Day: October 14, 2021

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Need to work together for peace, development in Pakistan: Minister

Lahore, October 14, 2021 (PPI-OT):Punjab Minister for Human Rights and Minority Affairs Ijaz Alam Augustine has said that we should work together for the development and prosperity of the country beyond colour, race and religion. He was addressing a conference on ‘Interfaith Harmony, Peace Building and Human Rights’ at Al Raazi hall here on Thursday. The conference was organized by the Punjab University Department of Social Work in collaboration with the Punjab Government and Human Friends Organization.

On this occasion, Punjab University Vice Chancellor Prof Niaz Ahmad Akhtar, Registrar Dr Muhammad Khalid Khan, Dean Faculty of Behavioural and Social Sciences Dr. Umbreen Javed, Chairperson Department of Social Work Dr Syeda Mehnaz Hassan, Former Parliamentarian Samia Raheel Qazi, Sajid Christopher, religious scholars, representatives of various NGOs, faculty members and a large number of students were present.

In this address, Ejaz Alam Augustine said that peace is the need of every religion, class and sect. He said that burning of any place of worship including temples, mosques, churches brings Pakistan into disrepute in the world. “We must end hatred and malice and respect each other,” he added. He said that the incumbent government was taking historic steps to ensure the provision of basic human rights. He said that the approval of quota for minorities in higher education institutions would bring a big change in society.

Prof Niaz Ahmad Akhtar has said that PU has full faith in basic human rights. He said that in the last three years, Punjab University has ensured merit, good governance and has given jobs on merit to Hindus, Christians, Sikhs and Muslims. He said that even those who have done injustice to anyone should not expect justice. He said that a human rights rift has been set up in PU to ensure respect for all religions.

Congratulating the organizers of the conference, Dr Umbreen Javed has said that we are first and foremost human beings and as Pakistanis we all have equal rights. Dr Syeda Mehnaz Hassan said that all human beings are different from each other, but everyone wants peace. She said that everyone in Pakistan has the freedom to live according to their religion. Samia Raheel Qazi, Sajid Christopher, Hafiz Kazim Raza Naqvi and Syed Waliullah Shah Bukhari also addressed the conference and stressed eliminating extremism and promotion of peaceful environment.

For more information, contact:
Registrar,
University of the Punjab
Quaid-e-Azam Campus, Lahore, Pakistan
Tel: +92-42-99231102
Fax: +92-42-99231103
E-Mail: registrar@pu.edu.pk
Website: http://pu.edu.pk/

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JICA Pakistan Office Chief Representative calls on Moonis Elahi, Federal Minister for Water Resources 

Lahore, October 14, 2021 (PPI-OT):A courtesy call to Mr. Moonis Elahi, Federal Minister for Water Resources was made by JICA, Pakistan Chief Representative Mr. Shigeki Furuta in his office at Islamabad. In-charge of Water Sector JICA Pakistan Office and Chief Engineering Adviser, M/o Water Resources were also present in the meeting. Federal Minister, Mr. Moonis Elahi, thanked JICA and Government of Japan for their continued presence in the overall development of various sectors of economy of Pakistan including the water and flood control sector. The Minister highlighted the need for further enhancement of collaboration among Pakistan and Japan in various sub-sectors of water like flood control, water supply and solid waste management etc.

JICA Pakistan Office Chief Representative referring to JICA’s various completed and on-going projects in Pakistan appreciated the level of cooperation JICA had been receiving from Federal Flood Commission, Ministry of Water Resources, P and D Department of Punjab including all other related departments.

He especially made mention of JICA’s contribution in managing flood issues of Lai Nullah in Islamabad-Rawalpindi, institutional strengthening of relevant departments, provision and installation of state of the art weather surveillance radars in Islamabad and Karachi and JICA’s plan of installing similar weather radars in Multan and Sukkur besides JICA’s plan to provide Flood Management and Institutional Capacity Building experts to FFC and revision of National Disaster Management Plan of NDMA. He informed that JICA has extensive presence in Punjab and is developing a Model Water Supply Management Plan for Faisalabad city which shall be replicated in other cities as well. He also apprised the Minister about JICA’s raising Academy for capacity building of WASA, Lahore.

Minister for Water Resources while concluding the discussion expressed the hope that Government of Japan will further increase the support for Pakistan in the Water Sector including initiatives on capacity building of institutions working under the Ministry of Water Resources through planned activities and for WASAs in Punjab, to better manage water supply and solid waste management issues in cities like Gujrat, Wazirabad etc., besides institutional strengthening of FFC to bring it at par with similar institutions in the region and support in the implementation of National Flood Protection Plan-IV.

For more information, contact:
Mediacell, Pakistan Muslim League
30-C, Chaudhry Zahoor Elahi Road,
Gulberg-II, Lahore, Pakistan
Tel: +92-42-35878428
Fax: +92-42-35877329
Website: www.pmlmediacell.com

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Sindh to set up district-level Human rights bodies 

Karachi, October 14, 2021 (PPI-OT):Special Assistant to Sindh Chief Minister on Human Rights Mr Surendar Valasai has said that the provincial government is considering establishing human rights committees in each district of Sindh to curb violation of human rights at grassroots levels. In this regard, he underlined the need for increased coordination with rights and civil society organisations.

He was speaking during an expert briefing delivered by a think tank, The Knowledge Forum, at his office on Wednesday. Secretary of the Human Rights department Mr. Javed Sibghatullah Mahar was also present on the occasion.

Mr. Valasai said that PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, who is heading the Parliamentary Committee on Human Rights has appointed him to look into the human rights situation in Sindh. The provincial government of Sindh has established a Human Rights Information Management System with the cooperation of the United Nations Development Programme to digitise the human rights data in the province.

Earlier, a human rights expert Mr Jameel Junejo from The Knowledge Forum gave a presentation on the fundamental rights inscribed in the Constitution of Pakistan. He also explained the core international human rights conventions, which Pakistan has ratified. Out of the total of nine major UN covenants on Human Rights Pakistan has already ratified seven.

Mr. Junejo described the United Nations’s human rights mechanism, which included the Universal Periodical Review (UPR) on Human rights, Treaty Bodies and Special Procedures. After every four and a half years the UN holds reviews of the human rights situation in every member country. He said Pakistan’s last human rights review was held on 16 November 2017 and during that meeting the members provided several recommendations to the Pakistan government for improvement of human rights. Pakistan’s next review is due in 2022.

Pakistan is a member of the UN Human Rights Council and the country should improve its performance. He said the Special Rapporteurs of the United Nations have visited Pakistan two times in the past. Last year the UN Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders had also visited Pakistan.

He said under the GSP-Plus facility Pakistan has agreed to abide by international conventions including seven Human Rights and eight ILO labour standards. The Generalized System of Preference (GSP) Plus is a trade incentive scheme and provided to developing countries to sell their products in the European Union member countries without paying duties.

Mr. Valasai and Mr. Mahar said that the department of human rights remains committed to protect human rights in the province and also take all possible measures to help improve the country’s image at the international level by ensuring compliance with international commitments. Human Rights activists Shujauddin Qureshi, Naghma Iqtidar, Tahir Hassan Khan and department staff also participated in the briefing.

For more information, contact:
PPP Media Cell (Sindh)
Pakistan People’s Party (PPP)
Peoples Secretariat Shikarpur Colony,
Behind Mazar-e-Quaid-e-Azam, Karachi, Pakistan
Cell: +92-305-3370383
Email: contact@ppp-tu.com
Website: https://www.ppp.org.pk

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National Assembly pays tribute to Dr. Abdul Qadeer Khan 

Islamabad, October 14, 2021 (PPI-OT):The National Assembly unanimously adopted a resolution on Thursday paying tributes to late nuclear scientist Dr. Abdul Qadeer Khan, observes Free and Fair Election Network (FAFEN) in its Daily Factsheet.

Following are key observations of the proceedings during 1st sitting of 37th session:

Members’ Participation

The National Assembly met for an hour and 40 minutes.

The sitting started at 04:24 pm against the scheduled time of 04:00 pm.

The speaker presided over the entire sitting.

The deputy speaker was not present.

The leaders of the house (Prime Minister) and the opposition did not attend the sitting.

As many as 84 (24 percent) lawmakers were present at the outset and nine (three percent) at the adjournment of the sitting.

The parliamentary leaders of PML-N, BAP and GDA attended the sitting.

Two minority lawmakers were present.

Output

The House unanimously adopted a resolution paying tributes to late nuclear scientist Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan.

The House did not consider legislative agenda including two ordinances and one government bill.

Representation and Responsiveness

The House did not consider five motions for consideration of as many bills in the joint sitting of the Parliament, two calling attention notices and a motion of thanks to the President.

Order and Institutionalization

Twenty-four lawmakers spoke on points of orders for an hour and 22 minutes. They paid tributes to late nuclear scientist Dr. Abdul Qadeer Khan, late Member of National Assembly Muhammad Pervaiz Malik and late legendary actor Umer Sharif.

The House was adjourned to meet again on Friday, October 15, 2021 at 11:00 am.

Transparency

‘Orders of the Day’ was available to legislators, observers and public.

Attendance of lawmakers was available to media and observers.

For more information, contact:
Free and Fair Election Network (FAFEN)
FAFEN Representative
FAFEN Secretariat 224, Margalla Road F-10/3 – Islamabad
Tel: +92-51-2211026
Fax: +92-51-2211047
Cell: +92-321-5017355, +92-301-8549188
Email: media@fafen.org
URL: www.fafen.org

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Army, H.E.C and Punjab win their matches on the fourth day of the 24th National Baseball Championship 2021

Rawalpindi, October 14, 2021 (PPI-OT):The 24th National Baseball Championship organized by Pakistan Baseball Federation is underway at Army Cricket Ground GHQ Rawalpindi. Sheikh Mazhar Ahmed Secretary General PFB informed that three matches were played on the third day of the tournament.

The first match was played between H.E.C and Baluchistan. H.E.C won an easy contest by 17-1.

The second match was played between Punjab and Sindh. Punjab beat Sindh 19-6.

The third match was played between Pakistan Police and Pakistan Army. Army won the match by 6 – 0.

For more information, contact:
Pakistan Federation Baseball
Punjab Stadium, Ferozepur Road,
Lahore, Pakistan
Tel. +92-42-353-41121
Fax + 92-42-357-11828
E-mail: pakistanfederationbaseball@hotmail.com

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IIUI XI wins Friendly Cricket Match against RIUJ XI 

Islamabad, October 14, 2021 (PPI-OT):A friendly match between International Islamic University, Islamabad (IIUI XI) and Rawalpindi Islamabad Union of Journalists (RIUJ XI) was played here at the ground of the new campus of the university.

IIUI XI won the match by 73 runs. IIUI XI, playing first scored 197 in 10 overs with an impressive 90 runs of Mr. Fida who also grabbed the title of Man of the Match. In reply RIUJ XI posted 124 runs on the scorecard. The match was jointly organized by the Department of Protocol and Public relations, Office of the Students Advisor and RIUJ. The match activity was graced by President RIUJ, Shakeel Ahmed and General Secretary RIUJ, Siddiq Anzar along with other senior members of the union.

Vice President A and F Prof. Dr. N. B Jumani inaugurated the activity, while the concluding ceremony was graced by Vice President Academics, Professor. Dr. Ayaz Afsar as Chief Guest. Dean Social Sciences, Professor Dr. Zafar Iqbal, President ASA, Dr. Islamuddin, Students Advisor Dr. Tauqeer Sargana, Incharge Protocol and Public Relations were also present on the occasion. The closing ceremony was also joined Advisor to Prime Minister AJ and K, Murtaza Durrani, President Sports Board OGDCL, Syed Iftikhar Rizvi and his fellows from OGDCL, Secretary Finance OGDCL Naveed Aslam and Ejaz Hussain Shah Bukhari General Secretary All Pakistan Oil and Gas Employees Association.

Speaking on the occasion as a Chief Guest, Prof. Dr. Ayaz Afsar said that sports are an integral part of the learning process. He said competition for the sake of competition is nothing but it has long lasting constructive results whenever there is a healthy sports activity held. He said that life is coming back to normal routine and pace, and the university shall be conducting more such activities in future.

Mr. Shakeel Ahmed hailed IIUI’s management for splendid arrangements of the match. He explained the nature and scope of RIUJ and vowed that the union shall be always cooperative to disseminate promotion of education, research and academic excellence.

Mr. Siddiq Anzar thanked IIUI management for the collaboration, adding that it was just a start of such collaborations. He hoped that such constructive activities are necessary to build confidence and cooperation between the institutions. He also thanked Directorates of Protocol and Public Relations and Students Affairs for the collaboration.

Prof. Dr. Zafar Iqbal, Dean Social Sciences said it was an opportunity for the talented IIUI human resource to showcase the talent that indeed impressed everyone. He said sports and study are equally important, and encouragement of such activities is a prerequisite to bring youth to the grounds. Dr. Islam ud din praised the activity and hoped that such collaborations shall continue in future as well. He said IIUI faculty shall be eager to take part in such collaborations.

At the end, certificates of appreciation from RIUJ were given to the players of both teams and guests of the concluding ceremony. Winner and Runner up trophies were given by the chief guest to the captains, while souvenirs by IIUI were presented to General Secretary and President RIUJ.

For more information, contact:
Public Relations,
International Islamic University Islamabad (IIUI)
Room No.118, Admin Block, New Campus,
H-10 Sector, Islamabad, Pakistan
Tel: +92-51-9019249
Fax: +92-51-9257909
Email: iiuipublicrelations@iiu.edu.pk
Website: www.iiu.edu.pk