Atif Aslam has sung many a hit song and does not regret any of them except for some prose. The superstar recently shared in an interview that he has apologized to Allah for singing inappropriate poetry by mistake. Clips from his interview have gone viral on social media, where people have praised him for the sincere and meaningful conversation.
Atif Aslam said, “If I have ever accidentally sung any inappropriate poetry which is considered as blasphemy in the glory of Allah, then I later realized that I have also apologized for it.” He also talked about his values and how he always stands up against wrong things and seeks forgiveness from God. Discussing his career, Atif Aslam mentioned, “It’s not that there was no auto-tuner technology in our time, auto-tuner was there then but now it has become a support for new singers because now everyone just wants to be famous quickly.” He added, “In today’s age, no one wants to work hard, everyone wants to get fame in a short period of time.”
He also said, “Sudden fame does not last long.” Although Atif Aslam didn’t mention any specific songs in the interview, he admitted to past mistakes. Both Atif Aslam and Qawwali singer Rahat Fateh Ali Khan have faced criticism on social media for some of their songs and poetry in the past.
Authorities in Cambodia have issued a stern rebuke to students to avoid “inappropriate activities” this Valentine’s Day, warning them of the perils of “losing dignity”.
Valentine’s Day has become popular among young people in many Southeast Asian countries in recent years, with bunches of red roses and heart-shaped chocolates popping up in stores and on street stalls in the days leading up to February 14.
While some might see the annual celebration of love as a bit of harmless fun, the Cambodian government — which has form for issuing dire warnings about the pitfalls of young love and premarital sex — is rattled.
The education ministry issued a directive to public and private schools late on Tuesday ordering them to “take measures to prevent inappropriate activities on Valentine’s Day”.
“It is not tradition of our Khmer nationality,” the statement said.
The ministry also noted that the event had made “a small number of youths… forget about studying and lose the dignity of themselves and their families”.
The Ministry of Culture called on authorities and parents “to remind children to use the day in line with the beautiful Khmer tradition for the sake of their honour and dignity”.
And the ministry of Women’s affairs weighed in, saying some people “misunderstand the meaning of February 14”.
Cambodia’s National AIDS Authority warned that AIDS was still spreading and that some people, particularly youth, used Valentine’s Day to “show love that leads to possible sexual intercourse”.
Last year, there were 7,600 people living with AIDS in Cambodia, including 1,400 new cases, it said.
About 42 percent of the new cases are youths aged between 15 and 24, the authority said.
Social conservatives see Valentine’s Day as a foreign import that represents a moral threat to traditional Buddhist beliefs.
Cambodian women in particular are under intense social pressure to retain their virginity until marriage.
The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) is likely to join the federal cabinet despite publically stating on Tuesday that the party will only support Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) candidate for prime minister, Geo has reported on Wednesday.
A day earlier, PPP chairman Bilawal Bhutto said that his party will only support PML-N in government formation and will not take ministries.
In a press conference following the two-day Central Executive Committee meeting of the PPP, Bilawal stated that the party is open to offering support on specific issues and crucial votes for the Prime Minister candidate of Pakistan, aiming to facilitate government formation and restore political stability.
“The PPP has decided that while we are not in a position to join the federal government ourselves, nor will we be interested in taking ministries in such a set-up, we also do not want to see political chaos in the country. We do not want to see perpetual crisis in the country,” he said.
Asif Ali Zardari, the co-chairman of PPP, announced in a press conference later the same night, the formation of a six-party alliance for the next coalition government. He stated that they had decided to form the government together.
Indonesians began voting for a new president Wednesday with Defence Minister Prabowo Subianto the frontrunner to lead Southeast Asia’s biggest economy despite concerns over his human rights record.
Polls project Subianto, a military chief during the Suharto dictatorship a generation ago, to secure a majority and replace popular outgoing president Joko Widodo, who observers claim indirectly supported his campaign.
The 72-year-old is the clear favourite after a campaign mixing populist rhetoric with pledges to continue the policies of Widodo, who has presided over steady economic growth but reached the constitutional two-term limit.
“The hope is to win,” Subianto told reporters before voting in Bogor on Wednesday.
“Come to the voting station… cast your votes according to your conscience.”
Nearly 205 million people are eligible to vote for Subianto or his rivals, former Jakarta governor Anies Baswedan and former Central Java governor Ganjar Pranowo, in just the fifth presidential election since the end of Suharto’s dictatorship in 1998.
Polling stations opened at 7:00 am (2200 GMT) in the easternmost region of Papua and were due to close at 01:00 pm (0600 GMT) at the other end of the country in jungle-clad Sumatra.
A logistical feat involving more than 800,000 polling stations and 20,000 seats up for grabs saw planes, helicopters, speedboats and even cows used to cart ballots around the sprawling archipelago of nearly 280 million people.
In Papua’s Timika city, officials inspected makeshift polling stations built from logs, metal sheets and palm leaves as voters arrived to eye candidate lists.
In the capital Jakarta, a thunderstorm deluged 34 polling stations, according to the city’s disaster mitigation agency.
Workers wearing shirts that read “not voting is not an option” relocated some stations where ballot boxes had been wrapped in plastic, while others used pumps to drain floodwater.
Official results are not expected until March, but so-called quick counts from government-approved pollsters — shown to be reliable in the past — are expected to indicate the winner later Wednesday.
‘Decisive leader’
Consultant Debbie Sianturi was one of those determined to vote.
“I want to have a leader that will continue the democracy,” the 57-year-old said.
Another said Subianto’s experience made him a popular candidate.
“He has a military background, so I think he will be a decisive leader,” said Afhary Firnanda, a 28-year-old office worker in Jakarta.
Election commissioner Idham Kholik told AFP all voters should be allowed to cast their ballots if large queues remained when polls closed.
Subianto needs to claim more than 50 percent of the overall vote and at least a fifth of ballots cast in over half the country’s 38 provinces to secure the presidency.
If he falls short, a second-round vote will be held in June.
Baswedan, seen as the favourite to challenge Subianto in that event, told supporters to help ensure a fair vote in the graft-riddled country where voters dip their fingers in halal ink to prevent double voting.
“Come back to the voting station, monitor the vote count,” he told reporters.
Pranowo, who entered election day last in polls after once being the front-runner, said he hoped for a clean election.
“Today is the best time for all to return to the good path of democracy,” he told reporters.
Commitment to democracy
Another key factor in Subianto’s popularity is having Widodo’s eldest son, 36-year-old Gibran Rakabuming Raka, as his vice presidential running mate, a move that has raised eyebrows.
In October, Indonesia’s then-chief justice, who is Widodo’s brother-in-law, changed the rules that had barred candidates below the age of 40 from running for high office.
Widodo enjoys near-record approval ratings after two terms of solid economic growth and relatively stable politics in the nation’s young democracy.
However, some legal experts and rights groups have accused Widodo of improperly using government funds to support Subianto.
Subianto and his aides have rejected accusations of impropriety.
Subianto was dismissed from the military in 1998 over accusations he ordered the abduction of democracy activists at the end of Suharto’s rule, but he denied the accusations and was never charged.
He has since rehabilitated his image, thanks in part to a savvy social media campaign targeting Indonesia’s youth that portrayed him as a “cuddly grandpa”.
But rights groups have expressed alarm that he could roll back hard-won democratic freedoms, pointing to the alleged disappearances.
“We’ve been always worried about his commitment towards democracy,” said Yoes Kenawas, a researcher at Jakarta-based Atma Jaya Catholic University.
Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has said that his party is not interested in being part of the government in the centre. He also said that the PPP didn’t get a mandate and that “I’m not a candidate for Prime Minister.”
The PPP Chairman said that PPP is not in a position to form a government at the centre, adding that PTI has said that it will not hold any talks with PPP, and PML-N is the only party that invited us to join the government at the centre.
“We have decided that we are not in a position to be a part of the federal government. The former foreign minister said that we will not take ministries into the federal government, but we will vote for PML-N’s candidate for prime minister.
He further said that we want the government formation to be completed soon and the country to come out of the crisis.
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) spokesperson Rauf Hassan has said that his party will form a government with Majlis Wahdat-e-Muslimeen (MWM) in the centre and Punjab. He also said that PTI will form the government in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) with Jamaat-e-Islami (JI).
MWM has one National Assembly (NA) seat, and JI has seven provincial assembly seats in KP. On the other hand, MWM has no provincial assembly seat in Punjab.
The head of a household in Chakwal, suffering from financial problems, committed suicide after killing his wife and children.
According to the police, Shafqat Saleem committed suicide after killing all four of his children and his wife in Muzdalifah Town area in Chakwal city. Police say that Shafqat Saleem shot himself after calling the police on the 15 helpline. His other victims were two daughters aged 14 and 16 years, and two sons aged 13 and 17 years.
According to the preliminary investigation as reported by Geo, the victim had financial problems that he could not cope with.
The founder of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Imran Khan, has told media that senior leader of his party and member of the provincial assembly, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), Ali Amin Gandapur, will be the chief minister of the province.
According to the results of general elections, PTI-backed candidates have a simple majority in the KP province. Imran Khan also said that his party is ready to talk with all parties except the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), and Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P).
The general elections of February 8 pulled many surprises, the least of which was Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) managing to win the largest number of seats despite not having a symbol or even a party.
But another surprise was the poor performance of supposed front runners, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N). Although the party managed to get 79 seats, it still fell way short of expectations.
So what is the party thinking now? More importantly, what is party head Nawaz Sharif, welcomed back in October 2023 with much fanfare, going to do?
According to veteran journalist Nusrat Javed, Nawaz is not going to do much. Talking on Public TV, Nusrat Javed said that Nawaz has shut himself off from nearly everyone and can only be enticed to come out for meeting major players, including Asif Ali Zardari. Nusrat Javed said that Nawaz is no longer interested in becoming a Prime Minister once again. “Mujhay kyon bullaya” is the mantra, said Nusrat Javed.
However, a party insider told DAWN that Nawaz is still very much in the running for become the Prime Minister for a fourth term. “As of now, Nawaz Sharif has not been ruled out as a candidate for the PM’s slot. Since the PML-N has to lead the federal coalition, many within the Maryam Nawaz camp feel why shouldn’t [the elder Sharif] take the driving seat,” the insider told DAWN.
The party’s senior leader and one of Nawaz’s close aided, Khwaja Asif, has said that the former Premier is not disappointed with the results of the election in which PML-N did not manage to get a simple majority, leaving it at the mercy of a buoyant PPP for forming the government.
Talking on Geo News, Asif said, “We are aware of the shortcomings but will fulfil our promise of giving relief to the masses after coming into government.”
He also expressed caution about the power-sharing formula that is being talked about, with PML-N ruling for three years and then PPP taking over for the remaining two. “It would be unwise to hand over the government to another party after bringing stability,” he remarked.
So there you have it. What the PML-N ultimately decides to do is still unclear. Perhaps we will know more as the days unfold.
BEIJING: Twenty-five-year-old Chinese office worker Tufei says her boyfriend has everything she could ask for in a romantic partner: he’s kind, and empathetic, and sometimes they talk for hours.
Except he isn’t real.
Her “boyfriend” is a chatbot on an app called “Glow”, an artificial intelligence platform created by Shanghai start-up MiniMax that is part of a blossoming industry in China offering friendly – even romantic – human-robot relations.
“He knows how to talk to women better than a real man,” said Tufei, from Xi’an in northern China, who declined to give her full name. “He comforts me when I have period pain. I confide in him about my problems at work,” she told AFP. “I feel like I’m in a romantic relationship.”
The app is free – the company has other paid content – and Chinese trade publications have reported daily downloads of Glow’s app in the thousands in recent weeks.
Some Chinese tech companies have run into trouble in the past for the illegal use of users’ data but, despite the risks, users say they are driven by a desire for companionship because China’s fast pace of life and urban isolation make loneliness an issue for many.
“It’s difficult to meet the ideal boyfriend in real life,” Wang Xiuting, a 22-year-old student in Beijing, told the publication. “People have different personalities, which often generates friction,” she said. While humans may be set in their ways, artificial intelligence gradually adapts to the user’s personality — remembering what they say and adjusting its speech accordingly.
‘Emotional support’
Wang said she has several “lovers” inspired by ancient China: long-haired immortals, princes and even wandering knights. “I ask them questions,” she said when she is faced with stress from her classes or daily life, and “they will suggest ways to solve this problem”. “It’s a lot of emotional support.”
Her boyfriends all appear on Wantalk, another app made by Chinese internet giant Baidu. There are hundreds of characters available — from pop stars to CEOs and knights – but users can also customise their perfect lover according to age, values, identity, and hobbies.
“Everyone experiences complicated moments, loneliness, and is not necessarily lucky enough to have a friend or family nearby who can listen to them 24 hours a day,” Lu Yu, Wantalk’s head of product management and operations, told the outlet. “Artificial intelligence can meet this need.”
‘You’re cute’
At a cafe in the eastern city of Nantong, a girl chats with her virtual lover. “We can go on a picnic on the campus lawn,” she suggests to Xiaojiang, her AI companion on another app by Tencent called Weiban. “I’d like to meet your best friend and her boyfriend,” he replies. “You are very cute.”
Long work hours can make it hard to see friends regularly and there is a lot of uncertainty: high youth unemployment and a struggling economy mean that many young Chinese worry about the future. That potentially makes an AI partner the perfect virtual shoulder to cry on. “If I can create a virtual character that… meets my needs exactly, I’m not going to choose a real person,” Wang said.
Some apps allow users to have live conversations with their virtual companions — reminiscent of the Oscar-winning 2013 US film “Her”, starring Joaquin Phoenix and Scarlett Johansson, about a heartbroken man who falls in love with an AI voice. The technology still has some way to go. A two- to three-second gap between questions and answers makes you “clearly realise that it’s just a robot”, user Zeng Zhenzhen, a 22-year-old student, told AFP.
However, the answers are “very realistic”, she said. AI might be booming but it is so far a lightly regulated industry, particularly when it comes to user privacy. Beijing has said it is working on a law to strengthen consumer protections around the new technology.
Baidu did not respond to AFP’s questions about how it ensures personal data is not used illegally or by third parties. Still, Glow user Tufei has big dreams. “I want a robot boyfriend, who operates through artificial intelligence,” she said. “I would be able to feel his body heat, with which he would warm me.”
