ISLAMABAD: Pakistani expatriates recently lamented the absence of voting rights for overseas communities and urged Pakistan’s election oversight body to devise a system that would enable their inclusion in the decision-making process at home.
National elections in the politically and economically troubled South Asian nation were initially supposed to be held on November 90, days after the dissolution of the lower house of parliament in August. However, the elections were postponed to February 8 due to the delimitation of constituencies following a new census.
Before the ouster of former prime minister Imran Khan in a parliamentary no-trust vote in April 2022, his administration had not only endorsed the use of electronic voting machines (EVMs) to enhance “transparency” and “inclusivity” in elections but it appeared to be taking practical steps in this regard, much to the delight of overseas Pakistanis.
But in May 2022, the coalition government of former prime minister Shehbaz Sharif passed the Election Amendment Act 2022, revoking overseas Pakistanis’ right to vote and prohibiting the use of EVMs in general elections.
While many overseas Pakistanis were hopeful that the upcoming election would bring stability to the South Asian country, few were skeptical about the transparency of the polls.
“Overseas Pakistanis here are quite hopeful that the elections will bring Pakistan out of this crisis of instability, turmoil, unrest and chaos,” Syed Kamran Akhtar Gilani, a Pakistani expatriate in Saudi Arabia, told Arab News from Riyadh.
He said almost every overseas Pakistani in the Kingdom was enthusiastic about the upcoming polls and was actively participating in election campaigns through “social media platforms.”
Qaiser Abbas, a Pakistani expatriate in the United Kingdom (UK), was skeptical of the possibility of a free and fair election taking place in Pakistan.
“Pakistan is already in financial crisis, and spending billions of public money in this useless process will add more burden on the ordinary people as overseas Pakistanis are not allowed to vote and members of the main opposition party are being denied their basic right to stand in the election,” Abbas told Arab News from London.
He said a free and fair election and a stable government elected by the people were the only solution to a “stable and durable” Pakistan.
Mazhar Abbasi, a United Arab Emirates-based expat, expressed dismay over their exclusion from the electoral process at home.
“It is very sad that overseas Pakistanis send so much remittances, is it not our right to play our role in the decisions of our country,” he asked.
Abbasi said the fate of Pakistan should be decided by the people of Pakistan.
“I want to go to Pakistan and cast a vote but in these circumstances, I am thinking that if I cast a vote in Pakistan, will the elections be fair,” he told Arab News from Dubai. “I do not think that the elections will be fair.”
When asked why overseas Pakistanis could not vote from the respective countries in which they are based, ECP spokesperson Syed Nadeem Haider referred to the Election (Amendment) Act 2022.
“If an expatriate is a registered voter and wishes to cast a vote, they must return to Pakistan and vote physically in their constituency,” Haider said.
“The Election Commission of Pakistan is bound to adhere to the current law, which explicitly mandates this requirement and ECP will follow the law accordingly if there will be any changes brought in it in the future.”
While the government has vowed to ensure a transparent election in the country, Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and a few other parties have levelled allegations of “pre-poll rigging” against the administration and demanded a “level playing field” to all parties.
Khan, a 71-year-old former cricket star, has been embroiled in a tangle of political and legal battles since he was ousted as prime minister. He has not been seen in public since being jailed for three years in August for unlawfully selling state gifts while in office from 2018 to 2022.
The ex-premier has been disqualified from contesting the national elections because of the corruption conviction, but he nevertheless filed nominations for the elections which were rejected. Khan, widely seen as the country’s most popular leader, says he is being targeted by the powerful military, which wants to keep him out of the polls. The military denies this.
On the other hand, the election commission accepted former prime minister Nawaz Sharif’s nomination from two constituencies for the Feb. 8 election, weeks after a court overturned his two graft convictions. Khan’s party sees the recent judgments granting relief to Sharif as favors given to his Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) party, which appears poised to once again take over the reins of the country.
Dubai-based Pakistani Maaz Amjad praised the former Khan administration for granting voting rights to overseas Pakistanis, but regretted the subsequent decision by the Shehbaz Sharif-led government to revoke that right.
“The biggest source of income for Pakistan is the overseas community but at the moment, they have taken away our rights and have stopped us from voting which is not a good move,” he said.
Imtiaz-ul-Hassan Bukhari, a Pakistani expatriate from the United States (US), said these polls were going to be distinct from the previous ones as they would determine the future of democracy in Pakistan.
“These are going to be very historical elections for the people of Pakistan,” he told Arab News from Connecticut.
“I am expecting that people will rise and stand up for their rights and they will elect the people who are for the people of Pakistan, not establishment-backed candidates.”
Overseas Pakistanis advocate voting rights, call for ‘inclusivity’ ahead of national election
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Overseas Pakistanis advocate voting rights, call for ‘inclusivity’ ahead of national election
- The former Shehbaz Sharif administration, via Election Act 2022, revoked voting rights of overseas Pakistanis, prohibited e-voting machine use
- Overseas Pakistanis say they want a free and fair election and that a government elected by the people is crucial for stability in the South Asian nation
PSL X: Babar’s 50 helps Peshawar Zalmi cruise to 7-wicket win over Lahore Qalandars
- Babar Azam scores unbeaten 56 runs from 42 balls while Hussain Talat smashes 51 runs
- With two wins under their belt, Zalmi next face Quetta Gladiators on Sunday, April 27
ISLAMABAD: Spurred on by a stellar half-century by skipper Babar Azam, Peshawar Zalmi beat Lahore Qalandars by seven wickets to register their second victory of the HBL Pakistan Super League (PSL) X edition in Lahore on Thursday.
Zalmi were set a modest total of 130 runs after Azam’s side bowled out the Qalandars for a modest 129 runs in 19.2 overs. Alzarri Joseph was the pick of the Zalmi bowlers with 3/15 figures while Luke Wood and Hussain Talat returned figures of 2/25 and 2/18, respectively.
The “Yellow Storm” ran into difficult earlier on during their chase, losing opener Saim Ayub for just 2 runs while star batter Tom Kohler-Cadmore fell for a duck. Azam kept his cool, scoring 56 runs from 42 balls and building partnerships with Mohammad Haris (20 off 16) and Hussain Talat (51 off 37) to see his team to the end.
“Not an ideal start for our home leg,” the Qalandars wrote on social media platform X. “Overwhelmed with the support of our home crowd, we will come back stronger!“
Qalandars skipper Shaheen Shah Afridi found his form with the ball, clocking in speeds of over 140 kilometers per hour frequently. The left-arm pacer was able to return figures of 2/22 from his four overs while speedster Haris Rauf finished with figures of 1/39 from 3.4 overs.
Zalmi now have two wins from five matches in the HBL PSL 10 edition so far, beating the Multan Sultans by 120 runs earlier in the tournament to register the largest win in PSL history. They are now placed at number four on the PSL points table, tied with four points with Lahore Qalandars.
Azam’s side will next take on Quetta Gladiators in the tournament on Apr. 27.
Sindh CM, Islamic Development Bank discuss housing, women empowerment projects
- IsDB is financing $200 million for reconstruction of houses for those affected by catastrophic 2022 floods
- Bank agrees to provide more support for water, sanitation, and hygiene projects in Sindh, says state media
ISLAMABAD: The chief minister of Pakistan’s southern Sindh province discussed housing for flood affectees and women empowerment projects with a high-level delegation of the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB), state-run media reported on Thursday.
The IsDB is financing $200 million for the reconstruction of houses for those affected by the catastrophic 2022 floods. Torrential rains and melting glaciers triggered flash floods across the country that killed over 1,700 people and caused damages worth $33 billion, according to Pakistan’s estimates.
Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah met an IsDB delegation led by its Regional Director, Dr. Walid Abdelwahab, to discuss the Sindh Flood Emergency Housing Reconstruction Project (SFEHRP) and the Sindh Integrated Health and Women Empowerment Project. Both projects involve collaboration with the World Bank, the state-run Associated Press of Pakistan (APP) said.
“The chief minister welcomed Dr. Abdelwahab and expressed gratitude for the IsDB’s support in rebuilding homes for the flood-affected population,” APP reported.
Shah said the Sindh government, in partnership with international collaborators and NGOs, is actively implementing Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) projects in various districts to improve public health, particularly in flood-affected and underserved communities.
“In response to the chief minister’s request, the IsDB agreed to provide additional support for the WASH project,” the report said.
Shah stressed that the SFEHRP and WASH projects have been designed to enable owner-driven, multi-hazard-resilient reconstruction of core housing units following the 2022 floods.
The Sindh Integrated Health and Women Empowerment Project is a $280 million initiative that includes financing of $50 million from the IsDB, $30 million from the Sindh government, and $200 million from foreign fund assistance (FFA).
Shah explained that the project aims to enhance the utilization and quality of reproductive, maternal, newborn, child, adolescent, and nutrition (RMNCAH+N) services for poor and vulnerable populations, particularly adolescents and women, in targeted areas of the province.
“The process to hire a third-party firm to oversee the skill development of 6,000 eligible women has begun in consultation with the IsDB,” the APP said.
As part of the program, 124 government dispensaries will be rehabilitated and upgraded, with diagnostic and preliminary design reports already completed, the state-run media said.
Roadside bombing in southwestern Pakistan kills 3, injures 5
- Blast was caused by bomb planted in a road in Balochistan’s district Kalat, says government official
- No group has claimed responsibility but suspicion is likely to fall on separatist Baloch Liberation Army
QUETTA: Three people were killed while five others were injured in southwestern Pakistan on Thursday after a vehicle was struck by a powerful roadside blast, a government official said.
The blast took place in Balochistan’s Kalat district in a remote mountainous area known as Union Council Kaboto, located around 46 kilometers from Kalat city. Two women were among the three killed in the attack which was triggered by an explosive device planted on the road, Kalat Deputy Commissioner Jameel Ahmed said.
“A vehicle passing the area was hit by the explosion, killing three people including two women and injuring five others,” Baloch said.
The official said the driver of the vehicle was also killed in the blast, which was carrying women passengers to Ameeri area in Kalat district. He said the injured had been shifted to Kalat Teaching Hospital for medical treatment.
“The district administration and [paramilitary] Levies force commenced an investigation to ascertain who was the target of this latest attack,” Baloch said.
No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack. However, ethnic Baloch separatist groups, mainly the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA), often target soldiers of Pakistan’s armed forces, passengers from the eastern Punjab province, and locals and tribal elders they consider backed by the state.
Pakistan’s largest but least developed Balochistan province shares borders with Iran and Afghanistan. It has long been the site of low-scale insurgency by Baloch separatist groups, who accuse Islamabad of exploiting the province’s natural resources and denying locals a share in its natural resources.
Pakistan’s government and military denies these allegations, claiming that the federal and provincial governments have prioritized Balochistan’s development through various health, education and infrastructure projects.
Pakistan pauses controversial canals project amid protests in Sindh
- Nationalist parties, civil society members in fear project to build canals on River Indus will trigger water shortages
- Shehbaz Sharif says there will be no further progress on canals until all provinces reach a consensus over the matter
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announced on Thursday that the federal government will pause constructing new canals on River Indus until a consensus develops between Pakistan’s provinces on the matter, following outrage and sit-in protests in Sindh.
Pakistan’s government launched an ambitious agricultural project in February to build a network of six canals on River Indus. The government says it aims to irrigate millions of acres of barren lands and ensure food security for the 240-million strong country.
However, critics say the project would trigger water shortages in the southern parts of the country, especially Sindh. Lawyers, members of the civil society and supporters of nationalist parties in Sindh have disrupted trade and traffic on the province’s National Highway since last Friday, staging sit-in protests over the issue.
Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), a key ally of the ruling coalition led by Sharif and the largest party in Sindh, has led protests against the project. PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari met Sharif on Thursday to discuss the canals issue and Pakistan’s prevailing tensions with India.
“We must resolve this issue through mutual consent and dialogue,” Sharif said with Bhutto Zardari by his side. “And today, in the meeting held between the Pakistan Peoples Party and the Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz), we have mutually agreed that no new canals will be constructed until a decision is reached via consensus in the Council of Common Interests (CCI).”
The CCI is a constitutional body whose members are appointed by the president on the advice of the prime minister. The council resolves power-sharing and other disputes between the federation and the provinces.
Sharif said the center had decided that there will be “no further progress” on canal-related matters unless a consensus is developed among provinces.
“Therefore, we have decided today that a meeting of the Council of Common Interests will be convened on Friday, May 2, in which the Pakistan Peoples Party and the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, and the federal government’s decisions will be endorsed,” he added.
Bhutto Zardari thanked the prime minister for listening to his concerns regarding the issue, saying that the CCI meeting will endorse the decision that no new canals would be constructed without consensus on the matter.
“Today, we are not taking a decision together but are merely agreeing that without consensus on water-related matters, no new canals are being made,” he said.
The PPP last week threatened to withdraw its support for Sharif’s ruling coalition government if it decided to go ahead with building the new canals. Bhutto Zardari’s party, which emerged as the second-largest political party after the controversial 2024 general election in Pakistan, Sharif get elected prime minister last year.
The PPP settled for the presidency and governorships in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) provinces, areas where it performed poorly in the national polls.
Islamabad says India planning ‘wave of terrorism’ in Pakistani cities, vows ‘tit-for-tat’ response
- Suspected militants killed 26 people at a popular tourist attraction in Indian-administered Kashmir’s Pahalgam area
- Both countries have since taken slew of retaliatory measures including closing only land border, suspending special visas
ISLAMABAD: Defense Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif on Thursday accused India of preparing to launch a “wave of terrorism” in Pakistani cities, warning that Islamabad would retaliate with a “tit-for-tat” response as relations between the nuclear-armed rivals plummeted following a deadly militant attack in Kashmir.
On Tuesday, gunmen killed 26 men at a tourist site in the Pahalgam area of Indian-administered Kashmir in the worst attack on civilians in the country in nearly two decades. India alleged cross-border involvement, without offering proof, and announced a raft of measures to downgrade ties on Wednesday including suspending a six-decade-old river-sharing treaty as well as closing the only land crossing between the neighbors. Pakistan followed with its own actions that included shutting its airspace to Indian planes and rejecting New Delhi’s suspension of the critical water agreement.
Islamabad warned Delhi the suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty would be seen as an “act of war” to which Pakistan would respond with “full force across the complete spectrum of national power.”
The nuclear-armed nations, who have both fought two out of three wars over the disputed region of Kashmir since 1947, frequently accuse each other of carrying out cross-border attacks.
“According to our information, India is preparing to launch a wave of terrorism in various Pakistani cities instead of opting for an all-out war,” Asif told reporters at a news briefing.
“And I want to make it absolutely clear that we are fully prepared to counter this wave of terrorism.”
Asif and three other federal ministers were briefing the media on Pakistan’s retaliatory measures, including that Islamabad would exercise the right to hold all bilateral agreements with India, including but not limited to the 1972 Simla Agreement, in abeyance. In the absence of the Simla deal, India loses its rationale for wanting the Kashmir dispute to be treated as a bilateral dispute that must be settled only through bilateral negotiations. Under the treaty, New Delhi has consistently denied any third party intervention in the conflict, even from the United Nations.
Pakistan also closed the Attari-Wagah land border, the only operational land port between the two nations, with immediate effect and suspended all cross-border transit from India through this route “without exception.”
With no direct flights operating between the two countries, the move cuts all transport links between them.
Islamabad also suspended all visas under the SAARC Visa Exemption Scheme (SVES) issued to Indian nationals, deeming them canceled with immediate effect, with the exception of Sikh pilgrims who frequently travel to Pakistan to visit religious sites. Pakistan gave Indian nationals currently in Pakistan under SVES 48 hours to leave, and said Indian defense, naval and air advisers in Islamabad had been declared “persona non grata.”
“Our response will be tit-for-tat, four citizens are targeted, Indian citizens will also not remain safe in their cities,” the defense minister said.
Asif warned that even if a single Pakistani citizen was killed in an Indian-planned “terrorist” attack, Delhi would “pay for it.”
“This should be absolutely clear to them,” he said.
“BLAME GAME”
The Indus Waters Treaty, brokered by the World Bank in 1960, allocates the six Indus Basin rivers between India and Pakistan, with the Bank acting as its guarantor.
Pakistan has rights to the western rivers — Indus, Jhelum, and Chenab — for irrigation, drinking, and non-consumptive uses like hydropower. India controls the eastern rivers — Ravi, Beas, and Sutlej — for unrestricted use but must not significantly alter their flow.
Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar, who addressed the news conference alongside Asif, said the treaty was “sacred” for Pakistan and could not legally be “unilaterally” terminated.
“Pakistan has all the avenues and options available at the international level under the Indus Waters Treaty and the Vienna Convention and will exercise them if the treaty is unilaterally suspended,” he said.
Pakistan and India both claim Kashmir in full but rule it in part. India has long accused Pakistan of helping Islamist separatists who have battled security forces in its part of the territory, accusations Islamabad denies.
Indian officials have said Tuesday’s attack had “cross-border linkages” and Kashmiri police, in notices identifying three people “involved” in the violence, said two of them were Pakistani nationals. India has not elaborated on the links or shared proof.
Pakistan has said India’s accusations were made without any “credible investigation” or “verifiable evidence,” saying they are “frivolous” and “devoid of rationality.”
It has also called on India to refrain from a “reflexive blame game” and to take responsibility for its “failure to provide security” to people.
