Commies in Washington? End of Free Markets: Economistan

By Saad Sarwar Muhammad
Monday, September 22, 2008

When Pakistan’s central bank blocked foreign currency accounts to control the flight of capital to foreign banks in the aftermath of nuclear tests that it conducted, it was considered as interventionist and the measures were considered anti-economy and opposed to what free markets were all about. A similar thing happened again early this year when Pakistan’s main stock market shed more than $36 billion dollar of market capital in a very short span, the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan put a floor on the points to curtail flight of money. Pakistani rupee also suffered at the hands of the flight of capital and the exchange rate fell from roughly Rs. 60 to a dollar to Rs. 78 to a dollar within a span of a few months. All these measures were criticized around the world because of the interventionist policies of Pakistani institutions who wanted to keep the economy in check.

The collapse of the investment banks like Lehman brothers and Meryl Lynch and firms like Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac along with the imminent fall of the US insurance giant AIG put the global markets in a tailspin. UK responded with a ban on short selling of stocks to arrest the fall of FTSE its main index. The US followed suit with the ban on short selling of stocks for a month. Short selling is speculative in nature with investors betting on a company’s stock to fall driving the whole market down. Even profitable investment banks like Morgan Stanley were feeling the pinch because of the short sale. The measures worked and the stock markets around the world recovered within a day with a long and wayward week coming to an end. In the process, the Fed also ended up bailing out the insurance company AIG for a big sum of $85 billion dollars and it is estimated the cost of the Fed’s intervention to the US taxpayer might amount to $700 billion dollars overall driving the domestic debt even higher to upwards of $11 trillion dollars. All these measures, with no clear and definitive answer to whether they will work or would be enough to save the ailing US economy.

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Despite turmoil, Pakistan pips rival India: Bangkok Post

Despite the rush by entrepreneurs to participate in the growth of the Indian economy, the country with the most attractive regulatory environment in South Asia countries is its arch-rival, Pakistan according to the World Bank.

In Doing Business 2009 politically unstable Pakistan ranked 77th, far behind Mauritius and Maldives which were ranked 24th and 69th respectively, though they offer relatively limited business opportunities.

Among the other countries in South Asia were Sri Lanka (102nd), Bangladesh (110th), Nepal (121st), India (120th), and Bhutan (124th).

The report said that although regulatory reforms in South Asia continued this year, the regulatory burden of doing business was eased the most in four countries - Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, and Sri Lanka - between June 2007 and June 2008.

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Pakistan's New Strategy

In the light of the worsening situation at Pakistan's tribal areas and the repeated violation of the international border of Pakistan by the US, it is imperative that Pakistan evolve a strategy that would stop the gung-ho American crusader cowboys at their tracks. American policy of attacking Pakistan's tribal areas are a clear violation of the international law and Pakistan (Army) has repeatedly reiterated that this violation would no longer go unanswered. There is a new wave of antipathy against the US growing in Pakistan in the light of the latest developments. The Pakistani government is also in a tight spot to respond and support the statements coming from the Pakistani military. In the light of the above mentioned scenario, Pakistan should evolve a strategy that demands the following from the US,

a. Pakistan should tell the US that it is in clear violation of the international law by violating Pakistan's sovereignty and US soldiers would be tried in international court if they are guilty of killing innocent Pakistani civilians in the tribal agencies of Pakistan whose defense is the responsibility of the Pakistan Army.

b. In case the above mentioned policy fails, Pakistan should stop all fuel supplies and support to the coalition forces as a second step and let the US beg its enemies like Iran and Russia for transport of fuel supplies through their territories (better luck USA).

c. If all else fails Pakistan should make a comprehensive defense strategy that should involve strategic positioning of Pakistan's missiles to hit the US Aircraft carriers and other ships in the Arabian sea as a last resort. US can ill afford to start another theater of war and that should be made perfectly clear to the United States of Warica.

US has already annoyed a great deal of countries on the international stage like Venezuela, Bolivia, Cuba, North Korea, Russia, Iran, Syria, Thailand, Sudan and a host of other countries. I hope common sense prevails and Pakistan and Pakistani Army can truly guarantee the safety and security of Pakistan and its civilians. Long Live Pakistan, our heart and soul.

Jeevey Jeevey Pakistan: The Nation

By Shamshad Ahmad

For the past 60 days or so, since the end of June, the people of Kashmir have been free. Free in the most profound sense. They have shrugged off the terror of living their lives in the gun-sights of half a million heavily armed (Indian) soldiers, in the most densely militarised zones in the world.-Arundhati Roy, 'Azadi'- Outlook India)Kashmir is in crisis and aflame again. This time nobody can blame any foreign hand in it. It is indigenous and an inevitable eruption of volcanic suffocation simmering underneath among the Kashmiri people for several decades. Since after 1947, Kashmir has been at the core of South Asia's issues of peace and security, and is today a sombre reminder to the world that despite universalisation of fundamental values and freedoms, the people of Kashmir remain deprived of them.In a remarkable piece on the current uprising in Kashmir, Arundhati Roy, a Booker Prize winner and world's renowned humanist has challenged the world's and India's conscience on this issue drawing their attention to a huge price being paid in terms of military, material, moral and human costs in keeping the Indian occupation of Kashmir against the wishes of its people.

She narrates how an ill-conceived move over the transfer of a small piece of land to the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board "suddenly became the equivalent of tossing a lit match into a barrel of petrol. She acknowledges that "rightly or wrongly, the land transfer was viewed as the thin edge of the wedge. It triggered an apprehension that it was the beginning of an elaborate plan to build Israeli-style settlements, and change the demography of the valley."In reaction, the Kashmiris mounted massive protests bringing the valley to a complete shutdown. In no time, despite curfew and crackdown, the political revolt spread from the cities to villages and developed into a mass movement which not only resurrected memories of the Kashmiri uprising in the 90s but also gave a new dimension to their struggle for freedom. Numerous Kashmiri people were killed by the Indian armed forces in street clashes.

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Dimo autos to Pakistan: Sunday Times

Diesel and Motor Engineering Company (Dimo) is gearing to start a car assembly outside Colombo to assemble cars and export to South Asia, according to Dimo sources.

"Dimo is planning to do this by early next year in the 17.5 acre land they bought about a year ago," one source told The Sunday Times FT. He said the company is looking to export cars to Pakistan initially. "There is a market there as Pakistan does not seem to like Indian branded automobiles," he said.

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US grants Pak F-16 upgrade funds: Economic Times

WASHINGTON: The Bush administration has cleared the transfer of $227 million of foreign military funds (FMF) to Pakistan for its F-16s mid-life update programme, despite opposition to it from two Congressional leaders. 

According to a newspaper, the upgraded F-16s and additional funds will be used as a counter insurgency measure in Pakistan's volatile Federally Administrated Tribal Areas (FATA). Earlier, two senior House Members, Howard L Berman, chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, and Nita M Lowey, expressed concern that the proposal would "divert funds from more effective counter-terrorism tools." 

They requested a hold to be placed on the planned reprogramming and proposed that Congress provide 200 million dollars in budgetary support to Pakistan.

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Accord to produce world class buses: Dawn

KARACHI, Aug 29: The Daewoo Bus Corporation (DBC) of Korea has decided to share hands with the Afzal Motors Private Limited (AMPL) by establishing a joint venture company (JVC), namely Daewoo Pak Motors (Pvt) Limited (DPML), with a 50 per cent equity. The joint venture agreement will be worth $20 million.

The agreement was signed by DBC vice chairman Yeo Sung Koog and AMPL Managing Director Mohammad Ayub Khan on behalf of their organisations at a ceremony held at the plant on Thursday.

The company will produce world class luxury buses for domestic and export market. The joint venture will generate new job opportunities directly and indirectly.

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Foreign investment surges 40pc in July: The News

By Shahzad Anwar

KARACHI: Net inflow of foreign investment in the country augmented by 40 per cent during July 2008 as compared to the same period last year.

According to latest figures of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), total foreign investment in the country stood at $220.5 million during the first month of fiscal year 2008-09 compared to $157.5 million during July 2007. The quantum of Foreign Direct Investment witnessed a substantial increase of 76.1 per cent to $340.7 million during July 2008 as compared to $193.5 million in the same period of fiscal year 2007-08.

It is pertinent to note that during fiscal year 2007-08, total foreign investment declined to $5.193 billion which was recorded at $8.428 billion in financial year 2006-07. However, during last fiscal year the net inflow of FDI slightly improved to $5.153 billion as compared to $5.139 billion a year back.

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Mushtaq's forced retirement ends greatest era for Sussex: The Independent

By Angus Fraser, Cricket CorrespondentThursday, 28 August 2008

Getty Images

A glorious chapter in county cricket and the most successful era in Sussex's history was brought to an end yesterday when Mushtaq Ahmed, the Pakistan leg-spinner, announced his retirement from first-class cricket. The decision, enforced by a persistent knee injury, finishes the career of the most influential cricketer in the modern day county game.
When Sussex signed him for the 2003 season not even the club expected him to have such an impact. His initial deal was on a modest basic salary with huge bonuses for taking wickets. The contract worked. Mushtaq claimed five 10-wicket hauls to become the first bowler in five years to take 100 county championship wickets in a season, and Sussex's 164-year wait for the county championship ended.
It would by grossly unfair on the other members of Chris Adams's side to say that Sussex were a one-man team, but in the two following seasons, summers where Mushtaq had less success, the county finished in third and fifth place. But he was back to his best in 2006 and 2007 taking 192 wickets at an average of 22.6 to win Sussex two more county titles.

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Pakistan's KAPCO FY08 net profit rises 37 percent: Reuters

KARACHI, Aug 29 (Reuters) - Pakistan's Kot Addu Power Co (KAPCO) (KAPCO.KA: Quote, Profile, Research), the country's largest power producer held by private investors, posted a better-than-expected 37 percent rise in full-year net profit on Friday.
KAPCO said it earned a net profit of 7.966 billion rupees ($105 million) in the year ending June 30, compared to 4.99 billion rupees last year.

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Charlie Wilson's Chair: Courant

Endowment Controversial
By BARRY SHLACHTER McClatchy Newspapers
August 29, 2008

Call it Charlie Wilson's second war.A dozen University of Texas professors are protesting a plan to endow a Charlie Wilson Chair in Pakistan studies, saying the former East Texas congressman's efforts to arm the Afghan resistance against the Soviet Union ended up boosting Osama bin Laden and nurturing the Taliban movement.A sharply worded letter sent to administrators does not take issue with Wilson's image as a living-large womanizer, as depicted in the Tom Hanks movie "Charlie Wilson's War."Rather, the scholars describe him as a poor role model for students because of all the human misery they say was an unintended consequence of his geopolitical machinations.

"Mr. Wilson's central involvement in the cold war in South Asia does not warrant the honor of establishing a university chair in his name," the professors wrote in their letter to Randy Diehl, the liberal arts dean. "A named chair sends a public message that not only the holder of the chair, but its donor, represent standards to which the university and larger community should aspire."Kamala Visweswaran, an associate professor of anthropology who signed the letter, said the professors were surprised to learn that the university is moving forward with the idea.

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Empires of the Indus by Alice Albinia: Guardian

Alice Albinia

In a land where it seldom rains, a river is as precious as gold.

Water is potent: it trickles through human dreams, permeates lives, dictates agriculture, religion and warfare. Ever since Homo sapiens first migrated out of Africa, the Indus has drawn thirsty conquerors to its banks. Some of the world's first cities were built here; India's earliest Sanskrit literature was written about the river; Islam's holy preachers wandered beside these waters. Pakistan is only the most recent of the Indus valley's political avatars. I remember the first time I wanted to see the Indus, as distinctly as if a match had been struck in a darkened room. I was twenty-three years old, sitting in the heat of my rooftop flat in Delhi, reading the Rig Veda, and feeling the perspiration running down my back. It was April 2000, almost a year since the war between Pakistan and India over Kargil in Kashmir had ended, and the newspapers which the delivery man threw on to my terrace every morning still portrayed neighbouring Pakistan as a rogue state, governed by military cowboys, inhabited by murderous fundamentalists: the rhetoric had the patina of hysteria. But what was the troubled nation next door really like? As I scanned the three-thousand-year-old hymns, half listening to the call to prayer, the azan, which drifted over the rooftops from the nearby mosque (to the medley of other azans, all slightly out of sync), I read of the river praised by Sanskrit priests, the Indus they called 'Unconquered Sindhu', river of rivers. Hinduism's motherland was not in India but Pakistan, its demonized neighbour.

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