Sharif 'most trusted man' of Saudi royal family in Pak: PML-N

 LAHORE: Pakistan's main opposition PML-N party says its chief Nawaz Sharif is the Saudi royal family's "favourite and most trusted man" in this country despite "some misunderstanding" between them in the past.

These remarks by a senior PML-N leader came amid release of secret US cables by WikiLeaks, which showed that Sharif broke a promise made to the royal family by issuing political statements from Saudi Arabia while he was living there in self-exile and by visiting Pakistan in 2005 in violation of an agreement not to return to the country for 10 years.

"Yes there may have been some misunderstanding between Sharif and the Saudi royal family at that time but now he is Saudi Arabia's favourite and most trusted man in Pakistan," the PML-N leader, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told PTI.

The cables released by the whistle-blowing website say Saudi Arabia's royal family historically disliked the Pakistan People's Party (PPP) and feared that its chief, President Asif Ali Zardari -- who is a Shia Muslim -- could be part of a Shia triangle with Nur-al-Maliki's government in Iraq and Mahmoud Ahmedinajad's regime in Iran.

This has affected the flow of financial aid and an agreement to provide oil to Pakistan at concessionary terms. Zardari has built strong ties with Iran, which is one of the reasons for Saudi Arabia's disapproval, the cables revealed.

The PML-N leader said Pakistan's "cordial" relations with Saudi Arabia would be back on track "once we get rid of the Zardari regime."

He added: "Pakistan and Saudi Arabia will be fast friends again."

Addressing a public gathering yesterday, former premier Sharif was very critical of the PPP-led government at the centre.

He claimed that Pakistan is facing numerous problems because of the ill-conceived policies of President Zardari, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani and ex-military ruler Pervez Musharraf.

Power cuts, unemployment and terrorism are the outcome of such policies, Sharif said.

He said Musharraf implicated him in several cases and it was "divine justice" that he (Sharif) was now living among his own people and the former military dictator was living in exile.

Sharif said the "former rulers wanted to hang him."
 

Pakistan are a Poor State..!!!

Pakistan

In October 1999, the elected civilian Government of former Prime Minister Mian Nawaz Sharif was overthrown in a bloodless coup led by Army Chief of Staff General Pervez Musharraf. In consultation with senior military commanders, General Musharraf designated himself Chief Executive, and suspended the Constitution, the Parliament, and the national and provincial assemblies. The office of the President, which mainly is ceremonial, was retained. In 1999 General Musharraf appointed an advisory National Security Council, which included military and civilian advisers, a civilian cabinet, and new governors to all four provinces. The government bureaucracy continued to function; however, at all levels the functioning of the Government after the coup was "monitored" by military commanders. On June 20, General Musharraf was sworn in as the country's President, after the Provisional Constitutional Order (PCO) was amended (the PCO functions in place of the country's suspended Constitution). In 2000 the Supreme Court ruled that the Musharraf Government was constitutional and imposed a 3-year deadline--starting from October 12, 1999--to complete a transition to democratic, civilian rule. Between December 31, 2000, and August 2, local elections were held in five phases on a nonparty basis; on August 14, the Government announced that elections on the national and provincial level are scheduled to take place between October 1 and 11, 2002. The Government subsequently confirmed that political parties are to be permitted to participate. However, President Musharraf announced on several occasions that he intends to remain in office after the elections are held. The constitutional mechanism allowing Musharraf to do so remains unclear. The Government has aimed to empower women by increasing women's participation in government, reserving one-third of the seats on local governing bodies for women. Electoral reforms prepared during the year included the elimination of the separate electorates system for religious minorities and the tripling of National Assembly seats reserved for women. Corruption and inefficiency remained acute, despite reforms initiated by the Musharraf government to reduce corruption; however, these reforms have had some effect on officials in higher levels government. The suspended Constitution provided for an independent judiciary; however, the judiciary was subject to executive branch and other outside influences, and inadequate funding, inefficiency, and corruption were problems. The Supreme Court demonstrated a limited degree of independence; however, the overall credibility of the judiciary remained low, and President Musharraf has taken steps to control the judiciary and to remove his Government from judicial oversight. During the year, the Government undertook a donor-funded program to reform the lower levels of the judiciary; minor improvements were evident by year's end.

The police have primary internal security responsibilities, although paramilitary forces, such as the Rangers and the Frontier Constabulary, provide support in areas where law and order problems are acute, such as Karachi and the frontier areas. Provincial governments control the police and the paramilitary forces when they are assisting in law and order operations. In 2000 the Government announced a devolution plan that included some increase in local political control of the police; the plan was implemented on August 14 but no significant improvements were reported by year's end. During some religious holidays, the regular army is deployed in sensitive areas to help maintain public order. After the coup, the army played a role in enforcing exit control restrictions at airports and border crossings. Members of the police committed numerous serious human rights abuses.

Pakistan is a poor country with great extremes in the distribution of wealth; its population is approximately 140 million. Education, especially for women, is poor; only 33 percent of the population are judged literate, even using a very low standard. Cotton, textiles and apparel, rice, and leather products are the principal exports. The economy includes both state-run and private industries and financial institutions. The suspended Constitution provided for the right of private businesses to operate freely in most sectors of the economy and there continued to be a strong private sector. The per capita annual income is approximately $475 (PRs 30,000). During the year, the Government pursued several major economic reforms designed to alleviate poverty. In September, the Government successfully completed a 10-month Standby Agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) aimed at stabilizing the economy and restoring fiscal discipline through improvements in governance. The Government also completed work on a poverty reduction strategy report that received joint IMF-World Bank approval in December. The report was the result of an 18-month consultative process between the Government, nongovernmental organizations (NGO's), civic groups, the public, and international donors that was aimed at building a framework for eliminating poverty. On the basis of the Government's commitment to eliminate poverty, on December 12 the IMF approved a $1.3 billion, 3-year Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility program for the country that is to help the Government to complete its economic reform program. With the assistance of international donors, the Government increased funding commitments to health, education, and rural job creation programs.

The Government's human rights record remained poor; although there were some improvements in a few areas, particularly with regard to protection of religious minorities from intimidation from extremists, serious problems remained. Citizens continued to be denied the right to change their national and provincial governments peacefully but participated in local government elections during the year that provided increased power to district mayors and councils. Police committed numerous extrajudicial killings; however, the total number of such killings has declined in recent years. In Karachi there were fewer killings between rival political factions during the year; however, there was an increase in violence and killings between rival religious sects. Police abused and raped citizens. While the officers responsible for such abuses sometimes were transferred or suspended for their actions, no officer has been convicted and very few have been arrested. The Government conducted a series of trainings for police officers in provincial capitals; in these trainings, human rights abuses committed by law enforcement officials were acknowledged openly. In Karachi there were signs of progress in redressing police excesses; however, in general police continued to commit serious abuses with impunity. Prison conditions remained extremely poor and life threatening, and police arbitrarily arrested and detained citizens. In midyear the Government undertook a major effort to curb religious extremism. Two organizations responsible for sectarian killings were banned on August 14, and by year's end, the Government had accelerated a crackdown on members of several extremist religious groups. During the year, the last remaining Sharif government leaders in custody were released; however, Mehtab Abbasi and Javed Hashmi, two senior politicians allied to Nawaz Sharif, were detained by the National Accountability Bureau and remained in custody at year's end. Supporters claimed that their arrests were politically motivated. Several major political leaders remained in exile abroad at year's end. Case backlogs led to long delays in trials, and lengthy pretrial detention is common. The judiciary is subject to executive and other outside influences, and corruption, inefficiency, and lack of resources remained problems. The Government has taken steps to control the judiciary and to remove itself from judicial oversight. Some aspects of the Government's implementation of its anticorruption campaign violated due process. In April 2000, the Sindh Court found former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif guilty of treason and other charges; however, the court imposed a life sentence instead of the death penalty sought by the Musharraf Government. The court acquitted Sharif's six codefendants. In October 2000, the Sindh High Court upheld Sharif's conviction. In December 2000, the Government commuted Sharif's prison sentence and exiled him and 18 of his family members to Saudi Arabia for 10 years. The Government infringed on citizens' privacy rights.

The press was able to publish relatively freely; however, several journalists practiced self-censorship, especially on sensitive issues related to the military. There was no systematic harassment campaign against newspapers or commentators critical of the Government during the year; however, provincial and local governments occasionally arrested journalists and closed newspapers accused of printing offensive material. The broadcast media remain a closely controlled government monopoly. Journalists often were targets of harassment and violence by individuals and groups. The Government restricted freedom of assembly. During the year, the Government sporadically permitted several large antigovernment demonstrations; however, it prevented other protests and arrested organizers, including for security reasons. In March 2000, the Government instituted a country-wide ban on strikes, processions, and outdoor political demonstrations. The Government maintained some limits on freedom of association. The Government continued to impose limits on freedom of religion, particularly for Ahmadis. The Government also imposed limits on freedom of movement. President Musharraf has spoken out against some of the human rights abuses of the previous government; however, the Government only made minimal progress toward achieving the goals set at an April 2000 human rights conference and subsequent conferences devoted to human rights themes that were held during the year. However, progress in certain areas can only be made in the long term with significant resource commitments.

Significant numbers of women were subjected to violence, abuse, rape, and other forms of degradation by spouses and members of society. The Government publicly has criticized the practice of "honor killings" but failed to take corrective steps, and such killings continued throughout the country. Discrimination against women was widespread, and traditional social and legal constraints kept women in a subordinate position in society. Violence against children, as well as child abuse, and prostitution, remained serious problems. Female children still lag far behind boys in education, health care, and other social indices. Governmental and societal discrimination against religious minorities, particularly Ahmadis and Christians, remained a problem, and the Government failed to take effective measures to counter prevalent public prejudices against religious minorities. Religious and ethnic-based rivalries resulted in numerous killings and civil disturbances; however, President Musharraf and several cabinet ministers publicly condemned efforts by some clerics to foment hatred and announced a plan to deny the use of madrassahs (Islamic religious schools) for extremist purposes. The Government and employers continued to restrict worker rights significantly. Debt slavery persisted, and bonded labor by both adults and children remained a problem. The use of child labor remained widespread, although it generally is recognized as a serious problem, and industrial exporters have adopted a number of measures to eliminate child labor from specific sectors. Trafficking in women and children for the purposes of prostitution and bonded labor was a serious problem. Mob violence and terrorist attacks remained problems.

RESPECT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS

Section 1 Respect for the Integrity of the Person, Including Freedom From:

08/12/10

a. Arbitrary or Unlawful Deprivation of Life

Police committed extrajudicial killings. The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) noted that there were 169 extrajudicial killings during the year, a decrease from the 271 extrajudicial killings reported in 2000. The police and were responsible for the deaths of a number of individuals associated with political or terrorist groups during the year.

The extrajudicial killing of criminal suspects, often while in police custody or in staged encounters in which police shoot and kill suspects, is common. Police officials generally insist that these deaths occur during attempts to escape or to resist arrest; family members and the press insist that many of these deaths are staged. Police personnel have been known to kill suspected criminals to prevent them from implicating police in crimes during court proceedings. After an attempt was made on then-Prime Minister Sharif's life in January 1999, as many as 40 Sunni Muslims associated with the Lashkar-i-Jhangvi, the group thought to be responsible for the attack, may have been killed in police encounters. In addition to killing suspects to prevent them from implicating the police in court, police reportedly killed suspected criminals to circumvent or overcome insufficient evidence, witness intimidation, judicial corruption, and, at times, political pressure. The judiciary, on the other hand, faults the police for presenting weak cases that do not stand up in court.

According to the Society for Human Rights and Prisoner's Aid (SHARP), a local NGO, 43 deaths due to police torture were reported during the year. Amnesty International (AI) estimates that at least 100 persons die from police torture each year (see Section 1.c.).

On October 9, three protesters, including a 13-year-old boy, were killed when police fired into a crowd that was attempting to attack a police station and a post office in Kuchlak. The protestors, who mainly were Afghan refugees, were protesting military action in Afghanistan. According to witnesses, the protesters were killed in an exchange of fire between police and some of the protesters. The police stated that they acted in self-defense, and that three police officers were injured in the incident. On November 9, four demonstrators, who mostly were students from a local madrassah, were killed by police in Dera Ghazi Khan, Punjab, while attempting to stop a police van carrying the leader of the Jaish-e-Mohammad (JM), a militant Sunni Muslim religious group. The police stated that they fired at the demonstrators after they attacked several policemen.

During the year, the HRCP reported disturbances at prisons by prisoners over their mistreatment by prison staff. Eleven prisoners at Adiala jail in Rawalpindi beat a police officer for not allowing their visitors to meet with them. Similar incidents were reported in Sahiwal and Faisalabad districts. There were reports that four prisoners died in a riot in a Peshawar jail in October 2000; however, prison authorities denied these reports. No disciplinary actions were taken or charges filed in connection with the incident, and the Government is unlikely to take further action.

A committee of inquiry was established in 1999 to look into the death of Pakistan Muslim League youth wing leader Qasim Khan, who died while in the custody of the Peshawar police in July 1999. However, despite requests from human rights activists, the committee did not publish its findings, and the officer who allegedly was involved in the killing retained his position. According to a member of the HRCP, Khan's family agreed to financial compensation from the police officer. Khan's family may have dropped the inquiry under pressure from the local police. Further action in this case is unlikely.

The Muttahida Quami Movement (MQM), an urban Sindh-based political party that in the past used violence to further its aims, claimed that the police specifically targeted its adherents for extrajudicial killings. Altaf Hussain established the MQM in 1984 to promote the rights of Mohajirs, the descendants of Urdu-speaking Muslims who migrated from India to Pakistan following partition in 1947. Elements of the group became involved in extortion and other forms of racketeering, and the party split into the MQM-Altaf--the original group headed by Altaf Hussain, a large breakaway group (MQM-Haqiqi), and a few smaller factions. The MQM-Altaf, in part because of its efficient organization and willingness to use violence, became the dominant political party in Karachi and Hyderabad; however, the party sent several moderate and nonviolent leaders to the suspended Parliament and the Sindh provincial assembly. Because of its past links to violent groups, the MQM-Altaf has antagonized followers, suffered violent breakaways, and continually been at odds with successive governments. The MQM-Altaf reported that 12 of its members were killed during the year; 1 while in police custody, 2 by members of the MQM-Haqiqi, and 9 by unknown assailants. The MQM-Altaf alleged that the Government may have been responsible for some of the killings by unknown assailants. In a 1999 report, the MQM listed 10 persons, mostly MQM activists, that it alleged were killed extrajudicially by Karachi police between October 1998 and March 1999. Since the coup, reports of extrajudicial killings of MQM activists have dropped sharply. However, in September 2000, two MQM activists were killed, allegedly by government forces.

Police officers occasionally are transferred or briefly suspended for involvement in extrajudicial killings. However, court-ordered inquiries into these killings have resulted in few trials and no convictions. In general police continued to commit such killings with impunity. In February 2000, two police inspectors who were charged with killing a member of the Muttahida Quami Movement in custody were denied bail after the Sindh High Court determined that they had falsified precinct records and appeared to have committed the crime. Punjabi police killed Tahir Prince in February 1999; after his mother filed a writ, the Lahore High Court ordered a case registered against two police officers, one of whom was dismissed midyear on charges of corruption. Tahir Prince's family then accepted financial compensation and dropped the case against the two officers. There were no high profile cases of extrajudicial killing reported during the first 9 months of the year.

Police professionalism is low. New officers only receive 6 months of training, and many hires are the result of political patronage rather than merit. Salaries and benefits are inadequate. However, in August the Government introduced a comprehensive package of police reforms. Key changes include transferring oversight of district superintendents of police (DSP) (a rank roughly equivalent to a lieutenant colonel) from federally appointed district commissioners to elected district mayors; granting DSPs permission to order the use of live fire on their own authority; and the establishment of public safety commissions at the district level. Under this system, a police officer who believes that the district mayor is abusing his authority over local law enforcement will have a place to seek redress.

There were at least two high profile killings during 2000. In January 2000, unknown assailants killed the chief justice designate of the Baluchistan High Court; it is likely that the killing was a personal vendetta. In March 2000, unknown assailants killed Iqbal Raad, one of the defense lawyers for former Prime Minister Sharif. However, many observers believe that Raad's involvement in the Sharif trial was not a factor in his death. Although there were no reports of politically prominent Afghans being targeted for killings during the year, local newspapers reported that more than 10 politically prominent Afghans were killed during 2000 (see Section 2.d.). Afghans attributed some of these killings to personal rather than political disputes. The police did not arrest anyone in connection with these killings.

Politically motivated and sectarian violence continued with several persons killed during the year. On January 28, Sheikhul Hadih Maulana Inayatullah of Karachi was killed by six unidentified assailants who intercepted his van while he was traveling to his school, Jamia Farooqia, a Sunni Muslim seminary known for its strident anti-Shi'a Muslim teachings. Local commentators believe the killing to be the work of Sipah-e-Mohammad, a Shi'a Muslim extremist group. On March 1, sectarian rioting in Hangu, a small city in the North West Frontier Province (NWFP), resulted in at least 10 deaths. Prior to the riots, the Sunni Muslim extremist group Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan (SSP) had arranged prayer gatherings throughout the NWFP for SSP activist Haq Nawaz, who was executed on February 28 for the 1990 killing of the leader of the Iranian cultural center in Lahore. SSP activists reportedly left one of these gatherings and proceeded to Hangu's main shopping area where they shot and killed three Shi'a shopkeepers and one Sunni bystander, among others. On March 4, between 12 and 16 persons, including 2 police officers, were killed when 4 men opened fire in an Imambargah (a Shi'a mosque) in Sheikhupura. On May 18, a vehicle carrying Saleem Qadri, the leader of the Sunni Tehrik Party, and seven others, was attacked by six men with automatic weapons. Qadri and the others had been on their way to Friday prayers in Karachi. The Sunni Tehrik Party is a mid-sized Sunni Muslim extremist organization with a reputation for carrying out bombings, shootings, and other acts of violence. Local commentators speculated that rival Sunni extremist groups, including the Jaish-e-Mohammad and the SSP, may have ordered Qadri's killing. On July 26, Shaukat Raza, a Shi'a Muslim and CEO of Pakistan State Oil, was killed in Karachi, most likely by Sunni Muslim extremists. On July 28, Siddique Khan Kanju, a Shi'a Muslim and former Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, was killed in district Lodhran, Punjab, most likely by Sunni Muslim extremists. On August 27, unknown assailants shot and killed a Shi'a Muslim Deputy Superintendent of Police, Kausar Abbas Shah Gillani, in Bahawalpur, Punjab. On December 21, unknown assailants shot and killed Ehtehshamuddin Haider, brother of Interior Minister Moinuddin Haider, as he left work at the Fatimid Hospital Foundation in Karachi. Some have speculated that he was killed in response to the Interior Minister's crackdown on extremist groups. A police investigation was underway but no arrests had been made in connection with the case by year's end.

On October 28, three assailants shot and killed a police officer on guard outside of St. Dominic's church in Bahawalpur during Protestant services at the church; they then entered the church, closed its doors, and began firing into the congregation. Sixteen persons were killed. Police arrested 18 members of the Jaish-i-Mohammad in connection with the massacre, although as of December none of them had been charged. Government officials stated that the investigation was ongoing at year's end.

There were numerous bombings during the year. For example, on August 20, 1 person was killed and 15 persons were injured when a bomb exploded near a communal water tap in the Dhabi Bazaar area of Lahore (see Section 1.c.). In 2000 there were many bombings throughout the country that killed more than 50 persons and injured more than 200 others. No one claimed responsibility for any of these acts; such bombings have taken place for many years.

More than 800 women were killed by family members in so-called "honor killings;" honor killings are a problem. Mehvish Miankhel, a member of an influential political family in Dera Ghazi Khan, allegedly was killed by her uncle in April. Her uncle had accused her of having an affair with the family's driver. A criminal complaint was filed against Miankhel's uncle, father, grandfather, two cousins, and two maternal uncles on July 7. All were granted prearrest bail and were not detained. In March 2000, women's rights activists told a local newspaper that the frequency of honor killings was on the rise. For example, on June 1, 2000, a man from Yar Hussain in the NWFP allegedly killed his 20-year-old daughter, Mumlikat Bibi, while she was sleeping. The father reportedly opposed his daughter's efforts to choose a spouse without parental consent (see Sections 1.f. and 5).

Tension along the line of control between Pakistan and Indian-held Kashmir was high during the year, and there was shelling in several sectors. A senior army official in Pakistan-controlled Kashmir estimated that approximately 150 civilians were killed on the Pakistani side of the line of control.

Initiating an education drive

What can be said about the state of education in the country when our universities continue to compete fo the scare funding resources made available to them  by the government. You have the academic staff that is not adequately paid and you have a curricular that has not been seriously designed keeping the challenges  and long-term requirements of the 21st century in mind.

The lack of well-qualified and highly-motivated faculty in our university  and colleges is a common problem. Poor working conditions together with low pay scales and weak incentives have contributed to the brain drain form our seats of learning. The scenario becomes even more depressing when our educational institutions do not offer opportunities to our youngster and he young professionals to learn and expand their intellectual horizons. they are, therefore, unable to gain the valuable skills that help them in seeking employment or further their academic careers.