FARUKH SHEHZAD

• Maryam says decision that PML-N will get the post has already been taken

• Raja insists situation changed after Senate chairman election

ISLAMABAD, MAR 22: Differences within the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) on the nomination of opposition leader in the Senate came to surface on Sunday when both the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) publicly claimed their right to the key office.

The two parties have started lobbying for the office and PPP chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari has talked to the heads of some smaller parties in this regard.

The PPP admits that previously it had agreed to giving the office of the opposition leader to PML-N in return for nomination of Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani for the office of Senate chairman, but says that after his defeat, the situation has changed.

PML-N vice president Maryam Nawaz took up the matter with Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman at a meeting with him in Jati Umra, Lahore, on Sunday. Talking to reporters later, she said the decision that the office would go to PML-N had already been taken and it would not be reversed.

Mr Bhutto-Zardari on Sunday talked to National Party chief Dr Abdul Malik and is scheduled to meet Jamaat-i-Islami emir Sirajul Haq in Mansoora on Monday (today) to seek his support for the PPP candidate.

Ms Nawaz said the decision that opposition leader in the Senate would be from PML-N had been taken by a PDM committee and it had nothing to do with the outcome of the elections of Senate chairman and deputy chairman. She said she had also talked to the Maulana on the issue.

The JUI-F chief, who is also the PDM president, was present on the occasion, but preferred to remain silent.

PML-N has already nominated Azam Nazeer Tarar for the post but PPP has not only rejected his nomination, but also lodged protest over it with the PML-N leadership because Mr Tarar is a lawyer for the accused police officials in Benazir Bhutto murder case.

According to sources, former president Asif Ali Zardari had conveyed his reservations to PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif over the move a day before the crucial meeting of the heads of the component parties of the PDM in Islamabad on March 16 after which differences in the opposition alliance over the issue of en masse resignations had also come to surface.

Announcing the decision to nominate Mr Gilani and Maulana Abdul Ghafoor Haideri as joint opposition candidates for top Senate offices on March 8, PDM information secretary Mian Iftikhar Hussain had declared that it had been decided that the PML-N would retain the office of opposition leader in the new upper house.

The announcement was made by Mr Hussain in the presence of other PDM leaders, including Raja Pervez Ashraf of PPP.

Later, PML-N vice president Shahid Khaqan Abbasi had announced at a news conference in Islamabad last week that the party had nominated Mr Tarar for the office of opposition leader in the Senate as per an agreement reached among PDM parties.

Mr Tarar has been elected senator for the first time on a seat reserved for technocrats and he was among the 11 senators who were elected unopposed from Punjab.

Hours after Ms Nawaz’s categorical announcement, PPP leader and senior vice-president of the PDM Raja Pervez Ashraf expressed the hope that the issue would be amicably settled with consensus among the combined opposition parties in accordance with “the established democratic norms and traditions”.

In a statement, Mr Ashraf said with 21 senators, the PPP was the single largest opposition party in the Senate and the party believed that in accordance with democratic traditions, the slot of the opposition leader should go to it.

Mr Ashraf said the two other important parliamentary positions, opposition leader in the National Assembly and chairman of the Public Accounts Committee, were held by the PML-N.

“It will be right and proper that the third important parliamentary position namely leader of opposition in the Senate is given to the largest opposition party in the upper house of the parliament, instead of the party which already holds the other two important parliamentary positions,” he said.

Mr Ashraf said he was a member of the committee constituted by the PDM heads to propose names for the slots of Senate chairman, deputy chairman and opposition leader. The PPP leader said he had agreed that the three Senate slots be distributed among the three largest opposition parties in the PDM by proposing the candidate of the PPP for the chairman, the deputy chairman candidate from the JUI-F and the opposition leader candidate from the PML-N.

However, he said, after manipulation in the election of Senate chairman and denial of the chairmanship to Mr Gilani by wrongly rejecting seven votes cast in his favour, “the situation has completely changed”.

Mr Ashraf said after election to the office of the Senate chairman the situation with regard to the available offices in the upper house and their distribution among opposition parties had changed. The stance of the PPP on the opposition leader office was based on democratic principles, equity and fair play, he said.

At present, the PPP has 21 senators on opposition benches whereas the PML-N with 17 members is the second largest party in the upper house. Previously, the PML-N’s Raja Zafarul Haq was the leader of the opposition, but this time he had not contested Senate elections.

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ISLAMABAD, MAR 22: Former US secretary of state Dr Henry Kissinger recognised Pakistan’s ‘key’ role in arranging his secret visit from Islamabad to Beijing in 1971 for making breakthrough in China-US relations.

Pakistan’s pivotal role was acknowledged during a high-level webinar event organised by China’s State Council in Beijing. The event marked ‘50 Years of China-US Relations’ with keynote speeches from former US Secretary of State Dr Henry Kissinger and Senator Mushahid Hussain on Pakistan’s pivotal role in arranging Dr Kissinger’s secret journey to China.

In a statement issued here, the China Development Forum said that China marked the 50th Anniversary of Dr Kissinger’s secret visit to Beijing from Islamabad in which Senator Mushahid Hussain said that it was an honour for Pakistan to play a pivotal role in the China-US opening.

Dr Henry Kissinger praised Pakistan for its role during that period and how President Yahya Khan, acted as a go-between China and US, communicating secretly with Chinese Prime Minister Zhou Enlai and President Richard Nixon, which led to Dr Kissinger’s path-breaking journey in a PIA plane from Islamabad to Beijing on July 9, 1971.

Dr Kissinger recounted how the first message from China was in the form of a handwritten note, which was personally dictated to him in the White House by the then Pakistan Ambassador in Washington, Agha Hilaly.

Speaking next after Dr Kissinger, Senator Mushahid Hussain, representing Pakistan, said that this historic breakthrough in China-US relations became possible due to the ‘indispensable role of Pakistan. Pakistan enjoyed the trust of both China and the United States, when then President, Richard Nixon, had tremendous affection and goodwill for Pakistan’.

Senator Mushahid Hussain said that Pakistan’s then President General Yahya Khan, once entrusted with this task by both President Richard Nixon and Premier Zhou Enlai, undertook this sensitive mission with ‘military precision, secrecy and deception’, with an official announcement of a decoy visit by Dr Kissinger to Nathiagali.

The pretext was that the American official was resting due to an upset stomach, while he had secretly flown to Beijing. He said that President Yahya relied only on a two-man team of his top diplomats, Foreign Secretary Sultan Mohammed Khan and Pakistan Ambassador to the US, Agha Hilaly.

Senator Mushahid Hussain said: “It was an honour for Pakistan to play such an important role in the shaping of history, as Dr Kissinger’s visit to China led to a tectonic shift in the global balance of power in 1971.”

He said that normalization of relations had been beneficial for not just China and the US but also Asia and the world. “China had helped the US win the Cold War and the US helped China come out of isolation which led later to China’s reform and opening up policy that has transformed China.”

Senator Mushahid Hussain concluded that 50 years later, one lesson of China-US relations is that cooperation is good for both the countries, and there is no room for outmoded policies like containment or a New Cold War.

The China Development Forum was attended by high officials, policy makers, economists, opinion and business leaders in Beijing, while Dr Kissinger and Senator Mushahid Hussain spoke virtually from New York and Islamabad.

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ISLAMABAD, MAR 21: The Senate Secretariat has refused to provide ballots of the recently-held election for the chairman of the upper house to the legal team of Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) but seems to have conceded to the jurisdiction of the court to intervene.

The PPP’s legal team, which also has three former Senate chairmen among its members, comprises Farooq H. Naek, Raza Rabbani, Nayyar Hussain Bukhari, former Punjab governor Sardar Latif Khan Khosa and Javed Iqbal Wains.

The team has sought certified copies of the proceedings of the Senate chairman election held on March 12.

The joint opposition’s candidate, Yousuf Raza Gil­ani, lost the election after seven of his votes were rejected. If they had been counted, he could have defeated Sadiq Sanjrani by one vote.

The team required certified copies of all the activities in the upper house on March 12 to challenge the rejection of votes before an appropriate forum.

The Senate Secretariat remained closed from Mar­ch 15 to 17 on account of disinfection for Covid-19. The Secretariat, in a letter add­ressed to Senator Naek and advocate Wains on March 18, said: “All proceedings of the Senate held on 12th March, 2021, are available in verbatim in the Hansard, that includes decision of the Presiding Officer on votes, declaration of elections to the office of Chairman Senate, and arguments by Senator Farooq Hamid Naek, polling agent for Senator Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani.”

The Secretariat, however, provided details of the proceedings and the transcript to the counsel for Senator Gilani.

It also provided the record of the communication from the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs regarding the nomination of the presiding officer by President Dr Arif Alvi to the legal team.

However, regarding the report about installation of hidden cameras which were traced ahead of the polling, the Secretariat said, “the cameras, booth and other material were sealed in the presence of senators before the process of election of the chairman began and some of those present there made videos and photographs from their cell phones. The Secretariat made no official video or photographs of the same.”

A certified copy of the ‘Instructions to Senators’ for casting the votes was also supplied to the lawyers.

Rejecting the request to handover ballots, the Secretariat stated: “All ballots were sealed and placed in safe custody on 12th March, 2021, on completion of election process as per practice and application by Senator Farooq Hamid Naek submitted to the secretary the same evening.”

It further said: “In terms of Rule 258 of the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in the Senate, 2012, the competent authority has decided that the ballots are to be de-sealed only if asked for by a court of law.”

It may be mentioned here that the presiding officer for the Senate chairman polls, Muzaffar Hussain Shah, has asked Farooq H. Naek, the polling agent of Mr Gilani, to file a complaint before a tribunal if he was not satisfied with the decision of rejection of votes.

The lawmakers of the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf, on the other hand, have consistently been saying that the proceedings in the Senate cannot be challenged in any court of law.

According to advocate Wains, the Senate letter is self explanatory and has clearly suggested that the court should be approached.

Even otherwise, he said, there are a number of instances where the superior courts have intervened and even over-ruled the ruling of the National Assembly speaker.

He said the case was very simple; “we expect the court to answer the one-line question: whether a stamp within the box of candidate is disenfranchisement of the voter.”

Advocate Wains said bar of Article 69 was not applicable to this case since the presiding officer himself had advised advocate Naek to file the application in the tribunal and the Senate Secretariat had repeated the same stance.

According to him, the petition may be filed anytime next week.

As per Supreme Court advocate Kashif Ali Malik, the superior courts, on a number of occasions, have validated rejected votes.

In 1987, the apex court dealt with the issue of ballot papers on which the prescribed mark to indicate the candidate in whose favour the vote was cast was put outside the area containing the name and symbol of the contesting candidate for whom the voter was supposed to have voted.

In 1966, the apex court had decided an issue where the ballot papers had borne the official seal but no signatures of the presiding officer. Twelve ballot papers contained chits bearing the words ‘Bismillah’ and 14 ballot papers had currency notes enclosed.

The rejected votes were allowed by the presiding officer to be counted as valid votes by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) member. The high court set aside this order.

However, the apex court ruled that unless there was something to reveal a previous arrangement, mere presence of a mark or even currency note on a ballot paper was not sufficient to identify the electors.

The existence of a mark in the absence of a proof of arrangement does not identify the voter.

In 1981, the apex court decided an appeal in which five votes which were wrongly excluded from the count were re-examined by the returning officer, and accordingly the petitioner was declared as the returned candidate.

It held that any other mark besides the official mark and the prescribed mark would not render the ballot invalid. It ruled that the clear principle for the guidance of presiding officers is that if the ballot paper unambiguously reveals the election of the elector cast his vote in favour of a particular candidate the presence of other marks will not render the vote invalid and the vote will be counted in favour of the candidate for whom the vote appears to have been cast.

In 1988, the apex court decided the issue of marking of ballot papers with Roman numerals instead of English or Urdu numerals. It was held that the votes could only be rejected when with pre-arrangement the identity was disclosed. There is nothing to show that this has been done and there is no such allegation levelled. The intention of the voter is clear as such ballot papers cannot be rejected on this ground.

In 1995, the Supreme Court ruled that where on account of the act of the voter himself the secrecy of the ballot was violated, even in such a case the settled principle of law by the superior courts is that before the rejection of such papers it has to be pleaded first and then proved through evidence that the same was the result of a prior understanding between a voter and the candidate.

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MINSK, MAR 21: Russia’s former Ambassador to Belarus Dmitry Mezentsev has been appointed State Secretary of the Union State of Russia and Belarus.

"Chairman of the Supreme State Council of the Union State, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko on March 19 signed Resolution No 1 on the Union State’s state secretary relieving Grigory Rapova of his duties as the State Secretary of the Union States and appointing Dmitry Mezentsev to the post," the press service of the Belarusian leader said on Friday.

Rapota was appointed State Secretary of the Union State on November 25, 2011 to replace Pavel Borodin.

The Kremlin website also announced Mezentsev’s appointment.

Mezentsev will ensure the deepening of brotherly relations between the two countries in the new office, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said.

"We are certain that, as a head of the Union structure, Dmitry Fyodorovich Mezentsev will ensure the continuity of operation of the State Secretary office and will continue the course towards the strengthening of brotherly Russian-Belarusian relations, which he efficiently facilitated as the head of the Russian diplomatic mission in Minsk. We wish him all kinds of success in this work in the interest of Russia and Belarus and for the benefit of the peoples of our countries," the diplomat said.

She also noted that Moscow is deeply grateful to Grigory Rapota, who held this office for almost 10 years, "for his significant contribution to development of the Russian-Belarusian state unification and strengthening of comprehensive and strengthening of comprehensive cooperation between the two countries."

"Thanks to his active position, implementation of significant union programs in various fields has become possible," Zakharova added.

Earlier, the Union State Supreme State Council appointed Mezentsev as the State Secretary. The same ruling dismissed Rapota from State Secretary duties due to expiration of his term in office.

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ISLAMABAD, MAR 20: Prime Minister Imran Khan and first lady Bushra Bibi have tested positive for the novel coronavirus, it emerged on Saturday.

The premier's diagnosis was confirmed by his aide on health Dr Faisal Sultan. He said that PM Imran was self-isolating at home after testing positive.

Later in the evening, PTI Senator Faisal Javed announced that Bushra Bibi had also tested positive.

The news comes two days after the premier received his first shot of the Covid-19 vaccine. His diagnosis was also later confirmed by the Prime Minister's Office.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of National Health Services clarified that the premier was not "fully vaccinated" when he contracted the virus.

"He only got the first dose merely two days ago which is too soon for ANY vaccine to become effective. Antibodies develop 2-3 weeks after the second dose of 2-dose Covid vaccines," it said.

Later in the day, Dr Sultan addressed a media briefing to clear up misconceptions about the prime minister's diagnosis two days after being vaccinated.

He said PM Imran had been advised to isolate at home and rest. "We are monitoring his health and clinical parameters." He said that currently the prime minister was not in need of treatment or medical intervention.

He went on to say that it was important to understand how vaccines worked. "No vaccine works immediately after being administered. Antibodies can take at least two to three weeks to develop."

He said that for two-dose vaccines, such as the one from Sinopharm, antibodies could take two to three weeks to develop after the second dose.

"Therefore, it is obvious that the premier's immunity had not developed when he was vaccinated. It is possible that he was exposed [to the virus] before and it was already present in his body," the PM's aide said, adding that it was important to clarify these questions.

Dr Sultan said that all those PM Imran had been in contact with would be tested and urged them to isolate themselves for the time being.

He concluded by urging citizens to follow precautionary measures to stem the spread of the disease. "We are seeing a huge number of cases and the country's positivity rate is 9.5pc.

"The positivity rate has doubled in the past week. In some cities, it has crossed 10pc. So follow precautionary measures, stay at home when possible, use face masks, maintain a distance of six feet from each other, refrain from visiting crowded places and regularly wash/sanitise your hands," he said.

Speaking to Dawn.com, Dr Javed Akram — a member of the federal government's Covid-19 task force — said that it was not uncommon for people to become infected with the virus after being vaccinated.

“However, it has nothing to do with the vaccination. I believe that the premier was already infected with the virus, but symptoms could not develop as the incubation period is seven to 10 days."

In response to a query about when the prime minister can take the second dose of the vaccine, he said: "PM Imran will have to wait for 12 days or until his results are negative. Then he will have to wait for another six weeks after which he should get the second shot."

The second shot of the vaccine is typically administered after three weeks.

Dr Akram said that a comprehensive mechanism of contact tracing was already in place and all pf PM Imran's contacts will be tested as per policy.

PM Imran, 68, has been holding regular and frequent meetings lately, including attending a security conference held in Islamabad that was attended by a large number of people.

He addressed the conference without wearing a mask, and attended another gathering to inaugurate a housing project for poor people in a similar fashion on Thursday. Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Overseas Pakistanis Zulfiqar Bukhari was also present on the occasion.

Yesterday, the premier had visited Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, where he toured Malakand University, inaugurated a new academic block and addressed a gathering of students. He had also visited the Swat Motorway, where he inaugurated the Swat Expressway Tunnels.

PM Imran was also slated to interact with the public via telephone calls on Sunday (tomorrow), in an event similar to one organised in February. However, PTI Senator Dr Faisal Javed announced that a new time and date will be announced soon.

"Due to PM Imran testing positive for Covid-19, a new date for live interaction with public will be announced soon. Lots of prayers for everyone and PM Imran."

He added that PM Imran was experiencing "mild symptoms" and will continue to work from home over video conferencing.

Special Assistant to Prime Minister Shahbaz Gill added that PM Imran's symptoms were not severe and he had a "mild cough and fever".

'This country needs you'

Soon after the news broke of his diagnosis, Twitter began flooding with a host of messages from politicians, celebrities, foreign leaders and diplomats, and citizens, wishing the prime minister a speedy recovery. Within a couple of minutes, #ImranKhan became the top trend on the social media website.

The news also caught the attention of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi who sent his wishes to PM Imran for a quick recovery.

Some government ministers were also quick to dispel questions over the efficacy of the coronavirus vaccine while some urged the nation to remain vigilant in light of a third wave.

Wishing the prime minister a speedy recovery, Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Asad Umar said: "The symptoms take a few days before manifesting. Hence it is certain that prime minister had been infected prior to vaccination. So please do vaccinate."

Gill added that the premier was tested for the coronavirus earlier today and urged the nation to refrain from linking his diagnosis with getting vaccinated.

"Immunity develops a few weeks after getting vaccinated. Be sure to vaccinate your elders and loved ones," he said.

Minister for Industries Hammad Azhar said that the vaccine develops "more than 80 per cent immunity" two weeks after the second injection.

"Further, no cabinet minister, including the prime minister, nor any of their relatives jumped the queue or violated the priority order to receive the vaccine," he said.

Information Minister Shibli Faraz said that the entire nation was praying for the prime minister's recovery.

"In light of the third Covid-19 wave, citizens should follow standard operating procedures [to stem the spread of the disease]. Additional steps need to be taken to deal with the third wave of the pandemic."

Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar prayed for PM Imran's speedy recovery but also urged citizens to remain cautious in light of a third Covid spike.

"Recent spike in #Covid-19 cases and positivity rate is alarming and we all need to be extra careful and strictly follow safety protocols!!"

Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi wished PM Imran a quick recovery and good health.

PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari kept his message to the prime minister simple.

Minister for Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhry said: "The people are Pakistan are praying for their beloved leader. May God return him to good health soon."

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Health and Finance Minister Taimur Saleem Jhagra said: "Prayers for the speedy recovery of the Prime Minister Imran Khan. This country needs you."

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ISLAMABAD, MAR 20: The Government of Japan has agreed to provide grants worth 4.1 billion Japanese Yen (Equivalent to around USD 39 million / around PKR 6.2 billion) for improvement of water treatment plant and water distribution system in Faisalabad city, Punjab province.

Notes to this effect were signed and exchanged between MATSUDA Kuninori, Ambassador of Japan to Pakistan and Noor Ahmed, Secretary, Ministry of Economic Affairs in Islamabad and a Grant Agreement (G/A) on the details of the implementation of the project was signed and exchanged between Mr. FURUTA Shigeki, Chief Representative, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) Pakistan Office and Ms. Syeda Adeela Bokhari, Joint Secretary (Japan/NGO/INGO), Ministry of Economic Affairs.

This grant project has been formulated based on the prioritized project listed in the Master Plan, aiming not only to increase the water supply capacity for the currently unserved 50,000 inhabitants, but also to expand the output of the pilot projects in the grant project’s target area (Abudulah Pur and Madina Town No.2). In particular, the Old Jhal Khanuana Water Treatment Plant will be renewed and the water transmission and distribution facilities will also be rehabilitated in Faisalabad city under grant aid cooperation. Furthermore, JICA is also planning to assist WASA-F through a new technical cooperation project for improving their management capacity.

Through this continuous assistance, WASA-F is expected to be a role model in Pakistan that can keep a virtuous cycle of 1) enhancing water supply service level, 2) improving customer satisfaction, 3) improving tariff revenue, and 4) improving financial condition of WASA-F for future investment leading further to better services. This “Faisalabad model” would become a replicable model for other cities in the future.

At the signing ceremony, Ambassador MATSUDA stated, “Supply of safe and ample water for the Pakistani people is one of the most important issues for the Imran Khan Administration, and this sector is also one of the strongest areas for Japan. We would like to continue to cooperate with Pakistan in the water and sanitation sector so that when people talk about water and sanitation development assistance, they think of Japan. For Pakistani people, Japan is known as “the Country of Rising Sun”; but, from now on she aspires to become a “Source of Clean Water” ”.

Mr. FURUTA Shigeki while speaking at the ceremony said “I hope that the grant aid project will be successful not only as a project, but as an important milestone for giving an impact for reforming water supply management in Punjab and in Pakistan in the future”.

Ambassador MATSUDA and Mr. FURUTA emphasized the importance of water supply services and Mr. Noor Ahmed, Secretary, Ministry of Economic Affairs　expressed his deepened appreciation for Japanese high quality and continual support for the water and sanitation sector in Pakistan.

Through this grant aid, the Government of Japan and JICA will continue to assist water supply services conducted by the Government of Punjab and the Government of Islamic Republic of Pakistan.

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MOSCOW, MAR 19: The United States was joined by Russia, China and Pakistan on Thursday in calling on Afghanistan’s warring sides to reach an immediate ceasefire, at talks that showed Washington’s determination to win backing from regional powers for its plans.

Just six weeks before a deadline for the United States to pull out troops that have been in Afghanistan for nearly 20 years, Washington sent a senior official for the first time to participate in regional peace talks convened by Russia.

The Moscow talks were meant to breathe life into negotiations between the Afghan government and the Taliban in Qatar’s capital Doha, stalled over government accusations that the insurgents have done too little to halt violence.

“At this turning point, our four countries call on the sides to hold talks and reach a peace agreement that will end more than four decades of war in Afghanistan,” a joint statement said after Thursday’s talks.

The statement called on the warring sides to curb violence and on the Taliban not to declare offensives in the spring and summer. It also said the four countries were committed to mobilising political and economic support for Afghanistan once a peace settlement had been reached.

US envoy Zalmay Khalilzad’s presence was a sign of Washington’s increasing effort to attract support among regional powers for its plans for Afghanistan.

President Joe Biden must soon decide whether to keep forces on past a May 1 deadline to withdraw, agreed with the Taliban last year under Biden’s predecessor Donald Trump. Khalilzad has been trying to drum up backing for a proposal that includes an interim government.

Moscow, which fought in Afghanistan in the 1980s, has hosted talks among Afghan sides and regional powers since 2017. Previously, Washington had largely kept its distance from the so-called “Moscow Format”, focusing on its own direct talks with the Taliban and talks between the Afghan parties themselves.

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani opposes an interim government, and a Taliban leader has said the group would not join it, although it supports replacing the current administration.

Abdullah Abdullah, chairman of Afghanistan’s High Council for National Reconciliation, wrote on Twitter after Thursday’s Moscow talks that the state negotiation team was ready to discuss any topic with the Taliban.

“We called for an end to targeted killings and a comprehensive ceasefire to begin the next rounds of the talks in a peaceful environment,” Abdullah wrote.

The Moscow gathering will be followed by a meeting of regional players in Turkey next month and a summit that Khalilzad has asked the United Nations to organise.

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ISLAMABAD, MAR 19: Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia, Pakistan and Center for Global & Strategic Studies (CGSS), Islamabad are jointly organizing an Online Internship Program on “The Contemporary Dynamics of Indonesia”. This Program aims to highlight the contemporary dynamics of Indonesia in the international arena to promote awareness among the Pakistani youth. 

The purpose is to familiarize the youth with various sectors of Indonesia and help them understand the culture, history, and other aspects of the country.

Internship Takeaways:

• Learn about the Contemporary Political, Economic, and Social Dynamics of Indonesia
• Get familiarized with the Indonesian Foreign Policy and its underlying principles
• Opportunity to visit the Embassy of Indonesia to Pakistan and have an interactive session with the Ambassador of the Republic of Indonesia to Pakistan
• Internship Certificate upon successful completion
•  

Eligibility Criteria:

• Students/Experts from IR, Political Science & Area Studies background are eligible to apply
•  Minimum qualification level to apply is Masters
•  The students who are enrolled in Masters, M.Phil. and PhD. Program can also apply 
•  

The duration of the Internship Program is from 5^th April 2021 to 6^th May 2021.

Email Resumes at: jobscgss@yahoo.com

Last date to apply: 29^th March 2021

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ISLAMABAD, MAR 19: Two days after announcing postponement of the anti-government long march due to the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP)’s rejection of the proposal of submitting en masse resignations from the assemblies and in an effort to keep the opposition’s alliance intact, Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) president Maulana Fazlur Rehman on Thursday separately talked to former president Asif Zardari and Pakistan Muslim League-N (PML-N) supremo Nawaz Sharif over telephone.

Sources in the three major opposition parties confirmed to Dawn that the Maulana, who is also head of the Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam (JUI-F), talked to the leaders of the two parties over the issue of the resignations and the proposed long march.

The sources said Mr Zardari, who had forcefully opposed the idea of quitting the assemblies during the meeting of the heads of the PDM parties in Islamabad on Tuesday, told the Maulana that the PPP had decided to convene a meeting of its Central Executive Committee (CEC) after its public meeting in Rawalpindi on the occasion of the death anniversary of the party’s founder Zulfikar Ali Bhutto on April 4 in which they would again review the proposal of submitting resignations from the assemblies.

According to sources in the PPP, both Mr Zardari and Maulana Fazl once again tried to convince each other on the issue of en masse resignations. However, Mr Zardari reiterated his stance that they should not come out of the assemblies as such a situation would only strengthen the hands of “the establishment” and Prime Minister Imran Khan.

Mr Zardari also expressed concern over the decision of the other PDM parties to link the resignations with the long march. The former president drew the attention of the Maulana to the agreed “plan of action” in the multi-party conference held in September last year, which clearly stated that the resignations would be the last option and for this purpose, a committee would be formed.

Mr Zardari, the PPP sources said, told the Maulana that the PML-N and other parties had suggested resigning from the assemblies believing that by doing so they might block the Senate elections and prevent the government from taking a majority in the upper house of the parliament. However, he opined, after contesting the Senate elections, the issue of the resignations had already become redundant.

The Maulana told Mr Zardari that the PDM component parties would wait for a final reply from the PPP after its CEC meeting before making any decision.

Later, the Maulana talked to Mr Sharif, who has been living in self-exile in London for more than a year, and apprised him about his conversation with Mr Zardari.

The sources said that the two leaders also discussed the probabilities in case the PPP decided to stick to its previous decision of not resigning from the assemblies. The two leaders, the sources said, were of the view that the PDM should continue its struggle against the government and should go ahead with its plan, even if the PPP decided to formally part ways with the alliance. They agreed to convene another meeting of the heads of the PDM soon after the PPP’s CEC meeting to discuss the future strategy.

The cracks within the ranks of the 10-party opposition alliance had become visible on Tuesday when its leadership announced postponement of their March 26 anti-government long march due to differences over the issue of the resignations.

An upset looking Maulana Fazl had suddenly left the press briefing without taking questions of the reporters after making a brief announcement that the PPP had sought more time to reconsider its position on the issue of en masse resignations and till the time the PPP would come back after an in-house discussion in its CEC, the long march stood “postponed”.

Before leaving the venue, the Maulana had disclosed that nine parties were in favour of resigning from the assemblies during the long march, but only the PPP had some “reservations over this thinking”. He said the PPP had sought time to discuss the matter again in its CEC which had been granted.

The sources said that in the PDM meeting, Mr Zardari had made submission of resignations conditional on the return of Mr Sharif to the country. The PPP leader in his speech launched political attacks on Mr Sharif and highlighted his own sacrifices, stating that he had spent 14 years in jail.

In the meeting, PML-N vice-president Maryam Nawaz had defended her father in a forceful manner and categorically declared that her father would not return to the country to put his life into danger.

The sources said that the Maulana was unhappy over the proceedings of the PDM meeting in which the PPP and the PML-N, the two arch rivals of the past, once again made some personal attacks against each other.

Speaking at a ceremony in Peshawar in Wednesday, the PDM president had expressed annoyance over the PPP’s attitude, saying it should have respected the opinion and viewpoint of the nine parties. He had also indirectly criticised the PPP for “leaking the proceedings of the meeting” to the media, saying that “discussions in such meetings are always kept secret as a trust and leaking the proceedings amounts to the breach of trust”.

Again speaking at a function in Islamabad on Thursday, without mentioning any name, the Maulana said that those who were afraid of going to jails should not have joined politics.

“It is a weakness to say that I can’t go to jail now. How will I fight? If you can’t fight then why you have joined politics?” the Maulana said without any reference, adding: “If you are in politics then you can find both power and jail.”

The Maulana once again asked the “establishment” not to support the government.

“Your job is to defend the country’s frontiers and not an illegitimate government,” he said.

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COURTESY DAWN NEWS

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