Malala Yousafzai: Pakistan girl 'strong' - doctors

The medical director of the UK hospital where Pakistani girl Malala Yousafzai is being treated has said doctors are "impressed with her strength and resilience".

Dr David Rosser said she was making good progress, but has a long way to go and is not out of the woods yet.
The 14 year-old schoolgirl was shot in the head by a Taliban gunman for her campaign for girls' education.
Pakistan's president described it as an attack on "civilised people".
Speaking in Azerbaijan on Tuesday, President Asif Ali Zardari said: "The Taliban attack on the 14-year-old girl, who from the age of 11 was involved in the struggle for education for girls, is an attack on all girls in Pakistan, an attack on education, and on all civilised people."
'Right direction' Malala was flown to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham on Monday night for treatment.
Security is tight at the hospital, with a police presence in place to deal with any unauthorised visitors.
On Monday night a number of well-wishers turned up hoping to see her but were turned away by West Midlands police.
Dr Rosser described the incident as "irritating", but said the hospital and its partners are "comfortable with security arrangements".
The Taliban have threatened to target Malala again and she was given tight security for her journey to the UK.
Dr Rosser said the team of specialists working with her have been pleased with the teenager's progress.
 There's a long way to go and she is not out of the woods yet... but at this stage we're optimistic that things are going in the right direction," he added.
Once Malala recovers sufficiently, it is thought she will need neurological help as well as treatment to repair or replace damaged bones in her skull.
She was flown to the UK from Pakistan by air ambulance on Monday, almost a week after she and two other schoolgirls were attacked as they returned home from school in Mingora in the Swat Valley.
The gunman who boarded the van in which she was travelling asked for her by name before firing three shots at her.
Malala became widely known as a campaigner for girls' education in Pakistan as a result of a diary she wrote for BBC Urdu about life under the Taliban, when they banned all girls from attending school.
ARTICLE SOURCE:BBC NEWS ASIA

Situation heats up again in Khorog

KHOROG, Tajikistan – Tensions are rising again in Khorog after gunmen killed former insurgent field commander Imomnazar Imomnazarov in his house early August 22. He was a suspect in the July 21 slaying of State National Security Committee Gen. Abdullo Nazarov outside Khorog, but authorities had not arrested him.
Another of the four main suspects in the killing, fellow ex-insurgent field commander Tolib Ayombekov, surrendered August 12. A third suspect, Mukhammadbokir Mukhammadbokirov, has been answering investigators’ questions. He presently is accused only of hooliganism and illegal organisation of a demonstration. The fourth suspect, Yodgor Mamadaslamov, remains at large.
Reportedly, unknown men surrounded Imomnazarov’s house, threw grenades at it and opened fire, News.tj reported. Imomnazarov was killed immediately and his brother, Okhirnzar, was wounded, the media outlet said.
Imomnazarov, a prominent insurgent field commander during the 1992-1997 civil war, had been confined to a wheelchair by old war wounds for more than 15 years. He also had been weakened in recent years by diabetes.
Protest after slaying
After news of Imomnazarov’s death broke, a demonstration formed in Khorog. Protesters shouting for the government to keep its promises of security and stability began throwing stones at the oblast administration building, causing troops to fire into the air. Two demonstrators were wounded, News.tj reported.
The crowd dispersed but re-assembled outside the Khorog mayor’s office.
Demonstrators called for President Emomali Rakhmon to intervene. “You were able to achieve peace and harmony in our homes (after the civil war). ... In this difficult time for Gorno-Badakhshan and all of Tajikistan, we ask you to aid a peaceful resolution of the conflict in Khorog,” a group of young residents said in an appeal to Rakhmon that Tajik media carried.
Mourners carried Imomnazarov’s body to Vakhdat Square, News.tj reported, and he was buried later August 22.
Theories about culprits; slaying’s ramifications
Tajik politicians were unanimous in saying that a third force that had no interest in a stable Tajikistan killed Imomnazarov, who had negotiated with authorities and met all their demands.
“This was all organised by external forces (likely, militants from Afghanistan), and it’s they who are very skillfully prolonging the chaos,” Saifullo Safarov, deputy director of the Presidential Centre for Strategic Studies, said of the unrest in Khorog.
The events in Khorog increasingly resemble the run-up to the civil war, political scientist Parviz Mullodzhanov said, and the future depends largely on the government’s response.
“Back then,” he said of the prelude to the war, “almost every day, murders took place, and the outline of this killing resembles the outline of the provocations at the start of the civil war. After all, the Khorog talks were almost finished, and then you have this murder. ... It’s clear that someone doesn’t want the talks to end well.”
The killing was meant to destabilise the Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Oblast (GBAO), agreed Mukhiddin Kabiri, leader of the opposition Islamic Renaissance Party of Tajikistan.
“I don’t think this was the work of the security agencies,” he said. “They needed this man. Many in the GBAO valued his opinion.”
“I think we need to use our maximum efforts to calm the situation with the help of negotiations and other peaceful mechanisms,” Kabiri said. “The use of force has shown its lack of effectiveness. Even a temporary (military) victory doesn’t solve problems – it only makes the situation worse.” Rakhmon had been expected to arrive August 21 or 22 to help celebrate Khorog’s 80th anniversary, but a scheduling change was announced August 22.
He is now scheduled to visit September 9 to celebrate Khorog’s anniversary in conjunction with Tajikistan’s Independence Day.
 ARTICLE SOURCE:By Dilafruz Nabiyeva

Pakistan takes steps to prevent faith violence

kARACHI – With militant acts on the rise, Hindus in Sindh Province, Pakistan, have been falling victim to an increa
Now, in response to calls from human rights groups, Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari has ordered the formation of a committee to prepare a draft constitutional amendment designed to protect minorities’ rights and to prevent the forced conversion of Hindu girls.
Amarnath Motumal, vice-chairperson of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, hailed Zardari’s decision and said Pakistani Hindus are looking forward to an end to forced conversions of Hindu girls.
The Hindu community has been calling for help since the alleged kidnapping and forced conversion of Rinkal Kumari in February, according to media reports, and the August 7 abduction and forced conversion of 14-year-old Manisha have sparked a mass exodus of Hindus from Sindh, minority rights activists say.
Such violence against the Hindu community is killing the spirit of religious pluralism that has long been a hallmark of Sindhi culture, said Ali Hassan Chandio, head of the Sindh National Movement.
It is high time for political parties, civil society, enlightened religious scholars and media to act together to prevent such insanity in the interfaith tranquil province of Sindh, he said.
The governmental response is multi-faceted. Legislation to deal with the issue is under consideration in the National Assembly and the Sindh Assembly, Federal Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Maula Buksh Chandio said.
Also, Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah announced plans to spend Rs. 50m (US $530,000) for the welfare of poor Hindus and development of worship places. Shah also has ordered implementation of a 5% quota for minorities in government jobs, according to an August 15 press statement from Chief Minister House.
Shah directed the provincial police chief to ensure timely co-operation on complaints of kidnapping, robberies and forced conversions within the Hindu community, the statement said.
Increase in faith-based violence in Sindh
Pakistan’s 2.7m Hindus constitute the country’s largest religious minority, according to the 1998 census. Most Pakistani Hindus live in Sindh Province, which has seen an increase in faith-based violence in the past few years, said Dr. Ramesh Kumar Vankwani, head of the Pakistan Hindu Council.
“The minorities are vulnerable to religious exploitation, complaining of an increase in forced conversions, targeted killings, extortion, looting, kidnapping, religion-based discrimination, and troubles linked to their places of worship,” Vankwani said.
In recent sectarian violence, three Hindu men were gunned down November 7 in the Char area of Shikarpur when a Muslim local clerk incited the Bhayo tribe to attack them, local media reported, and the Sindh government last September deployed Rangers in Pannu Aqil to stop Muslim rioters from destroying Hindu houses and shops.
Such events have lent momentum to the trend of Hindus abandoning their motherland, Vankwani told Central Asia Online.
However, some activists and governmental officials challenged the reality of a mass exodus.
No official statistics exist on how many Hindus have fled Pakistan, Eshwar Laal, a Sukker-based leader of Hindhu Panchayat, an organisation representing the Hindu community, said.
However, more than 1,000 such families have left Sindh in recent years, he said. More than 200 Hindus had left for India in recent days, but they were visiting religious sites and were expected to return, Chandio said.
The committee has met with leaders of Hindu communities and learned that many Hindu families have shifted to Canada, the United Kingdom and Europe, but they are leaving “for their children’s higher education and better future, and not because of lawlessness,” Chandio told Central Asia Online.
Those who are leaving are generally “in search of better economic prospects,” Motumal agreed.
Militancy gaining ground in Sindh
Some districts of Sindh, a province known for its non-violent and secular traditions, are becoming religiously intolerant of minority communities, civil society activists contend. “We, the minorities, know that Islam has nothing to do with militancy and fanaticism, but the extremists are misusing the name of religion to attack minority communities,” said William Sadiq, a minority rights activist associated with the Karachi-based Action Committee for Human Rights.
“Due to deep-rooted influence of Sufism and progressive politics, militancy has never flourished in Sindh, but the proliferation of militants is posing a threat to what has been a liberal society for many years,” said Afzal Junejo, a Larkana-based intellectual.
sed incidence of forced conversion, extortion and kidnapping for ransom

ARTICLE SOURCE:

By Zia Ur Rehman

SC issues show cause notice to Riaz

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court has issued a show cause notice to business tycoon Malik Riaz in the contempt of court case and summoned him on Thursday.

During proceedings the bench hearing the case remarked that the news conference was contempt of court and an attempt to undermine the authority of the Supreme Court.

Justice Shakirullha Jan remarked that Riaz was trying to ridicule, scandalize and spread hatred against the Supreme Court.

The Supreme Court had also taken suo moto notice of the Malik Riaz’s news conference on the request of the Registrar and constituted a three member bench to hear the case.

A contempt of court petition filed by Advocate Ashraf Gujjar relating to the same news conference was also heard by the same three member bench.

On Tuesday, Malik Riaz held a fiery news conference pertaining to the Arsalan Iftikhar case. It was during this news conference that Riaz had asked the Chief Justice to reveal details of meetings and also how long he had known about the Arsalan Iftikhar’s alleged dealings. Riaz had said that he was not scared of being called for contempt or sent to prison.

Meanwhile speaking to the media in Lahore, Riaz’s counsel Zahid Bukhari distanced himself from the n
ews conference stating that this was Malik Riaz’s personnel complains.

MORE DETAIL: http://www.thenews.com.pk

Three killed in US drone strike in NWA

MIRANSHAH: A US drone attack on a militant vehicle in northwestern tribal region near the Afghan border killed three insurgents on Wednesday, security officials said.

"The drone fired two missiles on a vehicle and initial reports said three militants were killed," a security official said.

The vehicle was hit in Isha village, about 10 kilometres (six miles) east of Miranshah, two other security officials said.

Miranshah is the main town in North Waziristan, a known Taliban and Al-Qaeda stronghold.

MORE DETAIL: http://www.thenews.com.pk/article-54126-Three-killed-in-US-drone-strike-in-NWA

Asif Ali Zardari

Asif Ali Zardari is the president of Pakistan, a position he attained in 2008 after the assassination of his wife, Benazir Bhutto, the leader of the Pakistan Peoples Party, which had been founded by her father.
Mr. Zardari’s ascension to his country’s top civilian office was yet another unlikely twist in a career that began with his unlikely marriage to Ms. Bhutto and that had included an eight-year stint in prison on corruption charges. (While his wife called him the “Mandela of Pakistan,” Mr. Zardari earned another nickname when she was prime minister: “Mr. 10 Percent,” for his reputation of demanding kickbacks on government contracts.)
In his first years as president, Mr. Zardari had only limited control over Pakistan’s government, as the nation’s military steadily reasserted the primacy it has repeatedly claimed through coups. Mr. Zardari’s standing also suffered from the country’s sinking economy, political missteps and, perhaps most of all, from a widespread perception that he is a supporter of the United States.
But in March 2012, Mr. Zardari’s government cemented its grip on power with strong gains in Senate elections that should ensure his party’s influence until 2015.
At Loggerheads With Obama at NATO Summit
In May, a NATO summit meeting to discuss long-term security for Afghanistan was held in Chicago, in the shadow of continuing tension between the United States and Pakistan over an unfinished deal to reopen supply routes for the war.
The supply lines, through which about 40 percent of NATO’s nonlethal supplies had passed, were closed in late November after 24 Pakistani soldiers were killed in American airstrikes along the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Before the meeting, American and Pakistani officials had expressed optimism that an agreement was imminent. Negotiators were narrowing their differences after three weeks of deliberations, and it was hoped that an invitation for Pakistan to attend the summit would engender the goodwill needed to close the gap between the two sides.
Mr. Zardari flew to Chicago. But a deal on the supply lines remained elusive, and President Obama would not meet directly with him without it, American officials said. Mr. Zardari did meet with Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton.
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Kashmir

Both India and Pakistan claim the Kashmir Valley, a predominantly Muslim region. The valley was once a unique and idyllic patch of India, filled with apple orchards and shimmering fields of saffron framed by spiky, snow-capped peaks. Kashmir's mosaic of relatively peaceful coexistence first began to crack during the partition of British India, in 1947. Sixty years of bitterness, including two wars, have followed.
For decades, India maintained hundreds of thousands of security forces in Kashmir to fight an insurgency sponsored by Pakistan. The insurgency has been largely vanquished. But those Indian forces are still in place, and have faced major popular unrest in recent times. From 2008 to 2010 more than 100 civilians were killed in clashes between stone-throwing protesters and heavily armed security forces in Srinagar, the state's major city. Each death prompted a fresh set of angry demonstrations that prompted even tougher crackdowns, leading to more bloodshed. The valley’s economy virtually collapsed.
The troubles signaled the failure of decades of efforts to win the assent of Kashmiris using just about any tool available: money, elections and overwhelming force. However, in the summer of 2011, the Kashmir Valley enjoyed an unexpected season of tranquillity. Tourists from across India descended on the valley, filling just about every airplane seat, hotel room and houseboat. Business in Lal Chowk, Srinagar’s bustling central market, boomed.
No grand bargain between India and Pakistan was struck that would explain the new calm, and no major concessions were made within the Indian portion of the region either. Draconian laws that shield security forces from prosecution still allow the police to arrest anyone suspected of disturbing the peace.
Yet subtle but unmistakable shifts calmed the situation in Kashmir. A détente between India and Pakistan helped cool tensions in the region. Talks between the nations had been on hold for two years after militants from Pakistan attacked the city of Mumbai, formerly Bombay, killing more than 160 people. The talks resumed in 2011 in earnest, and on July 27 the two countries announced a series of measures aimed at easing restrictions at the Line of Control, the de facto border between the parts of Kashmir each country controls.
A Terrible Chapter Reopened
Yet a grim discovery cast a shadow over this new sense of calm in August 2011, when a state human rights commission inquiry concluded that thousands of bullet-riddled bodies buried in dozens of unmarked graves across Kashmir are likely to be those of civilians who disappeared during the insurgency of the early 1990s. Tens of thousands of people died in the insurgency, which began in 1989 and was partly fueled by training, weapons and cash from Pakistan.
The inquiry, the result of three years of investigative work by senior police officers working for the Jammu and Kashmir State Human Rights Commission, brings the first official acknowledgment that civilians might have been buried in mass graves in Kashmir. The report shed new light on a terrible chapter in the history of the troubled province and confirmed a 2008 report by a Kashmiri human rights organization that found hundreds of bodies buried in the Kashmir Valley.
According to the report, the bodies of hundreds of men described as unidentified militants were buried in unmarked graves. Of the more than 2,000 bodies, 574 were identified as local residents. The report called for a thorough inquiry and collection DNA evidence to identify the dead, and urged that anyone killed by security forces in Kashmir in the future be properly identified to avoid abuse of special laws shielding the military from prosecution there.
Thousands of people, mostly young men, had gone missing in Kashmir. Some went to be trained as militants in the Pakistan-controlled portion of Kashmir and were killed in fighting. Many others were detained by Indian security forces.

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