Day: January 28, 2009

ISLAMABAD (January 28 2009): The deteriorating law and order situation and continuous threats of Taliban to close down girls’ schools echoed in Senate on Tuesday, where the Senators condemned the move and urged the government to take action against those who have disturbed the peace in the valley.

Taking part in the debate, Senator Colonel Syed Tahir Hussain Mashhadi (Retd) said that some political parties, which do not have representation in National Assembly, are linking Swat unrest with international war, which is completely wrong.

“It has nothing to do with America. It is our own war. Our security has been put on stake due to presence of some extremists elements,” he said. The law enforcement agencies are doing wonderful to wipe out the menace of extremism from the valley, he said, adding that the political parties should fully support them to make the operation a success and get rid of these evils from the society.

He demanded the government to nab those who are funding the extremists for their own vested interests. This tragedy must be stopped and all the FM radio stations run by the hard-liner extremist militants should be banned immediately, he said.

Senator Sadia Abbasi said that Swat issue must be taken seriously otherwise it may take the entire country in its grip. “People are being killed despite curfew. Dead bodies of people are being taken out from graves. What sort of Islam is this,” she questioned.

Businesses of people have been destroyed, she said, adding that foreign countries are issuing advisories to its citizens not travel to Pakistan due to poor security.

She demanded the government to give in-camera briefing to the parliamentarians over Swat unrest. She said that it was a wrong interpretation of Islam to ban the female education. “Some people are imposing their tribal values and traditions in the name of Islam, which would defame the religion in the world.” She said that the government should take immediate steps for protection of girl students and to ensure security to female educational intuitions.
Source: Business Recorder
Date:1/28/2009

ISLAMABAD- Golra Police here Tuesday arrested an accused Allah Datta son of Nizam involved in the rape and murder of an eight-year-old girl Khatima Bibi.

As per details, complainant Abdul Malik son of Sultan Afghani, residents of Hall Chelo District Islamabad informed Golra Police on 13-01-2009 that her eight-year- old daughter Khatima Bibi left her home for taking milk on 21-11-2008 and did not return home.

Police started search and found her body from a nullah near Kashmir Highway (Dhok Paracha). Police registered a case FIR No 11/09 against the unknown accused U/S 302/34/376/201 of PPC and arranged the postmortem of dead body, which revealed that the girl was murdered after being raped.

SSP Islamabad Captain (Redt) Ahmad Latif immediately constituted a team headed by SP (West) Nasir Aftab and SP Investigation Sajid kayani with the direction to arrest the accused. ASP Sadder Circle Captain (Retd) Liaquat Ali, SHO Golra Rana Perviz Akhtar, SI Zulfiqir Ahmad and ASI Muhammad Mursalin started investigation using all available information and arrested accused Allah Datta Son of Nizam from Chak # 491/EB, Distt Vehari.

During the preliminary interrogation, the accused confessed to rape Khatima Bibi and then murdered her in order to conceal his crime. He confessed that he put the dead body in a sack and threw it at a stream near Kashmir Highway. Police has got physical remand of the accused from the court and further investigation is underway.

Meanwhile, Golra police has busted two gangs and arrested 05 accused involved in dacoity and thefts case and recovered stolen property worth Rs. 3,12,000/-, including TV, Deck, Stolen Vehicle (FDG-8495), electronic valuable, two pistols and one dagger. The police has registered separate cases against the accused namely Farman Ali, Tanveer Qasir and Sabir Sultan.
Source: The Nation
Date:1/28/2009

By Salman Aslam

LAHORE: A complainant and a rape victim have appealed to Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif to direct the authorities concerned to look into their case and take action against the manipulative police officials who have become a hurdle in their way to get justice. The following case is an eye opener for the chief minister who is committed to issuing more and more funds to facilitate the Punjab police.

A divorcee and mother of a five-year-old daughter, Nasreen Bibi, used to live with her brother-in-law Waheeduddin of Nizamuddin Road, Chowk Ashiqabad, Ichhara. On April 4, 2008, she along with her brother-in-law was traveling on a motorcycle when four people allegedly kidnapped her from Hamdard Chowk, Township and raped her. Nasreen Bibi nominated Irshad Ahmad, son of Mukhtar Ahmad, his wife Sadaqat Bibi, daughter Ameer Bibi and son Umar, residents of the Ghazi Road, in the FIR and Waheeduddin got a case (FIR No 333/08) registered on April 12, 2008, under Section 365/B PPC with the Township Police Station. SI Ulfat Ali was assigned the task to look into the case, but his colleague SI Khalid Mahmood unlawfully took the investigation into his own hands. The DSP Township Circle and in-charge investigation Township remained tightlipped over the illegal action of SI Khalid. Rather, they endorsed the investigation conducted by the SI unlawfully.

During the investigation, SI Khalid Mehmood got Nasreen Bibi medically examined and got her statement recorded under Section 164 CrPC in the court. An incomplete Challan, under Section 512 CrPC, was submitted to the court on August 18, 2008. SI Khalid arrested accused Irshad Ahmad and obtained his physical remand for interrogation. However, other accused secured their pre-arrest bail from the court. Waheeduddin and Nasreen Bibi were called again and again to join the investigation but they did not join the same.
Source: The News

By Perwez Abdullah

Karachi: Students living in the crowded and poorly-managed girls’ hostel at the University of Karachi (KU) have demanded the removal of their Provost and Warden because instead of helping them, both hostel officials have made their lives miserable.

The students who had come to the Vice-Chancellor’s (VC) office on Tuesday and were sitting on the ground while their representatives sought an audience with VC Prof. Pirzada Qasim, narrated their tales of woe to The News.

“Our Provost Dr Nasreen Aslam Shah, who is also the Director for the Centre of Excellence for Women Studies, uses filthy and threatening language if the students request her for some amenities,” said the spokesperson of the students. She is working towards her PhD.

The girls’ hostel has 104 rooms, including a sports room and four guest rooms, and can hardly accommodate 250 students adequately. “The sports room has been converted into a 12-bed room for as many girls. Four guest rooms are hosting 16 girls with scant amenities and furniture,” they said.

Another student, fearing reprisals from the Provost, said that the latter came at 9 pm and threatened students while making rounds of the hostel. “Once she said that we should not mess with her.

She warned us that she will make a call and 50 men will appear on the hostel gate. Last year, on August 14, a large number of male students rambled and danced at the gates making cat calls and hurling obscenities at the residents. We called her to inform her of the bedlam. Dr Shah laughed sarcastically and hung up. This is awful. We are thousands of miles away from our hearths and homes and this behaviour is disappointing,” she said gloomily.

The VC has asked the Provost to allot single rooms to the M.Phil and Ph.D students and to “try to manage the situation” until other arrangements are made to accommodate the increasing number of students. It has been decided that a hall that was used for functions in better days will be used to house the students. It means 20 students are destined to turn up in that hall.

Dr Shah had earlier written to the VC to allow her to ‘force’ old Somali students to allow their new counterparts to share their rooms through the KU ‘Security Force’. The idea was not accepted as it seemed too authoritarian and harsh in tone. Foreign Students Advisor Prof Kaleem Raza Khan wrote a note saying that instead of ‘forcingÂ’ the students to share the crammed rooms, they should be allowed to seek accommodation in the city.

A senior professor at the Arts Faculty, preferring to remain anonymous, agreed that the hostel was in a shambles but added some of the Pakistani students wanted to increase the ‘Curfew Period’ — the time they were supposed to return to the hostel. “Yes, the hostel was built more than three decades ago. The number of students coming from abroad and other cities of Pakistan has increased considerably but there is no expansion in the hostel space.

A new building that was to be built by now has been confined to the cold storage. KU has no money for a new hostel,” the professor said.

Dr Shah, however, denied the use of unbecoming language with the students. “The problem is space. Foreign student turn up from the airport demanding rooms and their Pakistani counterparts do the same. What do we do?

They have a problem with sharing,” she claimed. She also said that when she became a provost at the time when Dr Zafar Saieed Saify was the VC, she observed that girls would return at midnight. “I discontinued that practice and that was the reason why evening classes were shortened to terminate at 9 pm. We have 40 foreign students. The rest are from other parts Pakistan. Girls from northern areas account for 70 percent of the occupancy,” she said.

Dr Shah told The News that students pay only Rs200 per month for electricity, water and gas and Rs1,800 for lunch and dinner. “It is quite cheap considering the current inflation,” she maintained.
Source: The News
Date:1/28/2009

By Sabeen Jamil

Karachi: It wonÂ’t be easy for a suicide bomber or a miscreant in Karachi to attack using the cover of a Burqa. From now on, women will be also thoroughly searched by the newly trained force of women Rangers, said officials while speaking to The News.

The 21 female personnel inducted in Pakistan Rangers recently are trained specially to tackle terrorism threats arising from the fairer faction of the society. “Dealing with women will be easy now,” said an official from Pakistan Rangers referring to the general culture in Pakistan that doesn’t permit a man to body search a woman in general and interrogate a veiled woman in particular. “Inducting female Rangers will help reduce this problem specifically in tribal areas where customs demand almost every woman to veil herself,” he adds.

Trained according to the international standards, as well as the local demands for a 24-week-long training period, these 21 women Rangers will soon be a part of the anti-terrorism operations, internal and border security, snap checking and mob controlling at processions and religious gatherings, house-raids, clearance and cordon where they will be dealing with both men and women. Aged between 18 to 25 years, these female rangers have received titles of Sub-Inspector, Hawaldars and Naeks. They have received their posting orders and will soon be deployed for duty.

“Islam lays an equal responsibility on a woman (as that on a man) to safeguard the country,” says Sana Janjua, 24, freshly recruited Sub-Inspector at the Pakistan Rangers and a student of MBA at the University of Karachi. Referring to Umme Ammara, the first woman warrior in Islamic history, who fought alongside men during the war of Uhad, Sana says that “it is also the duty of women to fight evil and protect their society.” “We are soldiers ready to face what may come,” says Shabana Anwer, 23, who eyes a posting in border area where she will be heading 20 soldiers (Jawaan) if she gets posted.

Now wearing a Rangers uniform and heavy boots, Shabana, MSC Analytical Chemistry, joined Pakistan Rangers because she always wanted to be a part of the armed forces of Pakistan as well as to prove that she is a strong and capable woman. “I had never in my life held a gun let alone shot anything,” she describes her first experience of small arms instructions during the training period. Besides that, she adds that, physical training was also not easy for her as she had never exercised that rigorously in her life. Now, however, Shabana is one of the best shots in her batch and aims at guarding Pakistan against enemy attack.

“By combating terrorism, we will prove that women are equally competent,” vows Syeda Sajida Kiran, 21, Hawaldaar at Pakistan Rangers. Hailing from a conservative family, it was tough for Kiran to convince her family to let her step out of the house and join the armed forces. Now that she has won over them, she is “committed for life” to win over the evil forces in the society.

“Female Rangers are more competitive than their male colleagues,” remarks one of the trainers at Pakistan Rangers, “they compete and aim for excellence,” he adds.
Source: The News
Date:1/28/2009