Death toll increases from suicide attack; Pakistan and China to push the textile industry
In Brief
POLITICS
Protests against the authorities continue
On 27 November, the talks between protesters and authorities were stagnant despite the closure of shops by the victim’s family members. The Sit-in protest was due to the presumed extrajudicial killing of Balaach Mola Bakhsh. The supporters of the Baloch Yakjehti Council (BYC) held protests at the D-Baloch China-Pakistan Economic Corridor road linking Turbat to Karachi. In the wake of the incident, Bakhsh's sister was taken for an investigation by the officials of the Kech District Council chairman’s office. The victim’s sister stated that the authorities were forced to call off the sit-in protest and bury her brother’s body. However, the protesters refused to call off and stated that they would not renounce until an FIR was filed and judicial interrogation was initiated. The BYC leaders stated, “We will not come under any pressure to end the protest.” (Behram Baloch, “Sit-in against Turbat ‘killings’ enters fifth day,” Dawn, 28 November 2023)
PML-N accuses PTI administration of rupee debase
On 27 November, the PML-N accused the previous PTI government of rupee devaluation. The heated debate comes after the issue over currency debase was discussed in the Senate. PML-N further claimed that the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) had complete legitimacy under the PTI regime. Leader of the House in the Senate Ishaq Dar blames the economic distress caused by the PTI government and SBP. He said some people caused great loss to the country for their “small gains”. Despite that, he apprised that the country’s currency remained stable from 2014 to 2017. Dar stated that until 2017 the Pakistani rupee was stable, and that Nawaz fled it was PKR 104, however, when former Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi took over the dollar rate was said to be at PKR 124. PTI’s representative Mohsin Aziz in the senate said that the dollar was PKR 172 before the PDM alliance, however within a year its value surged to PKR 335. He further added that there are several variables that have engendered devaluation and that intensive study should be focused on solving the issue. (Iftikhar A. Khan, “PML-N blames PTI govt for rupee devaluation,” Dawn, 28 November 2023)
PTI’s campaign to be resilient in KP and Punjab
On 28 November, according to Dawn the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) seemed to be passive in their Punjab domain, while other political parties are at their peak of endorsing their parties’ ideologies to the people. After unsuccessful meetings, the party had gone to be dormant in KP and Punjab. However, the new senior vice president Sher Afzal Marwat in hopes held public meetings in Dir and Swat. It is to be noted that PTI leaders in Punjab are maintaining a low profile ahead of the elections. This is because the party has been accused of various crimes since the 9 May incident. One of the party leaders said, “Even a former PTI leader, who had joined Istehkam-i-Pakistan Party (IPP), was tortured after his arrest and asked to identify locations of other leaders in hiding.” (Mansoor Malik and Zeyd Jooma, “Situation: PTI campaign ‘buoyant in KP, listless in Punjab” Dawn, 28 November 2023)
Preparations for intra-party elections
On 28 November, The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) kick-started preparations for its long-pending intra-party elections. This is intended to fulfil the Election Commission of Pakistan's (ECP) order by finishing the process before 13 December. Despite the initiation, PTI chairman Imran Khan won’t be able to participate as he is facing charges. PTI's parliamentary leader in the Senate, Barrister Ali Zafar stated, "To avoid any discrepancies with the ECP, another leader may temporarily stand in for the PTI Chairman during this election.”. PTI's intra-party election process has been said to be unresolved since 2022 and thus ECP requirements for political parties to conduct these elections are flexible based on their constitutions. (Rizwan Ghilzai, “PTI gears up for intra-party polls sans Imran,” The Express Tribune, 28 November 2023)
SECURITY
Death toll increases from suicide attack
On 27 November, about 2 people were dead from a suicide attack on a security convoy in Bannu. According to a statement released by Inter-Services Public Relations, the military identified the attacker as an Afghan citizen who was affiliated with Hafiz Gul Bahadur Group. The attacker was riding a motorcycle with explosives and dropped it near the security forces. It further added that two civilians were killed in the attack, while the injured included three soldiers. (Bannu blast toll rises to two, ISPR says attacker identified Dawn, 28 November 2023)
ECONOMY
IMF receives autonomy from the Pakistan Central Bank
On 27 November, according to the Privatisation Minister Fawad Hasan Fawad, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) managed to get autonomy for Pakistan’s central bank to direct access to the information that the federal government was hesitant to share with the global lender. Fawad stated that this may lead to deeper suspicions about the motives behind securing the absolute autonomy of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP). The IMF got hold of SBP and later involved the central bank governor to be dependent on it and got the information from it regarding the updates which were earlier hidden from the IMF authorities. (Shahbaz Rana, “IMF secured autonomy to access SBP info: Fawad,” The Express Tribune, 28 November 2023)
CPEC
Pakistan and China to push the textile industry
On 28 November, Hussain Haider, Pakistan’s Consul General in Shanghai led a Pakistani delegation and paid a visit to Shengze Oriental Textile City in Suzhou, China. They met with representatives from local textile enterprises. Haider apprised Pakistan and China’s trade and investment situation during the meeting. The focus of the meeting was the policies that were available to Chinese investors in Pakistan. He added, “Currently, Pakistan’s textile exports to China mainly consist of cotton yarn, apparel, cotton fabrics, and home textiles, with cotton yarn accounting for 73% of the total.” He also emphasized forging cooperation with Shengze’s silk and textile industry. He further extended an invitation to Shengze’s enterprises to visit Pakistan. Haider concluded, “We hope to further communicate and connect with Shengze Oriental Textile City. We sincerely invite Shengze’s enterprises to invest and establish factories in Pakistan, aiming to achieve mutual benefits and contribute to the deepening of China-Pakistan cooperation.” (“Pakistan, China forge textile ties,” The Express Tribune, 28 November 2023)
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“At present, elements hostile to Pakistan are making numerous conspiracies against Pakistan through internal and external facilitators, but Alhamdulillah, Pakistan Army is keeping the country and nations united by thwarting every conspiracy. #PakistanArmy”
- Khan Zadi
“#Makran Coastal Highway, Pakistan, The N-10 or National Highway 10 is a 653 km national highway in Pakistan which extends along Pakistan's Arabian Sea coast from Karachi in Sindh province to #Gwadar in Balochistan province. It passes the towns of Ormara and Pasni #Pakistan”
- Palwasha Umrani
“Salute to the bravery and commitment of #Pakistan's security forces! Their successful intelligence-based operation in Sararogha reflects their unwavering dedication to eradicating terrorism. We stand united with our forces in ensuring peace and security. #IsraeliNewNazism #Gaza’
- NaghmaTajik
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Ajaz Ahmed, ‘Climate adaptation’
Dawn, 27 November 2023
“SOCIETIES across the globe face the hardest and most long-lasting challenge to human progress in terms of climate change. Many regions are already feeling the severe impact of climate change. The developing countries, with their limited preparedness to respond to natural disasters triggered by climate change, are especially vulnerable. Thus, reducing the risk of climate catastrophes and developing the resilience of vulnerable communities has become an increasingly urgent task. However, tackling the impact of climate change in fragile settings requires transformative, and not incremental, action. This is practically impossible without having adequate resources and the technical expertise required to make infrastructure and livelihood resilient to climate change. Yet, there is a substantial shortfall of resources, resulting in an adaptation gap, which is the difference between the climate adaptation needs of a society in terms of resources and what has been done to make social and economic systems resilient to climate change.”
Dr Farzana Bari, ‘Invisible women’
The News International, 27 November 2023
“The recently released UNDP 2023 Gender Social Norms Index (GSNI) reveals the shocking persistence of gender biases globally. The index tracks people’s attitudes towards women across four dimensions – political, education, economic and physical integrity in both lower and higher HDI countries. Covering 85 per cent of the world’s population, the GSNI reveals that a staggering nine out of 10 men and women still hold gender biases against women, indicating that 90 per cent of the world’s population holds at least one bias against women. Twenty-five percent of the population believe it is justified for a man to physically harm his wife. Nearly half of the respondents believe men are better suited for political leadership, and 43 per cent hold the belief that men make better business executives compared to women. Furthermore, 28 per cent people think that higher education is more important for men than for women.”
Enem Ali Abbas, ‘Creating public value’
The News International, 27 November 2023
“Countries like Pakistan struggle for reforms because they struggle with perception more than the dearth of resources required to deliver on these reforms. Most of the decisions the government takes cannot be termed entirely as informed or more appropriately intelligent decisions because of the perception factor backed by abnormal public reaction to the same. This engages government machinery in a rut of routine affairs and quick fixes. Take torrential rains for example; the explanation by the chairperson of the PPP was quite logical but it was made fun of. Rains flood modern cities all over the world but the moment it rains in our country, we start comparing our country with modern countries – that too without any clue. We want government machinery to dry out cities miraculously even before the rain stops. This does not rid government machinery or public representatives of their duties to ensure drying of ponding points, but this asks for bigger questions at the same time.”
Sarwar Bari, ‘Beyond level-playing-field’
The Express Tribune, 27 November 2023
“Since 1970, no government ousted from the Centre ever won the election that followed. Not because the electorates didn’t vote for the ousted party again. In fact, they did. And in some cases, even with higher numbers. Yet, the parties would lose seats disproportionately. For instance, in GE-1988, PPP secured 7.5 million votes, and its nearest rival, the PMLN-led IJI, got 5.9 million. The PPP’s government was not even allowed to complete two years in power. In the next election, the PPP’s vote bank in fact surged to 7.8 million, but its seats in National Assembly dropped from 93 to 44. IJI’s vote bank also increased by 2 million to 7.9 million, but its seats increased from 54 to 105. PMLN-IJI formed the next government, but faced the same fate that it had designed for the PPP only a couple of years back. Isn’t it magical that in 1993 election, PPP’s vote bank dropped to the 1988 level, but its seats increased by two-fold to 86. While PMLN maintained its vote bank of the 1990, its seats dropped by 32 to 73. Resultantly, it faced the same fate that the PPP had faced in the 1990 election.”
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“The future trajectory of this critical relationship has far-reaching repercussions for the world.”
- An opinion in Dawn, US-China thaw?
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