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Laden’s surrender demand not religious: US WASHINGTON, Nov 14: A senior US official has said......more
Tamils get rare opportunity to watch, listen President COLOMBO, Nov 14: Tamils in Colombo yesterday got a ...more Bill to bar waiving of santions against Pak introduced in US WASHINGTON, Nov 14: Democratic Congressman Steven...more UN sanctions against Taleban take effect UNITED NATIONS, Nov 14: U.N. imposed aviation and ...more |
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ISLAMABAD, Nov 14: With just about 24 hours for the expiry of Gen....more Army asks people to COLOMBO, Nov 14: Sri Lankan troops today urged some 100,000 people to ...more Hundreds of Afghans protest UN sanctions KABUL, Nov 14: More than 400 hundred Afghan protestors marched past ...more Afghan sanctions ISLAMABAD, Nov 14: The U.N. sanctions set to be imposed on Afghanistan today could rebound....more |
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Laden’s surrender demand not religious: US WASHINGTON, Nov 14: A senior US official has said that the UN demand to Afghanistan’s Taliban militia regarding the surrender of alleged terrorist Osama Bin Laden has no religious or political dimension. This is not about politics, this is not about religion, this is about criminal activity, Assistant Secretary of State for South Asian Affairs Karl Inderfurth said on CNN. In the end, Bin Laden should be brought to trial, he said. United Nations sanctions take effect today unless the Taliban Government hands over Bin Laden. A UN Security Council resolution of October 15 gave the Taliban 30 days to surrender Bin Laden or face an air embargo and a freeze of Taliban funds abroad. The resolution, sponsored by the US, demanded that the Taliban hand over Bin Laden to a country where he has been indicted or where he would be brought to justice. The resolution noted that Bin Laden and his associates had been indicted in the US for the bombings of American embassies in Kenya and Tanzania on August 7, 1998, in which a total of 224 people were killed. In its main morning commentary yesterday, radio Shariat, the Taliban’s mouth-piece, said Afghanistan needed rehabilitation not economic restrictions. The UN, which calls itself the upholder of world peace and stability and supporter of weak nations, should revise its Afghan policy and its economic restrictions, the station said, adopting a more conciliatory tone than usual. (AFP) |
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ISLAMABAD, Nov 14: With just about 24 hours for the expiry of Gen Pervez Musharraf’s ultimatum to bank defaulters to go, banks have been able to recover only less than one per cent of the bad loans indicating how difficult it would be for the new military ruler to carry out his promised economic reforms. Loans which have not been returned to banks in the past about three decades come to about 21,100 crore. Since Gen Musharraf’s ultimatum on October 17 to bank defaulters only Rs 90 crore has been returned. There is absolutely no chance for the remaining money to return to banks in the next 24 hours even if defaulters’ properties are auctioned. Recently the Urdu Service of BBC interviewed a number of traders in Hyderabad (Sindh) to know their views on Gen Musharraf’s ultimatum, these traders said only those people who habitually do not return their loans should be treated as defaulters but not every body who for different reasons had not been able to do so. There are a number of small traders who for one reason or the other have not paid or delayed repayments. If they are penalised trade will suffer leading to increased unemployment in the country, they said. According to ‘The News, Mr Nawaz Sharif’s family owes Rs 400 crore to different banks. In addition to this, the family owes more than 32 million dollars to the Al-Tawfeek group in foreign currency. Saifur Rahman, who as the chief of the Accountability Bureau dug corruption cases against former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, owes 140 crore to different banks. And even the family of Chief Justice of Pakistan owes Rs 100 crore to the Habib Bank. The family of one High Court judge also owes about the same amount to a bank. (UNI) |
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Tamils get rare opportunity to watch, listen President COLOMBO, Nov 14: Tamils in Colombo yesterday got a rare opportunity to watch and listen to their President during a 45-minute one-to-one talk over a live satellite video conference link. The venue was the local Ramanathan Ladies College auditorium in Bambalapettiya. Sitting under glittering arclights were 100-odd Tamils, including women, glued to a giant screen for an interactive question-answer session with President Chandrika Kumaratunga. Sitting in her Presidential palace, Mrs Chandrika Kumaratunga apologised for being unable to be present among them, owing to a threat from the LTTE. Questions were asked in Tamil but arrangements had been made at the other end to get her the translated version. At the end, it was a great disappointment for the participants as only eight people could put questions to her. A special satellite was hired for the purpose at a cost of 26 dollars per minute to the Government exchequer. Yesterday’s was the 19th such tele-conference the President had conducted as part of her meet the people and know their problems programme. The first question was about the urgency and need of a mediator to end the ethnic conflict in the country. Replying, the President made it known the role played by three groups, including one international organisation. For many, the information was new as the Government had always insisted that there was no need for a third party mediation. Her remarks that efforts of these grups since October 1997, made practically no headway as there was ‘no positive reply from the LTTE’ is a clear indication of the existence of a mediation despite Foreign Minister Lakshman Kadirgamar’s recent outburst that Sri Lanka was not in favour of any mediation. She said she and her Government sincerely believed that all people living in the country Sinhalese, Tamils, Muslims or others must have the necessary climate to live in peace and that they all have equal rights which must be ensured by the Government. Since the military conflict began especially in the last two years, she has constantly expressed her desire to the LTTE through various third parties who are in touch with them that we are still willing to discuss on the basis of the Government’s proposals . She said the statement of Prabhakaran that he was willing to talk is a farce . Ms Kumaratunga believed that the final solution to the Tamil problem has to be found through political negotiation. She told them that her Government wished to end this terrible war which has caused immense hardship to the people of the North, including the people of the Jaffna Penissula. She said "we want to solve the causes of this war which is the ethnic problem through political dialogue and to establish peace as early as possible. I am also aware that the military situation us causing certain problem in your day-to-day life." When her attention was drawn to the immense hardships the Tamils in Colombo had to face in the name of security check up, she said ‘unfortunately, Prabhakaran sends suicide bombers to Colombo to kill many leaders. In the process of checking, I know a large number of people, including you, have to undergo difficulties. I shall try to minimise the problems after discussing with the police." But she said she did not know what was the solution to find a lasting solution to their difficulties. "As a responsible Government it was the duty of the police and security to undertake certain steps that may cause difficulties to the people." When a questioner asked about the outbusts against Tamils by Sinhala Veera Vidhana, an organisation that engaged in constant argument with Tamils and military defeat of the LTTE, she said the Government was watching their utterances. "So far they have not violated any principles and the moment they do so, it will be banned", she assured. (UNI) |
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Bill to bar waiving of
santions against WASHINGTON, Nov 14: Democratic Congressman Steven R Rothman has introduced a bill in the House of Representatives, seeking to bar the US administration from waiving "certain sanctions against Pakistan until President Bill Clinton certifies that Pakistan has a democratically elected Government." The legislation, known as the "United States support for a democratic Pakistan act of 1999," has been referred, as the procedure demands, to the Committee on International Relations and the Committee on Banking and Financial Services, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker of the House. The sanctions were imposed on Pakistan in protest against its May 1998 nuclear tests. Similar sanctions were imposed on India as well. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, it says the President may not waive, with respect to Pakistan, the application of any sanction contained in the Arms Export Control Act and Export-Import Bank Act of 1945. The draft bill seeks to direct the United States executive director at the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank, its concenssionary lending agency, the International Development Association (IDA), the International Finance Corporation (IFC), and the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) "to use the voice and vote of the United States at each institution to oppose the provision of assistance in any form for any project in Pakistan." It says the coup d’etat which occurred in Pakistan on October 12, 1999, effectively erases much of the progress made by Pakistan toward addressing the United States’ nuclear nonproliferation concerns and seriously compromises the grounds upon which sanctions were initially waived. It also defines the idea of democratically elected Government. It is the one which results from free and fair elections, opposition parties were permitted ample time, opportunity, and freedom to organize and campaign for such elections. The new Government must also show respect for the basic civil liberties and human rights of the people of Pakistan and is committed to ensuring regular free and fair elections and the full enjoyment of basic civil liberties and human rights by the people of Pakistan. (UNI) |
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UN sanctions against Taleban take effect UNITED NATIONS, Nov 14: U.N. imposed aviation and financial sanctions entered into force today against Afghanistan’s Taliban rulers for failing to surrender Saudi dissident Osama Bin Laden for trial on charges of plotting the bombing of U.S. Embassies in Africa last year. At least 225 people were killed and more than 4,000 wounded when the embassies in Kenya and Tanzania were rocked by almost simultaneous blasts on August 7, 1998. Most of the casualties were in Nairobi. The sanctions were imposed by the Security Council on October 15, with a 30-day deadline for compliance. Council president Danilo Turk of Slovenia told reporters on Friday: "the sanctions will go into effect automatically." He said he had heard various reports of Taliban proposals aimed at forestalling the sanctions, but "nothing of the character which would require the matter to be brought before the council for consideration." Taliban Foreign Minister Wakil Ahmad Muttawakil, in an interview with Reuters in Kabul on Saturday, issued a last-minute appeal to the United Nations to delay or scrap the sanctions and renewed an offer to talk with Washington. But Muttawakil reiterated that his Government would not hand over Bin Laden to the United States against his will. The supreme leader of the strict Islamist movement that controls about 90 percent of civil war-ravaged Afghanistan, Mullah Mohammad Omar, has warned that if the United States did not cease its "hostility," it would "face earthquakes and storms from god’s side and then you will be surprised." The sanctions were approved unanimously by the U.N. Council under the mandatory provisions of the U.N. charter, requiring all states to ban arrivals or departures by aircraft owned, leased or operated by or on behalf of the Taliban. The only exceptions are humanitarian flights, including those carrying religious pilgrims, authorised in advance by a watchdog sanctions committee to be set up by the Council. All countries must also freeze funds and other financial resources owned or controlled by the Taliban, except for any that the sanctions committee exempt on humanitarian grounds. The United States imposed its own sanctions earlier this year, including freezing the assets of Afghanistan’s national Ariana Airline and banning U.S. investment and trade with the areas under Taliban control. Bin Laden and another alleged conspirator, Muhammad Atef, were indicted by a U.S. grand jury in New York in November 1998 for plotting the Embassy bombings. The U.S. State Department has offered rewards of 5 million dollars each for information leading to their arrest or conviction. Shortly after the Embassy attacks, the United States launched missile strikes against bases in Afghanistan alleged to have been used by Bin Laden’s Al-Qaeda group, described in the U.S. indictment as "a worldwide terrorist organisation." When the sanctions resolution was adopted last month, a deputy U.S. representative, Nancy Soderberg, told the Security Council that Bin Laden’s organisation, "working with other terrorist groups, continues actively to plan attacks on Americans and others." "We also have reliable evidence that Bin Laden’s network seeks to acquire weapons of mass destruction, including chemical weapons," she said. On Friday, U.S. and United Nations offices in Islamabad, Pakistan, were the targets of a number of rockets launched from parked vehicles. No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attacks, which wounded a Pakistani guard near the city’s American centre, but U.S. officials speculated they were related to the imminent sanctions. Although the Taliban captured Kabul, the capital, more than three years ago and have squeezed an opposition alliance into a small segment of the country, the opposition still retains Afghanistan’s U.N. seat. (REUTERS) |
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Army asks people to return to Vavuniya COLOMBO, Nov 14: Sri Lankan troops today urged some 100,000 people to return to the Northern town of Vavuniya from where they fled fearing attacks by Tamil Tiger rebels, residents said. "Soldiers are going around with loudspeakers announcing that they have taken every precaution and it was safe to return to Vavuniya," a Tamil resident told Reuters over the telephone. Hardly anybody heeded the military announcements, although a large number of people were returning during the day to either purchase food items from the few shops that remained open or to remove more items from their homes. "It is not safe for me or my family to be in Vavuniya during the night. If there is shelling and I try to leave, the military might mistake me for a tiger," said the resident who did not wish to be identified. Once-bustling Vavuniya was turned into a ghost town after people left in droves last week with whatever they could carry after the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) rebels announced in a radio broadcast it was preparing to attack the town. Today the train service to Vavuniya was resumed after a day-long suspension and state-owned radio also requested Government officials to return, residents said. They said there were no reports of shelling in Vavuniya, but troops shot dead a rebel when he attempted to throw a grenade at them some three km (two miles) from the town yesterday. (REUTERS) |
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Hundreds of Afghans protest UN sanctions KABUL, Nov 14: More than 400 hundred Afghan protestors marched past the US Embassy here today before the United Nations sanctions were imposed on the ruling Taliban regime. Death to America, death to womaniser Clinton, the crowds chanted as they marched. The protestors, who appeared well-organised, said groups from across the city had arranged to gather for more demonstrations. There were no signs of violence. Meanwhile, the UN staff kept a low profile in Afghanistan. Only essential staff reported for work and the UN’s characteristic white vehicles would stay off the roads, UN sources said. Additional Taliban guards have been assigned to maintain the security of UN staff. It is calm and no reports of any mishaps have been received, said one UN worker. In the morning, a UN plane flew into Kabul airport from Islamabad on a routine flight and dropped off medicine and one expatriate worker. Six passengers were flown back. Other aid agencies, including the International Committee of the Red Cross, which has a major presence in the country, were seen driving through the streets of Kabul. But most foreigners kept a low profile, even though the Taliban’s Foreign Minister said yesterday he guaranteed the safety of foreign workers in Afghanistan. (AFP) |
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Afghan sanctions seen rebounding on US ISLAMABAD, Nov 14: The U.N. sanctions set to be imposed on Afghanistan today could rebound against the United States, a former Pakistani spymaster has said. Retired army lieutenant-general Hameed Gul, a former chief of Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), also said the sanctions would put extra pressure on Pakistan because Islamabad would be caught between U.S. demands and its traditional support for Afghanistan’s ruling Taleban. "Because I think there is no far-sightedness in this policy, it is not going to work. It is eventually going to bring humiliation to the United States because once the sanctions fail to work — the Taleban do not buckle — than it is going to boomerang on them," he told Reuters in an interview. The U.S.-inspired sanctions, ordered by the U.N. Security Council last month, will impose financial and aviation restrictions if the Taleban does not expel Saudi-born terrorism suspect Osama Bin Laden to face trial in the United States. Taleban Foreign Minister Wakil Ahmad Muttawakil yesterday reiterated that Bin Laden, wanted on charges connected with the bombing attacks on U.S. embassies in Africa last year, would not be handed over. "We are ready to hold talks with the United States, but not on his (Bin Laden’s) handover," Muttawakil told Reuters by telephone from the Southern town of Kandahar. "We appeal to the United Nations to revise, prolong the deadline of the sanctions or scrap them completely and put pressure on America to be ready for talks," he said. The sanctions have been linked to Friday’s rocket attacks in Islamabad, which targeted U.S. and U.N. buildings, but Gul dismissed that, saying India’s Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) was responsible. "This is RAW, it has their fingerprints all over it," said Gul, who has been close to militants fighting Indian rule in the Indian-controlled part of Kashmir. "They’re just using November 14 to try to cause trouble." But Gul said it was an example of how Pakistan could be caught between trying to appease the West, on which it depends for badly needed aid, and the public’s support for the Taleban. U.S. "hare-brained policies" "I hope he will not alienate his own people and his own friends in order to serve the ends of the United States’ hare-brained policies," Gul said of military ruler General Pervez Musharraf, who seized power in a coup one month ago. "Pakistan will come under pressure and Pakistan will have not much room to manoeuvre vis-a-vis the Taleban, because there will be public opinion inside (Pakistan) and of course there is not much you can do to the Taleban," he said. "They are not going to relent on this. Knowing the Afghan character, the Taleban movement would break in the middle if they surrendered at this stage," said Gul, the head of the ISI when the Soviet Union pulled out of Afghanistan 10 years ago. Although Pakistan has recently clamped down on smuggling, which has driven up the prices of staple goods in Afghanistan, Gul said it was hard to stop the flow of goods across the border. "Afghanistan’s borders have always been porous and the goods have flowed across," he said. (REUTERS) |
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