Pakistan defence products in great demand

Federal Minister for Defence Production Abdul Qayyum Khan Jatoi has said the country’s defence products have gained international recognition and are in great demand but lack of necessary funds is preventing Pakistan Ordnance Factories from further enhancing its production capacity.

Speaking to the media during his visit to the stall of POF established at the Defence Systems and Equipment International Exhibition which opened in East London Docklands Tuesday, the Minister said Pakistan is exporting small and medium arms to the Middle East, Africa and south Asia and due to its low cost but high standard, the ordnance is in great demand.

“We could increase our production capacity at least five times, but for that we require substantial funding of which there is presently a dearth,” he said

The Minister said Vietnam and Kenya are the latest countries to seek arms from Pakistan and agreement in this regard could be signed soon. He spoke of strong defence relations with France and said Pakistan already has several agreements with the European country.

Jatoi said the Government is fully aware of the requirement of its defence forces and has taken many steps to meet them. He said defence of the country could not be compromised or lowered at any cost.

The Minister also mentioned that during the course of the Defence exhibition, Pakistan will endeavour to seek fresh markets and thereby increase its defence exports.

Pakistan High Commissioner to the UK Wajid Shamsul Hasan who was also present on the occasion said the world has acknowledged the professional competency of Pakistani defence products and the defence industry is making big strides to attain further technological proficiency.

Defence Attache Commodore Asif Saleem said the participation in Defence events help the Pakistani defence industry to inter-act with other leading manufacturers and seek new knowledge and information about various equipments.

He mentioned that in 2008 Pakistan Defence exhibition held in Karachi, as many 22 UK firms participated which benefitted the Pakistani defence contractors and manufacturers.  Associated news agencies

Beauty of Democracy!

No gentlemen, not at all. How a deliberate act of mudding the clean waters of opposite side and causing a damage of credibility and harming the prestige of the adversaries can be held a beauty? If the politicians themselves are in the game of defiling each other how they can be expected to make the nation and country they lead secured of the stains of evils?

A flagrant condition, which got much bitter with the clamours of one of its ally, most recently occurred between the ruling party and main opposition party in the parliament can never be deemed to be the beauty of democracy as construed by one of the senators of PML (N). How amply the politicians may be used of disgrace even then casting dirty clouts out of the door to wash in public is only an insipidity but neither the democracy nor its beauty.

There are some basic things demanding unanimity and compatibility. Emergence of divergences in the ways to handle the problems is not unlikely but defending the ideological and geographical existence of the country, solve the problems proving to be hindrance in raising the living standards of the people must be a common goal of all without any dispute. Priorities of the political parties for addressing the national issues plausibly may be different. What is weird is to letting the situation go beyond the differences of views and policies and openly starting disrobing each other. Character assassination of political opponents has been since long a hobby of the politicians here. Political forces get loggerheads on petty issues up to such an extent that they do not hesitate in discrediting each other through vilifying and mudslinging. If major political players of the country ignore sportsman spirit and get engaged in combat in the name of the beauty of democracy then it is much better to abstain from such democracy because this childish attitude not only diverts the nation from single direction and harms its unity but leaves no chance for our dreams of becoming a prosperous and strong nation to come true.

The Quran lays a golden principle to follow:

‘Help ye one another in righteousness and piety but help ye not one another in sin and rancour.’ (Al Maidah:2)

Applying this Quranic canon on how to deal with the government. Actually performance, way of governance and deliverance is the basic criterion to decide whether to strengthen its hands or to try to lower it to the ground. If sincerity and devotion of the rulers is indubitable, defense of the territories of the country is assured, national assets are protected, country is on the track of progress, moral and cultural values are well preserved, law and order situation is satisfactory, security of life, honour and property of the citizens is guaranteed, facilities of health and education are provided to the people without any discrimination, basic needs of the life are available and in access of all the inhabitants of the country, then there remains no reason to imprecate the government in the name of democracy in which, as one of  its four pillars, opposition’s role is thought only  how to bring the government to its kneels.

And if the ruling elite is incompetent, deceptive and selfish, corruption and plunder is on its high, law and order situation is in its worse, lives and properties of the people are not safe, nepotism and favoritism from lower to highest level is a common practice, national assets are put on sale at cut prices, integrity and security of the country is at the risk, the government fails to stop hoarding of the stocks, black marketing, profiteering and is unconcerned that flour, sugar, pulses and grains and many of other basic needs are unprocurable in the market and the people have hard times to live, government is unable to stop unwanted meddling of the external powers which  endangers the freedom of the country and decision power of the nation, if cultural sway of the big powers is given an easy let, then it would be a facile if the role of a courageous opposition is not played. This condition, according to the Quranic principles, is ithm and udwan (sin and rancour), and very enough for the government to lose its right of getting cooperation and support. If the circumstances are reduced to such a stage then the dissenting voices and resisting the policies of the government is not for the sake of ‘beauty of democracy’ but becomes a moral obligation and religious enjoinment.

In the circumstances when national dignity and interests are put at stake it is the call of honesty, exercise of conscience and demand of patriotism that none from the opposition parties and the members of ruling party should fail to raise their voices against the damaging acts of irresponsible and incapable government. Apart from the difference of manifestos the opposition parties must be committed and resolved to play the role of a watchdog to keep the system of check and balance work properly and keep a vivid and a critic eye not to let the ruling elements go against national interest. Unfortunately we have very different traditions of the relations between the regimes in the power and their opponents. Ruling groups, forgetting the ‘beauty of the democracy’ always get vexed and come on tit for tat terms to drive the opponents to the wall. They are plunged in the evil efforts to disgrace all those who criticize the policies of the government and oppose it for the good. The opposition in our country also has not any enviable track record. It is subject to the exploitation. Mostly tamed, bribed or stoops to the tactics of the government. Expediencies or apprehensions overcome and the daring opposing voices gradually go passive. And all this is done in the name of  ‘the beauty of the democracy.’ The most current attitude of the main opposition party is the fresh proof of this. Munir Ahmed Khalili

Indian Hand in Balochistan

Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, while talking to media, has said the government would disclose evidence regarding India’s involvement in Balochistan diplomatically at the right time.

The minister said during the meeting between two prime ministers in Sharm el-Sheikh, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani effectively raised the issue of threats in Balochistan.

The statements from the ministers are simply bad old rhetoric and we are tired of these blabbings. What a nonsense about this right timing. Balochistan is smouldering and sentiments are angry and running high, and government is doing nothing but issuing statements over statements. From every minister to the top prime minister, nobody seems to be serious about this grave issue.

This is the right time. When an arm of the country is aching badly and the whole body is on fire, there is no question of right or wrong. Do it man, do it. Do it now. You should have done it yesterday.

Corruption Scandal: PPP Minister buys £4.3m flat in London

A top federal minister of the cabinet of Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani, who was quite recently the target of frequent lethal attacks in the National Assembly.

(NA) in its last session on account of his alleged wheeling and dealing, is said to have purchased a multi million pound six bedroom luxury flat in the heart of London.

Many Pakistani politicians do own flats in the Central London, including Rehman Malik and others. Now, this PPP minister is the last, not the least, addition to the list of a privileged class of politicians who own house or flat in London. Nawaz Sharif too owns a residential building at the Park Lane, facing the Hyde Park.

The huge house located adjacent to the Marble Arch area of London, has been purchased at a total cost of £4.3 million and the money was said to be transferred through a money exchange dealer based in F-10 Markaz. The money dealer whose name starts with “I” is said to have sent this huge money through illegal channels. The minister is said to have paid cash to buy this property instead of seeking any mortgage from some local bank, as it is usually done in Great Britain. Sources said that no mortgage was sought and the amount was paid in cash only to hide the identity of the minister who was buying the flat.

The political sources in London claimed that the money was sent in instalments through Hundi business, therefore the transfer of this money was not traced by the concerned agencies. The sources claimed that the minister could also face the serious charges of “money laundering” as he had sent the money in huge amounts through illegal channels instead of using the normal banking channels.

The sources said the minister, who is a member of PPP Central Executive Committee, had been visiting London quite frequently when Benazir Bhutto used to summon the meetings of his party men in 2007. The minister who used to live with some of the party people in London at their flats, was searching for a small flat since 2007 but his limited financial resources did not allow him to buy a flat there. The minister had also visited many places of London to find out a flat along with his political friends. The sources said the minister was always interested in buying a flat in London and he always talked with his friends how to buy a flat. His lifetime desire was fulfilled when he became a minister in the PPP government and he started minting money.

He was the only minister in the PPP government, whose stories of corruption had started making rounds in Islamabad. He even came under fire in the national media and the NA, but he always denied these reports and even vowed on Quran to establish his innocence. But, no one believed in his vows, which are very common in Pakistan to deceive the gullible general public.

The minister, who belongs to the suburbs of Islamabad, was so infamous in taking bribe and commissions in the deals that at one stage his name was at the top of those ministers who were set to be replaced and given some other insignificant ministry. However, Prime Minister Gilani, despite several vows to change this minister, never found a chance to reshuffle his cabinet. Rauf Klasra.

Ishrat Jahan was killed in fake encounter in Gujarat"

In yet another major setback to the Narendra Modi government in Gujarat, Ahmedabad metropolitan magistrate S.P. Tamang, has ruled that the incident in which Ishrat Jahan and three others were killed in June, 2004, was yet another case of "fake encounter."

In his 243-page hand written report on the encounter, Mr. Tamang has named the then "encounter specialist" of the Gujarat police, D.G. Vanzara, and others as accused in the "cold blooded murder" of the teenaged girl and three others.

Mr. Vanzara and several other policemen are already in jail in connection with the Sohrabuddin case which the State government confessed before the Supreme Court was a case of "fake encounter."

A special three-member team of top police officers of the State appointed by the Gujarat High Court for a fresh investigation into the Ishrat Jahan encounter is seized of the matter.

Claiming that Ishrat and three others were killed in fake encounter by the police officers for their personal interests, get promotions and gain appreciations from the Chief Minister, Mr Tamang appended a list of top police officers running into about two pages who he held responsible for the fake encounter.

Besides Mr Vanzara and his then deputy in the Crime Branch police, N. K. Amin, who along with Mr Vanzara was also arrested in the Sohrabuddin fake encounter case, the list includes the then Ahmedabad police commissioner, K. R. Kaushik, the then chief of the Crime Branch, P. P. Pandey, another alleged encounter specialist Tarun Barot and a host of other senior police officers.

Mr Tamang’s report said the Crime Branch police "kidnapped" Ishrat and three others from Mumbai on June 12 and brought them to Ahmedabad. The four were killed on the night of June 14 in police custody, but the police claimed that an "encounter" took place on the morning of June 15 near Kotarpur water works on the outskirts of Ahmedabad.

The rigor mortis that had set in clearly indicated that Ishrat died between 11 p.m. and 12 midnight the previous night and the police apparently pumped bullets into her body to substantiate the encounter theory.

It said the explosives, rifles, and other weapons allegedly found in their car were all “planted” by the police after the encounter.

The police had then claimed that Ishrat, a resident of Mumbra near Mumbai, and three others Javed Sheikh, a convert son of Gopinath Pillai of Kerala and two Pakistani citizens Amzad Ali Rana and Jishan Jauhar were connected with Pakistan-based terror group Lashkar-e-Taiba, and were coming to Gujarat to assassinate Mr. Modi to avenge the 2002 communal riots.

Indian uranium diplomacy

Energy-starved India, armed with permission to buy atomic fuel from around the world after the end of a three-decade ban, is courting new partners alongside old friends in its global hunt for uranium.

The strategy, spelt out in a government paper published last week, will see New Delhi reach out to Mongolia, Namibia and Kazakhstan besides traditional allies like Russia in its search for the ore that is refined into nuclear fuel.

At present, India gets less than three percent of its energy from atomic power, but aims to more than double its current capacity to 10,000 megawatts by 2012.

Though India's own uranium deposits are estimated at 70,000-100,000 tonnes, ‘it is too little when considering the huge energy needs’ of a fast-developing country with a billion-plus people, S.K. Malhotra, a spokesman for the department of atomic energy, told AFP.

‘The quality of ore is also not very good, which is why we need to import.’

Attempts to find new domestic deposits and recover existing ones have also been slow due to red tape and opposition from environmental lobbies and other groups.

Evidence of New Delhi's ‘uranium diplomacy’ kicking into gear came last week when India hosted Namibian President Hifikepunye Pohamba and signed a pact enabling uranium sales to India as well as investment in Namibian mining.

The southern African country is ranked among the top producers of uranium behind Canada, Kazakhstan and Australia, with output representing about 10 percent of the world's production.

Indian President Pratibha Patil also made a week-long visit to the Central Asian republic of Tajikistan and to long-term ally Russia -- a supplier of nuclear fuel that has also been involved in the construction of atomic power plants in India.

‘Tajikistan is looking for partners in uranium mining and India sees this as an opportunity,’ a senior government official told AFP.

India has already signed nuclear fuel import pacts with France and Russia.

The moves follow India clinching a landmark accord with the United States last year resulting in the removal of a 34-year-old embargo on sales of civilian atomic technology.

India also obtained a rare exemption from the 46-member Nuclear Supplier Group (NSG) that controls global atomic commerce allowing it to buy nuclear fuel and power plants to boost its electricity production.

The NSG normally restricts such sales to countries that have signed the nuclear non-proliferation treaty, which India has not, though major supplier Australia has said it will keep its export embargo in place.

‘Australia understands India's security needs and wants to be a partner with provision of coal and liquefied natural gas,’ said Australian Deputy Prime Minister Julia Gillard in India last week as she defended the ban.

But New Delhi reaped the first tangible benefits of the end of its pariah status last week with the restart of the 20-megawatt Rajasthan atomic power station using uranium concentrates from France.

The plant in western India is one of 17 operating reactors in the country but had been shut for about a year due to a critical shortage of fuel.

A foreign ministry official noted that Indian endeavours to close deals on uranium dovetailed with its policy to have a mix of energy sources including solar, hydro and nuclear power besides oil, gas and coal.

‘India's energy requirements are so huge we need to tap all sources. Just because we are looking for nuclear fuel does not mean we have abandoned the search for oil and gas assets. These strands run concurrently,’ he said.

But the hunt for resources is a challenge because strategic and economic rival China has repeatedly outbid India in Africa, Central Asia and Myanmar.

In Namibia, for example, India will face competition from Chinese, Russian and Western companies who are also interested in the country's rich deposits as governments around the world invest in nuclear power.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) expects that at least 70 nuclear power stations will be built around the world in the next 15 years.

‘It's a challenge for Indian diplomacy to see that the civilian nuclear programme is kept on track,’ said former foreign secretary Shashank, who uses one name.

India-USA Strategic partnership

NRO: Jahanaam Naseeb Maan

Khareed o Farookht ka Bazar : An article by Orya Maqbool Jaan

Threat to NATO supplies and Baluchistan game plan

At least 15 oil tankers, trailers and containers caught fire in Chaman on Sunday night after a blast in a vehicle carrying supplies for Nato forces in Afghanistan.

Hundreds of vehicles have been stuck in the border town over the past two days because of suspension of traffic between Pakistan and Afghanistan.

According to sources, the powerful explosion took place in an old tanker parked near the Chaman bypass. The tanker caught fire which spread and engulfed other vehicles.

“Flames of the fire can be seen from miles. About 15 vehicles caught fire after the powerful explosion in a tanker,” official sources said, adding that efforts were under way to save other vehicles.

A police official said heavy gunfire was heard in the parking area before the blast.

Police sources said the explosion might have been caused by a bomb placed under the tanker carrying fuel.

Fire-tenders could not control the blaze till late in the night.

According to the police sources, an earlier attempt to blow up an oil tanker had been foiled by defusing a bomb.

Meanwhile, movement of goods between the two countries remained suspended with vehicles stranded on both sides of the border.

Negotiations between Pakistani border authorities and Afghan traders provided no result because Frontier Corps officials refused to allow trucks carrying fresh fruit and other goods into Pakistan without proper inspection.

Sources said the negotiations continued for two hours.

FC officials said that in view of the possible illegal movement of weapons, drugs and people they could not allow trucks into Pakistan without proper checks.

On April 4, authorities in Quetta had found 50 bodies and 60 unconscious Afghans crammed in a container.

Afghan traders said that trucks carrying fresh fruit should be exempted from checking.

The sources said that Afghan border officials had not contacted Pakistani officials in Chaman to discuss the issue.

Afghan officials, in the meanwhile, have stopped entry of all kinds of vehicles from Pakistan.

“Around 500 trucks and trailers loaded with Nato supplies are waiting in Chaman for the opening of the border,” the sources said.

Transit goods could not be loaded onto trucks at the Chaman railway station because of the border closure.

A large number of trucks are waiting for the opening of border on the Afghan side in Spin Buldak.

The Chaman Chamber of Commerce and Industry has expressed concern over the situation and called upon the Pakistani and Afghan officials to take urgent steps to resolve the issue.