Chronology of Pakistan
June 2003 (Continued III)
Altaf for LoC as permanent border
June 15: Muttahida Quami Movement chief Altaf Hussain has urged India and Pakistan to consider accepting the Line of Control as a permanent border. A hand-out issued by the MQM international secretariat says that speaking to party workers during the Silver Jubilee celebrations of the All Pakistan Mohajir Students' Organization, in London, Mr Hussain said it is in the interest of both the countries to think about accepting the Line of Control as the solution to the Kashmir issue.
Over 17,000 cases pending in SC
June 15: The Supreme Court of Pakistan disposed of 6,112 petitions and appeals from January 1 to June 13, 2003 while 17,529 cases pending in the court on January 1, 2003 and later another 5,480 fresh cases were filed up to June 13, 2003.
Ivanov backs Pak-India peace moves
June 15: Pakistan and Russia expressed their satisfaction over their bilateral relations and said the differences, which plagued their relations in the past are over, and both look forward to enhancing relations in future. Russia held out an assurance that it would support all efforts to see India and Pakistan resolve their problems. "The meetings that we held today were significant, and we saw that there are opportunities for the development of relations between Islamabad and Moscow in future," said the visiting Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov while addressing a joint press conference with Foreign Minister Khurshid Mehmood Kasuri.
US delegation visits Okara farms
June 16: A three-member American delegation from its diplomatic mission to Pakistan visited the Okara military farms to witness human rights' violation amid massive build-up by the Rangers to 'crush tenants revolt.' The farmers informed the delegation that the law-enforcement agencies and the paramilitary force of Rangers had carrying out atrocities to force them to quit their struggle for the land ownership rights. AMP chairman Liaquat Ali told the officials that the tenants of the farms had been held hostage by the Rangers who had besieged the farm villages with pickets and barricades to make entry and exit impossible. He said a number of people had lost their lives for want of food and medical cover at the farms. Meanwhile, the tenants took out processions in almost all the villages of the farms to demand release of their colleagues who were imprisoned in what they believe fabricated cases. They also demanded release of journalist Sarwar Mujahid who was charged along with the AMP leader under the Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997.
Rumpus in Sindh PA
June 16: An unprecedented protest by the joint opposition of PPP and MMA was witnessed in the Sindh Assembly during the budget session with non-stop pandemonium completely disturbing the proceedings and the budget speech of Sindh Finance Minister Syed Sardar Ahmad. The protest continued throughout the proceedings of the House by desk thumping and raising of slogans like 'shame, shame', 'No Musharraf No,' 'Go Musharraf Go', 'No LFO', 'No budget without NFC Award' and 'Jeay Bhutto'.
London Judge rules 'Paki' chant as racist
June 17: A man who joined in a chant at a football match in which the word "Paki" - short for Pakistani - was used has been ordered to be convicted of a criminal offence. In what is believed to be the first case of its kind to reach the High Court, two senior judges ruled that Sean Ratcliffe, 21, was guilty of taking part in chanting of "a racialist nature" contrary to the 1991 Football (Offences) Act. Ratcliffe had been among a group of Port Vale supporters who chanted "You're just a town full of Pakis" directed at Oldham Athletic supporters during a league match at the Port Vale ground at Stoke-on-Trent in central England last October.
Many Pakistanis face deportation from US
June 17: Over 13,000 Muslims, many of them Pakistanis, found to be living illegally in the United States during the special US Immigration registration process, are expected to be deported by authorities, Dawn reported from New York.
PPP briefs Washington on LFO issue
June 17: The Pakistan People's Party (PPP) submitted a brief to the White House that describes the Legal Framework Order 2002, as infringing upon the principles of federalism, parliamentary sovereignty and the judicial independence. PPP Senator Dr Abdullah Riar told Dawn that he had submitted the detailed brief to the National Security Council on the instructions of the party leadership.
Rs 286.2m for Madaris
June 17: The government allocated Rs286.242 million from the Zakat funds for Deeni Madaris in the current financial year 2002-03 according to a press release issued by the Ministry of Religious Affairs, Zakat and Ushr.
Senate reposes confidence in Musharraf
June 17: The Senate passed a resolution expressing confidence in the leadership of President General Pervez Musharraf during his visit to Britain, France, Germany and the United States. The resolution was read out by PML-QA Senator Sarwar Khan Kakar and adopted unanimously without opposition after Senator Babar Khan Ghouri introduced an amendment in the resolution. The amendment expressed gratitude of the Upper House to the president for giving it powers to discuss the money bill. The opposition was not present in the house when the resolution was adopted.
Indian MPs arrive with peace message
June 17: Six Indian MPs crossed into Pakistan on an unofficial visit to spur peace moves between the rival neighbors after a 17-month freeze in bilateral relations. Talking to media men in Lahore after crossing the Wagah border, Indian parliamentarians leader Kuldip Nayyar stressed the need for abolishing visa restriction for the citizens of Pakistan and India saying air, road and train links should be restored on permanent basis between the two countries.
Disqualification references filed against 35 MPs
June 17: Chairman Awami Himayat Tehrik Pakistan, Maulvi Syed Iqbal Haider filed two separate constitutional references with chairman Senate and speaker National Assembly seeking disqualification of 35 Parliamentarians belonging to Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA). Haider has challenged the basic qualification of seven Senators including Maulana Shah Ahmed Noorani, Maulana Samiul Haque, Azizullah, Sahibzada Khalid Jan, Maulana Rahat Hussain Shah, Hihayat Ullah and Maulvi Agha Muhammad. He has also challenged the qualification of 28 Members of National Assembly.
Shahbaz declared PO by ATC
June 17: An Anti-Terrorism Court in Lahore declared former Punjab chief minister Mian Shahbaz Sharif and former SHO Muslim Town Police Station Babar Ashraf Ansari proclaimed offender. The process server informed the court that non-bailable arrest warrants of both Shahbaz Sharif and Babar Ashraf could not be served as they had gone abroad.
PPPP moves High Treason Bill in Senate
June 17: The Pakistan People's Party Parliamentarians (PPPP) sought punishment for those who "subvert the Constitution" by condemning them as "traitors in the register of shame and horror". PPPP's Farhatullah Babar moved "High Treason Bill" in the Senate on the private members day.
Anti-Thal Canal rallies in interior Sindh
June 17: Interior of Sindh witnessed massive protests against construction of the Thal Canal. Different political parties, responding the call of 'Anti-Thal Canal Action Committee', organized demos, rallies, sit-ins and hunger strikes in Sukkur, Shikarpur, Jacobabad, Ghotki, Pano Aqil, Kandhkot and other parts of the interior Sindh to show their opposition to the Thal Canal. The Anti-Thal Canal Action Committee was recently formed in Hyderabad to launch a combined drive against the canal. The action committee is being supported by political parties including the Pakistan Peoples Party Parliamentarian (PPPP), Jamait Ulema-e-Islam (JUI), Awami Tehreek, Jeay Sindh Qaumi Mahaz (JSQM), Jeay Sindh Tarraqi Pasand Party (JSTPP) and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz.
Tale of Rs 18 billion written-off loans
June 18: The Jamali government informed the National Assembly Secretariat that Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain, Pervez Elahi and their families were among well over 1,000 influential businessmen and army men who got Rs 18 billion loans written-off from the government owned banks during the three years of the military government. According to the list of such people whose loans and principle amounts were written-off during the last three years, National Bank of Pakistan wrote off billion of rupees from taxpayers accounts. Most of the loans written-off went to the Textile and industrial giants of the country owned by mighty businessmen, politically influential, former bureaucrats and military officers.
India blocks Pak entry into Asean Regional Forum
June 18: India blocked Asean's push for Pakistan to join Asia-Pacific's top security grouping, according to delegates attending the Asean Regional Forum (ARF) Phnom Pehn. The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) earlier in the week agreed to lift the moratorium on ARF membership to allow Pakistan to become a part of the 23-member grouping. Asean foreign ministers, who met earlier this week, recommended their position to the ARF, which includes their counterparts from the United States, Canada, the European Union, China, Japan, India, South Korea and Russia, among others. But Indian Foreign Minister Yashwant Sinha at the ARF meeting raised a "procedural" matter regarding Pakistan's membership, saying there was a need for more discussions, one delegate said.
'Strong Pakistan in India's interest'
June 18: A delegation of Indian parliamentarians in Lahore urged Pakistan to reciprocate Indian government's move of according Pakistan the most-favored nation (MFN) status, in order to help bring prosperity and alleviate poverty in this part of the world. However, their Pakistani hosts -- the local business community -- called for solution to all problems, including that of the right to self-determination to Kashmiris in accordance with the United Nations resolutions. They were of the view that these problems were thwarting normalisation of Pak-Indian relations. Addressing a reception hosted by Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Indian parliamentarian Kuldip Nayer, in line with Indian foreign office, insisted that Pakistan should end "cross-border terrorism" -- an allegation always denied by Pakistan.
'Govt striving to build modern, tolerant Islamic state'
June 18: President General Pervez Musharraf said his government is striving to make Pakistan a modern, tolerant, progressive and enlightened Islamic state. He was speaking at a dinner hosted in his honour by Lord Chancellor Lord Faulkner at Lancaster House in London. Pakistan, he said, was an 'important bridge between the Islamic world and the West'. "The vision has guided us and motivated our endeavors in the past three years," said the President.
Rumpus in Punjab PA as opposition boycott continues
June 18: Pandemonium ruled the Punjab Assembly when the members from both the sides chanted anti-Pervaiz Elahi (Punjab Chief Minister) and pro-Pervaiz Elahi slogans leading to the boycott of the opposition members.
Political disputes hit US-Muslims ties: Musharraf terms it unfortunate
June 19: President Pervez Musharraf said that the war on Iraq had done lasting damage to America's relations with the Muslim world because political disputes had taken the "colour of a religious dispute" as a consequence. In an interview with the Financial Times published in its US edition, Gen Musharraf, when asked "Do you think the Iraq war did lasting damage to America's relations with the Muslim world?", said: "Yes. It has certainly aroused the feelings of the Muslim world. Unfortunately, all that is happening around the world, all the political disputes - one talks of Kosovo or Bosnia or Chechnya or Palestine or Afghanistan or Kashmir or Iraq - involve Muslims."
F-16 issue still unresolved
June 19: Despite reports in Pakistani and Indian newspapers about the possible sale of F-16s to Pakistan, there appears at least for now to be no consensus on the subject among officials of the Bush administration, Dawn reported. There has been some speculation within top levels of the Pakistani establishment that an F-16 deal through a 'third party', perhaps one of the GCC countries, may be cleared by the US government. But reliable sources in Islamabad and Washington maintain that the question of America's agreement to any sale of F-16s remains unresolved. "Despite President Gen Pervez Musharraf's request for a new purchase deal on the F-16s and his saying that Pakistan is short-changed, the US government may not be forthcoming on this count," the sources said. The issue was raised at least once during President Pervez Musharraf's meetings with President George Bush in 2001 and 2002, but the Pakistani request was not considered.
ANP opposes Hisba Act
June 20: The Awami National Party opposed the proposed Hisba Act, which was likely to be tabled by the provincial government before the Frontier assembly during its on- going session. In a press release issued in Peshawar, party's provincial chief Begum Nasim Wali Khan, while chairing the ANP's provincial cabinet meeting, rejected the draft Hisba act, saying it was aimed at appeasing supporters of the MMA.
Accounts of 15 terrorist organizations frozen
June 20: The government has frozen Rs 621.41 million of 15 terrorist organizations and individuals in nine banks and has refused Income Tax exemptions to 10 NGOs, The News reported. The data on freeze action has duly been submitted to the international watchdogs on terror financing operating directly or indirectly under the office of Foreign Assets Control of the United States.
57 prisoners released from Afghanistan black listed
June 20: The Interior Ministry black listed 57 Pakistanis returned from Afghanistan during the last one year and directed the provinces to release the remaining 310 who have been cleared after several months of investigations, The News reported. A total of 367 Pakistanis have so far returned their homeland after the fall of Taliban regime, the report said. Most of them had crossed into the neighboring country to fight against the United States-led forces who attacked Afghanistan to topple the "fundamentalist" Taliban regime.
HR Watch urges Musharraf and Bush to end rights abuse
June 21: The US and Pakistani presidents should discuss democratic reforms and an end to rights abuses in Pakistan and reform of US laws and policies introduced after Sept 11 that infringe on the rights of non-US citizens, many of them Pakistanis, US-based Human Rights Watch urged. On the eve of their June 24 Camp David summit, the organization sent separate letters to President George W. Bush and President Gen Pervez Musharraf, urging them to make human rights a priority on their agenda. "President Bush is in a unique position to influence Gen Musharraf on Pakistan's poor human rights record," said Brad Adams, Asia Division Director of the Human Rights Watch. "And Gen Musharraf should question President Bush about illegal detentions at Guantanamo and post-9/11 immigration policies that have violated the rights of non-citizens."
Benazir's 50th birthday celebrated
June 21: Speakers paid tributes to Pakistan People's Party Chairperson Benazir Bhutto and highlighted her struggle for democracy in Pakistan at seminars and functions held throughout the country and in foreign countries to celebrate her 50th birthday.
Seminars in this connection were held in the federal Capital, Karachi, Lahore, Peshawar, Quetta and Bahawalpur. Abroad, the birthday celebrations were held in Chicago, London, New York, London and other European capitals.