement the ruling of the apex court. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20010217 ------------------------------------------------------------------- TCP's counter offer for wheat ------------------------------------------------------------------- Reporter KARACHI, Feb 16: The Trading Corporation of Pakistan (TCP) has given counter offer of $120 per ton to the highest bidder for wheat, who quoted $105.25 per ton for a total quantity of 100,000 ton. Sources on Friday said the bidder - National Flour Mills (NFM) of Dubai - has been asked to give his consent to the TCP's counter offer by Friday, February 23. Responding to a question, TCP chairman Syed Masood Alam Rizvi told Dawn that the NFM had already expressed its desire to go for higher quantity once the Pakistani wheat gets good response from their consumers. According to the tender documents of the bidder, they had indicated to purchase another 200,000 tons if the "hard red winter" quality wheat from Pakistan was accepted by consumers. The TCP last week called bids for export of 500,000 tons wheat and on Wednesday, the tender opening day, three bids were offered for a total quantity of 225,000 tons. The highest was at $105.25 per tone, followed by $102.24 and $90.50 per ton. Except being lesser in red colour, the Pakistani wheat is of the same quality and standard of "hard red winter" wheat, which is presently in great demand in the world market. Meanwhile, a three-member high-powered official delegation headed by chairman TCP is leaving for Iraq on Saturday to negotiate the deal regarding supply of wheat to Baghdad under phase-IV of the Oil-for-Food Programme. The delegation will hold meetings with the Iraqi Grains Board. It is expected that a deal for 35,000 tons of Pakistani wheat, which is already under negotiation will be finalized.Back to the top
EDITORIALS & FEATURES DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20010211 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Is hammam main sab nangay ------------------------------------------------------------------- Ardeshir Cowasjee IS there any objective non-party person in Pakistan who will deny that both Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif, their cohorts, their governments were corrupt to the core and collectively responsible for the robbery and plunder of this country and its people? I will say nothing about the judiciary as I stand accused of having committed contempt of court. I have asked Chief Justice of Pakistan Irshad Hassan Khan to hear my case before I or my lawyers die and am anxiously awaiting a summons to Islamabad. When Benazir was dismissed for the first time in 1990 President Ghulam Ishaq Khan filed six references against her alleging corruption and misconduct. None of these were decided during Nawaz's first tenure (1990-93). So, when Benazir came back for her second round she naturally had herself acquitted on all charges. The country lost; the people lost. In her second round, Benazir and her husband discovered a new source of income - inspection companies. Six cover companies were named and used: Capricorn Trading, Dargal Associated, Mariston Securities, Mariston Business, Nassam Incorporated, Bomer Finance. On September 8, 1997, the Swiss Federal Office for Police Matters, Berne, informed our government that sufficient evidence had been found to justify their writing to four banks informing them to block the accounts of "accused persons Bhutto Benazir, ex-prime minister, Zardari Asif Ali, husband of Madame Bhutto, Bhutto Nusat Begum." When Benazir was thrown out in 1996 for the second time, charged with corruption and malpractices, and Nawaz came in for his second bout with the nation one thing he did do was to manage in 1999 to have a high court convict both Benazir and Asif. Asif is in prison whilst Benazir has embarked on a world lecture tour, posing to be as pure as the proverbial driven snow. Both have appealed to the Supreme Court against their conviction and this appeal is to be heard at the end of this month. Now, at this moment in time, a 'spook' emerges. As is the wont of his profession, a deputy director of the Intelligence Bureau writes to the President of Pakistan on January 29 and sends him a bunch of tapes of bugged conversations. The spook writes on IB-Lahore letterhead, so one should presume he wrote from Lahore. The letter and the transcripts of the tapes are leaked to and printed by The Sunday Times, London, on Feb 4. But the spook is in London. How did he get there? Who pays for his keep? Would it be reasonable to suspect that the entire episode has a high fishy smell? I hold no brief for Spook Rahim or his associates or his felons-in- arms. I write for my old friend, barrister and senior counsel, Khalid Anwer. Our friendship managed to survive the period he spent as law minister in the second Nawaz Sharif government, for when he accepted the position I knew that it would not be too long before he once again landed with his feet back on terra firma. For Khalid's knowledge, intelligence and ethics, I have nothing but respect. He will not admit to having misjudged Nawaz and made a mistake in joining him, though he surely now realizes what a monumental blunder it was. At that point in time, he had nothing to gain but all to lose. And now, he stands collectively responsible and guilty, together with the other members of Nawaz's cabinet, for the crimes and wrongdoings perpetrated by the government between the years 1997 to 1999. But it must be remembered that as a law minister he had every right to speak to the country's judges and advise them to adhere to the prevailing laws when hearing cases of public importance. To attack him on that score is ridiculous, particularly when the attack is based upon bugged recordings made unlawfully, recordings that so easily could have been doctored to suit the circumstances. If the Ehtesab Act provides that cases be heard on a day-to-day basis and decided within 60 days, and if a judge procrastinates when dealing with a government case, it is the law minister's duty to advise him to get going. In this world of information technology the crimes of Benazir and her husband are widely known. For those interested in the topic, I suggest they switch on their computers, get on to the Internet, click on and open www.levin.senate.gov/issues/psireport2htm, retrieve and read a US Senate document headed "Minority Staff Report for Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations Hearing on Private Banking and Money Laundering: A Case Study of Opportunities and Vulnerabilities" dated November 9, 1999. I particularly recommend that our judges, our NAB men, and our official prosecutors download and study this document. The 50-page Report details the grimy monetary dealings of seven notorious wheeler-dealers. The Republic of Pakistan has the proud privilege of having one of their own on this august list. The list: Raoul Salinas, former Mexican government official, brother of former president of Mexico; Asif Ali Zardari, former Pakistani government official and legislator, husband of former prime minister of Pakistan; El Hadj Omar Bongo, president of Gabon; Abacha Sons: Mohammad, Ibrahim and Abba Abbacha, sons of General Sani Abacha, former military leader of Nigeria. Under the sub-title "The Facts", it is written of Asif Zardari: "The second case history involves Asif Ali Zardari, the husband of Benazir Bhutto, former prime minister of Pakistan. Ms Bhutto was elected prime minister in 1988, dismissed by the President of Pakistan in August 1990 for alleged corruption and inability to maintain law and order, elected prime minister once again in October 1993, and dismissed by the President again in November 1996. At various times, Mr Zardari served as senator, environment minister and minister for investments in the Bhutto government. In between the two Bhutto administrations, he was incarcerated in 1990 and 1991 on charges of corruption; the charges were eventually dropped. During Ms Bhutto's second term there were increasing allegations of corruption in her government and a major target of those allegations was Mr Zardari. It has been reported that the government of Pakistan claims that Ms Bhutto and Mr Zardari stole over $ 1 billion from the country." Listed are details of Zardari's relationship with Citibank which began in October 1994 "through the services of Kamran Amouzegar, a private banker at Citibank private bank in Switzerland, and Jens Schlegelmilch, a Swiss lawyer who was the Bhutto family's attorney in Europe and close personal friend for more than twenty years." Schlegelmilch was invited and came to Karachi for Benazir and Asif's wedding in 1987 and has paid several visits since then. The relationships between the account holders, banks, depositors, kickbackers and cover cocerns is highly complicated and can only be sorted out by a careful reading of the Report. Hereunder a few excerpts: "The staff invited Ms. Bhutto to provide additional information on the M.S. Capricorn Trading accounts, but she has not yet done so." "During the period 1994 to 1997, Citibank opened and maintained three private bank accounts in Switzerland and a consumer account in Dubai for three corporations under Mr. Zardari's control. There are allegations that some of these accounts were used to disguise $10 million in kickbacks for a gold importing contract to Pakistan ......." "Citibank told the Subcommittee staff that, once opened, only three deposits were made into the M.S. Capricorn Trading account in Dubai. Two deposits, totaling $10 million were made into the account almost immediately after it was opened. Citibank records show that one $5 million deposit was made on October 5, 1994, and another was made on October 6, 1994. The source of both deposits was A.R.Y. International Exchange, a company owned by Abdul Razzak Yaqub, a Pakistani gold bullion trader living in Dubai ......." "The Zardari case history raises issues involving due diligence, secrecy and public figure accounts. The Zardari case history begins with the Citibank Dubai branch's failure to identify the true beneficial owner of the M.S. Capricorn Trading account. As a result, the account officer in Dubai performed due diligence on an individual who had no relationship to the account being opened. In Switzerland, Citibank officials opened three private bank accounts despite evidence of impropriety on the part of Mr. Zardari. In an interview with Subcommittee staff, Citigroup Co- Chair John Reed informed the Subcommittee staff that he had been advised by Citibank officials in preparation for a trip to Pakistan in February 1994, that there were troubling accusations concerning corruption surrounding Mr. Zardari, that he should stay away from him, and that he was not a man with whom the bank wanted to be associated. Yet one year later, the private bank opened three accounts for Mr. Zardari in Switzerland. Mr. Reed told the Subcommittee staff that when he learned of the Zardari accounts he thought the account officer must have been 'an idiot'." If this government does not do whatever needs to be done, however correctly or obliquely, to disqualify and debar every man and woman who held elected office from 1988 to 1999 - all collectively responsible for the present state of the nation - from henceforth holding any elected office ever again, history will hold it responsible for the accelerated disintegration of what is left of this country. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20010216 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Taming the paper tigers ------------------------------------------------------------------- Ayaz Amir MORE than anything else Pakistan's problem is the paper tigers that infest its towns and cities - distinguished people who have made a cult out of speaking vociferously and out of season. Of these paper tigers none are more deadly than professors of the cloth - reverend divines whose concept of 'jihad' is incomplete without a mike, powerful loudspeakers and an attendant press corps dutifully inscribing their bizarre utterances. Consider the evidence. There are some organizations engaged in real combat in Kashmir. Like the Hezbollahs of Lebanon they are genuine people. One may disagree with their aims but no armchair rhetorician can scorn their sacrifices. It is their readiness to die for what they believe in which entitles them to public acclaim and attention. But there are others, constituting the clear majority, who are champions of verbal jihad. Still others are engaged in a holy war against their compatriots - sunnis against shias, shias against sunnis. At their hands Mao's dictum stands inverted: power flowing not from the barrel of the gun but from concentrated hate and mindless bigotry. Sectarian gunfire is aimed at the capturing of no strategic heights. It is an end in itself. Many societies are home to dangerous fringe activities. If the chest-puffing of our paper tigers was a fringe activity, it could easily be ignored. But through a process of absurdity gathering pace with the years - and dating from the times of that commander of the faithful, General Ziaul Haq - Pakistan's name has come to be associated with the export of fundamentalism. The truth is different but what chance does truth have against the collective roar of a thousand paper tigers? If RAW had hatched a conspiracy to give Pakistan a bad name it could not have succeeded half as well as Pakistan itself, a passion for self-inflicted injuries remaining the defining characteristic of many of our national moods. Two caveats, however, are in order. Firstly, even if Pakistan wanted to, it cannot overnight cut its links with the Taliban. That would create more problems than it would solve. Geography, not ideological affinity, dictates the necessity of our close links with Afghanistan. True, there is a lot of ideological muddle about Afghanistan in Pakistan's decision-making circles. But the generals of the Pakistan army are no acolytes of Mulla Umar. (One Holiness, Rafiq Tarar, is enough for Pakistan.) Secondly, even if Pakistan wanted to, it cannot overnight disengage itself from Kashmir. Nor would there be tangible profit in such a course. What would we get from India in return? Perhaps a quote or two from Ghalib. Perhaps even a verse from Mr Vajpayee, who is an occasional poet. But nothing even remotely approaching fairness on Kashmir. India is keenly interested in a solution of the Kashmir dispute but strictly on its own terms. Pakistan's necessity is altogether different. It is not to buckle under western pressure and cut all links with the Taliban. Nor to carry out a precipitate retreat from Kashmir which would sow the seeds of internal resentment. It is to muzzle the paper tigers who are giving it a bad name. In this case, the medium is indeed the message and in our hands the medium has turned into a dangerous instrument. Give any name you like to what is happening in occupied Kashmir: uprising, insurgency, militancy. Any help from our side, by the very nature of such things, has to be covert so that we can plausibly deny involvement whenever the need arises. Try telling this to the apostles of national security who have looked on with benign indifference as one religious group after another has blown Pakistan's cover in Kashmir. Time was when every last speaker or column writer in Pakistan was a nuclear hawk: singing the strategic praises of the bomb and urging Pakistan to come out of the nuclear closet. Now that Pakistan has done precisely this and is having to live with the consequences, that frenzy has somewhat abated. Nuclear hawks do not strut about with quite the same panache as before, reality having dampened some of their enthusiasm. The frenzy once reserved for nuclear capability has now transferred itself to Kashmir. Every divine in Pakistan has become a 'jihadi'. No religious leader worth his salt will make a public appearance without kalashnikov-wielding bodyguards at hand. Is self-publicity the goal or is there a reason for such fearsome security? Lashkar- i-Taiba and the Hizbul Mujahideen (to name only two of the genuine outfits) might have reasons to fear Indian sabotage. But what quarrel has RAW or the Indian army to pick with Maulana Samiul Haq or that latest entrant to the list of pseudo-warriors, Akram Awan of Munara? Yet the collective outbursts of all these reverend fathers gives every foreigner the impression that the length and breadth of Pakistan is alive with religious seminaries imparting military training and the ideology of 'jihad' to thousands of adherents. Since one telling photograph is worth a million words, each time a Samiul Haq or some other warrior of his ilk makes a public appearance attended with an army of bodyguards, Pakistan's image receives another bashing. Pakistan has enough real problems on its plate without having to worry about the antics of specialists in verbal 'jihad': gladiators whose weapon of choice is the press conference. RAW needs to set aside no funds for disinformation. We are doing its job for it. What are ISI and Military Intelligence doing? They have perfected the art of political control (or interference). What has happened to their once-great skill in remote-controlling the armies of fundamentalism? Cannot they assess the dangers of a 'jihad' gone rampant, a 'jihad' whose symbols are now perhaps more evident in Pakistan than in Kashmir? Or is it that old habits die hard, that the intelligence establishment is still stuck in the grooves of the past? Read the occasional piece by Lt Gen Hamid Gul and Lt-Gen Javed Nasir to get a taste of the theology which still rules large parts of the national security complex. Whoever first coined the slogan that a friendly Afghanistan gives Pakistan strategic depth deserves a prize for philosophy. With an unquantified mass of Afghan refugees spread all over Pakistan, it is hard to say who has acquired strategic depth - Pakistan or Afghanistan? In any case, it is hard to figure out why men in uniform are so mesmerized by the notion of strategic depth? Do they expect a Hitlerite invasion of Pakistan? When politicians play games it is easy to deride them. When soldiers play games it is no laughing matter, the consequences being more deadly. Maintain friendly ties with Afghanistan but leave the Afghans to their own devices. This is the lesson of history, a lesson Pakistan's Clausewitzs have been ignoring for the last 20 years. Around Kashmir too myths abound. Nothing that Pakistan can do will force India to the negotiating table. The sooner we rid ourselves of this delusion the better. If the Kashmiri people choose to fight against Indian occupation Pakistan has a duty to support them - but surreptitiously and without turning the politics of 'jihad' into an international tamasha. If the Kashmiris score successes in this fight the triumph should be theirs. If they weary of it we should be able to live with that too. Proactive adventurism is what we must eschew, the days of this having passed, the costs of this now outweighing any likely benefits. A word in the end about Lt-Gen Haider, the interior minister. He has his heart in the right place but he is given to making too many tall pronouncements against 'jihad' and religious extremism without being able to make any of them stick. He should speak softly and carry a big stick. But a fat chance of this happening. When the leading knights of this military government cannot get the measure of someone like the Bishop of Munara they are unlikely to make much of an impression on the other paper tigers infesting the squares and marketplaces of Pakistan. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20010217 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Rattling our cage ------------------------------------------------------------------- Irfan Husain RATTLE the gorilla's cage and watch it explode with fury, shaking its enclosure but unable to reach its tormentor. Rattle it harder and the beast will beat its chest in rage, hurting only itself. As a nation, we tend to react in somewhat similar fashion when somebody rattles our cage. Witness the recent show of self-abusive and futile rage when the Frontier Post carried a blasphemous letter e-mailed by somebody with a Jewish name. Instead of letting the law take its own course, mobs were out on the streets the next day to destroy the newspaper's printing press. The photographs of the bearded, unkempt individuals who carried out this vandalism did not suggest literacy in any language, so it is clear tat they had not been personally offended by the letter. The whole incident reminded me of the violence that took place in the wake of the publication of Salman Rushdie's 'Satanic Verses': for some reason, a mob of zealots attacked the American Centre in Islamabad, probably unaware of the fact that both the author and his publisher were British. None of them had read the book, and yet three of the demonstrators were prepared to lose their lives and scores of them suffered injuries in protesting against a literary work they knew nothing about. I am not trying to justify either Rushdie or the author of the recent blasphemous letter to the Frontier Post. The point here is that instead of maturely ignoring a provocation or taking judicious, well-considered action, we have a tendency to react in a predictably violent, knee-jerk fashion that brings us and our faith no credit. Granted that those making up vigilant mobs are usually uneducated and often unemployed; but these dregs of humanity give Islam a bad name. My limited understanding of the faith leads me to believe that the worst crime a Muslim can commit is to kill another Muslim. And yet we continue slaying each other with a ferocity matched only by the bloodlust sown by our forefathers over the centuries. >From Algeria come gruesome stories of Islamic rebels (and allegedly, shadowy government agencies) putting entire villages to the sword. In Afghanistan, the Taliban subject their own people to all kinds of medieval horrors. Here in Pakistan, one group of zealots kills members of another with a grim ruthlessness usually seen in civil wars. Indeed, Islamic history has been written in blood. True, much of human history has been similarly stained in crimson. But whereas the last half century has witnessed serious efforts in the West to avoid the use of force to settle disputes, governments, groups and individuals in much of the Islamic world continue to threaten each other with violence instead of using dialogue and discourse to defuse tensions. The language used is often bellicose and strident instead of moderate and soothing. 'Jihad' is a concept that has been much misused to justify and rationalize violence. When Iraq attacked Iran in 1980, both sides declared jihad against each other, and millions of young men fell in the name of a common faith. The two sides fighting in Afghanistan these last several years are both Muslim and claim to be waging jihad. Over ten years ago, Iraq invaded Kuwait in a badly misjudged move for which its people are still paying a heavy price. Saddam Hussein, normally a secularist, immediately invoked Heaven's blessings and altered the national flag to include a Koranic verse, apart from using other religious symbolism on the electronic media. The Kuwaiti ruling family which fled into exile also called upon the Maker to restore their kingdom, urging Arabs to unleash a jihad on the invading Iraqis. In all these cases where Muslims have fought Muslims in the name of jihad, very little has been achieved apart from the slaughter of the faithful. The Islamic community has been weakened and entire nations bled white. Apart from fighting other Muslims, leaders have constantly used force to subdue their own people. Amnesty International documents the excesses committed by repressive governments in the Islamic world, and its annual report makes very depressing reading. For some reason, violence is the common thread running through Islamic history and geography. After the Frontier Post was attacked by a mindless mob, the writer of the offensive letter wrote again to various Pakistani papers, claiming that the violence in Peshawar had only proved his point. For us, anything faintly derogatory about our religion acts as a red rag. Surely our faith has the inherent strength to withstand petty slurs from ignorant bigots. Within Pakistan, we have enacted the Blasphemy Law which has led to a large number of non-Muslims being prosecuted just on unsubstantiated allegations. It is difficult to believe that anybody in his right senses would deliberately say or write anything against Islam in Pakistan. So for our zealots to take up cudgels against members of the minority communities is as unnecessary as it is counter-productive. For the umpteenth time, General Moinuddin Haider, the interior minister, has threatened action against anybody displaying arms. This statement was clearly aimed at the jihadi parties which have consistently ignored these empty injunctions. Now he has also declared that the government will not allow these groups to solicit and collect donations for jihad. Predictably, they have unanimously and vociferously rejected this out of hand, branding the minister an agent of the West. Given the fact that General Musharraf has time and again made a distinction between jihad and terrorism, it is difficult to see this government having the stomach to take on these outfits, specially given its track record of backing down before them whenever they have confronted it. Under these circumstances, it is clear that the writ of the state does not extend to extremist religious groups and jihadi forces, encouraging them to acts of violence against each other as well as those we witnessed attacking the Frontier Post office. The current issue of Newsweek carries a cover story on terrorism, and in it, General Musharraf has been quoted at calling extremists only "an irritant." According to him, "They are not a serious threat to this government or stability." But the same story on Pakistan continues: "The entire top leadership of Tanzeemul Ikhwan is drawn from retired army officers, and hundreds of current officers and soldiers attend its ideological training sessions." The same issue of the weekly profiles a retired Major Ehsan ul-Haq who trained as a commando with the Pakistani Special Services Group and the American Green Berets. While fighting in Afghanistan, he says he and his men were aided by "angels in white gowns riding on horseback in the air." But what happens when these angels help both sides?
SPORTS DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20010216 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Government to ensure sports policy a success ------------------------------------------------------------------- Reporter ISLAMABAD, Feb 15: Federal Sports Minister, S.K. Tressler, warned on Thursday that the government may consider imposing adhoc committees if any organization tried to challenge the National Sports Policy that aims at developing sports at the grassroot levels. Speaking at a news conference the Minister declared the government was committed to make this policy a success and would not tolerate obstacle in its way. However, he was hopeful that such a situation would not arise as the policy contained nothing against the governed rules of sports. "Everyone is for the promotion of sports in the country, and this is exactly what we hope to achieve through the implementation of this policy," Tressler said while announcing the policy, approved by the Federal Cabinet on Wednesday evening. Apprehensions of a boycott from thePakistanOlympic Association and the National Sports Federations were put to rest by the minister who claimed that these organizations would not go against the interest of the country. The minister also announced formation of a Task Force, which includes Federal Commerce and Industries Minister, to formulate the Action Plan for sports' fund raising. The policy proposes provision of grounds at the Tehsil level for construction of multi-purpose stadiums. Though the minister claimed there was no opposition to the new policy, the Pakistan Olympic Association (POA), gave guarded response by saying that they would not comment on the policy unless it receives the policy document from the Sports Ministry. "We don't believe in the newspaper stories, the ministry of sports has to officially convey the decisions, which will then be presented in the house, represented by all the affiliated units of POA," said secretary general POA, Latif Butt, who will also be ineligible to hold office from February 14, 2002 under the new policy. Latif Butt, however, maintained that POA was all out for the promotion of sports and will endorse any measure taken in this regard. "But, there are certain limitations of constitutions (of various sports bodies), which should be held supreme," he said. Without challenging the policy, the secretary POA questioned what benefit will Pakistan hold if Professor Anwar Choudhry, president Pakistan Amateur Boxing Federation, who also heads the World and Asian boxing federations, loses his posts because of the restrictions being imposed. "Obviously, without having a platform, he will not be able to get representation at the international level," Butt said. He said that at Sydney Olympics, Pakistan'stechnical officials in boxing got an opportunity just because of Prof Choudhry whereas no technical official was represented in any other sports event. The Sports Minister acknowledged the help provided by the departmental units for keeping the sports running in the country. Equal opportunities will be available for the sportswomen to excel keeping in view the social/cultural norms under the policy. "We have to provide equal facilities to our other half of the population who have not had opportunities, although there is immense talent available," the minister said. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20010217 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Daunting task ahead for Kiwis against Pakistan ------------------------------------------------------------------- AUCKLAND, Feb 16: Summer has already been pretty bad for long suffering New Zealand cricket fans and come Saturday morning, weather willing, its about to get a whole lot worse. Pakistan, complete with fast and spin bowlers to burn, comes up against a frail New Zealand "black caps" side in the first of five one day internationals. Sri Lanka has just handed out a 4-1 series thrashing here, just after Zimbabwe came and gave a 2-1 lesson to a home side which, despite obvious incompetence, remains remarkably arrogant. But the public, their patience tested too much, are staying away and New Zealand Cricket was Friday forced to slash ticket prices in the hope they might get an audience. The current worrying losing trend will be difficult to stop against a class Pakistan side raring to get on the field after two months break and having keenly observed the home side's recent decline. New Zealand coach David Trist admits his side may have taken the Sri Lankans lightly, that they played above expectations and were allowed to by limp batting and bowling displays. "Sri Lanka played better than they expected to, and we initially allowed that. They got away on us a bit," Trist said. "Like the Pakistanis, they can play exceptionally well when given licence. "We are aware of that, and with the experience behind us, everything will be a lot tighter."-AFP DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 20010211 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Pakistan to investigate World Cup ties, ICC told ------------------------------------------------------------------- MELBOURNE, Feb 10: Pakistan is to probe allegations of match-fixing during the 1999 World Cup, International Cricket Council (ICC) president Malcolm Gray said on Saturday. "We have just had a report from Pakistan that a judicial inquiry will be carried out on two matches in the World Cup," Gray told a news conference on Saturday. Ali Bacher, president of the United Cricket Board of South Africa, said in June last year he had been told that Pakistan's defeat by Bangladesh and the loss against India were fixed. Bacher's claim that former Pakistani umpire Javed Akhtar took money from an illegal bookmaker to influence a Test between England and South Africa at Leeds in 1998 will also be investigated, Gray said. England won the match, and with it the five-Test series 2-1, although several of Akhtar's eight leg-before decisions against South Africa were considered dubious at the time. In their 1999 World Cup match with Bangladesh, Pakistan surprisingly lost the preliminary round clash by 62 runs, failing to overhaul Bangladesh's 223-9 and being bowled out for 161. In a later phase of the competition, the Pakistanis lost to India by 47 runs after the Indians set a victory target of 228. ICC Anti-Corruption Unit director Paul Condon said the ICC wanted to draw a proper line under all match-fixing allegations, do the right thing and then move on. He told reporters: "When people watch cricket they want to know it's about skill and craft and endeavour, not about a seedy mobile phone call and spread betting in India."-Reuters ------------------------------------------------------------------- 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.
Dawn page
Webbed by Philip McEldowney
Last update:
.