Since 2013, despite dozens of trips to other nations, there have been only six visits from heads of state or governments, with only two in 2014. Despite tight budgets in the country, the PM's trip to the US alone costed Rs. 91 million. This recap provides an insight into the spending by our leaders on foreign trips. While Pakistan’s heads of state and government like to visit foreign countries quite frequently, foreign dignitaries visiting Pakistan has become increasingly rare. Since the 2013 election, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and President Mamnoon Hussain have made 28 official trips abroad, but hosted only six such visits from the heads of state or government of five countries. Of those six visits, four visited Pakistan in 2013 and only two during 2014. The four state visits to Pakistan during 2013 were made by former Afghan president Hamid Karzai (August 26), Thailand Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra (August 20-21), British Prime Minister David Cameron (June 29) and Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan (December 23-24). During 2014, Pakistan was visited by only two foreign heads of state: newly elected Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and Bahrain’s King Sheikh Hamad. The sparse record in 2014 was at least partly due to political unrest in Islamabad. Chinese Premier Li Keqiang was scheduled to visit Islamabad in November 2014, but cancelled due to the sit-ins by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI). Official trips abroad by Pakistan’s heads of state and government have become politically controversial in a country where budgets have always been tight, even though the sums spent on them are miniscule relative to overall government spending. The 28 trips undertaken by Prime Minister Sharif and President Hussain have cost the taxpayers Rs391 million in total, according to government disclosures made to Parliament on Monday, less than 0.01% of the overall budget. In response to questions raised by Dr Azra Fazal Pechuho and Dr Nafisa Shah, both PPP members of...

In Paris on January 11, some 40 heads of states and governments stood among tens of thousands as a mark of solidarity with the journalists and staff of Charlie Hebdo. In Peshawar, on January 12, it was only the Army Chief, General Raheel Sharif, personally greeting the children back to the Army Public School (APS). Only a day earlier, the army had organised a visit to Peshawar for foreign ambassadors to see the APS students at a hospital. This chain of events clearly betrayed the divide between an embattled military that continues to simultaneously fight terror and insurgency in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P), Fata, Balochistan and crime in Karachi, and the civilian leaders, who remain entangled in settling petty political scores, personal pursuits of wealth and also keep raising security walls around them. This is Pakistan’s sad reality: the ruling elite is pre-occupied with personal agendas and is disconnected from the grassroots issues of daily life. Take the 20-point National Action Plan against terrorism, for instance; it promised formulation of a comprehensive policy to deal with the issue of Afghan refugees, beginning with the registration of all unregistered illegal refugees and eventually restricting them, Afghans in particular, to camps. This singles out Afghans as the possible drivers of violence and terrorism. The UNHCR speaks of roughly 1.7 million refugees all over Pakistan, most of them in Fata and K-P. At least 50 per cent of refugee families are scattered all around the greater Peshawar region. Most live in clusters of rented houses and countless are involved in small, medium and large businesses, such as trade, transport, cottage industries, construction and agro-farming. The UN runs more than 100 schools for refugee children, particularly those living in or around designated refugee camps. Local partners help in improving access to social sector services provided by the UNHCR. Afghan children are not only restricted to dedicated schools. They are...

“An extraordinary situation and circumstances exist which demand special measures for speedy trial of offenses relating to terrorism, waging of war or insurrection against Pakistan and prevention of acts threatening the security of Pakistan. There exists grave and unprecedented threat to the territorial integrity of Pakistan by miscreants, terrorists and foreign funded elements. Since there is an extraordinary situation as stated above it is expedient that an appropriate amendment is made in the constitution. The bill is designed to achieve the aforesaid objects.” That is the Statement of Objects and Reasons, of the 21st Constitutional Amendment Bill, unanimously passed by the National Assembly and the Senate on January 6, to mixed reception. Raza Rabbani of the PPP burst into tears, saying he felt he was betraying his conscience but remaining loyal to the party leadership. Leaders from Maulana Fazlur Rehman’s faction of Jamiat-e-Ulema-e-Islam (JUI-F), Jamaat-e-Islaami (JI) and Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaaf (PTI), perhaps predictably, refused to vote. The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, led by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif himself, could not be happier, all shaking hands and beaming smiles. The civil society remains divided, some seeing this as a necessary step and relying on the military intervention to fix the situation in the country, and others viewing it as a distortion of the constitution. The media, so instrumental in invoking a sense of patriotism for the army and the nation over the last several months, was quick to label it a soft coup. Ahmer Bilal Soofi, a constitutional expert and Supreme Court advocate, feels that the new military courts will be viewed as a parallel judicial system if seen through the lens of the law of peace. The constitution was written in a conservative environment, when such existential threats to Pakistan did not exist. Pakistan is under a systematic, systemic attack by a well-entrenched, well-coordinated, well-funded enemy. This...

As the parliament and the GHQ celebrate the passage of the 21st Amendment, they face pressing questions as to whether they will demonstrate a similar resolve in enforcing the rule of law. Firstly, will this unprecedented anti-terror national consensus trigger the much-needed strategic rethink too? So far, most of the conversation in and outside the parliament has focused on terrorist forces operating across the country with the assumption that they are peddling their own narrow agenda. But is it really so, or is this brutal war on the people and interests of Pakistan a major consequence of the country’s faulty foreign policy? Secondly, will the government and the military mobilize and deploy the same energy, with the support of the same two-thirds majority of parliament, for forcefully implementing counter-terror measures? Thirdly, will the parliament rise above expedience and legislate for bringing all educational institutions including the madrassas under government regulation? Under Article 25A of the constitution, provision of education is a primary responsibility of the state. So should be the oversight of seminaries and their curricula. Fourthly, will the 247 parliamentarians – hopefully joined by the PTI – also stand up to review the relics of the Gen Zia era, such as the Islamic Ideology Council (CII), headed by an orthodox Maulana Sherani who considers the council something supra-constitutional and thus above the parliament? Although the CII was an essential element of the 1973 constitution, it is nothing irreversibly sacrosanct. The constitution is a dynamic document that democracies keep adapting to changing circumstances. Can the government enforce the loudspeaker law to demonstrate its commitment? Fifthly, since the key to an effective fight against anti-state forces lies in enforcement of law, why does the government not implement the West Pakistan Regulation and Control of Loudspeakers and Sound Amplifiers Ordinance of 1965, amended on February 19,...

PESHAWAR : For the first time in Pakistan's history the health authorities have started administering polio injections in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata), officials said on Wednesday. The injectable/inactivated polio vaccine (IPV) is said to be highly effective in preventing paralytic disease caused by all three types of poliovirus and is currently being used by a majority of the polio-free developed and advanced countries. Officials in the Fata secretariat told Dawn.com that polio injections have been planned for 17,393 children in the frontier region of Bannu. They said that so far about 5,906 children have been injected with anti-polio vaccines and the five day drive will end on Friday. The experts are of the view that injections would be more effective as compared to polio drops, secondly the polio vaccination had been proved an uphill task due to law and order situation and attacks on the vaccinators besides denial on part of the parents. The inactivated polio virus vaccine is injected into a muscle or under the skin and is usually given by a healthcare professional in a hospital, clinic, or provider’s office. Pakistan is one of the three polio-endemic countries which have been using oral polio vaccine (OPV) since the disease has hit the country. The Polio Eradication and Endgame Strategic Plan 2013-18 of Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) had hinted at the new scheme in its April 2013 report of introducing IPV for the first time in three polio endemic countries – Pakistan, Afghanistan and Nigeria. Published on www.dawn.com on January 8, 2015

 A monthly update on the Covert War about the CIA strikes in the region of North Waziristan. This is the same place where Pakistan's Armed forces have been conducting a counter-terrorism operation. CIA Pakistan drone campaign reported to have killed nearly five times more people under Obama than under Bush. No confirmed civilian casualties in Pakistan for second year running. Domestic buildings continue to be the most frequently hit target in Pakistan. Highest ever number of drone strikes in a year in Somalia. Total people killed per strike in Yemen hits highest level. Pakistan December 2014 actions Total CIA strikes in December: 4 Total people reported killed: 14-20 All 2014 actions Total strikes: 25 Total reported killed: 114-183 Civilians reported killed: 0-2 Children reported killed: 0-2 Total reported injured: 44-67 All actions 2004 – 2014 Total Obama strikes: 357 Total US strikes since 2004: 408 Total reported killed: 2,410-3,902 Civilians reported killed: 416-959 Children reported killed: 168-204 Total reported injured: 1,133-1,706 Although the CIA did not carry out a strike in Pakistan for the first five months of the year, drones were reported to have killed at least 114 people in 2014, more than in all of the previous year. The number of people killed per strike, or casualty rate, also increased slightly. The CIA’s strikes have been concentrated on North Waziristan where the Pakistan military has been conducting its own counter-terrorism operation. The drone strikes began on June 11, five days before the Pakistani offensive. The timing fuelled speculation that the Pakistani and US governments had resumed coordination on drone strikes after an apparent deterioration of relations in 2011. Pakistan’s military offensive came after the breakdown of peace talks between Islamabad and the Pakistan Taliban. All but one of the CIA’s strikes this year hit in an area where the Pakistan military has been carrying out air or ground operations. Almost half the strikes...

On December 31, 2014, leading members of the media, civil society, political parties and former military and law enforcement officials gathered at the Center for Research and Security Studies, Islamabad, for a roundtable discussion on the counter-terror National Plan of Action, announced by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, in the wake of the devastating terrorist attack on the Army Public School in Peshawar. The following is a summary of the discussion, and a list of recommendations for the Pakistan government. A list of participants is below, followed by a list of formal recommendations, and then a short summary of the major themes discussed that do not necessarily fall into any set of recommendations. Participants # Name Organization/Affiliation 1 Ahmer Bilal Soofi Lawyer, former Law Minister 2 AVM (r) Shahzad Chandhry Security Analyst 3 Ayaz Wazir Former Ambassador 4 Dr. Shoaib Suddle Former Federal Tax Ombudsman of Pakistan, Former Head Intelligence Bureau, Former IG Police Sindh/Balochistan 5 Farhatullah Baber Senator PPP, former Press Sec. for President Zardari 6 Gen. (r) Asif Yaseen Malik Former DG ISI, Secretary Defense 7 Gen. (r) Mehmood Aslam Retired Officer 8 Maj Gen.(r) Athar Abbas Former DG ISPR 9 Hashim Babar Qaumi Watan Party 10 Jan Achakzai Spokesperson, JUI-F 11 Mariam Khan CAMP (NGO) 12 Mirwais Khan JUI-F Youth Wing 13 Murtaza Solangi Journalist, Former DG Radio Pakistan 14 Najib Ahmad Radio News Network, FM99 15 Nasim Zahra Journalist, Host Dunya News 16 Naveed Shinwari CEO CAMP 17 Shahzad Akbar Director/FFFR, Legal Fellow Reprieve 18 Syed Talat Hussain Journalist, Host Saach TV, Geo TV 19 Tahira Abdullah Human Rights Activist, HRCP 20 Mian Sanaullah Former Ambassador Formal Recommendations Overarching and Governance Recommendations There is a distinct lack of political will. The National Action Plan's agenda items are not new ideas. There is also a complete lack of ownership, even now. APCs are confidence-building measures, not partners in...

The attack on the school in Peshawar in December shocked the world. In Pakistan, the upshot is a growing military shadow once more looming over a fragile democracy.                               For some it was a show of national solidarity in the wake of the horrific Peshawar school attack. For others, it was an iron-fisted response to terrorism in the country. But for political analysts and critics, the latest amendment to Pakistan’s constitution is nothing less than a soft coup in the making. Pakistan’s parliament—the National Assembly and the Senate—today passed unopposed the 21st amendment and the Pakistan Army Amendment bill 2015, paving the way for military courts. Although the prime minister, Nawaz Sharif, called it a bill representative of all parties, a number—including Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (F), Jamaat-e-Islami and Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf—abstained in the vote. The bill allows for military courts, under a military officer, to preside over terror-related cases for two years. In a country which only saw a renewed democratic transition in 2013, after long periods of military rule and premature government departures, establishing special military courts won’t do any good for the cause of democracy. Raza Rabbani, a well-known democrat and member of the Pakistan People’s Party, broke into tears after casting his vote in support of the bill in the Senate. He called his vote a betrayal of his conscience but an obligation towards his party, and said he felt ashamed. Rabbani is not alone in his frustration. Aneditorial in Dawn, the country’s most-read English daily, called the event ‘a sad day’ as it would put the country indirectly under military rule. The government led by Sharif’s Pakistan Muslim League (N) has rationalised the move as an ‘extraordinary measure for an extraordinary situation’. The Pakistan army’s Inter-Services Public Relations said military courts were not the army’s desire but the need of the hour. While right wing...

Peshawar epitomises the socio-political decline and degeneration of governance structures because of Pakistan’s involvement in two wars next door since December 1979. This turned the city into a favourite destination for the Western world of intelligence, as well as anti-communism religious zealots. Some 25 years later, on December 16, 2014, Peshawar endured a tragedy with an assault on the Army Public School, leaving nearly 150 children and adults dead. This was the cumulative consequence of the policies that the country and its institutions have pursued for long. An air of gloom and doom hangs over Peshawar, which has degenerated into becoming a city with all the symptoms of dysfunction — signs which make a reversal terminally difficult. Deeply-entrenched cynicism, bureaucratic inertia, bloated egos of bureaucrats and politicians, the omnipresent nexus between the militant-mullah and organised crime, and the overarching shadows of a predominant military establishment — caught up in the consequences of its policies of the past — have all combined to turn the provincial capital with an overflowing population into a governance nightmare and a security challenge. They epitomise the governmental decline that Pakistan in general has gone through. Greater Peshawar remains beset with the fallout of an ever-increasing population size — which has at least doubled because of the IDP influx — straining the political economy as well as burdening the social service infrastructure. Peshawar represents the failure of multiple roadblocks that have become a painful nuisance to its residents. The presence of these roadblocks, manned by security personnel, defies common logic. Terrorists never cross these check-points. When they do come, they come heavily armed and mow down 150-odd children and adults. When they decide to kill over a hundred Christians at the All-Saints Church, they do so without detection. What is the point then of erecting security walls and putting up check...