DM Editorials 30 Nov 2020

November 30, 2020 News desk -
Termination of PSM employees

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THE employees of Pakistan Steel Mills (PSM) on Saturday staged a
protest demonstration in Karachi following start of their termination
process by PTI government that is aiming to revive the organisation by
involving a private investor, most probably an international party.
Addressing a news conference, Minister for Industries and Production
Hammad Azhar said in the rst phase, 4500 employees were being
terminated and each on average will be given 2.3 million rupees.
Indeed the termination news has not been received well by public at
large. We understand this was not an easy decision on part of the
government but had to swallow this bitter pill to revive the PSM, which
until 2008 was a pro table organisation. Like any other loss making
state enterprise, the PSM is a story of corruption, mismanagement and
oversta ng. It has been non-functional since 2015 yet salaries and
packages were being paid to employees. This was not sustainable and
the government had to take some di cult decision sooner or later. And
whether one agrees to it or not but truth is that previous two
governments are wholly responsible for current state of a airs of PSM.
Had they risen above mere lip service and put the steel mills into
operational mode, present government would not have opted for such
an extreme step. Over the last two decades, countless visions to turn
the PSM around were oated and much has been invested from public
money to turn those visions into realities but without achieving any
meaningful success. There is no reason for the opposition to make hue
and cry now and do politics on this matter. The PSM employees are now
paying the price of their collective failures.
Having said so, it is also important for government to realise
di culties of the employees especially at a time when second wave of
Covid-19 is wreaking havoc with businesses and livelihoods. The
government must go ahead with its privatisation programme but those
willing to work with full devotion and dedication must be given a
chance and priority to serve in the new setup. The private investor will
require workforce to run the PSM and this skilled sta which have
necessary experience can prove to be an asset with little bit of
investment on their capacity building and training as per modern day
requirements.
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The healing touch of nature
Khalid Saleem
NOW that the Corona-virus Pandemic has turned the world as we know
it upside down. A couple of news items related to public health
appearing in the media some years back deserve serious attention. The
rst, datelined Seoul, quoted an international vaccine expert as
warning that “it’s only a matter of time before a deadly u pandemic
strikes”, adding that the world was ill-prepared to cope with a major
outbreak of the disease. “We are talking about a killer in uenza that
would kill probably tens of millions of people,” stated Mr. John
Clemens, director of the International Vaccine institute, “We are not
talking about if; we are talking about when.” The second and earlier
item was about AIDS and its devastating impact on health in the
continent of Africa. The Kenyan lady minister, winner of the Nobel
peace prize 2004, was quoted as having expressed the view that the
AIDS virus is not a natural phenomenon but is man-made. She also
implied that the spreading of the virus over vast areas of the African
continent, too, was a deliberate act (accident/conspiracy?).
The aforementioned two items provide serious food for thought. For
one thing, they serve to shake one’s con dence in the role of the
modern medical research establishment. For another, they serve to add
fuel to the already boiling conspiracy theory cauldron related to the
Pandemic. Together they should be enough to spread panic in an
already jittery world community. Some pertinent questions, thereby,
crop up, begging for answers. Among them are: a) Have our overall
priorities undergone a drastic change to the detriment of the interests
of mankind? b) Is it logical to assume that the dedication that once
characterized medical research is now a thing of the past? c) Is modern
medical research today controlled by expediency rather than ethics and
is in con ict with nature?
History of medical research, one nds, tells a di erent and touching
story. The perspicacious reader may be interested in the following item
reproduced by the International Herald Tribune from its pages circa
June 1899: “The Liverpool School for Tropical Diseases has decided to
dispatch to the West Coast of Africa a special expedition for the purpose
of investigating the causes of malaria. The expedition will be headed by
Major Ross and will start for Sierra-Leone early in August, when the
malaria season is at its height and the conditions are most favorable for
research. Major Ross hopes to prove his theory that malaria is caused
by the bites of a mosquito.”
The reader will undoubtedly have noted the profoundly touching sense
of dedication shown by researchers of the likes of the said Major Ross.
These pioneers surmounted fearful odds in their endeavors to discover
the healing touch for humanity’s ailments. Humanity bene ted
enormously from the hard work put in by such dedicated individuals.
Regrettably, today the world has acquired a mercenary hue. The
expedition of the aforementioned Major Ross and his dedicated team is
a case in point. He and his team had a theory that they were determined
to put to test despite fearful odds. Journeying to Africa at the height of
the malaria season could hardly have been a picnic. It was this
pioneering spirit that set in motion the process that led to the cure and
eventually the extermination of this deadly disease at its source. Over
the years, medical research took enormous strides. Several ailments,
f th th t f id di bl f ll
treated thanks to the sel ess e orts of countless researchers who
dedicated their lives to their work in the interest of humanity.
Public memory is proverbially short. How many people even recall the
time when such ailments as pneumonia were considered incurable and
fatal? And yet today hardly anyone gives a second thought to such
ailments. Nonetheless, it would be imprudent to forget that it is nature
that guides man’s e orts. Cures to all man’s ailments are to be found in
nature. They are just waiting to be discovered. It is no coincidence that
that all medicines were originally discovered in natural form usually in
the ora and fauna. It was only after discovery in nature that various
drugs were synthesized for mass production. Nature, incidentally, has
prescribed a certain regime for each species to be safe from disease. Out
of all species, it is man alone who violates the regime prescribed by
nature. As a result, humankind pays a terrible price. Each succeeding
generation is prone to newer and newer ailments, not a few of them
man-made. Someday when research is complete into the origins of
some of the new scourges targeting mankind, it might well emerge that
they are a direct consequence of man’s ill-advised e orts to tamper
with the laws of nature. Nature does not take kindly to such
indiscretions.
While on this subject, one must take note of the rather intriguing fact
that, despite the giant strides taken by the medical profession in the
eld of curative medicine, the cure for the common cold still continues
to elude them. It would appear that the common cold is the symbol of
the resolve of nature to stay a step ahead of man. One thing that the
common cold should teach one and all is respect for the underdog. Just
because it happens to be a minor and “common” ailment does not
mean that one can either ignore it or, for that matter, take it for
granted. Small things demand and deserve respect. Refuse to give due
deference and you do so at your own peril. Coming back to the warnings
of the shape of things to come, humankind would be well advised to re-
order its priorities in order to cope. Unless this is done, the future
prospects do not look particularly bright.
— The writer is a former Ambassador and former Assistant Secretary
General of OIC.
Independent Pakistan
Rizwan Ghani
THERE is an opportunity created by Trump and coronavirus pandemic
in which world is resetting its alliances and Pakistan cannot a ord to
miss it. With Gulf States transiting from religious alliances to trade,
Pakistan should also adopt independent policies. It will break the
shackles of past that are self defeating and disastrous for the country
and its people. And we should adopt policies that make government
answerable to public, rule of law and the state. Independent Pakistan is
our policy. Trump became president on his America rst policy. During
his term the country did not go to war and his Afghan US troop
drawdown was an attempt to end forever wars. The gures of the
economy, jobs and unemployment remained healthy during his term. It
was his nationalist policies that won him record 70 million plus votes.
Any Pakistani government cannot ignore country rst in globalization.
America under Biden will have to be shadow of Trumponomics and
Trumpism. Biden’s pledge to rejoin Paris Climate Accord was doomed
by Trump’s G-20 statement of “Designed to kill US economy”. Any
step to open US to globalization will become Obama care or Iran deal. It
explains realignments in ME, Iran stando and Biden’s fragility to
regain US world leadership. That is why both Johnson (Brexit) and
Merkel (look East) have adopted country rst approaches and Pakistan
is also on its own. Similarly, India’s stayed out of Regional
Comprehensive Economic Cooperation to save its economy from cheap
imports and dumping. Beijing also saved RCEP through “shallow
integration” of 15-member alliance for political bene ts because
economic alliance failed just as Trump had abandoned TPP alliance in
favor of domestic consumption based model (DCBM) to save US jobs,
wages and economy. If Pakistan is going to charge international rates
then it will have to pay international prices to save its economy.
Shallow integration is the new approach because globalization and
trade alliances and loans are low yield. Research says RCEP will bene t
0.2% to each member state. Like PPP Sindh government, UK Tory
government’s has been in power for more than a decade during that
time gures show increase in living cost, corruption and
unemployment. The two- year performance of our current government
has shown similar results which merits change in economic model,
nancial system and state control. By adopting DCBM, Pakistan can be
economically independent. The $52bn import bill can be reduced by
giving policies for creating jobs in cottage industry, SME, IT, renewable
energy, and technical and vocational training for energy ($13bn), food
($4.7bn), machinery ($6.7bn), transport ($2.3bn), textile ($3.4bn),
agriculture and other chemicals ($8.9bn), iron and steel ($3.9bn) and
other imports ($3.5bn). By giving loans, the corruption of rewarding
private business with tax money can be ended.
Agriculture is foundation of food security and integration. Our current
food supply chains, business models and labor systems extract wealth
f l iti B i i ll f t
friendly Apps, Wi-Fi and internet it can be eliminated. A redesigned
procurement system across the country using IT technology linking
individual buyers and small sellers will bring down prices, improve
income of small farmers, and end corruption through transparency.
Then America used distribution of land (Homestead Law), irrigation
dams, value addition industry, railway and transport system and
energy plan. By relocating 30-50 million people across Pakistan
including Baluchistan, it can end reliance on foreign debt, create jobs
and improve living standards. The use of roads, railway, air service and
waterways can help us meet our domestic and international demand.
We can build our railway system in record time with our factories of
coaches and sleepers.
State should take control of public welfare. Britain used 6000 DCs
(bureaucracy) to run the entire subcontinent immaculately. DCs had
line departments with government professionals including education,
health and police. They used to oversee all areas related to public. Due
to strong system of check and balance, there was little scope of
corruption. If government is serious to build schools, hospitals,
improve public safety, and end corruption then return public
development funds and police under DCs. Politically, it is no coincident
that Trump’s average voter is voting in Pakistan’s elections also?
America voted for populist Trump because it was abandoned by an
economic and police system that is not accountable to state, judiciary
and the democracy. The same mindset voted for change in Pakistan’s
elections because it is governed by same western democracy which is
failing to protect weak against the strong while state, judiciary and
media fail to play their due role. There are lessons in Trump’s victory
and defeat for Pakistan. Trump made claims of strong economy, more
employment and improved social integration but American dream is
nowhere to be seen. It shows that government has failed to protect
weak against strong. Results show that populism can win elections but
cannot serve masses. Pakistan should therefore restore its 1973
Constitution and original parliamentary system so that government is
accountable to pubic, state and rule of law. It will be only possible in
independent Pakistan.
—The writer is senior political analyst based in Islamabad.
Foreign policy & Middle East
Dr Muhammad Khan
THE foreign policy of Pakistan has been dynamic and farsighted right
from its emergence as an independent state in 1947. The Muslim
countries and Middle Eastern region have been the primary focus of
Pakistan’s foreign policy. Having a cordial relationship with all Muslim
countries has been the most salient feature of Pakistan’s foreign policy.
Keeping in view, the ideological nature of Pakistani origin, friendly
relationship with Muslim world was included in the constitution of
Pakistan. For the past seven decades, Pakistan religiously practiced this
aspect in its foreign policy pursuits. It continued practicing an
exceptional and symphonic relationship with all Muslim states. Since
bulks of the Muslim states are situated in Middle Eastern region
therefore, this area remained the primary focus of Pakistan’s external
relations. Over the years, involvement of major powers and rival states
of Pakistan in the regional politics of Middle East has greatly
in uenced the foreign policies of the regional countries of the Middle
East. Unfortunately, the huge diplomatic corps of Pakistan could not
correctly appreciate the impact of external involvement in the domestic
politics of Middle Eastern regional states. While the rival states of
Pakistan were making inroads into the region, the Pakistani diplomatic
and political elites remained mysteriously silence. This secretive
quietness of decision makers in Pakistan allowed the rival states of
Pakistan like India to establish itself in broader Muslim states of Middle
East.
While establishing the Indian clout in Middle East, the Indian policy
makers adopted three pronged approach. One; India chose to enter the
region through its well-trained Muslim population. This strategy was
adopted to deceive the traditional conservative character of the Middle
Eastern society and ruling elites, who preferred Muslims as the work
forces in their countries. After nding broader acceptability for
Indians, the large Hindu population started pouring into the region
with larger and ulterior motives. Two; India attracted the wealthy
countries of the Middle East for heavy investment in India, promising
larger incentives. Through this strategy, India created jobs market for
its huge unemployed class at home, besides sending its huge
manpower in Middle East. Three; Indian Diaspora focused on the
business and trade sector of the Middle Eastern states. Today, bulk of
the hoteling, industry, tourism, oil companies and even the local
markets are run by Indian Diaspora in entire Middle East. In UAE,
Indian Diaspora constitutes 25% of its total population. Over 70%
nancial activities of UAE are being control by Indians. Situation in
other countries of the Middle East is almost the same. Slowly and
gradually, the Indian Diaspora is entering into the educational system
and state functionaries of the Middle Eastern states. Besides, the
engineering and construction sectors of the regional states are also
being controlled by Indian expatriates.
Before sending its expatriates in Middle East, India trained its masses
on three aspects; expertise in relevant skills, promotion of Indian
nationalism and ingress to in uence for attainment of long-term
national objectives of India. The Indian Government takes full
sponsorship and responsibility of their expatriates with a tight
monitoring system through its spying network. They are under strict
i l it di t Thi ll i d d
increasing India in uence in the Middle East has rapidly constrained
the space for Pakistani Diaspora, who have been working in the region
since 1960s without Government patronage. Most of the Pakistani
expatriates in Middle East are low level labourer class, who are
untrained, unskilled and t to under-take the menial and humiliating
jobs. Then there is no social security for Pakistani labourer class, nor do
they fall under the sponsorship of the Government of Pakistan.
Thousands of Pakistanis are languishing in the jails of Middle Eastern
countries for decades now and no one is there to rescue them. The
international political system is driven by power politics. The countries
whose leadership has the foresight, vision, long-term strategies and
above all, the better understanding of international politics work in
advance. They trained their Diaspora to make inroads, create
acceptability, in uence the local authorities and reach to the driving
seats of key areas in the rst phase. Subsequently, they substantiate
their initial gains through diplomatic and political engagements. Since
the Diaspora had already made a positive image, therefore the later
doorway through diplomatic corps and political engagements is
peaceful to be materialized.
The traditionally strong bonds in the foreign policy of Pakistan and the
Middle Eastern states, seems eroding with each passing day. This is a
damaging trend and needs serious reconsiderations at the level of
Pakistani state, society and institutions. After all, there must have been
inattention and susceptibilities which were exploited by the rival forces
to the disadvantage of traditional partners (Pakistan and Middle
Eastern region). Besides, abovementioned factors, the Middle Eastern
countries might have reoriented their foreign policies with fresh
objectives and transformed priorities. This seems obvious from the
recent developments, taking place in the regional politics of Middle
Eastern states. Nevertheless, the geopolitics of Pakistan, its traditional
connections with the countries of the region and social acquaintances
between the masses still makes Pakistan a very relevant and needed
state for Middle Eastern region. The Government must initiate re-
engagement policies with the countries of Middle East with pride,
dignity and respect. Apart from Pakistan, such an initiative will bene t
the Middle Eastern states on long-term basis. In this regards, there is a
df j f i li i hil id i th d
realities in the regional politics of Middle East. As a nuclear Muslim
state with highly professional military and strategically location,
Pakistan cannot remain aloof from the developments, taking place in
its immediate neighbourhood and traditionally compassionate Muslim
countries.
— The writer is Professor of Politics and IR at International Islamic
University, Islamabad.

2020-11-30 08:53:40 Tribune
Our Covid response

In the midst of every crisis lies a great opportunity. The incumbent
government, led by Prime Minister Imran Khan, proved it’s not just a
cliché. Yes, such has been our ght against Covid-19. We not only rode
past the rst wave of the coronavirus much less scathed – in
comparison with the neighbouring India as well as the US and Europe –
but we also came out with a bagful of takeaways in terms of healthcare
service delivery, economic management and social security
mechanism. Let’s have a look at these progresses one by one.
Our medical response to Covid-19 has resulted in improved and

expanded healthcare facilities in the country. Our hospitals are now
better equipped than they were in the pre-Covid days, and our
healthcare professionals too are now better placed to deal with mass
emergencies. The ght against the lethal virus has led us to arrange for
manufacturing face masks, sanitisers and ventilators at home instead
of importing them in big numbers to meet the local demand. Not just
that, we are exporting these medical items too, according to Federal
Minister for Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhry. Moreover, our
social safety net was also put to test and came through. An amount of
Rs144 billion was doled out to as many as 120 million people under the
Ehsaas Cash Programme to smoothen the lockdown fallout.
Takeaways on the economic front are quite signi cant. There has been
an unusual rise in remittances from abroad for the last four months –
thanks, in part, to the Roshan Digital Account scheme launched by the
SBP for overseas Pakistanis on September 10. This has led to the
country’s current account witnessing a record surplus of $792 million
in the rst quarter of the current scal year; and this has been the rst
quarterly surplus in ve years. Stimulus packages o ered by the central
bank spurred the commercial activity in the country, also re ected in a
notable rise in exports. It is due to the rising in ows from abroad that
the dollar fell below 160 against the rupee for the rst time in six
months.
No wonder our overall Covid response has been praised by global

institutions like the World Health Organization, and our PM invited to
share his experience at the prestigious World Economic Forum.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 30th, 2020.
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2020-11-30 08:52:31 Tribune
Pay and pension anomalies

The pay and pension structure of civil servants is said to have
anomalies that create ill-feeling among the government employees.
For long, there have been calls to correct the inherent wrongs in the
compensation packages of various federal and provincial government
departments. The PTI government recently set up a high-powered
commission to suggest measures aimed at reforming the pay structure
to the satisfaction of all. The move comes at a time when the
government is facing pressure to increase the salaries by at least 100-
150% and end discrimination in pays of various government
departments.
There are around 26 civilian and military departments that are getting
50% to 100% higher than the standard pay packages for rendering
‘extraordinary services’. The federal government also gave special
allowances to FIA and NAB that created unease among the employees of
the Pakistan Secretariat — the seat of federal bureaucracy. An o cial
working in the Pak Secretariat Islamabad is drawing less salary than a
person serving in a provincial capital. The federal government’s pay
structure has not remained lucrative after two provincial governments
approved additional allowances of up to 150%. In the last high-
powered board meeting, which was held to promote o cers from
Grade-21 to 22, the board did not promote those o cers who were
eligible but had not served in the federal government aimed at forcing
them to leave their lucrative positions. The scope of the commission
includes federal and provincial civil servants, other government
servants, civilians paid from defence budget, all armed forces, civil
armed forces and all employees of the public-sector enterprises. The
commission began its exhaustive work on Thursday.
The nance ministry faces growing burden of salaries and pensions.
Out of the Rs470 billion earmarked for pensions in the current scal
year, an amount of Rs369 billion is for military pensions. There is also a
need to set up a pension fund as currently the pensions are paid from
the budget, which is unsustainable.


2020-11-30 08:53:50 Tribune
Ties that bind

There is a lesson for the world in the predicament the UK currently
nds itself in. Between Brexit and its handling of the novel coronavirus,
it has unearthed old fault lines to exacerbate its present challenges. The
‘Leave’ faction may have hoped the UK would be able to chart an
‘independent’ destiny if freed from European ‘shackles’. But
independence is contagious and as it settles its divorce from the EU,
there is a real risk that the British union may itself unravel.
It was not long ago that Scotland held a much-heralded referendum to

decide whether it should exist as an independent nation. Historically
speaking, the UK has been a set of nations glued together, even if three
of them share the same island. And while the internecine rivalry they
were often engaged in may be a thing of the past, vestigial sentiments
remain. Then again, the same can be said of most, if not all countries
that exist today. As much as we would like to believe otherwise, the
concept of the modern nation state is far less organic than it seems.
In the aforementioned referendum, Scotland voted in favour of

remaining part of the UK, but only by a narrow margin. Given that it
was held just six years ago, some may feel British PM Boris Johnson has
a point in refusing calls for another one. But one would be amiss if they
don’t consider the circumstances and how they have changed. In many
ways, that referendum and the Brexit vote that took place two years
after it re ect each other. That they returned such di erent outcomes is
in itself enough to suggest that some Scottish people may now
reconsider their earlier choice.
Although talk of a second referendum may still be premature, one can

also not discount the domino e ect it may have on Northern Ireland.
Being part of EU was a signi cant factor in settling the ‘Troubles’ in the
region. Whatever the outcome, this present challenge the UK faces is a
crucial case study for all nations. Most, if not all, exist as a consequence
of certain historical compromises. One unilateral action is all it takes to
undo the ties that bind them.


2020-11-30 12:14:52 Tribune
Global trade: Asia chooses to go on its own

When Donald J Trump, America’s 45th president, agreed nally to turn
over the keys of the White House to President-elect Joseph Biden, he
left the world in a very di erent shape from the one he had inherited
from president Barack Obama. In his inaugural address delivered from
the steps of the Capitol, Trump promised his followers that he would
“make America great again”. This he would do by going alone and
letting the rest of the world to its own devices.
The slogan MAGA adorned millions of red caps across the United States.
Trump was con dent that his followers would keep him in the White
House. When the elections of November 3, 2020, did not produce that
result, he refused to surrender with grace. Upon taking o ce, Trump
got busy dismantling the global system Obama had built with care and
a great deal of e ort.
Included in the moves the new president made was the scrapping of the
Trans-Paci c Partnership trade deal on which Obama had worked hard
for a couple of years. The TPP was a trade arrangement involving 11
countries in addition to the US but did not include China. The most
important aspect of the deal was to have the rest of Asia follow the
American regulatory system in areas such as labour laws, environment
protection, transfer of technologies. Trump decided to walk out of this
arrangement for the simple reason that it was authored by Obama.
The TPP member states responded to Trump’s move by reacting

positively to the Chinese initiative. Beijing sponsored the
Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Paci c
Partnership (CPTPP) that concluded in 2018, a few months after Trump
had walked out of the TPP. Asian states began to wonder whether they
needed a regional deal broader in scope than the CPTPP.
After four years of deliberations and two new trade arrangements, the
answer was a resounding yes. On November 15, as many as 15 Asian
nations announced the formation of the Regional Comprehensive
Economic Partnership (RCEP). This would be the world’s largest trade
bloc covering about 30% of the global population and a similar share of
world economic output. It would be larger than the European Union in
terms of population and gross domestic output.
According to most analysts, governments in Asia are looking to bolster

regional trade rather than keep relying on Washington and other
countries in developed parts of the world. But not all Asian nations are
interested in joining the RECP. India, for instance, was initially a
member, but pulled out fearing that some of its domestic industries
would be destroyed if it lowered tari s on Chinese imports. Prime
Minister Narendra Modi had developed close relations with Trump and
thought that his country’s participation would not sit well with the US
President.
There were other reasons why India chose to stay out of the new pact.
Indian policymakers were leery of admitting a further ood of Chinese
manufactured goods. China already has a trade surplus of $60 billion a
year with India. Islamabad has not revealed whether it was approached
by RECP member nations to join the arrangement. Even if it wasn’t it
should make serious e ort to become a partner in the enterprise. It is
now rmly placed in China’s economic orbit and it would be
appropriate to partner with Beijing and follow its economic regulatory
system.
Most expert opinion is in favour of RECP. They believe the trend will
feed into accelerating international trends. “The United States vacated
the rulemaking and leadership role it previously aspired to, and the
region has gone on to writing the rules in the absence of the US,” said
Stephen Kirchner, director of investment and trade at the University of
Sydney’s United States Studies Center. Washington is eligible to the
membership RECP but on RECP terms.
The RECP would bind the Northeast Asian economic powers with one
another and with fast-growing Southeast Asian countries such as
and increasingly functions as an important link in the supply chains
that now make up the international system of production.
The ASEAN nations included in the RECP are now linked by these
arrangements. They have become largest trading partners of China
after Beijing’s trade with Washington and the EU fell 10% and 5%,
respectively. A simulation by the Washington-based Peterson Institute
for International Economics found that RECP would raise trade among
member nations by $428 billion and global GDP by $186 billion by
2030.
The trend for developing trade within the region rather than along the
US-China corridor would in all likelihood be accelerated by the
pandemic and the US-China trade war launched by Trump. The RECP
would formalise rather than remake business practices among member
countries. It would eliminate tari s mainly for goods that already
qualify for duty-free treatment under several existing arrangements.
But it would allow members to keep tari s on sensitive goods.
The rules of origin built into the pact would set common standards for
much of the products produced within the region and how they qualify
for duty-free treatment. The RECP did not develop guidelines for legal
work pertaining to the traded goods. It avoided broad issues like
protecting independent labour and environment and government
subsidies to state-owned enterprises.
According to Mary Lovely at the Peterson Institute, the agreement’s

lower trade barriers could encourage global companies trying to avoid
Trump’s tari s on Chinese-made goods to keep work in Asia rather
than shift it to North America.
“By lowering East Asian trade costs, RCEP will accelerate the
decoupling of East Asian and US economies, arguably the most
productive regional partnership in economic history,” wrote Peter
Petri and Michael Plummer, the authors of the Peterson study.
Evan Feigenbaum at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

said the problem was deeper for the US leadership in East Asia. US
power in that part of the world was premised not on security but also
on its economic role as a driver of demand. But the US is “walking away
from that role against the backdrop of shrinking relative economic role
overall.”
Joe Biden, the incoming president, has not spelt out his approach to
international trade deals. Some of those who support him regard the
deals going against labour rights. Biden has said he would rst work on
strengthening American worker competitiveness and improving the
country’s rundown infrastructure before considering trade deals. He is
likely to concentrate his attention on issues other than trade. By
appointing John Kerry to his cabinet and making him e ectively the
environment czar, Biden has placed environment at the center of his
concerns.
By bringing in a powerful team to mind America’s external relations

and security concerns, Biden has taken an important step in renewing
international respect for the country he will lead beginning January 20,
2021. As The New York Times put it in an editorial, “President-elect
Biden has signaled that he intends to lead America back into the
international arena, and whatever their qualms or doubts, America’s
friends and allies should not wait to join forces in tackling the business
of the day — a global pandemic and the future of the planet, to name
just two items on the agenda.”

2020-11-30 12:19:27 Tribune
Post-Covid world order and geopolitics

The coronavirus pandemic has highlighted the dismal state of the
global order. It can be seen that nations have regressed into narrow
sel sh policies, and the tenet of rule-based international order has
been negated completely. The primary focus of the world powers is to
acquire hegemony in the post-pandemic world, instead of nding
solutions to the universal challenges.
With this situation, we can envisage a collapse of the post-WWII liberal

international order. The US-China rivalry is festering to the point of
becoming irredeemable. Global institutions are incapable of addressing
the crisis and the politicised WHO is losing its credibility.
The international image of the world’s main superpower is

deteriorating at an alarming pace. The incompetent US governance in
averting the burgeoning Covid-19 cases and deaths, soaring
xenophobia and racism; and polarised population has sabotaged its
hegemonic position and challenged its democratic governing model.
Meanwhile, China, a Communist state, has done much better than the
US.
The American model of democracy is no more idealised. Trump’s move

to withdraw funding from WHO, and his botched attempt at rebranding
coronavirus as the “China virus” depicted his intransigent attitude.
Trump’s decisions have led the US to a state of catastrophic a airs,
from where its rise to its pre-pandemic status is very much
improbable. Economic recession caused by Covid-19 will shape a new
role for the US — and a new world order.
In contrast, China will continue its stability and predictability in the

area of economic growth from the Asian periphery, post-pandemic.
Petro-yawn diplomacy in the oil market; BRI projects; investment in
Asian countries; developments in the South China Sea and
technological shifts are leading China to another level. Aiming at
countering Western hegemonic powerhouses, particularly the US,
China is a counterbalance as it formulates a strong apparatus for
domestic supply chains and logistic support through approaching the
calibrated approach both nationally and internationally. Its decisive
response towards Covid-19 and soft power diplomacy have heightened
its stature in the international arena. Providing medical assistance to
developing countries was a laudable measure. China’s commendable
response has undermined the notion that democracy is the best form of
governance and has shown that it is the people’s belief in the state that
matters.
Covid-19 will determine the rise and fall of nations. It is also a contest
to determine which type of governance will prove the most resilient. A
clear display of China’s soft power is pivotal in the geopolitical
scenario, which may accelerate the shift in power from the West to the
East.
In the case of geopolitics, while the global liberal order is being

threatened, nationalism and populism in the wake of Covid-19 are
leading the situation towards debilitating a airs. World powers have
been exposed at the time of need. Dereliction of war-torn countries and
inclination towards sel sh policies, ruptured global supply chains, a
re-assessment of interconnected global economy and reservations of
medical supplies for domestic use have undermined globalisation and
manifested the accentuation of nationalism.
We are on the cusp of a new world order in which forces hindering

globalisation are boosting nationalism and regionalism.
Multilateralism and global corporation are likely to face a serious
setback. Advanced economies will be busy repairing damages at home
and the problems of developing countries will get less attention. Hence,
we might see a decline in activities of international development and
cooperation. Similarly, the world wrecked by economic di culties and
unemployment will be a breeding ground for xenophobia, and
unfortunately, we may see a rise in populism and repressive regimes
placing democracy and pluralism at stake



2020-11-30 12:19:27 Tribune
Post-Covid world order and geopolitics

The coronavirus pandemic has highlighted the dismal state of the
global order. It can be seen that nations have regressed into narrow
sel sh policies, and the tenet of rule-based international order has
been negated completely. The primary focus of the world powers is to
acquire hegemony in the post-pandemic world, instead of nding
solutions to the universal challenges.
With this situation, we can envisage a collapse of the post-WWII liberal

international order. The US-China rivalry is festering to the point of
becoming irredeemable. Global institutions are incapable of addressing
the crisis and the politicised WHO is losing its credibility.
The international image of the world’s main superpower is

deteriorating at an alarming pace. The incompetent US governance in
averting the burgeoning Covid-19 cases and deaths, soaring
xenophobia and racism; and polarised population has sabotaged its
hegemonic position and challenged its democratic governing model.
Meanwhile, China, a Communist state, has done much better than the
US.
The American model of democracy is no more idealised. Trump’s move

to withdraw funding from WHO, and his botched attempt at rebranding
coronavirus as the “China virus” depicted his intransigent attitude.
Trump’s decisions have led the US to a state of catastrophic a airs,
from where its rise to its pre-pandemic status is very much
improbable. Economic recession caused by Covid-19 will shape a new
role for the US — and a new world order.
In contrast, China will continue its stability and predictability in the

area of economic growth from the Asian periphery, post-pandemic.
Petro-yawn diplomacy in the oil market; BRI projects; investment in
Asian countries; developments in the South China Sea and
technological shifts are leading China to another level. Aiming at
countering Western hegemonic powerhouses, particularly the US,
China is a counterbalance as it formulates a strong apparatus for
domestic supply chains and logistic support through approaching the
calibrated approach both nationally and internationally. Its decisive
response towards Covid-19 and soft power diplomacy have heightened
its stature in the international arena. Providing medical assistance to
developing countries was a laudable measure. China’s commendable
response has undermined the notion that democracy is the best form of
governance and has shown that it is the people’s belief in the state that
matters.
Covid-19 will determine the rise and fall of nations. It is also a contest
to determine which type of governance will prove the most resilient. A
clear display of China’s soft power is pivotal in the geopolitical
scenario, which may accelerate the shift in power from the West to the
East.
In the case of geopolitics, while the global liberal order is being

threatened, nationalism and populism in the wake of Covid-19 are
leading the situation towards debilitating a airs. World powers have
been exposed at the time of need. Dereliction of war-torn countries and
inclination towards sel sh policies, ruptured global supply chains, a
re-assessment of interconnected global economy and reservations of
medical supplies for domestic use have undermined globalisation and
manifested the accentuation of nationalism.
We are on the cusp of a new world order in which forces hindering

globalisation are boosting nationalism and regionalism.
Multilateralism and global corporation are likely to face a serious
setback. Advanced economies will be busy repairing damages at home
and the problems of developing countries will get less attention. Hence,
we might see a decline in activities of international development and
cooperation. Similarly, the world wrecked by economic di culties and
unemployment will be a breeding ground for xenophobia, and
unfortunately, we may see a rise in populism and repressive regimes
placing democracy and pluralism at stake



Tamers or tamed?
tribune.com.pk/story/2274016/tamers-or-tamed
November 29, 2020
Ironically, less people died of starvation and diseases as nomadic

hunter gatherer than as farmers
Imran Jan | November 29, 2020

The writer is a
political analyst.
Email:
imran.jan@gmail.com.
Twitter @Imran_Jan
Every time humanity

has marched forward
towards what has
always been regarded
as advancement, we
have actually brought
upon ourselves
disasters, yet slowly. When the Cognitive Revolution happened
70,000 years ago, giving us the ability to imagine things we had
not seen, we caused the extinction of other human species before
shifting our gaze at ourselves.
When the Agricultural Revolution came about 12,000 years ago,

we not only settled in one place we laid claim to, but also went to
war over land and resources. We became deadly. While women
were better able to give birth to more children because of the end
to a nomadic life, more people died of hunger because people
started depending on wheat more than hunting. Infectious
diseases became frequent because of living in the same place. The
hunters turned into farmers. The healthy lifestyle of a hunter
gatherer was replaced by the lifestyle of a farmer who spent his
entire day tending to crops and land to ensure his diet. Hunter
gatherer could weather difficult times because he survived on
various species for his diet. If one species disappeared, he could
turn to another.
Ironically, less people died of starvation and diseases as nomadic

hunter gatherer than as farmers. Instead of looking for a hunt,
man got busy taking buckets of water to his land. He had to live
near the wheat field to tend to it. We didn’t domesticate plants,
the plants domesticated us. We are the ones stuck in one place to
ensure a food supply. The hunter gatherer roamed the planet
freely. We lost our health and quality diet. Yet, the Agricultural
Revolution is seen as the dawn of civilisation.
In the TV show, Black Mirror, a future is depicted where

humanity’s greatest innovations rub against its conscience,
creating an anxiety that is suffocating to imagine. The sad reality
is that today’s lifestyle of human beings would create the same
feelings in our hunter gatherer ancestry. Similarly, when we
imagine living the life of a hunter gatherer, all that scares us is
how physically demanding that lifestyle would be. Imagining that
life doesn’t give us mental and psychological hits.
We made washing machines, television, cellphones, computers,

and so forth to make our lives easier. However, it is an
unquestionable trait of humanity that our luxuries eventually
become our necessities. What starts off as an added feature or an
extra benefit becomes a need with time. We didn’t harness the
energy and employ the machines for our ease. We have instead
become slaves of those machines. Can we remain idle for 60
seconds without taking out our cellphones?
The reason why we are at a disadvantage when it comes to losing
the addiction of what we call advancement is because those steps
are gradual. We had cell phones in 1997, and at the time changing
course would have been easy because we had known a different
lifestyle back then; one without cellphones. Today, we do not
know that lifestyle. The transition from hunting to farming was
no different.
Similarly, the internet has been hailed as a great tool of

connectivity and information sharing. However, what it really did
is create more distances between people. There are more news
sources but the world is less informed. News reports reach faster
than ever but true knowledge of issues is almost a relic of the
past.
In any given era, humans progressed toward sophistication but

only to make life difficult for themselves. Today, sapien the
industrialist is bringing upon himself the disaster of climate
change by driving the beautiful cars he so adores. The irony is
that the marvels of human development is the very reason behind
the destruction of our climate. We burned fossil fuel to hasten our
travel on this planet and minimise our input. In reality, it is
indeed our input that is hastening our journey out of this planet.

Case for public television
tribune.com.pk/story/2274018/case-for-public-television
November 29, 2020
PTV needs to also broaden its horizon
Kamal Siddiqi | November 29, 2020

This writer is the
former editor of The
Express Tribune and
can be reached
@Tribunian
The newly inducted

chairman of the
Pakistan Television
(PTV) Board, Naeem
Bokhari, said in an interview recently that the state television
would only represent the government, adding that it was “not like
any other channel”. In a video clip, Bokhari can be seen
interacting with reporters and one of the reporters asks him
whether the government and the opposition will get “equal time”
on PTV. “Absolutely not,” replies Bokhari, adding “This is the PTV,
not any other channel. This is state television which represents
the government.”
“Only government?” asks the reporter. “Only government,”

confirms the PTV chairman before the video is cut short. Given
that Bokhari is a lawyer by profession what we can safely assume
is that his comments were not just spoken without any thought or
in the heat of the moment. This is possibly a well thought-out
strategy. Credit goes to Bokhari for at least speaking the truth with
regards to the brief he has been given. But it opens a larger debate
of the role of both PTV and Pakistan Broadcasting Corporation
(Radio Pakistan) as well as what the future holds for them in this
age of digital platforms.
As things stand, PTV along with PBC as well as the Associated

Press of Pakistan (APP) are departments under the Ministry of
Information and Broadcasting (MOIB). Content produced by any
of these entities reflects the opinion of the government in power.
In case of PTV, a Board of Directors appointed by the government
manages its affairs. The managing director, appointed by the
government and approved by the Board of Directors, is the
administrative and executive head.
Traditionally, PTV has been the most important of all the three
entities under the ministry. Not only does it bring in much needed
revenue in the form of advertising as well as through a levy to
collect TV licence fee, it also has the lion’s share of audience. Even
in his age of cables and digital platforms, there are many parts of
the country where only PTV is accessible.
However, with the introduction of private TV channels 2001

onwards, we have seen the monopoly spotlight come to an end
and its audience and revenues dipping. More importantly,
consistent meddling in the content of PTV by successive
governments has affected the quality of its programming. In the
past while successive governments focused on the news content,
the entertainment side had blossomed. But now both are under a
cloud.
One can recall some moments when PTV has made us proud. One
such brief spell came in 1988 when then senator Javed Jabbar was
given the portfolio of information under the Benazir Bhutto
government. Senator Jabbar did the exact opposite of what
Bokhari proposes to do. PTV gave equal time to both government
and opposition figures. But this did not last long as the then chief
minister of Punjab, Nawaz Sharif, launched a rather unfair
campaign against the Benazir Bhutto government. Under
pressure, BB put a stop to the new policy and Jabbar was given
another portfolio.
In those days, the only competition that PTV faced in its news
coverage was from the evening broadcasts of BBC Urdu. Now
things have changed entirely. With several competing channels on
air, PTV’s audience has shrunk. More importantly, television itself
is seeing a change — it is predicted that mainstream television
will give way to digital platforms within a few years.
At a time when countries around us like Turkey, Qatar and China

are expanding their own broadcast channels to cater to an
international audience, PTV needs to also broaden its horizon.
This can only be done if PTV regains its standing which cannot
happen if it is seen as only a mouthpiece of the government.
A natural progression for PTV would be to embrace the concept of

public broadcasting as against its present arrangement of being a
state broadcaster. It must be freed from the shackles of MOIB,
which incidentally is what the PTI election manifesto also
commits to. In the ‘Naya Pakistan’ manifesto that was issued in
2018, the PTI promises “PBC and PTV will be made autonomous
with their own Board of Governors similar to the BBC model”.
This is exactly what needs to be done.

Monday, November 30, 2020 Daily Times
Time for Iran to look inwards

Nukes are weapons of mass destruction and the world will be a better
place if we could do away with them. They are a threat to humanity,
whosoever may make or keep them. No distinction could be made in
this regard. In a world of nuke piles, however, a few countries could be
permitted to keep nukes as deterrence. That said, the assassination of
top Iranian nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh in a bomb and bullet
attack in Tehran has whipped up the fears about regional stability. Iran
has expressed strong emotions and vows for ‘harsh revenge’. Similar
views were heard after the Trump administration killed its top
commander Qassem Soleimani in January last. It proved a gross
misadventure by the US government at that time as it followed an
Iranian direct attack on the US interests in Iraq. Moreover, Soleimani’s
funeral was held in almost all big cities of Iraq and Iran, which served
as a tool to unite people against the US in the region. There was a surge
in Houthi attacks in Yemen after that creating some ssures in the
Saudi-led coalition.
Fearing a similar response, the CIA chief has denied any US

involvement in Fakhrizadeh’s assassination. According to BBC, he has
also dubbed it an irresponsible and criminal act that will fan strife in
the region. Israel, however, has not denied its involvement in the
matter after Iranian leaders publically accused it of the assassination.
Israel is an unannounced nuke-producing country in the Gulf region
while Iran was dissuaded from generating nuclear weapons through a
deed by the US and the EU countries back in early 2000. It was going
well when the Trump administration unilaterally pulled out of the deal
leaving the EU countries to weigh their options on their own. Upon
defeating Trump in the current US election, Joe Biden had vowed to
dust o that deal with Iran and move towards a better future. It is being
analyzed the Trump administration could be in tandem with Israel for
this assassination in a bid to kick the can of worms open for Biden.
Strife and violence is the last thing the new US government may want
to start with. Unlike Sulemani, Fakhrezadeh does not have a known
assassin. But his assassination on Iranian soil has raised many question
marks on the security of Iranian nuclear programme, due to which the
ancient Persian nation has made itself into a security state forfeiting
liberties of its citizens to a great extent. Hence, it is about time Iran
looked inwards before pointing a nger to other countries for its
problems. *

Monday, November 30, 2020 Daily Times
PSM workers’ sacking

As was expected, the laid o workers of the Pakistan Steel Mills (PSM)
have reacted strongly and have won the support of the Pakistan
People’s Party and other opposition parties in their protest against the
government. Up to 4,500 o cials of the PSM woke up on Friday only to
receive their termination letters, which they would have been expecting
for the last one year when the government tagged the PSM for
privatization. The PSM has been in huge losses for years and has
frustrated several privatization or sell-o bids by successive
governments. Who should be blamed for the failure of the PSM – its
workers or governments? The Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) in its
election manifesto promised rehabilitation of all sick units and not
their privatization, and so far it has failed to deliver, at least, on this
front. Not to forget election speeches are often hyperbolic and are
aimed to entice voters. Fast forward to the third year of the
government, we have seen some serious e orts by the government to
‘reform’ the sick units. In the days to come, more sacking of workers is
expected along the lines of recommendations by the Adviser to the
Prime Minister on Institutional Reforms and Austerity Ishrat Husain.
The lay-o spree shows that the government may want to right size
the PSM and give it a try under governmental control. If that does not
work, the unit might be put on the market. Public-private partnership
is another option on the table.
Regardless of a complete ip- op of the government by not making

the PSM a pro table unit in its rst two years of the tenure, the
measures to cut losses through retrenchment and lay-o can hardly be
opposed. No doubt, the PSM has been a huge nancial liability
consuming billions every year to keep the sta intact for doing nothing.
Those at the helm of the a airs should, however, lay o non-
productive sta or those who were recruited on political grounds.
Retrenchments and sacking of workers are painful in the days of
economic slump when there is hardly any job in the market. Both the
opposition and the government should put plans for the welfare of the
sacked workers. Contrary to this, PPP Chairperson Bilawal Bhutto-
Zardari and Minister for Industries and Production Hammad Azhar
have triggered a war of words on the issue. Of course, both sides want
to win mileage out of the misery of the sacked workers, but this should
end up in something positive.*

Monday, November 30, 2020 Jahanzaib Ali
A Tale of Israeli Ambassador who visited

Pakistan, o ers hand of friendship
Israeli Envoy in Washington D.C Ambassador Ron Dermer o ered a
hand of friendship to Pakistan and said Pakistan and Israel should be
able to have good relations.
In an exclusive chat with this correspondent at Embassy of Israel in

D.C, Ambassador Ron Dermer was of the view that Pakistan and Israel
do not have any border dispute, so why don’t just start talking and
establish diplomatic relations.
Ambassador Ron Dermer is the rst Israeli Ambassador, who visited

Pakistan in mid 90s but at that time he was a US Citizen. “I was not an
Israeli citizen when I traveled to Pakistan, he recalled. Refreshing his
memories, he told that when he was in Oxford his closest friend was a
Pakistani student. “He came to my house in Miami (USA), he visited me
for one of the Holidays, we have been great friends, as we were
nishing University, he said, I love to host you in Pakistan, he was from
Lahore so I went to Lahore and I went to Muree which is very beautiful,
although I have to say it makes your heart race when you see people
going around those turns with the mountains on the buses and let me
tell you whoever makes those buses and color on those buses was also
phenomenal, best “art” I saw in Pakistan”. “Then we went to
Islamabad and then I ew to Karachi”, he recalled.
In an exclusive chat with this correspondent at

Embassy of Israel in D.C, Ambassador Ron
Dermer was of the view that Pakistan and Israel
do not have any border dispute, so why don’t
just start talking and establish diplomatic
relations
“I had a chance to see your country, its breathtaking, very warm and
friendly people, terri c fantastic food, I Keep “kosher” so it's not
easy but my friend’s wife made me all the spices and vegetables and
rice, it was absolutely terri c”. “It was a memorable time that I had
there and I appreciate very much his friendship, he introduced me to
bunch of his friends who were also wonderful people so I think with the
people to people relationship between Pakistanis and Israelis between
Muslims and Jewish we can solve all the problems, we should have
more contacts not less”, he said.
To a question he said that Israelis do not consider Pakistanis as their

enemy and Israeli government also does not see the state of Pakistan as
enemy, we do not have a border dispute, we should be able to have good
relations. “I remember seeing my Pakistani friend’s passport that is
valid for all countries except Israel, he recalled.
When asked that if any person who has Pakistani passport can travel to
Pakistan, the Ambassador Ron Dermer said “I think if people in
Pakistan wanted to come to Israel, wanted to pray there, we probably
gure out a way to make it happen because it happened before as my
Pakistani friend came to Israel on my wedding”. “When he (Pakistani
friend) came to my wedding, which is an interesting thing how it
happened, I tried to pull every string I could in order to help him to
come to Israel because he said you came to meet my family now I want
to come to your wedding and you know what is the rst thing he did
after the wedding, he went to “Al Aqsa” Mosque to pray at the temple
mountain:, he recalled.
“To my friend, I said enjoy the country, you will love it, we had another
couple of friends with us, they took him around, he went to saw all
Muslim “Holy” sites and that’s the country we are”, an emotional
Israeli Ambassador said.
He further said Israel is an open country, respects peoples’ religious

faith and it's only under Israel’s rule where there is a true
freedom of religion. “If Pakistanis could see it by themselves, they
probably understand that some of the things they have been told about
the situation in Israel is just not true”.
“My Pakistani friend saw it rsthand and maybe one day we will have
many Pakistanis seeing the truth by themselves”, he hoped.
When asked that if there was any diplomatic contact between Pakistan
and Israel during former President Musharraf’s regime, the Israeli
Ambassador in Washington said “we want to have better relations with
all the countries including Pakistan and I see no reason as we do not
have any dispute but I understand there is a longstanding grievances
but remember things are changing for Israel in Middle East, people
have now much closer ties”, he noticed. “We want to improve our
relations with all the countries and I do not see any reason why country
like Pakistan could not have better relations with Israel, many Muslim
countries have good relations with Israel now and they all are getting
great bene ts”. “They have access to this technology, if you think
about it there is a traditional boycott of Israel, it’s like Oregon, Utah,
Nevada, Arizona and half of the California boycotting “Silicon Valley”
does not make any sense, we are right there in the centre of the region,
why not bene t of this cooperation with Israel, why not solved border
problem in the Middle East and beyond, why not solve agriculture
problem, why not help your people with so many issues they face and
Israel can be a great source of technology not only Middle East and
beyond but everywhere”, he said.
To a question about Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan, the Israeli

Ambassador said that he read couple of articles about him, I love sports
so anytime any great sportsman become the head of the government, I
think that’s good because believe it or not sports brings people
together, I know he was the greatest cricketer in the world”. Recalling
his memories with “Cricket” he said he twisted his arm while bowling
to his Pakistani friend.
“I hope Prime Minister Imran Khan will make Pakistan more

prosperous, more secure and maybe we can push forward in relations
between Israel and Pakistan”. “I think it will be a very good thing for
our countries to turn the page to establish better relations and I think
that would be good for the people of Pakistan and for the people of
Israel”, he concluded.
Jahanzaib Ali is a journalist, author, based in Washington D.C. He is the

Chief Correspondent for ARY NEWS. He has been working in the eld
for 15 years now focusing on Foreign Policy.

Monday, November 30, 2020 Barrister Mian Aamir Hassan
PPP as a single chain of unity

Politics is generally termed as a science or art relating to a social
activity, where people form and improve the rules which we all live by.
No doubt, the politics is the art with the help of which the politicians
attain the seemingly-impossible goals without violence, and political
parties are the institutions to serve the nation and protect its interests,
both at home and abroad.
Pakistan is a federation which requires at least a political party to have

representation in all the federal units of the country. It was none other
but Zulifqar Ali Bhutto who founded a political party whose
contribution in nation building is palpable in all the federal units of our
country. It would not be wrong to say that PPP is the only political party
which has true representation of the masses across the country. If truth
be told, the party has tied the nation in a single chain of unity.
On 30 November 1967, Pakistan People's Party was founded at a

time when the country was divided on ethnic lines and no single party
had representation in the areas that form the present day Pakistan.
Within years, the Pakistan People's Party gained popularity and

lled the gap. Since then, the party has been playing the role of a
federal political party even at the cost of its leaders’ lives. Now the
nation’s interests and the party’s goals are so interwoven that you
cannot damage the former without hurting the latter.
The nation is indebted to Zulifqar Ali Bhutto

who infused a new spirit in the nation and
spread political awareness. It was he who
realized the nation with the slogan: All Powers
to the People.
The history witnesses that most of the parties in arena, nowadays, have
either been founded by powers-that-be or work as their extension.
Having no genuine vote bank, these parties have to play political
gimmicks to attract sub-nationalities. On the other hand, PPP not only
respect the voices of such nationalities, also it binds them into
Pakistani nationhood since PPP is the only party to do so. On all
occasions, PPP has proved itself to be a federal political party. You can
nd its voters and supporters everywhere from Khyber to Karachi in
great number. People's party is considered the true representative
of Pakistan all over the world. That’s the reason, Shaheed Benazir
Bhutto used to be invited to deliver lectures on di erent forums across
the globe.
It was Zulifqar Ali Bhutto who presented true picture of Pakistan in the
world; Benazir Bhutto ampli ed his vision and mission and, now,
Chairman Bilawal Bhutto is all set to play its part for the betterment of
Pakistan. We know that Pakistan People's Party was created under
the dynamic leadership of Shaheed Zulifqar Ali Bhutto who gave hope
to the people of Pakistan already pressed under a decade long rule of a
dictator. Commemoration of Foundation Day is about uniting the
people of Pakistan in general and the workers of PPP in particular,
having a sense of belonging with the legacy Shaheed Zulifqar Ali Bhutto
bequeathed to the nation.
The foundation day re ect the Pakistani people’s true commitment to

PPP due to sacri ces made by the leaders and the workers time and
again. With sacri ces they sowed the seeds of tolerance and other
democratic virtues in national politics. We know that tolerance breeds
tolerance while intolerance begets violence. The national politics of
present day Pakistan is a true example of the same. It is PPP that kept
its cool throughout in history despite the worst kind of oppression
in icted on it by the rivals. The slogan of 'Pakistan Khappey'
was raised by the veteran politician Asif Ali Zardari at a time when the
whole country was presenting the scene of lawlessness after the
martyrdom of Mohatarma Benazir Bhutto. In fact President Zardari has
played the same role to get the party as well as the country united after
the tragic martyrdom of Benazir Bhutto, which had once been played by
Bhutto. She stood rm against the tyrannical oppression of dictator Zia
ul Haq and did not let the party fall apart. True to say, no other woman
can claim to be of her stature as far as the sacri ces for the party and
the people of Pakistan are concerned.
This is the day which sends us a reminder to engage with our workers
while sticking to the values introduced by the founding fathers of the
party. We are well aware that the dictators tried their best to
depoliticize the society just to reinforce their own agendas. In this way
they dug deep the foundations of this country. In such times, the PPP
stood tall against the aggression and violence aiming at its leaders and
workers. The presence of Pakistan people's party on national
political scene is the evidence that the party is on true path. No lie can
be a substitute to the truth and no party can replace PPP.
One can easily judge that there exists no party like PPP as far as its
philosophy, sacri ces and legacy is concerned. The nation is indebted
to Zulifqar Ali Bhutto who infused a new spirit in the nation and spread
political awareness. It was he who realized the nation with the slogan:
All Powers to the People.
You can nd political clowns copying Zulifqar Ali Bhutto’s style but in
vain, since his style is the legacy bequeathed to his family alone.
Today the air is abuzz with the slogan of change. The real change, in
fact, was introduced by Bhutto who elevated common man and allowed
them to enter national assembly and other top forums. It was the
change brought by Bhutto alone. With a tweet, you cannot bring about a
diplomatic miracle on foreign policy front. Again I would refer the
character of Zulifqar Ali Bhutto who refused to yield before the
superpower despite threats to his government and life. He dreamed to
witness the ummah united under the banner of Islam, brought China in
friend’s circle, raised Kashmir issue all over the world, got the 90000
war prisoners released and so on. This is called foreign policy and the
real change. Of course, PPP has set a good example of change and never
used abusive language in the politics as it has been fashioned today.
People's party is fortunate enough to provide mature leadership

Bilawal Bhutto. Now 53rd Foundation Day of PPP is going to be
celebrated in Multan with a pledge and passion to revive its lost glory in
the days to come under the dynamic leadership of Chairman Bilawal
Bhutto who is inspired with the vision and mission introduced by
Zulifqar Ali Bhutto and Benazir Bhutto. He has rekindled the hope
among the masses through his commitment, resilience and dedication.
The visible and invisible forces have always been in quest to tamper the
history and erase the sacri ces made by the workers and the leaders of
the people’s party from the collective conscious of the nation.
For this purpose, they hatch conspiracies and toil day and night but in
vain. The rivals adopt measures to damage the image of the party and
malign the leadership as said by Joseph Goebbels,
“If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually
come to believe it.”
But they forget that Abraham Lincoln has already said,
“You can fool all the people some of the time, and some of the people
all the time, but you cannot fool all the people all the time.”
No doubt PPP represents the legendry bird phoenix in the history and
national politics of Pakistan. The party even rises from the ashes after
every e ort to wipe out its existence since the rivals can kill a man not
an idea.

Monday, November 30, 2020 Dr Syed Nazir Gilani
Why UN and OIC are o Kashmir Case?

“Appeals to the Member States, OIC and Islamic Institutions, such as
the Islamic Solidarity Fund, and philanthropists to mobilise funds and
contribute generously towards providing humanitarian assistance to
the Kashmiri people.” (Item 10 of the Resolution passed at The 22 nd
Islamic Conference of Foreign Ministers held in Casablanca, Kingdom
of Morocco from 10-11 December 1994).
Twenty six years later at the 47 th session of the Council of Foreign

Ministers in the capital of the Republic of Niger, Niamey, on 27 and 28
November 2020, there was very little on Kashmir. Fundraising for the
Rohingya case at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and Palestine
occupied the interest of the member states.
Why has the OIC interest expressed in item 10 of its Resolution on

Jammu and Kashmir adopted at the 22 nd Session in December 1994 in
Casablanca faded? We nd that UN and OIC have gone o the Kashmir
Case. OIC has avoided to concern itself with Indian invasion of Jammu
and Kashmir on 5 August 2019. It has shown no interest in condemning
Indian e orts to change the Muslim majority status by unlawfully
bringing in non-Kashmiris (Indian Hindus) to settle there for the rst
time in the 93 year history of State Subject Law.
United Nations too has gone o Kashmir. It has not called any session
of General Assembly or Security Council to consider Indian violation of
its rst written undertaking of 8 January 1948, violation of UN
Resolution of 30 March 1951 and non-compliance of the
recommendations made in the June 2018 and July 2019 reports of UN
High Commissioner for Human Rights. UN knows that we slowed down
on Kashmir at the UN SC from November 1965 to August 1996, for a
period of 31 years.
Pakistan showed no interest in bringing Kashmir for a discussion
during the period when it had the Presidency of the Security Council.
The two closed door meetings requested by China on 16 August 2019
and 15 January 2020, could not be a substitute for a proper session on
Kashmir or a proportionate and pointed response to Indian aggression.
Government may have been extra kind to have

an intermediate as Director General of Kashmir
Liberation Cell and extra extra kind to have a
host of other matriculates of no consequence
inducted in the Cell
It is an old saying that charity begins at home. We seem to have o

loaded this responsibility from our shoulders and as a routine hold
others responsible for our non-performance.
Government of Azad Kashmir and the Government of Pakistan, remain

in a constitutional arrangement under UNCIP Resolutions in running
the a airs of Azad Kashmir and on the question of Jammu and Kashmir.
The work is clearly de ned and each has a duty to question the other, in
regard to its share of work.
Government of Azad Kashmir carried a constitutional duty under

article 8 of The Azad Jammu and Kashmir Government Act 1970 and
under article 11 of The Azad Jammu and Kashmir Interim Constitution
Act 1974 in respect of “Plebiscite” in terms of the UNCIP Resolutions.
The rst Act 1970 had a latch and limitation of consultation with
Government of Pakistan but the second Act 1974 has allowed the
Government of Azad Kashmir full independence to appoint a
“Plebiscite Advisor” in terms of UNCIP Resolutions. It did not mean an
appointment of a person but it provided for an institutional frame
work, to assume work on Plebiscite. It was a means to establish a
relationship with the UN and keep the UN interest in Kashmir alive.
The Azad Kashmir Governments have been appointing all manner of

Advisors, except the only one recognised in the constitution. In fact
Governments in Azad Kashmir have continued to ignore their
constitutional role towards Plebiscite for the past 50 years.
Government of Pakistan including all its intra-agency disciplines

working on Kashmir failed to spot the serious failure. There is a self-
serving confusion in regard to a duty to advocate Kashmir at the
international forums. Be it so. There is no ambiguity in regard to the
appointment of a “Plebiscite Advisor” by the Government of Azad
Kashmir. Article 11 of The Azad Jammu and Kashmir Interim
Constitution Act 1974 has removed the earlier latch which existed in
Article 8 of 1970 Act.
JKCHR has alerted the Government of Azad Kashmir in December 1992,

on its failure of the constitutional duty towards “Plebiscite”. The NGO
arduously argued a constitutional writ petition from December 1992 to
April 1999. It is surprising that the decision of the full court announced
on 2 nd April 1999, reported in Yearly Law Reporter 1999, declaring “In
view of above, it is declared that president/Government is bound to
appoint a plebiscite adviser under section 11 of the Constitution, who,
shall be a man of calibre of plebiscite administrator as visualised by the
truce agreement i.e., “a personality of high international standing and
commanding general con dence”. It is accordingly directed.”
How can a Government (two Governments) reconcile with its failure for
50 years of not discharging a duty, which forms the foundations of the
AJK set up and further explain a contempt of court for the last 21 years.
These two pieces of evidence make bona des of the Government
suspect and its image very unimpressive.
Government of Azad Kashmir has created an institution, namely,

Kashmir Liberation Cell to highlight Indian atrocities and work on self-
determination. High Court of Azad Kashmir has pointed out the kind
and calibre of people required in the area of work on Plebiscite. We have
found the eighth wonder of the world in Azad Kashmir. The Director
General who heads this institution, has a skeletal intermediate (10+)
degree. This is how Azad Kashmir Government has found an anti-dote
to neutralise Indian Amit Shah and their invasion and re-occupation of
Kashmir.
There is an urgent need to reappraise the history of our non-
performance and failure. Government may have been extra kind to have
an intermediate as Director General of Kashmir Liberation Cell and
extra extra kind to have a host of other matriculates of no consequence
inducted in the Cell. Prima facie it is a recipe for disaster and an
incorrect use of executive discretion.
It is time to reach out to properly quali ed and knowledgeable people

living in Azad Kashmir, among the 2.5 million refugees settled in
Pakistan and the Kashmiri Diaspora, for a serious appraisal of our
challenges ahead. Unless we x the burst in our drains and introduce a
culture of right person for the right duty, UN and OIC would remain
switched o from Kashmir.
The author is President of London based Jammu and Kashmir Council

for Human Rights – NGO in Special Consultative Status with the United
Nations.

Monday, November 30, 2020 Shakeel Ahmad Ramay
China’s human capital base and 14 th five-

year plan
The fth plenum of the Communist Party of China concluded on
October 29 with the approval of 14 th ve-year plan, which will be
o cially adopted at the National People’s Congress in March 2021. The
plan has been devised after holding threadbare discussions for more
than two years. It is a common practice that China takes at least two
years to develop its ve-year plan. The process starts with the pre-
planned phase of initial analysis by ministries and seeking input from
think tanks, academia, professionals, scholars, etc. Political parties are
too invited to get their inputs, which indicates the inclusiveness of the
process and all the voices are equally heard. The 14 th plan that
followed the same practices, is di erent in many ways. First, the plan
will be adopted at the 100 th anniversary of the Communist Party,
which is being considered a landmark event in the history of China.
Second, it is preceded by the 15-year plan, which is being designed to
achieve the goal of a moderately prosper country till 2035. The plan will
also provide the blueprint of e orts made by the government and the
party. Hence, it would be critical to observe the implementation of 14 th
plan. Third, it will introduce the implementation of dual circular
economy model, presented by President Xi Jinping. The dual circular
economy model would be a very interesting intervention, as China is
going through transformation to increase its domestic consumption.
The success of model is long cherished after the erce opposition of
China’s rise at global level. Fourth, China is now heading toward green
development by transforming its technology and replacing fossil fuels.
The plan will provide the details as to how China will move on the path.
Fifth, the plan will chalk out the future course of innovations, as it has
been devised to achieve the objectives of a moderately developed
country.
Through di erent policy initiatives, it
emphasizes to improve the work ethics.
Students must learn to do physical work. It is in
line with ve objectives of vision of President Xi
i.e. morality, intellect, physical ability,
aesthetics, and work ethics
In the 14 th ve-year plan, the proposed investment in human capital

would be determine the fate of next phases of development in the
country. It is a well-accepted fact that countries with better human
capital perform better on the innovation and technological
development. Human capital also helps the countries to transition from
one stage of development to the next. As education and health are the
key determinants of human capital, hence the countries with better
education
and health systems progress well. China has always focused on
education and health and considers both the indicators a key to
development and welfare. Prime Minister Zhao Enlai had once said:
Among other things, that the overwhelming majority of Chinese

intellectuals had become intellectuals belonging to the working people
and that science and technology would play a key role in China's
modernization.
It was the key nding, which he presented to assure the nation that
China is moving towards the right path and is ready to take o . China
equally invested in health and made tremendous achievements,
especially in terms of life expectancy. The statistics show that the life
expectancy in China was 35-40 years in 1949 that reached to 65.89
years in 1978. After the 1978 reforms, it was the education and health
that provided the base for a rapid development in China. Thus, the
decades-long investment in human capital paid o in the form of
China’s progress and prosperity.
Keeping in view the experience of investment in human capital during

the last four decades, China is aware of the importance and use of
quality human capital in next phases of development Hence it has
started transforming its human capital in the light of new researches
under the leadership of President Xi Jinping, who has de ned three
very speci c goals for education, i.e. 1) compatibility of education and
development status of country, 2) adherence to national culture and
values and 3) learning hard work. He said that China needs to focus on
education and skills in accordance with the development status of the
country. It requires continuous focus on reforms, as China is rapidly
growing. He also highlighted the importance of opening up and
international cooperation to further sharpen the skills.
The goal of learning hard work is, of course, the most signi cant part
of Chinese education vision. Through di erent policy initiatives, it
emphasizes to improve the work ethics. Students must learn to do
physical work. It is in line with ve objectives of vision of President Xi
i.e. morality, intellect, physical ability, aesthetics, and work ethics
[labor]. Prime Minister Li Keqiang reiterating the same said that the
state will prioritize the allocation of resources, including nancial
resources, for the education.
In 2019, China spent 5017.5 RMB on education, which is 8.74 percent

higher than the previous year. China equally focuses on health and
considers it a basic human right and element of growth. President Xi
takes it as a priority area as he said: “healthy population is a key mark
of a prosperous nation and a strong country”. According to World
Health Organization, the total allocation of China rose 300 per cent
during the period from 2009 to 2017.
The blueprint of the 14 th ve-year plan presents a brightened picture

wherein the state will encourage partnerships among educational
institutes and private sector to achieve the objective of innovation and
create better jobs for the youth. It will introduce the habit of hard work
and physical participation in the eld in addition to giving a sense of
job security to the youth. The educational institutes will also be given
more autonomy to make decisions at institutional level. In the eld of
health, comprehensive reforms will be brought about to further
improve the status of health and life expectancy. Life expectancy has
already reached at 76.96 per cent in 2020.
The government will also ensure the insurance for serious illnesses at
rural and urban levels. It will not only help to reduce the burden on
families but also lead to form a healthy society.
The proposed interventions in the elds of education and health will

help produce human capital which can match the vision of President Xi.
However, a detailed plan of action in this regard is awaited till March
2021. The detailed plan will not only aid in drawing a comprehensive
picture of the future Chinese vision but would also provide support in
policy actions.

Monday, November 30, 2020 Dr Ghulam Nabi Kazi
WORLD AIDS DAY 2020

As we observe the World AIDS Day this year in Pakistan, under the
shadow of the second phase of the COVID-19 pandemic and another
silent pandemic of Tuberculosis, let us do so with a resolve to ensure
continuity of priority health services, come hail, rain or sunshine.
While Pakistan acquitted itself admirably in the rst phase of the
epidemic with considerably low morbidity or mortality in relation to all
its neighbors and other countries of the world, the few glitches
included suspending routine health services, at considerable loss to our
overwhelmed and somewhat frail health system. Let us also remain
mindful of a sizable number of health care professionals and providers
who lost their ght against COVID-19 and died while giving their best
to the system. The medical profession lost some of its greatest
stalwarts including clinicians and public health professionals and
naming just a few would be committing gross injustice to the hundreds
of unsung heroes who have fought equally valiantly. And all this
happened in a year already dedicated to nurses and midwives, who
deserve our utmost gratitude.
In the second phase of this pandemic, based on the lessons learnt, we

must remain mindful of the importance of uninterrupted provision of
all our priority interventions including those for maternal, neonatal
and child health including childhood immunization, eradication of
polio, and control and elimination of Tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS, Malaria,
Hepatitis B&C, nutrition stabilization, and controlling
noncommunicable diseases, while accelerating our march towards
universal health coverage leaving no one behind. Time is not on our
side as we already need a signi cantly enhanced level of e ort to
achieve our targets. It stands to reason that any further delays will
further diminish our chances to success in attaining the goals that have
thus far eluded us.
The world rst learnt about the human immunode ciency virus or HIV
during the early eighties and its associated disease AIDS literally began
as one shrouded in stigma and discrimination. In 1985 AIDS killed that
master movie actor of our times Rock Hudson serving as a universal
wake-up call. However, it was not until 1988 when the US President
Ronald Reagan, well into the end of his second term, authorized his
Surgeon General C. Everett Koop to write to every American household
on his behalf concerning the preventive measures relating to this
deadly disease. The step was unprecedented in the annals of
communicable disease control and also signi ed the victory of public
health over senseless stigma and false prejudices at a time when not
enough was known either about the virus or the disease it caused.
Today close to 40 million people are living with HIV (PLHIV) further
fueling the TB epidemic and over 33 million persons dead due to the
virus so far. The development of a life prolonging anti-retroviral
therapy (ART) was a dramatic advance that helps people achieve
favorable outcomes if the treatment is initiated at an early stage
following HIV diagnosis. However, the challenge remains in achieving
universal access to ART for PLHIV. Globally, TB remains the leading
cause of death among PLHIV, accounting for a third of AIDS-related
deaths.
Closer to home in Pakistan, UNAIDS estimates that there are 190,000

persons living with HIV in the country, over 53,000 of which are
women. Our country also follows the global 90–90–90 targets which
expect that as soon as practicable, 90% of people living with HIV know
their HIV status, 90% of those who know their HIV-positive status will
be on ARTs while 90% of the latter will have suppressed their viral
loads. However, as of 2018 in Pakistan only 14% of people living with
HIV knew their status, while only 10% of people living with HIV were
on treatment. Ten per cent of pregnant women living with HIV accessed
antiretroviral medicine to prevent transmission of the virus to their
baby, while the percentage of HIV-exposed infants tested for HIV
before eight weeks of age stood at 2%. The knowledge about the modes
of transmission of the disease is very low and the risk of TB-HIV co-
infection even lower. Currently, UNAIDS estimates that 21% of the
PLHIV are aware of their status, while 24,000 people are receiving
ARTs in Pakistan, with the generous support from The Global Fund.
While e orts to control AIDS in Pakistan have centered around a few

high-risk groups, regarded as the bridge for the virus entering the
general population, as evinced in several countries of the world. In
Pakistan these groups mostly include commercial (predominantly
female) sex workers, men having sex with men (MSM), Men having sex
with Women (MSW), transgenders and people who inject drugs (PWID).
Concentrated epidemics have been identi ed in these groups
periodically by the national or provincial programs. The problems
encountered by the latter are compounded by the fact that they mostly
come under the preview of some laws and legally do not exist!
Therefore, the percentage of such persons accessed and educated
remains low despite civil society engagement. However, some recent
experiences have been a matter of great and added concern.
Writing on this very subject in this newspaper on December 1, 2018, I

noted inter-alia that: “[t]he federal and provincial programs for
HIV/AIDS control started way back in 1994, will be standalone as a
health intervention initiated in Pakistan’s Health Sector against a
perceived threat in the future; normally the action comes in the face of
a growing challenge. This single fact is responsible for containing the
threat to the present low level of around 0.05-0.07 percent prevalence
in the country. Yet we also have to be mindful of the potential hazard
associated with the slightest degree of neglect, that could lead to a
major epidemic in less than no time and reverse all the gains achieved
over the past quarter century.”
Five months later, Pakistan was shaken up by the Ratodero episode. As

The Lancet of July 1, 2019 described it, “In April, 2019, an HIV outbreak
was reported in the town of Ratodero in Larkana district, Sindh
province, Pakistan. The outbreak was highlighted when 15 children
with persistent fever were sent for HIV testing at a government-
contracted facility and all were found to be infected. Blood reports were
con rmed by another laboratory after referral from the Sindh
HIV/AIDS Control Programme. These astonishing results panicked the
health administration because the chance of perinatal transmission
was already ruled out in these children. HIV screening of residents of
a ected areas revealed more alarming results.”
Programmatic data indicated that as of 15 July 2019, 31,239 people had

been screened of which 930 (3%) were found positive for HIV, 82% of
which (763) were were below 16 years old, while 70% (604) were aged 5
years or below. Investigations revealed that unsafe injection practices
were the most likely reason for the large number of HIV infections
among children. This was also seen as a spill-over of the well-
established concentrated HIV sub-epidemic in key populations in
Larkana. This also had severe implications for other blood borne
infections such as hepatitis B and C, which have already reached
alarming proportions.
The Lancet appreciated the HIV preventive steps taken by

governmental agencies in collaboration with the UN agencies towards
ensuring the availability of ART for patients and supporting technical
investigations and enhancing public awareness. The journal, however,
points out the need for signi cantly expanding treatment facilities,
taking strict legal action against individuals who impersonate health-
care providers and focusing on other areas in the Punjab province
where similar outbreaks occurred in January, 2019. We also need to
bear in mind that around 20,000 new infections are occurring every
year, which could double over the next ve years unless the epidemic is
contained.
The working of the national and provincial programs requires a more

detailed analysis to identify the barriers that result in sub-optimal
outcomes. First and foremost is the issue of domestic funding of not
just HIV/AIDS but the entire TB, HIV and Malaria, which is quite
lopsided with the principal funding coming from The Global Fund and
the major proportion of planned activities going unfunded due to
inadequate contributions from the government sector. This also
denotes a mismatch between the o cial pronouncements from the top
health leadership and concrete budgetary allocations, warranting the
need for bridging the gap between public policy and practice.
This has also resulted in insu cient government ownership of the
programs with a generally weak and fragmented national monitoring
and evaluation system with parallel systems lacking in overall
stewardship. As a result, MIS systems fail to track progress against
national and provincial strategy targets. Other barriers include a low
prevention and testing programme coverage, treatment access,
initiation and adherence, high treatment attrition rates and lack of
strategic program oversight.
The recently drafted Pakistan AIDS Strategy (2021-2025) envisages a

number of steps that include increased testing coverage and reduced
risk behaviours among key populations and their partners. In doing so
the coverage of PWIDs will be raised from 29% to 73%, MSM from 9%
to 86%, MSWs from 23% to 86%, transgenders from 27% to 86% and
Female sex workers from 4% to 76%. Other important strategies are to
substantially increase ART initiation and retention, within key
populations and their spouses/partners and children proportionally
covered, creating an enabling environment for an e ective and
sustainable AIDS response, robust monitoring and evaluation and
carrying out an Integrated Biological and Behavioural Surveillance
survey that reveals certain sensitive behavioural data concerning high
risk groups. The imperative of removing all stigma and discrimination
attached to the disease warrant a rmative action at all levels of health
services, enabling PLHIV to access care.
Meanwhile, winds of change are discernible as evinced by the energetic

programmatic leadership and other aspects at the level of the Federal
Government, which had created a Common Management Unit (CMU)
since 2016 to integrate all matters relating to eliminating Tuberculosis,
HIV/AIDS and Malaria from the country by 2030 as per its commitment
to achieving SDG goals. Several other initiatives being taken in tandem
that will strengthen these e orts such as attaining Universal Health
Coverage by the year 2030. The Government of Pakistan has developed
a Reform Plan by the Common Management Unit delineating the roles
and responsibilities of the Federal and Provincial Governments with
regard to these three diseases in the context of devolution.
The plan envisages that CMU will ful l all its constitutionally federally
mandated roles, while encouraging provincial governments to take up
greater challenges and responsibilities with regard to nancing and
implementing the programs after their technical, managerial and
nancial capacity is signi cantly enhanced.
In order to concretize the plan in practical terms and rectify the

funding imbalance, the Special Assistant to the Prime Minister for
Health has advised developing a project document to access
developmental budget to the tune of PKR 57 billion (roughly USD 350
million) for the next three years from July 2021-June 2024, with half of
the cost borne by the Federal Government and the remaining half by all
the provincial governments combined. This will ensure that provinces
will allocate their resources to ll their strategy gaps leading to long
term nancial sustainability. The Parliamentary Secretary for Health
has also been very keen to drive legislation that helps to address the
barrier in health service delivery at all levels.
As per the Reform Plan and nancing plan by the upcoming project
document, there will be a sharp focus on strengthening of the CMU,
enabling it to take up all its federal roles including policy/vision
development, health legislation, health information, health security,
enhancing technical support to provinces, inter-provincial and cross-
border issues, implementation of International Health Regulations,
disease surveillance backed up by the National Reference Laboratory,
monitoring and evaluation, ful lling international commitments,
operational research. and providing oversight to programmatic
implementation in the federally administered areas, while bringing
about extreme transparency in utilization of all the domestic spending
and grant money.
Recognizing the fact that there are several unfunded areas in the
national and provincial strategies, the project document or PC-I
proforma will nance the implementation of these areas including
enhanced quantum of private and community sector engagement to
bring about a signi cant dent in the disease burden of the three
diseases.
The main areas under the project components include a) leadership and
governance and other salary costs, b) enhancing technical expertise of
the provinces, c) health information and health security, d) Integrated
National Reference Laboratory, e) Research and Development, f)
monitoring and evaluation, g) inter-provincial coordination, h)
program implementation in all the provinces and federally
administered areas encompassing cost of anti-TB medication and
diagnosis, other logistics and transport costs, i) expanding public-
private mix activities through civil society organizations, j) GF grant
management, k) behavior communication change and social
mobilization to remove stigma and discrimination, l) o ce
maintenance, logistic costs, travel costs and m) contingencies. The
areas of infection control and expanding ART coverage will also be
addressed for the HIV component at federal and provincial. The PC-I is
expected to be prepared soon, along with its implementation plans to
be developed in consensus with all the provinces, partners and
communities concerned through provincial or regional workshops,
enabling it to be approved by all the relevant economic forums and
beginning implementation by July 2021. United Nations agencies
including UNAIDS, WHO, UNESCO, UNICEF and UNODC are expected to
collaborate on technical issues as members of a coordination
committee noti ed by the Ministry of National Health Services,
Regulation, and Coordination (MoNHRSC);
The CMU will be an integral part of the Communicable Disease Control

Programme (CDC) section within the MoNHRSC, and not work as a
standalone structure. This arrangement will also enhance the role of
the National Reference Laboratory based in the National Institute of
Health for TB, HIV/AIDS and Malaria, and will be coordinating with
other health entities such as the National Health Information and
Resource Center, Pakistan Health Research Council, Directorate of
Central Health Establishments, Health Services Academy/University
and Safe Blood Transfusion Authority. Linkages will also be developed
to harness support from programs o ering social safety nets. This
approach will also be useful in targeting social determinants of health
acting as barriers to HIV, Malaria and TB care services .
In order to retain complete program ownership, the MoNHRSC and
provincial Health Departments will provide funding for certain
core/permanent positions for the three programs within the CMU,
while some positions will continue to be nanced by the Global Fund,
according to some mutually agreed and equitable formula. As part of
the federal mandate, a Technical Support Unit will be fully established
within the CMU that will provide long-term support to provincial
programs and partners in implementing programmatic interventions.
More importantly, both HIV/AIDS and Tuberculosis have to be
regarded as social issues and not just health issues, requiring a multi-
sectoral approach with involvement of all social sectors and safety nets.
The task is by no means easy but has to be achieved at all costs. Public
health victories seldom come about by default and always require a
concrete and deliberate e ort. While health programs are putting in
their concerted e orts for communicable diseases control, their pace of
e ort needs to gather greater momentum. Let us hope that
governmental e orts at federal and provincial level together with
United Nations’ agencies/funds, private health sector, other
stakeholders with robust civil society engagement prove to be enough
for the task at hand, enabling to o er our children a safer future devoid
of deadly communicable diseases such as HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and
Malaria. This is an opportunity we cannot a ord to miss!
The writer is a senior public health specialist of Pakistan and can be

reached at gnkaziumkc@gmail.com

2020-11-30T06:00:00+0500 Editorial Board
Farewell to Kaavan
Kaavan, heartbreakingly known as the ‘world’s loneliest elephant, is
nally on his way to Cambodia. Since 2012, 36-year-old Kaavan had
been living a depressing solitary existence in Islamabad’s Marghazar
Zoo — mostly in chains — after having lost his sole companion Saheli
who had died of gangrene resulting, according to reports, from poor
care. Like Kaavan, she had been gifted to Pakistan by Sri Lanka. After
concerns were raised by various animal rights activists, vets and even
international personalities, the Islamabad High Court had ruled in May
that the animals kept in Marghazar Zoo were held in cruel conditions
and the zoo should be closed and had suggested that authorities either
nd a sanctuary for Kaavan at home or rehome him to his native Sri
Lanka which is known for the excellent elephant sanctuaries it runs in
several locations or to any other sanctuary. In July, the court approved
the plan to move Kaavan to Cambodia. American singer Cher had also
taken up Kaavan’s case and last Friday visited Pakistan to see to his
relocation plans and to thank the government for helping with
it.Kaavan is nally free and we hope he nds the care, love and
companionship he needs and deserves. But there are still so many other
animals in our zoos that need help and care and just basic humanity.
Given the situation we have encountered at all our zoos, every one of
them has a need for persons who are acquainted with animals in
captivity to be available to help run these zoos — if indeed they must be
maintained.
It is unfortunate that we do not have sanctuaries or other safe places

where these animals can be given back at least part of the life stolen
from them. Such sanctuaries exist in many places around the world and
are now also being seen in less developed countries in Asia and Africa as
the realisation grows that we cannot treat animals with the kind of
cruelty and lack of concern for their well-being that we are still
witnessing at home. Zoos have become controversial around the world.
But the very best zoos can play a useful role in sensitively educating
people about animals they will almost certainly never encounter in real
life. It is safe to say that none of the zoos in our country play this role.
For now, at least Kaavan has been allowed to leave the miserable
conditions he was kept in here so he can spend the rest of his life with
dignity and safety and with better mental and physical health.

2020-11-30T06:00:00+0500 Unknown author
Counsel for governance

Random thoughts
By Dr A Q Khan
One of the drawbacks of the internet and social media is that the
younger generation is no longer interested in reading. What a pity! We
have such a rich old culture. The books I mentioned last week have been
considered masterpieces for time periods varying from 100 to 1000
years.
Here is some old wisdom and wise advice presented in a free rendering
of Richard Francis Burton’s translation of 'Bostan' published by the
Iran Chamber Society.
"Tukla, King of Persia, once visited a devotee and complained:

'Fruitless have been my years. None but the beggar carries riches from
the world when earthly dignitaries are passed. Now I will sit in the
corner of devotion so that I may usefully employ the few short days
that remain to me.' The devotee became angry and replied: 'Enough!
Religion consists only in the service of the people, not in prayer-beads,
prayer-rugs or tattered garments. Be a king in sovereignty and a
devotee in purity of morals. Action, not words, is demanded by religion
because words without action are void of substance.'
"Never say that there is no dignity that exceeds that of the sovereign
because nobody in the kingdom is as free from care as the dervish is.
They are the most lightly burdened yet they are the rst to reach their
destination. The poor man su ers from lack of food and the king bears
the cares of his kingdom while the dervish knows none of these cares.
Though one may rule and the other serve; though one may be exalted
and the other languish in prison, when death has claimed them it will
not be possible to distinguish between the two.
"In Damascus, there was once such a severe famine that even lovers
forgot their love. No rains fell from the sky to moisten the sown elds
and the date trees. Fountains dried up and there was famine in the land.
Like beggars, the trees stood lea ess and the mountains lost their
cover. The locusts devoured what was left of the gardens and people,
for lack of food, devoured the locusts.
"At that time an old friend came to see me – his frame consisting only
of skin and bones. I was surprised since he was of lofty rank and rich.
'Oh friend', I said, 'What misfortune has befallen you?' 'Where is your
sense', he answered. 'Cannot you see the severity of the famine around
you? Rains do not fall and the lamentations of the su ering do not
seem to reach heaven.' 'But you at least have nothing to fear', I
countered. 'Poison kills only where there is no antidote (and you have
yours in your belongings)'.
"Regarding me with indignation and in the same manner as a learned

man regards a fool, he replied: 'Although a man may be safely on the
shore, he cannot look on while his friends drown. My face is not pale
through lack of food; the sorrows of the poor have wounded my heart.
Although, praise to be Allah, I am free from wounds, I tremble when I
see the wounds of others. Bitter are the pleasures for him who is in
health when a sick man is at his side. When the beggar has not eaten,
one’s own food becomes bitter'.
"A bully once fell down a well and passed the night wailing and
lamenting. A passer-by threw a stone on his head saying: 'Did you ever
go to anyone’s assistance? How then dare you cry out for help now? Did
you ever do any virtuous deed? Who would want to put salve on your
wounds when they all know of your tyrannies? Across everyone’s path
you dug a pit into which you have now yourself fallen. If you do evil,
expect not goodness in return. Never does a withered grapevine bear
sweet fruit. Oh you who try to sow seeds in autumn, you will not be able
to reap corn at harvest time. If you nourish a thorn tree in the desert, do
not ever expect to eat any fruit. One can only expect to receive the same
Email: dr.a.quadeer.khan@gmail.com

2020-11-30T06:00:00+0500 Javid Husain
In the eye of the storm

Pakistan is once again in the eye of the storm. The country’s external
challenges are assuming ominous proportions because of India’s
growing belligerence, annexation of Jammu and Kashmir, and its
relentless drive for hegemony in South Asia.
The Basic Exchange and Cooperation Agreement (BECA), recently

signed between the US and India to allow sharing of high-end military
technology, classi ed satellite data and critical information between
the two countries, will encourage India further in the pursuit of its
aggressive designs vis-à-vis Pakistan.
Despite the commencement of the intra-Afghan dialogue, the goal of

durable peace in Afghanistan remains elusive. Needless to say, the
outbreak of an all-out civil war in Afghanistan in the wake of US
military withdrawal from Afghanistan will have grave consequences for
Pakistan’s security and economic well-being.
Internally, there is a dire need for political stability and a government

capable of successfully dealing with the daunting internal and external
challenges. What we have instead is growing political instability in
which the government and the opposition are at each other’s throats in
pursuit of narrow personal and party interests rather than being
engaged in a constructive dialogue for the promotion of Pakistan’s
security and economic prosperity.
The signing of the Basic Exchange and Cooperation Agreement was the
latest development in the steady growth of Indo-US strategic
cooperation which commenced in real earnest in 1995 with the signing
of the Agreed Minute on Defense Relations Between the US and India.
This was followed by the signing of the General Security of Military
Information Agreement (GSOMIA) in 2002, the New Framework for the
US-India Defense Relationship in 2005, Indo-US nuclear cooperation
agreement in 2005, the Logistics Exchange Memorandum of
Agreement (LEMOA) in 2016 and the Communications Compatibility
and Security Agreement (COMCASA) in 2018.
Over and above these agreements, which have signi cantly enhanced
Indo-US strategic cooperation, the US formally declared in 2005 its
intention “to help India become a major world power in the 21st
century”. This was followed by another major move by the US in 2016
designating India as a “Major Defense Partner”. Just to make sure that
Pakistan understands that the strategic scenario has radically changed,
Washington ‘de-hyphenated’ its relations with Islamabad and New
Delhi under the Bush administration, thus indirectly placing its
relations with India at a higher plane in terms of priority and
importance.
The US wishes to build up India as a counterweight to China as part of

its grand strategic design while India needs US support for hegemony
in South Asia. This convergence of strategic interests also explains
India’s membership of Quad, an informal alliance of the US, Japan,
India and Australia, to counter the expansion of Chinese power and
in uence in the Indo-Paci c region. The steady development of Indo-
US strategic cooperation, which has now encompassed four US
administrations, is likely to continue under the incoming Biden
administration.
This inexorable process has the potential to upset the strategic balance
between Pakistan and India, underscoring the need for Pakistan to
develop its strategic partnership with China. The challenge facing our
policymakers is to do so while maintaining friendly relations and
cooperation with the US which will remain the most powerful country
in the world for quite some time because of the formidable combination
of economic and military strength, soft power and worldwide alliances.
The prospect of US military withdrawal from Afghanistan poses its own

set of challenges for Pakistan whose vital interests demand the
restoration of durable peace in that brotherly country through an
Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace process. This is not going to be
tribal, ideological and political fault-lines in Afghanistan aggravated by
regional and global rivalries.
In the Middle East, continued Iranian-Saudi rivalry, political instability

and armed con icts in several regional states, growing political
in uence and economic presence of India and Israel, and great power
rivalries present their own set of problems for Pakistan. Over and above
all of this, Pakistan faces a world in disorder marked by growing great
power competition, diminished importance of international law and
the UN in strategic issues of peace and security, civilizational fault-
lines, and shifting alliances.
In the face of these daunting external challenges, Pakistan badly needs

internal political stability and social cohesion, economic strength and
progress, cultural vitality, a credible security deterrent and proactive
foreign policy. Even a cursory look at Pakistan shows that it is far from
meeting these essential requirements. We have become a deeply
polarized society lacking tolerance and moderation thanks to the
immaturity of our politicians, whether in the government or the
opposition, over-reach by institutions, the perennial tussle between
democratic and non-democratic forces, and an oppressive and
exploitative system of government.
Our economy is in dire straits marked by a negative GDP growth rate in

the year 2019-20 and high levels of unemployment, in ation and
poverty. Our cultural identity as an Islamic welfare state is being
undermined by the identi cation of modernization with over-
Westernization, thus, confusing symbols and appearances with
substance and reality.
Right now, political polarization and intolerance are perhaps the most
serious problems confronting the nation. The need of the hour is for
national unity within the constitutional framework in which each
national institution plays its due role within the limits prescribed by
the constitution. Solutions to national problems must be sought
through dialogue and discussion among the stakeholders in an
atmosphere marked by freedom of speech.
The destiny of the nation must be in the hands of its representatives
chosen through fair and transparent elections in accordance with the
principle of civilian supremacy. Unfortunately, however, the latest
developments are pushing the country in the opposite direction.
The writer is a retired ambassador and president of the Lahore Council

for World A airs.
Email: javid.husain@gmail.com

2020-11-30T06:00:00+0500 Mahmood Hasan Khan
How should we look back?

Nostalgia for a mythical past – and its glori cation – are not
therapeutic, though they may create euphoria. Literature (books and
pamphlets) and entertainment (movies and plays) projecting false
history to soothe a people’s disturbed psyche tend to do more damage
since they distort reality. They confuse rather than enlighten their
audience.
Take the current popularity of Turkish drama, Durilis: Ertugrul, which

looks back to an age of violence and destruction. There is no harm in
giving a ctionalised account of events – provided it is rooted in reality
and instigates a level of morally correct behaviour. The inspiration for
revival should be sought from a golden age of knowledge and not one of
aggression.
Exactly fty years ago, I spent a year in Turkey. It wasn’t the best of
times for the people there. I left the country with some fond memories
and many questions. My rst impression was that the Kemalist
ideology of secular nationalism and its imposition on the people of
Turkey after World War I was a costly burden on Turkish society. It bred
xenophobia and false pride; it distorted modernization; and it divided
people.
A quick and complete break from the past by at cannot be good for any
healthy society. But what had the Ottomans achieved in their empire
that lasted for about 600 years? The short answer: they had nothing of
substance to their credit in science, philosophy or technology, except
perhaps weaponry.
The rst mechanical printing in Europe was started at about the time
the Ottomans captured Constantinople. But this technology wasn’t
allowed in Turkey until the late eighteenth century. The Industrial
Revolution had spread in most parts of Western Europe by the middle
of the nineteenth century, but it made almost no impression on Turkey
until the early twentieth century. Why did Turkey not borrow the new
methods of science and technology from Europeans? Why did the
administrative reforms (Tanzimat) of Sultan Mahmud II and his son
Abdulmejid I, undertaken in the second half of the nineteenth century
(1839-1876), fail to have a positive outcome? Finally, why is it that, at
the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire in the early 1920s, Turkey was
not in any better economic or technological state than its colonies in
the Balkans? It may have in fact lagged behind some of them.
These questions raise a broader issue about Muslim societies in

general. The golden age of Islamic philosophy, science, technology and
literature lasted from about the mid-ninth to the mid-thirteenth
century. The patrimony of the ancient Greeks, Romans and Muslims
was then passed on to Europe where it played a central role in the ages
of Renaissance and Enlightenment and eventually in building an
industrial society. The global spread of Europe’s imperial power after
the fteenth century was a consequence of the Crusades on the eastern
and western ends of the Mediterranean.
In the Muslim world, the tree of knowledge had withered and died by
the mid-fourteenth century. Perhaps the Ashari creed and some of al-
Ghazali’s writings, backed by the power elite, were its primary cause.
The Crusades in Greater Syria and Andalusia, followed by the Mongol
invasion of Central Asia, Persia and Iraq, destroyed once ourishing
caliphates. In Andalusia, the crumbling rule of the Umayyad successors
and the warrior sultans in the Near and Middle East were preoccupied
with ghting and conquering land with little time for peace or stability.
By about the beginning of the sixteenth century, there were three main
Muslim empires: the Ottoman in Turkey and in parts of the Arab lands,
the Safavid in Persia and the Mughal in India. These empires lasted for
centuries, but they neither revived the lost Muslim Enlightenment nor
showed much interest in learning from Europe as it was making
progress.
By the early eighteenth century, the internally-decaying Muslim

societies across sultanates and khanates, were in a state of deep
slumber for centuries, from which their awakening has since been
tumultuous and grindingly slow. Paradoxically, European imperialism
has been the source of this awakening.
There are three choices. One is to march ahead without the unnecessary
baggage from the past. Second is to resist and ght all modernity by
violent means if necessary. Third is to look back with nostalgia to a
mythical or illusory past and grope for a future like this past.
The rst choice means establishing a secular, liberal, progressive, and

democratic order. The second implies an authoritarian regime based on
laws not made by man. The third one is a mongrel of the other two,
without a clear vision. This approach creates confusion because of the
mixed or contradictory claims and promises. Promoting Ertugrul,
entertaining though this drama might be for some, is sadly part of this
choice of approach.
The writer is professor emeritus, Simon Fraser University, Canada.

2020-11-30T06:00:00+0500 Zubair Torwali
Language and the written word

Speech predates writing. Oral language is the essential language.
Technically, the writing of a language is just a graphic representation
of said language; and it can never represent all the variations of
intonation, accent and other phonetic variations of a language.
But the writing of a language has become necessary in human

civilization. Part of this necessity arose from the urge of human beings
to be eternal, authentic and precise. This is how and why pictographs,
hieroglyphs, logographs and nally alphabets came into existence.
Writing is a means of authenticity. It rst started for religious texts and

then for making records – especially of economic transactions and
laws to govern society. Writing of religious scriptures made them
authentic. Writing of laws made people mindful of the governing
principles in a society. Writing has given individuals a chance to
preserve their creativity – especially poetry; and poetry, like speech,
predates prose in every human society. This is because poetry is also
basically meant to be memorized easily and passed on to others orally
with ease.
In the modern discourse of advancement, literacy has become the basic

wheel. The written word has given us ‘civilization’. Writing made us a
world full of books. Imagine a world without the written word, without
books. How dull it seems – even though it may look more equal.
Writing has also become a powerful tool to subjugate others. Alexander
had Homer’s ‘Iliad’ with which he felt more ‘powerful’ to overcome
others. Written scripture tried to authenticate religion and homogenize
followers. Had there been no other cultural or social ethos, the major
religions would have been more homogenized.
While writing thus advanced in some societies for some languages,
many languages lagged behind and their speakers felt ‘left out’ from
the race. Today these left-out languages are the ones that are termed
‘endangered’. Interestingly, the majority of such languages are spoken
by people who have been brutalized, enslaved and invaded in the past.
The world now plays the alarm bells of the danger of extinction of this
cultural diversity. E orts for revival and revitalization have been
recommended. There are many examples of such e orts and models.
One e ective model among is to write these languages and increase
their literacy among their speakers and their younger generations. This
is suggested because ‘powerful’ languages got their prestige and power
through their having been written.
So, one way to revitalize an endangered language is to build literacy in

it. For this, a writing system is needed for the language. Experts in
literacy, education and linguistics suggest four basic principles while
working on a writing system (script and an orthography) for an
undocumented language. These principles are: alphabeticity,
learnability, acceptability and transparency. They suggest that a
writing system should be alphabetical as this requires fewer
symbols/letters to write the language and memorize it.
Furthermore, the writing system should be as easy and simple as

possible so that the written part of the language can be learned easily;
the writing system should be based on the social, psychological,
political and educational contexts where the speakers of the language
live; and nally, the writing system should be aligned with the writing
systems of the national or other dominant languages of the territory as
this way there could be more harmony, ease in learning and the ability
to use the languages to strengthen each other.
In northern Pakistan, there are more than 30 such endangered

languages. The writing systems for many of these languages are recent
and designed after 2000 CE. As no writing system for any language has
ever been complete, so is the case with these recent writing systems for
the languages in northern Pakistan. Language is living and like every
living thing it is prone to evolution. No writing system, even of
Farsi, Hindi, Urdu etc is complete. English is held as the ‘most
advanced’ language by Anglophiles yet in English, too, we see changes
in its writing system. For an example, look at the di erence between
American and British English as the former has gotten rid of many of
the orthographic complexities of the latter. The same is true for Urdu
and other developed languages.
In this way, there should be no stressing concern for those who have
been working on the revitalization of their endangered languages
whether in southern or northern Pakistan; and who have recently
developed orthographies for their languages with the support of
linguists and international organizations. Based on these
orthographies, some communities have developed teaching materials
and started educational programs in their languages. This is usually
known as mother tongue based multilingual education and operates on
the principle of multilingualism where children start their early
education in their mother tongues and later on are ‘bridged’ to other
languages. Bridging here means not a transition but the ‘adding of
Urdu and English’ to the education system that these communities and
their organizations have developed.
These educational programs, though very under-resourced, have

greatly served children and their parents in learning how to write and
read their languages along with adding extra advantages to the
learning capacity of the students. One of the successes of these
programs are the simple orthographies built on the basis of the four
principles encapsulated above. All of them are based on the Arabic
script as the communities, literate or illiterate, are familiar with it
through the Holy Quran and the widespread use of Urdu in public
education and in the media.
The majority of the languages spoken in northern Pakistan – upper

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Gilgit-Baltistan – are of the Dardic sub-
group of the Indo-Aryan languages. They, and their neighboring
languages – Burushaski, Wakhi, Yedgha – have some unique sounds,
and special characters for these sounds, which are not commonly used
in many other Indo-Aryan languages and very dissimilar from Urdu as
well
The activists and educationists working for the revitalization of these
languages have used di erent alphabets, based on the Arabic/Urdu
alphabets, for their languages. One wishes that all the common special
sounds in these languages had similar alphabets so as to enhance the
mutual literacy of these languages and strengthen harmony among the
people – yet no homogeneity in this regard, too, could be forced upon
them.
As said earlier, the orthographies developed for these languages will

evolve over time and de nitely undergo changes as is common with
every living thing – and these languages are living. These
orthographies are now working well. We need to expand, extend and
spread the literacy of these languages among the speakers. Once the
writing tradition expands, the orthographies will automatically evolve
and further adaptation may be needed. Whatever adaptation is needed
to be taken, the activists and educationists engaged in the job do need
to remember the four principles elaborated above.
The writer heads an independent organisation dealing with education

and development in Swat.
Email: ztorwali@gmail.com

2020-11-30T06:00:00+0500 Roger Harris
Venezuelan elections
The extraordinary level of US interference in Venezuela’s electoral
process highlights their importance. The US government has
preemptively declared the upcoming National Assembly elections
fraudulent. Guaidó’s political party and others on the far right have
dutifully obeyed Trump’s directive to boycott the contest.
However, other opposition elements have broken with the US strategy

of extra-parliamentary regime change and are participating in the
elections. They have also distanced themselves from Guaidó’s calls for
ever harsher sanctions against his people and even for US military
intervention.
To maintain discipline among the moderate opposition, the US has

sanctioned some opposition party leaders for registering to run in the
parliamentary elections. Nevertheless, 98 opposition parties and nine
Chavista parties (supporters of the Bolivarian Revolution) will be
contesting for 277 seats in the National Assembly.
Following the US’s lead, the European Union rejected the upcoming
election and an invitation to send election observers. A long list of
international gures including Noble Prize winners and former heads
of state petitioned the EU: “This election represents, above all a
democratic, legal and peaceful way out of the political and institutional
crisis that was triggered in January 2019 by the self-appointment of
Juan Guaidó as ‘interim president’ of Venezuela.”
The Council of Electoral Experts of Latin America (CEELA) and other

internationals will be observing the election on December 6. CEELA
Chairman Nicanor Moscoso noted: “We, as former magistrates and
electoral authorities in Latin America, have organized elections and
also participated in over 120 elections…Our aim is to accompany the
Venezuelan people.”
The nine Chavista parties are not running on a uni ed slate. The new
Popular Revolutionary Alternative coalition, which formed to run
candidates independently, includes the Venezuelan Communist Party.
Communists normally would not get favorable ink in The New York
Times. But when there are splits on the left, the empire’s newspaper of
record exploits them: “They championed Venezuela’s revolution –
they are now its latest victims.” The paper reports: “The repression is
partly an outcome of Mr. Maduro’s decision to abandon the wealth
redistribution policies of his late predecessor, Hugo Chávez, in favor of
what amounts to crony capitalism to survive American sanctions
[emphasis added].”
The key to deconstructing the Times’s hit piece is the phrase, “to
survive American sanctions”. As Alfred de Zayas, the United Nations
Human Rights Rapporteur on Venezuela, had observed even before the
pandemic hit, the US sanctions on Venezuela are causing “economic
asphyxiation”. Compromises have been necessitated.
Excerpted: ‘US Intervenes as Venezuela Prepares for High Stakes

Election’
Counterpunch.org

2020-11-30T06:00:00+0500 Saleem Safi
GB: elections and leadership

For the sake of Pakistan, the people of Indian Occupied Jammu and
Kashmir have made tremendous sacri ces and have kept alive, with
their blood, the freedom movement for their emancipation from
India’s occupation and state terrorism.
Similarly, the love of the people of Azad Jammu and Kashmir and
Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) for Pakistan is second to none. Unfortunately, we
have failed to give them their due constitutional rights and nancial
resources at par with the other provinces in the country.
Although Azad Jammu and Kashmir has its own president and prime
minister, they are practically just nominal heads of state and
government and do not have the power of even a federal secretary.
Likewise, the government of Gilgit-Baltistan too is toothless.
The people of Gilgit-Baltistan have been demanding a separate

province, but we have been reminded for seventy years that a separate
provincial status for GB will undermine our case for and position on
Occupied Jammu and Kashmir. However, rationally, the best option was
that we should have made GB part of Pakistan in every aspect from day
one. We should have empowered them nancially, politically, and
administratively – which would have also provided an incentive to the
people of Occupied Kashmir. But now, after seventy years of myopic
policies and criminal negligence, and when Modi annexed Occupied
Jammu and Kashmir, we have come up with the idea of giving
provincial status to Gilgit-Baltistan.
In 2009, the then government of the PPP passed the Gilgit-Baltistan

(Empowerment and Self-Governance) Order under which the people of
GB were granted some constitutional rights. But the then
establishment did not allow GB to become a province. In 2018, during
the PML-N government, the constitutional committee under Sartaj
Aziz recommended a provisional provincial status for GB – but it was
again turned down on the pretext of the possible implication for the
Kashmir cause. Now the situation is that the highest administrative
posts in GB, like chief secretary and inspector general of police, are
lled by outside o cers – primarily from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
The economic and strategic importance of GB has increased

tremendously in the context of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor
(CPEC) – the game-changer project. Unfortunately, though, the then
PML-N government in the centre and the military leadership did not
give GB its due share in CPEC and ignored it much like Balochistan.
It was expected that the PTI government would address the grievances
of the people of GB, but they have also ignored GB completely in their
two-year tenure and have failed to address GB's genuine issues. But
now, when the time came for elections in GB, PM Imran Khan also
nally remembered GB. For the sake of political gains and victory,
Imran Khan announced a provincial status for GB without consultation
and mutual consensus. This irresponsible move by the prime minister
for short-term political gains was inevitably opposed by the Kashmiri
and national leadership.
The PM also gave Ali Amin Khan Gandapur and others the task of
conquering GB for the elections. The tactics used in the 2018 elections
began to be used by the government. I pleaded time and again that, due
to the sensitive nature of Gilgit-Baltistan, the usual election
manipulation tactics should be avoided. However, rst the PTI was
arti cially created in GB, then electables were picked from other
political parties and nally the election process made the electables
win. GB’s Election Commission was e ectively rendered useless. The
2018 election tactics were also used in di erent ways during the vote
count in the GB election.
Generally, every political government in Pakistan is powerless so why

would the GB government be any di erent. In fact, the political
government of Gilgit-Baltistan has always been very weak and
considered to be a tool of the federal government. No one can gain
who is in power, practically GB is controlled by the federal government
sitting in Islamabad.
This time, though, the elections in Gilgit-Baltistan had assumed more

importance for Pakistan's security and the Kashmir cause of liberation.
It was due to this fact that we were repeatedly pleading to those who
run the country to let the GB election remain an election instead of
turning it into a selection. Our humble plea was based on multiple
reasons.
First, the enemies of Pakistan and China have dangerous designs on GB

due to its strategic location and status as an entry point for CPEC. Some
people in GB were already complaining about our political behavior and
indi erent attitude towards the region. Further annoying anyone in GB
is not in Pakistan's national interests. The dissenting voices and the
grievances of the people of GB can only be addressed by real
representatives. But if we impose and install an arti cial leadership in
GB, then a PTM type of movement could easily emerge there.
Second, GB has sectarian fault-lines and sectarian riots and clashes

have happened in the past due to conspiracies by those against the
country. These fault-lines could be exploited by our enemies; India is
always ready to ignite a ash of sectarian violence and bring instability
in the region. Former CM Hafeez-ur-Rehman maintained a peaceful
environment in the area and very skilfully handled and controlled the
sectarian issue in GB. The PPP also played a very important role during
its tenure in overcoming the issue. Now the million-dollar question is:
will the nominees of Ali Amin Gandapur and Zul Bukhari and the new
arti cial representatives be able to overcome this serious problem?
Third, the issue of Gilgit-Baltistan is linked with the issue of Occupied

Jammu and Kashmir. There is no doubt that the majority of the people
of GB have been demanding provincial status. In the past, I had also
advocated their cause of a province. But when Modi annexed Occupied
Jammu and Kashmir, I gave up the idea for the time being. The reason
is that the Kashmiri Hurriyat leadership does not support the idea; they
think that such a move at this stage is undermining their stance and the
cause of Kashmir's liberation.
People on both sides, Occupied and Azad Kashmir, are hopeless and
highly frustrated at this stage. The unilateral decision by the
government of Pakistan regarding Gilgit-Baltistan – without taking
them in con dence and without taking all the national political
leadership in con dence – will further hurt their sentiments.
If a genuine and real leadership had come into power in GB through a

fair and transparent election, then making GB a provisional province
through mutual consultation would have been an easy task. But now
the controversial election in GB has made the task very di cult. At this
stage, when there is already a controversial government in Islamabad,
another controversial government in GB would not be able to handle
the issue properly. Besides the people of Kashmir, Pakistan's
mainstream political parties will also not cooperate.
The PTI won 10 seats in the GB election and the PPP and the PML-N
have rejected the election results. But in reality, the PPP and the PML-
N won the GB politics; the PPP especially dominated the show. The way
Bilawal Bhutto took camp in GB and the way Maryam Nawaz came and
addressed large gatherings created a sense of belongingness in the
hearts of the people of Gilgit-Baltistan. Moreover, their issues were
highlighted by Pakistan's media.
The writer works for Geo TV.
Email: saleem.sa @janggroup.com.pk

2020-11-29T22:26:01+05:00 Yasir Habib Khan
RCEP: Economic fortunes and challenges

With economic windfalls and challenges, Regional Comprehensive
Economic Partnership (RCEP) is an ‘Asian Economic Stride’, on a global
trade stage. Representing present time as well as future dynamics, it
promises China, ASEAN countries, Japan, South Korea, Australia and
New Zealand inclusive growth in tandem.
Raining down positive impacts, RCEP’s Asian Economic Stride triggers

deeper trade integration, tari rationalisation, economic liberalisation,
SMEs’ revitalisation, market accessibility and a level playing eld in all
development spectrums. It anchors the next stages of e-commerce,
entrepreneurialism, Intellectual property protection and enforcement,
manpower capacity building and mammoth opportunities of
employments.
The RCEP marks ASEAN’s biggest free trade pact to date, covering a
market of 2.2 billion people with a combined size of US$26.2 trillion or
30% of the world’s GDP. “The signing of the RCEP Agreement is a
historic event as it underpins ASEAN’s role in leading a multilateral
trade agreement of this magnitude, despite global and regional
challenges and eight years of negotiations,” said Dato Lim Jock Hoi,
Secretary-General of ASEAN. “RCEP will give a much-needed boost for
a swift and robust recovery for businesses and peoples in our region
particularly during the current COVID-19 pandemic crisis,” he added.
COVID-19 hospitalizations hit record in

California
The deal will improve market access with tari s and quotas eliminated
in over 65% of goods traded and make business predictable with
common rules of origin and transparent regulations, upon entry into
force. This will encourage rms to invest more in the region, including
building supply chains and services, and to generate jobs.
The objective of the RCEP Agreement is to establish a modern,

comprehensive, high-quality, and mutually bene cial economic
partnership that will facilitate the expansion of regional trade and
investment along with contributing to global economic growth and
development. Accordingly, it will bring about market and employment
opportunities to businesses and people in the region. The RCEP
Agreement will work alongside and support an open, inclusive, and
rules-based multilateral trading system.
The agreement is not made just for today but also for tomorrow. It
updates the coverage of the existing ASEAN Plus One FTAs (ASEAN’s
FTAs with the ve dialogue partners) and takes into consideration
changing and emerging trade realities, including the age of electronic
commerce, the potential of micro, small and medium enterprises, the
deepening regional value chain, and the complexity of market
competition. It will complement the World Trade Organisation (WTO),
building on the WTO’s Agreement in areas where the parties have
agreed to update or go beyond its provisions.
Muslim bloc's Kashmir resolution against India

a 'Triumph' for Pakistan: FM Qureshi
The RCEP is also comprehensive, in terms of both coverage and depth

of commitments. On its coverage, the RCEP Agreement comprises of 20
Chapters and includes many areas that were not previously covered in
the ASEAN Plus One FTAs. This agreement has speci c provisions
covering trade in goods, including rules of origin; customs procedures
and trade facilitation; sanitary and phytosanitary measures; standards,
technical regulations and conformity assessment procedures; and trade
remedies. It also covers trade in services including speci c provisions
on nancial services; telecommunication services; and professional
services, as well as the temporary movement of natural persons. In
addition, there are chapters on investment; intellectual property;
l t i titi ll d di t i
(SMEs); economic and technical cooperation; government
procurement; and legal and institutional areas including dispute
settlement. In terms of market access, the RCEP Agreement achieves
liberalisation in trade in goods and services and has extended coverage
to investment.
Weapon used to kill nuclear scientist had Israeli

markings on it
The RCEP contains provisions that go beyond the existing ASEAN Plus
One FTAs, while recognising the individual and diverse levels of
development and economic needs of the RCEP Parties. It addresses the
issues required to support the Parties’ engagement in the global and
regional supply chain and complements market access commitments
with trade and investment enabling rules. It preserves legitimate public
policy objectives. The RCEP Agreement strives to boost competition in a
way that drives productivity, which is sustainable, responsible, and
constructive. In 0addition, the RCEP Agreement has the added value of
bringing together a single rulebook to help facilitate the development
and expansion of regional supply chains among Parties.
Furthermore, it brings together countries with diverse levels of

development. Thus, the RCEP Parties have recognised that its success
will be determined by its ability to mutually bring bene ts. The RCEP
Agreement is designed to achieve this objective in a number of ways,
including through appropriate forms of exibility and provisions for
special and di erential treatment especially for Cambodia, Lao PDR,
Myanmar, and Viet Nam, as appropriate, and additional exibility for
the least developed Parties. In addition, it also includes technical
cooperation and capacity building that will be made available to
support the implementation of commitments made under the RCEP
Agreement and for the Parties to maximise the bene ts accruing
therefrom. The agreement also includes provisions that will ensure
that economies with di erent levels of development, businesses of
di ering sizes, and the broader stakeholders can all bene t from the
Agreement.
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Marib
RCEP has realised the dream of Northeast Asian economic integration.

A spokesman for Japan’s Ministry of Foreign A airs noted last year
that negotiations on the trilateral China-South Korea-Japan free trade
agreement, which has been stuck for many years, will become active as
soon as they are able to conclude the negotiation on RCEP. Finally what
dreamt came true.
As a matter of fact, in the bygone era when Asia dominated the world
economy, the Eurasian continent was regionally connected by the
ancient Silk Roads, the Spice Roads and the maritime silk roads
travelled by caravan traders, pilgrims, craftsmen, seafarers, diplomats,
artists and poets of di erent color hailing from a diverse array of Asian,
Arabic and Mediterranean civilisations. Conversely, Asia collectively
declined in cultural and economic signi cance when European powers
rose to prominence on the world stage on the back of colonialism. As
such, RCEP has made its mark in the region for free trade and
connectivity underpining Asia’s centrality in the world economy.
UN special envoy for Syria: No deadline in

Geneva talks
Under the RCEP, participants are to ensure the free ow of digital

information, such as contents and data, across borders. Nations will be
barred from requiring foreign companies to place servers or other
equipment on their soil as a condition for conducting business. But the
treaty will not ban countries from demanding the disclosure of source
codes, a clause that was included in the TPP.
O cials have clearly got a focus on helping the smallest rms in RCEP
bene t from the nal agreement. This is a welcome development, since
every country in the grouping is dominated by smaller size companies.
The one area of sustained focus in RCEP that will be most promising for
SMEs is e-commerce and digital trade. E-commerce and digital trade
suppliers, consumers and lead rms. Given the relatively higher levels
of connectivity in Asia compared to other regions, this pathway can be
developed further quickly with the right policies in place and help lead
to new growth opportunities.
Punjab govt orders to remove barriers to stop

PDM rally: Shahbaz Gill
2020 is going to end on a positive note regarding RCEP historic

agreement. However, attention is already turning to 2021, when the
bloc will renew its focus on more traditional concerns, namely regional
unity and outside threats that some suggest could hamper the RCEP’s
ultimate implementation.
Simon Baptist, global chief economist at consultancy The Economist

Intelligence Unit said that RCEP, once realised, will signi cantly
contribute to the ow of goods and services in the region, but the
biggest challenge would be infrastructure development in such
countries as Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam and Myanmar.
“Here, the BRI can play a very important role in the bloc. Without
e ective communication and connectivity, the RCEP cannot ourish
and economic potential cannot be utilised by partner countries,” he
said. “The BRI involvement in infrastructure development and
enhancing the logistic capability of the region is a prerequisite for any
further progress in the bloc.”
Markets buoyed by promising vaccines, but high

hurdles remain
Chheang Vannarith, president of the Asian Vision Institute, a think

tank in Phnom Penh, said the RCEP would provide economic impetus
for regional countries to bounce back together from the economic
recession caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. “It will send a clear signal
that regional economic integration in Asia remains robust and vibrant
although protectionism and unilateralism are on the rise in the United
He said the challenges lying ahead include how to convince people of
the bene ts deriving from the RCEP and how to empower and enable
people and local small and medium-sized enterprises to fairly bene t
from this regional trading arrangement.

2020-11-29T22:26:21+05:00 Muhammad Zahid Rifat
India sponsoring terrorism inside Pakistan

Pakistan has launched a fully o ensive attack on India through
providing irrefutable evidence to the international community and
world forums about it persistently supporting and sponsoring
terrorism to destabilise Pakistan and sabotaging CPEC as a whole. All
major powers, whether they acknowledge it or not, know that India is
threatening peace and stability not only of Pakistan but the entire
region.
The dossier presented to the international community, UN and other

world forums, contained irrefutable evidence ofIndian sponsored
terrorism in Pakistan though the provision of nancial assistance to
terrorists and anti-Pakistan bodies like Jammatul Ahrar (JUA) and TTP.
Now, the sincere and genuine expectation from our government is that
the international community will act to prevent India from continuing
its agenda against Pakistan.All that needs to be done it to compel India
to halt its state sponsorship of terrorism inside Pakistan and bring to
justice all those responsible for supporting and nancing terrorism
inside Pakistan according to relevant domestic and international laws.
Furthermore, they should reiterate that Pakistan reserves the right to
defend itself in every possible way.

California
This was for the rst time that Pakistan came out comprehensively and
forcefully to tell the world at large as to what India was doing to
destabilise it, threaten its security and blockall means of prosperity and
progress through CPEC. For years, Pakistan had been telling the world
about Indian brutalities and atrocities within Pakistan as well as in
Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IOJK). With such proof out in
the world, Pakistan made it clear that if the international community
does not act to prevent India from continuing its state-sponsored
terrorism then Pakistan would be free to presume that ensuring peace
and stability in a nuclear South Asia is not their priority.
Undoubtedly, India actions inside Pakistan have resulted in the deaths

of a large number of Pakistanis and no longer can a blind eye be turned
to this behavior of a state which refuses to adhere to international laws
and conventions. Brie y, India has provided Rs22 billion over the years
for reorganising and uniting the shattered terrorists for promoting
terrorism in Pakistan. Indian embassies and consulates in many
countries are the hub of terror sponsorship and the Indian intelligence
agency, RAW, according to the dossier is paying Rs10 million for each
suicide terrorist attack in Pakistan.

It is worth mentioning here that this time, the world at large was
growing increasingly responsive to Pakistan’s stance on India’s state
terrorism and the matter was also being highlighted by the foreign
press. Outside of sponsoring and supporting state terrorism by all
possible means in Pakistan, India also continues to resort to
unprovoked violations of the Line of Control (LoC). Pakistan’s armed
forces, while exercising maximum restraint, are also prepared and
ready for any misadventure by India. Such violations like killing
innocent civilians, including women and children, have expedited ever
since fascist Prime Minister Narendra Modi, obsessed with RSS
philosophy and promoting Hundutva, has come into power.
According to information given to the media by DG ISPR at the second

joint press conference with the Foreign Minister, India is presently
operating as many as 66 training camps for sponsoring and harbouring
terrorists on its soil and also in Afghanistan.
markings on it
By addressing two news conferences within a matter of few days from

each other, the Foreign Minister and the DG ISPR have fully exposed
India for its state sponsoring terrorism in Pakistan and e orts to
sabotage CPEC. By opening the eyes of the international community
through the dossier. And presenting it at various forums, at the
appropriate levels, we have left it up to them to act now before it is too
late.
Many details have been avoided for want of space here and may be
dilated upon some other time for keeping the readers updated with
regard to Pakistan’s just and full of facts stance and urgingthe world at
large to play its much desired role to prevent India as a whole.

2020-11-29T22:26:46+05:00 Masud Ahmad Khan
New Indian doctrine

Chanakya was an ancient Indian philosopher who served as the advisor
to the Maurya ruler and authored the Arthashastra some 2400 years
ago. This book talks about power, governance, state duties and
relations with neighbours. According to his Mandala doctrine, one
must attack in the rear in the diplomatic, economic or psychological
sphereas well as wherever the enemy is getting economic, social,
mental and physical strength. The aim is to erase that source before
reaching the enemy. The present government of Modi is highly
obsessed with Chanakya policies and theories and Indian foreign policy
strictly revolves around them.
The Indian Express carried a news according to which President Ayub

Khan’s book, ‘Diaries of Field Marshal Muhammad Ayub Khan 1966-
1972’, had a signi cant entry; “Chanakya the Indian philosopher was
also called Kutilya which means liar”. In the late 80s, the Indian Army
Chief, General Sundarji, gave a new doctrine against Pakistan, known
as the Sundarji doctrine. The concept was to deploy all holding corps
along the western border and then to strike deep inside Pakistan to
destroy its strike crops. Later in 2004, India introduced yet another
doctrine known as Cold Start. It was basically a limited wardoctrine
designed to seize Pakistan’s territory swiftly without risking a nuclear
con ict. In this doctrine, operations could be undertaken within 48
hours of the orders being issued –enabling the Indian army to take
Pakistan by surprise. However, Pakistan countered all these so-called
doctrines by undertaking massive exercises. India has now come to the
conclusion that it cannot damage Pakistan through a conventional war
afterthe nuclear explosions in May 1998. Therefore India has subjected
Pakistan to hybrid and fth generation warfare.
California
Fifth generation and hybrid warfare are gaining a lot of momentum on

socialand mainstream media. Hostile intelligence agencies are using
pseudo intellectuals, journalist and bloggers to propagate their
narratives. Articles are being published in local and foreign print media
to tarnish the image of the armed forces of Pakistan. India is already
waging a hybrid war against Pakistan by using RAW to facilitate and
in uence some pressure groups to undermine peace and stability in
Pakistan. At the international forum, India also propagating against
Pakistan through getting it blacklisted by lobbying at FATF. There is a
growing negative propaganda on social media against Pakistan’s army
and the ISI.
When BJP came into power in May 2014, Modi appointed Ajit Doval as
the National Security Advisor. A former directorof the Intelligence
Bureau (IB) who had spent seven years in the Indian High Commission
in Islamabad. He was characterised by AS Daulat, the former head of
RAW, as ‘the hawkish AjitDoval’ and known as a conspirator and liar.
He is obsessed with Pakistan therefore his policies are anti-Muslim and
Pakistan centric.His set of policies and ideas are called Doval doctrine
through which he is determined to wipe out all Gandhian and
Nehruvian approach and to replace it by this Hindutva philosophy.
According to his doctrine,‘India will ght not only on its own territory
but also on foreign soil which becomes the source of a security threat’
–a clear message to China and Pakistan. However, later India tried to
cover up his remarks by saying that he was speaking in the context of
civilisation ethos and his remarks were not directed against anyone.
Given that China had already taken the war well inside Ladakh,
captured 1000 square kilometersof territory in IIOJKshows that it has
brought India on its knees. In case of Pakistan we have already
demonstrated ourcapability and everytime gave them a bloody nose.

In 2016, India claimed of carrying out surgical strikes against so called
terrorist launch pads across the LOCbut noevidence was given.
However, it was again planned and executed by RAW to malign
Pakistan and this drama was done for public consumption. After
Pulwama’s false ag operation, on February 20, 2019, the Indian Air
Force conducted air strike on a so called Jaish-e-Muhammad camp is
Jabba, Balakot, KPK. This attack was again done for domestic
consumption due to election environment in India at that time.
Pakistan took a group of international media journalists, mostly Indian
based ambassadors and defence attaché of various countries, to the
impact site. They were shown the crater in barren open space where
eeing Indian planes dropped their payload contrary to Indian claim
that they hit a madrassa.
On February 27, 2019, the PAF engaged six targets acrossthe LOC and
also shot down two Indian aircrafts. On the same day an Indian MI-17
was also shot down by Indians themselves out of panic. Furthermore,
India is funding banned terrorist organisations to fan sectarian
violence and wants to create chaos in the country.It has recently signed
the Basic Exchange and Cooperation Agreement (BECA) with the US.
Pakistan has taken a serious note of this agreement as it will damage
stability in South Asia. According to The Wire, through the agreement,
India has potentially mortgaged the digitised military capability of its
three services to the US. However, with this capability, India is likely to
focus on Tibet, Xinjiang, Gilgit-Baltistan, and Afghanistan. Pakistan
needs to further strengthen Pakistan-China strategic command and
must improve its ties with countries like Bangladesh, Nepal and
Srilanka. The message to India should be that no matter what doctrine
is implemented, Pakistan’s Armed Forces are ready to face all the
challenges.

markings on it
Vi d i J R dP i
2020-11-29T22:27:07+05:00 The Nation
Protecting The Vulnerable

Daily wage earners in Pakistan top the list of the most vulnerable
employees. Since the provincial labour departments do not protect
them, many employers violate their rights with complete impunity.
However, it seems that the government of Punjab has realised the
plight of the daily wage earners; the decision to introduce a modern
smart e-card scheme to solve daily wage earners’ social security
problems is a great initiative.
Under the new plan, daily wage earners will receive medical facilities,
including medical treatment and wages if they are ill. The project will
also cover the cost of diagnosing various diseases. This is, undoubtedly,
a revolutionary step, for it aims to provide some social security to the
masses that work either on or below minimum wage. But, initiating a
scheme is one thing; implementing it is a di erent ball game.
The real challenge before the government will be to ensure that all
employers comply with the new initiative’s requirements. Moreover,
the o cials will also need to keep a separate database of such ad-hoc
workers to ensure that they get all the announced bene ts. The
introduction of smart e-cards for daily wagers will include the workers
who earn their livelihood from the informal economy. The initiative
will bene t the most disadvantaged groups such as the poor women,
the elderly, and the migrant workers that often remain caught in a
continuing cycle of poverty and vulnerability.

California
Indeed, the initiative is a much-needed intervention from the

government to o er some protection to the daily wagers since the
global pandemic has further destabilised them economically. The step
will o er safety against poverty reduction challenges that the
pandemic has exacerbated due to a decline in economic activity. The
provincial government must take more steps like this and expand them
to other sectors to give people easy access to other socio-economic
rights that the employers violate otherwise.

2020-11-29T22:27:34+05:00 The Nation
Iran-US Tensions
The assassination of Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, an Iranian nuclear scientist,
near Tehran on Friday, will inevitably spell bad news for regional peace
and Iran-American relations. Fakhrizadeh, who headed research and
innovation at Iran’s Defense Ministry, had already been noted by
American and Israeli investigation agencies as being an important
contributor to the alleged covert atomic bomb programme by Iran.
Despite Iran’s denial that it is developing its nuclear programme, and
an alleged fatwa by the Ayatullah against nuclear weapons, the West
suspects Iran of seeking a coordinated nuclear weapons programme.
Fakhrizadeh had also especially been named by Israeli Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu in 2018 as a threat.
Though no country has taken responsibility for this, with the above
facts, one cannot blame Iran for suspecting Israeli involvement behind
the attacks. The lack of denial on Israel’s and the silence from the US
administration makes relations even more hostile. This is a pity; the
victory of Joe Biden in the US 2020 presidential elections could have
been a turning point in the US-Iran relations. The Trump
administration had taken hostilities to the worst they had been in
decades, to the point of rumours of war.

California
Unfortunately, it seems that in its last few months, the Trump

Administration is still determined to damage Iran-US relations to the
point of no repair. Even with a Biden victory, and Biden’s stated plans
to renegotiate the Iran deal, these last-minute attacks will make that
much more di cult- putting the Biden administration in a worse
negotiating position.
Despite the current administration’s best e orts, it is hoped that these

futile attacks are put to an end soon and the sanctions on Iran are
slowly loosened with a Biden administration. Not just for regional
peace but a sanction less Iran is important for Pakistan to map out a
path for regional development, along with China.

2020-11-29T22:27:53+05:00 The Nation
OIC For Kashmir

The outcome of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation’s (OIC) recent
meeting was a unanimous rejection and condemnation of all illegal
actions taken by India in the region of Kashmir. This development
comes as a major win for Pakistan considering it has secured the
support of 57 countries for the Kashmiri cause. However, this is just the
beginning. The focus should be on the next step which is to incite a
similar response by the international community at large.
According to the resolution of the meeting, all members of the OIC

denounced the revocation of Kashmir’s special status, state-sponsored
terrorism, vast human rights violations as well as the exploitation of
Covid-19 to increase the subjugation of the people of Kashmir.
Furthermore, they have demanded that the Indian government rescind
the domicile certi cates being issued to non-Kashmiris since they
serve as a deliberate attempt to alter the demographic structure of the
territory. The OIC further emphasised that the issue of Kashmir is one
that is internationally recognised as disputed, and so for any country to
overtly lay claim over the region or act in isolation is unwarranted. If
India continues to violate internationally applied laws in the region,
then members of the OIC encourage the world to review their dealings
with India for the sake of the innocent in Kashmir. This is the kind of
response that is needed from the global community at large.

California
Even though this resolution serves as a small win for Pakistan, in

comparison to the larger play for securing the right to self-
determination in Kashmir, it reinforces the fact that the issue is being
taken as seriously as it should. A trickle-down e ect of such an
attitude, in the international community, is bound to happen soon
enough and for that, Pakistan must continue to work tirelessly.

TODAY'S PAPER | NOVEMBER 30, 2020
Moving from the margins

Editorial | 30 Nov 2020
THE recently reported story of Nisha Rao, Pakistan’s first transgender lawyer, is both
heartbreaking and inspiring. Like so many from the trans community, Nisha ran away
from home and was forced to beg on the streets to make ends meet. For some time, she
stood at traffic lights and begged in order to survive, but was determined to forge a
new path for herself. As she earned enough to pay for law classes, she enrolled at
school, earned a degree and licence, and this year joined the Karachi Bar Association.
She now works with an NGO to fight for transgender rights, and is expanding her client
base to include persons outside her community.
Nisha’s happy ending is no doubt uplifting. Yet for all her success and ambition, the early
years of her independence were fraught with hardship. Social stigmas and systemic
discrimination have pushed the trans community in Pakistan into begging and the sex trade
for decades — options that trans people like Nisha are compelled to consider if they come
out to their families and get shunned as a result. The abuse, harassment and judgement that
trans people are subjected to are harrowing; not only are these people the victims of terrible
violence, they are even denied space in morgues. In these circumstances, the fact that
Pakistan became one of a few countries in the world to pass legislation protecting the rights
of transgender people in 2018 is a ray of hope — and a testament to how hard the
community has fought to be heard and recognised. In enshrining an individual’s right to
determine their gender, the state made a historic decision to safeguard the rights of the
community. But the road ahead is a long one. Trans people still face serious discrimination
and violence, and are far from being represented in all walks of life. The government must
continue to support the trans community and work on a public-awareness campaign that
sensitises people about gender identity. Like Nisha, trans people should be represented
across professions and given respect in keeping with their constitutional rights.
Published in Dawn, November 30th, 2020

An overreaction
PARANOIA followed by overreaction — that best describes how the Pakistani state
views and responds to any form of independent thought. The latest instance veers into
the realm of the farcical. On Friday, hundreds of youth in various cities took part in the
‘Student Solidarity March’ to voice their demands for free education, committees
against sexual harassment on campus, provision of internet facilities and the
restoration of student unions. The rallies were peaceful: the speakers did not incite
violence and participants were ‘armed’ with little more than placards and flags. In
Lahore, a few of them even stayed back to clean up the venue after the rally dispersed.
And yet, the Lahore deputy commissioner issued arrest orders for Prof Ammar Ali Jan,
one of the rally organisers and president of the Haqooq-i-Khalq Movement, under the
Maintenance of Public Order Ordinance. According to the order, Prof Jan “if not
checked will give rise to a situation prejudicial to public safety and maintenance of
public order”. The document further describes him as being “in the habit … to harass
the general public and symbol of frightens [sic]”.
Notwithstanding the unfortunate turn of phrase, the attempt to paint Mr Jan as some
notorious thug wishing to provoke an insurrection is ridiculous and makes the authorities
look rather foolish. At the rally, the young professor assailed university administrations for
promoting a fascist culture where critical thinking was stifled and teachers who encouraged
their students to voice independent views were shown the door. According to him, students,
farmers, labourers and civil society would have to work for a socialist revolution to take
back the rights that capitalism had snatched from them. This scarcely catapults him into the
ranks of those wishing to dismantle the state through violent means like a latter-day Guy
Fawkes. Prof Jan and the rally participants were simply exercising their right to peaceful
protest in what increasingly appears to be a nominal democracy, judging by the orders to
arrest him. The fact is, there is in Pakistan today little tolerance for progressive ideas,
because they make for a ‘troublesome’ populace that refuses to sacrifice its rights and
freedoms at the altar of narratives that serve only a select few. Many decades ago, a student
movement changed the course of history in Pakistan. Are the authorities afraid this is a
nascent march on the same path? Such heavy-handed tactics are the shortest route to that
end.

Internal divisions
EVEN as the Islamic world’s top diplomats met recently in Niamey, Niger, under the
umbrella of the OIC’s Council of Foreign Ministers, to present a united face to the
world, it was obvious that narratives were changing within the Muslim bloc. The good
news is that despite the omission of the Kashmir question in the OIC’s agenda, it
appears that Pakistan has managed to score a major diplomatic victory. On Saturday,
the Foreign Office, issued a press release stating the OIC had unanimously adopted a
resolution that condemned Indian tactics in the held region. Before the two-day event,
the Foreign Office had rubbished the notion that the Kashmir issue would not be taken
up, blaming it on “false Indian propaganda”. Even then, there had been doubts; in
August, Pakistan’s foreign minister had shown signs of impatience at the OIC’s delay in
convening a foreign ministers’ meeting on Kashmir. In February, Prime Minister Imran
Khan, during a visit to Malaysia, had himself spoken of divisions over the matter of
Kashmir. Indeed, with India’s unlawful annexation of the disputed territory, and the
worsening persecution of the Kashmiris, resolutions alone won’t do, and the OIC must
take strong steps to draw the attention of world to the oppression and cruelty that
reigns in the occupied land.
Meanwhile, divisions could be seen in other aspects; for instance, an official from Iran’s
foreign ministry pointed to the growing bonhomie between Israel and some Arab nations on
the verge of establishing formal relations with the Jewish state. Suspicious of Tel Aviv’s
designs for decades now, the killing of yet another nuclear scientist near Tehran on Friday
has led to Iranian allegations of an Israeli hand in the murder. Many quarters have also
linked the UAE’s recent decision to stop issuing new visas to citizens of a number of Muslim
countries, including Pakistan, to the Emirates’ efforts to come closer to Israel. Not least
among those concerned have been the Palestinians who see no hope for their future at a
time when even their Arab brethren are leaving them at the mercy of an Israeli state that is
expanding Jewish settlements on occupied Palestinian land besides resorting to brutal tactics
against the Arab population. This is especially ironic when we consider that one of the OIC’s
founding principles was to defend the Palestinian cause.
Muslim states talk of unity and rightly denounce Islamophobia which is gaining ground as
right-wing forces leave no stone unturned to persecute Muslims and denigrate their
religious and cultural beliefs. Ideally, the 57-member Islamic bloc should be a bulwark
against the obscurantism that is now taking hold of the Western world. But its strength can
only come from internal unity. While each member country has its own aspirations, it is the
collective goal of a peaceful Islamic world that should set the tone for the OIC’s actions.
ARTICLE CONTINUES AFTER AD

Learning pathways
Neda Mulji | 30 Nov 2020
The writer is senior manager, professional development at

OUP, Pakistan.
WITH the second wave of the pandemic upon us, we have had to crawl back into our
caves. Schools were striving hard to address the learning gaps in the few weeks of face-
to-face teaching they managed before closing down again. Whilst this back-and-forth
pendulum swing between face-to-face and online schooling has affected students in a
number of ways, it has also opened up the possibilities of a blended approach.
As reliance on learning through videos increases, it takes us slowly away from dependence
on textbooks as the primary source of information. Schools are now successfully
experimenting with different models of imparting education. Blended learning is not so
much an innovation as the need of the hour as our forced dependence on digital solutions
increases by the day. In fact, the concept of blended learning itself has expanded
dramatically as schools explore options to stay afloat in difficult economic circumstances.
Blended learning may be a solution that not only allows schools to continue their work, but
also empowers teachers and students to find avenues that were previously unexploited.
Our heavy reliance on the instructional model has given way to more task-based
experiences for students, experiments that can be conducted at home, spurring
craftsmanship and immersive techniques. This ‘enriched virtual remote’ model teaches
students to interact with the teacher on a need basis, having to complete the goals of the
curriculum largely through tasks which set targets for them. This approach works
seamlessly for secondary and university students who may have the added motivation to
move on to further studies or the job market. For younger students, a ‘flipped classroom’
approach where students are shown videos on subject content followed by a guided online
discussion, assignments and perhaps a face-to-face assessment may be more viable in
helping them adjust to the demands of digital education.
For still younger students, an entirely experiential method of individual rotation blended
learning may be relatively helpful. Students are divided into small groups that ‘rotate’
between hands-on activities with the teacher. This model particularly supports play-based
learning and children can get personalised learning opportunities where teachers focus on
not more than six to eight children at one go. While one group has a break or moves to
another activity, the teacher moves on to the next group and so on. Judging the success of the
learning experience becomes a tad easier for teachers who get to ‘watch’ the progress of
children more closely, especially in the pre-primary years.
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Blended solutions may work well during the

pandemic.
The challenge with most digital learning is the difficulty of assessment in large groups,
which may exacerbate achievement gaps as some students fall through the cracks. The
blended learning approach, however, works well if students come in for face-to-face booster
classes and assessments once or twice a week. Many schools have successfully implemented
this model of late, especially as they designate part of the day for students to show up in
school and share the tasks they have completed.
As students shuttle between digital and physical spaces, they may develop a new-found
awareness of their own capacity for independent study. The digital revolution spurred by
the pandemic has not only changed the way education is imparted, but also our engagement,
attitudes, and behaviour towards learning. On the one hand, it has somewhat slowed down
the rat race that followed the frenzy of examinations. On the other, it has allowed schools to
re-evaluate the need for flexibility in structures and demands on students’ time, learning
styles and performance.
In terms of socialisation, children may find themselves thinking and acting more
individualistically having been away from the ‘birds of a feather’ syndrome of learning,
working and playing together for the large part of the day. This may also be prime time to re-
establish the weakening family nucleus, with the opportunity for board games, movie time,
exploring books and conversations about life. In fact, parents have become the primal
fortress holding their children’s happiness and well-being together against the pervasive
anxiety.
As we adapt to new ways of living and learning, the possibilities for discovery are immense.
A close friend remarked that she has learnt so much more about her children’s individual
personalities as they spend more time together, huddling close to discuss everything under
the sun. Given her workload, she barely had time to plan their packed schedules. For many
people like her, the robotic clockwork life has faded away, opening up new pathways to a
deeper connection with family, meaningful conversations and bonding that was not possible
in her erstwhile circumstances.

The writer is senior manager, professional development at OUP, Pakistan.
neda.mulji@gmail.com
Twitter: @nedamulji

The biggest problem

Huma Yusuf | 30 Nov 2020
The writer is a freelance journalist.
The first step is always the same: admitting you have a problem. Once the denial is
overcome, the problem solving can begin. But how can you admit you have a problem
when you still don’t have the right words to talk about it?
Pakistan’s big — arguably, biggest — problem is water scarcity. The country faces acute
water scarcity by 2025, and will be the most water-stressed country in South Asia within two
decades. Almost 30 million Pakistanis have no access to clean water. But you may not know
this because we have yet to articulate a compelling narrative about the water crisis.
One would think that the best way to spur discourse on water scarcity would be to focus on
basic human rights: the right to access clean water, food and maintain hygiene. The UN
recently reiterated that water shortages are affecting three billion people globally, and that
billions face hunger. But in increasingly polarised, populist polities, such appeals fall on deaf
ears.
Another approach could be to emphasise that Pakistan’s water crisis is in fact a failure in
water management, an example of our governments’ and bureaucracy’s inability to deliver
basic services. Studies argue that Pakistan’s water scarcity can be addressed through data
gathering, improved efficiency, reduced losses and improved sowing. More and better-
coordinated government initiatives and subsidies, such as the drip irrigation scheme in
Punjab, are needed. The 2018 National Water Policy needs a revamp, and aggressive
implementation.
The issue of water scarcity needs a new

narrative.
But the water management argument is best made by experts and has not caught the public
imagination. For example, researcher Uzair Sattar rightly pointed out that the public
commission report into the cartelisation and corruption of the sugar industry released
earlier this year covered various angles — subsidies, political influence, tax evasion — but
barely touched on the crucial link between sugar and water. Sugar is among the most water-
intensive crops; the obsession with being a top-five sugar producer is driving the water
crisis.
The national debate on malnourishment — which affects one-third of Pakistani children —

also fails to make the link with water scarcity. Malnourishment is highest in Pakistan’s
irrigated districts, according to academic Daanish Mustafa, where agriculturalists prioritise
growing cash crops for export over domestic food security.
Water is also required for raw materials such as cotton that drive lucrative, export-oriented
sectors like textiles. Run out of water, and the dream of becoming an economic powerhouse
evaporates too. But we have yet to frame the issue this way. Instead, but not surprisingly, we
have securitised the narrative about water scarcity. Water scarcity has been reframed as the
predecessor of food shortages, which would lead to riots and civil unrest (never mind
malnutrition and hunger).
Alternatively, water scarcity is portrayed as a trigger for cross-border conflict, as if the

former were somehow less devastating than the latter. The water-equals-war drum beats
particularly loudly when it comes to the Indus, which flows across Pakistan, India and
China, three nuclear-armed nations poised for conflict along various fault lines.
Let’s assume the only way to keep an issue such as water scarcity in the headlines and on
politicians’ agendas is by securitising it; the gradual ravage of land and populations is not
made for the 24/7 news cycle or the short-termism that five-year electoral cycles engender.
Even then, Pakistan’s security apparatus is not taking a holistic enough approach by tackling
water scarcity as a national security priority.
Recent developments such as the launch of the National Intelligence Coordination Com-
mittee suggests that threats are still narrowly conceived in the form of hostile nations, non-
state actors or terrorism, espionage, and domestic dissent or insurgency. Mentions of water
as a security challenge are closely tied to concerns of Indian aggression (recently fuelled by
Indian threats to violate the Indus Waters Treaty). In this paradigm, water flow is a mere
precursor to conventional — or nuclear — warfare.
If Pakistan is to rally around the need to address water scarcity, it needs a new narrative.
Water needs to be reframed, most importantly, as a citizen’s basic right, but also as a political
priority, central to our prosperity. We need more water experts on talk shows, public-
awareness campaigns, and a major focus on water conservation in our school and university
curriculums.
The Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum is campaigning for the Indus River to be granted personhood,
and associated rights. Many see the idea as too radical to manifest. But it indicates the
desperation of those most affected by water scarcity. It might be just the new narrative we
need to talk about our most pressing problem.
The writer is a freelance journalist.
Twitter: @humayusuf

Creating a welfare legacy

Iman Khan | Umair Javed | 30 Nov 2020
BY most accounts, the roll-out of the Ehsaas Emergency Cash Transfer programme has
been highly impressive in both its speed and the quantum of resources being devoted
to it. While the amount may not seem as high to some observers, it is worth mentioning
that there is little precedence for this form of expansive relief provision that draws on
the government’s own resources, and till 2010, for a large-scale social protection
instrument in the country.
The academic and policy literature on social welfare during times of emergency points to a
number of long-term legacies of such interventions. Provisions once extended are hard to
roll back because of the existence of positive feedback loops and the creation of supportive
constituencies. The expansion of the welfare state in health and social insurance in Europe
after World War II, the creation of pensions for military families at the end of the American
civil war, and the institutionalisation of food support programmes after the 1974 famine in
Bangladesh are testament to the fruitful continuity of interventions beyond their original
rationale.
The Covid-specific cash transfer mechanism opens up the same potential opportunity for the
Pakistani state. Apart from the welfare gains that an expanded cash transfer programme can
provide, there are clear-cut political advantages to continuing with such social welfare
initiatives as well: even if not all recipients link the provision of welfare to the political
government, a sizable segment will do so. That allows for the creation of an accountability
relationship whereby voters reward the government for undertaking a popular, welfare-
enhancing step. This also functions as an expansion of political capital with segments of the
population — the urban and rural poor — that can prove to be the most useful from both a
narrow voting perspective, as well as from a democratic accountability perspective.
At the same time, however, a number of issues have been identified with the roll-out of this
intervention that require corrective attention. In the immediate environment, where a
second wave potentially precipitates another round of economic hardship, the option of a
fresh disbursal of cash support should be actively considered. In terms of sequencing, rolling
it out prior to any drastic public health measures being taken would be ideal as it would
allow low-income families to prepare in advance, and additionally would also provide some
much-needed support to consumer demand for the economy.
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A number of issues have been identified with

the cash-transfer intervention.
From a public health perspective, during the first roll-out there were many accounts of
issues of mismanagement where little or no social distancing was observed at various cash
distribution points. Many people waited in poorly managed lines for hours only to be turned
away on technicalities. There is thus a need for a greater amount of trained personnel to
manage the influx of applications and potential beneficiaries.
One other frequent obstacle for beneficiaries was biometric failures. Citizens struggled to get
their fingerprints identified from Nadra and faced delays. Biometric verification is
compulsory for all those eligible for cash aid, but perhaps moving forward this requirement
can be done away with or Nadra can make the process quicker for all those struggling. This
should be addressed keeping in mind that labourers after years of hard extensive labour in
particular face the problem of diminished fingerprints, as do the elderly.
Additionally, one other aspect of the intervention that deserves scrutiny and independent
evaluation is the degree to which it takes into account gender gaps in financial and digital
inclusion. As per a note by the Centre for Global Development, while poverty statistics are
alarming for women in Pakistan, with 7.53 per cent of women living in extreme poverty,
they still do not accurately portray their plight as even within households women are most
acutely disadvantaged.
In the same vein, from a digital inclusion perspective, when women were asked to rate how
comfortable they felt sending and receiving text messages, women in poverty gave
themselves an average rating of 1.89 (roughly “a little ability”), while men in poverty gave
themselves an average 2.84 (roughly “some ability”). This has implications for how many
women would actually be able to follow the step-by-step process prescribed for becoming an
Ehsaas cash transfer beneficiary.
Moreover, another major concern moving forward is identification of beneficiaries and

catering to exclusion errors. This is because a large section of the lowest-income population
in urban areas, in particular, belongs to the informal sector, and identifying and targeting
relief for this demographic poses considerable obstacles. Issues of seasonality, temporary
migration, the lack of perpetual residence in urban areas, and ad-hoc policies of the district
administration with regard to informal-sector workers make targeting even more difficult.
This is one area where a considerable degree of creative thinking is required, and one where
the coercive policies of the past cast a long shadow on the present. If in the past, cities had
developed participatory governing and regulatory platforms for managing informal work
(such as street vending and hawking), this issue would not be as acute as it is now.
Lastly, some initial evaluation work by HelpAge identifies the elderly as one such group,
while also mentioning how the trans community is disadvantaged because often they do not
have formal documentation and thus don’t fall into any the ambit of any extant protection
measures. The same is the case for Afghan refugees who make up roughly 2.5 million people
in Pakistan, who because of being undocumented are left in abject poverty in the presence
of such schemes.
A review of these gaps, of which several are likely already on the radar of public authorities,
can only lead to an improvement in the programme’s current effectiveness. But also of
importance is that rectifying these issues can provide a strong foundation for the expanded
programme to continue as a social-protection intervention well beyond the duration of a
pandemic.
Iman Khan is a researcher based at Lums. Umair Javed teaches politics and sociology at Lums.

Afghan peace prospects

Maleeha Lodhi | 30 Nov 2020
The writer is a former ambassador to the US, UK and UN.
WILL the peace process between Afghanistan’s warring parties be put at risk by the
Pentagon’s recent announcement that more US troops will be withdrawn ahead of
schedule? Not really. Factors other than troop levels are more significant for the future
of peace talks. In any case, troop levels have progressively been going down since the
Doha agreement of February between the US and the Taliban. The drawdown of
another 2,000 troops, planned by mid-January, will likely have limited impact on the
situation especially as the US will still retain air power and maintain a CT capability.
Also, several thousand Nato-led international forces are present to train, advise and assist
Afghan forces and aim to leave when ‘conditions allow’. Above all, international leverage
will now shift from military to economic means — the military option being all but
exhausted.
Nevertheless, the key to Afghanistan’s future is whether the intra-Afghan dialogue can make
enough progress towards a settlement, including a ceasefire, before all international forces
leave Afghanistan and global interest wanes. The intra-Afghan process that began in
September as a consequence of the Doha accord faces imposing challenges. Delays in its
initiation were due to wrangles between Kabul and the Taliban over prisoner exchanges.
Once these disagreements were resolved the dialogue got underway in Qatar. Talks are now
reported to be nearing agreement over procedures and terms of reference (TORs) for
negotiations. This will open the way to talks on substantive issues including a ceasefire. The
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s visit to Doha and meeting with the Taliban’s chief
negotiator Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar was aimed at accelerating the peace talks following
the Pentagon announcement.
Not everyone agrees that a speedier pullout of troops will have marginal effect. After 2,000
are pulled out in January — under the Doha accord this was to happen in May 2021 — about
2,500 American troops will be left in Afghanistan. Some media reports indicate how several
US allies have been “rattled” by this decision, which obviously seeks to make good President
Donald Trump’s pledge to bring American soldiers home before he leaves office. The
chairman of Afghanistan’s High Council for National Reconciliation, Abdullah Abdullah, said
while he respected this decision “it has come too soon”.Nato Secretary-General Jens
Stoltenberg cautioned that the “price for leaving too soon or in an uncoordinated way could
be very high”.
It is up to the Afghan parties to make the

tough compromises needed to secure a
settlement.
Some Congressional Republicans andAmerican analysts fear that this accelerated exit would
toughen the Taliban’s negotiating position. For their part, the Taliban have welcomed the US
announcement as a “good step” that would help bring an end to the war.
While Pakistan has repeatedly called for a “responsible US troop pullout”, officials were
neither surprised nor worried about the latest development and believe this might even
encourage Washington to step up and impart more urgency to diplomatic efforts to goad the
Afghan parties into accelerating progress in substantive negotiations.
The incoming administration of Jo Biden is not likely to change course on the military
drawdown especially as this has now gone so far ahead. Moreover, the president-elect has in
the past not favoured continued military engagement in Afghanistan and instead urged an
end to “forever wars”. There is speculation that his administration might slow down the
pullout of remaining US forces in deference to the view of many defence officials and Nato
allies. This too is unlikely to make an appreciable difference to the on-ground situation in
Afghanistan. A key question is how early and substantively the Biden administration focuses
on the Afghan issue given its heavy domestic agenda and other more pressing foreign policy
priorities.
The current uptick in violence in Afghanistan is worrisome for all stakeholders including the
country’s neighbours. This figured prominently in talks between Pakistan and Afghanistan
when Prime Minister Imran Khan recently visited Kabul. Some intensification of violence
was expected as the Afghan parties seek to expand areas under their control to strengthen
their negotiating hand. But this does not explain the pattern of increased violence. There is a
puzzling aspect to some of the urban violence and terrorist attacks which raises the question
of whether this is being orchestrated by internal and external spoilers who are loath to see
the talks make headway. True or not, the spike in violence is creating an extremely fraught
environment and adding to the uncertainty that clouds the peace talks. However, once TORs
are formally agreed the next phase of talks is expected to focus on the reduction of violence
— crucial to create an atmosphere of trust and calm for the arduous negotiations that lie
ahead.

Meanwhile, a pledging conference for Afghanistan that took place recently in Geneva, co-
hosted by the UN and Finland, and attended mostly virtually by 100 countries and
international organisations, saw the US, EU and other donors commit around $3 billion for
Afghanistan next year and $12bn over the next four years. What was significant was that
pledges were conditioned on tangible progress in peace talks and a ceasefire although the
EU also made assistance contingent on the ‘preservation of human rights gains’. A top US
official announced that while it was pledging $600 million for 2021, only half would come
now “with the remaining available as progress in the peace process is reviewed”. Pompeo
was more direct:“The choices made in peace negotiations will affect the size and scope of
future international support and assistance.”
This underlines that the international community’s economic leverage will be more
important in the months ahead than other means to influence the negotiating parties into
making progress. Both Kabul and the Taliban see continuance of international assistance as
necessary as they know that without funds state collapse is threatened. Even though
international influence will diminish over time economic incentives rather than coercive
pressure will be the likely vehicle to influence the peace process.
Pakistan, Afghanistan’s other neighbours and the international community have obvious if
varying stakes in the country’s peaceful future and will try to assist in whatever way they
can. But it is up to the Afghan parties to make the difficult compromises needed to secure a
peace settlement. Afghanistan’s destiny can only be determined by Afghans themselves.
The writer is a former ambassador to the US, UK and UN.


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November 30, 2020 News desk -

Termination of PSM employees

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The healing touch of nature

Foreign policy & Middle East

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Our Covid response

Our medical response to Covid-19 has resulted in improved and

No wonder our overall Covid response has been praised by global

Published in The Express Tribune, November 30th, 2020.

Like Opinion & Editorial on Facebook, follow @ETOpEd on Twitter to

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Pay and pension anomalies

Published in The Express Tribune, November 30th, 2020.

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Ties that bind

It was not long ago that Scotland held a much-heralded referendum to

In the aforementioned referendum, Scotland voted in favour of

Although talk of a second referendum may still be premature, one can

Published in The Express Tribune, November 30th, 2020.

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Global trade: Asia chooses to go on its own

The TPP member states responded to Trump’s move by reacting

According to most analysts, governments in Asia are looking to bolster

According to Mary Lovely at the Peterson Institute, the agreement’s

Evan Feigenbaum at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

By bringing in a powerful team to mind America’s external relations

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Post-Covid world order and geopolitics

With this situation, we can envisage a collapse of the post-WWII liberal

The international image of the world’s main superpower is

The American model of democracy is no more idealised. Trump’s move

In contrast, China will continue its stability and predictability in the

In the case of geopolitics, while the global liberal order is being

We are on the cusp of a new world order in which forces hindering

Published in The Express Tribune, November 30th, 2020.

Like Opinion & Editorial on Facebook, follow @ETOpEd on Twitter to

Viewed using Just Read Premium

Post-Covid world order and geopolitics

With this situation, we can envisage a collapse of the post-WWII liberal

The international image of the world’s main superpower is

The American model of democracy is no more idealised. Trump’s move

In contrast, China will continue its stability and predictability in the

In the case of geopolitics, while the global liberal order is being

We are on the cusp of a new world order in which forces hindering

Published in The Express Tribune, November 30th, 2020.

Like Opinion & Editorial on Facebook, follow @ETOpEd on Twitter to

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November 29, 2020

Ironically, less people died of starvation and diseases as nomadic

Imran Jan | November 29, 2020

Every time humanity

When the Agricultural Revolution came about 12,000 years ago,

Ironically, less people died of starvation and diseases as nomadic

In the TV show, Black Mirror, a future is depicted where

We made washing machines, television, cellphones, computers,

Similarly, the internet has been hailed as a great tool of

In any given era, humans progressed toward sophistication but

Published in The Express Tribune, November 30th, 2020.

November 29, 2020

PTV needs to also broaden its horizon

Kamal Siddiqi | November 29, 2020

On 30 November 1967, Pakistan People's Party was founded at a

Within years, the Pakistan People's Party gained popularity and

People's party is fortunate enough to provide mature leadership