Zardari confers Benazir democracy award on Suu Kyi

YANGON: President Asif Ali Zardari on Wednesday conferred ‘Shaheed Benazir Bhutto Award for Democracy’ on Aung San Suu Kyi, the icon of long struggle for democracy.

The president, who arrived in Myanmar Tuesday, especially flew from Naypyidaw to Yangon to meet the head of National League for Democracy.

In a special investiture ceremony to pay tribute to Suu Kyi, he awarded the leader known for her 22-year long struggle for democracy.

The children of the president – Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, Bakhtawar and Aseefa were also present.

Zardari said on the occasion that the people of Pakistan hold Suu Kyi in high esteem for her sacrifices.

Suu Kyi was awarded Nobel Peace Prize in 1991 and is known worldwide for her decades of long struggle for the democracy.

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SC issue notices to ISI, MI chiefs

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Wednesday accepted appeals for hearing against killing of four prisoners in custody of security agencies, FTNews reported

A five-member bench headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry took up the matter here today.

The chief justice termed the killings in custody of security agencies as serious and directed the government to submit its report after investigating the matter.

The court also issued notices to the chiefs of Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) and Military Intelligence (MI) and the secretary defence.

Attorney General Maulvi Anwarul Haq told the bench that he would submit his report on the next hearing of the case.

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Three lawyers shot dead near Karachi City Court

KARACHI: Three lawyers died and one was critically injured in a firing incident near the City Court in the Pakistan Chowk area of Karachi, reported FTNews on Wednesday.

The SSP Tariq Dharejo said that four suspects on two motorcycles opened fired at the lawyers’ car. He added that the incident was apparently one of sectarian violence as the lawyers belonged to the Shia sect. However, the police said that it can only be confirmed after the investigations whether the incident was sectarian in nature or not.

FTNews reported that all the victims were lawyers and were heading back to their homes from the court.

SP Clifton said that the motorcyclists blocked the car and fired at it from the front. At least 15 holes were found in the car apparently of 9mm gunshots.

The incident left all the four victims injured, out of which three died on their way to the hospital. They all belonged to the same family.

The injured lawyer is being treated at the Civil Hospital.

The police cordoned off the area and is carrying an investigation into the matter.

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Fraud case: SC orders arrest of former PM media coordinator

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court of Pakistan on Wednesday ordered the arrest of former media coordinator to the Prime Minister on Northern Pakistan Television, Khurram Rasool Butt and said that he be presented in court on January 27.

Butt is accused of receiving Rs630 million from his client on the pretext of getting his two companies – Sahara Gas (pvt) Limited and Pak Delta Enterprises (pvt) Limited – quota for Liquid Petroleum Gas (LPG) and a licence for export of oil to Nato forces in Afghanistan. Butt and his brother Shahid Mehmood, along with one Ghulam Ghose, were accused of forging the signature of the Petroleum and natural resources secretary on various agreements.

The court – which had earlier ordered the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to take action against two of its former director generals along with the principal secretary to the prime minister for ‘shielding’ the accused involved in the fraud case – said that the FIA was not following orders.

Rasheed A Razvi, the petitioner’s counsel, had earlier informed the court that the accused was being shielded by influential office-holders, who blocked the FIA from arresting the accused in violation of the court order.

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Dream come true: Transgender community celebrates CNICs, voter registration

The transgender community in Punjab saw new hope on Wednesday as their voter registration began, and Computerised National Identity Cards (NIC) were issued by National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra), reported FTNews.

FTNews correspondent from Rawalpindi, Qaiser Sherazi, reported that Nadra was initially charging Rs1,000 to issue the ID cards to which the transgenders started protesting.

The protests led to the cancellation of the fees, and the transgenders celebrated by chanting slogans in the favour of Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif and Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry.

At least 21 votes were registered and 25 NICs were issued to members of the transgender community in Rawalpindi.

The issues regarding the gender and paternity to be mentioned on the CNICs have also been resolved. The cards will now bear the father’s name of the transgenders and their gender will be termed as “female”, which is in contradiction with Nadra’s earlier announcement of providing a “third gender”.

The Nadra spokesman had said in a statement that as per the Supreme Court’s instructions, third genders can have male transgender, female transgender or “Khunsa-e-mushkil” written on their ID card as per their own will.

Last year, the Supreme Court directed the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to enlist transgenders as part of the voters list by contacting them.

After the court’s verdict, Shahana Abbas Shani, President of She-male Association, announced that she will contest elections as an independent candidate for Muzaffargarh PP-254 constituency of provincial assembly.

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'Objectionable' concerts: Opposition walks out of Punjab Assembly session

LAHORE: The opposition staged a walked out from the Punjab Assembly on Wednesday after opposition leader, Raja Riaz of Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) was denied permission to speak, FTNews reported.

The PPP had submitted a resolution for the promotion of cultural activities in the assembly today. The resolution, which was submitted by PPP MPA Sajida Meer, objected to the resolution for a ban on ‘objectionable’ concerts at educational institutions.

The resolution stated that such bans did not ‘suit the 21st century’ and termed the concerts a ‘healthy activity’.

Seemal Kamran, who had moved the ban resolution, said that she opposed Meer’s resolution and said that nobody should promote ‘non-Shariah’ concerts. The MPA said that concerts should take place and the ban was for ‘objectionable’ ones.

Kamran said that those objecting the ban had not read the resolution carefully.

The Punjab Assembly, on Tuesday, had passed a resolution seeking a ban on organising ‘objectionable’ music concerts in private and public academic institutions. This move came weeks after three students were killed in a stampede at a concert in Lahore.

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Free medicine: Punjab Government withdraws batch of 200,000 aspirin

LAHORE: The Punjab government on Wednesday withdrew a batch of 200,000 aspirin tablets from the Punjab Institute of Cardiology (PIC) after they were found to be contaminated.

Parliamentary Secretary for Health Dr Saeed Elahi, while talking to FTNews, confirmed the contamination and called for an immediate withdrawal of the drug from the hospital’s dispensary.

The batch was dispatched to PIC’s dispensary from December 16 to January 12.

Elahi also said that the government had ordered an investigation to find out as to why the medicine was contaminated.

Another spate of panic might start as there is a chance that tablets from this batch might have been sent to other pharmacies in the city.

The fatal medicines have taken 80 lives so far, while the death toll is expected to rise at PIC.

The panic will take some time to subside, as it has emerged that 400-500 patients were given the same medicine at the hospital.

The medicine triggered an unknown disease that is said to get deposited in the bone marrow and ultimately ends the body’s resistance. The generation of white blood cells stops in the body and a severe chest infection also takes place.

The symptoms of the disease include a change in complexion, low platelet count, vomiting blood and a severe chest infection.

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Gilani reverses earlier criticism of military

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Yousuf raza Gilani on Wednesday appeared to back down from a confrontation with the military, moving away from remarks made earlier that it had acted unconstitutionally in supporting a court investigation of a controversial memo.

“I want to dispel the impression that the military leadership acted unconstitutionally or violated rules,” said Gilani, according to state television.

His comments appeared to be a bid to defuse tensions between the country’s civilian leaders and the powerful military and came a day after a high-level meeting with the military to discuss a possible trilateral summit on the future of Afghanistan.

“The current situation cannot afford conflict among the institutions,” he added.

Gilani left here today for Davos to attend the annual summit of the World Economic Forum.

He was accompanied by Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar and Finance Minister Abdul Hafeez Sheikh and other officials.

He is scheduled to hold meetings with world leaders who will gather at Davos, the Alpine Resort of Switzerland to deliberate upon the global economic issues.

Gilani had criticised the military earlier this month when he said affidavits submitted to the Supreme Court by the Chief of Army Staff Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani and ISI chief Lt Gen Ahmad Shuja Pasha on `memogate` were `unconstitutional and illegal`.

In an interview with the People`s Daily Online of China, which was released by the official Associated Press of Pakistan news agency, Mr Gilani said since the COAS and ISI DG had submitted their replies to the court without seeking approval of the competent authority under the rules of business, the statements carried no legal import.

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Fazl calls for early elections

KARACHI: Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman on Wednesday revealed that matters related to a caretaker government have been settled and said the next general elections could be held in September or October this year.

Talking to the media on his arrival here at Jinnah International Airport, Rehman said he wants early elections, but these should be fair, transparent and independent.

When asked about memo scandal, the JUI-F chief said that it will not matter if Mansoor Ijaz comes to Pakistan or not.

“It would be good, if Mansoor Ijaz does not come,” he added.

He hoped that the public meeting of his party in Karachi would be a historical one, adding that it would leave a significant impact on the politics of the entire country.

To a question, Rehman said that those who were demanding big positions in Muttahida Majlis Amal (MMA) should wait first for its revival.

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Four soldiers killed in Kurram clashes

KURRAM: Four soldiers and 10 militants were killed in a skirmish between Pakistani forces and a group of militants in the Jogi area of the northwestern Kurram tribal region, near the Afghanistan border, security officials said.

The death toll could not be independently verified and militants often dispute official accounts.

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