UNITED NATIONS: Ambassador to the United Nations Dr Maleeha Lodhi on Wednesday urged the world community for urgent action to deal with the growing crisis of forced migration.

“Half of the world’s refugees are children,” pointed out Lodhi while addressing as president of UNICEF’s executive board.

The ambassador also made a plea to the world community to live up to its responsibilities to address desperate situations in which children were the principal victims.

“It is a humanitarian catastrophe in which the suffering of children is unprecedented,” added Lodhi.

Pakistan’s permanent representative also said that the post-2015 agenda of the UN seeks to end extreme poverty, promote prosperity and well-being for the people, besides protecting environment for ourselves and future generations.

An unprecedented number of migrants have started arriving in Europe, with a camps springing up in various countries of Europe. Conflicts in the Middle East and Africa have contributed to the sudden surge of migrants escaping to Europe.

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has expressed unhappiness over former president and PPP Co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari’s recent statement in which he accused the federal government of targeting leaders of his party in the name of anti-corruption campaign.

Sharing his feelings of utter dejection with leaders of the PML-N’s Sindh chapter at a meeting here on Tuesday, the prime minister said he was unable to understand what prompted the former president to give such a scathing statement against him and his government, sources privy to the meeting told Dawn.

Know more: Nawaz Sharif has reverted to revenge politics of the 90s: Zardari

Apparently in reaction to recent arrests of PPP leaders, Mr Zardari had on Aug 31 accused Prime Minister Sharif of “repeating the politics of the 1990s”. He even blamed the PML-N for “dividing” the nation in an attempt “to save their natural allies Taliban and terrorists” and to “weaken” the war against terror.

Talking to Dawn, Senator Nihal Hashmi, who attended the meeting, confirmed the prime minister’s visible despondency over the recent spate of incidents, particularly the PPP leadership’s reaction.

“Following the spirit of the charter of democracy signed by the PPP and PML-N in 2006, throughout I have given respect to the former president. So much so I set the precedent of holding farewell lunch by the incoming president for his predecessor (Mr Zardari), but how Mr Zardari has targeted the government is beyond my comprehension,” Senator Hashmi quoted the prime minister as saying at the meeting.

He said Mr Sharif also recalled how the PPP government had imposed governor rule in Punjab in 2009, but in response the PML-N government chose instead to work in collaboration with the PPP-led Sindh government and always took Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah into confidence on important national issues.

The prime minister reaffirmed his commitment of burying the politics of 90s when the two parties virtually used to be at each other’s throat.

According to Mr Hashmi, the prime minister said the government was committed to taking the ongoing Karachi operation to its logical conclusion.

The meeting was meant to strategise the party’s preparation for the coming local government elections in Sindh.

According to a political analyst, the prime minister’s disappointment with the PPP leadership makes sense. With the PPP going on the warpath, the ruling PML-N has to be very careful during the remainder of its term.

According to an official statement on the meeting, the prime minister asked the PML-N’s provincial office-bearers to forget their personal differences and collectively work for the party’s good in Sindh.

The meeting was attended by the entire leadership of the PML-N Sindh chapter, including Minister of State for Communications Abdul Hakeen Baloch, PM’s Adviser on Political Affairs Jam Mashooq Ali, BISP Chairperson Marvi Memon, Nihal Hashmi, and the Sherazi brothers.

Federal Information Minister Pervez Rashid, Planning and Development Minister Ahsan Iqbal and Senator Zafar Iqbal Jhagra were also present.

Published in Dawn, September 9th, 2015

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KARACHI: Under National Action Plan (NAP) geo-tagging of 3,662 madressas has been completed in Sindh, of which 2,122 are in Karachi and 1,548 in Hyderabad, a meeting held to review the implementation of NAP was told on Wednesday.

The meeting was held at CM House with Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah in chair. It was further apprised that this information gathering process is currently in progress and would be completed soon.

The provincial home secretary Mukhtiar Ahmed Soomro, while giving presentation to the chief minister, said “out of 9,590 seminaries 6,503 have been registered and 2,920 are yet to be registered”.

However, in the unregistered seminaries 517,695 students are enrolled, he added.

He said that geo-tagging of seminaries is being carried out, so far 2,122 madressas have been geo-tagged in Karachi and 1,548 in Hyderabad. "This would help us to see exact location of seminaries," he claimed.

IG Sindh Ghulam Hyder Jamali told the chief minister that 167 seminaries were sealed under different allegations while search was carried out is 21 seminaries in Karachi, Hyderabad and Badin over suspicion of illegal activities.

“In few seminaries hate material was recovered against which cases have been registered accordingly.”

The chief minister thanked the Ulema of different schools of thought for their cooperation in getting their seminaries registered.

"All the concerned religious scholars should be taken on board while registering their seminaries or searching the suspicious ones," Qaim directed the provincial IG and home secretary.

Talking about the registration and repatriation of Afghan refugees, the home secretary said that 92,646 Afghan nationals are registered in Sindh.

"Around 650 families and 3,021 individuals were voluntary repatriated by Ministry of SAFRON since 2015," said Soomro and added that 35,278 Afghans were repatriated from Sindh till August 2015.

He said that 720 cases were registered against illegal Afghan nationals while 2,100 illegal Afghan nationals were arrested, 1,309 nominated 953 under judicial custody, 356 bailed out and 222 illegal Afghan repatriated by IG Jails.

Soomro said that out of 458 condemned prisoners 18 have been executed.

"Their 395 appeals are pending in Sindh High Court and one in Federal Shariat court, 53 in Supreme Court, five mercy petitions are pending with the president while Sindh High Court has stayed four black warrants.

Giving details of armed militia, the home secretary said 61 banned religious organisations have been identified. "Around 1,155 terrorists/crimnals have been killed, including 164 leaders of Al-Qaeda and TTP and 130 of Lyari gangwar between Septmber 2013 to September 2015," he said and added that 63,055 terrorists/criminals were arrested, including 879 terrorists of Al-Qaeda and TTP and 67 of Lyari Gang war.

Talking about disposal of accused handed over by Rangers in heinous offences during operation till August 31, 2015, Jamali said that 495 have been arrested of which challan were presented against 489 while six are under investigation, two have been convicted and four acquitted. He added that 462 are currently in jails and 21 have been bailed out.

The IG also briefed the chief minister about the latest weapons and ammunition provided by army chief General Raheel Sharif to the Sindh police and also said that the army chief has further assured to equip each and every police station with latest equipment and gadgets.

The chief minister said that it was due the personal interest of General Raheel that the operation against terrorists has produced tangible results.

"It would be nice of him if he takes necessary measures to equip our police stations with modern equipments," said Jamali.

The chief minister after presiding over the review meeting left for Islamabad to attend the NAP meeting to be presided by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.

LAHORE: PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto has agreed to form an accountability commission in the party on the demand of a number of workers.

“A good number of PPP stalwarts have been facing corruption allegations for several years and the media has labelled us synonymous to corruption. We may not recover from this tag in future elections. Therefore, it is high time that the party leadership declare ‘crusade’ against corruption and corrupt elements in the party,” said a participant of the meeting Mr Bilawal presided over at the Bilawal House here on Wednesday.

The PPP old guard said the party had lost the 2013 general elections primarily on the ‘perception of being a corrupt party’ and not because of power loadshedding.

He said after some break the corruption stories about PPP leaders were again appearing in the media which were tarnishing the party image beyond repair.

Says party is labeled as synonymous to corruption

Former prime minister Raja Pervaiz Ashraf talked about the ‘media trial’ of the PPP leaders saying those raising slogans against corruption and implicating PPP leaders should better present themselves for accountability.

The former premier said that corruption cases against the PPP leaders had been pending for years. “Why they are not decided without delay,” he asked.

Mr Ashraf also recommended Bilawal Bhutto to set up an accountability commission in the party for internal accountability of the leaders. “Appoint some four to six people of integrity for investigation of the alleged corruption charges (on the party men),” he proposed.

Sherry Rehman said: “We never compromised on rights of people and fought against terrorism. Why the PPP is facing terror finance cases? The PPP is a liberal party and will not leave its space among the masses,” she said.

On this Mr Bilawal agreed to form the accountability commission in the party. However, a party leader Dawn spoke to said the matter would be taken up in the Central Executive Committee meeting and such a set up would be evolved with the consensus of its (CEC) members.

Addressing the participants, Bilawal Bhutto said he would start holding public meetings after Eidul Azha. “We all will fight together and overcome the party issues. We will take the PPP to new heights by organising it in each town and village,” the young PPP leader vowed and said the first public meeting will be held in Rahim Yar Khan.

When retired Maj Imtiaz, who was with Benazir Bhutto in the vehicle at the time of attack in Rawalpindi (in 2007), was asked to speak in the meeting, he started crying and could not control his emotions. Bilawal Bhutto went to his seat and hugged him.

Mr Bilawal spent a busy day and held a series of meetings with the notables, sitting and former MNAs and MPAs from south Punjab.

Faryal Talpur, Bakhtawar Zardari, Makhdoom Ahmad Mahmood, Shaukat Basra, Nadeem Afzal Chan, Hina Rabbani Khar, Haider Zaman Qureshi, Natasha Doultana, Mustafa Mahmood, Ghulam Rasool Koreja, Qazi Ahmed Saeed, Ali Akbar Mahmood, Raees Ibrahim Khalil, Khalida Mohsin, Ali Qureshi and Sardar Shahabuddin Khan were also present in the meeting.

Published in Dawn, September 10th, 2015

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MINGORA: Over 400 lady health workers (LHWs) from all over Swat valley blocked the Mingora-Saidu Sharif road for about two hours here on Wednesday in protest against the government’s failure to pay them salaries for the last five months.

The LHWs assembled in front of the General Bus Stand in Mingora and marched up to the district administration office in Saidu Sharif. They were chanting slogans against the federal and provincial governments for their failure to deliver their salaries.

They said that the government had stopped their salaries for five months now, forcing them to live in a financial crisis. The protesters said that they did not know where to go and which door to knock at for solution of their problems. The enraged LHWs said that they faced extreme financial problems and had to live on lending money from others for their food and needs.

“My two children were rusticated by the school administration for not paying fee for four months. I lent money from my relatives to arrange for food,” said Ayesha Bibi, a widow LHW from Matta tehsil.

Many LHWs said that they neither bought new clothes and shoes for their children in Eidul Fitr nor would they be able to make shopping for Eidul Azha.

“We had promised our children in the previous Eid to buy new clothes and shoes for them for Eidul Azha, but our salaries have still not been released by the government so we would not be able to keep the promise with our children,” said Zaibun Nisa, another LHW.

They said that the health department officials had promised to solve their problem, but it proved to be a shallow claim. They vowed not to take part in the coming anti-polio campaign in Swat until they were paid their salaries.

The lady health workers had blocked the Mingora-Saidu Sharif road, the busiest road in Swat for about two hours that left the traffic in a mess. The district administration, district courts, the two major hospitals, colleges and schools are located on the same road.

“We had to take our patient to the hospital, but got stuck in the traffic jam due to the LHWs protest. After a hard struggle we managed to come out of the rush and take a detour to reach the hospital,” said Zahir Shah, a resident of Charbagh. The protesters dispersed peacefully after district nazim Mohammad Ali Shah arrived and assured them to solve their issue on priority.

In Karak, the association of lady health supervisors and lady health workers of southern districts has decided to boycott the anti-polio campaign scheduled to be launched from Sept 14 and demanded of the government to regularise their services first.

The demand came in a meeting of the health workers here on Wednesday. They complained that despite the government decision they had not been given salaries according to their new scales.

District president of the association Kulsoom Sultana and general secretary Zakia Minhas said that the salaries of the LHSs according to the new scales were Rs15,000 and of LHWs Rs14,000 but the government was trying to pay them Rs8,000 only a month.

They said that they would boycott the anti-polio campaign and all other health campaigns till the acceptance of their demand, as they could protests daily.

Published in Dawn, September 10th, 2015

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LAKKI MARWAT: Chief of his own faction of Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam Maulana Fazlur Rehman has said that the Muslim Ummah is passing through a critical juncture as religious leaders and scholars are being linked with extremism and militancy.

This he said while speaking at his party meeting in Lakki city on Wednesday. Leader of the Opposition in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly Maulana Lutfur Rehman, former senator Qari Mohammad Abdullah, Fawad Raza Zakori, Lakki and Naurang local government representatives affiliated with JUI-F and its activists were present on the occasion.

The JUI-F chief said that seminaries in Pakistan were being linked with militancy and extremism though these institutions were spreading the education of Quran and Sunnah. “When the seminaries are spreading the message of peace and their teachers and students are patriots then why the state institutions feel doubt about them,” he asked.

He said that religious people were loyal to the country and they did not need a certificate of patriotism from anyone. “The country is facing tremendous challenges and threats, and as such each individual should play his role to foil evil designs against our motherland,” he said.

Mr Fazl said that the parliament committed a sin by making amendments to the Constitution, under which the ulema and religious seminaries were being targeted.

He asked the government to refrain from imposing sanctions on the ulema and seminaries as this was against the Constitution and in violation of basic rights.

He said that peace was essential for development, adding that JUI-F would continue its peaceful struggle for enforcement of Shariah in the country.

Referring to the defection of JUI-F councillors in formation of the district government, Mr Fazl said that a handful of elements could not harm the party.

He asked the party activists to accelerate their efforts for making the Mufti Mehmood conference to be held on Oct 11 in Lakki Marwat a success.

Later, the JUI-F leaders attended a luncheon hosted by head of Marwat Qaumi Jirga Mohammad Aslam Khan at his residence in Eesakkhel village. The JUI-F chief also visited the stadium on Begukhel road where the conference would be held.

Published in Dawn, September 10th, 2015

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PESHAWAR: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly Speaker Asad Qaisar has issued production order for detained minister Ziaullah Afridi to attend the assembly session on Thursday.

The production order was issued on Wednesday wherein the secretary home and tribal affairs department and inspector general of police had been directed to hand over the detained minister to sergeant-at-arms on Thursday and Friday to attend the sittings.

The provincial Ehtesab Commission had arrested minister for minerals Ziaullah Afridi on July 9 on the charges of misusing his authority and allowing illegal mining in different areas. He has been shifted to Central Jail Peshawar after judicial remand. Presently, he is in medico-legal ward of Lady Reading Hospital.

The order said that Mr Afridi had requested on Aug 4 for production to attend the session and the Speaker considered his presence in the session appropriate.

“In exercise of the powers conferred by Rule 65 A of the Provincial Assembly of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Procedure and Conduct of Business Rules, 1988, the Speaker has been pleased to summon Ziaullah Afridi to attend the sittings to be held on September 10 and 11 at 3pm,” the order said.

Afridi had accused Chief Minister Pervez Khattak of implicating him in false cases because he was opposing his policies. Opposition benches had demanded of the Speaker to issue production order of Mr Afridi.

Sources said that several lawmakers of the treasury and opposition had held meetings with the detained minister and sought commitments. They said that production order had been issued on the condition that he would not speak against the chief minister on the assembly floor.

Published in Dawn, September 10th, 2015

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QUETTA: The Representative of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Indrika Ratwatte, has said that the government of Pakistan has agreed to extend the validity of PoR cards till Dec 31, 2017.

During a meeting with Balochistan Governor Muhammad Khan Achakzai here on Wednesday, he said that in the tripartite meeting held in Kabul, the Pakistan officials had informed the Afghan authorities and the UNHCR that pending inter-ministerial deliberations and a decision by the cabinet, the validity of the PoR (Proof of Registration) cards had been recommended to be extended till Dec 31, 2017.

He said the meeting was also informed that every effort would be made to avoid any gap in registration status in line with the government of Pakistan’s policy on voluntary repatriation and management of Afghan nationals beyond 2015.

He apprised the governor of the UNCHR’s RAHA programme and its implementation.

Mr Ratwatte during a talk with journalists said that at present 290,000 Afghan refugees had been living in Balochistan in urban areas and refugee villages.

In reply to a question about refugees’ involvement in criminal and terrorist activities, Mr Ratwatte said that blaming Afghan refugees for all sorts of crimes taking place in the province or other parts of the country was unfair.

“A majority of the refugees are indeed contributing to the development of the region and they deserve to be treated with compassion and humility,” he said.

Mr Ratwatte said the UNHCR was currently implementing RAHA projects in eight districts of Balochistan with the objective of maintaining social cohesion through community development, improved livelihood and local economies, restoration of social services and infrastructure and restoration of environment.

Published in Dawn, September 10th, 2015

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LAHORE: Punjab Police Inspector General (IG) Mushtaq Sukhera said a special unit has been made funtional in the department to investigate homicide cases in order to provide justice to victims in the shortest possible time.

He was addressing at a seminar on the establishment of Specialised Homicide Investigation Units on Wednesday.

The IG said the initiative had been taken last year and under the leadership of the then additional IG (investigation) Tariq Masood Yasin more than 2,000 investigation officers were selected from across Punjab and scrutinised by the Special Branch.

He said 540 officers were picked for investigation training at Police Training College Chuhng, out of which 478 passed the course. During the training, senior officers and experts from the Forensic Science Agency also trained them on modern lines in various aspects, including evidence collection, preservation of crime scene and completion of legal proceedings.

He further said the investigation officers would start working at police stations with 78 in Lahore, 52 Sheikhupura, 75 Gujranwala, 45 Rawalpindi, 52 Faisalabad, 33 Sargodha, 40 Multan, 36 Sahiwal, 32 Bahawalpur and 35 Dera Ghazi Khan.

Each of 478 officers will have to investigate 20 murder cases a year

Sukhera further said each officer would have to investigate 20 murder cases in a year and could not be assigned any other job. He said 60pc of the investigation cost would be paid to officers as imprest money, whereas the remaining 40pc would be paid on submission of a complete challan. He also said these officers would be supervised and monitored by respective deputy superintendents of police and sub-divisional police officers.

He said the officers had been provided 128 latest investigation kits worth Rs35,000 each with all basic tools to immediately preserve a crime scene and collect evidences.

He also said 1,489 trained, honest and professional officials will assist the investigation officers associated with this new scheme.

Multan Regional Police Officer Tariq Masood Yasin briefed about the process of training provided to the selected officers. He also hoped this initiative would open a new chapter in investigation circles of law enforcement agencies, particularly Punjab Police.

United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) representative Cesar Guedes stated their office supported Punjab Police in the development of these specialised mobile crime scene investigation units in Gujrat, Gujranwala and Sialkot as per the vision of IG Sukhera along with provision of a specialised training programme.

He said the UNODC had also trained the police in performing as first responders at a crime scene to preserve evidence. The UNODC would provide 550 first responder kits for the protection of a crime scene, he added.

Prosecutor General Ehtesham Qadir, Forensic Science Agency Director General Dr Ashraf Tahir, retired Justice Dr Khalid Ranjha and investigation officers from across Punjab also attended the seminar.

Published in Dawn, September 10th, 2015

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KOHAT: The repatriation of illegal Afghan refugees staying in urban areas and camps since 80s has been again postponed till Dec 31, 2015, sources said. They said that earlier the repatriation was planned to be completed before October this year.

They said that since January this year the illegal Afghans had been set three deadlines of 15 days each by former commissioner Kohat to return to their homeland. The orders were for both the holders and non-holders of proof of registration (POR), but the government has now decided to delay their ouster till Dec 2015.

The police had started arrests of illegal Afghans during specific raids after which their repatriation continued for several months through Torkham under the 14 Foreign Act. However, the sources said that the authorities had been asked to make the process voluntary and that no force should be used for their ouster.

“It is the job of the administration to arrest and send refugees back. Our department is only concerned with the refugees living in camps,” administrator of Afghan refugees Faiz Mohammad told Dawn by phone on Wednesday. He said that they had been only verbally informed about the fresh date by the commissionerate of Afghan refugees, Peshawar.

Authorities asked to make the process voluntary

Badshah Khan, a former officer of the commissionerate in Kohat division, said that there were 99,000 refugees living in Kohat and Hangu camps besides 12,000 those staying illegally who had occupied places in bazaars and posh localities.

A senior official, Nisar Hussain, said that the problem was that many refugees had also got national identity cards of Pakistan through forgery with the help of local facilitators. “However, scrutiny of papers of suspicious aliens is in progress,” he said.

District police officer, Kohat, Sohaib Ashraf says that the operation against illegal refugees in the city is still continuing because their presence is related with the law and order. “We are in a state of war and we cannot allow illegal refugees to stay further” he said.

Meanwhile, regular meetings are being held with elders of the refugees to persuade them to leave for their country by Dec 31, 2015.

Published in Dawn, September 10th, 2015

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BADIN: The Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) Sindh general secretary Maulana Rashid Mehmood Soomro has said the JUI-F is no more in an electoral alliance with the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) for upcoming local government (LG) election in the province.

The Sindh government and PPP had miserably failed to bring to justice the culprits and their facilitators involved in the assassination of the party’s provincial chief Dr Khalid Mehmood Soomro, he said.

The Maulana said at a press conference at Madressah Badrul Uloom here on Wednesday that JUI-F would ally with any party against PPP candidates. Although neither Dr Zulfiqar Mirza nor any other party had finalised seat adjustment with JUI-F but the party had decided that it would now enter into alliance only with anti-PPP parties, he said.

“I had three meetings with former president Asif Ali Zardari and Faryal Talpur and two meetings with chief minister and PPP leadership in which I presented them 11-point demands as a prerequisite for an electoral alliance which included bringing to justice all suspects in Dr Soomro murder case.

“The meetings proved futile as the government and PPP did nothing. Then we gave them an ultimatum to arrest all the suspects within a week, but the ultimatum ended on Tuesday without the government making any headway on the case. Now, the party has no more any alliance with PPP even though it addresses our reservations,” he said.

The Maulana who launched the party’s election campaign for LG polls in Sindh from Badin by nominating three candidates allowed the JUI-F district leadership to finalise names of candidates for all seats at local level. The party nominees Ali Mohammad Mari, Abbas Ali Shah and Ali Mohammad Mahery would contest polls from their respective union councils.

About the party chief’s visit to Nine Zero, the MQM headquarters, he said that it augured well for Sindh as the visit had not only saved Sindh from divisions but also stopped the path of NATO forces.

He rejected PPP’s claim of having a hold on Sindh and said that now the Sindh card was in the hands of his party.

About 40,000 party activists and supporters would gather in Larkana on Sept 29 to mount pressure on the government to expose killers and facilitators involved in the assassination of his father. If the government failed again people would reach their doorsteps, he warned.

Earlier, speaking at a gathering of party workers at Jamia Farooqia in Tando Bago town on Wednesday, the Maulana said that his party was planning to stage a long march of two million people towards CM House on Nov 30 to register protest against government failure to arrest facilitators of his father’s murder.

He said that most of the murder suspects had been arrested but the facilitators got off scot-free. Many people including custodians of some shrines were involved in the conspiracy to eliminate his father, he claimed.

He said that Asif Ali Zardari was only interested in making money through illegal means and threw a challenge to PPP chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari to contest election against him from anywhere in Sindh in the next general elections, especially on NA-207.

The Maulana said that Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf chief Imran Khan had completely failed to get an encouraging response from people during his recent tour to different parts of Sindh. There was no future of PTI in Sindh, he said.

He claimed that most of the political heavyweights, including Mehars of Ghotki, Mir Hazar Khan Bijarani, Shirazis of Thatta, Nahid Khan and Safdar Abbasi and others were in contact with him for an electoral alliance.

He said that not only Sharjeel Inam Memon but many other close aides of Zardari and Faryal Talpur would soon become approvers. People of Sindh had got fed up with nationalist parties and their leaders and they had no future, he added.

The Maulana rejected reports of differences among JUI-F leaders and said the party was united as ever under the leadership of Maulana Fazlur Rehman.

Published in Dawn, September 10th, 2015

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Looks like Rahat Fateh Ali Khan has taken a liking to singing about the eyes of a beloved. After 'Tere Mast Mast Do Nain' and 'Dhagabaaz Re Tere Naina', he is now singing 'Naina Tose Lagay' for the upcoming Bollywood film Meeruthiya Gangsters.

The romantic song was unveiled at the music launch of the film. The video of the song shows the leading pair Nushrat Bharucha and Vansh Bhardwaj having a ball in different locations from green hills to busy roads to hilltop restaurants.

While the song has been composed by Siddhant Madhav, the lyrics have been written by Arafat Mehmood.

With Mika Singh singing the title song, the producer of the film Shoeb Ahmad was glad that Rahat had agreed to sing this number: "Mika Singh’s voice was apt for our previous track ‘Mastam Mastam’ and similarly Rahat Fateh Ali Khan was perfect for this romantic track. He is choosy about his projects, so we’re feeling fortunate that he accepted our song,."

Shifting from the grim tales of gangs, Meeruthiya Gangsters will be a light take on the same theme revolving around extortionists. Directed by Gangs of Wasseypur writer Zeishan Quadri, the film's cast includes Jaideep Ahlawat, Mukul Dev, Aakash Dahiya, Sanjay Mishra, Brijendra Kala.

The film releases on September 18. Watch the song here:

`

Fans and frequenters of Karachi’s most popular cultural safe space, T2F, here’s your chance to help keep it going.

PeaceNiche, the parent organisation of T2F, is in the running for one of the world’s biggest humanitarian prizes, the Human Rights Tulip award.

Conferred by the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs every year since 2008, the Human Rights Tulip award is given to individuals or organisations that use innovative ways to promote human rights. Winners are given a cash prize of 100,000 euros to further their respective missions.

T2F is not only a cafe and bookstore, but also one of Karachi's most popular sites for open dialogue and cultural expression. PeaceNiche was founded by the late Sabeen Mahmud, who was killed in a shooting incident on April 24 this year.

The online public voting for the final nominees of Human Rights Tulip is underway till September 16. 3 public favourites and 3 wild cards selected by the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Hivos will make the final list.

Pakistan received its first Human Rights Tulip in 2013, when an NGO Aahung was recognised for its work in improving sexual and reproductive rights in Pakistan.

KARACHI: Pakistan is set to sign a 40-year-lease with a Chinese company to develop a massive special economic zone in the deep sea port of Gwadar, officials said on Wednesday.

The contract is part of the $46 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corri­dor (CPEC) that will link western China to the Arabian Sea with infrastructure, energy and transport projects.

The contract assigning the 2,300 acre swathe of tax-exempt land to China Overseas Port Holding Company (COPHC) is likely to be signed this month or October, Dostain Khan Jamaldini, chief of the Gwadar Port Authority (GPA), said.

Also read: CPEC to benefit entire region, say analysts

As part of the wider plans, “work on the Gwadar International Airport would start in the next couple of months and we are quite hopeful of completion of the national highway connecting Gwadar with the north within the next month”, he added.

Pakistan is also raising a special security force to protect the port.

Abdul Razzaq Durrani, the director general of GPA, confirmed the deal.

Gwadar port was built in 2007 with Chinese technical help and financial assistance of some $248 million.

But acquiring the land from private owners to build the economic zone took several years and cost the Balochistan government around $62m, Mr Durrani said.

Simbal Khan, a geo-political analyst, said that China had made similar deals in Africa, Vietnam, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh and the project was of great strategic value to both countries.

“Pakistan is looking at the CPEC project as a game changer, kick-starting an era of infrastructure growth and investment. The land deal is just part of the Gwadar port infrastructure that needs to develop to realise the expectations of Pakistan and China from this mega project,” she said.

Published in Dawn, September 10th, 2015

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Google has announced its support for the largest online shopping festival in Pakistan, dubbed ‘Tech Mela’, the online shopping event will be the first of its kind in the country’s emerging e-commerce market.

Tech Mela is slated to run for a duration of 10 days, starting on September 11 and will end on September 20.

“Pakistan’s mobile industry is really taking off with more and more people coming online and using their smartphones as their primary Internet device,” said Tania Aidrus, Country Manager South Asia Frontier at Google.

“It is absolutely the right time to hold this virtual shopping festival just before the traditional holiday and festive period of Eidul Azha and what better way than to hold it completely online where the next wave of buyers will be congregating,” added Tania.

With Internet penetration growing rapidly and the desire to purchase on the Internet increasing, we hope this initiative will bring more awareness and adoption of e-commerce in Pakistan, stated Google’s country manager.

According to TNS Research, there are 30 million online users in Pakistan, half of whom are using mobile phones for the purpose. Google is teaming up with e-commerce partner Daraz.pk, the Dawn Media Group as its media partner and Activ8 as the development partner to hold the online shopping festival.

“The majority of digital consumers in Pakistan are already researching online to decide which device to purchase, and for the most part they find online resources more relevant and credible to their purchase journey,” stated Tania.

According to Google’s top executive in the country, the Tech Mela is an initiative to complete the research and purchase loop, and to spur greater acceptance of e-commerce among even more Pakistanis.

Tech Mela will focus on exclusives, special deals and attractive discounts on smartphones, gadgets, data and voice plans that will only be available online during the duration of this event.

http://www.dawn.com/news/1206051/broadest-deterrence-capability-to-be-kept

LAHORE: Punjab Government has decided to set up minorities affairs and human rights department across the province, in 36 districts. Previously there was only one major set-up based in Lahore.

Speaking to Dawn News, Provincial minister for Minorities affairs and Human Rights Khalil Tahir Sandhu said that the government doesn't want a repetition of the Kot Radha Kishan event which took the lives of a Christian couple.

Saima and Sajjad Masih were accused by the locals of allegedly disrespecting the Holy Quran, before they were burnt alive.

Read: Christian couple beaten to death for 'desecrating Quran'

The event resulted as a major embarrassment for the Punjab government as the incident took place only 50 kilometres away from the provincial capital Lahore.

Several steps have been taken to curb the hate speeches in religious seminaries against minorities, but the presence of a government department will further ensure protection of the rights of minorities.

Khalil Tahir Sandhu said that following an untoward incident investigation done by minority affairs department in a district will be admissible in courts.

Officials of Minority affairs department can also go to courts as witnesses after their own thorough investigation.

According to the provincial minister the District Coordination Officer (DCO), DPO and the local Islamic Scholars of the district will also be part of the department, and will be responsible for creating awareness in the general public through seminars and public gatherings.

Human rights department will also provide full support to the victims especially violence against women, such as acid burn victims and honour killing dilemma will also be addressed.

Also Read:Girl suffers serious burns in acid attack by father, uncle

Sara Haider is everywhere these days; if it's not your Facebook newsfeed, it's your television screens. And for good reason.

Having performed at national and international events including the Apeejay Kolkatta Literary Festival in India and Nida Butt's 'Grease - The Musical', Haider's climb to the top has been riddled with hard work and determination. It's what led to her becoming the youngest member of the Coke Studio family.

A backing vocalist on Coke Studio since Season 7, the latest season of the hugely popular show includes Sara as a featured artist on it's roster. As if that wasn't enough, the young singer got to debut alongside pop icon Ali Zafar with a soulful rendition of the Saleem Raza classic Ae Dil.

Here the singer reflects on the ride so far:

What was it like singing Ae Dil with Ali Zafar? Were you nervous?

Sara Haider (SH): I was initially quite nervous, right up until I actually sat down with Bilal Maqsood to create the new melody. At first, I sang it in a very typical, bareek female voice and he stopped me and said "No no, we want you to sound like yourself. Sing it the way you would sing it at a live show, open up".

They gave me my freedom to open up and experiment and that's when I was like okay, this is going to be fun! That made me a lot more comfortable. Ali was a joy to work with. He was really appreciative and encouraging. And everyone should know: he's really funny!

What do you think about that meme that's been going around on Facebook regarding you doing background vocals? Do you think it took time for you to get the recognition you deserve?

SH: Haha Mehdi bhai! Haha I find it kind of sweet actually. But I learned a lot from backing vocals! You have to sing every kind of song in every language... Every musical style. It's a great learning opportunity in a place with practically no music schools. I'm very lucky!

The meme started circulating on social media after the release of Ae Dil

Which track is your personal favourite from the new Coke Studio season?

SH: Ask Faisal (Kapadia), Bilal, the house band or the production team and they'll tell you that I'm a massive Ali Sethi fan. I thought Umraan Lagiyaan was beautiful!

As a vocalist, I'm beyond inspired by his skill and vocal prowess. Amazing, amazing job. Arsalan, who was on the harmonium was so on point too, I've been listening to that track on repeat!

What advice would you give to aspiring young musicians like yourself?

SH: Keep at it, just keep working. Do everything. The biggest opportunities are often disguised as the most insignificant projects — I've regretted saying no to things much more often than I've regretted saying yes.

What's next in the pipeline for Sara Haider?

SH: Sara Haider is back in the studio and working hard! I'm training every day, I'm learning, recording, looking forward to some great tracks yet to be released this season. It's going to be an exciting year hopefully!

NIZHYNY TAGIL: Pakistan and Russia are in talks about the delivery of Sukhoi Su-35 fighter jets and previously agreed upon delivery of Mi-35M helicopters, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister (FM) Sergei Ryabkov said, Sputnik reported.

Earlier this year, a draft contract for the delivery of four Mi-35M 'Hind E' combat helicopters was sent to Pakistan from Russia, a source in the Russian military and technical cooperation was quoted by the Russian news agency TASS.

Increasing military cooperation between Islamabad and Moscow would not negatively impact Russia's ties with India, Ryabkov said, adding that Pak-Russia ties were improving in other sectors as well ─ including energy.

The Russian Deputy FM Ryabkov referred to Pakistan as Russia's closest partner and said, "I do not think that the contacts under discussion will cause jealousy on the part of any of the two sides."

The twin-engine Su-35 is a fourth generation multi-role combat aircraft which also incorporates technology from fifth generation jets, according to details available on the Sukhoi company's website. It is also said to be more agile as compared to previous models.

Read: Pakistan, Russia sign landmark defence cooperation agreement

Pakistan and Russia had signed a bilateral defence cooperation agreement aimed at strengthening military-to-military relations in November last year. The deal had to be followed by another ‘technical cooperation agreement’ to pave the way for sale of defence equipment to Pakistan.

ISLAMABAD: Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Justice retired Sardar Raza Khan on Thursday said that the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) will take all possible measures to hold the upcoming local government (LG) elections in a free and fair manner according to the Constitution.

Khan said that the ECP is trying to create an effective code of conduct for political parties.

The CEC chaired a meeting attended by representatives of almost all the parliamentary political parties at the ECP head office in Islamabad today.

The meeting was attended by the representatives of PML-N, PPP, PML-Q, Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI), Jamaat-i-Islami (JI), Awami National Party (ANP) and the Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F).

The commissioner said that the political parties should join the efforts of the ECP to improve voter turnout during the upcoming LG polls in Punjab and Sindh.

The ECP also held a meeting of parliamentary political party representatives to discuss strategy regarding the upcoming LG polls.

ECP officials briefed party representatives about the upcoming polls and the latter presented their suggestions to conduct free and fair elections in both provinces.

The ECP is set to re-issue the schedule for local government elections in Punjab and Sindh to incorporate in their code of conduct a clause barring public office-holders and other members of the national and provincial assemblies from campaigning for candidates, Dawn newspaper reported on Wednesday.

Also read: Local govt poll schedule may be revised