MQM-P worker killed in clash with PPP during election campaign in Karachi’s Nazimabad: police

By: Inter News on January 29, 2024 / comment : 0 NEWS, The Dawn News - Home

An MQM-P worker was killed while a PPP worker was wounded in a clash between the two parties during an election campaign in Karachi’s Nazimabad on Sunday, police said.

Gulbahar Police Station House Officer (SHO) Shabbir Hussain told Dawn.com that the incident took place outside the MQM-P office in the area when a PPP rally was passing through.

He said workers of both parties chanted slogans against each other before getting into a physical altercation that led to firing from both sides.

SHO Hussain said the firing led to the death of an MQM-P worker, identified as 40-year-old Faraz Ahmed Qureshi, while PPP’s Rao M Talha, 22, suffered a bullet injury.

“A mob surrounded the area following the shooting and vandalised two Toyota Vigos belonging to PPP workers before setting them on fire,” the official added.

Hussain said no arrest had been made so far and a first information report (FIR) would be registered after the MQM-P worker’s funeral.

Meanwhile, Police Surgeon Dr Summaiya Syed told Dawn.com that Qureshi was brought dead to the Abbasi Shaheed Hospital last night with a gunshot to the head. She added that Talha sustained a bullet injury on his left arm.

Mustafa Kamal holds PPP’s Asim Hussain responsible

In a press conference today, MQM-P leader Mustafa Kamal pinned the blame for the attack on PPP leader and former federal minister Dr Asim Hussain.

“This is the sixth incident in three months,” he said.

In December last year, the MQM-P had alleged that three party workers were shot dead by PPP “terrorists” during an election campaign in Karachi’s Machhar Colony. MQM-P Deputy Convener Anis Kaimkhani had alleged that PPP workers attacked the party’s workers.

Talking about the latest incident, Kamal said PPP workers were removing MQM-P flags at Nazimabad’s Multi Chowk Road and attacked party workers when they tried to stop them.

Kamal claimed that PPP workers left after a physical fight only to return later, “armed with Kalashnikovs”. He added that a video of the entire incident was available.

“When the PPP terrorists returned, they had four police mobiles with them. They came on Dr Asim’s call and martyred our worker,” Kamal alleged, adding that PPP workers fled after killing Qureshi and left their vehicles behind.

“This is the last time I am saying that I will not let my workers get harmed any more,” he asserted. Kamal further warned that the MQM-P would take the matter into their own hands if the state failed to protect them.

“Dying is not a problem for us […] we don’t have anything to lose,” Kamal said.

He also demanded that an FIR should be registered against Dr Hussain, alleging that the PPP leader was a murderer.

Saeed Ghani claims MQM-P workers ‘resorted to terrorism’

On the other hand, PPP leader and former provincial minister Saeed Ghani claimed that MQM-P workers removed wall chalkings and PPP flags from Karachi’s central district.

“All our banners and flags were burnt in North Nazimabad,” he said. “They even sent a cartridge to one of our workers’ homes.”

Ghani added that MQM-P “terrorists” also attacked a party meeting in PS-100 Gulistan-i-Jauhar and threatened PPP workers.

“They picked up the son of our KMC council member Taslim Shabbir and tortured him,” he claimed. “They even tore flags and banners in North Karachi and now they they have started doing this in the entire central district,” Ghani added.

Speaking about yesterday’s incident, the PPP leader said videos of the clash emerging now showed “who instigated the attack and resorted to terrorism”.

“The most unfortunate thing is that the entire incident took place under police watch,” he said. “PPP District Central President Masood Ahsan spoke to the SSP but when things got out of control he reached out to the Sindh Rangers,” Ghani added.

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Ahmed Shabbar — vying for ‘a green revolution in grey Karachi’

By: Inter News on January 29, 2024 / comment : 0 NEWS, The Dawn News - Home

EVERY street and corner of Karachi has a lot of colour and vibrance to offer, but there is a noticeable dearth of greenery in the metropolis. This is because little to no attention has been paid to environmental improvement of the city. However, a young face has thrown his hat into the electoral arena to achieve exactly that; turn the blues of this city to green.

Ahmed Shabbar, who is contesting independently from PS-110 in Karachi with the electoral symbol ‘roots’, which symbolise his environment-heavy manifesto, will be taking on another, more notable independent candidate, lawyer and activist Jibran Nasir, as well as Syed Najmi Alam of the PPP, PTI-backed Bilal Jadoon and PML-N’s Babar Anwar.

A physics student-turned-engineer, Mr Shabbar is contesting the election with the idea of ushering a ‘green’ revolution.

“This election is my first step towards building the ideology of green politics in the country. A lot of young people are a part of my campaign, so far wherever we have gone to ask for votes, it’s always the young lot to understand the ideology first. So, by the time 2029 comes, environment would be an integral part of Pakistan’s politics,” he told Dawn.

He believes that the environment or geographical area where humans are born not only determines their language, skin colour and other physical attributes, it is also responsible for the livelihood of the entire population, which means it needs to be preserved and cared for.

“Those born near the ocean or water bodies will most probably depend on fishing as a source of their livelihood. Those born in plain areas would be agriculturalists. Those born in the mountains might earn through dry fruits via fruit orchards or mining, and those born in the cities will take on jobs available in the urban space. Such distinct local economies go on to collectively account for our city, provincial and national economy,” he explained.

Mr Shabbar, who is a founder of Pakistan Maholiati Tahaffuz Movement, a campaign initiated to advocate for climate emergency, has built a seven-point election agenda based on an enviro-human-centric ideology where there is a recognition that humans are as much a part of nature as any other being or thing.

“Our ideology is ‘Nature First’ because it is the foundation of everything, whether it is our identity, the livelihood we earn, our economy and also foreign policy or global cooperation,” he said.

Professionally, Mr Shabbar worked as a Mechanical Designer Engineer at Aga Khan University for some years. Later, he founded The Environmental, a digital media outlet which is solely focused on the climate crisis. The website produces documentaries, short clips and explainers around ecological issues. Additionally, he is the CEO of GarbageCan (Pvt) Ltd, which is a social entrepreneurship with a vision to spread awareness about waste management and sustainable practices.

“And these skewed policies are based on greed, incompetence, apathy or all of them put together,” he said.

“Our national and foreign policies are based on similar environmental points especially when we consider infrastructure projects dependent on natural landscapes such as Gwadar Port, China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), RekoDiq and other cross border treaties such as Indus Water Treaty,” he said, adding that any environmental degradation would indicate ‘skewed policies’.

“I see politics as a form of negotiations for equal distribution of facilities,” he said.

Published in Dawn, January 29th, 2024

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North Korea fires cruise missiles off east coast

By: Inter News on January 28, 2024 / comment : 0 NEWS, The Dawn News - Home

North Korea fired multiple cruise missiles off its east coast on Sunday, its second such launch in less than a week, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said.

The missiles were launched at around 2300 GMT on Saturday and were being analysed by South Korean and US intelligence authorities, the JCS said, without specifying how many missiles were fired or how far they travelled.

“While strengthening surveillance and vigilance, our military is cooperating closely with the United States and monitoring additional signs and activities from North Korea,” it said in a statement.

The latest launches came days after North Korea fired what it called a new strategic cruise missile called “Pulhwasal-3-31”, suggesting it is nuclear capable.

North Korea is stepping up confrontation with the United States and its allies, but officials in Washington and Seoul say they have spotted no signs Pyongyang intends to take imminent military action.

Pyongyang is likely to continue or even increase provocative steps, officials and analysts say, after it made strides in ballistic missile development, bolstered cooperation with Russia and China, and scrapped its decades-long goal of peacefully reuniting with South Korea.

Earlier on Sunday, North Korea’s state media KCNA denounced a series of military drills conducted in recent weeks by US and South Korean troops, warning of “merciless” consequences.

“The reality that nuclear war exercises against our republic have been going on like crazy since the beginning of the New Year demands that we be fully prepared for a deadly war,” the dispatch said.

North Korea carried out its first test of a cruise missile with a possible nuclear strike capabilities in September 2021.

While UN Security Council sanctions do not bar the isolated country from testing conventional cruise missiles, South Korea’s defence minister Shin Won-sik condemned the recent launches as a serious threat to his country and beyond.

The latest launch came a day after a Chinese delegation led by Vice Foreign Minister Sun Weidong returned home following a three-day visit to Pyongyang, during which both sides vowed to boost tactical cooperation and defend common interests.

In a separate dispatch on Sunday, KCNA said a North Korean delegation headed by sports minister Kim Il Guk left on Saturday for China.

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Three touring cyclists face police misbehaviour, ‘torture’ in Sadiqabad

By: Inter News on January 28, 2024 / comment : 0 NEWS, The Dawn News - Home

RAHIM YAR KHAN: Police on Saturday allegedly tortured and misbehaved with three international tourists and cyclists from Italy, England and Iran, including a woman, in the Sadiqabad area on Saturday.

Police deny the allegations, saying the incident was triggered when police did not allow them to go to an unsafe area of Sindh. The tourists had shown an irresponsible attitude regarding their security and alleged that the woman tourists had first slapped an assistant sub-inspector who paid in the same coin, the police spokesman claimed.

The footage of the incident was posted on social media.

In the first footage, the policeman, later identified as Assistant Sub-Inspector Liaqat, is seen scolding the woman tourist, asking her to get up in anger. When she refuses to do that, he shouts, repeatedly asking her to get up but she refuses to do so, saying she wants to sit there. He snatches the camera from her while sound of slaps is heard.

In the second footage, recorded by the woman, the male tourist is heard, saying, “I want my camera back. This is unwarranted assault. I am calling my Italian Embassy and she has the Iran Embassy.”

Police deny allegations, saying cyclists were stopped from going to Kashmore, Sindh; tourists should follow police SOPs

He is also heard saying that he wants his logistics back from the police vehicle.

The woman tourist says, “I want to know why he grabbed his hair. All these people saw it. He grabbed his hair. It’s not good for you.”

She goes to the police van to show the policeman’s face in an attempt to expose him, telling him, “Shame on you.” In response, the policeman brandishes his weapon (Kalashnikov) in a gesture to threaten the woman tourist. She dares him to shoot her, saying “shoot me, shoot me”. The police vehicle is seen driving away from the hotel.

According to police, the incident took place on the issue of provision of complete security and not allowing the tourists to go to an unsafe area of Sindh.

Three international tourists, including Charlie West of the United Kingdom, Alex Sidney of Italy and Motahira of Iran, were cycling from Sindh to Punjab and they reached Sadiqabad on Friday night. Alex’s Instagram profile says that he has been ‘tallbiking’ around the world since May 2022.

After crossing the Punjab-Sindh border at Kot Sabzal, Rahim Yar Khan police claimed that they provided the foreign tourists with security and when the tourists reached Sadiqabad, they insisted on going to Kashmore district of Sindh near Guddu Barrage. When police stopped them from going to Kashmore for their security and made arrangements for their stay at a hotel in Sadiqabad on the National Highway, the woman cyclist allegedly slapped a policeman.

In reaction, an assistant sub inspector (ASI) also replied in the same manner but his target was not the woman but the male cyclist, a source in a law enforcement agency said. The ASI took his camera too, he added.

On Saturday, according to official claims, when the tourists planned to depart for Lahore, Sadiqabad Saddar police provided them with security. When the tourists refused the security, an exchange of harsh words occurred between a tourist and the ASI when they were having breakfast. The tourists also complained about misbehaviour of the police employee to the hotel administration.

Later, Assistant Superintendent Police (ASP) Saddar Khurram Mahesar and Assistant Commissioner (AC) Sadiqabad Hammad Hamid reached the hotel and ‘resolved the issue’.

After mediation, the police gave the Ajraks and Sindhi caps to the touring cyclists. AC Hamid told Dawn the matter between international cyclists and police had been resolved peacefully for the good image of the country.

Police spokesperson Saif Ali Wains alleged that international cyclists showed an irresponsible attitude about their safety and security and later a police employee misbehaved with one of the tourists.

“The international tourists should follow the police standard operating procedures (SOPs) while travelling in the province for their security,” Wains stressed. The international cyclists departed for Lahore at 11am, he added.

District Police Officer Rizwan Umar Gondal has launched an inquiry and departmental proceedings against the ASI.

Published in Dawn, January 28th, 2024

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Tribal customs hindering campaign of women candidates in Khyber

By: Inter News on January 27, 2024 / comment : 0 NEWS, The Dawn News - Home

KHYBER: Tribal customs and traditions are the main hurdle to three women candidates for general seats of provincial assembly in Khyber district as they run a restricted door-to-door campaign and focus mostly on female voters.

Shakira Shinwari, Lal Zaida and Naseem Riaz have filed their nominations for PK-69, PK-70 and PK-71, respectively, alongside 76 other male contestants for the three provincial assembly seats in Landi Kotal, Jamrud and Bara.

Shakira Shinwari and Naseem Riaz are contesting elections as independent candidates while Lal Zaida has the backing of Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf-Parliamentarians.

None of these three female candidates have so far organised any public meeting nor are their personal posters or banners anywhere in sight in their respective constituencies. Motivated by her family support and backing to try her luck in the February 8 general elections for the first time, Shakira Shinwari believes that she can be a better choice to raise voice for the legitimate rights of the otherwise political and economically deprived tribal women as all the former male lawmakers have failed to bring about a qualitative change in the life of local women.

Local elders look at participation of women in polls with sarcasm

“With my canvassing and persuasion, I also want to change the otherwise biased mentality of tribal men towards their womenfolk. Tribal men do not allow their women to get equal rights and have access to basic health and education facilities,” she told this scribe in a committed voice.

But in the same vein she acknowledged the challenges she was faced with in her electoral campaign in the male-dominated tribal society while also conceding that she herself would focus on approaching only female voters, the male members of her family would reach out to male voters as she was not able to pay visits to ’hujra and jumaath (mosque) for canvassing.

Naseem Riaz from Bara believes that concrete legislation is required for women empowerment as tribal women are lagging behind their male counterparts in this field and she is in the contest with the same objective.

“My main purpose of contesting elections is to financially empower tribal women as they are now entirely dependent on male members of their families. I will work hard for the achievement of these legitimate goals,” she told Dawn.

She said that financial empowerment of tribal women would not mean that she would be going out of her home for jobs but would rather focus on provision of profitable skills to them to make them ‘stand on their own feet’ while staying at their homes.

She was also quick to add that she had no intentions to challenge the local tribal customs. She insisted that she would rather focus on raising awareness both among tribal women and men to secure due rights for the tribal women while living a peaceful life with their families.

But her campaign too was hampered by the tribal customs and traditions as she admitted that she was approaching only female voters and had assigned the responsibility of contacting male voters to her male family members.

Both Shakira Shinwari and Naseem Riaz insisted that there was a lot to be done in improving the quality of education for tribal girls along with provision of better health facilities to local women as those were denied to them in the name of tribal customs and traditions.

Lal Zaida was yet to devise her campaign strategy and was in a ‘confused state of mind’ when she was asked about her decision to contest elections. “My focus would be on health and education” was her only reply through a male interlocutor when she was approached by this scribe to ascertain her campaign strategy and election manifesto. She is yet to make a public appearance or start approaching female voters.

Traditional tribal elders, who strongly believe in strict adherence to local traditions, looked at participation of women in the upcoming general elections with sarcasm and termed it a revolt against their authority.

“Our tribal traditions do not permit a woman to contest elections and challenge the authority of men but the current situation in tribal districts has taken such a turn that we as elders have lost control over our womenfolk as they take such vital decisions on their own,” said Malak Abdur Razzaq, a Zakhakhel elder, while indirectly referring to the abolition of the previous status of erstwhile Fata after its merger with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

These ‘harsh’ sentiments of a tribal elder were, however, rejected by Turab Ali, a young social activist, who insisted that tribal women deserved to be equally represented in the parliament as they constituted half of the region’s population.

He said that with no representation in the assemblies, most of the issues confronted by tribal women remained unresolved as male parliamentarians were least interested in giving any attention to those longstanding problems.

Published in Dawn, January 27th, 2024

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Pope hits fifty but India in box seat in first Test against England

By: Inter News on January 27, 2024 / comment : 0 NEWS, The Dawn News - Home

Ollie Pope was unbeaten on 67 at tea with England still trailing by 18 runs and struggling against a persistent Indian bowling attack in the opening Test on Saturday.

England were 172-5 at the break in Hyderabad after beginning the second innings behind by 190 after the hosts were bowled out for a mammoth 436 in the morning session.

Pope was batting alongside wicketkeeper Ben Foakes (2) after brief and disappointing spells from Joe Root (2) and skipper Ben Stokes (6).

Jasprit Bumrah and spinner Ravichandran Ashwin picked two wickets each.

Zak Crawley fell to Ashwin’s off-spin early but England raced to 89-1 at lunch after Ben Duckett defied the Indian attack with back-and-forth sweeps to keep the scoring rate above five per over.

Bumrah bowled a sensational spell after lunch to get Duckett bowled for 47, soon after the batsman survived an lbw call that would have likely been upheld if reviewed.

He then got veteran batsman Joe Root lbw for two to raise the volume of a raucous weekend crowd.

Ravindra Jadeja bowled Jonny Bairstow for 10 and Ashwin got his second after bowling Stokes.

India resumed the day on 421-7 in response to England’s first innings total of 246 and overnighters Jadeja and Axar Patel started cautiously, with just six runs scored in the first half-hour.

Root, who returned figures of 4-79, got Jadeja out and bowled Bumrah on the next ball but Mohammed Siraj avoided the hat-trick.

Leg-spinner Rehan Ahmed cleaned up Axar on 44 to end the innings inside the first hour.

Spinner Jack Leach, who injured his knee while fielding on day one and again on day two, took the field heavily bandaged and bowled just one over in the morning.

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With elections less than 2 weeks away, PML-N finally unveils much-awaited manifesto

By: Inter News on January 27, 2024 / comment : 0 NEWS, The Dawn News - Home

PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif unveiled his party’s much-anticipated election manifesto on Saturday, with the upcoming February 8 polls less than two weeks away.

Speaking at a party event in Lahore, he said that the PML-N’s manifesto has been prepared with “great efforts” and would be “fully implemented” if voted to power.

While the former premier recalled the PML-N’s previous tenures, saying there was “no inflation” back then, the detailed manifesto was shared by the party on its official account on social media platform X.

Nawaz termed the country’s economy as the most important aspect of the manifesto.

At the outset of his address, he said it felt “strange” despite him being ousted as the prime minister in 2017 and “political vendettas” against his party members, the PML-N was once again “preparing to contest elections and presenting its manifesto”.

If voted to power, the party vowed to provide the public with “cheap and increased electricity” as well as “speedy development”. Appeasing the youth, the party also promised to undertake several projects and schemes aimed at improving their skills and aiding literacy.

The manifesto was unveiled after the party’s political rivals, especially PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto, frequently assailed it for not disclosing its agenda despite the general elections being less than two weeks away.

“What kind of democracy and election is this where one party has a manifesto and another — which is pitting its nominee for the prime minister for the fourth time — says their [old] manifesto is [still] valid. They can’t even tell you that if they somehow get the chance again [to rule] for the fourth time, what they’ll do,” the PPP scion had said.

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