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Category: Politics

  • ‘Talk about business, poetry for another time’: PM Khan shuts a man for criticising govt

    ‘Talk about business, poetry for another time’: PM Khan shuts a man for criticising govt

    Prime Minister Imran Khan asked a man to stick to business matters instead of poetry when a man from the audience recited a critical poem targeting the premier after his address to the Pakistan-Tajikistan Business Forum.

    First the state-run TV muted his voice, and then the prime minister stopped him before he could complete his poem. 

    “I have a verse for you, [which goes like] Itne zaalim na bano [don’t be unjust]. Imran Bhai, this is for you,” said the man in the audience.

    “You have become a prisoner now. You used to be great when you were [protesting] on the container. Right now, we aren’t sure what you’ve gotten yourself involved in,” said the man. 

    The man went on to recite part of the verse, “Zaalim na bano, kuch toh murawwat seekho…” before he was cut off. 

    “Speak about matters related to business. We can make time for poetry later as well, Insha’Allah,” said the prime minister. 

    Twitterati reacted to PM Khan not letting the man complete his poem.

    Journalist Absar Alam tweeted, “Fear of criticism did not allow Khan Sahib to listen to the whole poem even though he was probably trying to complain through the poem.”

    Journalist Raza Rumi posted a tongue-in-cheek tweet and asked who was this brash man asking PM such questions.

  • ‘Afghanistan is a matter of humanity and cannot be ignored’: Malala Yousafzai

    ‘Afghanistan is a matter of humanity and cannot be ignored’: Malala Yousafzai

    Nobel Peace Prize laureate and education activist Malala Yousafzai, during a conversation with Geo News programme “Aaj Shahzeb Khanzada Kay Sath”, extensively spoke on how the Pakistani government should welcome and facilitate Afghan refugees, and provide education to the refugee children.

    Malala said that the safety of the people of Afghanistan is “a matter of humanity and cannot be ignored”.

    “These people have nothing to do with the war, so we must support them,” said Malala.

    “They are those people who lost their homes, their lives, or their loved ones. It is important we think of these people, especially children, a lot of whom have been born during the war. They are not able to understand why this is happening, why foreign wars are being fought on their land and why their own people are failing them in this fight for peace,” she said.

    “Every country has its own political interests but the people suffer the most,” she reiterated.

    “Neighbouring countries must open their borders and provide such people shelter.”

    “Children who are not feeling safe, they must be saved and must be provided education,” she emphasised.

    Malala said that several reports have surfaced that women are not being allowed to leave their homes or go to work.

    “I myself spoke to a journalist who told me that whenever she would leave the house to go to work, she would be sent back,” Malala said.

    She said that there is always this “excuse” presented that women will be allowed to go to work and school “when it is safe” for them.

    “I hope, when it comes to Afghanistan and Pakistan, we will be able to define within our own cultures, what equal rights are. And it is possible to safeguard women’s rights within our own culture,” said Malala.

    “So if we want to ensure our country succeeds, it is very important that women succeed. Their rights, their education (are ensured). This is not just a matter related to women, it pertains to humanity and the entire nation,” she said.

    Talking about her health and remembering the nine years-long journey to recovery, Malala said, “Early August I had my surgery and the very day news that the Taliban had taken Kunduz, the first major city to fall in Afghanistan.”

    “This made me think how many people have suffered. So many have lost their lives and home to this war. And the struggles still continue.”

  • PM Khan arrives in Tajikistan for SCO summit, Taliban leaders to be present

    PM Khan arrives in Tajikistan for SCO summit, Taliban leaders to be present

    Prime Minister Imran Khan arrived in Tajikistan’s capital Dushanbe on Thursday on a two-day visit to attend the 20th Shanghai Cooperation Organisation’s (SCO’s) Heads of State Summit.

    “The prime minister was received by Tajik Prime Minister Kokhir Rasulzoda and was accorded a red carpet welcome at Dushanbe International Airport,” according to a tweet by the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO).

    PM Khan, while addressing Pakistan-Tajikistan Business Forum, said, “We just wish and pray that finally after 40 years of conflict there will be peace in Afghanistan. It is extremely important for our [Pakistan and Tajikistan] trade for that region to be at peace so there would be better connectivity.”

    “Your president and I will be trying everything to make sure that there is peace especially between the two major communities [Pashtuns and Tajiks] so they get together and there is an inclusive government in Afghanistan”, he added.

    Right after his speech, PM Khan met President of Kazakhstan H.E. Kassym-Jomart Tokayev at Dushanbe on the side-lines of SCO.

    PM Imran’s talks with the Tajik president will cover “the entire gamut of bilateral relations, especially enhancing trade, economic and investment ties with a particular focus on regional connectivity”, reports Radio Pakistan.

    Moreover, the premier will be holding bilateral meetings with other participating leaders as well during the summit.

    The SCO summit is the first meeting of the heads of states since the Taliban entered Kabul so all eyes will be on the Afghan representative at the meeting.

    According to details, if there will be representation from Afghanistan, it will be PM Khan’s first interaction with the Afghan interim government, as per The News.

    This is the third visit of the prime minister to Central Asia.

    The SCO was founded in Shanghai in 2001 by the leaders of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Russia and China.

  • ‘Pakistan open to pardoning banned TTP’: Shah Mahmood Qureshi

    ‘Pakistan open to pardoning banned TTP’: Shah Mahmood Qureshi

    Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi in an interview with The Independent has said that the government would be “open to giving” a pardon to members of the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) if they promise not to get involved in terrorism and follow the Constitution of Pakistan.

    Qureshi said Pakistan was concerned about the reports of TTP figures being released from prisons in the wake of the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan.

    “If those guys come and start creating problems for us over here, it will affect innocent lives and we don’t want that,” he said while referring to the TTP.

    Qureshi added, “If [the TTP] are willing to mend fences and not take the law into their hands and not get involved in terrorist activities and they submit and surrender to the writ of the government and the Constitution of Pakistan, we are even open to giving them a pardon.”

    “But as long as they do not come and start undertaking terrorist activities [in Pakistan]. That is our concern,” the minister stressed.

    The minister’s comments come days after President Arif Alvi while speaking on Dawn News programme, ‘Khabar se Khabar’, said, if anyone wants to leave the ideology of the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and work as per the Constitution of Pakistan, the government may consider a general amnesty.

  • Twitter reacts to hike in petroleum prices, Fawad defends

    Twitterati reacted to the hike in petroleum prices in Pakistan, using the hashtag #PTIPetrolBomb, which is currently in the top trends.

    Musician and politician Jawad Ahmad tweeted: ”Petrol price is up by Rs 5/litre.It won’t affect the elite & ruling class whichever party they belong to. Youth of Pakistan! These people have so much money that their next many generations would live comfortably with it. They fight on TV & social media but actually, they’re all one.”

    Former anchorperson Gulmeenay tweeted, “My husband and I run a small food delivery service. We cannot currently afford a rider so he does the deliveries himself. This petrol price increase (and all the previous increases) literally impacts our income and our ability to pay bills and feed ourselves.”

    Apart from this, some people had hilarious responses to the petrol price hike.

    Senior journalist Mansoor Ali Khan quote-tweeted Punjab Police’s tweet about abandoned cars picture and said, “As petrol becomes more expensive, you will find most cars have been abandoned.”

    A parody news page tweeted: “The PM could not sleep all night as petrol was increased by Rs 5 per litre, say sources.”

    Minister for Information and Broadcasting Fawad Chaudhry, while responding to a journalist on Twitter, has defended the hike in petroleum prices by the government.

    “Oil prices in Pakistan are still the lowest in the region. If we had oil wells, things would have been different but we have to buy it from abroad, so the price is bound to go up if it increases in the oil market. This is the case for the rest of the imports. The real achievement is that the income of 75 per cent of the population has also increased significantly,” tweeted Chaudhry.

    The government on Wednesday notified an increase in the price of petrol by Rs 5 per litre and diesel by Rs 5.1 per litre.

  • ‘Trump administration enabled Taliban takeover, not Pak’: US Senator

    ‘Trump administration enabled Taliban takeover, not Pak’: US Senator

    United States (US) Senator Chris Van Hollen said on Tuesday that former US President Donald Trump’s administration had enabled the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan, reports Dawn.

    The senator, a Maryland Democrat, argued at the first Senate hearing on the US withdrawal from Afghan soil that it was in Pakistan’s interest to “prevent chaos and civil war” in its neighbourhood.

    Responding to allegations that President Joe Biden’s administration was responsible for the chaos and the Taliban takeover, Senator Van Hollen engaged in a dialogue with Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who was the main witness.

    “Is it not the fact that the Trump administration asked the Pakistani government to release three top Taliban commanders as part of that process?” he asked.

    “That’s correct,” Blinken responded.

    Van Hollen asked Blinken that the former Afghan government was not included in the Doha talks and was pressurised to release 5,000 Taliban prisoners who were later involved in Kabul’s takeover, to which Blinken responded: “That’s correct.”

    The US senator also raised the agreement reached that said US forces would leave by May and would not be attacked but there was no such restriction on attacking Afghan forces, to which Blinken said he was correct.

    “And so, we pick a date. We say to the Taliban you can attack Afghan forces and then we say, now let’s negotiate the future of Afghanistan. Isn’t the way it was set up when you walked in?” the senator asked. “That’s essentially, yes,” Blinken replied.

    “There is a saying in Afghanistan, partners have watches, we have the time. So, the Trump administration, with this negotiation, set it up perfectly for the Taliban. Greenlight to attack the Afghan forces. No discussions going forward,” Van Hollen said.

    Blinken responded: “I believe that’s accurate.”

    Senator Van Hollen reminded Secretary Blinken that Trump even criticised Biden for not withdrawing the forces by May, as agreed in the US-Taliban agreement.

    He noted that the Biden administration now had both Pakistan and India on the table because the Afghan dispute could not be resolved without involving regional players.

    “I think a number of those countries, at least Pakistan — like India, like the others — have an interest in preventing chaos and civil war in Afghanistan,” he added.

    Then returning to Pakistan, he said: “Obviously, we asked them to release prisoners that they had locked up, Taliban prisoners. So, obviously, we have to keep an eye on the ISI (Inter-Services Intelligence), [I] get that, but let’s all work together to achieve the goal of a stable Afghanistan that protects the rights of its people.”

    On the other hand, National Security Adviser (NSA) Moeed Yusuf on Wednesday said that the US should listen to Pakistan’s message as it reassesses its relationship with the country.

    “If there has to be a reassessment, the reassessment has to conclude that what Pakistan was saying made sense. So now what Pakistan is saying we should give a fair hearing to,” he said.

    On Monday, Antony Blinken said the US would be looking at its relationship with Pakistan in the coming weeks to formulate what role Washington would want it to play in the future of Afghanistan.

  • Senior Afghan Taliban leader named among Time’s 100 most influential people of 2021

    Senior Afghan Taliban leader named among Time’s 100 most influential people of 2021

    Taliban co-founder and now Deputy Prime Minister of Afghanistan, Abdul Ghani Baradar, has been named among the “100 Most Influential People” of 2021 by Time magazine, reports Dawn.

    Veteran journalist Ahmed Rashid wrote Baradar’s profile for Time’s list.

    Rashid mentions Baradar as having “a charismatic military leader and a deeply pious figure”, who “is revered” among the Afghan Taliban as a founding member of the movement in 1994.

    “A quiet, secretive man who rarely gives public statements or interviews, Baradar nonetheless represents a more moderate current within the Taliban, the one that will be thrust into the limelight to win Western support and desperately needed financial aid. The question is whether the man who coaxed the Americans out of Afghanistan can sway his own movement,” the profile said.

    “When the Taliban swept to victory in August in Afghanistan, it was on the terms Baradar negotiated. He was said to be making all the major decisions, including the amnesty offered to members of the former regime, the lack of bloodshed when the Taliban entered Kabul and the regime’s contacts and visits with neighboring states, especially China and Pakistan,” read the profile.

    “Now he stands as the fulcrum for the future of Afghanistan. In the interim Taliban government, he was made a Deputy Prime Minister, the top role given to another leader more acceptable to the younger, more hard-line generation of Taliban commanders.”

    Baradar appears to be the first Taliban leader to make it to the list.

    In 2004, Al Qaeda founder Osama bin Laden was included in the list, with the magazine noting that he “galvanised disparate organisations in dozens of countries into one network, sharing a vision, logistics, and Afghan training camps”.

    “The malcontented son of a wealthy Saudi construction magnate, bin Laden found meaning in the Afghan war,” wrote Richard Clarke, the former head of counterterrorism for America’s National Security Council.

  • PM Imran shares pictures of Bushra Bibi

    Yesterday, Prime Minister, Imran Khan took to Instagram and posted a few pictures of his wife, Bushra Bibi, visiting the Punjab Institute of Mental Health in Lahore.

    The premier captioned the pictures, “First Lady, Bushra Bibi visited the Punjab Institute of Mental Health, Lahore and was briefed on the facilities provided there.”

    First Lady Bushra Bibi visited the Punjab Institute of Mental Health in Lahore on Wednesday. The video of her visit shows Bushra Bibi visiting different departments and checking the facilities at the institute.

    Bushra Bibi was briefed about the facilities provided by the institute. The staff told her about the timings when patients are fed and the activities of the women admitted there.

  • Petrol price goes up by Rs 5 per litre

    The federal government has issued a notice to increase the price of petrol by Rs 5.0 per litre and diesel by Rs 5.1 per litre, reported Geo News.

    Apart from this, the prices of kerosene and light-diesel oil (LDO) have also been increased by Rs 5.46 and Rs 5.92 per litre, respectively. Now the new price for petrol will be Rs. 123.30 per litre, diesel will be 120.4 per litre, kerosene will be 92.26 per litre and LDO will be 90.69.

    Earlier the price of petrol was increased by Rs 5 per litre in July.

    According to Finance Minister, Shaukat Tarin the prices will be implemented from today (Thursday).

  • ‘US clueless and in state of shock over Taliban takeover’: PM Khan

    ‘US clueless and in state of shock over Taliban takeover’: PM Khan

    Prime Minister Imran Khan, while speaking with CNN journalist Becky Anderson, said the best way forward for peace and stability in Afghanistan is to engage with the Taliban and incentivise them on issues such as women’s rights and inclusive government.

    “The Taliban hold all of Afghanistan and if they can sort of now work towards an inclusive government, get all the factions together, Afghanistan could have peace after 40 years. But if it goes wrong and which is what we are really worried about, it could go to chaos. The biggest humanitarian crisis, a huge refugee problem,” Khan said.

    “No puppet government in Afghanistan is supported by the people,” he said. “So rather than sitting here and thinking that we can control them, we should incentivise them. Because Afghanistan, this current government, clearly feels that without international aid and help, they will not be able to stop this crisis. So we should push them in the right direction.”

    “Our intelligence agencies told us that the Taliban would not be able to take over all of Afghanistan, and if they tried to take Afghanistan militarily, there would be a protracted civil war, which is what we were scared of because we are the ones who would suffer the most,” Khan said. Now, he said, the world should “give them time” to form a legitimate government and make good on their promises.

    PM Khan commenting on women’s rights in Afghanistan said, “I feel very strongly that it is a mistake to think that someone from the outside will give Afghan women their rights [because] Afghan women are strong. Give them time, and they will get their rights.”

    “Women should have the ability in society to fulfil their potential in life [but] you cannot impose women’s rights in Afghanistan from abroad,” said Khan.

    When questioned about the decision of the United States (US) and NATO forces to withdraw from Afghanistan, PM Khan said that the “US should have attempted a political settlement with the Taliban from a position of strength.”

    “Just because we sided with the US, we became an ally of the US after 9/11 and the war in Afghanistan. The suffering this country went through with at one point there were 50 militant groups attacking our government … on top of it, they must also know there were 480 drone attacks by the US in Pakistan,” he said.

    On Monday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the US would reassess its ties with Pakistan following the withdrawal. He told Congress during a House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing that Pakistan has a “multiplicity of interests some that are in conflict with ours”.

    “It is one that is involved hedging its bets constantly about the future of Afghanistan, it’s one that’s involved harbouring members of the Taliban … It is one that’s also involved in different points cooperation with us on counterterrorism,” Blinken said, Reuters reported.

    Khan called such comments “ignorant”, telling CNN: “I have never heard such ignorance.”

    “I cannot destroy my country to fight someone else’s war,” he said. “My responsibility would have been to the people of my country.”

    PM Khan also said that he hasn’t met President Joe Biden after the Taliban took over Afghanistan.

    “He did not call as he is a busy man, but our relationship with the US is not just dependent on a phone call, it needs to be a multidimensional relationship,” remarked Khan.