President wants Chinese model of agriculture in Pakistan

WUHAN: President Asif Ali Zardari Saturday said that Pakistan wants to benefit from Chinese experience and technology in the field of agriculture for enhanced production that will help his country in overcoming the grain shortage.

“I am very impressed with China’s development in Agri-sector and we want to emulate the same success in Pakistan,” President Zardari said here in his address to China Hubei-Pakistan Agriculture and Water Resources Cooperation Forum.

The president said that Pakistan and China have always enjoyed cordial relations and expressed the hope that his visit will further strengthen these ties particularly in the fields of agriculture and hydro electricity sectors.

He said the prime objective of his visit, the second in four months, was to learn from Chinese model of agriculture and development of hydro electricity projects.

source : jang.com.pk

Hubei Governor meets President Zardari

WUHAN: Governor of Hubei Lihong Zhong met President Asif Ali Zardari here on Saturday and discussed avenues of cooperation in the field of agriculture and hydro electricity projects.

President Zardari said he has come to Hubei province specially to study the Chinese development and their institutions in these two fields and wants his country to benefit from their knowledge and technology.

He said Pakistan was facing energy and food shortage and China could help them in overcoming these challenges.

The Governor welcomed President Zardari and assured his fullest support to Pakistan in the fields of agriculture and power generation projects. He said a number of Chinese companies were already working in Pakistan in various sectors and was desirous of helping Pakistan in whatever way they could.

source : jang.com.pk

President, PM condemn D. I. Khan blast

ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani Friday strongly condemned the blast in D I Khan that killed and injured several people.

The President and the Prime Minister said the government would not bow down to the extremists, militants and terrorists and would take all necessary measures to establish the writ of the government.

President Zardari said such acts of violence; bomb blasts and terrorism were a serious threat to the country and directed local administrations to take strict measures so that no such incidents recur.

Prime Minister Gilani taking a strong note of the tragic incident sought a report from the provincial government. He said the government was committed to ensure law and order across the country.

He directed that law enforcing agencies to ensure strict security measures at all large gatherings and investigate the matter to bring the perpetrators to justice.

They also directed the provincial authorities to provide best possible medical care to the injured.

source : jang.com.pk

Afghan president postpones Pakistan visit

ISLAMABAD: Afghan President Hamid Karzai’s scheduled visit to Islamabad has been postponed due to bad weather.

Karzai was due on Thursday to hold talks with President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani. The schedule of next visit would be released later.

source : jang.com.pk

Ordinance to reinstate sacked employees promulgated

ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari has promulgated the Ordinance for reinstating the government employees who were removed during 1998 to 1996.

source : jang.com.pk

Outgoing Spanish envoy pays farewell call on President Zardari

ISLAMABAD: The outgoing Ambassador of Spain, Jose Maria Robles Fraga Friday paid a farewell call on President Asif Ali Zardari at the Presidency.

The President appreciated the services of the outgoing ambassador in further cementing the ties between the two countries and wished him good luck for his new assignment. The Ambassador said the four years he spent in Pakistan were an important part of his life and thanked the government of Pakistan for facilitating him in performing his duties and further enhancing relations between the two countries.

source : jang.com.pk

Gilani, Fazal meet President

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani and Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI-F) leader Maulana Fazal-ur-Rehman met President Asif Ali Zardari here at the Aiwan-e-Sadr on Friday.

In a brief statement issued here by the President House today, Prime Minister discussed with President the country’s prevailing situation.

JUI-F chief was also present in the meeting which lasted for about 45 minutes.

Geo news sources told that Mumbai report, war against terror, security situation in Swat, next Senate polls and performance of the government came under discussion in the meeting.

source : jang.com.pk

Security beefed up in Peshawar ahead of President’s visit

PESHAWAR: Security has been put on high alert before arrival of President Asif Ali Zardari in the city.

According to reports, strict security arrangements have been put in place while the area from Peshawar Air Base to Governor House has also been sealed. While helicopters are doing the aerial surveillance.

A large number of police and security personnel have been deployed at all exit and entrance points into the city to prevent any untoward incident.

source : jang.com.pk

President Zardari chairs high-level meeting in Peshawar

PESHAWAR: President Asif Ali Zardari arrived Friday on a maiden two-day visit to Peshawar.

According to sources, President Zardari is presiding over a briefing at the Governor House about overall security situation in Fata and NWFP. Governor Owais Ahmed Ghani, Chief Minister Amir Haider Hoti and other officials are also present on this occasion.

While Interior Adviser Rehman Malik, Federal Minister Sherry Rehman, Ghulam Ahmed Bilour, Arbab Alamgir and other top officials are also attending the briefing.

Earlier, the President was received by the governor and the chief minister at the Governor House.

Strict security armaments have been made in the city to prevent any untoward incident.

source : jang.com.pk

Pak needs no lectures on war against terror: Zardari

ISLAMABAD: Advocating the need for recasting Pakistan-U.S. relationship into a long-term partnership for peace, stability and development, President Asif Ali Zardari Wednesday asked President Barack Obama to help resolve the lingering Kashmir dispute that remains at the heart of South Asian unrest and challenges like extremism.

“President Obama understands that for Pakistan to defeat the extremists, it must be stable. For democracy to succeed, Pakistan must be economically viable,” Zardari wrote in a US newspaper article in which he congratulated the new U.S. leader on assumption of office and extended Pakistan’s “hand in friendship”.

As part of economic empowerment efforts, President Zardari called for swift progress towards realization of economic assistance expansion initiative (Biden-Lugar legislation) in Congress as well as the preferential trade program of reconstruction opportunity zones and said, “assistance to Pakistan is not charity.”

“The water crisis in Pakistan is directly linked to relations with India. Resolution could prevent an environmental catastrophe in South Asia, but failure to do so could fuel the fires of discontent that lead to extremism and terrorism. We applaud the president’s desire to engage our nation and India to defuse the tensions between us”, he said.

“Unlike in the 1980s, we are surrogates for no one. With all due respect, we need no lectures on our commitment. This is our war. It is our children and wives who are dying”, the president added.

Zardari renewed Pakistan’s determination to curb the menace of terrorism in its own interest and called for equipping Pakistan with modern security tools and technology to proactively fight the terrorists “on our terms”.

source : jang.com.pk

Force last option in war on terror: President

ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari Thursday said use of force is the last option in the war against terrorism.

Addressing a high level meeting here, the President said the social and economic structures of Pukhtunkhwa and tribal societies are being strenghtehned.

He said the needs and requirements of the law enforcement agencies will be fulfilled in NWFP.

According to sources, the President has given a green signal to the renaming of NWFP as Pukhtunkhwa, saying the Constitutional requirements in this regard will be met.

President Zardari said struggle is being made to strengthen the federation.

He said the government will engage in dialogue only with those who do not challenge the writ of the government.

source : jang.com.pk

Zardari urges US to stop drone attacks

ISLAMABAD: The US CENTCOM Chief General David Petraeus called on President Asif Ali Zardari in the Presidency on Tuesday and discussed with him regional security matters.

In the meeting, President Zardari said that drone attacks in tribal areas were weakening writ of the government and destabilizing the political process. He urged the United States to stop drone attacks in tribal belt and fulfill its commitment to create Economic Opportunity Zones (EOZs) in tribal areas. The president said the construction of EOZs would boost socio-economic development in tribal areas.

Zardari further said that ongoing war on terror badly affected Pakistan’s economy and that the world should help Pakistan to tackle economic challenges.

Lauding Pakistan’s role in war against terror, General Petraeus said Pakistan was playing a pivotal role in war on terror.

US Ambassador to Pakistan, Anne W. Patterson and the Chief of Army Staff, General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani were also present during the meeting.

source : jang.com.pk

Minorities assured representation in next Senate elections

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani Friday said that during the Senate elections in March, minorities will also be represented.

Speaking in the National Assembly in response to demand of a minority member Akram Masih Gil, the Prime Minister said that at present there was one Hindu Senator Ratna Chawla, representing Pakistan Peoples Party.

He said she has been elected on Muslims seat.

The Prime Minister said that President Asif Ali Zardari has agreed in principle for minorities representation in the Senate.

source : jang.com.pk

Governor Balochistan calls on President

ISLAMABAD: Nawab Zulfiqar Ali Magsi, Governor Balochistan, called on President Asif Ali Zardari here Wednesday. He briefed the President about the current development activities in different areas of the province.

The President assured him that the government was keen in providing all possible assistance for the uplift of Balochistan in order to eliminate the problems faced by them. The President also hosted a lunch in his honour.
source : jang.com.pk

Joe Biden arrives in Iraq

BAGHDAD: US vice president-elect Joe Biden arrived in Baghdad on Monday for talks with Iraqi leaders and senior US officials, Iraqi state media reported.

The Delaware senator, who will surrender his seat to assume the US vice presidency on January 20 and also visited international soldiers in southern Afghanistan on Sunday, arrived in Iraq via Kuwait.

There was no official announcement of his visit.

Biden, the outgoing chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Republican Senator Lindsey Graham were also in Pakistan on Friday for talks with President Asif Ali Zardari.

US president-elect Barack Obama has vowed to pull one or two combat brigades out of Iraq every month over a period of 16 months, leaving just a residual security force of unspecified size remaining.

Washington, which currently has 146,000 soldiers in Iraq, signed a bilateral agreement with Baghdad in November, allowing its combat forces to remain in the country until the end of 2011.

source : jang.com.pk

Manmohan Singh greets President Zardari on new year

ISLAMABAD: Indian Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh has extended a message of “good wishes” to President Asif Ali Zardari for the year 2009.

“With all good wishes for the new year”, Prime Minister Singh said in a season’s greetings card addressed to President Zardari.

The greetings card, with a dove printed on its front and signed by Prime Minister Singh and his wife Gursharan Kaur, can be described as a message for warming of relations between the two countries, soured after the Mumbai blasts in November last.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and President Asif Ali Zardari, who met on the sidelines of annual UN General Assembly session in New York in September, discussed bilateral issues and pledged to combat terrorism jointly during that meeting.

The leadership of Pakistan and India have been stressing on the continuity of peace process between the two countries, with President Zardari always emphasizing that the peace process should not be let hijacked by the non-state actors.

Now the good wishes extended by Prime Minister Singh to President Zardari through a greetings card, having a dove printed on its front side, also exhibits the same desire of peace and harmony between the two South Asian neighbours.

source : jang.com.pk

Joe Biden visits int’l soldiers in southern Afghanistan

KABUL: US vice president-elect Joe Biden visited international soldiers in southern Afghanistan Sunday as part of a pre-inauguration tour that will also take him to Iraq, the NATO-led force said.

Biden, due to take office beside president-elect Barack Obama on January 20, was briefed by military commanders on activities and plans for the insurgency-hit south, NATO’s International Security Assistance Force said.

“I am very interested in what becomes of this region because it affects us all,” an ISAF statement quoted Biden as saying.

The bulk of the 20,000-30,000 extra US soldiers due this year in Afghanistan’s own Iraq-style “surge” are expected to head to the south.

Biden reaffirmed his and president-elect Barack Obama’s pledge to “fully support troops and their efforts in the region,” ISAF said.

In Kabul on Saturday, Biden met President Hamid Karzai and a host of Afghan and international officials for briefings on developments in the country, which was battered by a rise in insurgent attacks last year.

The United States led the invasion that removed the Taliban regime from power in 2001, provides the bulk of the international troops fighting an insurgency by the extremists and is also pouring in development aid.

Biden was in Islamabad on Friday where he met Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari, another ally in the US-led “war on terror”.

The Delaware senator, who will surrender his seat to assume the US vice presidency, will conclude the trip later this week with stops in Iraq to meet with military officials there, the ISAF statement said.

source : jang.com.pk

President meets foreign diplomats

ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari hosted a dinner for Islamabad-based foreign diplomats at the President’s House on Saturday. Envoys from across the world including the United States, China, the UK, France and Russia attended the dinner, according to a press release issued by the Presidency after the event.

Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani, federal ministers, secretaries and senior officials were also present on the occasion. Senator Farhatullah Babar, the spokesman to the president, told media that the Indian high commissioner and his wife also attended the dinner.

The spokesman denied media reports that President Zardari had asked the diplomats to help defuse tension between India and Pakistan in the wake of the November 26 terrorist attacks in Mumbai. Babar said the president did not make a speech at the dinner, which was only a get together.

“The president did not a make any speech at the function,” he told. “Rather, it was a get together.”

source : jang.com.pk

Zardari convenes Senate session Jan 23

ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari has summoned a session of the Senate on January 23 (Friday).

The president has summoned the Senate session in exercise of the powers conferred on him by Clause 1 of Article 54 of the constitution.

The session, which will be the 50th of the Upper House, would commence at 1000 hours in the parliament building.

source : jang.com.pk

President urges world powers’ role to defuse Indo-Pak tensions

ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari has appealed to the world powers to come forward and play their role towards easing tensions between Pakistan and India.

Speaking at a dinner reception hosted in honour of the foreign ambassadors, President Zardari expressed concern that prevailing Indo-Pak tensions could sabotage efforts being made for brining stability and peace in the region.

He stressed the international community to take stock of the challenges being faced by Pakistan and the ground realities.

On the occasion, he reiterated the government’s stance that no compromise of any kind can be made with the terrorists.

source : jang.com.pk

President, PM condemn Lahore blasts

ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani have condemned in strong terms the series of blasts in Lahore on Friday.

source : jang.com.pk

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Biden arrives at Aiwan-e-Sadr

ISLAMABAD: US Vice President-elect Joe Biden has arrived at the Aiwan-e-Sadr to hold important discussion with President Asif Ali Zardari.

Earlier, Biden was received at the airport by Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi and ambassadors Hussain Haqqani and Anne W Paterson.

Biden is accompanied by Senator Lindsay Graham and will be meeting President Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani and Chief of the Army Staff General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani to discuss various regional issues.

source : jang.com.pk

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US envoy meets President Zardari

US envoy meets President Zardari

ISLAMABAD: A meeting between U.S. ambassador Anne W. Peterson and President Asif Ali Zardari held here on Thursday.

According to sources the meeting assumes significant importance in view of U.S. Vice President elect Joe Biden’s visit to Pakistan tomorrow.

The meeting is expected to discuss matters relating to Indo-Pak tension and developments regarding Ajmal Kasab.

source : jang.com.pk

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President meets PM, discusses new NSA appointment

ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari held a separate meeting with Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani here on Thursday.

The meeting between President Zardari and Premier Gilani lasted for an hour.

According to sources, earlier, President Zardari and Prime Minister Gilani held a joint meeting with US Ambassador to Islamabad Anne W. Patterson in which Pak-India tension, Ajmal Kasab and issues relating to the national security adviser came under discussion.

source : jang.com.pk

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Afghans, Pakistan fight militants together says Zardari

KABUL: Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari met his Afghan counterpart Hamid Karzai in Kabul on Tuesday, pledged cooperation in the fight against militants in both countries and called for wider regional understanding.

Relations between Kabul and Islamabad, both U.S. allies but troubled by border disputes in the past, have improved in recent months with the arrival of the new government in Pakistan.

In the past, Afghan officials have often accused elements in Pakistani state agencies of helping the Taliban, ousted from power in Kabul but retaining sanctuaries in the tribal areas along the rugged Afghan-Pakistan border.

Zardari, speaking on his first visit to Kabul as president, told a news conference Pakistan was ready to fight side by side with Afghanistan against the resurgent Taliban.

The two neighbours needed international help, but could do the job better themselves than outsiders could, he said.

“We want to tell the world today together, standing shoulder to shoulder, that we are together in this fight against these non-state actors who have taken nations and countries, and in fact superpowers, to war,” Zardari said.

Asked if he would let foreign troops enter Pakistani territory to help fight militants in volatile border areas, Zardari said all the two countries needed was support.

“To the world we say, ‘Help us. We can fight. We can look after ourselves all we need is the support. Given the proper support, we can do the job better, and cheaper, and easier than you can do it’,” he said.

source : jang.com.pk

Pakistan, Afghanistan agree to lift bilateral ties

KABUL: President Asif Ali Zardari and his Afghan counterpart Hamid Karzai on Tuesday expressed their firm resolve to upgrade and further strengthen bilateral ties in diverse fields including trade, investment and education, besides cooperating in the fight against terrorism through joint strategy.

Addressing a joint news conference after their formal talks here, the two leaders also expressed their determination to work together to eliminate the scourge of terrorism and establish peace.

“We are together in this fight against non-state actors that have taken nations and even the super powers hostage.”, President Zardari, who was on his first official visit to Afghanistan said.

President Zardari called for standing against non-state actors.

“We will not fall victim to their designs. We will fight them today so that our children have a better future tomorrow”, he added. President Asif Zardari said his visit will go a long way in strengthening the existing ties between Pakistan and Afghanistan.

To a question, he said Pakistan is capable to address the problem of terrorism in a better, easier and a cost-effective manner and does not want interference from any one. “We want support to make this fight a success”, he added.

President Zardari said that he feels the pains of the victims of terrorism both in Afghanistan and Pakistan as his own family also went through the same pains.

To a question, he expressed regret over the recent kidnapping of Afghan diplomat and said efforts are on to recover him.

“We hope to have some access and trying to apprehend kidnappers”, the President said, adding Pakistani Ambassador who was kidnapped was recovered after some three months.

To another question, President Zardari said, “We have discussed bilateral matters, trade and look forward to a stronger economic relations between the two countries.”

President Karzai said, Pakistan and Afghanistan enjoy good, friendly, and strong relationship and both wanted to take it forward to a level as desired by the people of two countries and be able to counter the challenges of extremism and terrorism.

The two sides had indepth discussion on different aspects of bilateral relations including combating terrorism and the assistance that Pakistan is rendering to Afghanistan, he added. “We hope and wish prosperous lives of the people of both the countries”, President Karzai said.

President Karzai said there was enhanced cooperation between two countries through different mechanisms including tripartite commission and exchange of high level visits to combat the menace of terrorism.

“We are cooperating at different levels; tripartite exchanges; joint strategy on combating terrorism at foreign ministers level; and the Peace Jirga.”

President Karzai said, the two sides will hold more talks at mini-jirga level on Wednesday morning.

source : jang.com.pk

Zardari orders immediate end to unannounced load-shedding

ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari Friday ordered WAPDA to immediately put an end to the unannounced load-shedding across the country.

During the meeting of concerned authorities held to review the shortage of gas and petrol, the President said Pakistan People’s Party represents people of Pakistan and incidents like this create stir among the people.

He said no delay will be tolerated in the provision of facilities to the people.

President Zardari asked as to why the people are not getting the petrol even after the prices of the commodity have come down.

He directed to ensure supply of oil and gas for generation of additional electricity.

source : jang.com.pk

Dialogue key to resolving Indo-Pak tension: President Zardari

ISLAMABAD: US Ambassador to Pakistan, Anne W. Patterson called on President Asif Ali Zardari on Friday at the Presidency.

President Zardari said that Indo-Pak tension should be resolved through dialogue. Anne Patterson said that her country was in constant contact with Indian and Pakistani leadership and it supported dialogue process so that the tension between two South Asian neighbours could be diffused.

According to a press statement issued from the Presidency, matters relating to terrorism and regional situation were also discussed in the meeting. Well-placed sources told Geo news that the US envoy hailed steps taken by Pakistan to de-escalate Indo-Pak tension and said that cooperation with Pakistan in war against terror would be enhanced.

President Zardari told Patterson about Pakistan efforts and repeated offers of cooperation with India in Mumbai attacks investigation. He said that India did not respond positively to Pakistan’s offer. The president said that the US should enhance cooperation with Pakistan in energy sector to address energy crisis in the county.

source : jang.com.pk

Israel raids on Gaza violate U.N charter: Zardari

ISLAMABAD: Responding on the latest air strikes on civilians in Gaza by Israel, President Asif Ali Zardari said, Israel’s air raids on Gaza Strip have violated the Charter of United Nations.

It is pertinent to mention that the Israeli air strikes have continued for four days in Gaza City killing over 300 innocent people and injuring over 200.

President urged both involved sides in a statement released from Islamabad on late Monday; they should reach a peaceful and durable solution to Gaza tension.

He also urged the entire world to take swift action of Israel’s raids on Gaza as it was as open violation of UN Charter.

source : jang.com.pk

Rice cautions India, Pakistan against rising tensions

WASHINGTON: US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has expressed concern over escalation of India and Pakistan tensions after Islamabad redeployed troops to their border, the State Department said on Monday.

Rice spoke to President Asif Ali Zardari and Indian Foreign Minister Pranab Mukherjee over telephone, cautioning against raising tensions, it said. “She has made it part of her conversations to note that tensions are already high, that neither side should be taking actions that increase those tensions,” said department spokesman Gordon Duguid.

Rice had also noted in the talks that Pakistan had ìmade some positive steps but that these steps need to be continuous, that we need to have both sides work together to find the perpetrators of the Mumbai attacks.

source : jang.com.pk

President plays down tensions with India

ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari minimized cross-border tensions with India in a speech Saturday on the eve of maiden death ceremony of former Premier Shaheed Mohterma Benazir Bhutto, telling citizens democracy and dialogue will end discord and increase regional stability.

“The solution to the problem of the region, the solution to the problem of Pakistan … is politics, is dialogue because politics is part of the cure, not part of the problem,” Zardari said, speaking at a memorial service for his late wife, former Pakistani Prime Minister Shaheed Benazir Bhutto.

“We have issues? Yes, we have issues. We have non-state actors? Yes, we have non-state actors. Yes, they are posing an agenda on us. We ourselves have accepted we have a cancer. We will cure this cancer ourselves.”

Zardari delivered the national address from Naudero, the Bhutto family home in Larkana. It comes amid escalated tensions between India and Pakistan following reports on Friday that Pakistan had redeployed military resources on its eastern border with India.

Details of those troop movements, however, remained murky on Saturday. US media National Security Analyst Peter Bergen said a Pakistani official told him 20,000 soldiers had been moved from the Afghanistan border toward the Indian border. That amount, he said, was not significant, as Pakistan has a very large army.

“It’s a way of signaling the Indians, you know, a unilateral Indian strike into Pakistan is going to be unacceptable to Pakistan,” Bergen said. “The reason that’s serious, of course, is that Pakistan and India have fought three major wars in the last six decades.”

source : jang.com.pk

Country passing through an era of trial: President Zardari

HYDERABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari has said that the country was passing through delicate times and we would defend the country till last drop of our blood.

Addressing the cadets at Hyderabad Cadets College, Petaro, Pakistan President vowed making no compromise on the independence and sovereignty of the country and added that a heavy responsibility of the defense of the country waiting for the cadets to shoulder.

source : jang.com.pk

Private-public partnership vital to reduce poverty: Zardari

ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari has said that concrete steps should be taken for poverty reduction through private-public partnership and NGOs at union council level and all the recommendations of the concerned committees in this regard will be forwarded to the government for implementation.

The President welcomed the participants of the meeting and said that this was the first interactive meeting in the presidency which was also attended by civil society organizations along with the government departments to benefit from the input of civil society organizations.

He made these remarks during a presentation by Task Force of Poverty Reduction Social Sectors on Women empowerment at Aiwan-e-Sadr Islamabad.

The meeting was informed that emergency relief camp of BISP for FATA displaced families has already been launched. Some camps will be setup in Balochistan for earthquake affectees in the first week of January. BISP is holding national survey through development partners to collect accurate data of deserving families for permanent income support.

The meeting was attended by Sherry Rehman, Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting, Shaukat Tarin, Advisor to Prime Minister for Finance, Farzana Raja, Chairperson Benazir Income Support Program and other concerned officials.

source : jang.com.pk

No leniency bearable on national security: Zardari

ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari said Saturday that securing nation is our top priority therefore no leniency on national security would be allowed.

President was talking to member Sindh Assembly during a meeting here in Islamabad.

President said that we seek PML-N’s cooperation to run government and feared that the confrontations being carried out by PML-N would cause damages to country particularly at in the face of crisis.

He also urged political parties to bury all the differences in the greatest interest of country.

source : jang.com.pk

President says confrontations to worsen present situation

ISLAMABAD: Members of Parliament and Provincial Assembly belonging to Punjab met President Asif Ali Zardari here at Aiwan-e-Sadr on Saturday evening. Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani was also present in the meeting, which was part of consultative dialogue of party legislature.

The President apprised the members of parliament and the provincial assembly of regional and political situation and invited their suggestions.

“In the present situation, we do not long to get engaged in confrontations as the country cannot afford it.” President said and added his resolve is to be friendly with all political parties.

Some members of the delegation also spoke on this occasion and informed the President about the problems being faced by the people of their areas and suggested remedial measures.

The President assured the delegation that government will look into the problems and will try to address them. He said that such consultative meetings will continue in future.

Dr. Faryal Talpur, MNA, Bakhtawar Bhutto Zardari and Asefa Bhutto Zardari were also present in the meeting.

A number of Federal Ministers including Minister for Defence Ch. Ahmed Mukhtar, Minister for Foreign Affairs Makhdoom Shah Mehmood Qureshi, Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Dr. Zaheeruddin Babar Awan, Minister for Water and Power Raja Pervaiz Ashraf, Minister for Religious Affairs Syed Hamid Saeed Kazmi, Minister for Kashmir and Northern Areas Affairs Qamar Zaman Kaira and Chairperson Benazir Income Support Program Ms. Farzana Raja also attended the meeting.

source : jang.com.pk

Pak, India are not enemies, says Zardari

PARIS: President Asif Ali Zardari said Pakistanis and Indians are made of the same mud, we look enormously, and we always react emotionally. Fear breeds fear. But I must repeat, India is not the enemy of Pakistan and we are not the enemies of the Indians.

In an interview to French daily, President Zardari said ar that the current tension created fear. Of course, some Pakistanis cannot help but remember that India has 4 800 tanks.

The only border crossed by these tanks is ours. For reasons of relief, they cannot enter or Bhutan, nor Nepal, nor in China. There among us fear reactive. But what we call today the leadership of the region is precisely to overcome this fear.

I will read what I said on September 20 last: “I put myself in the land corpse of my wife. My heart cries tears of blood. I ask you to turn this pain into strength. We are a nation courageous and determined. The death has not taken on us. Pakistan is our country and save us. “And I hope that Europe will help us.

Pakistan pledges to pursue, arrest, try and punish anyone involved in the horrible massacre of Bombay. But we put the world on guard against hasty judgments and inflammatory statements.

India is a nation that has reached maturity. It is a stable democracy. Pakistanis appreciate what India has contributed to the cause of democracy in this region. But popular anger fueled by the terrorist attacks in Bombay can be a bad advisor.

The Indians must pause, catch their breath and reflect. India, Pakistan and the rest of the world must work together to eradicate these terrorists who have spread death in Bombay, which in the past have attacked New York, London and Madrid, which destroyed the Marriott Hotel Islamabad last September.

The killers of my wife are closely linked by their ideology, these enemies of civilization.

These militants are not miraculously appeared. Pakistan was an ally of the West throughout the Cold War.

Zardari terms Indian jets air intrusion as technical error

ISLAMABAD: British Prime Minister Gordon Brown Sunday said that three-quarters of the most serious terror plots investigated by British authorities had links to Al-Qaeda in Pakistan, although he stressed terrorism was a “global problem.”

After holding talks with President Asif Ali Zardari in the wake of Mumbai attacks he said time for talks is over and now it is time to act.

President Zardari on the occasion urged India to share information and assured that Pakistan government is ready to take further action against militant forces.

He termed the air intrusion by Indian aircrafts as technical mistake.

The British Prime Minister addressing a press conference along with President Zardari pledged to help Pakistan “break the chain of terror”.

He said Britain would work with the government in Islamabad to ensure that terrorists were denied safe havens in Pakistan, pledging six million pounds (nine million dollars) to help it tackle militancy.

“Through these measures we hope to do more to break the chain of terror that links the mountains of Afghanistan and Pakistan to the streets of the UK and other countries around the world,” Brown said at a press conference with Zardari.

Brown said his meeting with Zardari had reassured him of Pakistan’s determination to act against those responsible for what he called a “human tragedy on a terrible scale.”

Brown said the two nations must work together to “do everything in our power to cut off terrorism” and stressed that Pakistan was itself a victim of terrorism, having suffered 50 suicide attacks this year alone.

“I think it’s right that we have to help Pakistan to root out terrorism in its own country… all of us suffer when terrorists are active and are able to impose their will,” he said.

At least one British national died in last month’s attacks on India’s financial centre, and Brown said he had asked Zardari to allow British police to question Pakistani suspects if they wanted to do.

“I asked (Indian Prime Minister) Manmohan Singh this morning if he would allow the British police, if they chose to so do, to interview the person arrested as one of the suspects… I have similarly asked President Zardari,” he said.

“We all have an interest in discovering what lies behind the Mumbai outrages.” Pakistan has arrested a number of suspected militants in the wake of the attacks, including two leaders of the banned militant group Lashkar-e-Taiba, while the lone surviving gunman, a Pakistani national, is being held in India.

Brown, who left Pakistan after the press conference, met Zardari hours after Islamabad said India had twice violated Pakistani air space on Saturday, drawing a swift denial from New Delhi.

Pakistan said Indian jets had flown over the Pakistani-administered part of Kashmir and the eastern city of Lahore, where Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), which India accuses of involvement in the Mumbai attacks, is active.

Zardari said the Indian fighter jets only “slightly entered Pakistani soil.”

Pakistan has arrested key leaders of LeT and shut down a charity accused of being a front for the group, freezing its assets and detaining dozens of members.

But it says it will not hand over any suspects to India, saying New Delhi has not yet provided any evidence implicating Pakistanis in the attacks.

India: trying not to lose face

Caught between an agitated Army and an angry populace, the Indian government realizes it is in “a bit of a box,” says Paul Kapur, a South Asia expert who teaches at Stanford University and the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, Calif.

Military strikes will only empower the Pakistani Army – the institution that is most hostile to India and began using militants to strike India in the first place. Yet Pakistan’s problems are so deeply rooted and its 10-month-old civilian government so weak, that diplomacy can offer only slow progress. It could take years to strengthen Pakistan’s civilian government to the point that it can control the Army and the militants it nurtured.

“The long term is hard to stomach – systematic changes will take time,” says Dipankar Gupta, a sociologist at Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi. “In the short-to-medium term we have to do something about Pakistan … [or the] government will lose face internally,” he adds.

Recent elections in India have calmed the situation somewhat. The ruling Congress Party fared better than the more hawkish Bharatiya Janata Party in three of five states, suggesting that voters were not motivated by the desire for revenge against Pakistan.

Moreover, Pakistan has begun to respond to some of India’s concerns this week. Raids nabbed Zahi-ur Rehman Lakhvi, the operations commander of the militant outfit linked to the Mumbai attacks, Lashkar-e-Taiba.

“Four days ago, no one would have visualized that [Pakistani President Asif Ali] Zardari would do something,” says Mohan, the Singapore-based analyst.

On Wednesday, Pakistan’s ambassador to the UN also said that Pakistan would proscribe Jamaat-ud-Dawa if asked to by the UN. This was in response to India’s request a day earlier that the United Nations Security Council declare Jamaat-ud-Dawa a terrorist organization. The charity openly collects donations on Pakistani streets, though India and the United States say it is a front for Lashkar-e-Taiba.

Govt. committed to uphold human rights: Zardari

ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari reiterated the government’s firm commitment to uphold the principles enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and to rededicate to the promotion and protection of human rights.

In a message on the Universal Human Rights day falling on December 10, he said they solemnly pledge to make renewed efforts to promote a culture of respect for human rights, tolerance, diversity, and pluralism.

“Our leader, Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto Shaheed following in the footsteps of her illustrious father Shaheed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto was a great champion of human rights throughout her life,” the President said.

The President said her whole political career is a manifestation of struggle for voicing concern over human rights violations all over world.

In recognition of her invaluable contributions for human rights activities, the United Nations has nominated her for the UN Human Rights Award posthumously. The government is committed to tread the path illuminated by Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto with her blood, he added.

He said our faith Islam teaches deep respect for rights of all human beings, enjoins the eternal values of equal rights, social justice and peace and banishes discrimination on the basis of class, colour or creed.

Eid-ul-Azha being celebrated in country with religious zeal and fervour

ISLAMABAD: Eid-ul-Azha is being celebrated on Tuesday with religious zeal and fervour all over the country.

This morning, Eid prayers were held at mosques, Eidgahs and open places in all towns and cities of the country. The ulema in their sermons highlight the significance of the day and the philosophy of sacrifice of animals on the day.

Special prayers were offered for the progress and prosperity of Pakistan, unity and solidarity of the Muslim ummah and liberation of the occupied territories.

President Asif Ali Zardari offered the prayer at the mosque of the Awan-e-Sadar while prime minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani offered the prayer in the mosque of the Prime Minister House. Advisor on interior Rehman Malik and federal minister for water & electricity Raja Pervez Ashraf also offered the prayer with the prime minister.

The biggest congregation of the Eid prayer in Islamabad was held at the Shah Faisal Mosque where federal ministers, higher civil and military officials and ambassadors of various Muslim countries offered the prayer.

The largest congregation in Lahore was held at the historic Badshahi Mosque.

PML (N) chief Mian Nawaz Sharif offered the Eid prayer in Raiwand and later he offered fateha at the grave of his father Mian Sharif and met with the party workers.

In Karachi, the central congregation of the Eid prayer was held at the Bagh-e-Quaid-e-Azam where governor Sindh Dr Ishratul Ibad Khan, provincial ministers and foreign diplomats offered the prayer.

Chief minister Sindh offered the prayer of Eid-ul-Azha in Garhi Khuda Bakhsh.

Big congregations of Eid-ul-Azha in Karachi were held at Nishtar Park, Mehfil Shah Khurasan, Masjid Tooba, Eidgah Nazimabad, national Stadium, Masjid Khairul Amal and Masjid Baitul Mukarram.

Ulema and khateebs from different schools of thought will deliver special sermons and lectures to highlight the significance of the day, and call upon the Muslims to follow the teachings of Islam.

Chief minister Balochistan Nawab Aslam Raeesani offered the Eid prayer in Quetta and governor of the province offered the prayer in his native village Jhalmagsi.

Chief minister NWFP Ameer Haider Khan Hoti and governor Owais Ahmed Ghani offered the Eid prayer in Governor House Peshawar.

Elaborate security arrangements have been made throughout the country on this occasion.