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Tag: Pakistan

  • Pakistan ‘very close’ to signing staff-level agreement with IMF, says Finance Minister

    Pakistan ‘very close’ to signing staff-level agreement with IMF, says Finance Minister

    Finance Minister Ishaq Dar has reaffirmed his team’s commitment to completing Pakistan’s $7 billion Extended Fund Facility programme with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

    Speaking at a seminar organised by the Finance Ministry in Islamabad, Dar acknowledged the need for swift implementation of measures to reach an agreement with the IMF as the country has reserves barely sufficient for three weeks of essential imports.

    He noted that the government had inherited an economy that was “in a shambles” and that it had decided to honour the commitments made by the previous administration, despite a serious trust deficit with the lender.

    According to Dawn, the minister also confirmed that Pakistan was “very close” to signing a staff-level agreement with the IMF, which would unlock inflows from friendly countries and lead to a disbursement of $1.2 billion. The prerequisites by the lender are aimed at ensuring Pakistan reduces its fiscal deficit before its annual budget around June. The country has already taken most of the other prior actions, including hikes in fuel and energy tariffs, the withdrawal of subsidies in export and power sectors, and generating more revenues through new taxation in a supplementary budget.

    Furthermore, Dar highlighted the need for all stakeholders to contribute to overcoming the challenges facing the country, including the implementation of austerity measures. These measures, which include cabinet members forgoing their salaries, paying their own bills, banning the purchase of luxury vehicles from 2024, and slashing current expenditure by 15 per cent, have already been implemented and notified to the Finance Ministry.

    Dar also noted that Pakistan’s economic difficulties were compounded by the devastating 2022 floods, which affected 33 billion people and caused physical and economic losses of nearly $30 billion.

    Despite fiscal constraints and limitations, Dar pledged that the federal and provincial governments had jointly allocated Rs452 billion for relief and rehabilitation work of flood affectees. International agencies have calculated that around $16 billion would be required for reconstruction and rehabilitation work in Pakistan in the next two years, half of which will be met by Pakistan from its own resources.

  • What was the significance behind the tunnel art installation at Aurat March?

    What was the significance behind the tunnel art installation at Aurat March?

    Aurat March has set up a performance art piece at their protests each year which highlights their central demand which is to create an equal space for both men and women in Pakistan.

    This year, the feminist movement revealed that a gaze tunnel titled “Chalien Auraton Ki Chaal” was installed at the march for men to pass through, in order to make them experience the kind of fear and claustrophobia women undergo when they are harassed on the streets.

    The March elaborated on the significance behind this art installation in a post:

    “The tunnel piece is an exercise in empathy, in conveying our gendered experiences of walking down the streets, in market places, through office doors. Ask any gender minority what they feel when they are in public spaces: each one of us will have many stories of harassment, of discomfort, of instances where the streets didn’t feel like ours. The art piece plays soundbites of our day-to-day public interactions. Aurat March is ultimately about reclaiming public spaces, of never settling for chaar-dewaris, but rather stretching ourselves more fully within and outside our homes. That demands introspection from men of them way they occupy public spaces. We hope this piece helps in that.”

    Another art installation ‘In Ko Viral Karo’ was also at display on the protest which featured pictures of Youtube bloggers along with the misogynist comments they made about participants.

    The movement addressed the significance behind this installation in the post:
    “The coverage of Aurat March we see on Youtube is far from reality. These Youtube ‘journalists’ sensationalized, misrepresented and harassed participants from Aurat March last year. We present direct quotes from their ‘coverage’”.

  • SBP governor says import restrictions will be eased after completion of IMF review

    SBP governor says import restrictions will be eased after completion of IMF review

    During a briefing to the Senate Standing Committee on Finance, State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) Governor Jameel Ahmed projected that the current account deficit for the ongoing fiscal year would be $7 billion, which is lower than the budgetary target of $10 billion. He attributed the lower deficit to measures taken to control imports, which he said could not continue for a longer period of time. Ahmed stated that import compression would ease after the completion of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) review.

    Ahmed also mentioned that the low inflows due to the delay in the IMF review, higher commodity prices in the international market, and the Ukraine-Russia war are major reasons behind pressure on the external account and an increase in inflation. However, he clarified that an increase of 300 per cent basis points in the policy rate was not made on the demand of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and that the Staff Level Agreement (SLA) is close to being finalized with the Fund.

    Regarding the outflow of $2.4 billion on account of debt repayment in the first half of the current fiscal year compared to $6.3 billion inflow for the same period a year ago, Ahmed said that the decline in inflows was due to the pending review of the IMF program. He hoped that budgeted inflow would materialize after the completion of the review in the second half, thereby increasing foreign exchange reserves.

    Ahmed also mentioned that the pressure of inflation will remain for two to three months and the average inflation this year will be 26.5 per cent. He added that remittances have decreased by $2 billion and are projected at $29 billion for the ongoing fiscal year against over $31 billion for the last fiscal year. There was also a decline of 7.4 per cent in exports as the country did not have exportable goods due to flood and a decrease in the export of rice. Vegetables and fruit exports have also declined by 48 and 37 per cent respectively.

    According to The News, the committee expressed concern over the fluctuation of the dollar and said that it was the responsibility of the regulator to maintain the actual price of the dollar and take measures against black marketing and smuggling. The committee sought details of the amount of dollars smuggled to Afghanistan in the recent period. The committee members recommended seriously addressing the issue of the difference between the dollar rate in the open market and the inter-bank. The chairman of the committee recommended that instead of rupee trade with Afghanistan, either be replaced with the dollar or barter trade because trade with Afghanistan in rupee is also contributing to the external account pressure.

    Senator Mohsin Aziz highlighted that the remittances, the FDI, and the exports have been on a decline, whereas the country’s debt was increasing. He also said that imports compression and policy rate were hurting the industry and exports, and exporters are unable to compete in the global market with regional players due to government policies.

    In response to the issue of refusal of LCs to importers of pharmaceutical ingredients, the SBP said it was fully supporting the import of above articles and imports of pharma industry have considerably increased in the month of February and the first seven days of March 2023.

  • Faiz Hameed is being investigated for alleged corruption, reveals Sanaullah

    Faiz Hameed is being investigated for alleged corruption, reveals Sanaullah

    Former spymaster retired Lieutenant General Faiz Hameed is being investigated for alleged corruption, Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah revealed.

    In a press conference on Wednesday, the interior minister said that an investigation was underway against the ex-Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) chief and his brother over alleged corruption and accumulating assets beyond means.

    “Only the institution can conduct Faiz’s court martial,” Sanaullah said, adding that the General Headquarters (GHQ) can hold military trial, not the interior ministry.

    On the other hand, Senior Vice-President of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Maryam Nawaz wants former Director General Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) General (retd) Faiz Hameed to be court martialed. In an interview with a web channel, Maryam Nawaz accused the former spymaster of plotting to overthrow PML-N’s government for two years.

    “I had spoken against Gen Hamid in court when he was the sitting ISI chief for his alleged involvement in getting me and Nawaz Sharif punished. I had evidence against him,” she said, referring to former Islamabad High Court judge Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui’s claims that the spy agency tried to prevail on him to issue a verdict of their liking.

  • Censor Board bans documentary ‘My Mother’s Daughter’ about forced religious conversion

    Censor Board bans documentary ‘My Mother’s Daughter’ about forced religious conversion

    Filmmakers Ahmen Khawaja and Mariam Khan took to their social media accounts to call out Pakistan’s Central Board of Film Censors for censoring their short documentary ‘My Mother’s Documentary’ which was due to screen at the Women International Film Festival.
    The documentary explores the issue of forced religious conversions by following the life of a minor christian girl who was abducted and forcibly married to a middle-aged man.
    Khan shared the letter sent by the censor board which had based its reasons for censoring the film by calling it “propaganda” as well as for highlighting “wrong values” which are “against the Pakistani culture and society.”

    Read Khan’s full statement here:

    “On International Women’s Day we found out that Pakistan’s Central Board of Film Censors in Islamabad (CBFC) has decided to censor our short documentary My Mother’s Daughter and is not allowing it to screen this weekend at the @womenthroughfilm film festival.

    The film follows the real story of a minor Christian girl in Faisalabad who is abducted by a middle aged man, forcefully married to him and converted to Islam. Up to 1,000 young girls are forcefully converted every year (1), and to call this propaganda is a gross injustice to their plight and stories. We spent months verifying the case and going to court hearings with the survivor to ensure the utmost authenticity in the film. The censor board seems to be of the view that our film is ‘propaganda that is trying to highlight wrong values that go against the culture in Pakistan’. Upon speaking directly with the Chairperson, we were told “the full board review can’t be done before the festival because the office is being renovated”. Please help spread the word because women’s stories deserve to be told.”

    ‘My Mother’s Daughter’ had also won the Short Documentary Award at the DC South Asian Film Festival last year.

  • Pakistani rupee’s three-day winning streak ends due to delayed IMF deal

    Pakistani rupee’s three-day winning streak ends due to delayed IMF deal

    The value of the Pakistani rupee (PKR) decreased 0.45 per cent against the US dollar following a three-day period of gains due to prolonged delays in critical funding from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

    During the interbank session held today, the PKR depreciated by Rs1.3 to settle at Rs279.12 per USD, compared to yesterday’s closing of Rs277.87 against USD.

    Throughout the session, the local unit traded within a range of Rs1.75, reaching a high bid of Rs278.75 and a low offer of Rs277.5. In the open market, the PKR was traded at Rs277/Rs280.5 versus USD.

    On the other hand, the local unit gained Rs5.1 against the Pound Sterling, with the day’s closing quote at Rs329.98 versus GBP, while the previous session closed at Rs335.11 per GBP.

    Furthermore, the PKR’s value also strengthened by Rs2.9 against the EUR, which closed at Rs294.19 at the interbank today.

  • Sharmeen Obaid to launch museum to celebrate diverse food culture

    Sharmeen Obaid to launch museum to celebrate diverse food culture

    Pakistani-American filmmaker Sharmeen Obaid has announced that she is launching a project “Museum of Food” which will celebrate and preserve the food culture in Pakistan. 

    Announcing her new intitiative in an Instagram post, the two-time Oscar winner revealed that the idea was inspired by her grandmother who had taught both young women and men how to cook:

    “I grew up around my Nani’s dinning table…For as long as I can remember she was teaching young women and sometimes men how to cook…She diligently preserved all her recipes and every Friday an advert in the classified section would appear with the weeks menu under the banner: Mrs Azra Syed’s Cooking classes. Thousands of her students now live around the world carrying her recipes with them…My museum of food is an ode to her and her generation whose recipes are fast disappearing..”

    Obaid elaborated that this project was set up for people across Pakistan to send their food recipes that were celebrated in their families so that Pakistan does not lose its cultural heritage

    Read her complete statement below 

  • Inspired by Aurat March, here are feminist songs suggested by women on Twitter

    Inspired by Aurat March, here are feminist songs suggested by women on Twitter

    Aurat March is a day of calling attention to the struggle for equality, as women march on the streets in cities across Pakistan to raise awareness about the numerous issues they face everyday. In spirit of this celebration, we have to pay homage to the powerful feminist anthems that have championed women to be fearless and have called for women to be raised to an equal bar with men.
    When this twitter user asked her followers to give suggestions about Pakistani feminist songs women could listen to in celebration of the day.

    https://twitter.com/apniISPdot/status/1632826963025973252?s=20

    Soon, women flooded her comment section with suggestions and we’re more than happy to share them with our audience!

    1 Hum Dekhien Gey by Iqbal Bano


    The celebrated poem by Faiz Ahmed Faiz was written to counter Zia’s brutal dictatorship who had imprisoned Faiz. Legendary singer Iqbal Bano held a performance at Alhamra where she wore a black sari and sung this poem in defiance of Zia’s ban on saris.

    2 Mujhe Apnay Jeenay Ka Haq Chahiye by Tahira Syed and Roshaneh Zafar ft Shabana Azmi

    Written by celebrated Urdu poet and writer Amjad Islam Amjad, this song served as the title OST for the drama ‘Akhri Station’. It gives voice to the struggles women face and their desire to break free from the chains of patriarchy.

    3 Intehai Shauq by Hadiqa Kiani

    Hadiqa Kiani is a beloved Pakistani actress and singer who has consistently acted in dramas that raised issues faced by women, and for her efforts to provide relief to the flood victims in Balochistan. This song was suggested by women on Twitter because it motivates people to overcome their struggles and setbacks to keep striving for a better future.

    4 Rajkumari by Meesha Shafi


    Actress and singer Meesha Shafi has always used her platform to raise awareness about sexual harassment, and providing easier access for women to file cases in court and hold their abusers accountable. Last year, she dropped this feminist anthem as a surprise, to champion women from everyday life to never forget that they’re queens!

    5 Izzat by Jaan-e-Haseena

    Hussain Zaidi who goes by ‘Jaan-e-Haseena’ on social media, is a transgender rapper who wrote this powerful anthem for the Sindh Moorat March, to demand spaces for more trans women in Pakistan.

    6 Chup by Zeb & Haniya

    Fans have loved the way female desire and playfulness is the central theme to the song, so this is a must add in our feminist playlist!

  • Maryam Nawaz wants court martial for former spymaster Faiz Hameed

    Maryam Nawaz wants court martial for former spymaster Faiz Hameed

    Senior Vice-President of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Maryam Nawaz wants former Director General Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) General (retd) Faiz Hameed to be court martialed.


    In an interview with a web channel, Maryam Nawaz accused the former spymaster of plotting to overthrow PML-N’s government for two years.

    “The biggest punishment for those who brought the ‘hybrid system’ was the public awareness campaign in the form of ‘Respect Vote’,” Maryam Nawaz said, asking that Faiz Hameed be made an example for playing an unconstitutional role.

    However, she said that she was against no institution and only wanted them to hold their own people accountable for their actions, adding that doing so would lead to an increase in their respect and honour.

    Journalist Kamran Khan tweeted on Wednesday that General (retd) Hameed had sent him messages, responding to Maryam Nawaz’s accusations. He wrote: “In response to Maryam Nawaz’s allegations, former ISI head Lt Gen Faiz reminded that 1. He was a Major General in 2017-18. Can a lone Major General remove a government given army’s discipline? 2. The only decision maker in the army is the Chief. 3. All decisions were made by courts.”

    Maryam Nawaz also slammed former Chief Justice Saqib Nisar, calling him the biggest criminal in the country’s history, accusing him of taking instructions from a colonel and a brigadier.

  • Five times when female politicians told the patriarchy to sit down and shut up

    Five times when female politicians told the patriarchy to sit down and shut up

    The time when patriarchal societies used to dictate to women is long gone. In the past, we witnessed how difficult it was for women to rule in a man’s world because of casual sexism. However, now things have changed. Women know how to stand up for themselves.

    In honour of International Women’s Day, let’s rewind to the times when women leaders told the patriarchy to sit down and shut up.

    1- First Muslim World Female Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto

    At the top of the list, we have former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, who became the very first woman to hold the position in the Muslim world. At 35, she was also one of the youngest chief executives in the world. As prime minister, she was often referred to as the “Iron Lady of Pakistan” for her uncompromising approach to negotiating with unions. During her first tenure, she was removed by then-President Ghulam Ishaq Khan but was elected again by her people. She won the hearts of many with her courageous and empowering speeches at a time when politics were male-dominated and no one would have thought that Pakistan would elect a woman to lead the country.

    2- Sherry Rehman at her wittiest best

    If you want a guide or need tips on how to deal with the misogyny that exists even in Pakistan’s Senate, you need to watch Pakistan’s Federal Minister for Climate Change, Senator Sherry Rehman.

    Last year, Senate Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani called Rehman the “Senate’s dadi (grandmother)”. To this, casual sexism, she responded by saying: “I would advise you to only ask specific questions so that Sherry Rehman, who is the dadi of this House, can give you the right answers.”

    3- Take notes from Jacinda Ardern

    In December, New Zealand PM Jacinda Ardern shut down a male journalist for asking a misogynist question when she was hosting Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin.

    The journalist asked, “A lot of people will be wondering: ‘Are you two meeting just because you’re similar in age and have got a lot of common stuff there — when you got into politics and stuff — or can Kiwis actually expect to see more deals between our two countries down the line?”

    Ardern interrupted the question to say that she wondered “Whether or not anyone ever asked Barack Obama and John Key if they met because they were of similar age.”

    Well, this is how you deal with misogyny!

    4- Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez fires back

    Now, we bring you US Congress Member Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez excoriating her Republican colleague, Rep. Ted Yoho of Florida, after he verbally attacked her on the steps of the Capitol and used a sexist slur overheard by a reporter, calling her a “fucking bitch,” then issued a non-apology from the House floor. Later, on the floor, Alexandria said: “My mother got to see Mr. Yoho’s disrespect on the floor of this House towards me on television and I am here because I have to show my parents that I am their daughter and that they did not raise me to accept abuse from men.”

      5- Hina Rabbani’s bold move

      Last year in November, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Hina Rabbani Khar went to meet the Taliban government in Afghanistan which is famously notorious for its mistreatment of women and its denial of women’s rights. The arrival of a woman to hold talks with the government proved to be such a powerful move. Netizens couldn’t help but root for Khar, deeming it a boss move to have a woman represent Pakistan, especially before a government as stuck in the stone age as the Taliban.