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DAWN WIRE SERVICE
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Week Ending : 15 December 2001 Issue : 07/50
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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:
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mail DAWN Group of Newspapers
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Please send all Editorials and Letters to the Editor at
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(c) Pakistan Herald Publications (Pvt.) Ltd., Pakistan - 2001
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CONTENTS
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NATIONAL NEWS
+ Pakistan forces put on high alert: Storming of parliament
+ Delhi blames Lashkar for attack: India wants militants' arrest
+ Pakistan agrees to extended US troops presence
+ US might allow India to attack Pakistan: JI
+ Satellite Badar-II launched
+ Pakistan will send report to UN: Anti-terrorism steps
+ Federal minister resigns
+ Amnesty flays killings by Indian forces
+ Osama tape verified scientifically, says envoy
+ Osama has no weapons of mass destruction
+ Osama's hand in terror attacks confirmed: Keith
+ Osama & Omar may be handed over to US: Meeting soon: Agha's aide
+ Military action against Al Qaeda to go on, says coalition
+ Over 140 Pakistanis detained in Mazar
+ US seeks use of secret evidence: Illegal immigrants
+ Refugees influx effectively blocked, says official
+ Extra security steps taken on border
+ Chaman checkpoint moved 1km forward
+ Three rockets explode in Quetta
+ Washington cracks down on Muslim students
+ Asif not arrested in polo ground case: NAB
+ Court allows Asif to talk to family on phone
+ PPP to unite Kashmiris across border: Benazir
+ NAB softens settlement terms in Wattoo case
+ Restoration of 1973 Constitution a top agenda: APC by month-end
+ Mian Azhar rules out patch-up with PML-N
+ Pakistan Steel GM jailed for 7 years
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BUSINESS & ECONOMY
+ Paris Club provides $12bn relief package
+ Rs51.8bn budget approved for PIA
+ ADB approves $350m agriculture loan
+ ADB to extend $1 billion for civil reforms
+ Germany gives $22m to fight poverty
+ Public debt swells to Rs3,000 billion
+ NBP in US not accepting cash for remittance
+ US imposes curbs on Pakistan banks: Day-to-day cash transactions
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EDITORIALS & FEATURES
+ Resurrection! Ardeshir Cowasjee
+ The logic of the mighty Ayaz Amir
+ Who is gaining more? Eric Margolis
+ Illusion of Muslim unity Irfan Hussain
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SPORTS
+ PIA accused of destroying an 'institution' in sports
+ Mudassar appointed coach until World Cup
+ PCB decides to take ICC head-on
+ Miandad expressed suspicion: witness
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NATIONAL NEWS
20011215
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Pakistan forces put on high alert: Storming of parliament
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By Ihtasham ul Haque
ISLAMABAD, Dec 14: Pakistan put its armed forces on high alert
following threatening statements by Indian leaders in the wake of
an armed attack on parliament in New Delhi.
President Gen Pervez Musharraf presided over a meeting, which
decided to keep vigil to meet any eventuality. The chairman, Joint
Chiefs of Staff Committee, the three service chiefs and vice chief
of the army staff attended the meeting at the GHQ in Rawalpindi.
Official sources told Dawn the meeting had regretted that without
having inquired and investigated the attack on parliament, the
Indian leaders had started pointing the finger at Pakistan.
The meeting reviewed the situation and decided to take "all
necessary steps" to counter any threat coming from across the
border.
Pakistan, the president told the meeting, had condemned the attack
and sympathized with the Indian Prime Minister over the issue.
However, he added, it had become a routine for India to implicate
Pakistan in every matter without giving any proof.
Referring to Islamabad's relations with Delhi, the president said
that Pakistan was continuously making sincere efforts to normalize
relations with India despite provocations.
"Why have the Indians rejected the US government's offer to send an
FBI team to investigate the attack on parliament?" asked a senior
official.
India, he said, was facing internal problems and had failed to
manage its affairs. That's why, he maintained, it was putting the
blame for every thing on Pakistan.
"How did the suicide bomber enter the parliament premises and was
it not a big security lapse for which its own people needed to be
held responsible?" asked the official, privy to the GHQ meeting. He
said that failure in getting its Prevention of Terrorism Ordinance
passed by parliament, and Coffins' Scandal were, in fact, the
issues worrying the Indian government.
He said the whole incident was a propaganda stunt by India itself.
"The attack on parliament is a drama staged by Indian intelligence
agencies to defame the freedom struggle in occupied Kashmir," he
said.
"It has never been our policy to attack civilian targets. Lashkar
and other Jihadi organizations are not involved in the recent
attack. "Those (Indians) who can kill thousands of defenceless
people in Kashmir can resort to such tactics to gain international
sympathy. We demand the international community probe this attack
independently to know the truth."
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20011215
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Delhi blames Lashkar for attack: India wants militants' arrest
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By Jawed Naqvi
NEW DELHI, Dec 14: A day after suspected Muslim militants launched
a blistering attack on India's well protected Parliament House, New
Delhi accused Pakistan of harboring the masterminds and said that
Islamabad must arrest the leaders and freeze their accounts.
Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee led a mourning meeting of the
two houses of parliament and later said that the objective of the
five armed men who attacked the building from outside before being
killed, was to take some 700 members of parliament gathered in the
British-built legislature hostage to press for unspecified demands.
"Their intention was to indulge in large-scale killing and/or take
hostages to make demands," Vajpayee said at a function to
commemorate 10 years of the revamped Pioneer newspaper.
"It was a well-thought-out plan, perhaps planned for months.
Otherwise the attack on a soft target like parliament with such
deep awareness of the place would not be possible."
He denied opposition charges that the attack resulted from a
serious security failure. "Had it been a security failure we would
not be sitting here today," Vajpayee said. "We are being mean with
praise for the security men who saved our lives, fought for
democracy."
Home Minister Lal Krishan Advani, present at the function, put the
blame on Pakistan although he did not directly name it. "In a way,
a neighbouring country is responsible for the attack, in so far as
that is where the (militants) were trained."
The foreign ministry was more explicit although there were reports
that the cabinet itself was divided over Advani's apparent demand
to go for a "hot pursuit" of the militants who India says are armed
and trained across the border.
The foreign ministry blamed the Pakistan-based Lashkar-i-Taiba for
Thursday's terrorist attack on Parliament, asserting it has
"credible evidence."
New Delhi has also formally asked Islamabad to arrest Lashkar and
Jaish-i-Mohammad men and freeze the assets of both organisations.
Foreign Secretary Chokila Iyer summoned Pakistan High Commissioner
Ashraf Jehangir Qazi and made out a demarche, setting out three
demands.
Qazi told Dawn that Pakistan had not been directly blamed for the
attack which has been condemned by President Pervez Musharraf. "It
was a polite request to look into the various issues raised by the
Indian government."
External Affairs Minister Jaswant Singh, coming out of a meeting
with the visiting Afghan counterpart, Abdullah Abdullah, told
reporters that "India has technical evidence that Thursday's
terrorist attacks on not only the symbol but also the seat of
Indian democracy and sovereignty was the handiwork of a terrorist
organisation based in Pakistan - the Lashkar-i-Taiba."
Declining to go into the "credible evidence" the government has on
the outfit's involvement, Singh said there were "obvious
difficulties" in making it public as government agencies had many
means of obtaining intelligence. "This is technical intelligence,
entirely credible," he said.
Qazi was summoned by Foreign Secretary Chokila Iyer and a demarche
was made to him. Singh told reporters that the demarche had set out
three demands - arrest of the leadership of Lashkar and Jaish-i-
Mohammed, stopping their activities and freezing their assets.
Speaking from Islamabad, the Lashkar denied any role in Thursday's
attack.
The President's spokesman, Rashid Qureshi addressing a question on
whether India would pass on evidence to Pakistan if it is sought,
he said: "It really is a decision that will have to be weighed
against the requirements and the interest of the agencies that
collect technical intelligence. I don't think any country reveals
the methodology unless the intelligence collected has no further
use there. That is the standard procedure."
Asked whether India would consider military retaliation, Singh said
New Delhi's position was outlined in a Cabinet resolution and "it
is not open for me to speculate."
On whether New Delhi has received any response from Pakistan to its
demands, Singh said the demarche had been made out only on Friday
evening.
About reports that Pakistan has put its troops on high alert, he
said: "We have no reports on this," adding that he has been in
regular touch with the Defence Minister and the service
headquarters.
Asked if India had any evidence of Islamabad's involvement in any
manner in Thursday's attack, he said one had to reflect on the
origins of LT, its funding and patronage of both the LT and JM.
Asked what would be the next step if Islamabad chose to ignore the
demarche, he said a diplomatic demarche cannot be ignored.
"Pakistan asserts that it is with the rest of the international
community in its fight against terrorism. That it does not promote
or encourage terrorism. It is our expectation that it will
certainly abide by what it says itself," he said.
Later, asked about the response of the Pakistani High Commissioner
after the demarche was made out to him, an external affairs
ministry spokesperson told reporters that Qazi said he would refer
its contents to his government.
To a question whether the Indian government had set a deadline for
Islamabad to act on the demarche, she said, "We have not set a
deadline but we expect them to act early."
Asked whether any US team had come to Delhi in connection with
Thursday's attack, she said: "No FBI team has come." India is in
touch with a number of countries on the terrorist attack, she said,
when asked about the support from various nations on the issue.
Authoritative home ministry sources have reaffirmed that LT and JM
terrorists carried out a joint operation in attacking Parliament on
Thursday morning.
The sources noted that while initial investigation had pointed
towards the involvement of LT alone, as External Affairs Minister
Jaswant Singh said earlier on Friday, subsequent evidence indicated
that the JM too had participated in the operation.
Security personnel had gunned down five militants, who had stormed
into the Parliament complex in a white Ambassador car, after a
prolonged exchange of fire on Thursday morning. The identities of
these militants are yet to be established.
The sources noted that since each of the militants was carrying
three to four identity cards each, the police was finding it
difficult to establish their true identity.
One of these identity cards belonged to the man who had bought the
car used in the operation. The sources quoted one of the injured
security personnel as saying that the militants talked to each
other in Urdu.
In the meanwhile, the Delhi Police is on the lookout for the
"sixth" militant who went missing after the operation. The closed-
circuit TVs installed in Parliament clearly showed six people
getting down from the car which carried the militants inside the
complex.
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20011215
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Pakistan agrees to extended US troops presence
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KARACHI, Dec 14: In a sign of the increasingly close security ties
between the United States and Pakistan, President Gen Pervez
Musharraf, has accepted a US request for a long-term presence at
Jacobabad air base, Pakistani security sources said.
US officials have requested 40,000 metric tons of concrete to
renovate the base in Jacobabad, according to an aviation source. US
officials have asked that a wall surrounding the base be raised
four feet, and they want to construct air-conditioned barracks for
US troops in time for summer.
"In the foreseeable future, Jacobabad air base would continue to
serve as a key facility for the US military's peacekeeping or
counter terrorism operation in Afghanistan," said a Pakistani
military official familiar with discussions on the subject.
US officials have asked that all but a few Pakistani liaison
officers be withdrawn from the base, the aviation source said. -
Dawn/LAT-WP News Service (c) The Washington Post
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20011215
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US might allow India to attack Pakistan: JI
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Staff Reporter
LAHORE, Dec 14: Jamaat-i-Islami Pakistan acting amir Syed Munawwar
Hasan feared that the attack on Indian parliament could be used by
the United States as a justification to allow "revenge attacks"
against Pakistan the way Israel had been allowed to attack
Palestine.
Speaking at a meeting organized by the Pak-Afghan Defense Council
at the Minar-i-Pakistan compound he said, he doubted the
authenticity of the Osama bin Laden video released by the United
States.
Mr Hasan alleged that the attack on Indian parliament had been
orchestrated by the Vajpayee government to divert the attention of
the international coalition against terrorism towards the freedom
struggle in Kashmir. He said it was aimed at labelling the freedom
movement as terrorism.
In the aftermath of the staged attack, he said, the US could allow
India to launch an offensive in 'self-defense' like Israel. In view
of the threat, he said, the US forces should be asked to
immediately leave Pakistani territory.
He feared that the United States would ask Pakistan to freeze its
nuclear programme, withdraw its support for the Kashmir freedom
movement and impose restrictions on religious leaders and parties.
Should the demands be accepted, he said, the reason for Pakistan's
existence would be eliminated.
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20011211
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Satellite Badar-II launched
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ISLAMABAD, Dec 10: Pakistan's second satellite, Badar-II, was
successfully injected into the earth orbit at 10:30pm (PST) on
Monday from Russian Cosmodrome at Baikonur, Kazakhstan.
The satellite was launched with main Russian meteorological
satellite, Meteor3-M on board Zenith-II launch vehicle, in
collaboration with the Russian aviation and space agency.
It is orbiting the earth in a near circular sun- Synchronous orbit,
according to official sources here. The satellite has been designed
and fabricated by Suparco engineers.
The successful launch of Badar-II has once again demonstrated
Pakistani engineers' capability in the field of space technology,
the sources said, adding that the satellite is in its early
operation and system checkout phase.
According to ISPR, a high-level delegation of Pakistan headed by
Major-General Raza Hussain, chairman, Suparco, was in Baikonur,
Kazakhstan, to witness the launch of Badar-II. -APP
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20011213
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Pakistan will send report to UN: Anti-terrorism steps
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By Nasir Malick
ISLAMABAD, Dec 12: Pakistan will report, within a fortnight, to the
United Nations on the implementation of "mandatory anti- terrorism
measures" suggested by the world body, a government official told
Dawn.
The source said that a meeting will be held in the foreign office
to prepare a draft of the report that has to be submitted before
Dec 27.
A UN committee on counter-terrorism on Sept 28 had sent a set of
concrete steps to member states, which they were required to
implement, to counter terrorist activities.
The mandatory steps included freezing of bank accounts of
individuals and organizations suspected of being involved in
terrorist activities, arresting individuals and banning such
organizations, and free flow of information between member states.
The official source said that Thursday's meeting would review
measures taken so far and prepare a draft report, which after
finalization, would be submitted to the United Nations committee on
counter-terrorism.
The meeting will be attended by officials of the National
Accountability Bureau, State Bank of Pakistan, ministries of law
and finance, and Inter-Services Intelligence.
The source said that a complete list of individuals and
organizations, whose bank accounts have been frozen because of
their suspected involvement in terrorism, would also be placed
before the meeting. It would also consider implementing the
"remaining" mandatory steps which have not been carried out so far,
the source added.
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20011212
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Federal minister resigns
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By Faraz Hashmi
ISLAMABAD, Dec 11: Federal minister for labour, manpower and
overseas Pakistanis, Omar Asghar Khan, resigned from the federal
cabinet amidst reports that he was planing to launch a new
political party.
The request made by Mr Khan to President Gen Pervez Musharraf to
relieve him of his ministerial responsibilities has been accepted,
said a press release issued on Tuesday evening.
The president has asked Mr Khan to continue as a member of the
federal cabinet until after Eid, it added.
Mr Khan reportedly told reporters that he had resigned for
contesting the next elections. Sources close to him divulged that
he was also planning to launch his own political party.
However, the official announcement said that Mr Khan had made the
request to this effect citing personal reasons to pursue his
political career and his social services.
It maintained that the president lauded the services of Mr Khan for
fostering a healthy relationship between the workers and the
government, highlighting environmental issues, motivating overseas
Pakistanis for a much-needed active role in the nation building
activities.
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20011213
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Amnesty flays killings by Indian forces
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Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD, Dec 12: The Amnesty International (AI) has flayed the
unlawful killings of 10 civilians and injuring of up to 40 others
by Indian forces following an attack on an army convoy on Dec 8 at
Baramulla.
This incident at Baramulla was just one in a series which had led
to deaths of many civilians in Jammu and Kashmir in recent weeks,
the AI said.
It said that according to local observers, security forces had
fired both from moving convoy vehicles and bunkers on passers-by
and passing vehicles in retaliation to the ambush. There were
reports that a nearby border security force patrol also joined in
the firing, the AI said.
The world body pointed out that it was not the first time that
security forces had turned on the civilian population after coming
under attack. According to reports, the members of Kashmir Light
Infantry had killed six labourers unlawfully after the attack on an
army convoy at Baramulla in July 2001, it added.
The world body has urged all sides in the conflict to respect
international humanitarian law that prohibits deliberate or
indiscriminate attacks on civilians and those not taking part in
hostilities.
Acknowledging that the Jammu and Kashmir government has ordered an
inquiry into the incident at Baramulla, the AI said that previous
probe into human rights abuses in the region had failed to punish
the culprits.
Refugees protection: Supporter states for the 'war against
terrorism' have failed in dealing with its results and sharing the
responsibility of protecting the Afghan displaced persons (DPs),
the Amnesty International stated in a press release on Tuesday.
The world body said: "For 50 years, since the adoption of Refugee
Convention, states have failed to effectively address the source of
refugee flow, primarily the human rights violations, including
violations during armed conflict." They had not taken steps which
would ensure the effective monitoring of their treaty obligations,
it added.
The AI said the ministerial meeting on the Refugee Convention in
Geneva was an unprecedented opportunity for the international
community for strengthening international refugee protection.
"In the face of challenges such as people trafficking and tight
security after the Sept 11 attacks, governments must re-affirm
their commitment to the Refugee Convention and ensure that
protection is not compromised," the world body said. In the
aftermath of Sept 11, many governments have neglected the human
rights of refugees and asylum-seekers by imposing security laws,
which inevitably target non-nationals.
The Amnesty International said it had received reports that UK
immigration officials at Prague airport singled out travellers from
the Roma minority for detailed questioning and many had been
refused permission to board their flights to the UK. The Australian
government was diverting boats loads of asylum-seekers to Pacific
island nations - which amounts to 'burden-shifting' rather than
'burden-sharing', it said.
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20011215
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Osama tape verified scientifically, says envoy
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Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD, Dec 14: The United States has scientifically verified
the videotape recovered from Jalalabad showing Osama bin Laden in
glory after the Sept 11 terrorist attacks, Ambassador Kenton Keith
of the US-led coalition said.
"The US government has taken extraordinary steps to try and verify
the authenticity of the tape," the spokesman said at the regular
briefing.
"The release of the tape took some time because we wanted to be
absolutely sure about the correct translation," he said, adding
that independent translators had been employed to translate Osama's
hour-long conversation with his companions. The quality, he said,
was very poor which made the job of translators a bit difficult.
The spokesman said that the voice and images of Osama in the tape
were compared with his earlier video and audio recordings to
establish its authenticity.
In reply to questions about who had made the tape, and how and from
where had it been recovered, Mr Keith said they did not know who
had made the tape, adding it was "acquired at a house in Jalalabad
in late November".
The question whether the videotape was a valid evidence in the US
judicial system was avoided by the spokesman. "I am not in a
position to discuss the legal details," he added.
The spokesman said that the US authorities had shared the videotape
with many Muslim and Arab countries and their views had been sought
on it.
In reply to a question whether the US-coalition enjoyed Arab
countries support, he said the absence of Arab world troops in
coalition forces did not mean that they had no support from them.
There support was quite encouraging, he added.
He pointed out that many countries in the Middle East had already
imposed restrictions on the funds channeled to Al Qaeda. He refuted
reports that Osama had escaped Tora Bora, saying that to the best
of their knowledge Osama was still in the same area.
He said there was no evidence that significant groups of Al Qaeda
members had been able to escape through mountainous passes into
Pakistan.
Pakistan, he said, had taken effective measures. "The situation
could have been worrying if the government of Pakistan had not
taken these measures," he added.
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20011212
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Osama has no weapons of mass destruction
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Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD, Dec 11: The US-led coalition has not found any evidence
that Osama bin Laden or Al Qaeda had acquired or produced weapons
of mass destruction, spokesman Kenton Keith said.
Although no evidence has been found, some documents have been
recovered which were specifically on the subject of various kinds
of weapons of mass destruction, Mr Keith told a daily news
briefing.
"What they wanted to achieve from these documents is not clear," he
said, adding that in their judgement Osama and Al Qaeda were not
able to acquire or produce any kind of weapon of mass destruction.
The spokesman reiterated that Pakistan and the United States had
been cooperating against the proliferation of weapons of mass
destruction and international terrorism, and added that it would
not be fair to assume that some Pakistani scientists, who were
under detention, had been involved in proliferation of such
weapons.
Mr Keith denied reports that Pakistani troops were fighting in
Afghanistan.
He avoided a direct reply to the question whether the US
authorities were involved in interrogation of Pakistani scientists.
"We are cooperating with the Pakistan government and will continue
to do so" was all what Mr Keith said about the US involvement in
interrogation of nuclear scientists Bashiruddin Mehmood and Hameed
Chaudhry. "It would not be a fair conclusion that we are interested
in these people for a specific thing," he added.
In reply to a question whether the US had been providing technical
help to the border security force of Pakistan, he replied in
affirmative but had no details about the equipment given by the US.
Commenting on a statement by a Saudi prince that it was not Osama
but some mysterious figure behind the Al Qaeda network, the
spokesman said they were clear about what Osama was guilty of.
About a statement by interim interior Afghan minister Younus
Qanooni that the role of peacekeeping force would be limited, Mr
Keith said it was too early to say anything definitively about the
role of peacekeepers. He said the United Nations had not yet called
for peacekeeping force.
Referring to the capture of Tora Bora, he said advances had been
made in that area but he could not say definitively whether the
whole range had been brought under control by the opposition
forces. "Obviously situation is still fluid and fighting
continuing."
Asked whether Al Qaeda members had offered talks for surrender to
eastern commanders, the spokesman said he had heard no announcement
but it would certainly be welcomed if such an offer was made.
In reply to a question about Osama's association with the CIA
during the war against Soviet Union, he said: "I do not think that
Osama was not a card-carrying member of CIA."
Regarding the American involvement in training and support of
Mujahideen, he said they had no apologies to make about supporting
war against Soviet Union.
He said it would be far too stretched to say that it was the fault
of the US to train Osama and that Osama had turned against the US
for furthering his political gains.
He ruled out any possibility of retaliation from Osama, saying he
was on the run and had no means of communication.
About detention and interrogation of Pakistanis expatriates in the
US, the spokesman confirmed that some Pakistanis had been detained
but added that expatriates from many other countries too had been
detained for violating some regulations.
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20011211
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Osama's hand in terror attacks confirmed: Keith
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Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD, Dec 10: The US-led coalition said that Washington and
Islamabad were cooperating on the non-proliferation of weapons of
mass destruction.
Asked whether the US authorities had requested the Pakistan
government to question two of its nuclear scientists as had been
reported by the New York Times, Kenton Keith, spokesman for the
coalition information service, said Pakistan and the US shared the
concern on the proliferation of nuclear weapons.
Answering a question about a recent visit by CIA chief George J.
Tenet to Pakistan, he said the cooperation between the two
countries was going on at various levels.
As regards videotape recovered from Kandahar, the spokesman said
they were considering it making public. "The tape ties him (Osama)
to the Sept 11 incidents."
Mr Kenton maintained that they had no doubts about Osama's
involvement in the terrorist attacks and the tape "ties it down
completely." The video showed him in glory over the Sept 11
atrocities, he added.
The spokesman dismissed reports about Osama's arrest by British
troops as highly speculative.
A foreign correspondent asked whether the British troops had
refused to hand over Osama to the US forces without a guarantee
that he would not be awarded death penalty. The spokesman said that
British troops were not operating independently.
He said the campaign to arrest Osama was going on and the coalition
had made considerable progress to tighten its noose around the
target. He said they did not have confirmed sighting of Osama but
they believed that he was still in Afghanistan. Both Osama and
Mulla Omar were in Afghanistan and they had no credible report that
they had left the country.
About Kandahar he said it was the first challenge for interim Prime
Minister Hamid Karzai to restore law and order in the city.
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20011211
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Osama & Omar may be handed over to US: Meeting soon: Agha's aide
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KABUL, Dec 10: The newly-restored governor of Kandahar province has
called a meeting of tribal elders to decide whether Mullah Mohammad
Omar and Osama bin Laden should be tried by a tribal court or
handed over to the United States.
Gul Lali, an aide to governor Gul Agha, said Agha planned to hold a
meeting as soon as possible of tribal elders and commanders to
discuss how to bring Omar and Osama bin Laden to justice.
Omar, who was based in Kandahar throughout his time as supreme
leader, has left the province, according to a Taliban official. But
the US said over the weekend it is sure Omar and Osama were still
in Afghanistan.
Osama is thought to be hiding in mountains in the east of the
country. "Now he (Agha) has complete control of Kandahar he will
call a meeting of tribal and religious leaders," Lali said.
"In the meeting, we will decide what is the decision of the Afghan
people for Mullah Omar and Osama. They will be tried in a tribal
court or they will be tried as the Americans say. "They are
terrorists and must be treated like terrorists."
Omar, who was based in Kandahar throughout his time as supreme
leader, has left the province, according to a Taliban official. But
the US said over the weekend it is sure Omar and Osama were still
in Afghanistan.
Osama is thought to be hiding in mountains in the east of the
country. Agha began work in the governor's residence in Kandahar
amid unconfirmed reports that a US military convoy was heading
towards the city.
He assumed power on Sunday after talks between Afghanistan's
leader-in-waiting Hamid Karzai and Mullah Naqibullah, the man who
was handed control of the province after the surrender of the
Taliban last week.-AFP
War to go on
KABUL: US Vice President Dick Cheney said in a TV interview that
even if Osama was captured or killed soon, the war on terror would
go on.-Reuters
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20011213
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Military action against Al Qaeda to go on, says coalition
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD, Dec 12: Coalition military action against Al Qaeda will
not end in Afghanistan and it will continue to wipe out its cells
operating elsewhere in the world, Spokesman Kenton Keith said.
"Once Al Qaeda is defeated in Afghanistan that certainly will not
mean the end of action against the network," Mr Keith said at the
daily briefing.
Al Qaeda cells, the spokesman said, existed in many places beyond
Afghanistan and the surrender of Tora Bora would not mean an end of
action against the organization.
He said there were thousands of caves in Tora Bora range and it
would have to be decided whether this complex be rendered useless
for military purposes.
Commenting on a report carried by The Washington Post that the
second phase of Al Qaeda terrorist attacks, involving biological
weapons, would commence after Ramazan, he said there was no
indication that the story was based on facts.
The Post had based the report on the interrogation of John Walker,
an American Taliban fighter who was arrested at Mazar-i-Sharif.
Mr Keith said that John Walker was still in Afghanistan and his
future was being sorted out. He maintained that American
authorities were not only interrogating John Walker but other
people as well to get as much information on Al Qaeda plans as
possible. He said it was not clear as to what was John Walker's
standing in the Al Qaeda hierarchy.
Regarding reports on surrender, he said: "Pressure continues in the
Tora Bora area. Al Qaeda fighters have not yet surrendered. As long
as they refuse to do so, anti-Taliban forces on the ground, backed
by the coalition, will continue the military campaign."
Negotiations, he said, had been intermittent but there had been no
agreement. Some of the fighters, he added, were making their way to
higher grounds. Border along Pakistan had been reinforced and it
would be tough for them to escape, he said. Some Al Qaeda fighters
might have fled the area but it would not be possible for them to
come out from Tora Bora as a body, he said.
Mr Keith said that they had crushed the Taliban as an organized
military and political force.
APP adds: US Attorney General John Aschroft is visiting London on
the first leg of a European tour to discuss legal steps the
countries are taking to dismantle the mechanisms of international
terrorism, he said. More than 20 countries are now implementing or
considering new legislation to tackle terrorism, he added.
The spokesman said the Coalition was committed to mine clearance in
Afghanistan. "The Halo Trust - a non-governmental organization
specializing in the removal of the debris of war - believes that
Afghanistan is the most heavily mined country in the world with an
estimated 640,000 mines laid since 1979," Keith said.
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20011214
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Over 140 Pakistanis detained in Mazar
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Staff Correspondent
MINGORA, Dec 13: The workers of the Red Cross delivered letters of
those languishing in different prisons of the warlords in
Afghanistan to their relatives. The workers did not like to be
escorted by the police and avoided talking to the press. They were
accompanied only by the local volunteers.
A prisoner, Fazal Rahim, hailing from the Sharingal Valley of upper
Dir, has said in his letter that some 144 people of the Malakand
division, who were arrested on Nov 10 soon after the fall of Mazar-
i-Sharif to the forces of Abdur Rasheed Dostum, have been
imprisoned in Mazar-i-Sharif.
According to another letter, most of the prisoners are in a serious
condition and are crying for bread and medicines. They are
seriously wounded and are in need of immediate treatment.
A local leader of the Tehrik-i-Nefaz-i-Shariah Muhammadi, Malakand
division, told Dawn that at least 900 TNSM workers were still
missing in Afghanistan and efforts to trace them had failed. Some
of them, he added, were reportedly trying to return via the Chaman
border, but the authorities were not allowing them suspecting their
association with the al-Qaeda.
TNSM spokesman Muhammad Abdullah described as baseless reports
indicating association of TNSM workers with the al-Qaeda net work.
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20011211
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US seeks use of secret evidence: Illegal immigrants
-------------------------------------------------------------------
By Abdus Sattar Ghazali
SAN FRANCISCO, Dec 10: The Justice Department has asked a federal
appeals court for a broad ruling to authorize the use of secret
evidence in cases in which it is trying to detain or deport
immigrants it contends are in the country illegally, it was
reported. For national security reasons, the government argues that
it should share secret evidence with only immigration judges and
not with the immigrants and their lawyers, the daily Chronicle
said.
Legal experts say that the request and other actions since Sept 11
attacks on New York and Washington DC indicate that the government
is moving toward the renewed use of secret evidence in immigration
cases, one of the most criticized of the Justice Department's
tactics in recent years.
In the 1990's, immigrants' groups and other critics of the secret
evidence gained legal and political ground in their assertions that
it relegates immigrants to a legal netherworld, having to disprove
accusations like whether they have connections to terrorists
without knowing specifically what the accusations are.
In a debate during presidential election last year, George Bush
sided with the critics of secret evidence. "Arab-Americans are
racially profiled on what's called secret evidence," Mr Bush said,
adding that the government should "do something about that."
Some immigration lawyers say they have already detected that they
are arguing against evidence that they are not allowed to see, the
Chronicle reported.
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20011213
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Refugees influx effectively blocked, says official
-------------------------------------------------------------------
By Ahmad Hassan
ISLAMABAD, Dec 12: The Pakistan government has effectively checked
the much-feared influx of Afghan refugees, by deployment of troops,
surveillance, and patrolling along the Afghan border, informed
official sources told Dawn.
In the aftermath of the Bonn accord and the reported surrender by
Taliban in Kandahar the authorities feared an extraordinary
movement of Afghans. But the Pakistan government didn't let this
happen.
Instead of the influx of refugees, there are reports of thousands
of Afghan refugees returning home in the hope of stability after
Hamid Karzai's nomination as the future head of government in
Kabul.
Around 70,000 refugees are reported to have returned to Afghanistan
last month; the main reason being the timely supply of food inside
Afghanistan. The WFP was doing Herculean job by transporting 52,000
tons od wheat inside Afghanistan every month, officials said.
Interestingly, the government, in order have humanitarian
assistance discontinued in 1995, has asked for extra funds. It may
be recalled that the government had retrenched almost 80 per cent
staff of the Afghan refugees commissionerates in Peshawar and
Quetta after 1995 when the flow of international funding dried up.
The office of the chief commissionerate Afghan refugees, earlier
wound up, was revived and the reorganization of the refugee
management structure launched. Not only that the establishment
expenditures would now be borne by the international community,
material support to the old refugees would also be continued.
Revival of the chief commissioner's office, though technically
untenable and unviable, the authorities decided in its favour to
extract maximum resources to create employment opportunities, the
sources said.
Another achievement of the government in refugee management was
that it convinced the UN bodies to shift major chunks of refugees
from concentrations in settled areas to the bordering areas with
Afghanistan.
This strategy is believed to serve multifaceted objectives, a) the
refugees, mostly from Pakhtoon background, will be better off with
predominantly Pakhtoon population; and b) majority of them would
perforce plan repatriation to their homeland after finding no place
for permanent settlement in the urban population.
Defying the Pakistan government and the UN agencies, including the
UNHCR estimation of over two million refugees influx, no more then
0.2 million refugees have crossed the borders in three months,
sources maintained.
An official said that the government had ensured that its policy of
complete closure of borders was implemented in letter and spirit,
and hence, sporadic exodus was noted from unfrequented routes.
Their number is small and they do not become a burden for the
relief agencies, since they get absorbed in local population,
official said.
Also, the shifting of Afghan refugees from Jallozai camp in
Peshawar to newly-established camp in Bajaur agency in the NWFP,
and from Faizu killi to Roghani camps across the border, is
progressing well, besides migration of non-Pakhtoon refugees to
Parachinar in Kurram agency, the officials said.
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20011209
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Extra security steps taken on border
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD, Dec 8: The government has deployed additional troops
backed up by helicopters along the border with Afghanistan to
monitor movement and prevent Osama bin Laden and the Taliban
leaders from entering the country.
Speaking at a Press briefing here at the foreign office, Director-
General ISPR Gen Rashid Qureshi said: "We have increased border
patrols and beefed up security along the border area, particularly
in areas close to the Tora Bora mountains and near Chaman."
However, Gen Qureshi avoided to give exact number of troops
deployed on the borders saying, "they were substantial in number...
enough to do the job."
He said: "I cannot tell you the exact number of troops or their
location of deployment, however, I can tell you that the security
has been beefed up specially in areas close to the Tora Bora
mountains and other exit points."
"There is greatly increased surveillance from the air and from the
ground... We are utilizing all assets, which means vehicular,
manpower as well as helicopter assets. "All that's needed to be
done has been done. There are even armed helicopters that will be
surveying the area."
Qureshi said anyone found entering Pakistan illegally would be
"taken into custody, investigations and interrogations will be held
and (if needed) action will be taken under the law."
To a question, he said he didn't have latest information about the
two nuclear scientists held by the agencies. He said that five or
six more members of the governing body of the NGO headed by these
two scientists were being interrogated.
Gen Qureshi rejected a report appeared in New York Times that ISI
supplied arms to the Taliban militia and said that the Soviet
forces had left huge dumps of arms in Afghanistan. Hence the
Afghans whether they were Taliban or Northern Alliance forces did
not need arms from anywhere, he commented.
He said some western newspaper reporters had independently
inspected many trucks loaded with humanitarian assistance entering
Afghanistan and failed to find any trace of arms or ammunition in
it.
Gen Qureshi also rejected speculation that Osama bin Laden had
already entered Pakistan's tribal border areas.
"There have been people who have speculated - it's unfortunate," he
said, adding that the government had allowed total freedom to the
press but it was regrettable that some reports in the local and
foreign press were misleading and creating misunderstanding.
So far reports about Osama's entering Pakistan were concerned all
these reports were imaginary and based on suppositions and hence
not credible, he added.
Replying to a question about the attempt by a British journal to
obtain PIA ticket on fake name, he said had the effort not foiled
at that time Pakistan would have been involved in a big trouble.
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20011209
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Chaman checkpoint moved 1km forward
-------------------------------------------------------------------
By Saleem Shahid
CHAMAN, Dec 8: Pakistan has moved its Chaman border checkpoint one
kilometre ahead towards Spin Boldak, nearer to the Durand Line,
following Taliban's surrender in Kandahar.
The Pakistani border security forces have established their new
checkpoint, reducing the existing over two-kilometer no man's land
between Pakistan-Afghanistan border.
Official sources, while confirming the move, told Dawn that
negotiations were under way with Taliban authorities on this issue
who had agreed to allow Pakistan establish militia checkpoint in
the no man's land, close to Wiesh, the big trading town.
"We have established a new checkpoint close to Wiesh," a senior
border security official said, adding that personnel of Frontier
Corps (civil armed force) and levies (rural police) were deployed
in the area.
In view of the situation emerging after the fall of Kandahar and
taking over of Spin Boldak and Wiesh, Pakistani authorities decided
to take this measure.
The Immigration checkpoint would also be established there pretty
soon.
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20011211
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Three rockets explode in Quetta
-------------------------------------------------------------------
By Saleem Shahid
QUETTA, Dec 10: The provincial capital, Quetta, was rocked by three
rockets, which exploded, one after another in the heart of the
city, police said.
"All three rockets were 107 MM Russian-made, and were fired by some
unknown person from the northwest of the city," the director civil
defense told Dawn.
The first rocket landed and exploded on the top floor of Dr Ayub
Shah Sherani's bungalow, behind Civil Hospital, damaging the water
tank and the children's bedroom. The two children sleeping in the
bedroom were unhurt.
The second rocket exploded on the main road near Chaman railway
crossing. According to the police the third rocket also hit a house
in Christian Colony at Kansi Road. Again no one was hurt.
The explosions caused widespread panic in the city. Within no time
senior military and police officials rushed to the explosion sites.
The police have registered a case against unknown persons.
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20011214
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Washington cracks down on Muslim students
-------------------------------------------------------------------
By Fakhr Ahmad
LOS ANGELES, Dec 13: Ten people - all born in the Middle East -
were taken into federal custody in Southern California as
authorities began rounding up people suspected of violating their
student visas - the first crackdown of its kind in the nation.
Immigration officials were seeking a total of 50 people with
expired visas who were born in Iran, Iraq, Sudan, Pakistan, Libya,
Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan and Yemen, and who live in the San Diego
area.
None of those arrested is suspected of involvement in the Sept 11
terrorist attacks. One case will be referred to the US Attorney's
office, which will decide whether to file criminal charges. The
rest of those detained face possible deportation.
Officials at two of the area's biggest universities, the University
of California, San Diego, and San Diego State University, said the
INS had asked them to check the records of selected students.
UC San Diego received a list of 36 names, all of whom were of
Middle Eastern descent. None of those students was arrested.
University officials said targeting a particular group of students
was "inappropriate."
San Diego State was asked to check on about 200 names, but a school
spokesman declined to comment on the investigation.
San Diego's Muslim community has drawn scrutiny from federal
investigators since authorities discovered that at least two of the
Sept 11 hijackers lived in the area last year.
The FBI arrested two students at San Diego-area colleges 10 days
after the attacks. The two were detained as material witnesses and
indicted by grand juries. They remain in custody.
The Immigration and Naturalization Service plans to expand the
programme to cover holders of expired student visas from other
regions - not just the Middle East - in other areas of the country,
agency officials said. But the roundup angered many San Diego
residents with Middle Eastern roots.
"This type of activity, people defaulting on their visas, is not
particular to the Arab community," said Mohammed Nasser, the
director of the San Diego chapter of the Muslim-American Society.
Randall Hamud, an Arab-American attorney representing two San Diego
residents arrested as material witnesses in the terror probe,
called it a case of "prosecutorial authority that has become
persecutorial license." "Why are they just selecting Middle
Easterners?" Hamud said.
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20011214
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Asif not arrested in polo ground case: NAB
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD, Dec 13: The National Accountability Bureau stated before
the Lahore High Court, Rawalpindi Bench, that Asif Ali Zardari had
not been arrested in polo ground case, clearing the second-last
hurdle in his release after spending over five years in jail.
Asif, who was arrested in November 1996, is facing 13 cases, of
which he has already been granted bail in 11. After the Thursday's
decision he requires only one bail to walk out of jail.
The remaining bail application in narcotics case is slated to be
taken up on Saturday (Dec 15) in Lahore. If the bail, which is
pending before the session judge, Lahore, for over a year, is
accepted, Asif Zardari can celebrate Eid as a free man.
After the statement of Raja Bashir, PGA, that Asif Zardari had not
been arrested in polo ground reference case, the counsels for Asif
Zardari, demanded that he would not be arrested without permission
of "this" court.
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20011212
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Court allows Asif to talk to family on phone
-------------------------------------------------------------------
By Nasir Iqbal
ISLAMABAD, Dec 11: An accountability court allowed Asif Ali
Zardari, to talk to his family on a cellular phone and meet blood
relatives during Eid holidays.
Mr Zardari, who has been admitted to the Pakistan Institute of
Medical Sciences (Pims), has submitted separate applications before
the accountability court seeking permission to talk to his family
members through a mobile phone on Eid and to meet his three sisters
and their three daughters living in Karachi.
Abu Baker Zardari advocate, while representing Mr Zardari before
the accountability court No I argued that the sessions court in
Karachi had allowed Mr Zardari to meet his sisters for four hours
each day during the Eid holidays when he was detained at Karachi.
The accountability court No I earlier had permitted Mr Zardari to
talk to his family including his spouse Benazir Bhutto, son Master
Bakhtawar, daughters Miss Bilawal and Miss Asefa, sister-in-law
Sanam Bhutto and mother-in-law Nusrat Bhutto on a mobile phone once
a week on his own expenses.
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20011209
-------------------------------------------------------------------
PPP to unite Kashmiris across border: Benazir
-------------------------------------------------------------------
By Ashraf Mumtaz
LAHORE, Dec 8: Former prime minister Benazir Bhutto said that her
Pakistan People's Party hoped to increase regional trade in South
Asia and to unite the Kashmiri people through safe and open borders
'without prejudice to the United Nations Security Council
resolutions'.
In a wide-ranging email interview with Dawn organized by the PPP's
Lahore media office, she also said: "We oppose the Kargil-like
incidents and seek to defuse tensions in South Asia." The answers
were received more than a week after the submission of the
questionnaire.
Ms Bhutto's statements during her recent visit to India had
triggered a controversy in political circles in Pakistan.
Undaunted, Ms Bhutto, twice elected Prime Minister and dismissed on
corruption charges, refused to budge.
Her views on Kashmir and Afghanistan are not acceptable even to
Nawabzada Nasrullah Khan, chairman of parliament's Kashmir
committee during her second term who visited a large number of
countries to highlight the decades old dispute and seek
international support for Pakistan's principled stand on the issue.
The Alliance for Restoration of Democracy chief, however, would say
nothing on record, fearing that this might lead to the
disintegration of the alliance.
The PPP chairperson also said despite several rounds of talks the
party senior vice-chairman, Makhdoom Amin Faheem, had held with
President Gen Pervez Musharraf, there was a wide gap in the
positions of her party and the military ruler. She said her party
was continuing the talks to establish that it had done its best to
find a political solution.
Although the PPP leaders have been urging party workers to be
prepared to accord a rousing welcome to their chairperson, Ms
Bhutto parried question regarding her return to Pakistan and her
reluctance to face the cases instituted against her by the
government of Nawaz Sharif who, like her, is in exile.
Excerpts:
QUESTION: Some 75,000 Kashmiri people are estimated to have laid
down their lives in their liberation struggle, but India is not
ready to budge from its position. How can New Delhi then be
expected to resolve the dispute in accordance with the UN
resolutions and wishes of the Kashmiri people if, according to your
suggestion, Pakistan agrees to promote trade first and place the
dispute on the back burner? Does not your suggestion amount to
undermining the freedom movement? How do you view the condemnation
of your idea by the All Parties Hurriyet Conference leaders?
ANSWER: Kashmir is very much a part of the agenda of the Indo-
Pakistan talks. The differences in the positions of the two
countries during the last fifty years led to wars, break-ups and
unilateral withdrawals. Now the time has come for India and
Pakistan to accept that they have different views on the Kashmir
issue. Both countries need to manage the conflict to prevent war,
which the two nuclear capable states can ill afford. Confidence-
building steps are necessary on this issue and the PPP has welcomed
New Delhi's freeing some Kashmiri political prisoners, agreeing to
a cease-fire as well as agreeing to talk to the Kashmiri leaders.
Q: You had suggested not very long ago that Pakistan and India
should have the single president and the same currency. Now you are
for putting the Kashmir dispute on the back burner. How do you
justify then the visits to several countries undertaken by
Nawabzada Nasrullah Khan as chairman of the parliament's Kashmir
committee during your second term to highlight Pakistan's point of
view on the issue and seek world support for it?
A: It is incorrect that I said India and Pakistan should have the
same president and the same currency. I had said that the South
Asian Association for Regional Cooperation should emulate the
European Union in creating bigger markets through open borders and
increased trade through a common trading currency. This is
different from a common currency.
One fourth of humanity's poorest people are housed in South Asia
which is four per cent of the world's territory. Nearly half the
population lives on less than a dollar a day. Important
negotiations are taking place world-wide, especially at the World
Trade Organization. South Asia needs a coordinated approach to make
an impact when seeking conditions that facilitate regional trade.
The world is dividing into regional blocs like the European Union,
the Gulf Cooperation Council and the ASEAN. I would like to see the
SAARC be the structure that enables South Asia to meet the
challenges of the twenty-first century world of regional economic
alignments. We live in a time of great changes and we intend to
bring a change in the life of our people.
Q: You recently said your government's support for the Taliban had
been a mistake. Now you have taken a U-turn on the Kashmir issue.
Earlier, you had abandoned the idea of district governments
although it had been part of your election manifesto. Would it be
fair, given the record, to say that your thinking on various issues
lacks clarity and you conveniently sacrifice policies and
principles at the altar of expediency?
A: The PPP and I speak clearly and what we say turns out to be
correct.
We did support the Taliban in 1996 when they promised to build a
broad-based government. We stopped supporting them in 1998 when
they were hijacked by the Al-Qaeda and decided to go it alone in
Afghanistan.
Our policy on Kashmir is also consistent. As Pakistan's Prime
Minister, I ensured that non-Kashmiri groups did not try and seize
the Kashmir movement from the Kashmiris. My party and I are
criticizing attempts by the private militias to infiltrate into
Kashmir.
As for devolution, we support it and our manifesto speaks of the
social contract. However, contrary to the plan for devolution, the
present dispensation is highly centralized. Each Nazim is
answerable to the Centre. We are opposed to such centralization.
Q: If you do not feel the urgency about getting the Kashmiri people
their right to self-determination, despite their laying down their
lives for liberation from India, how do you justify the ARD's
demand for 'immediate elections' on the ground that the people have
the right to choose their own government?
A: The Kashmiris have indeed laid down their lives for the right to
self-determination. My party and I support the Kashmiri people. We
oppose Kargil-like incidents and seek to defuse tensions in South
Asia. Without prejudice to the Security Council resolutions, we
hope to unite the Kashmiri people through safe and open borders. We
also plan to build trade in South Asia. Societies which fail to
democratize decay. Pakistan is witnessing a sad decay of
institutions due to repeated military interventions. We need
democracy in Pakistan.
Q: Will the PPP, if it returns to power, follow the policy toward
India which you have enunciated?
A: Yes, we believe in speaking in the same voice in public and in
private.
Q: What will be the impact of the Afghanistan problem on the
Kashmir issue? What should Pakistan do to avoid a fallout?
A: There will be an adverse impact on Kashmir due to the
Afghanistan problem. The world will be less tolerant of Afghans,
Arabs, and other foreigners going off to join the fight in Kashmir.
On the other hand, there will be a positive impact. These armed
private militias will be on the defensive. The sectarian violence
in the country may come down.
Q: What should be four top priorities of the present government in
the prevailing situation?
A: The military regime should reach accommodation with the
democratic political forces in and out of the ARD. Political
prisoners should be unilaterally released, politically motivated
cases withdrawn, exiles permitted back and an attempt made at
national reconciliation.
We should secure our relationship with our neighbours Afghanistan,
Iran and India with whom we presently enjoy relations, which could
be improved. We should pass the economic dividend down to the
downtrodden people of Pakistan.
We should have an election process that is acceptable to the
political parties. For example, political parties like the PPP want
elections with joint electorate, multi-identity cards, announcement
of results by returning officers, a mechanism for filing complaints
and getting action against military and civil officers interfering
in the election process as they did in the local elections and an
end to control and command centres that are used to electronically
enter every precinct and fill in the virtual booths with fraudulent
ballots thereby changing the results.
Q: Makhdoom Amin Faheem, a leader of your party, has held some
meetings with Gen Musharraf during the past few months. What has
been the outcome? How do you see Gen Musharraf's recent statement
that the government will arrest you the moment you return to
Pakistan? Are you planning to move a court to seek a pre-arrest
bail? If Mr Asif Zardari can face cases, why can't you? When do you
plan to come back?
A: Senior vice-chairman Makhdoom Amin Faheem met General Musharraf
several times. So far, there is a wide gap between the general and
the PPP. However, the PPP is continuing with the efforts so that
everyone can see that we did our best to find a political solution.
Q: Do the consultations between Gen Musharraf and political leaders
on the issue of Afghanistan not justify the establishment of some
institution, like the National Security Council, where the army and
politicians could hold discussions on important matters facing the
country? Why?
A: The PPP is opposed to a National Security Council and believes
that the Defence Committee of the Cabinet is sufficient forum for
security discussions. However, if the military regime wishes to
change our minds then they should bring us a proposal. We would
like to know what the powers and responsibilities of the National
Security Council are meant to be that are still to be incorporated
in the DCC. In Turkey, there is an NSC for ridding the army and
intelligence of politically-motivated officers of any rank. Is this
what the generals want? If so, we can incorporate it in the DCC. If
otherwise, they need to spell out what they desire so that there is
a public debate on the matter.
Q: Do you think that the present government will hold elections on
its own or will the political parties have to launch a movement?
Can a movement be launched while you and Pakistan Muslim League
president Nawaz Sharif are out of the country?
A: The military regime will hold elections. Right now they are
publicly admitting that these will be sham elections. Many
candidates are being approached by civil and military officials.
They are being asked to join Hum Khayal or Shaikh group in Sindh.
They are being promised that the army-backed party will win. This
is wrong and we have taken up the issue at different fora.
Q: Many people believe that it is time for political parties to
prepare for the elections from their respective platforms. They
also think that the ARD has outlived its utility and should be
disbanded. Your comment?
A: The PPP thinks that the ARD still has a utility. It brings
different political parties together. I am sure that political
parties have already begun the research for elections.
Q: How is Begum Nusrat Bhutto Sahiba? Is she improving as a result
of the treatment she is getting. How does she spend most of her
time?
A: Begum Sahiba is physically well by the grace of Allah. During
the Zia years, she was baton-charged at Qadhafi Stadium in 1977.
She was then arrested and stopped from going abroad for treatment.
Denied proper treatment, she developed some atrophy around the scar
line of her head injury. As such she has problems with memory.
Under medication, her condition is stable. Begum Sahiba enjoys
walks, watching television, playing with her grandchildren.
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20011215
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NAB softens settlement terms in Wattoo case
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Staff Reporter
LAHORE, Dec 14: The National Accountability Bureau, Punjab,
softened its terms for a settlement with former chief minister
Manzoor Wattoo and others bringing down to 15 per cent the rate of
mark-up to be charged on the Baitul Maal amount they are accused of
having misappropriated.
The NAB had filed references against Mr Wattoo and six others for
releasing and receiving Baitul Maal funds without lawful authority.
The beneficiaries have since returned the principal amount. The
NAB, however, has demanded payment of mark-up for a full
settlement.
The prosecutor informed the court on Friday that the NAB was
prepared to bring down the mark-up. The mark-up amount is Rs1,605
million. The court deferred the hearing till Dec 22 for further
arguments.
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20011210
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Restoration of 1973 Constitution a top agenda: APC by month-end
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Staff Reporter
LAHORE, Dec 9: The restoration of the 1973 Constitution would be on
top of the agenda of the all parties conference (APC) being
convened by ARD president Nawabzada Nasrullah Khan in the last week
of the current month in Lahore.
Talking to reporters at the residence of ARD's deputy information
secretary Munir Ahmad Khan, the Nawabzada said the APC would also
discuss the reported amendments to the Constitution by the army
government, establishment of an independent Election Commission and
a caretaker setup to hold fair and free polls.
All political and religious parties, Pakistan Bar Council and high
courts bars, trade unions of journalists, labours and other
professions were also being invited to the APC to build a "real
national consensus" on the four issues, he said.
"I am glad that response from most of the parties contacted for the
purpose was positive and the APC agenda was acceptable to all."
He said he wanted to convene the meeting during Ramadan keeping in
view the importance of the issues but on the insistence of some
parties had to delay it till December-end. However, he would not
give the exact date of the meeting.
Referring to the recent election results and transfer of power in
two SAARC countries Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, he said "we want the
tradition to take root in our country too."
He said it was unfortunate that free and fair polls were never held
in the country. An election commission whose integrity was relied
upon by the whole nation was the need of the hour, he added.
The Nawabzada said there was also need to set up a broad-based
interim government in the country so that no party could hijack the
election results with the connivance of the administration and the
results were acceptable to all and sundry.
He hoped that the world forums like the UN and the EU would extend
moral support to their struggle for the revival of democracy in the
country as the assembly of representatives of 140 million people of
Pakistan would have its effect on international level.
He said a democratic government, however bad it is, was better than
dictatorship for it had to respect the public opinion, while the
dictators considered themselves as the absolutely wise. The
Nawabzada said there had never been two opinions on the question of
integrity of the country in other democratic states but Pakistan
was unfortunate in this regard that not only parties but alliances
did not believe in the integrity of the country.
"A political leadership is the need of the hour to unite the nation
divided by dictators on the basis of region, race, language, creed
and biradri," he said. If the politicians were cornered, then the
task of uniting the nation and preparing it for rendering
sacrifices in the present crisis-like situation on borders would be
impossible.
He expressed his apprehensions over the future policy of the new
Afghan government and criticism by Tehran Radio of Pakistan's
Afghan policy during the Iranian foreign minister's visit to
Islamabad.
He said the army government had failed on internal as well as
external fronts and it could not fulfil even a single point of its
much-propagated agenda.
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20011210
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Mian Azhar rules out patch-up with PML-N
-------------------------------------------------------------------
KARACHI, Dec 9: The President of the Pakistan Muslim League (Quaid-
i-Azam), Mian Azhar, said that his party was ready to talk on
election alliance with every political party, except the PML
(Nawaz) and the Pakistan People's Party.
Talking to newsmen after an Iftar party, hosted in his honour by
the PML Sindh President, Ghaus Bux Mahar, here, Mian Azhar said he
held detailed discussion with veteran Muslim League leader Pir
Pagara on political issues.
"We held discussion on political issues," he said adding that he
had been holding meetings with all factions of the Muslim League.
He said that his party was ready to participate in the forthcoming
elections. Alliance with other parties could not be ruled out, he
added.
Replying to a question, Main Azhar said he did not see any reason
for postponement of the October 2002 election, which had been
announced by the government on the directives of the Supreme Court.
The government was sincere about holding election as it had already
fulfilled its commitment by holding local government elections.
Answering a question, he said there was no possibility of early
elections as had been demanded by certain political parties.
He claimed that the PML was a natural ally of the Jamaat-i-Islami,
and his party would also consider election alliance in the future
with this party. The party had alliance with the Jamaat in the
local government elections and it won many seats with the help of
the Jamaat, including those in Karachi.-APP
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20011211
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Pakistan Steel GM jailed for 7 years
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Staff Reporter
KARACHI, Dec 10: An accountability court sentenced a general
manager of the Pakistan Steel Mills to seven years' imprisonment
with a fine of Rs10 million for causing huge losses to the national
exchequer.
Judge Rahmat Husain Jafferi of the AC-3, who is also the
administrative judge of all the ACs in Karachi, also ordered that
Qaiser Raza would have to undergo an additional 30 months'
imprisonment if he failed to pay the fine.
Former chairman of the Pakistan Steel, Dr Mohammed Usman Farooqui,
his wife Aneesa Farooqui and their daughter Sharmila Farooqui were
earlier ordered to be released in this reference after the approval
of his plea for bargaining. The Farooquis surrendered assets of
more than Rs330 million, acquired through illegal means.
The case pertained to the purchase of "iron slabs" and "pig iron"
at exorbitant prices for the PSM in 1996, and it caused a loss of
more than Rs1.3 billion to the national exchequer.
The judge, however, acquitted deputy GM Syed Iqtidar Rasool of the
charges for want of incriminating evidence.
The accused were charged with purchasing 150,000 metric tons of
slabs at the rate of 304.90 US dollars a metric ton and 100,000
metric ton pig iron at the rate of 199.5 US dollars a metric ton,
while the market prices of the items at the time were 190 and 148
US dollars, respectively.
The dubious deal was struck through the local representative of the
Cyprus- based suppliers, Mahboob and Sons, owned by Mahmoodul
Hasan, who had been declared an absconding accused in the case.
According to the investigators, an amount of more than 22.385m US
dollars or more than Rs1.3bn was devoured by the accused in this
deal.
BUSINESS & ECONOMY
20011214
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Paris Club provides $12bn relief package
-------------------------------------------------------------------
By Ihtasham ul Haque
ISLAMABAD, Dec 13: The Paris Club offered a $12 billion "stock re-
profiling" of loans for 38 years under which Pakistan would have to
pay nothing in debt servicing during the first 15 years.
"Pakistan is the fourth country after Egypt, Poland and Yugoslavia
to get this unprecedented package from the Paris Club," Finance
Minister Shaukat Aziz told Dawn by telephone from Paris.
He described the offer as "beyond expectations" and "something
amazing and incredible". He said that since Pakistan was
implementing its economic reform programme, the Paris Club decided
to favour it in a big way to help lessen its debt. "This all
happened due to restoration of our credibility".
"The stock re-profiling of debt for 38 years will eventually
provide us 30 per cent debt write-off," the minister said, adding
the agreement included $0.5 billion loans write-off and debt swap
by Canada, UK, Italy and Germany.
"Now our cash flow will greatly improve which will provide us an
opportunity to look after our neglected social sectors adequately,"
he pointed out.
According to a finance ministry announcement, the total stock of
debt affected by this arrangement is in excess of $12 billion. Two-
thirds of this debt relate to concessional lending, and will be
rescheduled over 38 years, including a 15-year grace period. The
remaining involves guaranteed commercial debt, and will be
rescheduled over 23 years, including a 5-year grace period.
"This reorganization differs from Pakistan's previous rescheduling
agreements not only in that it treats the entire stock of eligible
debt, inclusive of previously rescheduled debt, but also in that
the repayment terms for concessional loans are nearly twice as
favourable as in previous arrangements".
Cash flow savings during the life of the recently approved 3-year
IMF Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility are estimated at $2.7
billion, with significant savings during the subsequent decade,
thereby removing the spike in debt service commitments.
The agreement is seen as a major milestone for the government's
economic reform agenda. The delegation, led by Mr Aziz, made a
strong plea before bilateral creditors that Pakistan's request for
debt relief should be seen in the light of President Pervez
Musharraf's commitment for economic reforms and the policies
pursued by his government over the last two years.
The representatives of the International Monetary Fund, the World
Bank, the Asian Development Bank, and UNCTAD gave their independent
views of Pakistan's economic situation before they came out with
support for the government's request.
Commenting on the results of the meeting, the minister said, "this
agreement is unique, not only for Pakistan, but also in terms of
the Paris Club... and it further testifies to changing attitudes of
the international community towards Pakistan. "We consider today's
agreement as providing Pakistan with a credible exit from its
external debt problem and with sustainability".
He said the donors had showed flexibility and understanding of
Pakistan's debt burden by not strictly following the conventional
terms of the Club. This understanding resulted in a stock treatment
of virtually all of Pakistan's outstanding bilateral debt which
would provide the much needed fiscal space for poverty alleviation
and enhanced allocations for the social sector.
The minister said that the reform process would continue unabated.
The arrangement is an umbrella multilateral agreement under which
bilateral negotiations with different creditors will soon be
undertaken. It is anticipated that reflecting the downward trend in
international interest rates, the conditions of these bilateral
agreements will further enhance the relief provided by the Club.
The Club meeting was presided over by its chairman, Jean Pierre
Jouyet, head of the French Treasury, and was attended by the
representatives of the IMF, the World Bank, the AOB, UNCTAD, and
delegations from Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark.
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20011213
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Paris Club considering $4bn debt rescheduling plea
-------------------------------------------------------------------
By Ihtasham ul Haque
ISLAMABAD, Dec 12: The Paris Club creditors, now meeting in Paris,
are considering sympathetically Pakistan's request for rescheduling
$4 billion debt, part of which also includes debt re-profiling.
"The Paris Club is in session since Tuesday and we are getting very
encouraging reports about Pakistan's request for debt
rescheduling," said Dr Waqar Masood Khan, Additional Secretary,
Ministry of Finance.
Dr Khan, who is also the ministry's spokesman, told Dawn here on
Wednesday that Finance Minister Shaukat Aziz was already in Paris
to attend the meeting as well as to hold bilateral talks with the
members of the club.
"The representatives of the World Bank and the IMF have issued
positive statements in favour of Pakistan during the meeting and we
are very hopeful about the outcome of the Paris Club session," the
additional secretary of the finance ministry said.
He also clarified DAWN's story, which appeared in Wednesday's
issue, in which it was said that Pakistan's total external debt
amounted to 43 billion dollar. He said 43 billion-dollar also
included over 11 billion dollar private foreign currency deposits
in 1998.
He also clarified DAWN's story, appearing in Wednesday's issue, in
which it was stated that Pakistan's total external debt amounted to
$43 billion. He said this amount also included over $11 billion
private foreign currency deposits in 1988. Therefore, the actual
foreign debt stands at $38 billion and not $43 billion, he added.
WB ADVICE: The World Bank has called upon the Paris Club to
adequately restructure Pakistan's debt to not only help address its
immediate cash flow needs but also bring its debt to sustainable
level.
The World Bank representative, in his address to the Paris Club
meeting on Tuesday, said that Pakistan's challenge of growth and
poverty reduction was of a global significance. "To this end we
believe the support of all Pakistan's creditors is critical to
strengthen the hands of reformers and to address the severe balance
of payments needs," he added.
According to a text of the speech, released by the ministry of
finance, although Pakistan remains a blend of IBRD/IDA country, the
World Bank expects to provide only highly concessional IDA credits
over the next three years. However, Pakistan's growth and poverty
reduction prospects are severely constrained by the high level of
indebtedness and the very poor social indicators, he said. "A key
issue over the medium term is how to bring Pakistan to a
sustainable position."
Pakistan's human development indicators are abysmal and lag behind
those countries with similar income level. Only 43 per cent
Pakistanis are literate and the gap between male and female is
wide. Only 27 per cent of all Pakistani women over the age of 15
are literate, the World Bank representative noted.
The full impact of the Sept 11 events on Pakistan is still to be
measured. Governance is a key component of the overall reform
program. Emphasis has been on improving tax policy, including
widening of the tax net and eliminating exemptions.
Public financial management has been strengthened through the
appointment of Public Account Committees and enhanced fiscal
transparency, he said.
The President of Pakistan has approved a medium term program that
aims at effective tax administration that will facilitate and
improve governance with tax laws, the World Bank representative
said.
The support from the World Bank is designed to complement the
reform program through a series of structural adjustments and
investment credits. These include the Structural Adjustment Credit
that is already in place, a Banking Restructuring and Privatisation
Project and investment projects focussed on improving basic service
delivery, he said.
Talking about the private sector, he said that tariffs had been
lowered significantly to a maximum of 30 per cent and the tariff
bands reduced from five to four. Three nationalised banks had been
restructured, ineffective branches closed and prudential
regulations strengthened.
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20011213
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Rs51.8bn budget approved for PIA
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Staff Reporter
RAWALPINDI, Dec 12: The Pakistan International Airlines' Board of
Directors approved Rs51.811 billion budget for the national flag
carrier for the fiscal 2002.
Managing Director PIA Ahmed Saeed while presenting the budget
before the meeting projected a profit of Rs2.427bn during the next
year. According to the provisional figures presented before the
Board the airline sustained Rs2.085bn losses during the year ending
December 2001.
The budget projections for the year 2002, he said, reaffirms
management's resolve to put the airline on the path of sustainable
profitability and growth.
The profit target of Rs2.427bn would be realized through revenue
enhancement with a "restricted" increase in expenditure. The next
year's target, the MD said, will be achieved through product
improvement, better service, fleet renewal, manpower
rationalization and image restoration.
The profit expectation is after absorption of interest cost of
Rs2.3bn on Term Finance Certificates (TFCs) and short-term loans.
The revenue generation under the budget projections is expected to
increase by Rs4.703bn from last year's Rs47.108bn to Rs51.811bn,
whereas the expenditure would go up by Rs191 million from
Rs49.193bn last year to Rs49.384bn. The projected revenue increase
over the last year is 10 per cent, while expenditure would rise by
0.4 per cent.
The seat factor has been projected to increase to 72.1 per cent
against last year's 67.3 per cent.
According to the break up of the revenue sources, the PIA expects
to earn Rs41.403bn from scheduled flights; Rs2.260bn from Hajj
operations; Rs190 million through mail handling; Rs5.258bn as
freight charges; Rs1.198bn from excess baggage and non-transport
services to fetch Rs1.502bn.
The expenditure head of the budget has been divided into direct
operating cost Rs36.814bn and indirect fixed cost of Rs12.570bn.
During the first half of year 2001, the national flag carrier
sustained an operating loss of Rs2.285bn, whereas after the
introduction of the business plan it is being expected that an
operating profit of Rs200 million would have been earned.
The meeting was informed that the past six months, particularly
after Sept 11 events had been very difficult for PIA because of the
huge insurance cost.
The government bailed out PIA by indemnifying the National
Insurance Corporation.
Besides there was decrease in the outbound number of passengers by
almost 20 per cent because of the visa restrictions introduced by
different countries and the hostile working environment for
Pakistanis in overseas countries.
The operating cost increased after the beginning of allied forces
attacks against Afghanistan as planes flying to and from Europe and
the United Stated had to fly an extra hour to avoid Afghan
airspace.
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20011214
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ADB approves $350m agriculture loan
-------------------------------------------------------------------
By Ihtashamul Haque
ISLAMABAD, Dec 13: The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved
US$350 million soft loan for the development of five-year
agriculture sector program in Pakistan.
The first tranche of $125 million will be disbursed after taking
compliance measures.
According to an announcement made by the local ADB office, the
primary objective of the "Agriculture Sector Program Loan" will be
to improve agriculture productivity and profitability.
It included special reform measures to promote efficient markets
for major commodities including wheat, cotton, rice sugar,
fertilizer, and seed. The purpose is also to strengthen support
services in small farmer extension and training, research and
regulation, to improve quality.
The program will promote pro-poor reforms to expand the role of the
private sector through deregulation, liberalization, and
privatization affecting many public input, supply, and output
marketing enterprises that now operate in the agriculture sector.
The resultant sectoral efficiency would minimize, and eventually
eliminate the drag on the country's fiscal resources.
A technical assistance loan will also be provided to assist the
government in policy advice, program coordination, improving
efficiency of commodity markets, small farmer extension, research
and safety nets, and reorganization and restructuring of relevant
state-owned enterprises.
While the ADB has approved a major agriculture loan program, a
number of its ongoing development projects with a cost of $450
million in Sindh are experiencing delays in the implementation due
to unfamiliarity with the Bank's procedures.
The officials of the Bank have said that the delay was also caused
due to government's approval formalities and decisions on
procurement matters. The Bank wanted to streamline various
procedures so that unnecessary delays in completing ongoing
development projects in Sindh could be avoided.
For this purpose the ADB was organizing workshops to familiarize
the project directors/project mangers and relevant government
officials with its guidelines and procedures on project management
and related matters.
The concerned resource persons of the Bank will deliberate on the
important aspects of project implementation, covering specifically,
ADB project cycle, guidelines on procurement, guidelines on
consultant selection, disbursement procedures, and financial
management matters.
The ADB portfolio in Sindh consists of 15 loans, comprising three
in agriculture and rural development sector, two in physical
infrastructure, two in energy sector, seven in social
infrastructure and one emergency assistance for drought.
The ADB will hold similar workshops in the NWFP and Balochistan
during the later part of December 2001. The Bank held similar
workshop in Lahore and Karachi last month.
According to the ADB Annual Report for 2000, although Pakistan has
a good disbursement record, project implementation continued to be
delayed. The government and the ADB agreed on comprehensive action
plan - updated at each country portfolio review - that addresses
policy and governance-related covenants in loan agreements.
Difficulties in complying with covenants were attributed to lack of
ownership, an unclear definition of responsibilities, inadequate
follow up, and resource and capacity constraints. As a result of
slowed project implementation, some loan-closing dates had to be
extended.
Since joining the ADB in 1966, Pakistan has received 192 loans,
which included 20 private-sector loans without government
guarantee, of which 51 were active at the end of 2000, bringing the
cumulative loan figure to $7.5 billion.
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20011215
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ADB to extend $1 billion for civil reforms
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD, Dec 14: The Asian Development Bank will provide
approximately one billion dollars in 2002 for carrying out civil
reforms, improving provincial resource management and developing
capital market in Pakistan.
"Pakistan government's response to the Sept 11 event, and its role
as a front-line state in the war against international terrorism
has demonstrated its commitment to promoting Pakistan's economic
and social development and establishing it as a modern, progressive
state," said an ADB representative.
"ADB has strongly supported the government in its reform efforts
and will continue to do so to achieve the shared objectives of
poverty reduction and economic development," he stated.
The ADB, he pointed out, was in the process of preparing a three-
year new Country Strategy and Program (2002-2004) for Pakistan,
which will be the basis of its operation in the future.
He said that ADB operations had been guided by its Country
Operational Framework, which had the following, three principal
objectives: improving economic efficiency and export
competitiveness, human and social development, and governance and
institutional strengthening. Constant to that, he said, the ADB
provided $707 million in 2000.
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20011212
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Germany gives $22m to fight poverty
-------------------------------------------------------------------
BERLIN, Dec 11: Germany has given Pakistan 50 million marks ($22.8
million) in additional aid to fight poverty, improve education and
health care and support Afghan refugees, the overseas development
ministry said.
Berlin said the aid package was intended in part to recognize
Pakistan's anti-terrorism efforts and in particular its acceptance
of thousands of Afghan refugees since the US-led war began.
"The German government has taken into consideration the role
Pakistan has played in the war on terrorism as well as the
additional burden placed on it by the influx of refugees from
Afghanistan," the ministry said in a statement.
The funds will go mainly to projects in the north and northwest of
the country, such as schools for Afghan refugees living in camps in
Pakistan and the development of renewable energy.
Germany will also support projects targeted specifically at women
and girls, the ministry said. -AFP
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20011212
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Public debt swells to Rs3,000 billion
-------------------------------------------------------------------
By Our Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD, Dec 11: Pakistan's increased fiscal and current account
deficits have resulted in an explosive accumulation of Rs3,000
billion public debt and over $43 billion external debt.
According to latest official projections firmed up and shared with
the World Bank, IMF and the Paris Club creditors, it was
increasingly becoming difficult to have any meaningful debt
management, keeping in view the massive public and foreign debt
that especially accumulated during the last 8 to 10 years.
The government, therefore, was seeking substantial debt relief,
both from the bilateral creditors and International Financial
Institutions (IFIs), to cope with what was termed an "alarming debt
situation", according to official sources.
Sources said the new staff report prepared by the IMF was favorable
to help reduce the country's debt, especially the most expensive
and short-term one. "We owe about little over $2 billion most
expensive and short-term foreign debt for which we are very
seriously taking the issue with the international lenders
concerned," a top official said.
When contacted, he disagreed with the suggestion that this most
expensive and short-term loan amounted to $8 billion, out of the
total $43 billion debt. "If you do not believe us then wait for the
release of IMF staff report to be shortly made public and have the
correct figure," he added.
The Paris Club creditors were meeting in Paris on Wednesday (Dec
12) to consider both debt rescheduling and debt re-profiling for
Pakistan. After the approval of $1.3 billion Poverty Reduction
Growth Facility by the Executive Board of the IMF last week, the
Fund officials were reportedly inclined to offer debt re-profiling
for Pakistan. This meant the writing off of loans to some
considerable extent in order to help Pakistan improve its balance
of payment position and help reduce the payment of debt servicing.
For 2001-2002, the debt servicing payment amounted to Rs329.2
billion, out of the total budgetary outlay of Rs751.7 billion.
The government has sought $6 billion exceptional assistance from
IFIs and about $4 billion debt rescheduling from the Paris Club
that also included certain debt re-profiling. The assistance of $6
billion has been sought to return Pakistan's $24 billion short-term
loans during the next four-year period, sources said.
Officials conceded that a proposed Debt Policy Coordination office
had not been set up in the ministry of finance to deal with the
serious issue of both public and foreign debt. The Debt Reduction
and Management Committee headed by Dr Pervez Hasan had proposed the
establishment of the Coordination office.
Dr Pervez Committee believed that the stagnation in government
revenues and exports during the last few years and the rising cost
of government borrowing, both domestic and foreign, resulted during
1996-1999 in fastest growth in public debt burden in the country's
history. It said the small reduction in foreign exchange
obligations was achieved only through freezing of individual
foreign currency accounts.
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20011211
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NBP in US not accepting cash for remittance
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Staff Correspondent
NEW YORK, Dec 10: The National Bank of Pakistan has clarified that
it does not accept any cash for remittances to Pakistan as a self-
imposed restriction.
Rafiq Bengali, general manager of the NBP on Wall Street, told Dawn
that in the aftermath of Sept 11 terror attacks and subsequent
guidelines issued by the US government "our legal and our
compliance people identified that cash transactions are a high risk
area, and since cash transactions are less than 10 per cent of our
remittance volume, so we decided to limit the exposure of the bank"
by not accepting cash for remittances.
However, "we accept cashiers cheques or certified cheques for such
remittances," Mr Bengali said. The NBP has pasted notices outside
its branches informing its customers that it does not accept cash
for remittances abroad.
Officials at other Pakistani banks said no direct instructions had
been issued by the US Federal Reserve to stop cash transactions but
strict guidelines had been issued under rules of the Foreign Assets
Control Act to identify individuals or organizations making any
cash remittances.
Mr Bengali said: "We have imposed such restrictions following the
new guidelines from the US authorities which require detailed
information about the persons sending money to Pakistan. The
information we cannot readily provide if we accept cash from
Pakistanis walking in to the branches."
These instructions were issued following Sept 11 attacks on the US
in a bid to stop any flow of money to the organizations which are
on the US list of funding terror activities.
Mr Bengali said that "we have informed the Pakistan consulate and
embassy about the changes. "We are not a licensed commercial bank,
we only have permission to remit money to Pakistan."
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20011210
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US imposes curbs on Pakistan banks: Day-to-day cash transactions
-------------------------------------------------------------------
By Masood Haider
NEW YORK, Dec 9: All Pakistani banks operating in the United States
have been asked to stop day to day financial transactions in
accordance with new laws enacted by the United States following
Sept 11 attacks which endeavor to stop flow of money to the
terrorist organizations.
Besides Pakistan many banks of other Muslim countries have been
asked to suspend their daily cash transactions.
The orders came into effect as of Dec 1.
The banks are now allowed to issue certified cheques, money orders
or personal cheques only. All cash money transactions are banned.
Also include prohibiting transactions in foreign exchange,
transfers of credits to foreign banks and importing and exporting
currency or securities.
Pakistan's major banks - National Bank, Habib Bank, United Bank,
Habib Bank AG Zurich have received orders from the US Federal
Reserve Bank to stop cash transactions. National Bank of Pakistan's
major branch at one UN Plaza has stopped functioning and has been
merged with its Regional head office situated at Wall Street New
York.
According to the new law the US Secretary of the Treasury Paul Neil
now has sweeping powers to close the door to the United States to
foreign financial institutions and nations that serve as conduits
or depositories of terrorist funds or do not cut off the money flow
to terrorist groups.
In consultation with the State Department and Justice Department,
the Treasury Department is authorized "to employ all powers granted
to the President" under the International Emergency Economic Powers
Act (IEEPA). The powers include prohibiting transactions in foreign
exchange, transfers of credits to foreign banks and importing and
exporting currency or securities.
The New Law stipulates that US Treasury department has existing
power to require cash, suspicious activity reports from aviation
schools, crop dusters, many other high-risk businesses. Money
Laundering Alert provides specific actions that Congress and all US
agencies need to take to build permanent reforms to stop the
financial nourishment of terrorists. One of the primary actions
needed is an overhaul of the Treasury's Financial Crimes
Enforcement Network.
The MLA provides key analysis of the US money laundering law as it
relates to terrorists. The law lists 176 "specified unlawful
activities." Three of them deal with terrorism, including one that
deals with "providing material support to terrorists" (Title 18,
USC Sec. 2339A).
All Pakistani banks operating in New York had signs posted outside
the branches telling customers it could no longer provide them any
services.
Pakistani bank managers say that it is not clear how long they
would be able to function in the United States if they are not
allowed to open doors to general public. They have sought
intervention from the Pakistan government.
Back to the top
EDITORIALS & FEATURES
20011209
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Resurrection!
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By Ardeshir Cowasjee
THE bad news of the day is that in Pakistan nine babies are born
every minute. The good news is that after two years in power we
have a man at the helm of affairs who does not think or say that he
has the divine right to rule, or that he hears voices from on high,
or that he wishes to be an Amir-ul-Momineen.
President General Pervez Musharraf is what is generally accepted as
a 'normal' man, who wishes to lead a 'normal' life, and who has
unequivocally declared, without fudging or feinting, that he will
remain the president of this country. He heads the most disciplined
and organized party of the land which gives him its unrestrained
backing.
So far, he has his feet on the ground and has taken the correct
actions. He has realized that our extremists, the bigots amongst
the people, must be restrained, which has been accorded approval by
our international backers. Unless fate in a violent form intervenes
he should be with us for many years.
Allah be praised, after fifty-four years we are now in the process
of resurrection.
Musharraf was a toddler when Mohammad Ali Jinnah, the maker and
builder of Pakistan, intended to be a progressively modern state,
stated on February 19, 1948: "But make no mistake: Pakistan is not
a theocracy or anything like it .... "Later that month, he
reiterated: "In any case, Pakistan is not going to be a theocratic
state to be ruled by priests with a divine mission .....".
On March 7, 1949, Musharraf was still a toddler when the Objectives
Resolution was moved and adopted on the first day of the fifth
session of the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan, meeting in the
Assembly chambers at Karachi, at four of the clock in the evening.
The official report for that day's debates records:
"The Honourable Mr Liaquat Ali Khan (East Bengal, Muslim) : Mr
President, Sir, I beg to move the following Objectives Resolution
embodying the main principles on which the Constitution of Pakistan
is to be based.
"In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful;
"Whereas sovereignty over the entire universe belongs to God
Almighty alone and the authority which He has delegated to the
state of Pakistan through its people for being exercised within the
limit prescribed by Him is a sacred trust;"This Constituent
Assembly, representing the people of Pakistan, resolves to frame a
constitution for the sovereign independent State of Pakistan;
"Wherein the state shall exercise its powers and authority through
the chosen representatives of the people;
"Wherein the principles of democracy, freedom, equality, tolerance
and social justice, as enunciated by Islam, shall be fully
observed;
"Wherein the Muslims shall be enabled to order their lives in the
individual and collective spheres in accord with the teachings and
requirements of Islam as set out in the Holy Quran and the Sunnah;
"Wherein adequate provisions shall be made for the minorities
freely to profess and practise their religions and develop their
cultures;
"Wherein the territories now included in or in accession with
Pakistan and such other territories as may hereafter be included in
or accede to Pakistan shall form a federation wherein the units
will be autonomous with such boundaries and limitations on their
powers and authority as may be prescribed;
"Wherein shall be guaranteed fundamental rights, including equality
of status, of opportunity and before law, social economic and
political justice, and freedom of thought, expression, belief,
faith, worship and association, subject to the law and public
morality;
"Wherein adequate provision shall be made to safeguard the
legitimate interests of minorities and backward and depressed
classes;
"Wherein the independence of the judiciary shall be fully secured;
"Wherein the integrity of the territories of the Federation, its
independence and all its rights, including its sovereign rights on
land, sea and air, will be safeguarded;
"So that the people of Pakistan may prosper and attain their
rightful and honoured place amongst the nations of the world and
make their full contribution towards international peace and
progress and happiness of humanity."
Now to quote from Liaquat's subsequent address to the President,
the Honourable Mr Tamizuddin Khan, a quotation which must bear
constant and frequent repetition:
"...the people are the real recipients of power. This naturally
eliminates any danger of the establishment of a theocracy .... In
the technical sense, theocracy has come to mean a government by
ordained priests, who wield authority as being specially appointed
by those who claim to derive their rights from their sacerdotal
position. I cannot overemphasize the fact that such an idea is
absolutely foreign to Islam. Islam does not recognize either
priesthood or any sacerdotal authority; and, therefore, the
question of a theocracy simply does not arise in Islam. If there
are any who still use the word theocracy in the same breath as the
polity of Pakistan, they are either labouring under a grave
misapprehension or indulging in mischievous propaganda.
"..... Therefore, there should be no misconception in the mind of
any sect which may be a minority in Pakistan about the intentions
of the state. The state will seek to create an Islamic society free
from dissensions, but this does not mean that it would curb the
freedom of any section of the Muslims in the matter of their
beliefs. No sects, whether the majority or a minority, will be
permitted to dictate to the others and, in their own internal
matters and sectional beliefs, all sects shall be given the fullest
possible latitude and freedom. Actually, we hope the various sects
will act in accordance with the desire of the Prophet who said that
the differences of opinion amongst his followers are a blessing. It
is for us to make our differences a source of strength to Islam and
to Pakistan and not to exploit them for our own interests which
will weaken both Pakistan and Islam.
".... We believe that no shackles can be put on thought and,
therefore, we do not intend to hinder any person from the
expression of his views."
Now, in 2001, we address the first in the line of succession after
the president, the honourable chief justice of Pakistan, Irshad
Hassan Khan, who, all going well, will retire on January 6, 2002.
The new Supreme Court of Pakistan building designed by Kenzo Tange
was consecrated in March 1993 by the prime minister of the day,
Mian Mohammad Nawaz Sharif, the same Sharif who in November 1997
desecrated the building and the institution of the judiciary by
masterminding the storming of the court so as to save himself from
being convicted of contempt of court by a stubborn shortsighted
chief justice. It is a matter of eternal shame that our judicial
system, despite the cold hard evidence on record, found itself
unable to convict Sharif and his co-accused for their contemptible
crime.
At the consecration of the building, Sharif declared that not only
had the text of the Objectives Resolution been affixed in gilded
lettering on the walls of the highest court of the land, both in
English and Urdu, but that it was imprinted in the hearts of every
loyal Pakistani. But, whereas the Urdu version was an accurate
translation of the original English version, the English version
had one glaring omission from the original. In the paragraph
dealing with minority rights, the original version as recorded in
the annals of the Constituent Assembly read: "Wherein adequate
provision shall be made for the minorities freely to profess and
practise their religions and develop their cultures;"
On the walls of the honourable Supreme Court the word "freely" was
deliberately omitted from this paragraph. A crime, would one not
say?
Chief Justice Afzal Zullah, during whose term the building was
inaugurated, was informed of this omission and asked to have it
rectified. He did not do so. Then came our one chief justice who
possessed a great sense of humour, Nasim Hassan Shah, who was also
reminded on more than one occasion to have this criminal ommission
rectified. He also chose to ignore it. Chief Justice Sajjad Ali
Shah followed; he had both plaques removed. They remained removed
throughout the terms of Chief Justices Ajmal Mian and Saeeduzzaman
Siddiqui, and they remain so now during the term of Irshad Hassan
Khan.
During the month left to him, will our bold chief justice, whose
words and records of his deeds have been spread over three
continents, have the decency and good judgment to order that the
engraving on the English version of the Resolution be corrected so
that the word "freely" is inserted where it should be, and then
have both plaques reaffixed on the walls of the entrance hall of
our Supreme Court. No tall order, this!
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20011214
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The logic of the mighty
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By Ayaz Amir
"Contemporary global politics is the age of Muslim wars." -
Huntington
"The Islamic world differs from other world cultures today in one
important respect. In recent years it alone has repeatedly produced
significant radical Islamist movements that reject not just western
politics, but the most basic principle of modernity itself, that of
religious tolerance." - Fukuyama
A short history lesson is in order. The very Islamist movements
that the West denounces today were once the greatest favourites of
the United States. Why? Because all of them had two things in
common: anti-nationalism (believing as they did in a single,
overriding Ummah) and anti-communism.
Today western scholars are preaching the virtues of secularism in
the Muslim world and saying that unless Muslim countries learn to
separate politics from religion there will be no progress for them.
The irony couldn't be thicker for it was not long ago that the
West's principal enemies in the world of Islam were those very
nationalist regimes--like Nasser's Egypt and the Baathist regimes
in Iraq and Syria--which looked to secularism and the appropriation
of national resources (from western hands) as the keys to national
resurgence.
Two other disturbing qualities characterised these nationalist
regimes: considering the Soviet Union as the great champion of
anti-colonialism, they looked to it for support and also denounced
the conservative Arab regimes like that of Saudi Arabia as pawns in
Western hands.
With the cold war on, and a global competition for influence raging
between East and West, the US viewed pro-Sovietism with loathing
for obvious reasons. But it was no less suspicious of the second
tendency because Saudi Arabia and the other Arab monarchies and
sheikhdoms were America's staunchest allies in the region,
underpinning America's growing hold on the Middle East.
In short, conservative Islam was pro-American while nationalist or
secular Islam was anti-American. The US was comfortable with kings
and sheikhs and uncomfortable with the upstart army officers who
had triggered coups in Egypt, Iraq, Syria and, somewhat later,
Libya and challenged American interests once they had come to
power. Opposing these nationalist regimes were such Islamist
organizations as the Ikhwan and Jamaa-I-Islamiya in Egypt which,
for this very reason, found sympathy and covert backing from the
US. Islamism now a bugbear for the US, was very much in tune with
American sentiments at the time.
The heady days of Arab nationalism came to an abrupt end with the
comprehensive Arab defeat in the 1967 war. Among other
consequences, this defeat brought home to the Arabs their weakness
in relation to Israel--and its distant godfather, the US--and led
to a change in thinking which culminated in the 1973 Arab-Israeli
war and Sadat's eventual turning to the US.
The Arab nationalism of the old kind was confined to countries like
Syria, Iraq and Libya while the rest of the Arab world, from
Morocco to Saudi Arabia, fell under varying degrees of American
influence and tutelage. The Iranian revolution of 1979 far from
disturbing this alignment only strengthened it because Iran's
neighbours were afraid of catching the revolutionary virus.
Together with the US they looked at Iran through the same
spectacles.
At this point came the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan. To counter
it, the US fashioned a coalition whose leading Muslim members were
Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Egypt. From across the Muslim world
shady fundamentalist organisations, most of them living a semi-
secret existence, responded to the call for 'jihad'. In Pakistan
the ultra-conservative military regime of General Ziaul Haq
provided crucial backing for the American effort, just as another
military regime in Pakistan, 20 years later, has provided crucial
backing for another American enterprise in Afghanistan. The more
things change...
What is the point of this retrospective? To show that in the
eighties in the cauldron of Afghanistan Osama bin Laden and Al-
Qaeda were born. When the Soviets withdrew from Afghanistan, these
battle-hardened warriors, strengthened in their belief that it was
their faith rather than American help which had proved decisive in
the fight against the Soviets, turned their attention to the other
Great Satan, the US, the partisans of yesterday thus becoming the
enemies of today.
None of this means the US should not have reacted to the September
11 attacks. But in doing so it should not forget recent history or
try to find in Islam the causes that more legitimately and justly
rest in its own policies. For instance, the Wahabism dominant in
Saudi Arabia that American scholars now point suspiciously at has
been an arm of American policy in the Middle East since the end of
the Second World War. It is a bit tough that now it should be seen
in altogether different colours.
Or consider even the present line-up in the Muslim world. The three
Arab countries, which approximate to the secular ideal are Syria,
Iraq and Libya, all on America's hit-list of enemies. In none of
these countries is 'radical Islam'--the kind which feeds on
American fears--a domestic threat. By any yardstick, Malaysia is a
liberal country in social terms and one of the few Muslim countries
to have done well economically. But the US doesn't like Mahathir
Muhammad. Iran is outside the US orbit of influence but not because
of its adherence to the Shiite brand of Islam.
The common thread in all these cases is something else. Secular or
religious, a republic or a half-way house to democracy, any country
that has stood up to the US, and questioned its double-standards in
the Middle East, has come on the list of its enemies.
If the US is so concerned about 'radical Islam' and 'illiberal'
governments then it should be calling for democracy throughout the
Muslim world. But that is none of its concerns. The kings and
sheikhs of the region suit it fine because its primary interests in
the Middle East, as it takes no clairvoyant to see, are oil and the
Israeli connection. Everything else, including the wishes of the
House of Saud, is subordinate to these twin considerations.
Nor should any illusions be on offer about the future direction of
American policy. September 11 has led to no passion for
introspection on America's part. If anything, it has triggered a
militant mood accompanied with cries of retribution for the
attacks. The devastating effect of American firepower, leading to
the collapse of the Taliban, has merely reinforced the belief in
American omnipotence, that nothing is beyond the reach of American
power.
It's not that some of us overestimated the courage and fortitude of
the Taliban. When the enemy was visible they fought bravely. Many
of us got the new face of war wrong--a war as radical in its impact
on the future as the invention of gunpowder, the rifle or the tank-
- in the words of the London Observer, "... a war where men--or
women--seated thousands of miles away can track the enemy's every
move and then destroy them with a few strokes of a keyboard.
It is a war where a whole country can be put under intense
surveillance without being occupied..." The meaning of guerrilla
war has changed in this conflict. The Tora Bora Mountains and caves
were said to be unreachable and therefore impregnable. After the
American air strikes on them, who will say the same again?
This is no setting for humility. After savouring the fruits of
revenge in Afghanistan, the US wants to extend this same hi-tech
war to other places. Iraq promises to be the next target. After
that, who knows?
But this triumphalism is no endorsement of justice. As the West
adopts a patronizing attitude to the Muslim world and preaches the
virtues of secularism, let us remember that over the past 60 years
the greatest threat to secularism in the Muslim world has come from
the West. Of course we should not have accepted this state of
affairs. But that's a different story.
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20011213
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Who is gaining more?
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By Eric Margolis
What has the US achieved after waging war for the past two months
in Afghanistan?
Afghanistan's de facto government, Taliban, with about 30,000 armed
supporters, has been overthrown and scattered. After holding out
for five weeks under massive US bombardments, its leader, Mulla
Omar, ordered his men to retreat to the mountains. Omar, who may be
shortly captured or killed, claimed he ordered the retreat to spare
civilians in Taliban-ruled areas from US bombing. Kandahar, the
last Taliban stronghold, was shattered by intensive US bombing.
To date, the US has dropped over 10,000 bombs on Afghanistan,
killing sizable numbers of civilians - perhaps in the range of
2,000, according to Afghan sources. US bombing of cities, towns and
villages has driven over 160,000 people into refugee camps.
On December 3, 2000 - one year ago - this writer warned that
overthrowing Taliban would 'pave the way for a second Russian
occupation of Afghanistan.' This has now happened. The Northern
Alliance, armed and funded by Russia, directed by the Afghan
Communist Party, and under the overall command of the Chief of the
Russian General Staff, Marshall Viktor Kvashnin, deputy KGB
director Viktor Komogorov, and a cadre of Russian advisers, seized
Kabul and all of northern Afghanistan, likely with the aid of
troops from Uzbekistan and/or Iran.
Last week's much ballyhooed Afghan 'unity' conference in Germany
produced a sham 'coalition' government run by the Northern
Alliance. One of CIA's Pakhtun 'assets,' Hamid Karzai, who
represents no one but himself, was named prime minister. There was
no other real Pakhtun representation, though they comprise half the
population. Of thirty cabinet seats, two thirds went to Northern
Alliance Tajiks, notably the power ministries: defence, interior,
and foreign affairs. Two women were added to please the West.
The 87-year old deposed Afghan king, Zahir Shah, widely blamed for
allowing the communists to infiltrate Afghanistan in the 1970s, was
invited back as a figurehead monarch. In short, a communist-
dominated regime, ruled by a king, whose strings are pulled by
Moscow. Quite a bizarre creation.
The very next day, feuding broke among Alliance members. Old
communist stalwart Rashid Dostam, who had just finished massacring
hundreds of Taliban prisoners with American and British help,
threatened war if his Uzbeks did not get more spoils. The
Alliance's figurehead president, Prof. Rabbani, a respected Islamic
scholar, was shoved aside by young communists.
The Bush Administration was apparently too preoccupied chasing
Osama bin Laden to notice its new best friend, Russia, had broken
its agreement to wait for formation of a pro-US, pro-Pakistani
regime, and seized half of Afghanistan. Marshall Kvashnin rushed
his men into Kabul, just as he outfoxed the Americans in 1999 in a
similar coup de main in Kosovo.
The hunt for Osama bin Laden and his al-Qaeda continues. A few
senior figures have been killed, likely including Dr Ayman al-
Zawahiri, leader of Egypt's Islamic Jihad. The net is closing
around Osama's possible hiding places. Unless he has escaped
Afghanistan, his capture or death appear imminent.
This will be welcome news for the Bush administration. If he
somehow escapes, or his body never found, Bush will be accused of
blowing apart Afghanistan, killing large numbers of civilians, and
allowing the Russians to grab back the country, all for nothing.
The late Pakhtun leader Abdul Haq, whom I knew from my Peshawar
days, warned the US before his death that bombing of Afghanistan
was unnecessary and a grave mistake. Taliban control could be
broken, where needed, by financing tribal uprisings - the standard
form of Afghan warfare - without foreign intervention. Otherwise,
he warned, the Northern Alliance would take over and bring in the
Russians. He pleaded with Washington for restraint, but to no
avail. Haq was captured by Taliban during a bungled CIA operation
and hanged. But Haq was right. US forces could have hunted Osama in
southern Afghanistan with relative impunity, as they are now doing,
without having to launch a total war against Taliban. US air power
totally dominates barren Afghanistan. Taliban forces could not move
or communicate. There were only a small number of Taliban fighters
in southern Afghanistan where Osama was hiding.
Bombing Afghan civilian centres was absolutely unnecessary. The
only real military targets offered by Taliban were its entrenched
troops facing the Alliance. It was remarkable that Taliban managed
to withstand five weeks of carpet bombing by US B-52s.
The US could have hunted Osama without allowing the Russians to
recapture half of Afghanistan, a severe geopolitical defeat for
American ambitions to use that nation as a gateway to Central Asian
oil and gas. And without blasting to rubble what little remained of
demolished Afghanistan, and without driving 160,000 civilians into
terrified flight.
So, after eight weeks of war, Taliban is out; the Communists are in
power in Kabul. The south is in chaos. Pakistan is isolated and
unloved by all. The war has cost Washington US$60 billion to date.
Afghanistan is a bloody mess. And Vladimir Putin is smiling.-
Copyright Eric Margolis 2001.
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20011215
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Illusion of Muslim unity
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By Irfan Husain
RECENTLY, General Musharraf was quoted as having said that the
present weakness in the Muslim world was due to disunity, and that
once Muslims were united, they would become strong again.
How wrong he is. The mantra of Muslim unity has been a rallying cry
for generations of pan-Islamists over the centuries that have
witnessed the growing power of the West and the simultaneous
decline of the Islamic world. Many thinkers and politicians have
urged the Ummah or nation of Islam to join together and confront
the perceived enemy. For them, the lost glories of resurgent Islam
would be restored if only Muslims would unite. It is one thing for
ignorant mullahs to preach this sermon after Friday prayers; quite
another for responsible leaders to take it seriously.
Charismatic leaders like Nasser and Qadhafi have attempted to forge
mergers with neighbouring countries time and again, only to have
their dreams of Muslim unity dashed on the reefs of reality. I may
be mistaken, but I think it was Suharwardy who famously dismissed
one of these attempts at the time of the Suez crisis in the mid-
fifties by proclaiming: "Zero plus zero plus zero is equal to
zero". This blunt formulation may not have won him many friends in
the Middle East, but it did reflect the stark truth.
There is a feeble-minded, romantic notion that if the Muslim world
was to pool its resources and its talents, it would become a
significant power. Let us look at the facts: we are net importers
of technology, and we will continue to buy the products of western
minds for the foreseeable future. There is no research worth the
name going on in any of the forty plus countries with Muslim
majorities. So even if we could miraculously form an economic
union, our economies would not benefit much from a union as they
are not complementary. Basically, we only ex