No cases of judicial interference during my watch, claims CJP Isa; Pak-US officials hold meeting under Trade and Investment Framework Agreement to boost trade
In Brief
ECONOMY
Pakistan needs to avoid economic mistakes made by other countries, says World Bank official
On 25 April, the World Bank’s (WB) Global Director of Governance Global Practice, Equitable Growth, Finance, and Institutions Practice Group (EFI) Vice Presidency Arturo Herrera Gutierrez, said Pakistan needs to implement sustainable fiscal reforms and strategies to secure a robust economic future. He stated: “Pakistan stands at a crucial juncture where it can either pave the path for sustained economic growth or fall into the recurring traps of debt distress.” Taking the example of economic challenges faced by countries like Mexico in the 1980s, he provided detailed mechanisms which Pakistan could implement to avoid the consequences of fiscal irresponsibility that many other economies have faced earlier. He also noted how establishing a stable and sustainable debt path is a cornerstone for the future of the country’s economy. Gutierrez also spoke on fiscal discipline through the use of strong macroeconomic frameworks, debt management policies, and the establishment of institutions. (Abdul Rasheed Azad, “World Bank official stresses need for sustainable fiscal reforms,” Business Recorder, 26 April 2024)
JUDICIARY
Accountability court bars Imran Khan and his spouse from speaking against institutions
On 25 April, an accountability court barred Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi from speaking against “institutions,” including the establishment and judiciary, and additionally asked the media to not highlight “political or inflammatory” statements by the accused. This order was issued by Judge Rana Nasir Javed while disposing of a petition seeking a fair trial in the Al-Qadir Trust case. As per the order, Khan had issued provocative political statements against senior officials of the army, judiciary, and other state institutions, thereby disrupting the “judicial decorum” and obstructing “judicial functions such as the dispensation of justice.” Javed asked journalists to not publish “political and inflammatory narratives targeting state institutions and officials,” and to carefully follow the guidelines of the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra). (Malik Asad, “Court bars Imran’s outbursts against ‘institutions’,” Dawn¸ 26 April 2024)
No cases of judicial interference during my watch, claims CJP Isa
On 25 April, the Chief Justice of Pakistan, Qazi Faez Isa, claimed that while any interference in the working of the judiciary is “not acceptable,” there has not been any incident of interference in judicial matters since he took charge of the top court in September. He asserted that he had “not received a single complaint from any high court judge that there has been any interference in their work.” This statement came a month after six Islamabad High Court (IHC) judges wrote a letter to the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC), saying that intelligence agencies had interfered in judicial affairs. The letter prompted calls for an investigation, after which Isa summoned a full court meeting of the Supreme Court (SC) judges. Isa and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif decided to form a commission to investigate the allegations of interference; however, former CJP Tssaduq Hussain Jillai, who had been appointed as head of the commission, rescued himself from the matter which caused the SC to take a suo motu notice. On 3 April, Isa emphasized that any attack on the judiciary’s independence would not be taken lightly, and it was later decided that a six-judge bench of the SC headed by Isa would resume hearing the case on 30 April. (Ishaq Tanoli, “No instances of meddling on my watch, says CJP,” Dawn, 26 April 2024)
EXTERNAL
Pak-US officials hold meeting under Trade and Investment Framework Agreement to boost trade
On 25 April, Pakistan and the US held an intersessional meeting under the Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA), where officials from both countries spoke on areas directed at boosting the trade and investment relationship. As per Acting US Mission spokesperson Thomas Montgomery, the sectors discussed included food regulatory practices, digital trade, protection of intellectual property, women’s economic empowerment, labour rights, textiles, investment, and agricultural issues. There was also substantial progress made in facilitating access to US biotechnology products and beef within Pakistan. Montgomery stated: “Engagements like the TIFA are key to moving forward on our shared goals of deepening the economic bilateral relationship and furthering the prosperity of working people in both countries.” He noted how the US has been Pakistan’s “largest export market” with the US importing USD five billion in Pakistani goods in 2023, and the overall US-Pakistan goods trade measuring USD seven billion. Further, he added that the US has been a “leading investor in Pakistan for the past 20 years and more than 80 US companies currently operate in Pakistan, supplying high- quality goods to the Pakistani market and employing hundreds of thousands of Pakistanis.” (“Pakistan, US officials engage to improve trade and investment,” The Express Tribune, 25 April 2024)
Pakistan says US State Department report on human rights is “inherently flawed”
On 25 April, Pakistan rejected the annual report released by the US State Department, accusing the country of having “double standards.” The report, which covers the human rights record of roughly 200 countries, accused Pakistan of committing a series of human rights offences with no changes in the situation in 2023. Some of these abuse allegations included extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances, torture, lack of fair trial and persecution of minorities. In response, Pakistan’s Foreign Office (FO) stated: “The contents of the report are unfair, based on inaccurate information and completely divorced from the ground reality.” It accused the State Department’s “annual exercises of preparing such unsolicited reports” of lacking “objectivity” and remaining “inherently flawed” in its methodology, as it uses a “domestic social lens to judge human rights in other countries in a politically biased manner.” Pakistan also expressed deep concern that “a report purported to highlight human rights situations around the world ignores or downplays the most urgent hotspots of gross human rights violations” in Gaza and Jammu and Kashmir. The report was described as being “politically motivated” as it ignored the “alarming situation in Gaza, the weaponisation of humanitarian assistance and the massacre of over 33,000 civilians.” Emphasizing that Pakistan remains committed to strengthening its own human rights framework, it called on the US State Department to engage in the exercise of conducting the assessment of complex issues with “due diligence,” responsibility, and “impartiality.” (Kamran Yousaf, “Pakistan rejects ‘unfair’ US report,” The Express Tribune, 25 April 2024)
SECURITY
Security forces kill three militants in KP
On 25 April, three militants, including two ringleaders, were killed as part of an intelligence-based operation in the Khyber district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP). As per the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), there had been a reported presence of militants in the area. In an exchange of fire, all three of them were killed; subsequently, the security forces recovered arms and ammunition. The ISPR added that a “sanitization operation is being carried out to eliminate any other terrorist found in the area.” (Ibrahim Shinwari, “Three ‘militants’ killed in Khyber operation,” Dawn, 26 April 2024)
PROVINCES
Punjab: Food minister supports call for investigation into caretaker government’s wheat import
On 25 April, Punjab Food Minister Bilal Yasin expressed support for setting up a committee to investigate the caretaker government’s import of wheat, after the House unanimously rejected the current wheat procurement policy. He denied speculation that the government does not want to buy wheat, explaining that the “change in weather is one of the reasons behind the delay in the start of the wheat procurement drive.” Yasin clarified that the caretaker government had decided to import wheat, and the move requires an investigation as it created problems for the purchase of new crops. Assuring the MPAs that the suggestions made during discussions would be incorporated into the new wheat procurement policy, he lauded the opposition for making positive suggestions. Earlier during the discussion, the opposition rejected the government’s policy of purchasing wheat from only those farmers who owned up to six acres of land. (“Minister backs call for probe into wheat import by caretakers,” Dawn, 26 April 2024)
|
The will of the people cannot be silenced. Pakistan demands the immediate #ReleaseOurKaptaan It’s time for justice to prevail.
-Tehreek-e-Insaf
Police are now BEATING & TASING pro-Palestine student protesters at Ohio State University.
-The Pakistan Frontier
Release the political prisoners. They are patriots and love Pakistan as we all love our motherland. Above all they are female & political workers not terrorists.
-Ali Muhammad Khan
|
|
|
|
Aasim Sajjad Akhtar, ‘Vietnam moment?’
Dawn, 26 April 2024
“History never repeats itself in linear fashion, so there can be no question of seamlessly mapping our current moment onto the late 1960s and early 1970s, especially given the widespread appeal of right-wing politics in our times. But alongside the emergent student movement in the US, a not insignificant number of governments have also called out Israel’s genocidal war against the Palestinians, and in some cases, like Iran, openly defied the so-called liberal world order. Much, however, remains to be done, because domestically Iran and others opposing Israel and its imperialist patron are not pro-people havens to be championed.”
Afzal Ali Shigri, ‘The thin blue line in crisis’
Dawn, 26 April 2024
“A force permanently deployed in a certain jurisdiction cannot work in a supporting role indefinitely and is, therefore, delegated policing powers for a fixed period, creating a dichotomy in the most important function of the state. If prolonged reliance on the civil armed forces is inevitable, the government should enact a special law and assign a specified area for policing to them so that they are held accountable for their actions.”
Editorial, ‘Musical chairs’
Dawn, 26 April 2024
“At the heart of the matter is a question that affects the entire citizenry: should civilians ever be tried in secret, in military courts seen to ignore due process, for offences that pale in comparison to the serious crimes that are normally tried in civilian-run antiterrorism courts? When terrorists who murder and maim can get a trial under the country’s criminal justice system, what need is there for the establishment to get involved in dispensing justice to civilians accused of rioting and arson?”
Syed Mohammad Ali, ‘Time to broaden South Asia’s water sharing treaties’
The Express Tribune, 26 April 2024
“Climate change is altering precipitation levels and triggering glacial melts, in turn threatening the food, energy and health security of South Asia as a whole. Such problems will further strain relations between countries which heavily rely on shared rivers. The varied demands associated with population growth have promoted unilateral attempts by individual nations to harness transnational rivers, which is increasing mistrust amongst neighboring nations.”
|
|
