ISLAMABAD: While Punjab and Sindh provinces are still reluctant to hand over powers to their elected local government representatives, Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf chairman Imran Khan on Monday promised to make LG institutions in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa financially stronger.

Speaking at a press conference here on Monday, the cricketer-turned-politician announced that all discretionary funds in KP were now being abolished and members of the provincial assembly (MPAs) in KP would no more enjoy discretionary funds.

“MPAs should focus on lawmaking,” Mr Khan said, without promising a law to end the culture of discretionary funds to provincial lawmakers in future.

However, he added that development funds should not be used for political purposes.

“Changes related to local governments introduced in KP will be ones which have never taken place in any province before,” Mr Khan said, while announcing a 13-point agenda for prosperity in KP.

The PTI chairman said that MPAs used to be bribed in the past through discretionary funds and because of the KP government move MPAs would now have no role in development activities.

He said that the provincial government would provide Rs33 billion to local government representatives who would be responsible for spending these funds on development projects in the province.

“The KP’s local government system shall be exemplary for other provinces,” Mr Khan said, adding that a new accountability law was being introduced in the provincial assembly to make accountability cell stronger and more powerful.

He also announced the establishment of Galiat Development Authority for upgrade of the hilly region mainly falling within the Hazara division.

Mr Khan also said that the KP government faced resistance from several quarters while pursuing LG reforms, and lauded services of KP Chief Minister Pervaiz Khattak for strengthening the LG institutions in the province.

Mr Khan also said that police had been made apolitical in KP, adding that currently no lobby or organised group could intervene in the performance of the police department.

The PTI chief also announced a reward for anyone pointing out corruption cases in the province.

“Corruption in Khyber Pakhtun­khwa is at the lowest level compared to other provinces, according to the Pakistan Institute of Legislative Development and Transparency survey,” Mr Khan said.

He also highlighted the issue of Afghan refugees in the country and said that an impression was being created that acts of terrorism in the country were on the rise because of Afghan refugees.

In order to deal with this issue, he said, a committee had been formed under the leadership of Rustam Shah Mohmand.

The PTI chairman said that Afghan refugees were present in the country as guests and they should not be subjected to any injustice.

Published in Dawn, July 26th, 2016

ISLAMABAD: The Independent Monitoring Board (IMB) of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative has expressed concern over changes in the leadership of the polio programme in Sindh, fearing it will affect Pakistan’s efforts for eradicating the crippling disease by the end of this year.

But Sharmila Farooqi, a member of the provincial assembly representing the Sindh government, told an IMB meeting that transfers of officials had no impact on government policies. She expressed the hope that the provincial government would overcome the menace of polio this year.

The IMB works on behalf of the international donor agencies and issues reports on performance of the countries involved in the fight against polio after every six months.

The issue was discussed at the board’s meeting in the United Kingdom on July 20 and 21. A Pakistani delegation participated in the meeting and defended the case of the country.

A participant of the meeting, who has returned to Pakistan, told Dawn that during the meeting IMB members had expressed concern over the governance issue in Sindh.

“They said that Pakistan was passing from a very important and critical period as it had to eradicate the virus by the end of the year. At this moment, changing of team leaders can lead to a problem,” he said.

“The removal of former commissioner of Karachi Asif Hyder Shah was particularly discussed in the meeting. The IMB members said that the changing of team leaders at such a critical stage could cause an irrecoverable loss to the polio programme,” he said.

“The issue arose while recommendations of the Technical Advisory Group on polio were being discussed in the meeting. The group stated in its report that frequent changes of senior management officials dealing with the polio programme and secretaries of government departments could affect the programme,” he said.

“Members of the IMB said that it was a matter of national interest and Pakistan needed to be more serious about it,” the official said.

The meeting was presided over by IMB Chairman Sir Liam Donaldson. Delegations of Afghanistan and Nigeria also participated in it and presented the cases of their countries.

The IMB is a powerful international body. In Nov 2012, it had recommended imposition of travel restrictions on Pakistani nationals and those recommendations were implemented on May 5, 2014.

When contacted, Secretary of National Health Services Ayub Sheikh confirmed that a number of issues, including the leadership of the polio programme, had been discussed in the meeting.

Talking to Dawn, Sharmila Farooqi said that government policies did not change with the transfer of officials.

“Before Mr Shah, Shoaib Siddiqui was also performing well as commissioner of Karachi, but he was transferred. Same staff is now working under the incumbent commissioner of Karachi which had worked under Mr Shah. The staff will play a vital role during polio campaigns,” she said.

“We are focused and hopeful that poliovirus will be completely eradicated by the end of this year,” she said.

Published in Dawn, July 26th, 2016

BANNU: Police arrested the head of a charity organisation here on Monday for holding a referendum seeking public opinion about the democratic government’s performance and military intervention in the country.

Mohammad Aslam Khan, chairman of Al-Aslam Foundation, conducted the so-called referendum by setting up a camp outside the Bannu press club, asking the voters (public) whether they were satisfied with the performance of successive democratic governments or wanted Army Chief General Raheel Sharif to play his role in strengthening democratic institutions.

Banners and posters carrying pictures of the army chief and top political leadership were installed and ballot boxes placed at the camp. People were asked to cast their votes on printed ballot papers. The referendum started at 9am and about 200 people cast their votes.

Talking to journalists, Mr Khan claimed that he didn’t want to derail democracy.

However, police intervened and seized the ballot boxes, posters and other material displayed at the camp.

On the directives of Deputy Com­missioner Adil Iqbal, the additional assistant commissioner, along with police, raided the camp, arrested Aslam Khan and his associates and sent them to jail under the MPO (Maintenance of Public Order) ordinance.

Bannu District Police Officer Qasim Ali Khan told Dawn that every citizen had the right to freedom of expression, but holding a referendum had its own procedure and the law didn’t allow an individual to impose the opinion of a few hundred people on the whole nation. He said further investigation would be carried out in this regard.

Additional AC Dawlat Khan told Dawn that the district administration was responsible for maintaining law and order and supremacy of the law and the Constitution. He said Aslam Khan had been detained on charges of creating tension among government institutions.

According to sources, it was the first phase of the so-called referendum starting from Bannu. In the second phase, it was to be held in Kohat and Peshawar and their results were to be announced in Islamabad.

Published in Dawn, July 26th, 2016

KARACHI: Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee General Rashad Mahmood said on Monday that with the operationalisation of China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and Gwadar Port the responsibilities of Pakistan Navy would increase manyfold.

Speaking at the opening session of the Pakistan Navy’s biennial war games, Shamsheer-i-Bahr VI on Monday, he said he expected exercises to meet such challenges would be included in the conduct of the war games.

Underlining the significance of war games in the military planning process, Gen Rashad said currently the world was volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous so regular conducting of war games to evolve new concepts and doctrines was important. He lauded the realistic threat appraisal, exhaustive planning process and objective analysis presented by the force commanders.

Earlier, deputy chief of naval staff (operations) Vice Admiral Zafar Abbasi presented an overview of the war game outlining objectives set forth, and concepts to be tried. He highlighted the importance of ensuing impregnable seaward defence and the vital role of Pakistan Navy in the face of emerging challenges.

He said that being a tri-service event with representation from relevant ministries, Shamsheer-i-Bahr VI was a biennial exercise to try out various concepts which are then validated in subsequent navy-wide field exercises before being incorporated into naval strategy.

Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Muhammad Zakaullah was also present.

Published in Dawn, July 26th, 2016

ABU DHABI: Solar Impulse 2 landed in the UAE early on Tuesday, completing its epic journey to become the first sun-powered airplane to circle the globe without a drop of fuel.

The plane touched down at 04:05 (0005 GMT) in the capital Abu Dhabi after a more than 48 hour-long flight from Cairo, the final leg in its journey which began on March 9 last year.

Cheers and clapping welcomed the plane as it arrived at Al-Bateen Executive Airport, where it launched its world tour, an AFP journalist reported.

Swiss explorer and project director Bertrand Piccard was in the cockpit during the 2,763 kilometre (1,716 mile) flight from Cairo.

ISLAMABAD: Despite robust efforts by lawmakers and civil society, it appears that the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Bill (PECB) 2015 may soon be laid before the Senate without being amended to the satisfaction of all concerned.

The bill is likely to be referred to the Senate by the Standing Committee on Information Technology and Telecommunication today (Tuesday), along with amendments to the draft law that were proposed by lawmakers and stakeholders.

The PECB was passed by the National Assembly on April 13 this year. Under the Constitution, the Senate must ratify the bill within 90 days. If the bill lapses, it will most likely be sent to a joint sitting of both houses of parliament, where the ruling PML-N can use its majority to bulldoze the legislation.

In a last ditch attempt to consolidate civil society’s position on the bill and highlight objections on contentious clauses, the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) has decided to write to Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, Senate Chairman Raza Rabbani, as well as leaders of all parliamentary parties.

HRCP to make last ditch effort to oppose ‘draconian’ provisions in draft law

This suggestion was put forward on Monday by ANP’s Afrasiab Khattak and Bushra Gohar at a consultation on the proposed law, who pointed out that it was too late for an exhaustive academic discussion on the matter.

Former HRCP chairperson I.A. Rehman noted that no other bill had been discussed so much for so long by so many people, adding that this was because the law seeks to control the “medium of tomorrow”.

But despite this, the government had resisted attempts by stakeholders to plug potential loopholes in the draft and has instead taken to questioning their motives rather than appreciating their efforts, he said.

He recommended that the PTA be taken out of government control if it was to be the implementing authority for this law, saying that otherwise, “the government can issue instructions to it from time to time and it will have no choice but to comply.”

Participants discussed sections that were most contentious, and presented alternative formulations. On Section 9, which relates to ‘Glorification of an offense or hate speech’, it was recommended that the provision be removed, short of which glorification of an accused person should not be criminalised, and that hate speech, which is not adequately covered in the section, should be dealt with separately.

Mr Rehman also pointed out that when read with Section 10, ‘Cyber-terrorism’, the law amounted to the creation of a new anti-terrorism law for cyberspace.

“The more words you use in a law, the more confusing and open to interpretation they become. We read about good laws in textbooks because we have not been fortunate enough to see any enacted in Pakistan,” Mr Rehman mused as he criticised Section 18, which has widely been derided as an attempt to make another defamation law for cyberspace.

He was of the view that the defamation ordinance and relevant sections of the penal code should be applicable to online spaces as well, saying: “Whatever is a crime in the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC), leave it there.”

Chaudhry Mohammed Shafiq, a member of the National Commission on Human Rights (NCHR), echoed this view, saying: “There is no need to confuse our jurisprudence through duplication [of offences].”

On Section 19, which deals with ‘Offences against modesty of a natural person or minor’, Sadaf Baig of Media Matters for Democracy (MMfD) suggested that minors and adults be dealt with separately, with the laws dealing with minors being as strict as possible.

MMfD’s Asad Baig voiced his concerns over Section 29, which deals with ‘Retention of traffic data’, by pointing out that metadata such as phone numbers and an individual’s location could be misused to target journalists’ sources and whistleblowers. Other participants also noted that there was a lack of safeguards to prevent misuse of the users’ data.

Taking issue with the sweeping powers assigned to investigating officers in Section 32, NCHR’s Mr Shafiq maintained that “all punitive action should be subject to a court order”, which was not currently the case.

Mr Baig also noted that in cases of overlap with other laws, the punishment suggested in the PECB 2015 were often harsher than those stipulated in the penal code.

In the case of Section 34, which deals with ‘Power to manage online information’, everyone agreed that the provision should be omitted as it dealt with matters that should be covered by the Telecommunication act.

Haroon Baloch from Bytes for All pointed out that there was a complete dearth of constitutional safeguards in the bill.

It was also pointed out that in Section 36, which deals with ‘Real-time collection and recording of information’, the criteria for surveillance is even more open-ended than in the Fair Trial Act 2013, which was also a cause for concern.

Published in Dawn, July 26th, 2016

LAHORE: The government seems ready to oblige the Turkish government in deciding the fate of PakTurk schools as an official of the Foreign Office says relations with the brother Islamic country demand that its concerns are addressed at all costs.

“We’re discussing various options to guide the provinces how to handle the issue,” the official told Dawn on Monday.

“Though we haven’t received a formal request yet from Ankara (regarding the educational institutions run by the PakTurk Foundation), the deep relations with Turkey demand that we don’t look out for formalities (of written requests) and remove her concerns on priority at all costs.”

Seeking to allay concerns of parents of the students enrolled with these educational institutions, he said the interest of the students would be taken care of while devising any policy on the issue.

Punjab Education Minister Rana Mashhud admits it’s a complicated issue but another senior member of the provincial cabinet believes they have more than one solutions to save future of the students while satisfying concerns of the Turkish government.

“It’s difficult to make a decision as the problem has multiple aspects,” Mashhud says, adding they are awaiting a direction from the federal government.

Another Punjab minister, however, sees no difficulty in tackling the issue and claims to have many options as soon as Islamabad gives a policy.

The foundation running these educational institutions may be asked to disown its links, if any, with the Gulen movement and suspend all activities that may give an impression of its association with the Turk politics, he says, requesting not to be named as he is not directly related with the education department.

The ownership of the institutions may also be changed and even the government may take over the same as some of the institutions were earlier being run by the state, he adds.

The PakTurk Foundation has on its website denied having any political, religious or denominational and financial links with any movement.

An official of the foundation told Dawn that the organization had already changed its nomenclature and removed the word “international” from its name when the issue of international NGOs cropped up around a year ago.

Replying to a query, he admitted that Fethullah Gulen’s books are distributed among the educational institutions’ staff for their “personal consumption” but in no way the students are taught about the Gulen or any other political figure’s philosophy.

But he hastens to add that these books published by an Islamabad-based publisher are available in the open market.

He says that the foundation is strictly adhering to all rules and regulations and law of the land in every respect.

There are 28 institutions being run by the foundation in Pakistan. It is also planning to establish a university.

Some of the institutions have been handed over by the government, and buildings of some others have been given by various housing societies, while others are run by funds from philanthropists from Pakistan and abroad.

The Turkish ambassador’s call for action against these educational institutions this weekend has sent a wave of concern among parents of around 11,000 students as well as the staff.

Anxious staff members are contacting each other to know the latest situation and discuss their future. One of them told Dawn that they were planning to come on roads along with parents of students if the government decided to shut the institutions.

Published in Dawn, July 26th, 2016

PHILADELPHIA: The Democratic Party's deep divisions were on full display on a raucous first day of its convention on Monday, with Bernie Sanders portraying Hillary Clinton as a fellow soldier in his fight for economic equality while his supporters booed the mere mention of her name.

On a night designed to showcase party unity, Sanders supporters repeatedly disrupted convention proceedings, chanting for him and jeering Clinton supporters.

But by the end of the night, Sanders, liberal favourite US Senator Elizabeth Warren and first lady Michelle Obama offered stirring endorsements of Clinton as the party tried to push through the discord and find common ground.

“Hillary Clinton will make an outstanding president and I am proud to stand with her here tonight,” Sanders said as his supporters and Clinton's offered competing chants.

The angry uproar in Philadelphia was a setback to Democrats' hopes their convention would be a smoothly run show of party unity in contrast to the volatile campaign of Republican nominee Donald Trump.

It was also a bitter reminder of the bruising months-long primary battle between Sanders, 74, a US senator from Vermont, and Clinton, 68, a former secretary of state, who this week will become the first woman nominated for president by a major US political party.

Michelle Obama linked the historic nature of Clinton's campaign with her husband's own role as the first black US president.

“I wake up every morning in a house that was built by slaves, and I watch my daughters, two beautiful and intelligent black young women, playing with their dogs on the White House lawn,” Obama said.

“And because of Hillary Clinton, my daughters and all our sons and daughters now take for granted that a woman can be president of the United States.”

The tumult began before the convention opened, as Sanders drew jeers from his own supporters when he urged his delegates to back the White House bid of his former rival, Clinton, and focus on defeating Trump in the Nov 8 presidential election.

“We want Bernie!” they shouted in anger at both Clinton's victory in the race for the Democratic nomination and emails leaked on Friday suggesting the party leadership had tried to sabotage Sanders' insurgent campaign.

“Brothers and sisters, this is the real world that we live in,” he said, adding: “Trump is a bully and a demagogue.” Members of the crowd screamed back: “So is Hillary.” “She stole the election!” someone else shouted.

In the convention's first hours, party officials struggled to carry out business as angry Sanders supporters roared their disapproval, drawing a deafening response from Clinton delegates.

'Act like Democrats'

“We're all Democrats and we need to act like it,” US Representative Marcia Fudge of Ohio, the convention's chairwoman, shouted over the uproar.

Sanders tried to head off the disruptions, sending an email to delegates as the convention opened urging them not to interrupt the proceedings.

“Our credibility as a movement will be damaged by booing, turning of backs, walking out or other similar displays. That's what the corporate media wants. That's what Donald Trump wants,” Sanders said in the email.

Several speakers pleaded for peace between the Democratic factions. Comedian Sarah Silverman, a Sanders supporter, said she would support Clinton “with gusto” and admonished the Sanders fans.

“To the 'Bernie or Bust' people, you're being ridiculous,” she said, drawing a roar from the crowd and another round of competing cheers between Clinton and Sanders supporters.

She and U.S. Senator Al Franken of Minnesota then introduced Paul Simon to sing his 1970 classic “Bridge Over Troubled Water.” Trump gloated at the Democrats' opening day disorder.

“Wow, the Republican Convention went so smoothly compared to the Dems total mess,” he wrote on Twitter.

As the convention opened, the Democratic National Committee issued “a deep and sincere apology to Senator Sanders, his supporters, and the entire Democratic Party” for the email flap and said it would take action to ensure it never happens again.

Democratic National Committee Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz resigned effective at the end of the convention over the controversy. At a morning gathering of Florida delegates, Sanders supporters booed Wasserman Schultz, who they accuse of trying to sabotage the campaign of the democratic socialist.

The emails exacerbated the distrust of Clinton among some Sanders supporters who view her as a Washington insider who is only paying lip service to their goals of reining in Wall Street and eradicating income inequality.

But US Senator Jeff Merkley of Oregon, the only senator to endorse Sanders during the primary, told the convention that supporters of the two former rivals had plenty in common.

“Whether you spent this year feeling the Bern or you spent this year ready for Hillary, all of us are ready for an America that rejects discrimination and embraces diversity, that celebrates voter empowerment not voter suppression, that creates opportunity for all of us, not just the lucky few,” he said.

A Trump lead

While Sanders has endorsed Clinton, the former first lady faces a difficult task winning over his backers in the fight against Trump. The New York businessman pulled ahead in at least one opinion poll on Monday, after lagging Clinton in most national surveys for months.

A CNN/ORC opinion poll gave Trump a 48 per cent to 45pc lead over Clinton in a two-way presidential contest.

Trump was formally nominated for president at a chaotic Republican convention in Cleveland last week. Ed Mullen, 49, a delegate from Illinois, said he supported Sanders but would vote for Clinton in November. He said the protesters at the convention had a right to stay.

“Democracy is messy, people have disputes with how the DNC has managed this campaign,” Mullen said.

The cache of leaked emails disclosed that DNC officials explored ways to undercut Sanders' insurgent presidential campaign, including raising questions about whether Sanders, who is Jewish, was an atheist.

The Clinton camp questioned whether Russians may have had a hand in the hack attack on the party's emails in an effort to help Trump, who has exchanged words of praise with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Republicans dismissed the suggestion as absurd.

The FBI said on Monday it would investigate the nature and scope of the hack.

KARACHI: The Pakistan Peoples Party has picked Syed Murad Ali Shah as the successor of Sindh Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah and a formal announcement in this regard will be made at a meeting to be chaired by PPP chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari on Tuesday (today).

Mr Shah, a senior minister who holds the portfolio of finance in the current provincial cabinet, spent a busy day in Karachi on Monday as he met Sindh Governor Dr Ishratul Ibad as well as members of his party at Chief Minister House.

Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Syed Khursheed Shah spoke to a private news channel on Monday and confirmed that Murad Ali Shah “will be the next chief minister of Sindh”.

However, Murad Ali Shah did not confirm it himself. He told the media outside his residence that if nominated, he would try his best to come up to the expectations of the party.

Sources said that the PPP would formally appreciate the services of Qaim Ali Shah in the meeting to be held on Tuesday at Bilawal House before the veteran politician handed in his resignation to the party leadership.

They said that the meeting would also announce and approve the name of Murad Ali Shah as the new CM. As soon as his name was announced, he would informally take over the affairs of the Sindh government and discuss his cabinet with the party leadership, the sources added.

Mr Shah is expected to take the oath of his new office by the end of this week.

He held a meeting with Governor Ibad and discussed with him their future working relationship as well as the summoning of the Sindh Assembly session for the election of the new leader of the house following Qaim Ali Shah’s resignation.

But officially his meeting with the governor was related to issues of development and law and order in the province. The finance minister informed the governor about the situation of release of development funds, which the governor appreciated saying that those schemes should soon be completed for the benefit of the masses.

PPP co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari had on Sunday decided to replace Qaim Ali Shah and bring in a new provincial cabinet after a meeting with party leaders in Dubai.

Maula Bux Chandio, adviser to the Sindh chief minister on information, termed the replacement of the CM a routine matter and “not a conspiracy”.

He told reporters that Mr Bhutto-Zardari had decided to bring “young leadership” for the betterment of the province.

About the issue of Sindh Rangers’ special policing powers for which the Dubai meeting was summoned, a PPP leader said: “The party has decided to extend powers of Rangers, which is literally obscured by the chief minister’s change.”

He said the decision would be announced soon. “Most probably it will be announced in hours or in a day.”

About the removal of Qaim Ali Shah, the sources said that apart from his soft stance on the issue of Rangers’ actions in the province, the factors that caused his departure was fragmentation in the party.

The party leadership got complaints from a group that he did not entertain their requests about various projects and lucrative transfers and postings.

“He [Mr Shah] is a man who goes by the book, which too went against him ultimately when it came to political considerations,” said a senior party man.

CM Shah’s performance in the development sector was also questioned by his detractors. He contended with this allegation throughout his long stint as the chief minister and finally it was counted as one of the reasons that played in the party’s decision to show him the door.

His soft attitude towards Rangers and an independent stance in implementing the National Action Plan is said to be among the factors of his exit.

The veteran politician on Monday spent the ‘last day’ of his rule by receiving friends, his admirers in the party and representatives of the legal community.

Published in Dawn, July 26th, 2016

DHAKA: Bangladesh police on Tuesday killed nine militants who were believed to have been plotting an attack similar to the one on a cafe on July 1 in which 22 people were killed, the national police chief said.

Police said the militants were holed up in a building in Kalyanpur on the outskirts of the capital, Dhaka, and they opened fire on officers as they tried to enter.

The militants, who shouted Allahu Akbar, or “God is greatest” as they battled police, were believed to be members of the Jamaatul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB), a banned group that has pledged allegiance to the militant Islamic State (IS) group.

“They were wearing black outfits, turbans and had backpacks ... similar to the outfits the attackers in the cafe had,” police chief Shahidul Hoque told reporters at the scene after the militants were killed.

One wounded militant was captured, he said.

“They were plotting a major attack in the capital like that in the restaurant,” he said.

IS claimed responsibility for the cafe attack but the government has dismissed suggestions that IS has a presence in Bangladesh.

Police said JMB was behind the attack by five young Bangladeshis on the upmarket cafe. Most of the 22 people killed there were foreigners and the five attackers were also killed.

Hoque said the militants killed on Tuesday were believed to have been a JMB cell.

“The militant who was detained claimed they were IS members but we think they're JMB,” he said.

Mostly Muslim Bangladesh has faced a series of attacks on liberal bloggers, academics and members of religious minorities over the past year.

While authorities have blamed the violence on domestic militants, security experts say the scale and sophistication of the assault on the cafe suggested links to a trans-national network.

IS has warned that violence would continue until Islamic law was established worldwide, saying in a video the Dhaka cafe attack was just a glimpse of what was to come.

SAGAMIHARA: At least 19 people were killed when a knife-wielding man went on the rampage at a Japanese care centre for the mentally disabled on Tuesday, officials said.

A 26-year-old man who said he was a former employee of the facility later turned himself in at a police station, admitting to officers: “I did it.”

According to the Asahi Shimbun daily, he also said: “The disabled should all disappear.”

What we know so far

• Knife-wielding man attacked at a facility for the disabled
• At least 19 people have been killed
• Several others have been wounded
• Suspect turned himself in to police

A fleet of ambulances, police cars and fire trucks converged on the one-storey Tsukui Yamayuri-en centre nestled against forested hills in Sagamihara, a city of more than 700,000 people west of Tokyo.

A fire department spokesman said that another 25 were wounded, 20 of them seriously, in the attack which ranks as one of the worst mass killings in Japan's postwar history.

“Doctors confirmed the deaths of 19 people,” the spokesman told AFP.

Kyodo news agency identified the attacker as Satoshi Uematsu and said he had been arrested.

Police said they received a call from the centre around 2:30am (1730 GMT Monday), raising the alarm that a man armed with a knife had entered the facility.

Public broadcaster NHK said he had broken a glass window on the first floor to get into the building before stabbing those inside.

It also said police found several knives in his bag, some of which were covered with blood.

Police said the assailant turned himself in shortly after 3:00am, admitting he had carried out the attack at the centre which on Tuesday was cordoned off, and draped with yellow “Keep Out” tape.

Unusual attack

Japan has one of the lowest rates of violent crime in the developed world, and attacks involving weapons of any kind are unusual. But the country has seen outbursts of random as well as planned violence.

In 2001, eight children at a primary school in Osaka were stabbed to death. And in 2008 a man ploughed a rental truck into a crowd of shoppers in Tokyo's bustling Akihabara district before he stabbed passers-by, killing seven people and injuring 10 others.

After that rampage, Japan banned possession of double-edged knives with blades longer than 5.5 centimetres (about two inches), punishable by up to three years in prison.

Japan's most notorious attack came in 1995, when members of the doomsday cult Aum Shinrikyo released sarin gas in the Tokyo subway system.

Thirteen people were killed and thousands of commuters fell ill in a crime that deeply dented the national sense of security.

But Japan has recently seen an increasing number of cases of attacks on the weak and vulnerable.

In February, a former nursing home worker was arrested for allegedly throwing an 87-year-old resident to his death from a balcony. The former employee also reportedly admitted killing two more residents in their 80s and 90s by throwing them from balconies in 2014.

There have also been cases of family members killing ailing and ageing spouses or parents suffering from dementia in Japan's rapidly ageing society.

LAHORE/ISLAMABAD: The government has intensified its diplomatic efforts for saving a Pakistani national, Zulfiqar Ali, who is facing imminent execution in Indonesia after being convicted of drug-related charges in a controversial trial.

Adviser to the Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz, who is in Laos for an Asean (Association of Sou­theast Asian Nations) Regional Forum meeting, has sought a meeting with his Indonesian counterpart Retno Marsudi on the issue, according to a diplomat.

Meanwhile, Indonesian Ambassador Iwan Suyudhie Amri was summoned to the Foreign Office over the expected execution.

“Indonesian ambassador in Islamabad was also called in by the ministry and asked to convey the government of Pakistan’s concern to his authorities,” Foreign Office spokesman Nafees Zakariya said in response to a query from Dawn.

After languishing in jail for 12 years, Ali is set to be executed in Indonesia.

The Justice Project Pakistan (JPP), a human rights law firm, has requested the president to take up the matter with the Indonesian government to save the life of ‘an innocent Pakistani’.

Ali, 52, was arrested in November 2004 in connection with a 300-gram heroine case in Jakarta. A co-accused in the case, Gurdip Singh, retracted his statement against Ali, saying the confession had been coerced from him.

The JPP said the Indonesian police had been unable to bring forward any material evidence to support their charge against Ali.

“Despite this, the Pakistan embassy in Jakarta has received a notification that Ali will be executed in the near future and that the family will be given a 72-hour notice,” it said.

Ali was arrested at his home without a warrant in Indonesia’s West Java province. For three days, he was “kicked, punched and threatened with death” by the Soekarno-Hatta Airport district police until he was forced to sign a “self-incriminating confession”.

The JPP said that at one point he was taken out of the police station and threatened to be tied and dragged by a car.

Ali was rushed into an emergency stomach and kidney surgery due to the severity of the physical torture he was subjected to. He remained in the hospital for 17 days, for which the expenses had to be borne by his family, and he still suffered from a number of medical issues as a result, the JPP said.

“Ali, the father of six, was not provided a lawyer for a month, and no one from the Pakistan embassy was contacted. He was detained for over three months before being brought to the first trial hearing. And even though his confession was coerced, as Ali recalled in detail during the trial, the judge allowed it to be used as evidence.”

The JPP said Ali did not speak the local language and received limited translation assistance throughout his detention and court proceedings.

“Ali told the prosecutor that the report against him was false and had been obtained through torture. During the proceedings, the prosecutor asked him to admit whatever the police said, saying that otherwise he would be given a higher sentence. Ali told the court that he had been tortured by the police. Photographs were available to the court which evidenced this. When he refused to accept the report, a bribe of 400 million Indonesian rupiah was demanded to reduce the sentence from capital punishment to 10-15 years. Ali refused to pay the bribe and continued to proclaim his innocence.”

It said Ali had been denied fair trial and his only legal recourse now was to apply for clemency with the Indonesian president.

The JPP pointed out that European citizens were likely to be excused from execution for the same conviction. “Ali, a citizen of a fellow Muslim country, will be executed by firing squad if the Pakistan government does not act now, swiftly,” it said.

Ali’s wife, Siti Rouhani, has pinned her last hopes on the government.

“If I get some support from Pakistan, something may happen and my husband may be saved,” she said.

JPP Legal Director Maryam Haq said: “So flimsy a case does not and cannot warrant so final a sentence. He was tortured relentlessly and deprived of his most basic legal rights. Given that there is stronger evidence to support his innocence than guilt, it is now time for the president of Pakistan to appeal to our Muslim allies and save an innocent Pakistani’s life. Ali’s execution would be grossly unlawful with such severe due-process violations during his detention, trial and conviction.”

Published in Dawn, July 26th, 2016

ISLAMABAD: A Senate panel on Tuesday approved the controversial Prevention of Electronics Crimes Bill 2015.

The bill, which has already been approved by the National Assembly, will now be put up for discussion in the Senate, which must approve it before it can be signed into law by the president.

The Senate Standing Committee on Information Technology and Telecommunications met under the chair of Senator Shahi Syed at Parliament House and discussed the features of the bill.

Salient features of bill

• Up to seven years imprisonment, Rs10 million fine or both for hate speech, or trying to create disputes and spread hatred on the basis of religion or sectarianism
• Up to three years imprisonment and Rs0.5 million fine or both for cheating others through internet
• Up to five year imprisonment, Rs5 million fine or both for transferring or copying of sensitive basic information
• Up to seven years imprisonment and Rs0.5 million fine or both for uploading obscene photos of children
• Up to Rs50 thousand fine for sending messages irritating to others or for marketing purposes. If the crime is repeated, the punishment would be three months imprisonment and a fine of up to Rs1 million
• Up to three year imprisonment and a fine of up to Rs0.5 million for creating a website for negative purposes
• Up to one year imprisonment or a fine of up to Rs1 million for forcing an individual for immoral activity, or publishing an individual’s picture without consent, sending obscene messages or unnecessary cyber interference
• Up to seven year imprisonment, a fine of Rs10 million or both for interfering in sensitive data information systems
• Three month imprisonment or a Rs50 thousand fine or both for accessing unauthorised data
• Three year imprisonment and a fine of up to Rs5 million for obtaining information about an individual’s identification, selling the information or retaining it with self
• Up to three year imprisonment and a fine of up to Rs0.5 million for issuing a SIM card in an unauthorised manner
• Up to three year imprisonment and fine of up to Rs1 million rupees for making changes in a wireless set or a cell phone
• Up to three year imprisonment and a fine of up to Rs1 million for spreading misinformation about an individual
• Up to three years imprisonment and fine of up to Rs1 million for misusing internet

Implementation of the bill will see punishment of up to 14 years imprisonment and Rs50 million fines on electronic crimes.

A special court would be established for hearing the cases falling under the act. With this bill, a person can be trailed under the law even if the crime is committed from outside Pakistan. But investigation of electronics crimes cannot be carried out without court’s permission.

With the permission of the court, the government would be able to seek help of other countries for investigation into cyber crimes.

The IT companies registered with Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) would be dealt with under PTA act. Under this act, imprisonment of up to seven years can be awarded for funding terrorism or terrorist organisation through internet.

The bill was passed by the NA standing committee on IT in 2015, while it was approved by the lower house of the parliament on April 13 this year.

It has been widely criticised by the IT industry as well as members of civil society for curbing human rights and giving extraordinary powers to law enforcement agencies.

After its introduction in the NA, the bill was referred to the NA Standing Committee on Information Technology and Telecommunication to address concerns raised by the opposition members and stakeholders from the industry.

ISLAMABAD: Senate Chairman Raza Rabbani strongly criticised the double standards adopted by the United States and Western powers, saying “the contemporary upheaval and turmoil in Middle East is due to their policy of regime change”.

The chairman senate said being a Pakistani he witnessed “Western double standards when they politically and economically supported dictatorial regimes in Pakistan and maintained silence over the unlawful prosecution of political workers”.

Rabbani’s remarks came during a meeting of Senate Standing Committee on Economic and Sustainable Development Affairs of Asian Parliamentary Assembly in Islamabad on Tuesday.

During the meeting, it was observed that the future of Asia lies in the hands of Asian people.

Criticising the West on comments that Asian integration was not possible due to cultural, religious and social diversity, Rabbani said: “This is not true as we believe that the strength of Asia is its diversity and with diversity comes unity.”

He admitted that there were issues which needed to be resolved in order to achieve equitable development and peace in the region.

“It is imperative for us to look at things in the right dimension,” Rabbani said, urging the member countries to move forward for achieving the goal of “Asian Parliament”.

Rabbani proposed establishment of regional groups of Asian countries to chalk out modalities to achieve the objectives of “Asian Parliament”.

‘Silence of human rights torch bearers in Kashmir is regretful’

Rabbani said the silence of torch bearers of human rights over violence in Palestine and India-held Kashmir is regretful.

At least 49 people have been killed in clashes in India-held Kashmir following the death of popular young separatist commander Burhan Wani in a gunfight with security forces on July 8.

More than 2,200 civilians have been injured in the latest clashes, including scores who were shot in the eyes with pellets by Indian troopers and have been blinded.

Large parts of the region remained under curfew for 17 days as mobile phone and internet networks remained suspended.

The clashes are the deadliest in since 2010 when massive demonstrations were staged against Indian rule.

Several rebel groups have been fighting for decades an estimated 500,000 Indian soldiers deployed in the region, demanding independence or a merger of the territory with rival Pakistan.

Tens of thousands of people, mostly civilians, have died in the fighting.

SRINAGAR: Authorities lifted a curfew in Srinagar Tuesday after 17 days of lockdown, but protesters continued to clash with police in the main city of India-held Kashmir following two weeks of deadly violence.

“There will be no restrictions in any part of district Srinagar today on 26 July,” top administrative official Farooq Ahmad Lone said in a statement.

It was unclear whether the lifting of the curfew was simply a temporary move to allow angry protesters some release, or if the relaxation of restrictions would continue.

Mobile and internet networks remained suspended in Srinagar and across the restive territory, while a curfew was still in force in southern areas, where most of the 50 deaths have occurred.

Hundreds of angry residents rallied in the city Tuesday to protest against Indian rule, shouting slogans for freedom and clashing with police who fired tear gas canisters to disperse them, a witness said.

Shops, schools and businesses remained shut in the city while vehicles were off the roads.

Separatist leaders opposed to Indian rule of the disputed territory have extended an ongoing strike to Saturday, but have appealed to shopkeepers to open for a few hours each day to allow people to buy essential supplies.

“We will open shops after 2:00pm,” Umer Ahmed, a shopkeeper in the old quarter of Srinagar told AFP.

The unrest was triggered by the killing on July 8 of popular young rebel leader Burhan Wani in a gunfight with soldiers.

The wide-scale protests in the region have also left thousands injured.

Several rebel groups, including Wani's Hizbul Mujahideen, have fought for decades an estimated 500,000 Indian troops deployed in the territory, demanding independence or its merger with Pakistan.

Tens of thousands, mostly civilians, have died in the fighting.

SAINT ROUVRAY: A priest in his mid-80s was killed with a knife and another hostage seriously wounded on Tuesday in an attack on a church in northern France carried out by assailants linked to Islamic State.

Both attackers were shot dead by French police. Five people in all had been taken hostage. A police source said it appeared that the priest had had his throat slit.

Speaking at the scene of the attack in the Normandy town of Saint-Etienne-du-Rouvray, French President Francois Hollande said France should “use all its means” in its war against the militant group, against which France has launched air strikes in Syria and Iraq.

The president called it a “dreadful terrorist attack” and told reporters the attackers had pledge allegiance to IS. The IS news agency Amaq said two of its “soldiers” had carried out the attack.

“We are put to the test yet again, Hollande said. “The threat remains very high.” The attack is the latest in a string of deadly assaults in Europe, including the mass killing in Nice, southern France, on Bastille Day and four incidents in Germany.

Many of the attacks have had links to Islamist militants and IS has called for supporters to target countries that it has been fighting, mainly in Iraq and Syria.

Tuesday's attack took place during morning mass at the Saint-Etienne parish church, south of Rouen in Normandy.

The investigation was handed to the anti-terrorist unit of the Paris prosecutor's office.

Slain priest

The Archbishop of Rouen identified the slain priest as Father Jacques Hamel and said he was 84, although others sources suggest he was born in 1930. The Vatican condemned what it said was a “barbarous killing”.

French Interior Ministry spokesman Pierre-Henry Brandet told France Info radio that the perpetrators have been killed by France's BRI, an elite police anti-crime force, when they came out of the church.

Bomb squad officers aided by sniffer dogs scoured the church for any possible explosives.

Prime Minister Manuel Valls branded the attack “barbaric” and said it was a blow to all Catholics and the whole of France.

“We will stand together,” Valls said on Twitter.

The attack will heap yet more pressure on Hollande to regain control of national security, with France already under a state of emergency 10 months ahead of a presidential election.

The Normandy attack came 12 days after a 31-year-old Tunisian Mohamed Lahouaiej Bouhlel ploughed his heavy goods truck into a crowd of revellers in the French Riviera city of Nice, killing 84 people. Islamic State claimed that attack.

“Horror. Everything is being done to trigger a war of religions,” tweeted Jean-Pierre Raffarin, a former conservative prime minister who now heads the Senate's foreign affairs committee.

Hollande visited the scene with Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve, meeting members of the emergency services.

Cazeneuve has come under fire from Conservative politicians for not doing enough to prevent the Bastille Day Nice attack.

French lawmakers approved a six-month extension of emergency rule after the July 14 attack while the Socialist government also said it would step up strikes against Islamic State in Iraq and Syria.

BADIN: A Hindu man was arrested for allegedly desecrating Holy Quran following massive protests and shutdown by Muslim community in Ghotki District of Sindh, police said on Tuesday.

Daharki police said a Hindu man was “caught and handed over” to them by the residents of village Mehrab Samejo for allegedly “desecrating” Holy Quran.

A large number of people in Daharki, Mirpur, Mathelo, Ghotki and adjoining areas of the district took to the streets and blocked National Highway for more than six hours while protesting against the alleged desecration of the holy scripture.

Protesters demanded “severe punishment” for the accused. A First-Information Report (FIR) was also registered against the accused under section 295 (B) of the Pakistan Penal Code.

Sensing trouble following a violent protest, the district administration sought help from Pakistan Rangers to control the situation. There have been several incidents of communal disharmony in the Ghotki district over the past few years, police said.

According to the protesters, the accused entered a mosque and “set the holy scripture on fire”.

After taking the Hindu man in custody, police moved him to an undisclosed location for his safety. A police official, who wished not to be named, told Dawn that the police and law enforcement agencies were trying their best calm down the tense situation.

He added that the police has arrested as many as 30 people on charges of disrupting law and order during raids on different towns in the district.

Despite repeated attempts, SSP Ghotki Masood Bangash was not available for comment.

RAWALPINDI: Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Raheel Sharif met Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in Egypt and discussed the emerging security challenges, an Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) statement said on Tuesday.

“COAS met with Egyptian president. Regional security and prevalent/emerging security challenges discussed,” DG ISPR Lieutenant-General Asim Bajwa said in a tweet.

During his visit to Egypt, Gen Raheel attended training drills by Egyptian special forces and appreciated their skills and capabilities.

President Sisi acknowledged Pakistan Army’s “successes in fighting terrorism” and its efforts for attaining “regional stability”.

“COAS emphasised need for the world and Muslim Ummah to unite in fighting the menace of terrorism,” Bajwa said.

General Raheel also met Sheikh-ul-Azhar in Al-Azhar University, who appreciated Pakistan Army’s efforts towards eliminating terrorism.

“COAS emphasised the need to harness Muslim youth towards enlightenment, technological advancement, moderation and harmony,” the military's spokesperson said.

ISLAMABAD: British MP Naz Shah has written to Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to intervene in the case of a British woman’s alleged honour killing in Pakistan, The Guardian reported.

British police started a probe into Samia Shahid's death after her husband Syed Mukhtar Kazam claimed she was killed while visiting her family in Pakistan earlier this month because she married someone who was seen as an outsider.

Kazam, a Pakistani national, says he received news his wife Shahid, a Bradford resident of Pakistani origin, had died while visiting her relatives in Pandori village near Mangla Dam last Wednesday. The couple had been living in Dubai since last year, he said.

Kazam said Shahid, 28, was urged to come to Pakistan to visit a seriously ill relative and was supposed to return to their home in Dubai on Thursday. Instead, he received a call a day earlier that she had died of a heart attack.

“Should this be [an honour killing] case then we must ensure justice is done for Samia and we must ensure this never happens again,” MP Naz Shah wrote to the PM in her letter seen by The Guardian.

Shahid, a beauty therapist, was buried in her village graveyard after a postmortem. A police official in Jhelum said no visible injuries or signs of violence were observed on her body.

However, MP Shah has called for the woman’s body to be exhumed for an independent autopsy.

'She was killed because her family wasn't happy with our marriage'

According to Kazam, Shahid’s family never accepted their marriage. She had left her first husband, a cousin in her village in Pakistan, shortly before marrying Kazam.

“I am sure my wife is killed by the family,” Kazam said. “She was healthy. And she had no disease. I believe she was killed because her parents were not happy with our marriage.”

Shahid’s cousin in Bradford says a postmortem was carried out which revealed she died of natural causes and there was no evidence of murder. Meanwhile, Shahid’s father, Mohammed Shahid, also denied Kazam’s claims as “lies and allegations”.

“An investigation is under way and if I am found guilty I am ready for every kind of punishment,” said the father.

“My daughter was living a very peaceful and happy life. She had come to Pakistan on her own and was not under any pressure from her family.”

The Guardian reported that in a witness statement to Pakistani police, Shahid’s father named her cousin as her husband instead of Kazam.

Station House Officer (SHO) Jhelum Mohammad Aqeel Abbas, who is leading the investigation into the case, told The Guardian that samples from Shahid’s body have been sent to a forensics lab in Lahore. He added that a postmortem carried out immediately after Shahid’s death revealed no “visible injuries or signs of violence on her body”.

KARACHI: Two military men were shot dead when unidentified assailants fired at their vehicle in the city's Saddar area on Tuesday, officials said.

The personnel were rushed to Jinnah Hospital in injured condition where both succumbed to bullet wounds.

JPMC Emergency Head Dr Seemin Jamali said that one of the men was brought dead while the other succumbed to injuries during treatment.

The victims have been identified as Lance Naik Razzaq and Sepoy Khadim Hussain.

The military vehicle was fired upon by unidentified gunmen, riding a motorcycle, who immediately fled the scene, which is near the Parking Plaza on New MA Jinnah Road.

“We will try to find out the linkage between this incident and the last case [the attack on MP vehicle], however, there were no specific threats,” said Additional Inspector General Mushtaq Meher while visiting the site of the attack.

Security officials have cordoned off the area while forensic officials have reached the spot to collect evidence that will aid the investigation.

MA Jinnah road is a major artery of the metropolis and is usually congested during the day.

Police officials said that 9mm pistol was used in the attack and they are investigating to find out whether this weapon was used in any previous attack or not.

In December last year, two Military Police officials were killed after their vehicle was fired upon by unidentified gunmen near Tibet Centre on MA Jinnah road.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif condemned the incident and instructed the intelligence and security agencies to go to any length to apprehend the perpetrators of the attack.

Sindh Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah also took notice of the attack, ordering an immediate investigation.

Karachi operation

An ‘operation’ against criminal elements in the country’s commercial hub was initiated back in September 2013 after the federal cabinet empowered Rangers to lead a targeted advance with the support of police against criminals already identified by federal military and civilian agencies for their alleged involvement in targeted killings, kidnappings for ransom, extortion and terrorism in Karachi.

A high-level apex committee meeting chaired by the Chief of Army Staff Gen Raheel Sharif on May 14, 2015 decided to implement effective policing and surveillance in the "vast suburbs of Karachi", to prevent what the military spokesperson said were "sneaking terrorist attacks".

Amid resentment and criticism from certain political circles over the ‘Karachi operation’, the military establishment in August said that there would be no let-up in actions by law enforcement agencies “to ensure a peaceful and terror-free Karachi”.