Pakistan

British MP asks UK govt to immediately increase flood aid for Pakistan

Published

9 months ago

Farwa

Shadow Minister MP Preet Kaur Gill says it was a matter of huge concern that UK govt only pledged £1.5 million.
“I am concerned that this fails to address the scale of the devastation facing the country and its people,” she says.
She writes to UK govt Pakistan was victim of climate change and needed help.

LONDON: Britain’s Shadow Cabinet Minister for International Development MP Preet Kaur Gill has called on the UK government to recognise the catastrophe currently engulfing Pakistan and increase aid to the nation from just £1.5 million.

In a letter to UK Foreign Secretary Elizabeth Truss, the Labour MP said that it was a matter of huge concern that the UK government has only pledged £1.5 million in financial assistance to Pakistan in response to the immediate humanitarian crisis.

“I am concerned that this fails to address the scale of the devastation facing the country and its people. The United Nations has appealed for $160m, so the UK’s contribution to date is barely 1% of the total required to meet urgent humanitarian needs. As a close friend of the people of Pakistan, and with so many people across our country having close ties of family and friendship to the country, it is essential that the UK play its part and steps up to meet the scale of this challenge.

“What more is the UK government prepared to do to support the people of Pakistan at this incredibly challenging time? I strongly urge you to convene your international counterparts to coordinate and scale up a response proportionate to this crisis. The speed with which the humanitarian situation is evolving demands an equally swift response. There is no doubt that the unfolding disaster constitutes a climate catastrophe. Despite contributing less than 1% to global emissions, Pakistan is one of the most vulnerable countries on earth to climate change-related weather extremes. Pakistan has over 7,000 glaciers, more than anywhere else on earth outside the poles.”

The lawmaker for Birmingham Edgbaston reminded UK’s top diplomat that the floods triggered by unprecedented rains during the ongoing monsoon season are causing devastation across the country. One in seven Pakistanis are impacted, some 33 million people; over 1,000 people have died; over 287,000 homes have been destroyed; 719,000 livestock have died, and two million acres of cultivated crops have been wiped out.

She quoted Pakistan’s climate change minister as saying that a third of the country is now under water — an area roughly equivalent to the size of Great Britain.

“The scale of this disaster is incomprehensible — yet the humanitarian situation is set to deteriorate even further as heavy rains continue over the coming days and weeks.

Flash floods and rain-induced landslides have been compounded by the inability of existing infrastructure to cope with the extraordinary amount of water, with nearly 3,500km of roads and 149 bridges already damaged so far. This is, in turn, impeding the ability of citizens to flee to safer areas and compromising the delivery of aid to those in need.”

MP Gill wrote to the UK government that Pakistan was a victim of climate change and needed help. S

“Once these glaciers melt, the devastation they could unleash would be irreversible. This must be a wake-up call. I have been deeply concerned by some of your comments in relation to climate action during the Conservative leadership contest. Delaying or withdrawing action on mitigation and adaptation, such as your government’s decision to cut £100 million in international climate finance in July, is an inexcusable abdication of leadership given what we know global warming will cause and what we can already see before our eyes. Climate change will be the defining issue of the 21st century, and it is therefore imperative that this government continues to honour its international climate finance commitments and leads from the front to galvanise global action in the run-up to the COP27 in November. I urge you to grasp the implications of this crisis, and I look forward to your swift and comprehensive response,” said the UK MP.

Pakistan

KU students end protest after ‘picked up’ student returns

Published

2 days ago

Farwa

KARACHI: Students of Karachi University called off their protest after a fellow student who was allegedly “picked up” from the varsity’s premises returned.

A KU student confirmed to Geo News that Saqib, the student who was allegedly “whisked away”, has returned.

The students of the varsity had launched a protest, earlier today, after Saqib was allegedly “taken away”.

The protesters told Geo News that the student, studying at the Department of Urdu, was allegedly whisked away by some people in plain clothes. They said the men claimed they were from a law enforcement agency.

However, KU Security Adviser Dr Moiz Khan said Rangers have disassociated themselves from the incident.

The university’s administration analysed the closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage to identify the students and the people who picked him up.

After the incident, the students staged a protest outside KU’s Silver Jubilee Gate and blocked the University Road.

However, upon the police’s request, they shifted their protest to the front of the varsity’s administration block.

The Islami Jamiat-e-Talaba (IJT) claimed that the student was its worker.

Pakistan

Jibran Nasir’s ‘kidnapping’ case registered hours after he was ‘picked up’ in Karachi’s DHA

Published

2 days ago

Farwa

Cases registered under sections 365 and 34 of PPC.
Nasir’s wife seeks immediate release of her husband.
Protest today at 4:00pm at KPC to demand Nasir’s release.

KARACHI: The port city’s police have registered a “kidnapping” case of prominent lawyer and human rights activist Jibran Nasir on the complaint of his wife, Mansha Pasha, hours after the advocate was “picked up” from Defence Housing Authority (DHA) area.

The case has been registered at the Clifton Police Station under two sections of the Pakistan Penal Code — 365 (kidnapping or abducting with intent secretly and wrongfully to confine a person) and 34 (Acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention).

Pasha, a renowned actress, told police in an application earlier that her husband was “picked up” by men on Thursday night.

Mansha Pashas application to the police. — provided by the reporter — Mansha Pasha’s application to the police. — provided by the reporter

Police were at first, according to Pasha, not registering the FIR. She said she would move the court if the law enforcers did not register the case.

She stated: “On 01.06.2023 at about 11:00 pm, I was returning from dinner with my husband in our personal car … when a white color Toyota Hilux / Vigo … intercepted and hit our car from the front-left side and forced us to stop near Ideal Bakery on 26th Street, Defence Phase 5, Karachi.”

She further added: “Another vehicle i.e. a Silver Corolla blocked our vehicle from behind and as such, we were surrounded. Some 15 people along with weapons came out from the said vehicles in civil clothes and forced my husband to get out of the car, man-handling him towards the subject vehicle. They then abducted him and took him away and his whereabouts are unknown till now.”

In her application, she also requested immediate action be taken to ensure his swift release.

“In light of the above-mentioned situation, I have no other recourse than to approach your office for registration of my complaint for my missing husband. I would be thankful if an immediate action is taken for his swift release. Furthermore, action in accordance with law must be taken against those who abducted my husband,” she wrote.

Furthermore, Pasha told Geo News that a protest was being held at 4:00pm at the Karachi Press Club to demand her husband’s release.

Condemnations

As the news of Nasir’s abduction went viral, several people and human rights organisations condemned the incident.

Concerned by the abduction, they demanded that Nasir be returned home safely and quickly.

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) took to Twitter stating: “HRCP is deeply concerned by reports that lawyer and activist [Jibran Nasir] has been abducted by unknown armed persons in Karachi. We demand that he be safely recovered immediately and his abductors held accountable under the law.”

Prime Minister’s Strategic Reforms Salman Sufi also tweeted his support for the human rights activist.

“Very disturbing to hear about [Jibran Nasir] abduction. Hope Sindh police will assist his family and locate him immediately. Jibran has always spoken against violent extremism and rioting. Hoping for his safe and immediate return,” he wrote.

Moreover, Imaan Mazari, the daughter of the former human rights minister Shireen Mazari expressed his dismay at the news.

“No words… complete madness,” she tweeted.

Pakistan

8-year-old girl raped in Islamabad

Published

2 days ago

Farwa

Afghan girl was raped by a man in broad daylight.
Case lodged at Shahzad Town Police Station.
Medico-legal official confirms the girl’s rape.

ISLAMABAD: An 8-year-old Afghan girl was raped by a man in broad daylight who managed to run away in the presence of residents of Mohallah Diptian falling in the jurisdiction of Shahzad Town Police Station, The News reported Friday.

The minor victim was shifted to a hospital where the medico-legal official confirmed the rape.

The Shahzad Town police have registered the case against the unidentified rapist under sections 376 and 377/B of the Pakistan Penal Code on the complaint of the father of the victim but couldn’t hunt down the rapist till the filing of this report.

Hazar Gul, an Afghan national, hailing from Jalalabad, lodged a complaint with the Shahzad Town, saying that he was living in Mohallah Diptian, located near Mariam Masjid with his family for a couple of months.

“I was present at my house along with my elder brother when we heard some noises from the street, we rushed out of the house and witnessed a young man running towards us, consequently, without knowing the reason for his escape, we both tried to intercept him but he succeeded to let loose from our clutches and ran off from our custody,” the complainant narrating his story, said.

However, he said, “We moved towards the place where people of the street were gathered and saw my minor daughter crying.”

Upon query, the minor victim told him the tale of the brutal attack on her, saying she was playing near her house when she was dragged by the rapist into an under-construction house and raped forcibly.

The DPO (Rural) has taken up the case and asked the Shahzad Town police to take the case as a challenge and use all their efforts to make headway to arrest the rapist, the police sources said.

The SP has constituted teams and sent them to different locations to get a clue about the rapist.

The sources added that the police have rounded up a few suspects for investigation, claiming that the police teams would make headway to the criminal and hunt him down within the next 24 hours.