Tag: Pakistan

  • Pakistan fails to ensure safety of journalists

    Pakistan fails to ensure safety of journalists

    As the world marks the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists, Pakistan’s journalistic community continues to grapple with an alarming surge in violence and impunity.

    Several reports have highlighted the deteriorating situation, shedding light on the challenges faced by media professionals in the South Asian nation.

    According to the recently released annual report by the Islamabad-based independent media watchdog, Freedom Network, Pakistan has failed to combat the rising impunity of crimes against journalists, painting a grim picture of the state of press freedom in the country.

    The report titled ‘One Step Forward, Two Steps Back,’ outlines the harrowing experiences faced by journalists, including incidents of kidnapping, physical assaults, and unjust legal cases.

    Pakistan made history in 2021 by passing two special laws to protect journalists.

    The Sindh Assembly passed the “Sindh Protection of Journalists and other Media Practitioners Act-2021” while the National Assembly passed “Protection of Journalists and Media Professionals Act-2021” in space of few months.

    Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Gilgit-Baltistan, Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Punjab have not passed a similar law for their jurisdictions.

    According to the Freedom Network’s report at least 37.5 percent of the violations in Pakistan – 93 out of the total 248 cases in the period between August 2021- August 2023 – were recorded in Islamabad alone.

    The report further states that during this period there were 11 cases of murders of journalists, plus another 20 unsuccessful assassination attempts.

    25 instances of legal cases registered against journalists.


    11 cases of abductions, plus another case of an unsuccessful kidnapping attempt.

    25 cases of arrests, detentions, or illegal confinements of journalists by the State.

    59 cases of physical assaults, 26 of which caused bodily injuries.

    05 cases of attacks on the homes of journalists.

    30 cases of specific threats of murder or other dire consequences issued to journalists.

    59 cases of harassment of journalists.

    At least 37.5% of the violations (93 out of a total 248 cases) were recorded in the federal capital Islamabad alone.

    Sindh was the second worst with 22.5% of the violations (56 cases) and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) was a close third at 18.5% (46 cases).

    These were followed by Punjab with 17.3% (43 cases), Balochistan with about 2.5% (6 cases), Azad Kashmir (AJK) with 1.2% (3 cases) and Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) with 0.5% (1 case).

    The report also cited specific incidents, such as the tragic death of Channel 5 reporter Sadaf Naeem during the coverage of former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s rally in Punjab in October 2022.

    The report notes that another Pakistani journalist Ashad Sharif was killed in Kenya on October 23, 2022, and there is still no clarity on his murder.

    Pakistan Press Foundation has also documented at least 157 media-related attacks, including 16 instances of arrests, five instances of detention, and 44 cases of assault this year.

    Between January and September 2023, PPF has documented at least 157 attacks on the media in connection with their work, including 16 instances of arrests and five instances of detention, 44 cases of assault, two cases of damage to property, four instances of raids, 18 instances of registration of cases against media professionals and two instances of legal action, 26 instances of censorship, 20 instances of harassment of journalists or media practitioners, 13 cases of threats, seven confirmed cases of kidnappings and three unconfirmed cases.

    While the country witnessed an improvement in its ranking in the World Press Freedom Index, climbing from 157 in 2021 to 150 in 2023, this progress is overshadowed by the failure to effectively implement the laws designed to protect journalists.

  • Shah Mahmood Qureshi shifted to hospital after becoming ill

    Shah Mahmood Qureshi shifted to hospital after becoming ill

    Former foreign minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) vice chairman, Shah Mahmood Qureshi, was urgently shifted to Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) hospital in Islamabad on Thursday after he became ill while incarcerated at Adiala jail.

    According to sources of Geo News, Qureshi has been given permission by jail authorities to urgently shift him from jail to the hospital.

    The result of tests conducted at PIMS will determine whether Qureshi will be kept in hospital.

    It should be noted that a special court has indicted Chairman PTI Imran Khan and Shah Mehmood Qureshi in the cipher case.

  • Finally, ECP gives date for general elections

    Finally, ECP gives date for general elections

    A three-member bench, headed by Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa and comprising Justice Aminuddin Khan and Justice Athar Minallah, is hearing petitions filed by the Supreme Court Bar Association (SBCA) and others seeking directives to hold general elections within 90 days as stipulated by the Constitution.

    During the hearing, Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) lawyer, Sharjeel Sawati, said that elections will be held on February 11, as per Geo News.

    After being questioned about wether they have consulted with the president of Pakistan on the date or not, the lawyer was instructed to consult with Arif Alvi today.

    Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Qazi Faez Isa on Thursday remarked that President Arif Alvi violated the Constitution by not giving a date for general elections.

    At the outset of the hearing, Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) counsel Farooq Naek told the court that his party had submitted the request to become a party in the case.

    After this, PTI’s lawyer Ali Zafar started his arguments by saying that the party has limited its petition to only seeking timely elections.

    “Elections must be held within 90 days after the dissolution of assemblies as per the Constitution,” he stressed. At this, CJP Isa said that the plea seeking polls within 90 days has then become ineffective.

    “The court was told that it was impossible to hold polls within 90 days in the previous hearing,” he remarked.

    Zafar then said that PTI only wants elections.

    He further said that there won’t be any parliament and law if elections are not conducted.

    “Giving a date and schedule of elections are two different things. President Dr Arif Alvi had written a letter to hold consultations with the ECP,” he remarked.

    The CJP observed that the president had written in his letter that the court should look into the matter of elections.
    “Is the president saying that court should take notice of the issue about elections,” he questioned.

    At this, Zafar replied that the president had said that the court can also review the matter.

    CJP Isa then said that the president did not give any date for elections in his letter. “Did the president not fulfil his constitutional duty,” he asked.

    Zafar said that the president fulfilled his responsibility by consulting on the elections.

    On this point, Justice Minallah asked why the president wrote the letter in September and not on August 15 after the assemblies were dissolved on August 9.

    “Did the president only ask the Supreme Court verbally to take notice of the matter,” asked CJP. He further said that the head of state wrote the letter to the ECP and not to SC.

    CJP Isa then questioned whether the apex court had the authority to give a date for polls. “Is it necessary for the president to consult the prime minister to give a date,” he inquired.

    Zafar replied that consultations are not necessary as the president has his own constitutional duty to give a date.

    During the last hearing, the SC had issued notices to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) and the federal government for their input on polls within 90 days.

    The ECP had earlier set the date for elections in Punjab on April 30, but then postponed them to October 8 — in Punjab as well as KPK.

    PTI filed a plea in the top court against this decision.

    On April 4, the SC had ordered the government and the ECP to hold elections for Punjab assembly on May 14 but both institutions said this would not be possible due to shortage of resources, including funds and manpower.

    On September 21, the ECP announced that general elections will be held in the last week of January 2024. However, it did not issue a specific date.

    The commission also published the preliminary constituency lists.
    According to the ECP, objections to the preliminary constituency lists will be entertained until October 26, with hearings on these objections slated to run until November 25.

    The final electoral rolls are scheduled for release by November 30, and within 54 days following this publication, the election commission has outlined the election timetable.

  • Caretaker government approves 45 percent pay raise for bureaucracy’s top brass

    The federal caretaker government has just approved a hefty pay rise of 45 percent for top bureaucrats in management positions. These are distinct from career diplomats and are the ones typically drawn from the private sector because of their expertise in a relevant field.

    In a notification released by the Ministry of Finance, the increase would apply to all MP-I, MP-II, and MP-III positions, including basic salaries, house rents, and utilities as approved by the caretaker prime minister.

    The ministry said the monthly remuneration of officers on the MP-I scale used to begin from Rs554,600, including basic salaries, house rent, and utilities with a terminal amount of Rs699,250 per month. The minimum and maximum remunerations would now be Rs804,180 and Rs1,013,920 per month, respectively. The officers in this grade would also be drawing Rs95,910 per month for transport monetisation allowance, taking the revised monthly package to between Rs900,090 and Rs1,109,830.

    Likewise, the minimum and maximum monthly package of MP-II scales was Rs255,750 and Rs413,600 per month. This will now range from Rs370,850 to Rs599,740. The monthly monetisation allowance for this scale will be Rs77,430.
    The officers in the MP-III grade used to get Rs165,855 to Rs233,750 per month. The amount has now been revised to Rs240,460 and Rs338,960, apart from a monetisation allowance of Rs65,060.
    The rumenarations were last viewed in July 2017 and the current rise is effective from October 1.

  • Zardari Accountability Court mein hazir hon

    Zardari Accountability Court mein hazir hon

    Former president and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari has been summoned by an accountability court in Islamabad in connection with the Thatta water supply case.

    The court, headed by Judge Mohammad Bashir, has also summoned several other individuals, including Ijaz Ahmed Khan, former secretary to the Sindh government, Hassan Ally Memon, former head of the committee responsible for procurements related to the water supply scheme, Khawaja Abdul Ghani Majeed, CEO Omni Group, Menahel Majeed, spouse of Khawaja Abdul Ghani Majeed and others to appear on December 15.

    The case revolves around allegations of illegal contract awards to private contractors.

    Earlier this year, proceedings in the case had been halted due to changes in the National Accountability Ordinance (NAO).

    The case was among dozens of references transferred from accountability courts because of the amendments made in the National Accountability Ordinance (NAO) by the PDM coalition government headed by then-prime minister Shehbaz Sharif.

    These amendments were struck down by the Supreme Court on September 15.

    This development comes as the latest in a series of legal battles for Zardari, who was indicted in the water supply reference back in October 2020, as part of the broader fake bank accounts case.

    The reference specifically focuses on the alleged award of a contract by the special initiative department for the Thatta water supply scheme to a private contractor.

    The accountability court has directed the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) to ensure the reference is properly presented before the appropriate forum.

  • PPP ready to form alliance with PTI in Punjab

    PPP ready to form alliance with PTI in Punjab

    The Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Punjab chapter has expressed its willingness to form an alliance with any political party, including Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), against Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N), in the upcoming general elections in Punjab, Geo reported on Wednesday.

    “PPP opponents are making alliances, and the party is also ready to devise its strategy for the upcoming elections,” said PPP Punjab acting president Rana Farooq Saeed at a press conference after a meeting.

    Former state minister Tasneem Qureshi, Secretary Information PPP Punjab Shahzad Saeed Cheema, Mian Azhar Hassan Dar, Ali Sanwal, Azhar Awan, Haji Azizur Rehman Chan, and others attended the huddle.

    Shahzad Saeed Cheema criticised PML-N for depending on deals, stating that PML-N could not sustain a competitive stance without a deal in its favour. He further said that the party led by former Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif ensures a “level playing field” only for itself in the elections.

    The PPP constantly emphasised the importance of a “level playing field” for all political parties taking part in the upcoming general elections, which are scheduled for January 2024.

  • More imports, less exports: Pakistan’s trade gap grows in October

    More imports, less exports: Pakistan’s trade gap grows in October

    Recent trade data for Pakistan reveals a monthly trade deficit increase of $0.6 billion, primarily driven by an $0.8 billion surge in imports.

    However, on an annual basis, the trade deficit is gradually shrinking at a modest rate of 4 per cent.

    This is not necessarily negative news, as import restrictions have been lifted as part of the İnternational Monetary Fund (IMF) programme while the economy is experiencing an uptick in demand.

    The encouraging aspect lies in the positive signs displayed by the export sector. The Pakistani rupee (PKR) has depreciated by approximately 35 per cent year-on-year, falling from PKR 220/USD to PKR 280/USD.

    Last year, exporters faced challenges in importing raw materials, machinery, and intermediate goods.

    Consequently, the 14 per cent year-on-year growth in exports, rising from $2.4 billion to $2.7 billion, is a heartening development, provided this trajectory continues.

    Recent measures by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) aimed at promoting exports, including competitive gas rates for exporters, reflect a positive intent.

    While industries reliant on gas may require more regionally competitive energy rates, the direction is favorable.

    Moreover, the alignment of open market and interbank exchange rates may encourage a shift from official channels.

    To address Pakistan’s economic challenges, two key corrections are imperative, among many others: increasing tax revenues and enhancing value-added exports.

    Depreciation of the currency alone cannot serve as the sole remedy for stimulating growth.

    To achieve a comprehensive economic framework, it is essential to boost the exports-to-GDP ratio beyond the current 8 per cent.

    This should encourage capitalists to prioritise exports and foreign direct investment (FDI) over property, fixed income, currency, and trading, ensuring sustained double-digit growth over the next five years.

  • Shell Pakistan’s domestic operations set for sale to Saudi company 

    Shell Pakistan’s domestic operations set for sale to Saudi company 

    On Wednesday, Shell Pakistan (SHEL.PSX) announced that its parent company’s subsidiary, Shell Petroleum Company, has entered into an agreement with Wafi Energy for the sale of its domestic operations. 

    The international branch of Shell (SHEL.L), known as Shell Petroleum Company, anticipates the completion of this sale by the fourth quarter of 2024, pending regulatory approvals. 

    Back in June, Shell Petroleum Company declared its intention to divest its 77 per cent ownership stake in Pakistan.  

    This decision follows a series of global operational updates by Shell and significant losses incurred by Shell Pakistan (SPL) in 2022.  

    These losses were primarily attributed to fluctuating exchange rates, the devaluation of the Pakistani rupee, delayed receivables, and the backdrop of a financial crisis and economic slowdown in the country. 

    According to Reuters, Wafi Energy, an entirely owned affiliate of Asyad Holding Group, a fuel retailer based in Saudi Arabia, is the acquiring party. 

    Shell Pakistan’s operations encompass more than 600 mobility sites, 10 fuel terminals, a lubricant oil blending plant, and a 26 per cent ownership interest in Pak-Arab Pipeline Company Limited. 

  • Pakistan’s October inflation eases to 26.9%

    Pakistan’s October inflation eases to 26.9%

    In October, Pakistan witnessed a year-on-year headline inflation rate of 26.9 per cent, as reported by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) on Wednesday.  

    This figure represents a notable decrease from the previous month’s reading of 31.4 per cent in September. Additionally, the month-on-month inflation rate for October showed a 1.1 per cent increase. 

    When considering the average inflation from July to October, it amounted to 28.48 per cent, a contrast to the 25.48 per cent recorded during the same period the previous year. 

    In its most recent ‘Monthly Economic Update and Outlook’ report, the Ministry of Finance projected that consumer price index (CPI)-based inflation in Pakistan for October would fall within the range of 27 per cent to 29 per cent.  

    The ministry anticipated that inflation would exhibit a more contained trend compared to the elevated levels observed during the first quarter of fiscal year 2024. 

    The Pakistan Bureau of Statistics further distinguished between urban and rural inflation rates. In urban areas, the year-on-year CPI inflation increased to 25.5 per cent in October 2023, marking a decline from the 29.7 per cent observed in the previous month and the 24.6 per cent recorded in October 2022.  

    On a month-on-month basis, urban inflation experienced a 1.1 per cent increase in October 2023, compared to a 1.7 per cent increase in the previous month and a 4.5 per cent increase in October 2022. 

    Similarly, in rural areas, the year-on-year CPI inflation rose to 28.9 per cent in October 2023, which represented a decrease from the 33.9 per cent recorded in the previous month and the 29.5 per cent in October 2022.  

    On a month-on-month basis, rural inflation increased by 1.1 per cent in October 2023, in contrast to a 2.5 per cent increase in the previous month and a 5.0 per cent increase in October 2022. 

  • All you need to know about Afghans being sent from Pakistan

    All you need to know about Afghans being sent from Pakistan

    The last day to the deadline 

    The government of Pakistan launched a crackdown against illegal foreigners on October 3 while a deadline of November 1 was announced for the immigrants to voluntarily leave the country or face deportation. The program has been given the name of IFRP-The Illegal Foreigners Repatriation Plan. 

    The interim federal Minister for Interior, Sarfraz Bugti, categorically announced that that there will be, “No compromise” after the deadline.

    Stats reveal that 90,000 Afghans have left the country and a number of families are driving back home via Torkham and Chaman borders to avoid the hassle of the deadline. 

    Breakdown of the Afghan Population in Pakistan

    The government has recognized that a total of three million Afghans are residing all over the country out of which 1.7 million are unregistered and undocumented. The rest are the ones who have Proof of Registration with UNHCR or hold Afghan Citizen Card. As per UNHCR, the population of Afghan refugees has grown to 3.7 million while only 1.3 million are officially registered. There was a particular rise in the influx of the population after the exodus of American and NATO forces from Afghanistan. Breaking down the figures, it’s observed that as of June 2023, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa hosts 52.6 percent (735,800) of Pakistan’s undocumented Afghan population, Balochistan accounts for 24.1 percent (321,677), Punjab has 14.3 percent (191,053), Sindh houses 5.5 percent (73,789), Islamabad accommodates 3.1 percent (41,520), and Azad Jammu and Kashmir hosts 0.3 percent (4,352). 

    Government’s Repatriation plan

    After November 1, raids will be conducted to bring all to “holding centres” and carry out the deportation plan. The government’s deportation plan as laid out by the caretaker Interior Minister is divided into three phases. The plan was laid out in detail in an interview with journalist Shehzad Iqbal on Geo TV. He clearly mentioned that this plan is for “all the Afghans” present in Pakistan and goes on to explain the varying types of them.

    In phase one, refugees without any evidence of authorisation or travel documents will be brought to the deportation centres and will be sent to the borders to go back to Afghanistan. 

    The second phase includes the immigrants who have infiltrated the system of citizenship via illegal means. In the words of the interim minister, they have “breached” the system of NADRA.

    The last phase includes the repatriation of the ones who hold documents or are registered with UNHCR. The Government will track them down eventually as “geo-mapping” is completed, claimed the Minister. Meanwhile, they can fully avail the opportunity of open borders to leave peacefully. The holding centers will serve as a temporary home for those to be deported by the Government in a matter of days. Centers are reportedly established in all the provinces and state machinery has been activated to get the task done in time. 

    Government’s Crackdown

    Even though the Government is pledging to take action after November 1, there are multiple reports of raids being made in different cities before the deadline. For instance, one raid in Islamabad Marriot made it to the headlines as the Government arrested UK, asylum seekers. They have been waiting for two years in Pakistan withheld by the UK government in hopes of immigrating to UK, since the Taliban’s takeover. British High Commission has sped up the process after the raid. 

    Stance of the Pakistan’s government

    The motives of the Pakistani government are clear. “In the 24 blasts that took place in the year 2023, 14 were carried out by Afgan nationals,” claimed the Interior Minister. He also claims Afghan nationals are involved in the rising crime ratio of the country. The government strongly denies allegations that the move is reactionary.

    Status of Afghans in Pakistan’s society and economy

    Afghan nationals residing in the country have a significant contribution to the economy. Most of them started out with small jobs involving physical labour but are now well-established. One such account is narrated by the spokesman of Anjuman-e-Tajiran Balochistan Haji Allah Dad Tareen who sees Pakistan as his home country as younger generations have been born and raised here and they made a living from scratch. “We did not have much economic stability in Quetta before the Afghan Civil War when the people came here, they had lands, agriculture, livestock back at home which were all sold and they invested their money in Pakistan to make a living. This is how the past forty years passed and their young generation belongs to Pakistan, completely. They were born here, they’ve grown up and got educated and completely assimilated in the society just like other locals have,” he said. It is one of many examples. According to Humayun Khan, an economic expert, the PTI Government under Imran Khan offered citizenship to these Afghan Nationals because they realized that if these Afghans went back, this would cause a “revenue drain” on Pakistan’s economy. 

    Reception of the Repatriation Program

    The decision has invited mixed reactions from civil society, activists, journalists, politicians, and netizens from different walks of life. 

    Afghan government’s spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid called the decision “unacceptable”.

    He also denounced the involvement of Afghans in the terrorist attacks in Pakistan. This indicates an impending rift between the two states.

    In an interview for the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, Hina Jillani, with  journalist Rabia Mehmood, called the decision “Irrational, unreasonable, unauthorized and unlawful.” 

    Women’s Democratic Front exposed that the government is deporting the ones holding registration cards and is not allowing them to take their cattle and cash along with them. 

    Moniza Kakar, a human rights lawyer vocal about the pleas of Afghan refugees,  along with Aurat March Karachi, organized a peaceful protest to call out the government on the forceful deportation of the Afghan Refugees. 

    Shafiq Ahmed, an advocate on Twitter, highlighted the issue of forceful expulsion of a huge population to a land they have fled from.

    Social scientist and thinker Nida Kirmani called out the proponents of the decision to stop putting a rosy spin on what is essentially inhuman.

    In Geo TV’s show Report Card, journalist Mazhar Abbas questioned the capacity of NADRA to have complete information about all the illegal aliens countering the claims of Caretaker Interior Minister Bugti to have done complete geo-mapping.

    Renowned Journalist Azaz Syed is critical of the decision and called it “emotional” in its spirit because many such attempts have been done before by UNHCR but it has turned out that they take the money and come back making use of the porous border.

    Irshad Bhatti, congratulated the Government and military leadership on this historic decision.

    The government, however, has kept the decision intact and maintained that they are ready for the fallout if any because such hard decisions come with all the positives and negatives. 

    Hyderabad chapter of Aurat March refused to protest against the repatriation plan while the march was criticised by civil rights activist including Anis Haroon, retired Justice Majida Razvi and many others stating, “How long Sindh would bear the burden of illegal immigrants when it owns 37 percent of the rural population [that] lives below the poverty line?”

    Bugti wants the move to be perceived as Pakistan’s change of image from a soft state to a “hardened” one. He asserted that Pakistani government is determined to send these foreigners to their homelands in a step-wise manner.