President Zardari rejects criticism of foreign trip

SINGAPORE: President Asif Ali Zardari has defended his decision to travel abroad while the country battled the worst floods in decades, saying he had helped focus international attention on the plight of the victims.

Zardari has faced the brunt of public anger as the administration struggles to help an estimated 14 million people hit by the floods, compounding the misery of a nation tackling a deadly militancy and a failing economy.

But in an opinion piece for the Wall Street Journal, Zardari said he had used his trip to France and Britain to mobilise foreign assistance, money and food for the flood victims.

“Some have criticised my decision, saying it represented aloofness, but I felt that I had to choose substance over symbolism,” he said.

The British government had pledged $24 million in aid, following his meeting with Prime Minister David Cameron, Zardari said. He had also been in touch with the US
government, which had promised $35 million in relief funds.

The floods triggered by heavy monsoon rain over the upper reaches of the Indus river basin have ploughed a swathe of destruction more than 1,000 km long from northern Pakistan to the southern province of Sindh. More than 1,600 people have died.

The United Nations says the disaster is the biggest the country has ever faced and it would cost billions of dollars to rehabilitate the victims and rebuild ruined infrastructure.

“As I return to Pakistan, I bring back tangible results that will help the flood victims in the short run and lay the foundations for national recovery in the long run,” Zardari said.

“I might have benefitted personally from the political symbolism of being in the country at the time of natural disaster. But hungry people can't eat symbols. The situation demanded action, and I acted to mobilise the world.”

Even before the floods struck, Zardari's approval ratings had been falling. Only one in five Pakistanis viewed him positively, a poll by the US-based Pew Research Center released late last month showed.

His prime rival, ex-prime minister Nawaz Sharif, had a 71 per cent favourability rating, according to the poll.

Parts of Sindh, Punjab on alert as fresh flood warning issued

SUKKUR: Pakistan issued fresh flood warnings on Wednesday, putting parts of Punjab and Sindh on alert and calling on foreign donors to step up to contain the country's worst humanitarian disaster.

The United Nations was to launch an international appeal in New York, calling for hundreds of millions of dollars to provide urgent assistance to six million people it says now depend on aid for survival.

Pakistan's government has admitted being unable to cope with the scale of the crisis and an outpouring of rage from survivors and the political opposition is compounding pressure on President Asif Ali Zardari.

Religious charities have plugged some of the vacuum.

The meteorological service warned of floods in Hyderabad district, which could spread devastation further south in Sindh province, and issued a “significant” flood forecast for Kalabagh and Chashma in Punjab.

Local governments in both provinces, considered the breadbasket of Pakistan, also issued warnings about more flooding in the days ahead, although the chief minister in Sindh acknowledged that the immediate danger had passed.

Punjab officials said more than 90 per cent of the town of Kot Addu had emptied and that flooding had cut electricity and gas production, shutting down thousands of factories.

The chief minister of Sindh, Syed Qaim Ali Shah, told a small group of reporters that up to 3.5 million people could be affected in the province, although loss of life had been negligible.

“Up to 40 kilometres of Indus Highway is inundated and has been closed. The initial rough estimates show that losses of 35 billion rupees, excluding crops, have been suffered by Sindh,” he said.

“I think the actual losses will be much higher. We feel that without substantial foreign assistance it will be difficult for Sindh and rest of the country to redevelop and rehabilitate its people.”

“What we need is substantial foreign aid and not peanuts. The aid being pledged so far is peanuts and not enough to meet the enormous challenge ahead.

“The immediate danger is almost over, but we are concerned about the next possible big wave of flooding as predicted by the Met department.

“If it is progressive flow it should be fine, but if it comes at once then it will be a trouble.”

Pakistan says 14 million people are facing direct or indirect harm, while the United Nations has warned that children are among the most vulnerable victims, with diarrhoea the biggest health threat and measles a serious concern.

SC hears petitions challenging 18th Amendment

ISLAMABAD: Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry on Wednesday said that in the parliamentary form of government, the prime minister is the chief executive and his role in the process of judges' appointments cannot be restricted.

Chief Justice Iftikhar made these remarks during a hearing of petitions challenging the 18th Amendment.

A 17-judge full court was hearing the petitions challenging certain clauses in the amendment.

During the hearing, Chief Justice Iftikhar said that in case the government completes its five year term, the judicial commission will become defunct for a period of 90 days.

"Will judges' appointments and confirmations remain suspended for that period...institutions need to be functional under all circumstances," he said.

LHC extends judicial remand of Hamesh Khan

LAHORE: The Lahore High Court adjourned the hearings of Hamesh Khan for two weeks on Wednesday. Khan is the main accused in Punjab Bank scandal.

Khan’s lawyers filed a bail application in the Lahore High Court, claiming that there were still no proofs against their client, despite him being in physical remand since the past 90 days.

Answering the application, Chief Justice Lahore High Court, Khawaja Muhammad Sharif said that Hamesh Khan had been in exile since many years and asked why he was in a rush for bail.

The LHC also dismissed another application which was filed by Khan’s lawyers who were requesting to transfer the case to another bench.

Australian planes to deliver aid in Pakistan floods

SYDNEY: Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard Wednesday committed two military planes to assist relief efforts in Pakistan, saying Australians wanted to help those facing catastrophic floods.

The C-17 Globemaster aircraft, which will deliver emergency supplies, are in addition to the 10 million dollars (9.04 million US) in aid Australia had already committed, she said.

“Many Australians are deeply concerned by the worsening humanitarian crisis as the rains continue,” Gillard said in a statement.

The floods have left six million people dependent on humanitarian help for their survival, according to the United Nations, which has estimated that 1,600 people have died as a result of the rains.

Gillard said the unfolding disaster in Pakistan required a global response and Australia was committed to helping the country recover and rebuild.

“As Pakistan's needs become clearer, Australia will consider what further assistance to provide,” the prime minister said. – AFP

Kashmir separatists reject Singh’s autonomy offer

SRINAGAR: Separatist leaders in Indian-administered Kashmir dismissed Wednesday overtures from Prime Minister Manmohan Singh about political autonomy in the region following months of anti-India unrest.

Appealing to Kashmiri Muslims to “give peace a chance”, Singh had said Tuesday that his government would consider any consensus proposal for autonomy as long as it remained “within the ambit” of the constitution.

He also announced the creation of a panel of experts that would draw up a “jobs plan” for Indian-administered Kashmir where rampant unemployment — especially among young people — has fuelled resentment against Indian rule.

But senior Kashmir separatists rejected Singh's initiative.

“Our fight is for independence, not autonomy,” Javed Mir, a former militant commander turned separatist politician, told AFP.

“We will continue our fight for our goal through peaceful protests,” said Mir, who had been among the first Kashmiris to take up arms in 1989 when frustration against Indian rule boiled over into a full-blown insurgency.

Under the terms of its accession to India in 1947— after independence from Britain and the sub-continent's division — Kashmir was granted a relatively high degree of autonomy, excluding areas like defence and foreign affairs.

But those powers have been eroded over the years, and renewed promises of greater autonomy gain little traction in separatist circles.

“Our struggle is not for restoration of autonomy. It is to seek our right to self-determination,” Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, an influential moderate separatist, told AFP.

“We should be allowed to decide whether we want to remain with India, accede to Pakistan or carve out an independent state,” he said.

Kashmir is divided between India and Pakistan, which both claim the region in full and have fought two wars over their territorial dispute.

The Kashmir legislative assembly in 2000 passed a resolution favouring full restoration of the state's autonomy, but it was rejected by the then Hindu-nationalist government in New Delhi.

Autonomy is the main demand of the ruling National Conference, the state's biggest pro-India political party.

US raises Pakistan aid to $55 million

WASHINGTON: The United States on Tuesday announced an additional $20 million for flood victims in Pakistan, bringing its contribution to date to $55 million.

“This disaster is so vast … and as we get better insight into the scope, our contribution may well grow as well,” said US Deputy Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan Daniel Feldman while announcing the new package.

“We obviously are closely monitoring what is an unfolding and ongoing disaster in Pakistan,” said P.J. Crowley, Assistant Secretary of State for Public Affairs.

Mr Feldman said that since weather in Pakistan on Tuesday was good, US helicopters were able to fly and move about 100,000 pounds worth of humanitarian commodities and transported more than 700 Pakistanis stranded in the remote areas.

“Just as the flood is moving south, we are going to move south,” he added. “We are going to expand those activities with new organisations and existing organisations.”

At the White House, a senior official declared that US-Pakistan relationship was “much bigger” than the war against terrorists and that’s why Washington was eager to help Pakistan cope with the floods.

“We … look at every one of the requests that come in through official channels to make sure that we are doing all we can to help alleviate some of the terrible human tragedy that is happening over there,” White House Deputy Press Secretary Bill Burton said.

When asked whether the militants were using the floods to expand their influence, Mr Burton said: “We certainly hope that they are not using this opportunity to inflict even more pain on the people of Pakistan.”

At the State Department, Mr Feldman encouraged the American public to go to USAID’s website and click on the flood response, providing links to websites for major NGOs working in Pakistan.

“All of them would gladly receive private contributions at this point to add to the effort,” he said.

Mark Ward, acting director, US Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance, noted that while immediate repercussions of the flood were dramatic, “yet almost more importantly is the fact that this is very much a medium- to longer-term issue, with food security, with the economic infrastructure, and with needs that will be ongoing for many months, if not years”.