PML-N seeks army, govt’s response to MQM remarks

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Muslim League-N has urged the army to clarify its position on the appeal made by MQM chief Altaf Hussain to ‘patriotic generals’ to take ‘martial law-like action against corrupt politicians’.

“Ask ISPR (army’s public relations department) to make a comment on it. I personally believe that the army should present its viewpoint,” Chaudhry Nisar, Leader of Opposition in National Assembly, said in reply to a question at a press conference on Saturday.

Chaudhry Nisar said it would be in the interest of the army if it stayed away from politics. “Please, let the army do its job. It is in the interest of the army, country and all institutions as Pakistan’s future lies in democracy. Today, when they (army) have returned to their original work, don’t distract them.”

The opposition leader said the federal government’s silence, too, was surprising considering that the Muttahida chief was actually talking about the rulers’ corruption.

The PML-N has already submitted a privilege motion to the National Assembly secretariat in condemnation of Mr Hussain’s remarks.

Like the MQM, he added, the PML-N was concerned over corruption, but the party favoured accountability through parliament.

Chaudhry Nisar accused the Muttahida chief of “trying to divide the army and make it controversial” at a time when soldiers were busy in the war against terrorism.

In the past, Chaudhry Nisar recalled, the MQM was always critical of Rangers and the army’s role and raised “anti-army slogans” when Gen Asif Nawaz, Gen Jehangir Karamat and Gen Waheed Kakar were army chiefs. “However, when Gen Musharraf hid their misdeeds, the army became dear to the MQM,” he said.

The opposition leader criticised the MQM for keeping silent when “its favourite army chief (an allusion to Gen Musharraf) made those people minister who had been facing corruption charges and were under the custody of National Accountability Bureau which was under the total control of the army”.

“Why did you not question Gen Musharraf when he released NAB-affected people from jails and made them your colleagues in the cabinet?” the PML-N leader asked.

Commenting on Mr Hussain’s controversial remarks, the PML-N leader reminded the MQM leadership that it was the army that had ‘exposed its style of politics based on murder and extortion”.

He threatened to present the record of army about the MQM in parliament if it did not stop personal attacks on the PML-N leadership.

Indian aid should come through UN

ISLAMABAD: After dithering over the offer for days, Pakistan has finally come clean with its India-is-the-enemy stance and refused to directly accept India’s offer of $5 million in relief assistance for flood victims, suggesting instead that the aid be donated to the UN flood response appeal.

A senior official at the Foreign Office confirmed on Saturday that the decision had been conveyed to New Delhi through diplomatic channels.

The $460 million UN appeal, to which India has been asked to contribute, was 64 per cent funded as of Saturday.

Indian External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna had on Aug 13 offered $5 million in relief assistance for flood survivors during a conversation with his Pakistani counterpart Shah Mehmood Qureshi.

Days after Mr Krishna’s call, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh called Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani and reminded him of the offer, indicating that India could give it if needed.

The Pakistan government, however, deliberated on the pros and cons of accepting or rejecting the offer for almost a fortnight and ultimately settled for middle ground -- asking that the donor route the assistance through the UN.

In the meantime, media attention was focused on Islamabad’s response and various functionaries gave divergent statements on the issue, revealing the fact they were not aware of what was happening and the government’s inability to reach a decision.

The foreign minister, during his visit to New York, told the media that the Pakistan government had accepted the offer and appreciated the Indian gesture. His ministry, meanwhile, has been insisting that no final decision was taken.

At a press conference on Friday, Information Minister Qamar Zaman Kaira said the Indian offer had been accepted.

While explaining Pakistan’s hesitancy in accepting the offer, Mr Qureshi had “referred to a different nature of relationship with India” and sensitivities involved in the matter. This perhaps was the most honest answer as it indicated that hostilities between the two countries had led to Islamabad’s reluctance.

The United States, which is one of the top donors to the flood assistance, had noted Pakistan’s hesitance and urged Islamabad to accept the offer, warning it against indulging in politics during a disaster.

The Indian government made the offer only after criticism at home that political disputes with Pakistan were overruling humanitarian considerations. Moreover, diplomatic observers say, the offer was symbolic and motivated by the world focus on the devastating floods.

Relations between India and Pakistan have been marred by mistrust and hostility. The logjam in ties caused by the Mumbai attacks has not been overcome despite recent efforts involving the top leadership of both the countries and some of the world powers.

Providing shelter before Eid tough task: PM

ISLAMABAD: Providing shelter before Eid to the people displaced by floods is the greatest challenge faced by the government, says Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani.

However, the government was busy in formulating a comprehensive strategy to meet the tough challenge, he said at a meeting held in the PM House on Saturday to review the performance of Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP), Pakistan Baitul Mal (PBM) and Ministry of Zakat and Ushr in providing relief to the flood-hit people.

The prime minister asked the PBM and Ministry of Zakat and Ushr to work jointly in accordance with parameters determined by the government to cope with the challenge.

BISP Chairperson Farzana Raja, Baitul Mal Chairman Zamarud Khan and Secretary Zakat and Ushr Khalid Idrees briefed the prime minister on their contributions towards relief and rehabilitation efforts going on in different parts of the country.

Over 400 jailed Indian fishermen set to be freed

KARACHI: The federal government on Saturday ordered the release of 442 Indian fishermen, including two minors, who despite having completed their sentences — some of them years ago — were still being held in prisons here.

Sources said that 456 Indian prisoners had completed their sentences but the government had ordered the release of 442, which meant that 14 prisoners who had completed their sentences would not be released.

According to the sources, the federal government’s decision was communicated through a ministry of interior letter (No: 9/4/2009 – India –II, dated Aug 28, 2010) to the Sindh government and the provincial home department issued a notification (No: SO (PPT)/01-09/09 dated Aug 28, 2010), ordering the release and repatriation of these fishermen in batches.

The fishermen have been under detention at four places — District Jail Malir, and Juvenile Jail in Karachi; Nara Jail Hyderabad; District Jail Badin and District Jail Naushehro Feroze.

All the prisoners would be brought to Malir Jail from where they would leave for their homes.

The Indian prisoners would be released in four batches. The first batch of 100 fishermen, including the two minors, would leave the city from Malir jail on Aug 30 and reach Lahore the next day from where they would cross the Wagah border on their way back home.

The next batch of 100 fishermen would leave the Malir prison on Sept 2 and cross the Wagah border the next day.

The third batch of 101 prisoners would leave the city on Sept 4 and cross the Wagah border on Sept 5 while the last batch of 141 prisoners would leave the city on Sept 6 and cross the Wagah border the next day.

Responding to Dawn queries, retired justice Nasir Aslam Zahid, who is a member of the Pakistan-India joint judicial commission and remained involved with the issue, said that he had visited India in May where it was decided that steps would be taken with the respective governments so that the prisoners who had completed their sentences and still being held in prisons could be released and it was decided that the superior courts would be moved to secure the release.

He said that this decision was taken keeping in view an Indian supreme court order that since the prisoners had completed their sentences they be released immediately.

The Indian supreme court gave the verdict on a petition filed by a Kashmiri Pundit, Bhim Singh, on behalf of 17 Kashmiris who, though had completed their sentences, were being held in prisons, he said.

The retired justice said that at the Delhi meeting held in May it was decided that former chief justice of the Delhi High Court Justice Sachar would file a case in India for the release Pakistani prisoner and similarly a case would be filed in Pakistan for the release Indian prisoners.

He said that the Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum and the Pakistan Institute of Labour Education and Research (Piler), represented by a former federal law minister, Iqbal Haider, filed a constitutional petition (No.48 of 2010) in the Supreme Court of Pakistan for the release of the Indian fishermen.

The Supreme Court on Aug 12, 2010 issued notices to the foreign ministry, the interior ministry as well the Sindh home department, asking them under what legal provision or lawful authority the fishermen who had completed their sentences were in jails.

On Aug 26 the foreign ministry had informed the Supreme Court that it had already informed the interior ministry to release 456 Indian fishermen who had completed their sentences and their nationality had been confirmed by the Indian High Commission.

The Supreme Court had ordered repeat notice to the interior ministry as to why these detained Indian fishermen were not being released and repatriated to India.

The next date of hearing in petition was Sept 14, 2010, but before the hearing the government has ordered the release of the fishermen.

He said that 456 Indian fishermen had completed their sentences but the government had ordered the release of 442, which leave out 14 prisoners.

He said that he had received the release orders after the office timings, but he would crosscheck and this issue would be sorted out with the government shortly.

Mr Iqbal Haider, who had filed the petition in the Supreme Court, said that now that Pakistan government had ordered the release of the Indian fishermen, he would make efforts to get the Pakistani prisoners being held in Indian prisons released before Eid.

Jacobabad turns into a ghost town

SUKKUR: Jacobabad wears a look of a besieged city abandoned by its residents with rail and road links connecting it to the rest of the country having been cut off for more than 20 days.

Only five per cent of the city’s 500,000 population still cling onto their homes, stubbornly refusing to leave.

The floodwaters unleashed by a breach in Tori bund near Ghauspur in Kandhkot-Kashmore district, which has till now widened to a kilometre, reached as far as Jacobabad after covering a long distance and flooded all its roads.

The city was though saved after cuts were made in Jamali bypass to divert the floodwater to Balochistan’s only green belt, Jafarabad and Naseerabad districts.

Since then Jacobabad remains cut off from the rest of the country and nothing has been done to restore its road or rail communication despite a lapse of more than 20 days.

Sindh Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah told journalists during a visit to Kandhkot on Saturday that the breach in Tori bund would be plugged within a week and the plugging work had been awarded to Frontier Works Organisation.

According to some journalists who are still in Jacobabad, the only mode of communication with the outer world is through boats.

Majority of people have fled the city, fearing onrushing floodwaters and now only 5 per cent people are living there who face acute shortage of daily use commodities and super inflation.

On the one hand shopkeepers are selling essential commodities at prohibitively exorbitant prices and on the other relief goods meant for the residents of the marooned city are allegedly being distributed among favourites or belonging to a particular political group.

To add insult to injury, these undeserving people are selling the relief goods at exorbitant prices and take undue advantage of their helplessness. But people are compelled to buy these goods at whatever price to keep body and soul together.

Efforts to contact Jacobabad DCO Kazim Jatoi failed because his cell phone number was switched off.

Besides, the city and adjoining areas are littered with carcasses of animals, giving off unbearable stench and disease among the marooned people who have nowhere to flee and no healthcare facility.

According to official sources, work on the restoration of road link between Shikarpur and Jacobabad has started and it may take two days more to reopen it.

Punjab seeks probe on dykes cuts, breaches

LAHORE: The Punjab government has sent a reference to Lahore High Court, requesting it to establish a judicial commission to investigate breaches and cuts in dykes and spurs in the province.

According to a handout, the reference was sent on the order of Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif.

PPP dominates new list of MPs having genuine degrees

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan People’s Party, which has the highest number of lawmakers holding fake or invalid degrees, also dominates a new list of legislators possessing genuine degrees.

The list with names of 42 legislators includes those of 31 parliamentarians belonging to the party.

According to a copy of the list, ten Sindh ministers have genuine degrees — namely, Pir Mazharul Haq, Agha Taimoor Khan Pathan, Abdul Haque alias Dost Mohammad, Manzoor Hussain Wassan, Makhdoom Jameel-uz-Zaman, Zahid Ali Bhugrani, Zulfikar Ali Mirza, Dr Daya Ram, Sassui Palejo and Mohan Lal.

Dr Khalid Mahmood Soomro of Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-F is the only Senator on the list.

The list has the names of a dozen members of National Assembly, with nine of them belonging to the PPP. These PPP members are Dr Fehmida Mirza, Makhdoom Amin Fahim, Raja Pervez Ashraf, Afzal Sindhu, Amir Ali Magsi, Rafique Ahmad Jamali, Rubina Saadat Qaimkhani, Lal Chand and Pir Syed Fazal Shah Jeelani.

The other three MNAs named in the list are Ghous Bakhsh Khan Mahar (PML), Dr Abdul Qadir Khanzada (MQM) and Reena Kumari (PML- Functional).

The other members of the Sindh Assembly declared to be possessing genuine degrees include Anwar Ahmad Khan Mahar, Ghulam Qadir Chandio, Imdad Ali Pitafi, S. Mohsin Shah Bukhari, Abdul Karim Soomro, M. Nawaz Chandio, Sharjeel Imam Memon, Dr Sikandar Ali Shoro, Fayyaz Ali Butt, Abdul Salam Thaheem, and Humera Alwani (PPP), Fahim Ahmad, Syed Wasim Hussain and Sohail Yusuf Khan (MQM), Abdul Razzaq Rahimoon, Shah Hussain Shah Sheerazi and Dr Sajeela Leghari (PML-Q) and Ali Ghulam Nizamani (PML-F).

In all, 289 lawmakers have so far been given a clean chit while 46 have been declared to be holding fake or invalid degrees.

The Election Commission has already started summoning those accused of holding fake or dubious degrees to decide whether or not their cases should be sent to district and session judges for trial.

Six lawmakers were summoned to the commission last Monday, but only three of them sent their representatives to explain the reasons behind their absence, while the remaining three — Syed Mohammad Salman Mohsin, Javed Hussain Shah and Gulistan Khan — did not make any representation.

An official of the Election Commission told Dawn that the lawmakers who remained absent had been asked to appear before the commission on Monday (Aug 30).

Six more lawmakers have been issued notices to appear before the commission on Monday.

They are federal Minister for Postal Services Mir Israrullah Khan Zehri, federal Minister for Fisheries and Livestock Mir Humayun Aziz Kurd, members of Pakhtunkhwa Assembly Kishwar Kumar and Khalifa Abdul Qayyum, member of Balochistan Assembly Shamma Parveen Magsi and member of Punjab Assembly Saima Aziz.