Current Projects
Sabawoon Showcase: Book Reading as a Hobby
January 19, 2017, Peshawar: The latest episode of Sabawoon, flagship radio program of Center for Research and Security Studies (CRSS)[i], focused on the book reading and the role of social media in decline of book-reading among youngsters. The key discussion points included the importance of book reading, overview of public libraries, conversion of book shops into general stores and the effects of social media on the trend of book reading. Furthermore, the program also mentioned the digital libraries available in public sector universities in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and on the Higher Education Commission’s website. The program was aired under the theme of Ranra (light) on Thursday. Professor Ghulam Rehmani, Government Degree College, Peshawar, took part in the show as studio guest. A radio report shared facts and figures about the drop in book reading habits and the input of social media and internet into this phenomenon. Eight callers took part live in the program. They shared their views on the subject from different angles. Mr. Rehmani said: “Books are said to be the main source of information but the advent of internet has diverted the interest of most people towards digital media. People ignore reading books because they are more exposed to computer, mobile and internet and spare lesser time for reading books.” Sabawoon airs Monday through Thursday on FM-101.5 Peshawar & DI Khan 711 KHZ from 3:20 PM to 4:00 PM. [i]Sabawoon is a flagship radio program by CRSS in the KP/FATA region, designed to highlight local issues, and promote fundamental global values such as women’s rights, rule of law, equal citizenry, democracy, governance and accountability. It airs four times a week, under four themes. On Monday, Jarga Marrakka covers current affairs and issues, coupled with government and other senior officials. On Tuesday, Da Semi Jaaj gives a holistic regional overview of the most important stories across the length and breadth of KP/FATA. On Wednesday, Jwandai...
CHINA WATCH [JANUARY 17-23] CHINA DEFENDS THE CHINA-PAKISTAN ECONOMIC CORRIDOR (CPEC)
China’s defense of the development of CPEC against the Indian claims was the top story of last week. The Ministry of Interior has finally issued a notification to establish Special Security Division (SSD) for the security of workers engaged in CPEC projects. The Chief Minister (CM) of Indian-held Kashmir, Mehbooba Mufti, has proposed that a trade corridor - with Kashmir as its ‘nucleus’ - should be established to connect South Asia with Central Asia. Khyber Pakhtnkhwa’s CM, Pervez Khattak, has said that the western route is now part of the CPEC and everything is on paper. Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) Police have claimed to have arrested a group of people financed by India’s Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) to sabotage the CPEC. China Defends CPEC: China has stood in defense of CPEC against the Indian criticism. In a veiled reference to New Delhi‘s concerns over CPEC’s passage through Kashmir, Narendra Modi had said that “[R]espect for sovereignty is important for regional connectivity to improve.”[1] He had added that both India and China “need to show sensitivity and respect for each other‘s concerns and interests.” In response to Modi’s remarks, China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunyung said that CPEC “is a project that is devised for long term development and cooperation in various fields.” He further said that “[I]t is for regional pace and development.” However India didn’t stop there and Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar retorted that “CPEC passes through a territory that we see as our territory.” Although China has maintained that Pakistan and India should resolve Kashmir issue in peaceful manner through mutual dialogue, it has in practice backed the stance of Pakistan. Both the neighbors have sped up progress on the corridor that also passes through Indian-claimed territory. Security Division for CPEC: The Ministry of Interior has issued a notification to establish SSD for the security of workers engaged in CPEC projects. The division will be deployed...
Afghanistan’s Incomplete New Electoral Law: Changes and Controversies
Afghanistan’s new electoral law has come into force, which means that the requirement of electoral reform ahead of the next elections has – at least nominally – been met. AAN’s Ali Yawar Adili and Martine van Bijlert discuss the main features of the new law and note that the most controversial and complicated changes have been passed on to the Independent Election Commission to decide on. These include, most prominently, an instruction to decrease the size of the electoral constituencies for the parliamentary and provincial council elections, which could usher in an overhaul of the electoral system. This will be a politically fraught exercise, which will pave the way for a new round of bickering and delay. It also threatens to drag the newly established commission into political controversy. In September 2016, the government finally managed to agree on a new electoral law, and, in November 2016, the president appointed and inaugurated a new Independent Election Commission (IEC) and Electoral Complaints Commission (ECC). The law was passed by presidential decree, based on a ruling by the Independent Commission for Overseeing the Implementation of the Constitution (ICOIC), which ruled that, in this case, the president did not need to go through parliament. The ICOIC based its ruling on a different interpretation than the parliament had previously arrived at of an article in the constitution which prohibits the parliament from discussing the electoral law in the last year of its session (for details see previous AAN reporting here). The new law combines the two main laws that previously governed the electoral process and bodies: the Electoral Law and the Law on the Structures, Authorities and Duties of the Electoral Bodies (or Structure Law, for short). (1) The new law – simply titled ‘Election Law’ – replaces earlier legislative decrees that were issued by President Ashraf Ghani (but not enforced, as they had not been passed by parliament), as well as the two...
Sabawoon Showcase: Regional Review of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA)
January 17, 2017, Peshawar: The latest episode of Sabawoon[i], flagship radio program of Center for Research and Security Studies (CRSS), was presented under the theme of Da Semi Jaaj (regional review) on Tuesday. The program takes upon the important news of the region and provides a crisp analysis. Following reports were included in the program: Problems faced by the students in central Kurram Agency due to school buildings damaged during the war against militancy The launching ceremony of an association for the rights of disabled persons by a charity in Bannu district The closure of twenty girls’ schools in Charsadda district with negative impact on female education The issue of female teachers of community schools in Mohmand Agency because of non-payment of salaries for the last seven months A jirga held in Swat to divide it in upper and lower districts Sabawoon airs Monday through Thursday on FM-101.5 Peshawar & DI Khan 711 KHZ from 3:20 PM to 4:00 PM. [i] Sabawoon is a flagship radio program by CRSS in the KP/FATA region, designed to highlight local issues, and promote fundamental global values such as women’s rights, rule of law, equal citizenry, democracy, governance and accountability. It airs four times a week, under four themes. On Monday, Jarga Marrakka covers current affairs and issues, coupled with government and other senior officials. On Tuesday, Da Semi Jaaj gives a holistic regional overview of the most important stories across the length and breadth of KP/FATA. On Wednesday, Jwandai Jazbey covers issues most important to youth, students and females. Finally, on Thursday, Ranra covers social issues that have a cultural angle and/or impact.
Obama’s Afghanistan Legacy: What Trump Faces in America’s Longest War
Shamim Seyal should be a symbol of all that Afghanistan has achieved with the help of the U.S. Instead, the principal of a large school for girls is on the shifting frontline of America's longest war, an example of the raw resilience needed to simply survive in the country. "Sometimes there are Taliban checkpoints and sometimes Afghan government checkpoints beside the school," said Seyal, who runs the Fatima Al-Zahra School in the city of Kunduz, which has been fought over for years and briefly fell into the militant group's hands in September 2015. Seyal and her family have been targeted by the insurgents, who often try to kill prominent women and destroy girls' schools. They have also been forced to flee their home after being threatened by the Taliban. It was not supposed to be this way when President Barack Obama took office in 2009. As a candidate, he pledged to run extremists out of the country. But to the dismay of millions of Afghans, the war has not been won or even finished. In fact, many believe the group, which harbored Osama bin Laden before and after the 9/11 attacks, is resurgent. Analysts say they pose a threat not only to Afghanistan but potentially elsewhere in the world. Here is a glimpse of Obama's legacy in Afghanistan, and what the president is bequeathing President-elect Donald Trump. What did Obama pledge to do? As a candidate, Obama complained that his predecessor George W. Bush had missed crucial opportunities in the region. "We could have deployed the full force of American power to hunt down and destroy Osama bin Laden, al Qaeda, the Taliban, and all of the terrorists responsible for 9/11, while supporting real security in Afghanistan," he said during a speech on July 15, 2008. As president, Obama declared, he would "make the fight against al Qaeda and the Taliban the top priority that it should be. This is a war that we have to win." The U.S. "will be taking the fight to al-Qaeda in Afghanistan and Pakistan," he said. So how did that...
Afghan Weekly (Jan 13 – Jan 19, 2017)
The thaw in Pakistan and Afghanistan relations could not sustain for long and, again, a kink was observed in the relations of the two neighborly countries following the recent deadly bombings carried out by Taliban in capital Kabul. In a telephonic conversation with Pakistan’s Army Chief of Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa on Sunday, President Ashraf Ghani said that terrorists who planned the recently lethal bombings in Kabul are moving around at liberty in Pakistan and that Afghanistan was resolute to hit back at them at an appropriate time. Though, a presidential palace press release states that Bajwa assured Ghani that past mistakes would not be repeated by Pakistan. While, on the other hand, quoting Bajwa on Twitter, a Pakistani army spokesman said that General Bajwa told Ghani that all militant sanctuaries and training encampments have been exterminated in Pakistan and now it is the up to the Afghans to act against the terrorists on their soil. "Blame games are damaging to lasting peace," said Bajwa, while bringing up the anti-Pakistan rhetoric after recent terrorists attacks in Afghanistan.[1] In the midst of this strain, top American and Pakistani military commanders have once again endorsed their backing for an Afghan-led peace and reconciliation process. Pakistan’s Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa and US Central Command Chief General Joseph Votel pledged support for Afghan peace efforts at a meeting in Rawalpindi on January 18.[2] Russia’s return in Afghanistan both captures the hopes and skepticism surrounding the Afghan dilemma. This week, Moscow has called on the leaders of the Taliban group to abandon violence and launch an intra-Afghan channel of communication to end the ongoing violence in the country; this statement came from Maria Zakharova, spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia.[3] At the other end of the world, President Obama made his last call to National Unity Government leaders on January 19, 2017, and...
India and Pakistan’s Dangerous War of Words
The arms build-up in the region has raised the nuclear stakes Separating noise from reality on the subcontinent can be especially difficult. Thus the latest rhetorical hostility between India and Pakistan could be just that another spat between nuclear-armed neighbours who hesitate to match words with weapons because of the dangers of mutual annihilation. Yet, the risk of a confrontation that could escalate into something worse has been significantly increased as a result of the arms race in the region. For good reason, global attention is focused on preventing North Korea from developing the ballistic missile capacity to strike the US west coast with nuclear weapons. That should not, however, deflect from the ever-present threat of India and Pakistan stumbling into a nuclear exchange. As a reminder, officials in Islamabad warned on Thursday that they would not hesitate to deploy the full range of their weapons should India invade. That salvo was a response to confirmation from India’s new army chief of the existence of “cold-start” plans. This was an explicit acknowledgment from Delhi of long-rumoured efforts to develop a swift cross-border response that would pre-empt diplomatic intervention in the event, for example, of a major terrorist incident like that in Mumbai in 2008. It was wise to keep these plans under wraps until now. By spelling them out, India has not only lost the element of surprise, it has also raised public expectations — potentially increasing the pressure on government in the future to launch a rapid retaliatory response before the wisdom of such action has been adequately assessed. Pakistan’s retort was predictable if equally unhelpful. It is a reflection of how far things have soured. In December 2015, Narendra Modi became the first Indian premier in a decade to visit Pakistan, when he made a stopover in Lahore to celebrate his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif’s birthday. In the context of 66 years of hostility and three wars, just the...
Beyond Perceptions
The euphoria is swelling in our military circles that Pakistan has finally reached a point in its diplomacy where it has started weaning away the Russian Federation from its strategic partner India. On the face value, the swell seems justified but not to the extent that Pakistan would replace India ever for Russia. The Russia- Pakistan interdependence is imbalanced and marginal, nowhere nearing the partnership witnessed between India and Russia. At best, recent warm up can be deemed as necessary adjustments to advance respective national interest. The volatile developments in the region will continue to ensure that such adjustments should dominate their relations. How far Russia moves from its cold war ally inversely depends how far India deepens its ties with US in areas where Russia directly feels threatened or isolated globally. That stage has not come yet. The first positive readjustment came when in 2014 Russia agreed to sell arms to Pakistan including four Russian-made Mi-35M attack helicopters to be delivered in 2017 to Pakistan’s military. Then, in September 2016, the Russian Federation ignored the Indian protests and held its first joint military exercise (Friendship -2016) in September - October 2016 at the Special Forces Training Centre (Cherat in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa). Not only, Russia ignored the Indian protests, it decided to hold the Second joint exercise in 2017. In 2016, the Russian Kalashnikov Concern participated in the trials for a main new assault rifle for Pakistan’s infantry. These developments caused speculations of possible deals regarding Su-35 and Su-37 aircrafts, and even air-defence systems. Media reported Russian investment ($2 billion) for the proposed natural gas pipeline agreement with Islamabad. In early December, Russia came to Pakistan’s rescue at the Heart of Asia Conference when the Indian Prime Minister and the Afghan President used very offensive language against Pakistan. Russian special envoy to Afghanistan Mr. Zamir...
Afghanistan and The New World Order
As Donald Trump takes oath as the 45th President of the US, history seems to be going full circle in one part of the world. The enemies of yesteryear are cosying up to one another and allies of yesterday are embracing estrangement, if not outright hostility over Afghanistan. The display of shifting sands was witnessed in Moscow on December 27, 2016, where Chinese and Pakistani officials huddled with their Russian hosts. The mooting point was Afghanistan, whose government was not invited. A joint statement, issued after the dialogue, expressed support for talks with the Afghan Taliban and concern over the spread of the Islamic State (IS). The Moscow huddle added one new element to the complicated Afghan chessboard — a reassertive Russia in Afghanistan. Russia admitted its outreach to Taliban last December, and who welcomed the Moscow talks. Three reasons are being ascribed to its new Afghan strategy — to maintain stability in Afghanistan, check proliferation of drug trafficking and to defeat the IS. Taliban consider the IS as a rival and have been fighting it. Russians seem to be following a familiar game plan — change the dynamics of a conflict in its favour through muscular diplomacy and hard military power. It deployed this strategy in Syria and in Crimea before that. It is embracing disenchanted global and regional players — Iran and Turkey in Syria, and China and Pakistan over Afghanistan. Moscow is also reaching out to Iran to join its initiative on Afghanistan, while Afghans, following their public displeasure, are also likely to be invited to the next meeting. Russia is expecting to become a dominant player in the Afghan conflict just like in Syria. In Syria, Moscow’s involvement transformed President Bashar al-Assad government’s shrinking writ over the areas under opposition control into new military gains in cities like Aleppo. It tamed the Western and Arab-backed opposition to a compromise ceasefire on the one hand and the West’s military support to...
Sabawoon Showcase: Performance of the Right to Information (RTI) Commission in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP)
January 16, 2017, Peshawar: The latest episode of Sabawoon[i], flagship radio program of Center for Research and Security Studies (CRSS), focused on the performance of the KP’s RTI Act and its Commission. The central discussion points included the need for the RTI Act and Commission to ensure timely delivery of public services in KP, improvement of governance and accountability mechanism through the Act and review of important sections of the Act. Moreover, the program highlighted the lack of awareness about the Act and Commission’s role and the extension of the Act to Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) and Provincially Administered Tribal Areas (PATA) of Pakistan. The program was aired under the theme of Jarga Marrakka (debate and council) on Monday. Mr. Azmat Hanif Orakzai, Chief Commissioner RTI Commission KP Peshawar, and Mr. Aziz Buneri, a Peshawar based journalist, were the studio guests. A radio report shared statistics about the performance of KP’s RTI Commission. Five callers took live part in the program. They urged government to extend the RTI Act to both FATA and PATA. Mr. Orakzai said: “In addition to its own efforts, RTI Commission has full time liaison with other departments to help public and make the commission work more effectively.” Sabawoon airs Monday through Thursday on FM-101.5 Peshawar & DI Khan 711 KHZ from 3:20 PM to 4:00 PM. [i] Sabawoon is a flagship radio program by CRSS in the KP/FATA region, designed to highlight local issues, and promote fundamental global values such as women’s rights, rule of law, equal citizenry, democracy, governance and accountability. It airs four times a week, under four themes. On Monday, Jarga Marrakka covers current affairs and issues, coupled with government and other senior officials. On Tuesday, Da Semi Jaaj gives a holistic regional overview of the most important stories across the length and breadth of KP/FATA. On Wednesday, Jwandai Jazbey covers issues most important to youth, students...
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TESTIMONIALS
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I am also a member of National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Information and Broadcasting. Recently, we held a meeting with the Director General of Radio Pakistan and we told them to initiate such local programs (like Constituency Hour) in regional languages to educate and inform people. Even Indian Radio can be heard in FATA which is being used for propaganda purposes and must be closed. Therefore, we should launch some standard and quality programs like CRSS that will change the taste of the listeners.