Day: March 10, 2023

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In-House Session on “Latest Developments on Issues of Arms Control and Disarmament”

Islamabad, March 10, 2023 (PPI-OT):
The Arms Control and Disarmament Centre (ACDC) at the Institute of Strategic Studies (ISSI) organised an In-House Session on “Latest Developments on Issues of Arms Control and Disarmament” with Ambassador Khalil Hashmi, Permanent Representative of Pakistan to the United Nations and other International Organisations in Geneva.

The discussion was chaired by Ambassador Sohail Mahmood, Director General, and ISSI. The participants included: Ambassador Ali Sarwar Naqvi, Executive Director, Centre for International Strategic Studies (CISS); Ambassador Zamir Akram, Pakistan’s former Permanent Representative to the UN in Geneva; Ambassador Shah M Jamal; Brigadier Haroon Rashid, Director General (SECDIV), Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA); Professor Dr. Zafar Nawaz Jaspal, Director, School of Politics and International Relations (SPIR), Quaid-i- Azam University (QAU); Major General (Retd) Ausaf Ali; Dr. Pervez Butt, former Chairman Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC); Dr. Salma Malik, Assistant Professor, Quaid-i-Azam University (QAU); Ms. Rubina Waseem, Assistant Professor, National Defence University (NDU); Commodore Baber Bilal Haider, Director, National Institute of Maritime Affairs (NIMA); and Major General (Retd) Naseer Ali Khan. Malik Qasim Mustafa, Director ACDC, made the introductory remarks.

DG Ambassador Sohail Mahmood, in his welcome remarks, highlighted the obtaining global environment marked by revival of traditional geopolitics, great-power competition, military conflicts, existential threat posed by Climate Change, and an evidently weakening commitment to multilateralism. He noted that these dynamics had profound implications for international cooperation, including on issues related to arms control and disarmament.

Ambassador Khalil Hashmi apprised the participants of recent developments on the issues of arms control and disarmament, especially with reference to the discourse in the Conference on Disarmament (CD). He shared his assessment of the state of play on important agenda-points in the CD and Pakistan’s approach.

Ambassador Hashmi’s insightful presentation was followed by an engaging interactive session with the participants. Ambassador Khalid Mahmood, Chairman BoG of ISSI, made concluding remarks.

For more information, contact:
Institute of Strategic Studies Islamabad (ISSI)
Sector F-5/2, Islamabad – 44000, Pakistan
Tel: +92-51-9202481
Fax: +92-51-9204658
E-mail: strategy@issi.org.pk
Website: http://issi.org.pk/

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Education for All: Habib University’s Religious Giving Campaign

Karachi, March 10, 2023 (PPI-OT): As the month of Ramzan is near, Habib University in Pakistan has launched a religious giving campaign to encourage people to donate Zakat to higher education for those who cannot afford. The campaign aims to provide access and opportunities to students from different socio-economic backgrounds.

The campaign uses a powerful digital video campaign (DVC) featuring Pakistani actor and model Hassan Ahmed, who portrays the son of a professor seeking to change higher education. The message is clear: education is the key to a better future and quality higher education is necessary to ensure the prosperity of the nation.

Habib University has granted 100% scholarships to 360 students through HU TOPS since its inception in 2014, and currently, 85% of the student body is on some sort of scholarship or financial aid. The campaign is a call to action for all those who believe in the importance of education and wish to donate towards higher education for the betterment of society.

Religious giving is an important way to support philanthropy and is considered a foundational dimension of religious thought. All religions have emphasized religious giving. Zakat is an obligatory donation that Muslims regard as a mandatory act within their faith. Zakat is religious philanthropy that cleanses wealth and purifies the giver.

In the 21st century, global philanthropy is growing faster and helping the world to change. More and more wealthy individuals, families, and corporations are giving to support higher education, which is helping their nation work towards goals of development and sustainability.

Muslims utilize Waqf as a tool to preserve their wealth throughout time and pass it down through the generations to benefit future generations. Waqf is a religious endowment that entails donating a building, land, school, hospitals or other assets for charitable purposes with no intention of recovering them.

The elders or contributors have a responsibility under waqf to make sure that the assets committed for this endowment purpose may be maintained from one generation to the next.

Waqf played a large role in the social, political, and economic life of the Muslim community and was utilized to significantly enhance the Muslim world. The waqf institution was crucial to the economic growth of a nation during the Ottoman caliphate, especially in providing a wide range of services including educational institutions, health care facilities, and public gathering areas.

In conclusion, higher education is essential for the progress and development of any nation. Habib University’s Zakat campaign is a noble cause that aims to provide access to quality education to those young and talented individuals who cannot afford it.

The campaign uses religious giving as a means to support philanthropy and is a call to action for all those who believe in the importance of education. Through endowments to higher education, communities can support future generations to work for the betterment of the society and nation.

For more information, contact:
Habib University
Karachi, Pakistan
Tel: +92-21-34301051-55
Email: marketing@habib.edu.pk
Website: www.habib.edu.pk

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Online session on “Entrepreneurship as a Career Choice” held at Turbat University

Turbat, March 10, 2023 (PPI-OT): An online session on “Entrepreneurship as a Career Choice and Entrepreneurial Opportunities for Youth of Balochistan” was held at the University of Turbat (UoT) on 9th March 2023 in the Video Conference Room of the university.

The participants of the session were students from various departments of the university. Mr. Bashir Agha, Manager, of the National Incubation Center (NIC) at the University of Balochistan, and Consultant, Trainer, and Entrepreneurial expert was the resource person of the session.

The session was organized by the Office of Research, Innovation, and Commercialization (ORIC) in collaboration with the National Expansion Plan of NIC, University of Balochistan. Mr. Bashir Agha discussed various business opportunities for the youth of Balochistan and explained the Business Canvas Model.

Dr. Ghulam Jan, Director of ORIC thanked the resource person for sharing his expertise during the session. He said he looked forward to organizing more sessions at Turbat University in collaboration with the University of Balochistan in the future.

For more information, contact:
University of Turbat
University Town Ginnah, M-8 Road Turbat,
Balochistan, Pakistan
Tel: +92-852-412045
Email: info@uot.edu.pk
Website: https://uot.edu.pk

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Organized an in-house session on “Updates on Arms Control and Disarmament Issues”

Islamabad, March 10, 2023 (PPI-OT): The Arms Control and Disarmament Center (ECDC) at the Institute of Strategic Studies (ISSI) held an update on “Arms Control and Disarmament Issues” with Khalil Hashmi, Permanent Representative and Ambassador of Pakistan to the United Nations. Organized an in-house session on the topic “Rift”.

The event was presided over by Ambassador Sohail Mehmood, Director General, and ISSI. Participants included: Ambassador Ali Sarwar Naqvi, Executive Director, Center for International Strategic Studies; Ambassador Zameer Akram, former Permanent Representative of Pakistan to the United Nations in Geneva; Ambassador Shah Muhammad Jamal; Brigadier Haroon Rasheed, Director General (Strategic Export Control Division), Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Prof. Dr. Zafar Nawaz Jaspal, Director, School of Politics and International Relations, Quaid-e-Azam University; Major General (Rtd) Usaf Ali. Dr. Pervez Butt, former Chairman Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission; Dr. Salma Malik, Assistant Professor, Quaid-i-Azam University; Ms. Rubina Wasim, Assistant Professor, National Defense University; Commodore Babar Bilal Haider, Director, National Institute of Maritime Affairs; and Major General (Rtd) Naseer Ali Khan. Director ACDC Malik Qasim Mustafa gave introductory remarks.

DG ISSI Ambassador Sohail Mahmood in his welcome remarks highlighted the revival of traditional geopolitics, great power competition, military conflict, existential threat posed by climate change and the evident weakening commitment to multilateralism. These dynamics have profound implications for international cooperation, including on issues related to arms control and disarmament, he said.

Ambassador Khalil Hashmi apprised the participants of recent developments on arms control and disarmament, particularly with regard to discussions at the Conference on Disarmament (CD). He shared his assessment of the state of play on the key agenda points and Pakistan’s perspective in the CD.

Ambassador Hashmi’s insightful presentation was followed by an engaging interactive session with the participants. Chairman ISSI Ambassador Khalid Mehmood delivered the closing remarks.

For more information, contact:
Institute of Strategic Studies Islamabad (ISSI)
Sector F-5/2, Islamabad – 44000, Pakistan
Tel: +92-51-9202481
Fax: +92-51-9204658
E-mail: strategy@issi.org.pk
Website: http://issi.org.pk/

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Fazalhaq Farooqi fined 10 percent match-fee for showing dissent

Lahore, March 10, 2023 (PPI-OT): Islamabad United’s Fazalhaq Farooqi has been fined 10 percent of his match-fee for breaching the PCB Code of Conduct for Players and Players Support Personnel during his side’s match against Lahore Qalandars in the 26th fixture of the HBL PSL 8 at the Pindi Cricket Stadium on Thursday evening.

Farooqi was found to have violated Article 2.5 of the PCB Code of Conduct, which reads as: “Using language, actions or gestures which disparage or which could provoke an aggressive reaction from a batter upon his/her dismissal during a match”.

The incident happened in the 19th over of Lahore Qalandars’ batting, when Farooqi used abusive language after dismissing the batter.

Farooqi pleaded guilty to the charge and accepted the sanction proposed by match referee Roshan Mahanama. The charge was levelled by on-field umpires Aleem Dar and Faisal Khan Afridi.

Meanwhile, Islamabad United’s captain Shadab Khan and Multan Sultans’ Shan Masood and Tim David were fined 10 percent of their match fees for breaching a Level 1 offence of the HBL PSL Code of Conduct in separate incidents during their side’s match in the HBL PSL 8 on Tuesday.

All three players were found to have violated Article 2.8 of the HBL PSL Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel, which relates to “Showing dissent at an Umpire’s decision during a Match”.

In Shadab’s case, the incident happened in the fourth ball of 20th over of Multan Sultans’ batting, when a wide ball was given by the on-field umpire and upon that Shadab came running from the boundary line and expressed his disappointment at the decision.

As regards to Shan, on the penultimate ball of 14th over of Multan Sultans batting, Shan expressed his disappointment after the umpire didn’t signal it one for the over for a short pitched ball. Similarly, Tim David on the second ball of the 18th over of Multan Sultans’ batting, expressed his displeasure over the leg-umpire’s decision not to call a short pitched ball a wide delivery.

Shadab and Shan pleaded guilty to the offences and accepted the sanctions proposed to be imposed by Roshan Mahanama and, as such, there was no need for a formal hearing. Meanwhile, David challenged the decision and after the formal hearing, the match referee upheld his decision. The charges were levelled by on-field umpires Faisal Afridi and Rashid Riaz.

For more information, contact:
Media Manager,
Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB)
Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore 54600, Pakistan
Tel: +92-42-5717231-4
Fax: +92-42-5711860
Website: www.pcb.com.pk

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China tops Pakistan’s preference for security partnership with 54% people choosing China as a security partner, followed by US (14%), Russia (7%) and EU (3%) GIA and Gallup and Gilani

Islamabad, March 10, 2023 (PPI-OT): According to a survey conducted by Gallup and Gilani Pakistan, China tops Pakistan’s preference for security partnership with 54% people choosing China as a security partner, followed by US (14%), Russia (7%) and EU (3%).

A representative sample of men and women in Pakistan was asked the following question: “Which of the following would you prefer your country to partner with for security – the US, China, Russia, or the EU? If there is another preference, please state it?” 54% responded China, 14% preferred US, 7% said Russia while 9% said others and only 3% said that they would prefer a security partnership with The EU.

Question: “Which of the following would you prefer your country to partner with for security – the US, China, Russia, or The EU? If there is another preference, please state it?”

For more information, contact:
Head Office,
Gallup Pakistan
Islamabad, Pakistan
Tel: +92-51-8445080
Email: isb@gallup.com.pk, caf@gallup.com.pk
Website: www.gallup.com.pk