Islamabad, Feb.25 (ANI): Pakistan Muslim League (N) has said that Federal Government had tried to bribe Nawaz Sharif , and asked him to recognise the PCO judiciary.
Talking to mediapersons after a Supreme Court verdict which disqualified former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and his brother Shahbaz Sharif from contesting elections, PML (N) leader Pervez Rashid said the government had offered Sharif that if he recognised PCO judiciary, he would be declared eligible for contesting polls and his brother would not be dethroned from Punjab chief minister’s chair.
“But the PML (N) downed the offer,” The News quoted Rashid, as saying.
A three member Supreme Court bench, headed by Justice Musa K. Laghari, disposed-off the Sharif’s electoral eligibility case on Wednesday. This in effect means that Shahbaz Sharif is Punjab Chief Minister.
Furious over the two line verdict, their lawyer, Akram Sheikh, said the decision was not surprising as the judges were only abiding by orders given to them by the Government.
“Sharif brothers were declared ineligible on the orders of President Zardari,” Sheikh said.
He said now the people of Pakistan will decide whether the verdict is on merit or not.
Latest reports from Lahore said that PML-N activists have taken to streets in protest against the apex court’s decision.
Almost all political parties have voiced their dismay over the verdict.
Commenting on the verdict, Pakistan Muslim League (N) Secretary General Ahsan Iqbal compared Zardari to former President General Pervez Musharraf, and charged him with following the policies of the previous military regime.
“PML (N) would not tolerate a one-man state and Shahbaz Sharif is still the Chief Minister of Punjab constitutionally,” Iqbal said.
Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) chief Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain termed it as ‘sad’ decision, and said that it should not be celebrated by any party.
Former Supreme Court Bar Association President Chaudhry Aitzaz Ahsan termed the decision as a ‘biased’ verdict. (ANI)
Islamabad, Feb.25 (ANI): The Pakistan Supreme Court has declared that former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and his brother Shahbaz Sharif, who is currently the Chief Minister of Punjab Province as ineligible for contesting elections.
A three member Supreme Court bench, headed by Justice Musa K. Laghari, disposed-off the Sharif’s electoral eligibility case on Wednesday. This in effect means that Shahbaz Sharif is Punjab Chief Minister.
Furious over the two line verdict, their lawyer, Akram Sheikh, said the decision was not surprising as the judges were only abiding by orders given to them by the Government.
“Sharif brothers were declared ineligible on the orders of President Zardari,” The News quoted Sheikh, as saying.
He said now the people of Pakistan will decide whether the verdict is on merit or not.
Latest reports from Lahore said that PML-N activists have taken to streets in protest against the apex court’s decision.
Almost all political parties have voiced their dismay over the verdict.
Commenting on the verdict, Pakistan Muslim League (N) Secretary General Ahsan Iqbal compared Zardari to former President General Pervez Musharraf, and charged him with following the policies of the previous military regime.
“PML (N) would not tolerate a one-man state and Shahbaz Sharif is still the Chief Minister of Punjab constitutionally,” Iqbal said.
Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) chief Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain termed it as ‘sad’ decision, and said that it should not be celebrated by any party.
Former Supreme Court Bar Association President Chaudhry Aitzaz Ahsan termed the decision as a ‘biased’ verdict. (ANI)
Lahore, Feb. 25 (ANI): Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) chief Nawaz Sharif has said that he won’t demand anything from the government in the next five years if President Asif Ali Zardari reinstates all sacked judges.
“I don’t want to become premier or president, but want reinstatement of all sacked judges according to the signed agreement (Murree Accord),” the Daily Times quoted Sharif, as saying.
Speaking with PML-N leaders from Sindh and Balochistan, the PML-N chief said several committees had been established throughout the country to make next month’s lawyers’ long march successful.
He also urged the people of Pakistan to come out of their houses to support a free judiciary.
Sharif said the long march was not intended as a “terrorist act”.
In a separate meeting with a delegation from the European parliament, Sharif urged them to support Pakistan in the peace process. The 11-member delegation included Labor Member of European Parliament for London, Robert Evans. (ANI)
“Slumdog Millionaire”, the quintessential underdog in this year’s Oscars, has emerged as the unexpected winner with eight awards to its credit and the film – which is not an Indian film but definitely about India and its seamy underbelly – has caught the global imagination in an extraordinary manner.
Predictably, the responses it has elicited within India and elsewhere range from intense criticism for glorifying urban Indian poverty and much hand-wringing about the use of the word ‘dog’ – to a spontaneous outpouring of love and adulation for a film which has an enormous appeal and empathy quotient. The latter was unambiguously evident in the spontaneous ovation that the film and its extended family received at the Oscar awards ceremony.
While the debate will continue for a while, what is germane is the manner in which “Slumdog” exemplifies the enormous potential of soft power as a possible tool in the global quiver to deal with the complex challenge of post 9-11 jihadi terror. And, what is more, the cost-effective contrast could not be more striking. It is reported that the Oscar winning film was made for $13 million – a tenth of the production cost of its Hollywood rival “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”.
Here, the message of the film is about irrepressible spunk, crushing poverty, loads of luck, nascent love and more masala… all packaged in that inimitable Indian idiom of song and dance, rendered in captivating rhythm and cinematic texture which clearly has a cross-cultural appeal.
“Slumdog” has already earned its makers about $150 million and it is almost certain that the Oscar halo will act as a multiplier and the film will be seen across the world and dubbed into the myriad languages of the global family. Given the fact that the have-nots outnumber their more affluent and privileged peers in an overwhelming manner, the poor and impoverished of the world will feel a special sense of bonding and association with the protagonists, wistfully thinking about the luck and good fortune that has eluded them. There will be much thinking and class/culture-specific discussion about “Slumdog” in the years ahead and the hybrid word may well enter the lexicon in an unobtrusive way.
But what does “Slumdog” have to do with the current global attempt to deal with post 9-11? On balance, the so called GWOT (global war on terror) has been inadequate and very, very costly in terms of human lives while the fiscal expenditure incurred to date has acquired a humungous contour and continues to grow. My proposition is that those who have joined the current global jihad – with all its regional variants – are motivated by a certain inflexible interpretation of Islam and are then encouraged to acquire a zealous personal conviction that sanctions ruthless violence leading to martyrdom.
If those parts of Afghanistan and Pakistan afflicted by this jihadi fervour – a region now referred to as Afpakia – are cases in point, the relevance of “Slumdog” may be usefully extrapolated. What if this film had a content that examined the true meaning of Islam and offered a more nuanced and normative interpretation of one of the world’s major religions?
Despite the various strictures enforced by the Taliban in Afpakia forbidding films and music, one can be sure that a film like this will be seen – either openly or covertly. And the alternate interpretation of Islam which illuminates the true meaning of jihad – appropriately packaged – would offer a more hopeful counterpoint to the certain death, destruction and gender inequity that the current Taliban ideology represents.
It merits recall that when the former USSR had occupied Afghanistan in 1979 and the US led western alliance, bankrolled by Saudi Arabia, had created the mujahideen warrior – the motivation and software came through the skilful use of soft power. Textbooks and easy to comprehend reading material were designed in local languages extolling the virtues of taking up arms against the foreign invader. This lethal software allowed for thousands of young Afghans, supported by their Pakistani brethren to distort Quranic tenets and leaven them with the Kalashnikov and the Stinger missile through rigorous ISI support and training.
The seeds thus sown have now become the whirlwind threatening Presidents Obama and Zardari in different ways and recent developments in Swat, where the Pakistan government has accepted a truce – tenuous peace for Taliban imposed Sharia – is illustrative.
Paradoxically, the current US fiscal expenditure on GWOT – which many in the Muslim world see as a war on Islam – is soon expected to touch $1 trillion. More troops are expected to be inducted by President Obama and it is estimated that maintaining one US soldier for a year in the Iraq-Afghanistan theatre costs $775,000.
Thus, for every 18 US soldiers deployed for one year, the US could have funded one “Slumdog” with a clear message embedded in it – the true meaning of Islam. Yet, in seven years since 9/11, the US has made little concerted effort to invest in such soft power, while one Taliban leader, Fazlullah, has reaped enormous dividends with an FM radio!
The box-office film with all the ingredients one associates with Bollywood and the more recent music-video have considerable untapped potential in the distorted discourses about Islam in Afpakia. For sure, a brave Pakistani film – “Khuda Ke Liye” – tried earnestly to offer an alternate view – but clearly more needs to be done.
“Slumdog”, with a $13 million tag, offers myriad possibilities to introduce soft-power as an additional tool to the various means now being deployed to contain radical and distorted Islam. India, which has its own domestic and regional variant of jihadi fervour to contend with, must take a leaf from the triumph of “Slumdog”. The A.R. Rahmans and the Ashutosh Gowarikers of Indian cinema need to be encouraged to enter the post 9-11 turbulence. The Indian state machinery appears to be oblivious to the utility of soft power and a meeting between those in charge of projecting India’s soft power and some of Bollywood’s thinking luminaries is called for.
(24.2.2009-Uday Bhaskar is a well-known strategic analyst. He can be reached at cudayb@gmail.com)
Shanghai, Feb. 23 (ANI): Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari has said that the world is facing grave challenges imposed by non-state actors who are bent upon damaging world peace.
“We are not threatened by nations, but by the non-state actors,” The News quoted Zardari, as saying.
Zardari said that the emergence of these elements, who have nothing to lose but everything to damage, was a new phenomenon, adding that Pakistan has been at the forefront of many worst international disputes and has managed to survive as a nation.
Speaking about the Sino-Pakistan ties, he said, Pakistan has always supported China as far as security and international politics were concerned. He also praised Chinese progress in science and technology.
“We will always be friends for a better today and a better tomorrow. We bask in your glory and Pakistan and every Pakistani is proud of success of China,” Zardari said. (ANI)
Lahore, Feb. 23 (ANI): Pakistan President Asif Zardari and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani have asked Punjab Governor Salman Taseer and PPP leader Qasim Zia to stop making statements against the PML-N leadership and instructed them to observe restraint.
The Punjab Governor, however, has denied receiving any such instructions from Gilani.
“I have not received any such instructions from PM Gilani,” The Nation quoted Taseer, as saying.
Zia, however, went to the extent of saying that no one could bar him from issuing any statements.
“If anyone hurls accusations against the party or party chairman, then it cannot not be tolerated silently,” he said, adding that he had not received any advice from Gilani.
Sources claimed that Gilani, in his telephonic conversation with Punjab Chief Minister on Sunday, assured Shahbaz that he had asked Taseer and Zia to refrain from issuing provocative statements against the PML-N leadership.
The Prime Minister reportedly advised them not to go to media without consulting with the party leadership.
Information and Broadcasting Minister Sherry Rehman said the Prime Minister has directed all members of the government to refrain from making any inflammatory statements that may aggravate the situation between the Centre and Punjab leadership.
Zardari, who reportedly has taken a strong notice of statements by Taseer, Zia and other PPP leaders against the PML-N, has barred them from passing such remarks without the party leadership’s permission.
After getting orders from the President, the PPP leaders have postponed their press conferences.
Earlier, Zia had dared the PML-N to start legal proceedings against former President Pervez Musharraf for toppling the Nawaz Sharif government in 1999, instead of blaming PPP for taking Musharraf’s dictatorial policies forward.
Meanwhile, Taseer had said that that PML-N leader and former premier Nawaz Sharif was still learning politics from President Asif Ali Zardari. (ANI)
Lahore, Feb. 23 (ANI): Pakistan President Asif Zardari and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani have asked Punjab Governor Salman Taseer and PPP leader Qasim Zia to stop making statements against the PML-N leadership and instructed them to observe restraint.
The Punjab Governor, however, has denied receiving any such instructions from Gilani.
“I have not received any such instructions from PM Gilani,” The Nation quoted Taseer, as saying.
Zia, however, went to the extent of saying that no one could bar him from issuing any statements.
“If anyone hurls accusations against the party or party chairman, then it cannot not be tolerated silently,” he said, adding that he had not received any advice from Gilani.
Sources claimed that Gilani, in his telephonic conversation with Punjab Chief Minister on Sunday, assured Shahbaz that he had asked Taseer and Zia to refrain from issuing provocative statements against the PML-N leadership.
The Prime Minister reportedly advised them not to go to media without consulting with the party leadership.
Information and Broadcasting Minister Sherry Rehman said the Prime Minister has directed all members of the government to refrain from making any inflammatory statements that may aggravate the situation between the Centre and Punjab leadership.
Zardari, who reportedly has taken a strong notice of statements by Taseer, Zia and other PPP leaders against the PML-N, has barred them from passing such remarks without the party leadership’s permission.
After getting orders from the President, the PPP leaders have postponed their press conferences.
Earlier, Zia had dared the PML-N to start legal proceedings against former President Pervez Musharraf for toppling the Nawaz Sharif government in 1999, instead of blaming PPP for taking Musharraf’s dictatorial policies forward.
Meanwhile, Taseer had said that that PML-N leader and former premier Nawaz Sharif was still learning politics from President Asif Ali Zardari. (ANI)
Lahore, Feb. 23 (ANI): Pakistan President Asif Zardari and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani have asked Punjab Governor Salman Taseer and PPP leader Qasim Zia to stop making statements against the PML-N leadership and instructed them to observe restraint.
The Punjab Governor, however, has denied receiving any such instructions from Gilani.
“I have not received any such instructions from PM Gilani,” The Nation quoted Taseer, as saying.
Zia, however, went to the extent of saying that no one could bar him from issuing any statements.
“If anyone hurls accusations against the party or party chairman, then it cannot not be tolerated silently,” he said, adding that he had not received any advice from Gilani.
Sources claimed that Gilani, in his telephonic conversation with Punjab Chief Minister on Sunday, assured Shahbaz that he had asked Taseer and Zia to refrain from issuing provocative statements against the PML-N leadership.
The Prime Minister reportedly advised them not to go to media without consulting with the party leadership.
Information and Broadcasting Minister Sherry Rehman said the Prime Minister has directed all members of the government to refrain from making any inflammatory statements that may aggravate the situation between the Centre and Punjab leadership.
Zardari, who reportedly has taken a strong notice of statements by Taseer, Zia and other PPP leaders against the PML-N, has barred them from passing such remarks without the party leadership’s permission.
After getting orders from the President, the PPP leaders have postponed their press conferences.
Earlier, Zia had dared the PML-N to start legal proceedings against former President Pervez Musharraf for toppling the Nawaz Sharif government in 1999, instead of blaming PPP for taking Musharraf’s dictatorial policies forward.
Meanwhile, Taseer had said that that PML-N leader and former premier Nawaz Sharif was still learning politics from President Asif Ali Zardari. (ANI)
Bara (Pakistan), Feb.23 (ANI): Over 70 United States military advisers and technical specialists are secretly training Pakistani commandos to battle Al Qaeda and the Taliban in the country’s lawless tribal areas more effectively.
The New York Times quoted American military officials as saying that US Army Special Forces soldiers are training Pakistani Army and paramilitary troops, providing them with intelligence and advising on combat tactics.
They do not conduct combat operations, the officials added.
They make up a secret task force, overseen by the United States Central Command and Special Operations Command.
It started last summer, with the support of Pakistan’s government and military, in an effort to root out Qaeda and Taliban operations that threaten American troops in Afghanistan and are increasingly destabilizing Pakistan.
Pakistani officials have vigorously protested American missile strikes in the tribal areas as a violation of sovereignty and have resisted efforts by Washington to put more troops on Pakistani soil.
President Asif Ali Zardari, who leads a weak civilian government, is trying to cope with soaring anti-Americanism among Pakistanis and a belief that he is too close to Washington.
Despite the political hazards for Islamabad, the American effort is beginning to pay dividends.
A new Pakistani commando unit within the Frontier Corps paramilitary force has used information from the Central Intelligence Agency and other sources to kill or capture as many as 60 militants in the past seven months, including at least five high-ranking commanders, a senior Pakistani military official said.
The American officials acknowledge that at the very moment when Washington most needs Pakistan’s help, the greater tensions between Pakistan and India since the terrorist attacks in Mumbai last November have made the Pakistani Army less willing to shift its attention to the Qaeda and Taliban threat.
Officials from both Pakistan and the United States agreed to disclose some details about the American military advisers and the enhanced intelligence sharing to help dispel impressions that the missile strikes were thwarting broader efforts to combat a common enemy.
“The intelligence sharing has really improved in the past few months. Both sides realize it’s in their common interest,” said Talat Masood, a retired army general and a military analyst.
In addition, a small team of Pakistani air defense controllers working in the United States Embassy in Islamabad ensures that Pakistani F-16 fighter-bombers conducting missions against militants in the tribal areas do not mistakenly hit remotely piloted American aircraft flying in the same area or a small number of C.I.A. operatives on the ground, a second senior Pakistani officer said.
The new 400-man Pakistani paramilitary commando unit is a good example of the new cooperation. (ANI)
Miranshah, Feb 23 (ANI): The Taliban in Waziristan has announced forming a ‘Shura Ittehadul Mujahideen’ (Council of United Mujahideen) to wage jihad “in an organised manner.”
A meeting of all the three groups was held at a remote destination in Waziristan, which was attended by heads of the three estranged outfits, which include Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan of Baitullah Mehsud in South Waziristan, Hafiz Gul Bahadur’s Group in North Waziristan and Mulla Nazir Group in South Waziristan.
According to the declaration, the participants agreed to form a new group ‘Shura Ittehad-ul-Mujahiden’ after a meeting continued for three days.
The announcement described Mulla Omar and Osama bin Laden as their leader. They vowed to continue the Jihad for the enforcement of Sharia in the region.
Pamphlets distributed in the Miranshah Bazaar and other areas of the agency headquarters said the forces led by Mullah Muhammad Omar and Osama were fighting against “infidels” led by US President Barack Obama, Pakistani President Asif Zardari and Afghan President Hamid Karzai.
They quoted verses of the Quran calling people to fight a holy war against “infidels”, who they said were killing innocent Muslims, the Daily Times reported. (ANI)