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  • Here is what Bilawal Bhutto said in his address at SCO Foreign Ministers meeting in India

    Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari addressed the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Council of Foreign Minis­ters (CFM) in India, Goa on Friday.

    During his address, the young minister who is leading Pakistan’s delegation, talked about climate change, importance of a peaceful and stable Afghanistan, poverty alleviation and Pakistan’s commitment to multilateralism among other things.

    Bhutto started his address by reiterating Pakistan’s strong commitment to SCO saying,“There couldn’t be a more powerful indication of the importance that Pakistan attaches to the SCO than my presence here in Goa for this CFM”.

    Bilawal also talked about eradicating the menace of terrorism. “Let’s not get caught up in weaponising terrorism for diplomatic point scoring.”

    Bilawal reiterated Pakistan’s commitment to multilateralism for maintaining international peace and harmony.

    “A peaceful and stable Afghanistan is a key not only to regional integration and economic cooperation but also to global peace and stability,” said Bilawal while talking about the importance of peaceful and stable Afghanistan.

  • Japanese car companies consider establishing hybrid vehicle plants in Pakistan

    Japanese car companies consider establishing hybrid vehicle plants in Pakistan

    Japan has urged Pakistan to allow the import of manufacturing equipment for vehicles due to the shortage of dollars, which has affected the issuance of letters of credit to Japanese companies operating in the country.

    Japanese firms are considering the establishment of hybrid vehicle plants in Pakistan, with plans to export the vehicles from the country in the future.

    During a meeting between Ambassador Wada Mitsuhiro and Finance Minister Senator Ishaq Dar at the Finance Division, the Ministry of Finance issued an official statement. The Vice Chairman of Toyota, Shinji Yanagi, SAPM on Finance Tariq Bajwa, finance secretary, and senior officers were also in attendance.

    The finance minister briefed the envoy on the economic challenges and priorities of the government and emphasized that Japan is one of its major development partners. The cooperation between the two countries will strengthen in multiple fields for mutual benefit. The finance minister also welcomed the investment plans of Japanese companies in Pakistan.

    Ambassador Mitsuhiro praised the government’s pragmatic policies and actions and expressed confidence in the country’s economic policies. Meanwhile, a World Bank delegation led by Mamta Murthi, Vice President of the World Bank for Human Development, met with Dar at the Finance Division.

    Murthi emphasized the importance of investing in human capital, particularly in education, health and nutrition, social protection, population control, and women’s development. She also highlighted the importance of local ownership and community participation in implementing development projects.

    The finance minister briefed Murthi on the government’s policies and programs related to key areas of human development to uplift the masses and eliminate poverty in the country. He expressed the government’s commitment to work with the World Bank to achieve their shared goals of sustainable development in Pakistan.

  • Historic high: Gold price in Pakistan soars to record-breaking Rs225,300 per tola

    Historic high: Gold price in Pakistan soars to record-breaking Rs225,300 per tola

    Pakistan’s economic turmoil and an increase in international gold rates have led to a new high in the value of the precious metal in the country.

    According to data provided by the All Pakistan Sarafa Gems and Jewellers Association (APSGJA), the rate of gold (24 carats) surged by Rs2,600 per tola and Rs2,229 per 10 grams to reach Rs225,300 and Rs193,158, respectively.

    The price of gold in the international market also rose by $29 to settle at $2,044 per ounce. In Pakistan, the rising gold rate is a consequence of weakened economic fundamentals, rupee depreciation, and record-high inflation.

    During such times, people prefer to buy gold as a hedge against inflation and currency depreciation. Furthermore, the delay in an agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for a much-needed economic bailout has led to increased demand for gold as it negatively impacts the currency market.

    The APSGJA also revealed that the price of gold is Rs2,500 per tola “undercost” in Pakistan as compared to the Dubai market, indicating that the Pakistani gold market is currently cheaper than the global market.

    Finally, the rate of silver also increased to a new high in the country, with the rate of silver rising by Rs120 per tola and Rs102.88 per 10 grams to settle at Rs2,870 and Rs2,357.68, respectively.

  • Islamabad High Court provides relief to Khan, extends bail

    Islamabad High Court provides relief to Khan, extends bail

    The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Thursday approved an extension in Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan’s bail in nine different cases.

    The former Prime Minister appeared before the court after travelling from Lahore to Islamabad amid tight security as a warning from the court of bail revocation over his continuous absence loomed ahead.

    Khan entered the court in a wheelchair. On the previous day, his doctors had advised him to bed rest, citing insufficient healing of his injured leg.

    Earlier in the day, the PTI chief revealed in a video message that he was the target of a second murder attempt on March 18 in the judicial complex in Islamabad.

    In a video message, the former Prime Minister said, “If anything happenes to me, I believe Dirty Harry and his gang will be responsible,” adding that he is not under threat by an outside enemy.

  • Wes Anderson in DI Khan? Believe it (or not)

    It’s true that there are a lot of reasons to be miserable in Pakistan right now: inflation, political instability, religious conflicts, the list keeps going.

    But it’s heartwarming to witness how talented Pakistani people are that they keep blowing us away with their creativity and sense of humor, such as a new trend that is re-imagining what Wes Anderson films would look like if instead of the West, they were shot in Pakistan.

    A social media user reimagined how Anderson’s film would look like in a village in Dera Ismail Khan.

    The result: mindblowing.

    Another video that kick started the trend was when a man decided to re-imagine how the iconic Hollywood director’s film would be shot if he landed in Chitral-and seriously we would love to pitch these ideas ourselves to Anderson.

    Twitter users are blown away by the creativity and honestly we agree with all of them. Let’s start calling directors like Martin Scorsese and Quentin Tarantino to Pakistan!

    https://twitter.com/percyakr21/status/1653496868134088704?s=20
  • Supreme Court judges get three-month summer holidays

    Supreme Court judges get three-month summer holidays

    Chief Justice (CJ) Umar Ata Bandial has approved a three-month summer vacation for all the judges in the Supreme Court of Pakistan.

    The holidays will start from June 15 and last till September 15.

    However, the notification for the vacations said that urgent cases will continue to be heard during these holidays. In the last three years, important cases were heard during this period.

    Currently, the apex court is hearing the matter of Punjab elections as the divide between judges becomes more apparent.

  • Jameela Jamil slams celebrities for attending Met Gala that honoured controversial designer Karl Lagerfeld

    Activist and actress Jameela Jamil took to Instagram to publicly slam the celebrities who attended this year’s Met Gala, where late German fashion designer Karl Lagerfeld- who was a controversial figure for his many sexist and racist comments- was honoured.

    Lagerfeld had been outspoken against allowing curvy women to pose for magazines or model, in response to women’s magazine ‘Bridgette’ when the publication announced that they would only publish pictures of real women instead of models:

    “You’ve got fat mothers with their bags of chips sitting in front of the television and saying that thin models are ugly. The world of beautiful clothing is about ‘dreams and illusions’.”

    Lagerfeld had also been a vocal opponent of the #MeToo movement, speaking to Numero in 2018 after three models accused the creative director of Chanel of sexual harassment:

    “If you don’t want your pants pulled about, don’t become a model! Join a nunnery, there’ll always be a place for you in the convent.”

    Jamil criticised the celebrities who had been vocal about social issues like #MeToo movement and body positivity for refusing to call out the controversial legacy of the late ‘Chanel’ fashion designer:

    “Last night Hollywood and fashion said the quiet part out loud when a lot of famous feminists chose to celebrate at the highest level, a man who was so publicly cruel to women, to fat people, to immigrants and to sexual assault survivors. And all the women’s publications, and spectators online, chose to gleefully ignore it. Suddenly your appetite to find someone’s tweets from when they were 12, has gone.”

    The ‘Good Place’ actor went on to share that the selective cancel culture within liberal politics needs to stop, because it further erodes the trust people have in progressive politics that it will actually make a difference in the world:

    “This isn’t about cancel culture. Its not even about Karl. It’s about showing how selective cancel culture is within liberal politics, in the most blatant way so far. It’s about showing why people don’t trust liberals. Because of slippery tactics and double standards like this.”

  • Exclusive: ‘I am not against the film’: Actor Shaan Shahid defends his viral comment about Money Back Guarantee

    Exclusive: ‘I am not against the film’: Actor Shaan Shahid defends his viral comment about Money Back Guarantee

    Veteran actor Shaan Shahid has been criticised by social media users when his Facebook comment went viral where he had slammed the director of ‘Money Back Guarantee’ Faisal Qureshi, saying that Ufone commerical directors should not be allowed to direct films:

    “Ufone commercials are 45 seconds… producers should be held responsible for getting directors who have no experience when it comes to films.”

    The Current spoke to the ‘Waar’ actor about the controversy. He defended his comment by saying that it was not directed targeted towards anyone, in particular, towards Pakistani films because he supports them.

    “This was an exchange between two colleagues. I had made this comment under a Facebook post by Rashid Khawaja, who is the CEO of Entertainment Pakistan.”

    Shahid added that he hoped that the film did well, adding that this was his own personal comment which everyone is allowed to express.

    The central argument made by most social media users was that with an industry that already has limited support, veteran actors like Shahid were further harming it by making such comments about ‘Money Back Guarantee’.

    When we asked Shahid about this, he responded:

    “My comment wouldn’t come across as degrading, because the film is already playing in cinemas and people are watching it. I feel that as a professional actor, you have to be good at executing what you are doing.”

    He further added that this was not only his sole opinion, but the cinema reviews coming out show people also have mixed responses to the film.

    The ‘Khuda Kay Liye’ actor further added that the filmmakers did not make a wise choice to release the film in these timings due to ongoing political instability, especially due to the curfew imposed by the government because of which cinemas shut down at 10 pm, calling it a ‘poor choice’.

  • IMF demands approval for subsidies as Pakistan struggles to secure tranche

    IMF demands approval for subsidies as Pakistan struggles to secure tranche

    Pakistan has been negotiating an agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) since January 2023. The IMF has specified that Pakistan must receive prior approval before providing any additional subsidies.

    Negotiations have hit a snag over a plan announced by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in March to charge wealthy fuel consumers more to subsidise prices for the poor who have been severely impacted by inflation.

    Despite meeting almost all of the Fund’s conditions, the government is struggling to convince the lender to release the tranche. On a separate issue of securing confirmation on the external financing gap of $5 billion by June 2023, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have provided over $2 billion and $1 billion respectively.

    The formal agreements with these countries are expected to be signed soon. The Pakistani authorities are complaining that the IMF has placed prior actions before signing the staff-level agreement, which was not done in the past.

    According to The News, the IMF asks for confirmation from commercial banks before signing the agreement, while banks are asking for IMF’s board approval and the revival of the Fund program to refinance loans worth $2-3 billion.

    Finance Minister Ishaq Dar has assured US diplomat Andrew Schofer that the government is committed to completing the ongoing IMF program.