Chronology of Pakistan
February 2004 (Continued III)
Separate rolls for Muslim, non-Muslim voters
Feb 15: Justice (retired) Irshad Hasan Khan, Chief Election Commissioner, announced that all those Muslim voters who had applied for registration as voters in the annual revision of voters' lists, would have to submit a declaration about their religious identity, and separate electoral rolls would be prepared for Muslims and non-Muslims. A notification issued by the CEC said separate electoral rolls for Muslim and non-Muslim voters would be prepared as a result of Annual Revision of Electoral Rolls, 2004.
Dr Qadeer Khan suffers heart attack
Feb 15: The founder of country's nuclear programme, Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan, has suffered a heart attack, sources in the KRL hospital told Dawn.
NWFP quake death toll hits 24
Feb 15: Fresh tremors jolted NWFP again as the death toll of yesterday’s earthquake rose to 24 while 43 people, including seven children and two women, were reportedly injured. According to PTV, a number of people were killed and several injured in Mansehra, Batgram, Balakot districts in NWFP. An official of the meteorological department said three aftershocks registering up to 4.3 on the open-ended Richter scale had been recorded in Peshawar.
Basant claims 19 lives
Feb 15: The Basant gala-2004 claimed 19 lives besides leaving hundreds of others injured, as Lahorites did their way to record the deadliest celebrations. Lahorites also flouted all bans and continued to fire shots indiscriminately in the air. The usage of loud-speakers, pressure-horns, and the material prohibited for the kite-flying sport was also continued unabated during the extravaganza. For instance, no less than 40 people were severely injured as a result of air firing.
Guantanamo prisoners' release being negotiated
Feb 16: The United States and Pakistan are negotiating an annual review for detainees at Guantanamo Bay that could see some being freed , US and diplomatic sources told Dawn in Washington. Pakistanis are the third largest nationality with 82 detainees at Guantanamo Bay.
19 hurt in traders-police clash in Islamabad
Feb 16: Nineteen persons — 13 traders and 6 policemen — were wounded as a result of clash between police and traders in Aabpara Market. As many as 25 traders were arrested after a violent protest demonstration staged by the traders including their key-leaders, police said. The protesters expressed their annoyance against the humiliating attitude of Capital Development Authority (CDA). The representatives of the traders claimed that the DMA confiscated their goods after demolition of their huts and encroachments during a midnight operation without issuing any prior notice.
SC confirms MNA Junejo has fake BA degree
Feb 16: The Supreme Court confirmed that MNA Muhammad Khan Junejo held a fake BA degree and upheld the Sindh High Court’s decision to hold by-election in NA-236 constituency. Junejo is the first parliamentarian who has been disqualified by the Supreme Court for possessing a fake BA degree, while a number of other petitions are pending before the court on the same issue.
India hands over eight Pakistani youths
Feb 17: Moving scenes were witnessed after India handed over eight persons, including four boys, to Pakistan at the Wagah border check-post as a goodwill gesture to bolster the ongoing peace process. An official of the Pakistan Rangers told journalists that these persons, incarcerated in various Indian jails, had mistakenly crossed over to the Indian side during the last two years.
Dawn staffer shot dead
Feb 17: Two motorcyclists shot dead a marketing executive of Dawn, Lahore, Shaharyar Safir, 26, on Faisal Town Link Road in Lahore.
Pakistanis help Indian girl get artificial limb
Feb 17: The current environment of peace between India and Pakistan is also having a positive impact on the citizens of the two countries living in the United States. Recently, a US-based Pakistani charity helped an Indian girl get an artificial limb. Seven-year-old Akhila from Kerala had lost her right hand in an accident three years ago. In Houston, Texas, where Akhila was brought for surgery, the Non-Resident Keralites Association sought help from various charity organizations to help restore Akhila's hand. A Houston-based Pakistani charity organization, the House of Charity, offered to help and promised to foot all her bills.
Pak, US forces move against al-Qaeda
Feb 17: The Pakistani military is moving toward "hammer-and-anvil" operations with US forces across the border in Afghanistan for the first time to crush al-Qaeda fighters hiding in the tribal areas, Lt-Gen David Barno, commander of the US-led coalition forces in Afghanistan said. Pakistani military forces have moved into the tribal areas that lie along the Afghan border over the past few months for the first time in the country’s history amid dramatically improved cooperation with US forces, the general said.
‘Qadeer had terror links’
Feb 17: Dr AQ Khan is a fanatical Muslim and had links with terrorist organizations, alleges a French observer. Bernard-Henri Levy, a Jew who vilified Pakistan in his book on Daniel Pearl’s murder, in his article in the Opinion Journal, a page on the Wall Street Journal’s website ‘WSJ.com’, on February 17, says "We will come back to General Musharraf - and Pakistan being what it is, we will come back also to other generals and ex-generals such as Mirza Aslam Beg and Jahangir Karamat, both former army chiefs of staff. But we must not shift our gaze from the president himself, whose knowledge of Khan’s dark machinations no one in Islamabad doubts, and who, at the very moment of his confounding, celebrated Khan once more as a hero.
No govt can build Kalabagh Dam, warns Bilour
Feb 17: The senior vice president of Awami National Party (ANP), Ghulam Ahmad Bilour said in Peshawar that no government can build Kalabagh dam which is a controversial project. He said this was a fact that every government in Pakistan exploited this issue for diverting the attention of people from the real issues of health, education and employment. He said five districts of the province; Peshawar, Nowshera, Charsadda, Swabi and Mardan would be turned into marshland within 20 years of completion of the Kalabagh dam.
Schedule set for Kashmir talks
Feb 18: Foreign secretaries of India and Pakistan agreed in Islamabad to hold talks on peace and security, confidence-building measures and Jammu and Kashmir in May-June this year. This was stated by Pakistan Foreign Secretary Riaz Khokhar in a joint statement issued after his talks with Indian Foreign Secretary Shashank. The two officials approved the modalities and timeframe on the agenda of the Indo-Pakistan composite dialogue, resumed at the behest of President General Pervez Musharraf and Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee on Jan 6 on the sidelines of 12th Saarc summit."
Ex-armymen sought for Iraq
Feb 18: The US AID Mission in Iraq is exploring the possibility of engaging 330 ex-servicemen from Pakistan in security jobs for the next three years. The job contract involves a payment of more than 150 million dollars (over Rs9 billion) to all the ex-servicemen to be engaged, Dawn said.
Musharraf rejects N-site inspection
Feb 18: President Gen Pervez Musharraf has said that Pakistan would under no circumstances permit foreign inspectors to enter the country and monitor its nuclear weapons or civil nuclear facilities. "This is a very sensitive issue ... Would any other nuclear power allow its sensitive installations to be inspected? Why should Pakistan be expected to allow anybody to inspect?" he asked in an interview with the Financial Times.
Population growth rate at 1.96pc
Feb 18: The population growth rate of the country has declined to an encouraging 1.96 per cent, Population Welfare Secretary Shakil Durrani said while quoting the latest findings of the Federal Bureau of Statistics in Islamabad.
Per capita income to touch $600, claims Shaukat
ISLAMABAD: Per capita income would rise from $492 to $600 during the current fiscal year, claimed Finance Minister Shaukat Aziz in Islamabad at a ceremony organized by the Invest Forum. The large inflow of remittances to the tune of $4.24 billion helped GDP per capita to increase from $420 to $492 last year. The continued momentum of workers’ remittances is expected to positively influence the per capita level during 2003-04. According to the official data, remittances totaled $2.26 billion during July-January period of the current fiscal year, against $2.53 billion of the first seven months of 2002-03. Almost one-third of the population lives below the poverty line in the country, despite some elusive macroeconomic data on the external sector.
Elements fanning hatred warned
Feb 19: President Pervez Musharraf said strict action would be taken against elements involved in publication of 'inflammatory' material. The president told a delegation of Ulema and Mashaikh, who had called on him at Aiwan-i-Sadr, that the government would continue its fight against extremism and terrorism and deal strictly with anyone found involved in spreading hate material.
'Islamabad, Delhi on steady peace path'
Feb 19: Indian newspapers splashed the announcement of an India-Pakistan dialogue timetable on their front pages, welcoming it as a sincere step to steer a steady course to peace. The Hindu newspaper said that the schedule, announced yesterday after a first round of talks in Islamabad, would give ample time for their leaders to prepare, allowing a better chance of success. The Indian Express newspaper urged both sides to act cautiously so as not to lose the window of opportunity, as has occurred in failed peace initiatives in the past.
US hails roadmap for Kashmir talks
Feb 19: The United States welcomed the positive outcome of the Islamabad talks and hoped that it would lead to a lasting peace between India and Pakistan. The US Statement Department also noted that South Asia's two nuclear states had agreed to a roadmap for peace that will start with high-level talks in May or June.
N-leaks began in Europe: NYT
Feb 19: The selling of atomic secrets and equipment began in Europe not Islamabad, said the New York Times quoting experts who monitor proliferation and court papers. In an ongoing investigative series the Times noted that although Pakistani scientist Abdul Qadeer Khan has been "demonized" in the west but the "records show that industry scientists and Western intelligence agencies have known for decades that nuclear technology was pouring out of Europe despite national export control efforts to contain it." The proliferation has its roots in Europe's own post-war eagerness for nuclear independence from the United States and its lax security over potentially lethal technology, the paper said.
Pakistan evolving as free society: Bush
Feb 19: US President George W. Bush has praised Pakistan as a "country which is evolving, showing what is possible in terms of a free society, and an active parliament and, at the same time, honoring Islam." He said this in response to a question in a wide-ranging interview with the Middle East Television Network. Mr Bush said he respected religion of other people. "I'm a religious man myself. I believe we pray to the same Almighty God. I want people to know that I believe in peace. I want there to be peace."
No US commando involved in Waziristan operation: Maliks
Feb 19: No American commando is involved in the ongoing operation against suspected al-Qaeda operatives and Taliban in South Waziristan Agency and it is being supervised by the Pakistan Army alone. The elements propagating about Pakistan Army and American commandos’ joint operation in Waziristan are in fact trying to get political mileage out of it.
Bank officials make millions in yellow cab scam
Feb 19: The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has unearthed two scams in the banking sector involving key officers of the Habib Bank Limited (HBL) and the Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) Bank. The controversial yellow cab scheme, initiated during the first term of Nawaz Sharif, continues to haunt many as the NAB investigators have found irregularities in the recovery of yellow cabs. NAB sources told The News that the accused officers embezzled million rupees, causing a huge loss to the national exchequer by misusing their official authority. The investigations have been concluded and the reference would be submitted to an accountability court after the final approval by the authorities, NAB investigators said.
Deployment of troops begins in S. Waziristan
PESHAWAR, Feb 20: Authorities in the semi-autonomous tribal region of South Waziristan have begun deployment of troops ahead of an impending operation to flush out Al Qaeda and Taliban remnants. South Waziristan's administrator Mohammad Azam Khan told Dawn by phone from regional headquarters in Wana that they had begun setting up about two dozen check posts in targeted areas to check movements of suspected militants.
ARD leaders vow to dislodge Musharraf
Feb 20: A week-long protest demonstrations and hunger strikes on the call of Alliance for Restoration of Democracy in connection with the "Remove Musharraf: Save Pakistan" movement throughout Sindh districts came to an end.
Govt decides to deregulate textbook publication
Feb 20: The government decided to implement the March 2001 decision of the federal cabinet to deregulate the textbook printing and publishing sector in order to ensure availability of quality books at cheap rates. However, the decision will not entail abolition of the textbook boards already functioning in different provinces of the country. The decision to this effect was taken during a workshop on the textbook policy presided over by Education Minister Zobaida Jalal.
American Bar forms Pakistan body
Feb 20: The international law and practice section of the American Bar Association has announced the creation of a Pakistan sub-committee of the South and Southeast Asia law committee to develop and maintain strong links between Pakistan and America in the legal sphere. The creation of a special Pakistan Sub-Committee, which is headed by Mahnaz Malik, recognizes the need for effective communication and co-operation between the legal communities of Pakistan and America.
Malaysia names European nuclear ‘middlemen’
Feb 20: Citizens of Germany, Turkey, Britain and Switzerland were named in a Malaysian police report as alleged middlemen involved in the nuclear arms black market, citing the alleged chief financier of an international trafficking network. Police say the information in the report was provided by Sri Lankan businessman Buhary Syed Abu Tahir, named by US President George W Bush as "deputy" to Pakistani nuclear scientist Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan. The investigation was launched to probe allegations that a Malaysian company owned by Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi’s son manufactured centrifuge parts for Libya’s nuclear weapons uranium enrichment program. The police also alleged that Dr Khan sent enriched uranium to Libya in 2001 and sold nuclear centrifuge parts to Iran in the mid-1990s.
Plea against detention of N-scientists dismissed
Feb 20: A division bench of the High Court of Sindh (SHC), comprising Justice Anwar Zaheer Jamali and Justice S. Ali Aslam Jaffery, dismissed a petition challenging the alleged illegal detention of nuclear scientists of the Kahuta Research Laboratory as not maintainable.
Altaf proposes US-style federation
Feb 21: The Muttahida Qaumi Movement chief Altaf Hussain has said that provinces should be given the status of 'states' as is the case in the United States. The federal government, he added, should retain defense, currency and foreign policy only. Addressing party activists telephonically at Carlton Hotel from London, he proposed that representatives of the 'states' should have a role in formulating foreign policy.
Hatf-III missile handed over to Army
Feb 21: Assuring the world that the nuclear proliferation network had been uprooted in Pakistan, President General Pervez Musharraf ruled out compromise on the nuclear program. "Pakistan’s nuclear program is here to stay and being a vital national security interest, we will continue to develop our capability for maintaining minimum deterrence needs," Musharraf said at a ceremony to hand over the indigenously produced Hatf-III (Ghaznavi) ballistic missile system to the Army Strategic Force Command.
Indo-Pak commanders meet at LOC
Feb 21: Senior Indian and Pakistani army commanders met in Kashmir this week for the first time in three years to clear up a "misunderstanding", the Indian Express said. The paper, quoting unnamed sources in the defense ministry, said the decision to hold a meeting was taken three weeks ago following a "misunderstanding" in Kashmir’s Batalik region, scene of fierce fighting between the armies.
WB offers $10bn soft loan
ISLAMABAD, Feb 22: The World Bank has offered up to $10 billion in soft loans for water and power sectors over the next few years, Dawn reported. President Gen Pervez Musharraf has, however, indicated that Pakistan was willing to accept a loan of $3-4 billion over the medium term period provided it was lent under the international development assistance (IDA) terms.
New press laws rejected by PFUJ, APNEC
Feb 22: The executive committee of Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists and All Pakistan Newspaper Employees Confederation has rejected ordinances relating to press council and press laws. In an announcement issued by PFUJ secretary-general C.R. Shamsi, it was said the press laws promulgated by the government in the form of presidential ordinances had been made without consultation with representative bodies of journalists.