In new challenge to army, Islamabad court questions ‘legal standing’ of military’s media wing

In new challenge to army, Islamabad court questions ‘legal standing’ of military’s media wing
A convoy of Pakistani army passes the Islamabad High Court building in Islamabad on August 29, 2023. (AFP/File)
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Updated 25 September 2024
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In new challenge to army, Islamabad court questions ‘legal standing’ of military’s media wing

In new challenge to army, Islamabad court questions ‘legal standing’ of military’s media wing
  • Pakistan’s media watchdog has instructed TV channels to seek army media wing’s approval before inviting retired officers as defense analysts 
  • Justice Babar Sattar is among six Islamabad judges who accused army’s ISI spy agency of coercing them in ‘politically consequential’ cases

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Wednesday sought a clarification from Pakistan’s electronic media watchdog about the legal standing of the military’s media wing and its “exclusive authority” to decide who could appear on television talk shows as a defense analyst.

The court was hearing a case challenging a much-debated April 2019 notification by the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority’s (PEMRA) in which it instructed TV channels to seek clearance from the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the military’s media wing, before inviting retired military officers on current affairs programs as analysts “to solicit their views on matters of national security.”

Following PEMRA’s notification, the ISPR released a list of 26 retired officers that it said were allowed to appear as defense analysts. 

“When asked as to what is the legal standing of ISPR and how is ISPR assuming the exclusive right to determine who can be a Defense Analyst in Pakistan, the learned Assistant Attorney General seeks time to assist the Court,” Justice Babar Sattar’s written order read. “Let the matter be fixed for 20-11-2024.”

The court also questioned why PEMRA had issued that notification in the first place and whether it had received a request from within the Pakistan army or ISPR.

PEMRA’s lawyer sought more time from the court to respond.

“Let PEMRA produce before the Court the original noting file on the basis of which the impugned notification was processed, recommended and issued to assist the Court as to why PEMRA felt the need to issue the said notification,” Justice Sattar wrote. 

During the hearing, the court also asked PEMRA’s counsel about the watchdog’s authority to regulate the content of discussions on TV and issue directions for the pre-clearance of individuals by ISPR or others. 

PEMRA’s lawyer pointed to Section 20-A of the PEMRA Ordinance, which relates to the obligation of licensees to uphold the sovereignty, integrity and security of Pakistan. 

“When asked as to what does pre-clearance of individuals providing content on TV have to do with the sovereignty or security of Pakistan and how can PEMRA impose a prior restraint on speech, the learned counsel for PEMRA seeks further time to assist the Court,” the written order read. 

Pakistani journalist bodies and many journalists have long accused the government and the powerful military of censoring the press. Both deny allegations and insist they do not supress the freedom of the press.

Justice Sattar’s new order is nit his first challenge to the army. He was among six Islamabad High Court judges who earlier this year wrote a letter to the Supreme Judicial Council watchdog and accused the military’s ISI spy agency of intimidating and coercing them over legal cases, particularly “politically consequential” ones.

The judges provided various examples of alleged interference, including a case concerning Pakistan’s imprisoned former prime minister Imran Khan. The letter also mentioned incidents where the judges said their relatives were abducted and tortured and their homes were secretly surveilled, aiming to coerce them into delivering favorable judgments in specific cases.

In February 2019, the Supreme Court had also delivered a scathing verdict on the military and intelligence agencies exceeding their mandate and meddling in politics over their handling of protests in 2017 by a religious-political party. 

In the past, Imran Khan’s main opponent, PM Shehbaz Sharif’s ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), had also accused the ISI of intimidating court decisions, including those that led to convictions of his elder brother Nawaz Sharif after his ouster from the prime minister’s office in 2017.

The powerful army plays an oversized role in Pakistani politics. The country has been ruled by military regimes for almost half its history since independence from Britain in 1947. Khan and the elder Sharif both have alleged that they were ousted by the military after they fell out with the generals.

The army denies it interferes in political matters. It has so far refrained from commenting on the judges’ letter regarding the ISI’s alleged interference and intimidation.


Pakistan anti-polio drive struggles against militants, mistrust

Pakistan anti-polio drive struggles against militants, mistrust
Updated 45 min 1 sec ago
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Pakistan anti-polio drive struggles against militants, mistrust

Pakistan anti-polio drive struggles against militants, mistrust
  • Cases in Pakistan are on the rise, with 45 registered so far this year, up from six in 2023 and only one in 2021
  • Last week seven people killed in attack on police guarding vaccinators, days earlier two police escorts gunned down

PESHAWAR, Pakistan: Militant attacks and suspicion stemming from misinformation are hampering Pakistan’s battle to eradicate polio, but teams of dedicated volunteer health workers are determined to fight on.

Pakistan and Afghanistan are the only countries where the debilitating virus remains endemic, the disease mostly affecting children under five and sometimes causing lifelong paralysis.

Cases in Pakistan are on the rise, with 45 registered so far this year, up from six in 2023 and only one in 2021.

Polio can easily be prevented by the oral administration of a few drops of vaccine, but in parts of rural Pakistan health workers risk their lives to save others.

Last week seven people including five children were killed when a bomb targeted police traveling to guard vaccine workers. Days earlier two police escorts were gunned down by militants.

“When we hear that a polio vaccination team has been attacked, it deeply saddens us,” said health worker Zainab Sultan, 28, as she went door to door in Panam Dehri in northwest Pakistan

“Our responsibility now is to continue our work. Our job is to protect people from disability, to vaccinate children, and to make them healthy members of society.”

This photograph taken on October 5, 2024 shows a health worker (R) administering polio drops to a child during a door-to-door poliovirus vaccination campaign on the outskirts of Peshawar, Pakistan. (AFP)

In the past firebrand clerics falsely claimed the vaccine contained pork or alcohol, forbidding it for consumption by Muslims.

A fake vaccination campaign organized by the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) in Pakistan in 2011 to track Osama bin Laden compounded the mistrust.

More recently, militant groups have shifted to targeting armed police escorts in their campaigns of violence against the state.

Pakistan has witnessed a dramatic uptick in attacks since the return of the Taliban in neighboring Afghanistan in 2021, with Islamabad claiming hostile groups are now operating from there.

“In our area, nearly half of the parents were initially resistant to the polio vaccine, believing it to be a ploy by the West,” said local resident Ehsanullah, who goes by one name.

“There was a lack of awareness,” he said. “If this disease is spreading because of our reluctance, we are not just harming ourselves but the entire community.

From previously being blamed for the mistrust of polio vaccines, some religious leaders — who wield immense authority in Pakistan — are now at the forefront of the campaign to convince parents.

This photograph taken on October 29, 2024 shows religious scholar Imam Tayyab Qureshi speaking during an interview with AFP in Peshawar, Pakistan. (AFP)

“All major religious schools and scholars in Pakistan have debunked the rumors surrounding the polio vaccine,” said Imam Tayyab Qureshi.

“Those who attack polio vaccination teams have no connection to Islam or humanity,” he said in the provincial capital of Peshawar, where Panam Dehri lies on the outskirts.

For one parent in Panam Dehri, the endorsement by religious chiefs proved pivotal.

“Initially I did not vaccinate my children against polio. Despite everyone’s efforts, I refused,” said 40-year-old Zulfiqar, who uses one name.

“Later, the Imam of our mosque came to explain the importance of the polio vaccine, telling me that he personally vaccinated his own children and encouraged me to do the same,” he said.

“After that, I agreed.”

Another impediment can be that parents in impoverished areas use the government’s eagerness to vaccine as a bargaining chip, attempting to negotiate investment in water and road projects.

“There are demand-based boycotts and community boycotts that we face,” lamented Ayesha Raza, spokeswoman for the government polio eradication campaign.

“Your demands may be very justified, but don’t link it to your children’s health,” she pleads to them.

For some health workers, the battle to eradicate polio is more personal.

Hobbling door-to-door in Panam Dehri, polio survivor Ismail Shah’s paralyzed leg does not slow his mission.

“I decided in my childhood that when I grew up I would fight against the disease that disabled me,” said the 35-year-old.

This photograph taken on October 29, 2024 shows an elite police personnel (L) standing guard as a health worker (R) administers polio drops to a child during a door-to-door poliovirus vaccination campaign on the outskirts of Peshawar, Pakistan. (AFP)

Shah is among 400,000 volunteers and health workers who spent the past week patiently explaining to families that the oral innoculation — administered in two doses — is safe.

Their goal is to protect 45 million children, but it’s far from straightforward. When Shah arrived in his patch of 40,000 inhabitants there were more than 1,000 refusals.

“Now, there are only 94 reluctant parents left, and soon I will persuade them as well,” he said.


Pakistan hires two US law firms for Iran gas pipeline arbitration — attorney general

Pakistan hires two US law firms for Iran gas pipeline arbitration — attorney general
Updated 04 November 2024
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Pakistan hires two US law firms for Iran gas pipeline arbitration — attorney general

Pakistan hires two US law firms for Iran gas pipeline arbitration — attorney general
  • Wilkie Farr & Gallagher and White & Case have been hired as Iran starts arbitration hearings before International Court of Arbitration
  • Tehran is seeking damages for Pakistan’s failure to fulfill its obligations, Islamabad reportedly faces potential penalty of $18 billion 

KARACHI: Pakistan has hired two prominent US law firms, Willkie Farr & Gallagher and White & Case, to defend its position in an international arbitration case initiated by Tehran over the stalled Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline project, the attorney general confirmed on Monday.

The dispute stems from a gas sales and purchase agreement (GSPA) the neighboring countries signed in 2010 to build a pipeline to transport natural gas from Iran to Pakistan. Known as the Peace Pipeline, the project has faced delays and funding challenges for over two decades. Pakistan said in March it would seek a US sanctions waiver for the pipeline, to which the US responded publicly, saying it did not support the project and cautioning about the risk of sanctions in doing business with Tehran.

Widespread media reports this year suggested Iran had slapped Pakistan with a final notice to finish its part of the cross-border gas pipeline or face international arbitration. Iran has now initiated the proceedings before the International Court of Arbitration in Paris, seeking damages for Pakistan’s failure to fulfill its obligations. Islamabad reportedly faces a potential penalty of up to $18 billion.

Attorney General for Pakistan, Mansoor Usman Awan, confirmed the government had hired the two US law firms, Willkie Farr & Gallagher and White & Case, to fight the case.

“We believe we have a strong case to defend,” Awan told Arab News, declining further comment.

Barrister Aqeel Malik, a spokesperson for the government of Pakistan on legal affairs, also said Islamabad had a good case. 

“We are quite hopeful that we will avoid any breach of contract penalties. At the time this agreement was signed, sanctions were already in place, rendering the deal with Iran effectively an ‘unenforceable contract.’ As it was unenforceable, penalties do not apply.”


Iranian FM arrives in Pakistan to discuss bilateral ties, Middle East tensions 

Iranian FM arrives in Pakistan to discuss bilateral ties, Middle East tensions 
Updated 04 November 2024
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Iranian FM arrives in Pakistan to discuss bilateral ties, Middle East tensions 

Iranian FM arrives in Pakistan to discuss bilateral ties, Middle East tensions 
  • Seyed Abbas Araghchi to meet Pakistan’s premier, deputy PM during two-day visit 
  • Visit takes place amid rising tensions between Iran and Israel as Gaza war rages on 

ISLAMABAD: Iran’s Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi arrived in Islamabad on Monday for a two-day visit to discuss bilateral relations and the evolving Middle East situation, Pakistan’s foreign office spokesperson said in a statement, amid Tehran’s surging tensions with Israel. 

Araghchi’s Islamabad visit takes place after last month’s escalation in hostilities between Iran and Israel, with both countries firing missiles at each other. Israel carried out strikes against Iran on Oct. 26, saying it was responding to missile attacks conducted by Tehran earlier in the month.

Since the deadliest attack in its history on Oct. 7, 2023, Israel has been fighting Hamas in Gaza and since late September, it has been at war with Hezbollah in Lebanon. Both Hezbollah and Hamas are allies of Iran. Pakistan, a major ally of Saudi Arabia, shares a long border with Iran.

“Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi arrives in Pakistan today on a two-day official visit,” Baloch wrote on social media platform X. “The two sides will discuss the situation in the Middle East and Pakistan-Iran bilateral relations.”

Baloch said the Iranian envoy will meet Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Daq during his visit to the country. 

Pakistan and Iran have had a rocky relationship despite several commercial pacts between them related to trade, energy and security cooperation. Both countries signed the $7 billion Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline project agreement in 2004 but 20 years on, the project remains incomplete. Tehran has completed the pipeline’s construction on its side of the border while Pakistan is seeking a US waiver to go ahead with it due to sanctions targeting Iran. 

Araghchi’s visit takes place hours after an Iranian Revolutionary Guards general and pilot were killed in a helicopter crash during an anti-terror operation in the Sistan-Baluchestan province bordering Pakistan. 

Pakistan and Iran are also often at odds over instability on their shared porous border, with both countries routinely trading blame for not rooting out militancy.

Tensions surged in January when Pakistan and Iran exchanged airstrikes, both claiming to target alleged militant hideouts in each other’s countries. Late Iranian president Ebrahim Raisi visited Pakistan in April on a three-day visit aimed at strengthening bilateral relations and easing tensions. The two sides also signed memorandums of understanding in the fields of trade, science technology, agriculture, health, culture, and judicial matters.


Pakistan set to deliver fourth consecutive rate cut today to revive economy

Pakistan set to deliver fourth consecutive rate cut today to revive economy
Updated 04 November 2024
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Pakistan set to deliver fourth consecutive rate cut today to revive economy

Pakistan set to deliver fourth consecutive rate cut today to revive economy
  • All 15 investors and analysts surveyed by Reuters expect the central bank to cut rates next week
  • Policymakers continue efforts to revive a fragile economy as inflation eases off recent record highs

KARACHI: Pakistan’s central bank is expected to cut its key interest rate further at its policy meeting today, Monday, with policymakers continuing their efforts to revive a fragile economy as inflation eases off recent record highs.
The central bank, the State Bank of Pakistan, has slashed the benchmark policy rate to 17.5 percent from an all time-high of 22 percent in three consecutive policy meetings since June, having last reduced it by 200 basis points in September.
All 15 investors and analysts surveyed by Reuters expect the central bank to cut rates. Two expect a 150 bps cut, twelve predict a 200 bps reduction, and one forecasts a 250 bps cut.
Economic activity has stabilized since last summer when the country came close to a default before an eleventh hour bailout by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
The IMF, which in September gave a boost to Pakistan’s struggling economy by approving a long-awaited $7 billion facility, said that the South Asian nation had taken key steps to restore economic stability with consistent policy implementation under the 2023-24 standby arrangement.
While the economy has started to gradually recover, and inflation has moved sharply down from a multi-decade high of nearly 40 percent in May 2023, analysts say further rate cuts are needed to bolster growth.
Mustafa Pasha, Chief Investment Officer at Lakson Investments, said rates must drop under 15 percent and hold below that for six months to have a material impact.
The IMF in its latest October report forecast Pakistan’s gross domestic product growth at 3.2 percent for the fiscal year ending June 2025, up from 2.4 percent in fiscal 2024.
The government expects annual inflation to have come in at 6-7 percent last month and slow further to 5.5-6.5 percent in November.
However, inflation could pick up again in 2025, driven by electricity and gas tariff hikes under the new $7 billion IMF bailout, and the potential impact of taxes on the retail and wholesale sector proposed in the June budget.
Ahmad Mobeen, senior economist at S&P Global Market Intelligence, said that while lower rates will offer some relief to the manufacturing sector, the benefits may be limited due to “elevated input costs, driven by high electricity and gas tariffs, combined with global supply and shipping constraints.”


PM praises security forces for successful operation against militants in Pakistan’s Balochistan

PM praises security forces for successful operation against militants in Pakistan’s Balochistan
Updated 04 November 2024
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PM praises security forces for successful operation against militants in Pakistan’s Balochistan

PM praises security forces for successful operation against militants in Pakistan’s Balochistan
  • Pakistani forces killed three separatist militants and arrested two others in Balochistan’s Musa Khel district on Sunday
  • Balochistan, home to a long-running separatist insurgency, has witnessed a spike in militant attacks in recent months

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Sunday praised Pakistani security forces and law enforcement agencies for a successful operation against militants affiliated with the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) separatist group in the country’s restive Balochistan province.
Pakistan’s Frontier Corps (FC) paramilitary force and the Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) of the police intercepted a group of up to 12 militants in Rarhasham area of Balochistan’s Musa Khel district, according to Balochistan CTD.
An ensuing heavy exchange of fire three militants were killed and two were apprehended, while the rest managed to get away. The arrested suspects were being interrogated to “develop further leads.”
In a statement issued from his office, PM Sharif said timely action by the CTD and security forces foiled a major “sabotage” by the militants.
“Security forces have rendered great sacrifices to eradicate the menace of terrorism from Balochistan,” he said. “The entire nation, including me, pays tribute to the officers of FC, Police and CTD.”
The development came two days after at least seven people, including children and a police constable, were killed and nearly two dozen others injured in a roadside blast in Balochistan province, officials said.
Balochistan, which borders Iran and Afghanistan and is home to major China-led projects such as a strategic port and a gold and copper mine, has been the site of a decades-long separatist insurgency by ethnic Baloch militants. The province has lately seen an increase in attacks by separatist militants.
On Oct. 29, five people were killed in an attack by armed men on the construction site of a small dam in Balochistan’s Panjgur district. The BLA, the most prominent of several separatist groups, claimed responsibility for the attack along with the killing of two other persons in Kech and Quetta districts.
The separatists accuse the central government of exploiting Balochistan’s mineral and gas resources. The Pakistani state denies the allegation and says it is working to uplift the region through development initiatives.