Day: September 29, 2022

ISLAMABAD: Minister for Law and Justice Azam Nazeer Tarar has said the government will exercise constitutional and legal options to ensure cyber security and avert incidents such as that of the audio leaks.

Addressing a news conference here in Islamabad on Thursday, he said immediate steps have been taken by the state institutions and SOPs revisited to ensure full security of important places following the emergence of audio leaks. He said the Prime Minister is having consultations to form a committee to probe into the matter. He said the committee to be headed by Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah will have representation from all security agencies.

The Minister said former Prime Minister Imran Khan compromised country’s interest for his politics in cypher case. Azam Nazeer Tarar said Supreme Court has written in its verdict that cypher was not a conspiracy.

ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue Senator Muhammad Ishaq Dar on Thursday visited the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) and presided a meeting on the revenue performance of FBR.

The Chairman FBR and Members of the Board (FBR) attended the meeting. Asim Ahmad, Chairman FBR extended a warm welcome to the Minister on behalf of the FBR team. The Chairman gave the presentation and explained various revenue initiatives taken by FBR and issues currently being faced in revenue administration. It was briefed to the Minister that FBR has successfully achieved its monthly targets for the months of July and August, 2022 and it will also achieve the quarterly target up to September, 2022.

This performance is despite the slowing down of economy in the month of September due to floods, import contraction and shrinking of demand due to inflation in the country as well as no sales tax on POL products. The Finance Minister appreciated the FBR team for their efforts in meeting the targets. He assured the team that he will extend full support in the performance of their duties and will engage with them frequently. He advised the FBR team to position themselves to the quick changes in economic outlook.

He further advised the FBR to increase its efforts to achieve the true tax potential. He especially appreciated the work done by FBR in terms of increasing the share of direct taxes (income tax and capital value tax) in the total share of taxes as compared to last year through important tax measures taken this year for taxing the rich. The Finance Minister also highlighted the importance of taxpayers’ engagement in devising tax policies and revenue collection efforts.

ISLAMABAD: President Dr Arif Alvi has stressed on adopting healthy and natural life style to avoid heart related and other diseases.

Addressing a symposium on the occasion of World Heart Day here in Islamabad on Thursday, he said balanced diet and exercise can prevent heart diseases. He said message of prevention should be spread again and again to convince people.

The President said doctors should follow ethics and show compassion while treating their patients. Highlighting growing stress level in the society, Dr Arif Alvi said 24 percent people in Pakistan are under stress due to various reasons. He said unfortunately, psychological problems are still a taboo in our society. He said eventually stress could result into cardiovascular diseases. Quoting great mystic saint Rumi, he called for promoting love and compassion.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr Mir Abdul Waheed said nineteen million people across the world die of cardiovascular diseases. He said unhealthy diet and pollution may lead to heart diseases. Dr Mahim Akmal Malik in her remarks said according to the data of World Health Organization two hundred and forty thousand people died of heart diseases in 2020 in Pakistan.

She said change in life style can significantly reduce the burden of this disease. On the occasion, the President also distributed shields among the doctors for rendering their services in the health sector.

ISLAMABAD: World Maritime Day is being observed today (Thursday). This year the theme of the day is New Technologies for Greener Shipping.

In his message on the occasion, Naval Chief Admiral Muhammad Amjad Khan Niazi said this year’s theme reflects the need for greener transition of maritime sector for its sustainable future in line with Sustainable Development Goals.

He said efficient ports through their digitization are needed to complement such a transition. Newer technologies must therefore aim to reduce and prevent any adverse impacts on the marine environment and its biodiversity. The Naval Chief said Pakistan Navy being a major stakeholder in the maritime sector is well cognizant of the importance of creating maritime awareness and exploiting full potential of Blue Economy.

ISLAMABAD: Minister for Planning and Development Ahsan Iqbal has said the rehabilitation activities in the flood-affected areas may continue for two years in view of the scale of the devastation caused by the calamity.

He was talking to media persons at National Flood Response and Coordination Center here in Islamabad on Thursday. The Minister for Planning said the nation should stand united to lend a helping hand to the flood victims. He said the provincial governments are leading the relief efforts. The armed forces while using their resources have actively participated in the relief activities.

Ahsan Iqbal said the floods have severely damaged the backward areas. A program worth forty billion rupees has been launched for twenty most backward districts. He said future planning is also being done to deal with the issue of climate change.

ISLAMABAD: Completing the hearing of Central Power Purchasing Agency’s (CPPA) petition, the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) on Thursday increased the electricity rates by 19.50 paisa per unit for a period of one month.

The CPPA had requested for 22 paisa per unit hike in the power tariff under the fuel adjustment for the month of August. However, the Authority gave the decision after reviewing the statistics, which will put burden of over Rs2 billion on consumers. The notification will, however, not apply to the consumers of Karachi Electric (K-Electric).

ISLAMABAD: In an environment where the question of rights for the gender-variant people has stimulated polarization, academic and policy institutions need to play their role to reach a common ground.

Such common ground should comprehend the peculiar nature of the issue to devise a solution that is in line with the normative structure of the society and simultaneously protects the rights of every individual. The Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2018 has stimulated a debate not only on the conceptual and definitional aspects but also its procedural anomalies.

These views were aired during a consultative meeting on ‘The Rights of Gender-Variant Persons’ held at the Institute of Policy Studies (IPS), Islamabad on Thursday. The Act clearly defies Islamic values and cultural norms of Pakistan in its letter and spirit. The need for a law, however, should not be undermined for the protection of the persons who are either intersex or experience gender identity disorder. Rather than being dismissive, a proactive approach aimed at finding solutions should be adopted to solve these issues and ambiguities.

The roundtable, moderated by Nadeem Farhat Geelani, senior research officer IPS, was joined as the key speaker by neurologist Dr Talha Saad, while Khalid Rahman, chairman IPS; Ambassador (r) Safdar Hayat; Syed Abu Ahmad Akif, former federal secretary; Hammad Hussain Butt and Muhammad bin Sajid, both petitioners at the Federal Shariat Court; Tahir Shah, research assistant and Irfan Fazil from the research wing of the Council of Islamic Ideology; Dr Saima Esma, visiting professor, NUML; Dr Shagufta Omar, assistant professor, IIUI; Shoaib Madni, director, Shaoor Media Network; Abida Farheen, chairperson, Working Women Welfare Trust; Dr Abdullah Fazi, lecturer, Curtin University Malaysia; Talha Imran; and Maryam Khan from Istanbul Zaim University, also voiced their views.

This meeting was part of consultations that IPS is holding around the issue and in which experts from the legal, medical, psychological, and social sectors, including gender-variant persons, have already shared their inputs.

Speaking on the occasion, Khalid Rahman highlighted the importance of the right legislation that ensures the protection of true gender-variant people in Pakistan in order to deal with the issues. He stated that this needs to be supported by building a narrative that is drawn from domestic realities and helps bridge the gap between the polarized opinions.

In addition to building a logical narrative, the knowledgeable religious faction of Pakistan also needs to be included in the consultative processes for legislation so that they can effectively respond to the narratives that may harm the very fabric of society, he emphasized.

Dr Talha Saad noted that those who are born with any ambiguities regarding their sexual organs are a rarity and the modern advancements in medical science have not only made it possible to determine their gender but also adjust it through certain procedures as and when required.

The rights of such persons should not suffer in any case. Those who perceive themselves different than what they actually are can be treated therapeutically. In most cases, the psychological counseling or therapy helps such persons reconcile with their nature. Only a small fraction of 0.5% may still suffer a disorder in which behavior of a person does not conform with his physical development.

Those participating in the consultation stressed the role of medical research in finding solutions for the small 0.5% minority of people having gender identity disorders, while Muslim experts need to devise solutions that synchronize with Islamic values and cultural expectations.

Moreover, the public, being unaware of several aspects, lack an in-depth understanding of the issue. For this, it is necessary to target the knowledge gap and educate people through intellectual discussions and collaborations at multiple levels. Such collaborations are also important to bring solutions to the world at large, he argued.

Taking the debate forward, the speakers emphasized that Pakistan needs to come up with an indigenous bill that correlates with the social and Islamic realities instead of conceding to the campaign of certain segments of the western societies. For this, it is essential to expand vision and observe how other Islamic states are dealing with the issue.

While voicing their views, the participants highlighted that the transgender issue in Pakistan is multi-dimensional and no aspect of the debate should be ignored. They further recommended that all institutions concerned should come forward to contribute to the process with an aim to fill the lacunas of the present legislation and overall understanding.

The participants also emphasized that the government and society should collectively keep in check the influences and agendas of foreign forces and lobbies as the polarized environment in Pakistan could prove to be a vulnerability.