Winning toss will play crucial role in Indo-Pak semifinal: Butt

LAHORE: The winning of toss will play a very crucial role in tomorrow’s World Cup semifinal between India and Pakistan in Mohali, said the Chairman of Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Ijaz Butt on Monday.

Butt said while talking to the media, before leaving for Mohali at Wagah Border check post, that it is not fair to declare a semifinal cricket match as a war between India and Pakistan.

He added that it is expected that the match will be a remarkable cricket competition as both teams contain some very fine players of the current time.

“We miss Muhammad Aamir in this mega event,” Butt added. TrendPK

Egypt Protesters Camp out in Cairo

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Egypt Protesters Camp out in Cairo

CAIRO: Egyptian protesters were camped out in central Cairo Monday and vowed to stay until they had toppled President Hosni Mubarak, whose fate appeared to hang on the military as pressure mounted from the street and abroad.

“The army has to choose between Egypt and Mubarak,” read one banner in Cairo’s Tahrir Square, where demonstrators shared food with soldiers sent to restore order after violent protests shook Mubarak’s 30-year rule to its core.

Six days of unrest has killed more than 100 people but the two sides have reached a stalemate. Protesters refuse to go, while the army is not moving them. The longer protesters stay unchallenged, the more untenable Mubarak’s position seems.

Protesters in Tahrir Square — epicenter of the earthquake that has sent shudders through the Middle East and among global investors — have dismissed Mubarak’s appointment of military men as his vice president and prime minister.

His promises of economic reform to address public anger at rising prices, unemployment and huge gap between rich and poor have failed to halt their broader calls for a political sweep out of Mubarak and his associates.

Protesters have called for a general strike Monday and what they bill as a “protest of the millions” march Tuesday, to press their demands for democracy which could spell the end for the military establishment which has run post-colonial Egypt since the 1950s.

The United States, an ally which has poured billions of dollars of aid into Egypt since Mubarak came to power, stopped just short of saying openly that it wanted him out. Officials including President Barack Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton spoke about “an orderly transition.”

A senior U.S. administration official, who declined to be identified, said the feeling among Obama’s national security aides was that Mubarak’s time had passed, but it was up to Egyptians to determine what happens next.

Mubarak, a former air force chief, has turned to his military commanders, meeting them Sunday. They seem to hold his future in their hands. Egypt’s defense minister spoke by phone to U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates Sunday.

Admiral Mike Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and highest-ranking U.S. military officer, praised the “professionalism” of Egypt’s armed forces as its troops refrained from a crackdown on protesters. Egypt receives about $1.3 billion a year in U.S. military aid.

The crisis in Egypt follows a revolt that toppled the leader of Tunisia two weeks ago, and a wave of popular anger sweeping other countries in North Africa and the Middle East.

Financial markets around the globe opened Monday bracing for the impact of the weekend’s events in Egypt. Brent oil hit a 28-month high, pennies below $100 a barrel. The dollar rose in Asian trade as investors sought a safe haven.

“The greater fear is that the turmoil could spread to other Middle East countries, including even Saudi Arabia. If that happens, then all bets for oil prices are off,” ANZ Bank economist Sharon Zollner said in a note to clients.

ICC Worried About the World Cup Venues

Less then one month remaining in the start of ICC World Cup 2011 but the construction work of stadiums in India and Sri Lanka is not completed yet, for the hosting of Mega event. World Cup will be co-hosted by India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka starting from 19 February. The ICC is so much worried about the situation and has sent an inspection team to India in order to check the construction work of these venues.

In Premadasa stadium of Sri Lanka seven matches will be played including a quarter final and a semi-final. While talking to media, the chairman of Sri-Lankan cricket committee Dandeniyage Somachandra de Silva accepted that four important stadiums are not ready for the Mega event yet. He further said that hopefully the work on these venues will be completed soon.

The duo of Eden Gardens in Kolkata and Wankhede Stadium of Mumbai are not ready. The final of Mega event will be played in Wankhede Stadium. The organizers are hopeful that before the start of the world cup all work would be completed.

Kotla Stadium in Feroz Shah is an other important venue of World Cup and its construction work is little bit remaining it is to be remembered that this stadium was banned by the ICC in 2009 for producing a track which sub-standard and dangerous for
the batsmen.

The chief exective of ICC Haroon Logart has shown his reservations about venues before Indian and Sri Lankan cricket boards time and again. In the ICC meeting held on 30 October, last year, ICC gave the deadline for completion of construction of stadiums and to make them suitable for play as 30 November and 31 December 2010 respectively. Both India and Sri Lanka did not put these deadlines under consideration which makes ICC so angry.

14 teams are participating in the tournament. These 14 teams are divided into two groups in each of which seven teams are included. The final of the tournament will be played on 2nd April.

Pakistan is Centre of Terrorism Activites: Mullen

Breaking News: The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Admiral Mike Mullen has said that Pakistan is centre of terrorism activities and proper action is vital to end terrorists places from the country.

The top US military officer says coalition forces are continuing to make significant progress against the Taliban in Afghanistan, but is warning there is likely to be more violence this year in many parts of the country than in 2010.

Mullen says local towns are beginning to reject Taliban fighters and the insurgents are losing ground. He is losing and I have every confidence that he will continue to lose so long as coalition and Afghan forces increase their presence and their pressure on his operations and improve their own capacity, he said.

The admiral says he was not surprised that China tested the countrys first radar-evading stealth bomber this week, but says he cannot understand why Beijing continues to invest in expensive weapons that could be targeted against America.

World Condemns Salman Taseer’s Assassination

The assassination of Punjab Governor Salman Taseer has been condemned worldwide. US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Tuesday condemned the assassination of the governor of Pakistan’s Punjab province, calling his death “a great loss.”

“We strongly condemn the assassination today in Pakistan of Punjab Provincial Governor Salman Taseer,” Clinton said in a statement.

“I had the opportunity to meet Governor Taseer in Pakistan and I admired his work to promote tolerance and the education of Pakistan’s future generations. His death is a great loss,” the chief US diplomat said.

“Our deepest sympathies are with Governor Taseer’s wife and children,” she added.

France on Tuesday condemned the assassination of the governor of Pakistan’s Punjab province, hailing him as a man known for his “courage in defending democratic institutions.”

“France firmly condemns the assassination on Tuesday of the governor of Punjab Salman Taseer. Governor Taseer was a political personality of the highest order,” deputy foreign ministry spokeswoman Christine Fages said.

The United States said Tuesday that the assassination of the governor of Pakistan’s Punjab province, Salman Taseer, was a “great loss” because he was trying to stabilize his country.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will offer Washington’s condolences to Hussain Haqqani, the Pakistani ambassador to Washington, when she meets him later Tuesday, State Department spokesman Philip Crowley told reporters.

“From our standpoint, his death is a great loss. He was committed to helping the government and people of Pakistan persevere in their campaign to bring peace and stability to their country,” he added.

US Ambassador to Pakistan Cameron Munter has expressed his deep grief and condolences over the assassination of Governor Punjab Salman Taseer.

“I am deeply saddened by the assassination of Governor Taseer. On behalf of the United States, I offer my condolences to his wife and children,” said Cameron Munter.

Speaking about the assassination of Salman Taseer, Ambassador Munter said, “He had the courage of his convictions and was a champion of tolerance. His death is a great loss to the people of Pakistan,” says a US Embassy press release issued here Tuesday.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on Tuesday condemned the assassination of the governor of Pakistan’s Punjab province calling it a blow to the country.

“The secretary general condemns the assassination today of the governor of Punjab province,” said UN spokesman Martin Nesirky. The official, Salman Taseer, was shot dead by a bodyguard opposed to his criticism of blasphemy laws.

Ban called the governor “a prominent leader whose death is a loss for Pakistan.”

People from all walks of life including politicians, civil society, trader unions and Human Rights Commission of Pakistan have condemned the tragic death of Salmaan Taseer, while expressing deep sense of sorrow and grief over the sad demise.

The PPP’s Punjab Leadership, members of provincial cabinet including Law Minister Rana Sana Ullah and leaders of other political parties while condemning the assassination of Punjab Governor Salmaan Taseer demanded exemplary punishment for the accused involved in the murder conspiracy.

In their separate statements, PPP’s Punjab President Imtiaz Safdar Warraich, Secretary Information, Dr. Fakhruddin Ch, Secretary Finance, Aurangzeb Burki and Additional Secretary Dr. Hasnaat Shah termed governor’s murder a big loss for the PPP and demanded arrest of those who masterminded his assassination.

Speaker Punjab Assembly, Rana Muhammad Iqbal, Senior Punjab Minister, Raja Riaz, provincial Ministers, Rana Sana Ullah, Tanvir Ashraf Kaira, Dr. Tanvirul Islam, Ch. Abdul Ghafoor, Ahmed Ali Aulakh, Mujtaba Shujaur Rehman, Malik Nadeem Kamran, Kamran Michael, Member Provincial Assembly Syed Zaeem Hussain Qadri and Dr. Saeed Elahi have expressed deep sense of sorrow and grief over the assassination of Governor Punjab Salman Taseer.

Senior PPP leader and Chairman Evacuee Property Trust Board, Syed Asif Hashmi held a condolence meeting at his residence and condemned late Taseer’s murder in strongest words.

In their separate condolence messages, all ministers and PPP leaders prayed that may Allah Almighty rest the departed soul in eternal peace and grant courage and strength to the bereaved family to bear this irreparable loss with fortitude.

SC moved against Rehman Malik’s eligibility

ISLAMABAD: A petition was filed in Supreme Court seeking disqualification of Interior Minister Rehman Malik over his failure to recite a Surah of Holy Quran at a cabinet’s meeting.

The petitioner, Advocate Tariq Asad, argued that Rehman Malik has become ineligible for holding public office under Article 63 of the Constitution due to wrong recitation of Quranic Surah.

He pleaded that apex court direct Chairman of the Senate to forward a reference against Rehman Malik before Election Commission.

Prime Minister, federal government, chief election commissioner, Senate chairman and Interior Minister have been made parties in the application.

Report on 19th Amendment Bill presented in NA

trendpk.com: Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani on Tuesday congratulated the nation and political leadership on successful training launch of Medium Range Ballistic Missile Hatf-V (Ghauri) and report of Constitutional Committee on 19th Amendment.

While speaking in the National Assembly, he said it was a good omen that the Chairman of Constitutional Committee Mian Raza Rabbani had laid the unanimously passed report of the Committee on 19th Amendment. He said it would give a strong message to those people who used to term the parliament as rubber stamp and powerless parliament.

Those who proclaimed the Parliament a rubber stamp with no powers should know that the present parliament is independent. I have remained the member of the National Assembly in 1982, 1985, 1988, 1990, 1993 and 2008. I have never seen such an independent parliament.

The previous parliament did nothing except raising the slogans of go Musharraf go, he said.He recalled that the former President addressed the previous parliament for only one time during his nine-year tenure.

Congratulating the members of Constitutional Committee, the Prime Minister said that the unanimously passage of the report on 19th Amendment bill by them would be written in the history.

He said the 1973 Constitution was presented by Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and the successive governments made a number of changes in it. It is not a unicameral system rather it is bicameral system. I am happy that not a single member opposed the bill.

While acknowledging the efforts of Raza Rabbani, the Prime Minister said, I appreciated the Chairman of the Committee for presenting the report in a short time. I also appreciate the political leadership for showing political maturity that has further dignified the parliament.

He praised the role of Supreme Court of Pakistan for referring the matter to the Parliament for review and reconsideration. I compliment the role of Supreme Court for referring the matter to the Parliament for a review. The judiciary has given the highest respect to the Parliament and the Parliament has reciprocated in the same manner.

We want to make the institutions stronger instead of individuals, he added.

Pakistan and China sign 13 Agreements and MoUs

trendpk: Pakistan and China on Friday inked 13 agreements and Memoranda of Understanding on cooperation in economy, energy, banking, security and technology.

Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani and Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao witnessed the signing of documents as the respective ministers and officials of Pakistan and China inked them.

The Agreements and MoUs were signed to expand cooperation in the utilization, management, training, educational programmes and modernization of railways and to establish a long term cooperative relationship on the basis of equality and mutual benefits.

The first Memorandum of Understanding on Reciprocal Establishment of Cultural Centres was signed by Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi and Chinese Minister of Culture Cai Wu.

Second MoU on Strengthening Technical Cooperation and Pak-China Road Transport Activities between Ministry of Transport of China and Ministry of Communications of Pakistan was signed by Minister of Railways Haji Ghulam Ahmad Bilour and Chinese Minister of Transport Li Shenglin.

An Agreement on Economic and Technical Cooperation between the Government of Pakistan and Government of China, for grant of RMB 200 Million for flood reconstruction projects) Minister of Finance Dr. Abdul Hafeez Shaikh and Chinese Minister and China International Trade Representative Gao Hucheng.

The Agreement on launching of Urdu Program of China Radio International in Pakistan between China Radio International (CRI) and Pakistan Broadcasting Corporation (PBC) was signed for broadcast on FM 93 (Islamabad, Lahore, Multan and Kohat) and the programmes shall be in Urdu and English.

The Agreement was inked by Director General PBC Ghulam Murtaza Solangi and Chinese Ambassador to Pakistan Liu Jian.

The MoU on Cooperation between Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan and Securities Regulatory Commission of China (SRCC) was inked by Commissioner SECP Tahir Mahmood and Chinese Ambassador to Pakistan Liu Jian.

The MoU on Establishment of Energy Working Group between National Energy Administration of China and Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Resources of Pakistan was signed by Secretary Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Resources Imtiaz Kazi and Vice Minister and Deputy Director Head of National Energy Administration Qian Zhimin.

A Government Concessional Loan Agreement on the Safe City Islamabad Project was also signed between Pakistan and EXIM bank of China and it was inked by Secretary EAD Sibtain Fazal Haleem and Vice President, China Exports and Import Bank Li Jun.

An agreement for National Electronics Complex of Pakistan was signed by Chairman, NESCOM Irfan Burney and President, CETC Yan Lijin.

An agreement to provide License to establish Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) by the State Bank of Pakistan was signed by Governor SBP Shahid Hafeez Kardar and President ICBC Yang Kaisheng.

The Agreement on Economic and Technical Cooperation between Government of Pakistan and Government of China for the grant of RMB 200 Million for Agriculture related projects was inked by Minister of Finance Dr. Abdul Hafeez Shaikh and Chinese Minister and China International Trade Representative Gao Hucheng.

The Framework Agreement between China and Pakistan on Provisioning of Concessional loan by China to Pakistan – Non Intrusive vehicle X-ray Inspection System Project and was also signed by Minister of Finance Dr. Abdul Hafeez Shaikh and Chinese Minister and China International Trade Representative Gao Hucheng.

Government Concessional Loan Agreement on the Safe City Islamabad Project was also signed between Pakistan and EXIM bank of China and was inked by Secretary EAD Sibtain Fazal Haleem and Vice President, China Exports and Import Bank Li Jun.

Gas Supply to Punjab industrial units suspended

The Sui Northern Gas Pipelines (SNGPL) suspended the supply to industrial units in Punjab owing to increase in cold and decrease in supply from gas fields.

As per a notification by the SNGPL, the decision to the effect has been taken to meet the house consumers demands. SNGPL cancelled the gas loadshedding plans earlier issued to the industrial units of Lahore, Faisalabad, Gujranwala, Multan, Bahawalpur, Sheikhupura and Rawalpindi regions. The officials concerned said that approval from the Centre has been sought prior to the decision, adding that the shortage would continue till January, 2011.

Meanwhile, the traders association strongly reacted against the announcement with Chairman Textile Processing Mills Association Saeed Sheikh terming the gas stoppage a conspiracy.

He also announced to hold a protest campaign by all textile bodies after the Ashura.

Corrupt leaders trying to destabilize judicial system: Imran

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Chairman Imran Khan said that corrupt leaders were trying to destabilize judicial system and wanted to remove Chief Justice of Pakistan Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry.

Addressing a press conference in Islamabad, the chairman said that it was wrong to give powers of judges appointments to political leaders. He said, a person who was involved in the illegally occupation of a CDA land, was the member of the present judges selection committee.

Commenting on the WikiLeaks revelations, the chairman said that the reports had exposed our leadership adding that the leadership sold the nation for their own interests.

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