WILL MUSHARRAF WALK AWAY FROM OFFICE--ZARDARI HOPS

The ruling Pakistan People’s Party on Saturday announced draft constitutional amendments that will strip the President’s powers to dissolve Parliament and reduce Pervez Musharraf to a figurehead, expressing the hope that he would “walk away” from the office after the changes.
But the proposed constitutional package, which the PPP said it would take to its coalition partners and the presidency for discussions, has raised concerns about a confrontation between the General (retd.) Musharraf and the government if he were to reject the amendments.
On the other side, Nawaz Sharif’s party and the legal community expressed reservations about proposals contained in the package for the reinstatement of the judges sacked by General Musharraf last year.
The Pakistan Muslim League(N) demanded that the judges’ reinstatement be done not through an amendment but by a parliamentary resolution as laid out in the March 8 Murree accord between it and the PPP.
Interstingly, the PPP announced the package as Mr. Chaudhary set off from the capital to address the legal community of Faisalabad in the Punjab province. He left by road accompanied by a massive convoy of cars and buses full of lawyers.
The legal community has announced a long march starting on June 10 from Multan in Punjab to the capital if the judges are not reinstated by then.
Though the clauses relating to the judiciary were not made public, the legal community said any attempt to fix a three-year term for the Chief Justice would be unacceptable as that would imply a plan to retire the deposed Iftikhar Chaudhary, whose three years end next month.
PPP co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari and Law Minister Farooq Naek made public only a handful of the 62 proposed amendments contained in the constitutional package that was discussed and approved by the party’s central executive committee this afternoon.
The most important of the proposed changes is the repeal of 58 (2) (B), the controversial article that empowers the President to dissolve Parliament and dismiss the government.
“Whatever powers the President has under the Constitution in relation to the Parliament, we want to take them away and give them back to the Prime Minister,” said Mr. Naek at a joint press conference with Mr. Zardari.
Additionally, the President will also lose his power to appoint Governors. Mr. Zardari said his powers to appoint service chiefs will go too. A President will serve “two full terms” instead of “two consecutive terms”.
An important amendment proposed in the package is to hold judges who validate military takeovers liable for treason. The amendment proposes that they would cease to hold office immediately. Also included in the package is a proposed change of name for the North West Frontier Province to Pakhtunkhwa as demanded by the Awami National Party.
Mr. Zardari, who earlier this week described President Musharraf as a “relic of the past” who was standing between the people and democracy, said he would, however, “engage the presidency in a dialogue” on the proposed changes.
“Utlimately, the power of democracy come from dialogue, not confrontation,” Mr. Zardari said. “We intend to walk [President Musharraf] away rather than impeach him away.”
The PPP co-chairman said his party had authorised him to consult all other parties and the legal fraternity in the coalition on the draft.
“Nothing in this package is sacrosanct. It can be revised, it can be improved,” he said.
PML (N) spokesman Siddiqul Farooq said the party stood by the Murree Accord to which it was a co-signatory along with the PPP, and was “one with the legal fraternity” on the restoration of the judges.
“We have yet to receive a copy of the constitutional package, and we have to study it. If it restores the 1973 Constitution as it was on October 11, 1999 [before Gen. Musharraf’s ouster of the Sharif government], if it accommodates the charter of democracy [signed between Mr. Sharif and Benazir Bhutto], then we can consider supporting it. But on the issue of the judges, we are committed to their reinstatement by a resolution of Parliament,” Mr. Farooq said.
Supreme Court Bar Association President Aitzaz Ahsan, who is also a member of the PPP central executive committee that discussed the constitutional amendments said nothing in the package was final, and many of the 62 clauses would undergo changes before being presented in Parliament.
But Mr. Ahsan, who recently withdrew his nominations from the June 26 elections, also said a three-year term for the Chief Justice was a “minus-one formula” to get rid of Mr. Chaudhary, and said it would be unacceptable to the legal community

GHATOTHKACH A N UNFORGETABLE FILM

Film: Ghatothkach Direction: S Srinivasa Rao


You don’t mind watching it. You don’t mind missing it either. There are moments of genuine good humour. But they come interspersed with long sermons and inane drama. Not quite the stuff one would expect from Singeetam Srinivasa Rao, who still has a little deposit in the memory bank of cinemagoers, courtesy “Pushpak”, a two-decade old silent film starring Amala. Here Rao tries to grow with the times and tries his hand at animation. He picks up the story of the relatively lesser known Ghatothkach to put together this film. However, the lack of comforting familiarity with the lead character limits the film’s appeal. Unlike Hanuman or Krishna, Ghatothkach, the son of Bheema and Hidimba, does need an introduction.

The young viewers have to be taught about the mythological hero who has never evoked as much awe as, say, Bheema or Arjun. For kids he comes across as just another mischievous character from mythology.

The kids don’t identify with his antics as much as they would with Hanuman or Krishna. When the director jumps from the antics of the child Ghatothkach to the brawn of the adult, it is not without a jerk. For adults, there is not enough depth in story-telling, not enough consistency in the narration to hold interest. So many negatives. Any positives? Yes, The initial few minutes are quite good with the child Ghatothkach winning over the viewers with his cute work. The little one sit and clap as Ghatothkach solves problems bigger than his size.

And the adults laugh in a belated attempt to keep pace with kids. Also, some of the animation of the lead characters is good. Unfortunately, that is not something one would say for the whole movie.

CHINA AND RUSSIA --EFFORTS FOR GLOBAL ENERGY SECURITIES

China and Russia on Friday vowed joint efforts to maintain global energy security.

International security is comprehensive and inalienable, and some countries’ security cannot be guaranteed at the cost of some others, said the two nations in a joint statement.

The statement on major international issues, signed here on Friday after talks between Chinese President Hu Jintao and his visiting Russian counterpart Dmitry Medvedev, stressed the necessity to respect and consider the interests and concerns of countries concerned.

Mr. Medvedev arrived here on Friday for a two-day state visit as a guest of Mr. Hu.

Both sides called on countries around the world to enhance energy dialogue and coordination, based on equality and mutual benefits, to stabilise international energy markets.

The two countries support building a mutually beneficial and cooperative energy security concept featuring diversified development and coordinated guarantees, said the statement. They also called for speeding up research and popularisation of new technologies for environmental protection.

The statement said all countries across the world should take the U.N. Charter and the principles of mutual trust, consideration of each other’s interests, equality, cooperation and openness as a basis, and promote the international security system to develop in accordance with the demands of the times and the common interest of all countries.

Arms control


The two countries will continue to actively press for international arms control. They said the establishment of a global missile defence system including the deployment of the system in some regions is not conducive to strategic balance and stability, efforts on arms control and non-proliferation, and mutual trust between nations and regional stability.

The two nations will also devote themselves to jointly strengthening the dialogue between the Group of Eight.

The statement said both sides were ready to strengthen such international cooperation mechanism as the Golden BRIC (a term created by the economists of Goldman Sachs for the world’s four most prosperous emerging economies — Brazil, Russia, India and China), and the Foreign Ministers’ meeting between China, Russian and India. They called on all parties to refrain from military and extreme actions against Iran. “China and Russia propose the Iranian nuclear issue be resolved through dialogue and equal consultation,” said the statement. —

CHINA REVISES TOLL TO 80,000------EARTH QUAKE

China said the toll of dead and missing from last week’s powerful earthquake jumped to more than 80,000, while the government appealed Thursday for millions of tents to shelter homeless survivors.


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The confirmed number of dead rose nearly 10,000 from the day before to 51,151, Cabinet spokesman Guo Weimin told a news conference. Another 29,328 people remained missing and nearly 300,000 were hurt in the May 12 quake centered in Sichuan province, he said.

The disaster left 5 million people homeless and leveled more than 80 percent of the buildings in some remote towns and villages areas near the epicenter. In bigger cities whole apartment blocks collapsed or are now too dangerous to live in because of damage and worries about aftershocks.

“We need more than 3.3 million tents,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang told reporters, adding that 400,000 tents have already been delivered. It was the second call for tents from China in recent days.

“We hope and welcome international assistance in this regard. We hope the international community can give priority in providing tents,” he said.

Underscoring the need, Chinese President Hu Jintao visited two tent manufacturing companies in eastern Zhejiang province, urging workers to boost production to meet needs from the disaster area, state media reported.

US aid to earthquake victims totals $2.8 million, Ambassador Clark T Randt Jr said, including medical equipment and satellite images of damaged infrastructure. The American Red Cross had donated $10 million, and American companies operating in China have pledged more than $34 million.

In the effort to assure people the government was placing top priority on relief efforts, Premier Wen Jiabao returned Thursday to the disaster zone, the official Xinhua News Agency said — his second trip there following a visit immediately after the quake.

The government is also grappling with official estimates of more than 4,000 children orphaned by the quake, and received hundreds calls from people offering to adopt them.

Anger that so many children died because their school buildings were poorly built continued to simmer online and in state media.

OIL MINISTRY SEEKS RS.10/LTR HIKE FOR PETROL

Petroleum Ministry is seeking a Rs 10 per litre increase in petrol and Rs 5 a litre hike in diesel prices along with cut in customs and excise duties to offset the impact of surge in crude oil prices that have touched 135 dollars per barrel.
"The situation is getting to be alarming. We need to stem the rot in the beginning," Petroleum Secretary M S Srinivasan told reporters after a stock-taking meeting with the heads of oil PSUs.

Srinivasan however, said the cabinet scheduled for Friday will not consider raising fuel prices as the subject needed some more preparation and a note would be moved to the authorities in a day or two.

"We expect a decision in 3-4 days time he said, adding the Ministry was suggesting a combination of price hike and duty cut to lower the projected Rs 2,00,000 crore under-realisation on sale of petrol, diesel, LPG and kerosene.

"The price hike is inevitable," he said but refused to say what quantum of hike the ministry was seeking.

Srinivasan said the Ministry was seeking a lowering of customs duty on crude from 5 per cent to zero and import duty on petrol and diesel from 7.5 per cent to 2.5 per cent.

Besides, the Ministry was also seeking cut on excise duty on the two products.

Petroleum Minister Murli Deora said he had discussed the situation with the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Thursday evening and will raise the issue again today to seek and early meeting of the Cabinet.

"We are trying to see that some action is taken immediately," Deora said.

D N A REACTIVATED

In a Jurassic Park-like experiment, scientists have resurrected genes from the Tasmanian tiger — a meat-eating marsupial that became extinct more than 70 years ago — by injecting them into mouse embryos. The Tasmanian ...

RELIEF FOR CHAINA' EARTH QUAKE

Premier Wen Jiabao announced here on Wednesday that the government would allocate 70 billion Yuan ($10.14 billion) this year for a reconstruction fund for the quake-hit regions. He also pledged to arrange funds for

DALAI LAMA APPEALES TIBETANS

The Dalai Lama, who is here on what he described as a “non-political” visit, has appealed to Tibetans not to disrupt the Olympic torch relay. Reiterating his support for the upcoming Beijing Olympics, he said: “I ...

KATHMANDE SHUTS DOWN

Kathmandu Valley on Wednesday remained shut to protest the killing of a businessman, who was earlier abducted by the People’s Liberation Army (PLA). Vehicles stayed off the road, businesses remained shut and education ...

FRIENDSHIP TRAIN TO BANGLADESH

On April 14, 2008, at 7.10 a.m. on the day of Poila Baisakh, or the Bengali New Year, an engine and its seven coaches decorated with marigold flowers was flagged off from Kolkata terminal by the Union Minister of External Affairs, Pranab Mukherjee. You can call it the train to Bangladesh. But more specifically, it's "Friendship Beyond the Boundaries" or the Maitree Express. And it's very special as it's the first passenger train after 43 years between India and Bangladesh. On board, passengers were treated to special Bengali cuisine. (There were also the VIPs!)


Restore services


Before April 1965, there used to be passenger trains -- the Poorva Bangla Express and the Barishal Express -- between India and what was then called East Pakistan through the Bangoan border. But services were stopped after the first Indo-Pakistan war in 1965. The last train that chugged in was the Dhaka Mail (painted in green) that reached Sealdah station in India from Moimonsingha, crossing Goaindaghat for the last time. After the creation of Bangladesh, following the second Indo-Pakistan war in 1971, there were demands that rail services between the two countries be restored.


But there was a difference. It was only a goods train this time. The service ran between India and Bangladesh via Petrapole, Beanpole border. But people wanted a passenger train link, a demand that was raised once again in 2001. Finally, the voices were heard ... in 2007.There were many rounds of talks between India and Bangladesh and it was agreed that there would be a "Maitree Express". India decided that its border station would be at Gede, while for Bangladesh it was at Darshana. There were also to be the necessary immigration and customs departments, and security arrangements. (There is a plan now to have onboard customs and immigration checks.)


... the Maitree Express crosses just one river -- the Padma.


It has been decided that from April 19, the service will be bi-weekly. Every Saturday, the train from Kolkata (No.3109), with an Indian Railways rake, will leave for Dhaka, while it will be No. 3107 (Bangladesh Railways rake) for India. On Sunday, it will be Train Nos. 3108 and 3110.


... a long awaited service between the two countries.

Before April 1965, there used to be passenger trains -- the Poorva Bangla Express and the Barishal Express -- between India and what was then called East Pakistan through the Bangoan border. But services were stopped after the first Indo-Pakistan war in 1965. The last train that chugged in was the Dhaka Mail (painted in green) that reached Sealdah station in India from Moimonsingha, crossing Goaindaghat for the last time. After the creation of Bangladesh, following the second Indo-Pakistan war in 1971, there were demands that rail services between the two countries be restored.


But there was a difference. It was only a goods train this time. The service ran between India and Bangladesh via Petrapole, Beanpole border. But people wanted a passenger train link, a demand that was raised once again in 2001. Finally, the voices were heard ... in 2007.There were many rounds of talks between India and Bangladesh and it was agreed that there would be a "Maitree Express". India decided that its border station would be at Gede, while for Bangladesh it was at Darshana. There were also to be the necessary immigration and customs departments, and security arrangements. (There is a plan now to have onboard customs and immigration checks.)


... the Maitree Express crosses just one river -- the Padma.


It has been decided that from April 19, the service will be bi-weekly. Every Saturday, the train from Kolkata (No.3109), with an Indian Railways rake, will leave for Dhaka, while it will be No. 3107 (Bangladesh Railways rake) for India. On Sunday, it will be Train Nos. 3108 and 3110.


... a long awaited service between the two countries.

CLASSICAL CONCERT HELD IN SOUDI ARABIA

It was probably as groundbreaking and revolutionary as Mozart was ever going to get. A German-based quartet staged Saudi Arabia’s first-ever performance of European classical music in a public venue before a mixed gender audience.

The concert, held on Friday night, broke many taboos in a country where public music is banned and men and women are segregated even in the lines at fast food outlets. The performance could be yet another indication that this country is looking to open up. A few weeks ago, King Abdullah made an unprecedented call for an interfaith dialogue — the first such proposal from a nation that forbids non-Muslim religious services and symbols.

“The concert is a sign that things are changing rapidly here,” said German Ambassador Jurgen Krieghoff, whose embassy sponsored the concert — part of a series of programmes celebrating the first German Cultural Weeks in Saudi Arabia. “Evidently, the government has decided that a minimum of openness in our new world economy and in our information-based world is necessary for us and also for good understanding among cultures,” he said.

THOUSANDS OF PEOPLES REDERED HOMELESS IN MYANMAR

More than 350 persons died in Myanmar after a powerful cyclone — Nargis — knocked out power in the commercial capital and destroyed thousands of homes, said state-run media on Sunday.

The military-run Myaddy television station said five regions had been declared disaster zones following Saturday’s storm, which packed winds of up to 190 kmph. It said at least 351 persons were killed; 162 of the victims lived on Haing Gyi island, off the southwest coast. Many of the others died in the low-lying Irrawaddy delta. Seventy-five per cent of the buildings in the Irrawaddy’s Labutta township had collapsed, it said.

“The Irrawaddy delta was hit extremely hard, not only because of the wind and rain, but because of the storm surge,” said Chris Kaye, the U.N.’s acting Humanitarian Coordinator in Yangon. The Meteorological Bureau had forecast the cyclone would cause tides to rise as much as 12 feet above normal levels, though no details of the actual rise were available on Sunday.

Hampered


Mr. Kaye said the government told him earlier that thousands of homes were destroyed. The U.N. tried to send teams to assess the damage on Sunday, but their efforts were hampered by roads clogged with debris and phone lines that were down. They would try again on Monday, said Mr. Kaye.

Witnesses in Yangon said the storm blew the roofs off hundreds of houses, damaged hotels, schools and hospitals, and cut electricity to the entire city. The state-owned newspaper New Light of Myanmar reported that Yangon’s international airport remained shut and domestic flights were being diverted to Mandalay — located 560 km to the north.

Shari Villarosa, the top U.S. diplomat in Yangon, said she was up most of Friday night, enduring the whipping winds and torrential downpour that climaxed early on Saturday morning. She expected the damage to be much worse in rural areas