Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa on Thursday said unresolved disputes in South Asia were dragging the entire region into debt and poverty, in a veiled reference to the Kashmir issue.
Addressing a gathering on the final day of the Islamabad Security Dialogue, COAS Bajwa said the national security encompassed more than just matters and affairs related to strengthening the country’s security forces.
“It included development and human security as well,” he said.
“We feel it is time to bury the past and move forward,” he said, adding that the onus for meaningful dialogue rested with India.
“Our neighbour will have to create a conducive environment, particularly in occupied Kashmir.”
— Islamabad Security Dialogue (@IsbDialogue) March 18, 2021
“The world has seen the ravages of the world wars and the Cold War, wherein polarisation and neglect of virtues blighted the future and brought catastrophic consequences for humanity,” he said.
“Today the leading drivers of change in the world are demography, economy and technology. However, one issue that remains central to this concept is economic security and cooperation. Frayed relations between various powers centres of the globe and boomeranging of competing alliances can bring nothing but another stint of Cold War.”
Congratulating the National Security Division on organising the dialogue, Gen Bajwa stated that the contemporary concept of national security was not just about protecting countries from an external and internal threat.
It is also about providing a conducive environment for ensuring human security, national progress and development, he said.
“We are trying, but India would have to take the first step and unless it does that we cannot move ahead,” the prime minister had said while inaugurating the Islamabad Security Dialogue.
Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman has directed the party’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) chapter to continue preparations for the March 26 long march to Islamabad, reports said Thursday.
A letter was written to the party’s KP leadership on Fazl’s directives, directing the leaders not to slow down the preparations. The letter said the long march has only been postponed until Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) makes its decision on the march.
Nine of the 11 component parties of the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) are ready to participate in the long march while PPP has sought time to make a final decision concerning en masse resignations, the letter said.
The development comes two days after the opposition alliance announced to postpone the long march after PPP linked its resignations from the legislative assemblies with deposed prime minister and Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) supreme leader Nawaz Sharif’s return — a condition PML-N termed out of the question.
“Nine parties [of PDM] were in favour of resignations along with the long march but PPP had expressed some reservations,” Fazl told reporters on Tuesday, adding the PPP would discuss the matter during its upcoming central executive committee (CEC) meeting.
A day earlier, Fazl held a telephonic conversation with Nawaz and urged him to return to Pakistan, saying with top PML-N leadership living abroad in self-exile, it was difficult to execute decisions taken by the opposition alliance.
After spending a year in prison, Nawaz, 71, secured a conditional bail in November 2019 to travel to London on the pretext of medical treatment and has since refused to return.
His party insists that despite being summoned by the courts, which declared him a proclaimed offender in multiple corruption trials, the former premier will only return after the completion of his medical treatment.
Hey, *|MERGE1|*. Its March 18.To make the platform safer for kids, Instagram will no longer let adults message teens who don’t follow them. It is a good first step but there is still a long way to go to make social media safe for children. What do you think?
It will be sunny in all major cities today!
Laila-The Current
MORNING MEME
Reform the electoral process
Prime Minister Imran Khan has requested National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser to “immediately” constitute an inter-party parliamentary committee in order to discuss electoral reforms and end the issue of corrupt practices in polls.
On the other hand, Minister for Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhry has said that the government will begin contempt proceedings against the members of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), including the chief election commissioner (CEC) if they do not resign from their posts.
Firdous Ashiq Awan lashes out at talk show host and other guests
Special Assistant to Chief Minister Punjab on Information and Broadcasting Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan lashed out at PPP’s Agha Rafiullah during Geo News’ program, Aapas Ki Baat, after which PML-N leader Mian Javed Latif walked out from the show.
The Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) has allegedly denied international veterinarians and animal experts access to Karachi Zoo and Karachi Safari Zoo elephants, preventing them from assessing their health.
On the other hand, KMC spokesperson Ali Hassan Sajid has refuted the claims saying that the elephants are in good health and that all this is just propaganda to raise ‘chanda’.
.
TikTok star Jannat Mirza to make her film debut with Saima
TikTok star Jannat Mirza is all set to make her film debut with a Punjabi movie Tere Bajre Di Rakhi, expected to release this Eid-ul-Fitr.
The movie has been written and directed by Syed Noor and features Saima, Saleem Albela, Shafqat Cheema, Mustafa Qureshi besides Mirza and other Lollywood stars.
On this day, In 1965 a Soviet cosmonaut and Air Force General Lt. Col. Alexei Leonov became the first person to conduct a spacewalk, exiting the capsule during a mission for 12 minutes and 9 seconds. This took place just days before the U.S. planned to launch its first two-man spaceship.
Current Baba’s prediction
Be cautious of unknown calls and messages, don’t believe in every message you get on your phone. No, you have not won 10 lakhs in Fahad Mustafa’s show and the Corona vaccine is certainly not a conspiracy against Muslims.
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Minister for Planning and Development and National Command and Operation Center (NCOC) chairperson Asad Umar has said the country has witnessed a sharp rise in COVID-19 cases, warning that if the standard operation procedures (SOPs) are not followed, the government will be forced to take stricter measures.
“Sharp spike in COVID positivity,” wrote Umar in a tweet. “Hospital daily admissions and people in critical care rising fast.”
“If SOP compliance does not improve, we will be forced to place stronger restrictions on activities,” warned the minister, adding: “The new strain spreads faster and is more deadly.”
Sharp spike in covid positivity. Hospital daily admissions & people in critical care rising fast. If sop compliance does not improve, we will be forced to place stronger restrictions on activities. Please be very very careful. The new strain spreads faster and is more deadly.
“The NCOC was apprised on implementation of various health guidelines as already issued to all federating units. NCOC was apprised that implementation on those guidelines needs comprehensive review. NCOC showed serious concern on rising disease trend and mortality rate,” read the statement.
“The forum was briefed that a sharply rising trend in disease is visible and positivity has crossed 7.5 percent. Almost all major cities have crossed 5% positivity,” it said further. “Provincial administrations have been asked to take immediate actions for strict implementation of SOPs.”
The NCOC added that “serious concern was shown on general disregard of SOPs by masses. Mass violations of SOPs and disrespect of orders including not wearing of mask, disregard of social distancing are widely reported.”
It appealed to the citizens “to display good example of social behavior and follow the SOPs in letter and spirit, otherwise, strict measures will have to be taken which may result into closure of business and restrictions on economic and social activities.”
The NCOC further said that COVID vaccination centers across the country will remain closed on Sundays and national holidays.
Later, Minister for Industries Hammad Azhar also urged businesses and corporations to strictly implement COVID protocols to avoid inconvenience.
تمام صنعت اور کاروبار اپنے SOP سختی سے لاگو کریں۔ کورونا کی تیسری لہر کا آغاز ہو چکا ہے اور SOPs پر عمل پیرا کرنے سے زندگی اور روزگار دونوں کی حفاظت ممکن ہے۔ https://t.co/47DMua5Qy7
According to the latest statistics, Pakistan has reported a total of 3,495 new coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours. This is the highest number of daily cases recorded since 3,795 cases on December 6, 2020.
A total of 61 deaths were reported in the last 24 hours. Meanwhile, the national positivity rate has risen to 7.8 per cent as the country battles a third wave of the pandemic.
Meanwhile, Umar on Wednesday also announced that over 41 thousand people were vaccinated the previous day marking the highest daily vaccination rate. Vaccinations for those aged 60 and above commenced on March 10.
Highest daily vaccination rate of over 41 thousand vaccinations achieved yesterday. Of these 28, 424 vaccinations were carried out of senior citizens. Please encourage everyone who is 70 plus to register to get vaccinated.
Hey, *|MERGE1|*. It’s March 17.I hope you are having a great week. We got a message in our inbox asking why The Current was named ‘The Current’. We wanted to give the platform a name that was young and cool and made sense in both English and Urdu – happening right now and something electrifyingly woke.
Today’s forecast calls for lots of sunshine, along with light winds in Peshawar and Islamabad.
Soak the Sun!
Laila-The Current
MORNING MEME
PDM March Postponed
Pakistan Democratic Movement has decided to postpone the long march until March 26. The decision came after Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) expressed reservations over resignations from the assemblies.
Zardari asks Nawaz Shrarif to return to Pakistan?
Former president Asif Ali Zardari has reportedly asked former Prime Minister Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif to return to Pakistan in today’s PDM meeting.
Zardari also said that “if we have to fight together, then we have to go to jail together as well”.
Reacting to PML-N Vice President Maryam Nawaz’ tirade, the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has dismissed her statement as an attempt to halt ongoing investigation against the Sharif family in Chaudhry Sugar Mills and money laundering cases.
A day ago, Maryam had questioned who gave the bureau the right to “judge [her] statements”.
NAB nay kaha kay unko lagta hai kay the PML-N leader was trying to cause differences among institutions.
Bride in Mardan asks for Rs 100,000 worth of books as ‘Haq Mehr’ ?
A bride in Mardan has asked her husband to give her Rs 100,000 worth of books as Haq Mehr.
Naila Shamal Safi is a writer and says that she wanted books to highlight their importance in our daily lives. Naila is a resident of Tangi area of North Safi Charsadda while her husband Dr Sajjad Jwandun is a resident of Bhai Khan area of Mardan. Dr Jwandun has completed his PhD in Pashto while Naila is currently pursuing her PhD.
Riz Ahmed becomes first Muslim to bag ‘Best Actor’ nomination at Oscars
Riz Ahmed, who played the role of a drummer who begins to lose his hearing in the ‘Sound of Metal’ created history by becoming the first British-Pakistani and first Muslim to be nominated in the leading actor category at the Academy Awards.
This is also for the first time that two Asian actors have been nominated in the Best Actor category. Nine of the 20 acting nods went to non-white performers, including Riz and a South Korean Yuh-Jung Youn of Minari, in what Variety Magazine described as the most diverse acting Oscars slate ever.
PM Khan uttered his golden words,“ Apne Ghabraana Nahi Hai”
Today on this day, last year Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan addressed the nation about the global pandemic for the first time. It was the first time he used his signature phrase “Ghabraana nahi hai,” meaning “not to worry”, ruling out a nationwide shutdown to contain the virus.
Current Baba’s prediction
Your patience might be tested today, lekin sabr se kam lein!
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Through your phone, add us by hitting the “Kabob,” (the three dots in upper right-hand corner). Then click “move to,” and select “primary inbox.”
If you’re using a desktop just drag and drop the email into primary as shown in the video below. (You can also do this on your phone if you open your email in your browser). Easy.
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The Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) has allegedly denied international veterinarians and animal experts access to Karachi Zoo and Safari Park elephants Malika, Sonu, Noor Jahan and Madhubala, preventing them from receiving medical treatment.
In a detailed post on social media, the Pakistan Animal Welfare Society (PAWS), which identifies itself as a body “promoting compassion towards all sentient beings,” detailed the ordeal faced by the elephants and alleged that the KMC has barred international animal experts from assessing the health of the elephants and treating them accordingly.
The animal welfare society also said that Malika’s health is in “dire straits” and requires “urgent veterinary care”.
“Her cracked tusks, broken nails, swollen legs and urine burnt feet are a testimony to the abuse she [has] suffered,” said PAWS, adding that one of Malaika’s legs is four times the size of her other legs and she appears to be unable to properly bear weight on any of her legs.
“When she walks, she hobbles along very slowly. The pads of her feet are cracked and have deep pits, which the Safari park management and elephant keeper claim to be ‘winter dryness’.”
Her plight, along with Sonu’s, Noor Jehan’s and Madhubala’s, the three other elephants in Karachi, caught the attention of the international elephant network PREN that issued a report about their captive behaviour and housing conditions. https://t.co/d9EAUHlxAx
— Pakistan Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) (@pawspakistan) March 11, 2021
PAWS said that UK-based animal rights organisation Free The Wild (FTW) offered to help the elephants and send experts to Karachi to assess the animals’ health and devise a strategy with the authorities on how to treat them. They have also been running an online donation campaign for them so that the government does not have to bear the expenses. The campaign aims to raise $30,000 and $17,637.55 were raised till the last update i.e. March 10.
According to PAWS, KMC management gave its verbal permission to Free the Wild and Dr Frank Goëritz and Dr Thomas Hildebrandt, two renowned elephant specialists to come and assess the animals’ health. They were scheduled to arrive in Karachi on February 23. However, the city government changed its decision last minute, denying them access.
On seeing Malika’s ailing health, Free The Wild @ftwglobal, a charity based in UK, offered @kmcpakistan free veterinary assessment for all 4 elephants along with capacity building and training for the keepers with no financial burden on the city government https://t.co/GkShsMVQX2
— Pakistan Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) (@pawspakistan) March 11, 2021
But the weekend before, @kmcpakistan changed their mind, saw it as an attack on their writ and made it into an issue of pride and egos.
— Pakistan Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) (@pawspakistan) March 11, 2021
PAWS said that they had several rounds of meetings with KMC officials hoping to work out a solution to ease the elephants’ plight but the city government “raised objections against fundraising” claiming “that it brings a bad name to Pakistan”. PAWS also told The Current that neither the Sindh Government nor government officials have made any efforts to help the elephants and keep shutting out the animal rights body saying that “the elephants are the ‘property’ of KMC”.
We were aghast, but not surprised, at KMC’s reaction, for they are the gatekeepers singlehandedly responsible for the cruelty meted to the elephants over the last 12 years. Still, we continued to engage with their officials to work out a solution for the welfare of the elephants.
— Pakistan Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) (@pawspakistan) March 11, 2021
PAWS urged the federal and provincial governments as well as Prime Minister Imran Khan to help the elephants and ease their plight.
— Pakistan Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) (@pawspakistan) March 11, 2021
In a statement issued by FTW, all four elephants – reportedly smuggled from Tanzania in 2009 – are held captive in small cement enclosures and chained at the feet for 15 hours a day. The wild animals are suffering from broken nails and lacerated feet due to cemented floors, cracked tusks and swollen legs from standing all day and not having any movement.
“All four elephants are showing visible signs of psychological and physical pain and urgently need our help,” reads the statement.
FTW further said that just as their vets were “preparing to leave Germany – with visas arranged, international flights booked, local accommodation reserved and, very importantly, medication purchased – KMC suddenly withheld their permission for the Free The Wild vets to enter the zoo and safari park.”
“We have arranged for Dr. Frank Goëritz and Dr. Thomas Hildebrandt – two of the world’s most renowned elephant experts and arguably amongst the most qualified specialists in regards to elephant behaviour and wellbeing, to meet Dr. Isma Gheewala in Karachi on 22 February 2021.” pic.twitter.com/TKwGWLW7gU
— Pakistan Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) (@pawspakistan) March 17, 2021
Co-founder of FTW Gina Nelthorpe-Cowne, while expressing her disappointment, said: “Words just cannot express how disappointed we are by the sudden lack of support. The trip was planned and even medications purchased. This is not only a major setback for the health of the elephants but also has wasted very valuable funds as the medications will expire and cannot be returned. I fail to understand why anyone bites a helping hand. This was at no cost at all to the KMC and not only would have helped these animals but also provided training for locals moving forward. I hope the petition will overcome these odd bureaucratic obstacles.”
The animal welfare body added that “we are not going to just walk away. We [will] petition Karachi courts and requesting an urgent ruling to ensure the wellbeing of these animals.”
Advocate Owais Awan, who was part of Kaavan’s legal team and helped him gain freedom while speaking to The Current said that they have no choice but to file a petition before the Honourable Sindh High Court (SHC). He asserted that the animals are suffering and need immediate medical care, which can only be provided by experts.
“I was shocked to see the state of the elephants,” said Advocate Awan. “Their enclosures and conditions were even worse than Kaavan’s. He at least had some space to walk. These elephants are kept chained all day in tiny enclosures.”
Advocate Awan explained that all four elephants are African elephants and that Pakistani vets do not have the necessary expertise to deal with their problems, adding that the team of international experts coming were not only going to check the animals but were also going to train vets and caretakers to take better care of the elephants.
KMC responds
Meanwhile, speaking exclusively to The Current, KMC spokesperson Ali Hassan Sajid trashed PAWS claims and said that the animals were doing fine.
“We have a team of vets looking after them and all the elephants are being cared for,” said Hassan. This scribe requested Hassan to share pictures of the elephants. However, they were not received till the filing of this report.
When asked about using vaseline to treat cracks in the skin – a matter which stirred outrage online – Hassan said that vaseline is applied to the animals’ toes and skin because it tends to crack up in the winters just like human skin. He said that the ointment was used to heal the dryness and proved to be very effective.
The spokesperson also launched a tirade against the animal rights body, saying that they are using the elephants to raise donations and collect money.
“Chanda akhata kar rahe hain yeh log sirf,” said Hassan, alleging that the body has raised $30,000 by deceiving people.
Sajid further said that PAWS was bringing a bad name to Pakistan with its fundraising campaign and giving out a message to the world that Pakistan cannot care for its animals.
The official also said that KMC’s legal department is working towards launching an official complaint with the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) against PAWS for bringing a bad name to Pakistan.
Earlier, in December 2020, the Sindh High Court (SHC) had ordered KMC and Karachi Zoo administration to shift the 20-year-old Syrian brown bear Rano from her 25-foot wide Victorian ‘grotto’ pit to another open cage, 500 times bigger than her current enclosure. During the hearings, the court had also instructed KMC to present the zoo’s budget and had expressed anger over the fact that there was only one doctor for all animals at the zoo.
Zoos in Pakistan have long drawn international condemnation for their mistreatment of animals. Last year, on December 16, Islamabad’s Marghazar Zoo was shut down after the Islamabad High Court ordered for Kaavan, the elephant and two brown bears Babloo and Suzie to be relocated to sanctuaries abroad.
Ever since PPP co-chairperson Asif Ali Zardari urged former prime minister Nawaz Sharif to return to the country at the earliest, memes have taken over the internet.
Social media is lit with ‘Zardari’ memes and some of them will give you a good laugh.
Chief selector Mohammad Wasim has rejected claims of a rift with head coach Misbah-ul-Haq and captain Babar Azam. Over the past couple of days, different media reports suggested that both coach and the captain were unhappy with the team selection for the upcoming tours of South Africa and Zimbabwe.
Wasim, while talking to a local media outlet, said that he has heard about the rumours of a rift between the trio but there are no legitimate grounds for these speculations.
“I have been hearing about the same rumours [of rift] but I don’t believe there is any truth in this,” said Wasim. “We have a standard procedure which was followed during the selection of the teams for the South Africa home series and it was similarly followed this time around as well.”
“The selection committee had three meetings with the captain and the coach whereas there were separate meetings of the selectors as well. So I don’t really know where are these rumours coming from.”
The Men in Green are scheduled to face South Africa in three ODIs and four T20Is after which they will travel to Zimbabwe.
Meanwhile, Pakistan batting great Inzamam-ul-Haq is also not happy with how things have panned out after the announcement of the squad for the upcoming tour of South Africa and Zimbabwe by Chief Selector Wasim.
While speaking on his official YouTube channel, Inzamam revealed that skipper Azam is unhappy after his suggestions were ignored while selecting the team.
The Karachi Kings captain had announced the birth of his daughter earlier this month. The cricketer had also shared that the family had named her Syeda Inaya Imad.
Alhumdu’lillah by the grace of Allah SWT we have been blessed with a beautiful bundle of joy.
Riz Ahmed, who played the role of a drummer who begins to lose his hearing in Amazon Studio’s Sound of Metalcharted history by becoming the first Muslim to be nominated in the leading actor category at the Academy Awards.
The actor, while responding to the nomination said that he was “honoured to be nominated by my fellow actors alongside such inspiring performances”.
“I am grateful to the Academy for their support and encouragement,” the actor added.
Wow! I’m honoured to be nominated by my fellow actors alongside such inspiring performances, and am grateful to the Academy for their support and encouragement. I’m equally thrilled for our visionary writer-director Darius Marder and the brilliant Paul Raci… pic.twitter.com/Z6ScOq08tf
Mehwish Hayat, Adnan Siddiqui and Sanam Saeed celebrated Riz’s big achievement and congratulated the actor on social media.
“Congratulations Riz. You have created history with your nomination as the first Muslim for lead actor at the distinguished Academy Awards,” said Siddiqui. “Hard work and talent always get recognised.”
“Pakistan is proud of you,” added the actor.
Congratulations @rizwanahmed! You have created history with your nomination as the first Muslim for lead actor at the distinguished #AcademyAwards. Hard work and talent always get recognised. Pakistan is proud of you! pic.twitter.com/U6du80ZGM6
Mehwish Hayat also expressed her delight over the nomination, saying: “In a world where we’re fighting for fairer representation in mainstream media, a Muslim nominated for Best Actor for the first time since 1929 is one hell of a big deal.”
The 2021 Oscar nominations were announced from London by presenters Nick Jonas and Priyanka Chopra Jonas. The Academy Awards would typically have happened by now but this year will be telecast on April 25. The film academy said Monday that the show will be held at both its usual home, the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, and the city’s railway hub, Union Station.
