Category: Uncategorized

  • Rights groups denounce PEMRA’s efforts to regulate web content

    Rights groups denounce PEMRA’s efforts to regulate web content

    Digital rights activists on Tuesday rejected the proposal of the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) to regulate digital content and Over the Top TV (OTT).

    According to the details, PEMRA on Tuesday released a document titled “Consultation on Regulating the Web TV & OTT Content Services” on its website, seeking comments on the matter by February 14, which drew strong reactions.

    The document proposes a number of regulatory guidelines, including licensing, inspection, content regulation and putting a complaint handling mechanism in place for web TV and OTT platforms.

    In response to the document, the participants were of the view that any such measures would cause regression in Pakistan’s digital growth. Furthermore, that the measures would curb freedom of expression, increase censorship and diminish digital rights for Pakistanis.

    A press release in this regard said that the draft regulations “are thinly disguised as draconian attempts to discourage new media journalism, including YouTube/website channels being run by Pakistani journalists who have been forced out from mainstream media over the past two years by the authorities to curtail their professional and/or entrepreneurial work or dozens of entrepreneurial and non-legacy current affairs news and current affairs websites that are filling the gaps in information from legacy media and providing useful local community information”.

  • Aurat March 2020 is looking for poster designs

    Aurat March 2020 is looking for poster designs

    Social change activist and artist Shehzil Malik took to social media to call for poster design submissions for this year’s Aurat March.

    The march was organized by feminist collective Hum Aurtain in Karachi last year to bring women together in a public space to raise voice for their rights in the country.

    Shehzil shared a poster with the caption “Be part of Aurat March 2020 by designing a poster that shows why you think womxn should march for their rights in Pakistan.”

    She also explained the meaning of the term ‘womxn.’ In a separate tweet.  “Womxn is a term that is used to be inclusive of trans and non-binary women.”

    Aurat March started in 2018, where many women, children and men got together in Karachi only. Last year, the march extended to other cities such as Lahore, Islamabad, Hyderabad, Quetta, Peshawar and Faisalabad. Many people took part in the movement for gender justice. The march across different cities of Pakistan is held to celebrate International Women’s Day that is on March 8.

  • The weekend of fashion fails

    The weekend of fashion fails

    While the rest of us were glued to our TV screens to catch the last episode of Meray Paas Tum Ho, our celebrities were attending the Hum Style Awards in Karachi. The same weekend the Grammys took place in Los Angeles which means that there were a lot of red carpet looks to debate over. However, there was little to no ‘fashion inspo’ considering that our stars did not exactly put forward their best fashion fronts.

    Here is the fashion rundown from the past weekend.

    Nay – Momina Mustehsan

    Red seems to be Momina’s favourite colour. Either her hair is red or her outfit is – and in this case the amount of red in this outfit is a bit too much. Plus her hairstyle is just too basic and her makeup typical. Considering it was the Hum Style Awards, the singer could have experimented with her look.

    Yay – Ayesha Omar

    Ayesha Omar is the ultimate style icon and here’s proof in case you needed it. Ayesha looks absolutely glam in this outfit by Elan.

    Nay – Mansha Pasha

    From the stockings to that embroidery to that boring hairstyle, Mansha’s look failed to hit the mark.

    Yay – Mahnoor Baloch

    Mahnoor Baloch can make anything look good.

    Nay – Ghana Ali

    First of all, what is that design? And secondly, what is that fitting?

    Also can we take a moment to discuss how bad the background wall. Totally takes the attention away from the person.

    Nay – Rubya Chaudhry

    No words.

    Yay – Reema

    The evergreen Reema can give the younger lot a run for their money with her sophistication.

    Nay – Sana Fakhar

    The hair, the makeup, the dress, the yello Chanel clutch – so many things wrong with this look.

    Now that we’re done dissecting the Hum Style Awards celebrity looks, onto the Grammys now.

    Priyanka Chopra

    Priyanka has been trolled enough for that look, so we’re not going to say more.

    Cardi B

    Uhm, from that purple eyeshadow to the hairstyle, what was Cardi B was thinking?

    Camila Cabello

    This outfit is a mess and not a hot one.

  • It’s official: Aima Baig is Shahbaz Shigri’s ‘better half’

    It’s official: Aima Baig is Shahbaz Shigri’s ‘better half’

    Shahbaz Shigri has finally put to rest all rumours and speculations surrounding his relationship with Aima Baig.

    After months of teasing fans, the actor, in an Instagram post, made things official and revealed that Aima is indeed his “better half”. Sharing a picture of himself and the singer in Los Angeles, Shigri swooned over Baig’s smile adding that she is his “partner in crime, homie, companion and a whole bunch of other things which, if I began listing down, would turn up the cringe level to a million”.

    Shigri ended his note by using the hashtags ‘Better Half’ and ‘Embrace the Cringe’.

    https://www.instagram.com/p/B73FaIpl4uV/

    Earlier, Aima had shared the same picture with the caption, “Rollin’ with the homie”.

    Friends and members of the entertainment industry showered their love and good wishes on the couple.

    Rumours surrounding Aima and Shabaz being a couple have been doing the rounds for a while now. The two have often set the internet on fire with their cute pictures. But neither one of them confirmed or denied the rumours.

    Read more – Just friends or more? Aima Baig & Shahbaz Shigri

    In an interview, when Aima was asked about Shahbaz, she replied that they are just good friends and people are speculating their relationship because Aima rarely shares pictures of herself with guys. She added that Shigri is “someone she connects with”.

  • Fathers to get paid paternity leave

    Fathers to get paid paternity leave

    The Senate on Monday passed ‘The Maternity and Paternity Leave Bill, 2018’ that was moved on private members’ day by Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Senator Quratulain Marri.

    According to the details, while the bill was passed by the Upper House with a majority, the treasury benches opposed it. The bill will now go to the National Assembly for a vote.

    The said bill increases paid maternity leave of working mothers both in public and private sectors, and for the first time in the country, also grants paid paternity leave to fathers.

    The bill says that employees of every establishment should be provided six months paid maternity and three months paternity leave as and when applied by employees, separately from their leave account, commencing from the date as applied by the applicant in the application and supported by a medical certificate.

    It adds that the employees shall also be provided with an additional three months optional unpaid maternity and one-month paternity leave, separately from their leave account, if required by the employee.

    The Maternity and Paternity Leave Bill

    The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government opposed the bill saying that such long maternity leave was not allowed anywhere in the world. Economic Affairs Minister Hammad Azhar said mothers can get 90-day maternity leave under the already-existing law.

  • Adnan Siddiqui says some dialogues of ‘Meray Paas Tum Ho’ were problematic

    Adnan Siddiqui says some dialogues of ‘Meray Paas Tum Ho’ were problematic

    Blockbuster Meray Paas Tum Ho has ended but the hype surrounding it certainly hasn’t. While at one point audiences are unable to get over Danish’s unexpected death, on the other end the debate surrounding problematic dialogues in the drama also continues.

    Adnan Siddiqui who played the suave Shehwar Ahmed in the drama serial, while thanking his fans for their response and appreciation, said that he understands that “the dialogues had some problematic leanings, and sometimes went a little far, sometimes quite far in painting women with a single brush stroke”, adding that he “wishes the drama had consciously added nuance to the storyline”.

    Adnan also said that he will focus on improving storylines which is why in his own production company, he will be “giving women writers the chance and space to create good content”.

    https://www.instagram.com/p/B72Vy8iHwUi/?utm_source=ig_embed

    While the drama was a phenomenal success and went onto become television’s highest-rated drama, it did stir up controversy with its problematic dialogues and comments by the writer Khalil ur Rehman Qamar in his various interviews. The writer was accused of being misogynist and anti-women.

    A few days before the finale, upcoming actor, Rehmat Ajmal, who plays Danish (Humayun Saeed) and Mehwish’s (Ayeza Khan) friend Aisha in the drama, said that she is “not proud to be part of something that is so compromising and ill-informed”.

    Read more – Rehmat Ajmal says she is not proud to be acting in Meray Paas Tum Ho

    Taking to Instagram, she wrote that she watched Qamar’s interview and “got to know about his problematic views on very many things WAY after the project was completed” and that “I absolutely do not endorse the concepts and viewpoints of Mr Khalil Ul Rehman”.

  • Careem lays off over 150 employees

    Careem lays off over 150 employees

    Dubai-based Careem has laid off over 150 employees to cut down on costs due to financial constraints. The ride-hailing app’s co-founder and CEO Mudassir Sheikha in an interview confirmed the news and said “that cuts are being made to support its [the company’s] expansion strategy.”

    He further added, “The expansion will require cost-cutting that will involve the loss of five percent of existing roles and the reassigning of ten percent of staff to more critical technology development areas.”

    The layoffs come just three weeks after Uber completed $3.1 billion acquisition of Careem.

    An employee who was laid off spoke to MENAbytes, a leading tech news company in the Middle East, and shared, “Careem was a fantastic company but things started deteriorating after the deal with Uber was announced. The uncertainty hiked since the acquisition but I didn’t see this coming. We could have been informed earlier. It would have given us more time to look for an alternative but nevertheless it has been a good journey.”

    Another ex-employee remarked, “It is sad to see a company that used to have great culture and values, lose everything. It has become a highly political organisation where performance is not the criteria to progress anymore”.

    Uber, that now owns Careem, has also laid off over 1,000 people from its different teams across the world in a bid to cut down on costs. According to stats, it lost approximately $1.1 billion in the third quarter of 2019.

  • Woman dies during cake-eating contest

    Woman dies during cake-eating contest

    A woman died while taking part in a cake-eating competition to celebrate Australia Day.

    Paramedics were called to a pub in the state of Queensland on Sunday afternoon after a woman was involved in a “medical incident”.

    Public broadcaster ABC reported the 60-year-old had a seizure after she “shovelled a lamington into her mouth”.

    Lamingtons, a traditional Australian dessert, are cube-shaped sponge cakes dipped in chocolate and covered in grated coconut.

    The woman was rushed to hospital in the coastal town of Hervey Bay but couldn’t survive.

    She was a contestant in the Beach House Hotel’s annual Australia Day lamington and meat pie eating contest.

    In a post on Facebook, management and staff offered their “deepest condolences” to the woman’s friends and family.

    “We acknowledge and thank our supportive patrons, staff, and the Queensland Ambulance Service for their prompt and professional response while this tragic incident was unfolding,” the post said.

    “The hotel staff have been offered professional support while our thoughts firmly remain with the family at this challenging time.”

    Police said the death was not suspicious and a report would be prepared for the coroner.

  • Bye Bye Buzdar? ‘Chaudhrys mulling no-confidence motion against Punjab CM’

    Bye Bye Buzdar? ‘Chaudhrys mulling no-confidence motion against Punjab CM’

    While rumour has it that the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government in Punjab “is about to collapse”, Chaudhry brothers’ Pakistan Muslim League (PML) – a much-needed ally of the PTI on both provincial and federal levels – is mulling to get done with Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan’s blue-eyed Chief Minister (CM) Usman Buzdar, The Current has learnt.

    According to sources, the PML had taken after the 2018 general election a principled stance to not join hands with the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) so as to not get itself labeled as blackmailers of the country’s political quarters, and had helped the PTI form its government instead.

    “Moonis Elahi had decided that the party would support the PTI in both Punjab and centre, where we are an important ally of Imran [Khan] considering how his party cannot do much with its strength in the hung houses of parliament,” party sources said.

    They added that Moonis had been commended by both his father and uncle, as well as other veteran politicians of the PML, since it was a principled stance. “But it wasn’t later that we realised we had shot ourselves in the foot.”

    “We could’ve joined hands with the PML-N and easily been handed the Punjab CM slot, but we decided to form the coalition with PTI in good faith and support Buzdar. [Punjab Assembly Speaker] Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi supported him [Buzdar] like he would support any person from his own family, but what we got in return was the fear of drowning,” they said.

    Sources added that the party was mulling to get rid of Buzdar because they were being compelled by no delivery of works in their constituencies in particular and in Punjab in general. “We don’t want to be among those lawmakers in Punjab who are drowning under Buzdar’s leadership. We do not want to lose our constituents’ support only because we contested elections with the PTI and can’t do anything for our people after coming to power.”

    When asked about how the PML was planning to remove Buzdar as the provincial chief executive of Punjab, they said, “We have the support of around 20 to 25 lawmakers from the PML-N and PTI each. A majority among the group is that of women lawmakers of the PML-N on reserved seats.”

    “We gave Buzdar multiple chances but he doesn’t care about all what we have done. He knows he doesn’t have to cave since he enjoys the support of PM Imran,” sources said, adding that the party leadership was discussing if a no-confidence motion should be tabled against him.

    “Both Buzdar and the premier know we can gather the support needed to get the Punjab CM changed, and that is why Imran has now hit at us by indirectly calling us ‘conspirators’. Although it’s not like how the PM thinks that someone in our party wants the CM slot for himself, but enough is enough.”

    ‘DO WE?’:

    Speaking to The Current, Moonis Elahi neither confirmed nor denied the claims made by his colleague on the condition of anonymity. “Do we?” he said with a winking emoji when asked about the support of around 60 lawmakers his party allegedly enjoys in Punjab.

    Responding to other queries, the lawmaker said the PML had undoubtedly formed the coalition in good faith and the party were sure about it back then, however, he did not comment over if they regretted it now.

    “We don’t want to topple Buzdar government. On the contrary, we are seriously contemplating not to support any other candidate from [the] PTI,” he said further, adding that the PML was satisfied with Buzdar.

    Moonis maintained that Imran should clearly name the ‘conspirators’, and distanced himself from any of the claims made by his colleague. “The pressure group has nothing to do with the PML. It is, in fact, supporting Buzdar.”

    The PML leader, however, said that they did not want to be among Punjabis drowning because of the PTI government. “We are an independent party that is accountable to its constituents and will keep their interest above all,” he said.

  • How to track the spread of coronavirus in real-time

    How to track the spread of coronavirus in real-time

    The deadly coronavirus is spreading like a wildfire across the world. There is an online dashboard that can give you real-time news in the form of data. The Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkinas has built a tool, integrating data from the World Health Organisation, as well as centres for disease control from across the world.

    The death toll has reached at least 81, and the virus has infected more than 2,800 people worldwide. As reports come in, the map keeps track of the total confirmed cases, total deaths, and total recoveries. Each red dot represents an outbreak, with the size corresponding to the relative size of the outbreak. 

    Source – John Hopkins

    Read more – Can you get coronavirus through your AliExpress order?

    So far, the virus has spread to 13 other countries, including the US, France, Australia, and Japan. Experts fear that the true number of people infected is much higher than the official total.

    Source – John Hopkins

    While Wuhan has been quarantined, at least 12 other cities have imposed travel restrictions, affecting an estimated 33 million people.