Chronology of Pakistan
August 2003 (Continued II)
MMA slams Balochistan governor's appointment
Aug 8: The Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal criticized the appointment of what it termed "an imported" provincial governor in Balochistan. Reacting to the appointment of Owais Ghani as Balochistan's governor, MMA's deputy parliamentary leader and vice-president of JUI-F Hafiz Hussain Ahmed said that while the alliance was desirous of the removal/replacement of the NWFP governor, it would "resist such a decision" in Balochistan.
Power tariffs to be cut by 2005-06, World Bank told
Aug 8: The government informed the World Bank that power tariffs could be reduced considerably by 2005-06 after the country attained sufficient hydro-electric power production capacity. Sources told Dawn that the visiting Vice-President of the World Bank Mr Praful C. Patel, who held talks with authorities here, was informed that 1,450- MW Ghazi Barotha hydro power project was being inaugurated by President Gen Pervez Musharraf on Aug 19 in this regard. He was also informed that within the next two years, the project would start full power production, reversing the current ratio of 70:30 thermal power/hydel power generation into 70:30 hydel power/thermal power.
US charges Pakistani with aiding al-Qaeda
Aug 8: The US authorities charged a Pakistani man with conspiring to provide money and assistance to al Qaeda. The US Attorney in Manhattan (New York) charged Uzair Paracha, who has been held as a material witness since his secret arrest in New York in late March, with conspiring to help a member of al Qaeda enter the United States illegally. If convicted, Paracha faces up to 15 years in prison and a maximum fine of $ 250,000.
Shahbaz made to wait for hours at Pak consulate
Aug 8: Shahbaz Sharif, former chief minister of Punjab, had to wait for hours to get his "power of attorney" attested by the Pakistani Consulate General in New York. After waiting for hours, when he saw that his basic right as Pakistani citizen would not be served, Shahbaz threatened to stage sit-in inside the consulate premises until his signatures and papers are attested, sources said in New York. The threat worked and his "power of attorney" was attested to avert crisis. Shahbaz needed to file a "power of attorney" with a court in Lahore.
MQM backs Musharraf on LFO, uniform
Aug 9: Muttahida Qaumi Movement's deputy convener Dr Farooq Sattar has urged opposition parties to stop forcing the president to divest his uniform. He was speaking at a gathering in Washington on the party's 25th anniversary. The MQM's leader said the present system was not ideal but "even an incomplete and moth-eaten democracy was better than no democracy." He also urged the opposition parties not to waste their energies on the demand for abolishing the Legal Framework Order because "even removing the LFO will not ensure that there will be no threat to democracy in the future."
Woman, 4 daughters shot dead
Aug 10: A woman and her four daughters were slain in Muridke in what police described as honour killing. The bloodbath was carried out allegedly by an uncle of the four sisters. Police said accused Shaukat alias Shooki, a quack, doubted the modesty of his brother's wife and four nieces (aged between 16 and 22). He entered their house in the evening and sprayed bullets on his sister-in-law Rubina, nieces Tayba, Shamim, Saba and Samina, who were present in the courtyard.
Killing part of plot to disturb peace: Muttahida
Aug 10: The Coordination Committee of Muttahida Qaumi Movement has condemned the murder of five brothers, belonging to Tableeghi Jamaat, who were gunned down on Jehangir Road Karachi by armed terrorists riding a motorcycle. It described the attack as a continuation of the conspiracies aimed at destroying peace in the city to materialize their nefarious designs.
Laloo visits Lal Haveli
Aug 10: Laloo Prasad Yadav, head of the Indian delegation, made a surprise visit to Lal Haveli and held a meeting with Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Sheikh Rashid Ahmed. Laloo Prasad said politicians of India and Pakistan should sit together to resolve mutual differences as other powers were taking advantage of tension between them. He called for more efforts for creating a peaceful atmosphere in South Asia.
Pakistan, India MPs call for peace
Aug 10: Top politicians of Pakistan and India called for resolution of all disputes through a dialogue and not through the barrel of a gun. They were addressing a two-day conference in Islamabad on understanding, confidence-building, conflict-resolution, arranged by South Asian Free Media Association (SAFMA). Pakistani and Indian legislators urged their leaders to learn from extraordinary maturity and wisdom exhibited by hostile European countries, which despite fighting two bloody world wars and being hostage to a bitter past spread over many centuries got united by shunning their lingual, racial and cultural differences. The majority of speakers from both the sides advocated mutual dialogue on the basis of principles agreed between Indira Ghandi and Zulfikar Ali Bhutto in Simla Accord in 1974 and between Nawaz Sharif and A B Vajpayee in Lahore in 1999.
Police use teargas, batons as power riot erupts
Aug 10: Several people were injured as police used batons and fired teargas shells to disperse hundreds of people, protesting against severe power outages in Model Colony in Karachi. The protesters gathered at the main market of Model Colony in the afternoon, burnt tyres and raised slogans against the concerned authorities.
Owais takes oath as new Governor of Balochistan
Aug 11: Former federal minister Owais Ahmed Ghani took oath as the Governor of Balochistan at a ceremony held at the Governor's House in Quetta. The Chief Justice of the Balochistan High Court, Mr Justice Fayyaz Ahmed, administered the oath to the new governor who replaced Gen Abdul Quadir who had resigned from his office on Aug 5.
2 Pakistani soldiers killed in US firing: Strong protest lodged
Aug 11: Two soldiers of the Pakistan Army were killed and a junior officer of a para-military force was wounded when fired at by the United States forces on the Pakistan-Afghan border at North Waziristan Agency. An official announcement said Pakistan "has lodged a strong protest with the US authorities over the incident." The official said: "The Pakistani forces were patrolling the Lawara picket when they were fired at by the US forces, leaving two soldiers of the Pakistan Army dead." This was the first incident of its kind involving US forces firing at the Pakistani soldiers on the border since the US-led military campaign against Taliban and Al Qaeda in Afghanistan.
181 businessmen evade Rs15bn GST
Aug 11: Only 181 businessmen in the country have evaded Rs 15 billion GST out of the total Rs 19.5 billion detected in just one year. Government records accessed by The News revealed the largest detection in tax history, indicating 69 of these businessmen belong to Lahore, with a detection of Rs 8.3 billion, and they face court cases. A countrywide audit exercise on 2002-03 tax record has detected Rs 19.5 billion GST evasion by businessmen, half of it in Lahore, they added.
Hotline for troop movement agreed: Afghan-Pakistan-US group meets
Aug 12: Pakistan, Afghanistan and the United States have agreed to establish a three-way hotlinein an effort to coordinate military movements and preempt a recurrence of yesterday’s incident in which US forces killed two Pakistani soldiers. This was decided at a meeting of senior diplomatic and military representatives of the three countries held at Bagram Airbase, north of Kabul. The US and Pakistani officials said the incident was the result of a mistaken identity wherein the Pakistani troops were taken for the Taliban and Al Qaeda elements.
Musharraf offers to facilitate truce in Kashmir
Aug 12: President General Pervez Musharraf has offered to facilitate a ceasefire inside occupied Kashmir if India reduces its troops in the territory, stops atrocities against innocent Kashmiris and allows political activities and free travel. The president, who was interacting with the visiting Indian delegation of parliamentarians and senior editors and writers at the Aiwan-i-Sadr, agreed with one of the Indian parliamentarians belonging to held Kashmir that the people of Kashmir had suffered a lot over the last so many years and therefore needed a respite while India and Pakistan sorted out their problems over Kashmir.
New Delhi rejects LoC ceasefire proposal
Aug 12: India rejected President Pervez Musharraf's proposal for an immediate ceasefire along the Line of Control (LoC) in Kashmir. "There is nothing new in the statements issued by Gen Musharraf. They have not been found effective in the past because Pakistan has continued to sponsor terrorism directed against India and provided support to cross-border infiltration," Indian foreign ministry spokesman Navtej Sarna told reporters.
Ukraine stops defence sales to Pakistan
Aug 12: Ukrainian Foreign Minister Anatoly Zlenko said his country had stopped supplying military hardware to Pakistan and wanted to discuss ways to enhance defense cooperation with New Delhi. When asked about India's concerns over Ukraine supplying Pakistan with military equipment, Mr Zlenko, who was on a visit to New Delhi, said it was done earlier on business interests "corresponding to our national interests" but now they were concentrating on trade and economic ties.
MPs asked to submit statement of assets
Aug 12: The Election Commission has asked the members of Parliament and provincial assemblies to submit statement of their assets and liabilities by Sept 30. The Election Commission in its announcement, said that it is mandatory for a member of parliament and of the provincial assemblies to file yearly statements of assets and liabilities of their own, their spouses and dependents before the Election Commission. The members who failed to submit the statement can be barred by the election commissioner to perform the function of MNA till such statement is submitted.
Local govts in Fata demanded
Aug 12: The All Pakistan Tribal Students Union accused the political administration and the bureaucracy of conspiring to force the tribesmen to resist the introduction of local government system in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas. The union said after its meeting in Peshawar that the president and the NWFP governor's plan to extend the local government system to Fata was seen by the bureaucracy as a check on its unbridled powers and it was trying to foil the plans.
US judge refuses bail to Pakistani
Aug 12: A Federal judge in New York refused to set bail for Pakistani suspect Uzair Paracha accused by the US authorities of aiding Al Qaeda terror network. Saying that Paracha was a flight risk so the judge refused request of bail by his lawyers who contended that since their client was an educated man he will be no flight risk.
President's uniform issue settled: Fazl
Aug 12: The issue of president in uniform has been settled and we have entered into an agreement with the government that spans over one year period, said MMA Central Leader Maulana Fazlur Rehman. Talking to newsmen at a luncheon hosted by NWFP Chief Minister Akram Khan Durrani in honour of South Asian Free Media Association (SAFMA) participants, he said our stance is that nobody except parliament has power to amend the Constitution and the Legal Framework Order must be brought into parliament. "Let the parliamentarians debate on it and express their will," he said. Fazl said we entered into dialogue with the government with an open heart and now their reply is awaited.
21 Indian children reach Lahore
Aug 12: A group of 21 Indian children arrived in Lahore on a three-week tour by special Dosti bus under a children exchange program for peace arranged by American NGO "Seeds of Peace". The children will stay with their Pakistani counterparts' homes for three weeks and will be attending a dinner hosted by the American consulate general.
Pakistan checkpoints attacked
Aug 13: Afghan militia fired rockets and mortar shells at Pakistani border checkpoints in the northwestern tribal district of Mohmand, an official said in Peshawar. Pakistani troops did not return fire, the official said. He said: "Intermittent firing" has been continuing in some of the areas since border tensions soared between Pakistan and Afghanistan.
FO denies hot pursuit report
Aug 13: Pakistan denied reports it had, allowed US forces to pursue Al Qaeda elements into its territory. "The report is incorrect and baseless," a foreign ministry spokesman told AFP. The FO official said that The Washington Post had carried a report that Pakistan had allowed the US forces in Afghanistan to pursue "enemy fighters into Pakistan," but he gave no details.
Woman judge named on Rwanda tribunal
Aug 13: Justice Khalida Rachid of the Peshawar High Court was given a formal farewell on the eve of her departure for Tanzania to sit as a judge on the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) in Peshawar. Justice Khalida Rachid is the first woman judge from the NWFP, who was appointed as judge of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda by UN Secretary General Kofi Annan on July 7. She will serve in this capacity for four years.
Asif Zardari acquitted in Sajjad murder case
Aug 13: Additional District and Sessions Judge Karachi South-VII Abrar Hussain F Memon acquitted Asif Ali Zardari from the murder case of former chairman of Pakistan Steel Mills Sajjad Hussain. "There is absolutely no evidence which may connect accused Asif Ali Zardari with the murder of Sajjad Hussain," held the ADJ while announcing judgment. The trial court judge announcing order inside the courtroom of Central Prison Karachi said the confession made by co-accused Muhammad Khan Chachar was not before a judicial officer but before the interrogation officers (IOs) DSP Anwar Zaib and Rab Nawaz of Special Branch.
Bomb, rocket explode in Quetta
Aug 13: Panic gripped the provincial capital when a powerful bomb and a rocket exploded with interval at two different places in the city. No loss of life or property was, however, reported. Some unknown miscreants hurled an explosive device at around 9:20pm in the premises of Fauji Foundation Model School near Shahbaz Town.
Properties of Sattar Lasi auctioned
Aug 13: The biggest sale of properties mortgaged as security for finances by Abdul Sattar Lasi Group was held through public auction under section 15 of the Financial Institutions (Recovery of Finance) Ordinance 2001 without intervention of court by Saudi-Pak Commercial Bank for recovery of its Rs1046.114 million loan (principal Rs 829.580 million and mark-up Rs 216.534 million). The public auction was allowed by the Supreme Court.
All MQM bodies dissolved
Aug 15: All the main committees of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement have been dissolved and replaced by a six-member ad hoc committee to purge the party of self-centred elements. The second major shake-up in less than a year was announced by MQM founder Altaf Hussain who also authorized convener of the party Dr Imran Farooq to take appropriate decisions for steering it back to its ideological moorings.
Pakistani envoy seeks asylum in Canada
Aug 14: A Toronto-based Pakistani diplomat is seeking political asylum in Canada, diplomatic sources told Dawn in Toronto. Dr Naeem Ahmed, vice-consul at the Pakistani consulate general, formally applied for asylum earlier this week. The Canadian government has informed Pakistan of the development. Dr Naeem Ahmed was posted here nearly two years ago for a three-year term, but the sources said he was recently transferred back to Islamabad. Instead of returning home, he opted to stay back.
Two injured in Afghan shelling
Aug 15: Afghan troops fired mortar shells on Pakistani observatory posts in the Mohmand region, wounding two civilians, including a woman, press reports said.
The reports said Afghan militia targeted Pakistani posts with rockets and mortar shells in Sam Ghakhi, Kodakhel and Faqirabad areas near the border.
Saeed Anwar announces retirement
Aug 15: Former Pakistan skipper and opening batsman Saeed Anwar announced his retirement from the international cricket, Geo news channel reported. Announcing his retirement, the seasoned batsman said he was not needed for the Pakistan team. The future team for the next year was already formed, so I have decided to get retire from cricket, he said.
US regrets killing of soldiers: Powell speaks to Musharraf
Aug 16: US Secretary of State Colin Powell offered regrets to President Pervez Musharraf over the death of two Pakistani soldiers who were killed in US troops firing on the Pakistan-Afghanistan border , the foreign ministry said. A ministry statement said the regrets were expressed in a telephone conversation in what seemed to be the highest-level contact between the two sides a day after the president had called the incident in the North Waziristan agency as "unacceptable" and demanded an inquiry to fix responsibility.