Sustainable Flood Management
July 11
Pakistan has to move from relief to risk management to reduce huge losses because of floods every year.
Sarwar Bari, from Pattan, said the focus of disaster management is relief-oriented and not risk-reduction. Though Pakistan is a disaster-prone country, he said it lacked policy framework to deal with disasters. Bari said two years back, UNDP prepared a disaster management policy, but it had not been implemented. He added that the 1990s was declared a decade to stop disasters, but regretted nothing was done in Pakistan. Even in relief management, he said there were gaps and lack of coordination, leading to huge human and property losses.
He said the relief cell in the Cabinet Division has no experts, no data, adding that it becomes active only when the disaster strikes. Bari also pointed towards lack of vulnerability-capacity mapping, which is essential, as rivers change their paths every year. He maintained that the local communities suffer when the relief assistance was used politically. Lack of coordination between government departments, according to Bari, adds to people’s difficulties in case of a disaster.
Bari said Pakistan needed integrated disaster risk reduction strategy, mapping all the risk areas, besides preparing a database of vulnerable areas and communities. He also stressed community-based early warning system, saying the traditional warnings in “cusecs” were useless for locals.
Amjad Bhatti, a development journalist, said floods were seen in isolation in Pakistan or as part of the contingency plan. He asserted that floods are an issue of governance.
Bhatti said the flood in Nowshera was due to release of 300,000 cusecs water from Tarbela Dam by WAPDA, without informing any other relevant department. He said the reservoirs were supposed to control floods, but in the case of Nowshera the reservoir was the cause of disaster.
He said Pakistan faces localized and urban flooding due to faulty policies. Bhatti said the Punjab chief minister announced 10 million rupees for the floods in Lahore, but did not approve the same amount for buying excavator to avoid choking of sewerage and drainage. He said it reflected a mindset that reacted when there was disaster but did not plan to avoid it.
Bahtti said floods have been used politically. In 1992, he said, there was more media hype about the “saviour” than the floods and victims. He said Pakistan should improve natural resource management to be better prepared for disasters.
What South Asia takes to the WTO? Agendas and Preparations (July Approximation)
July 18
Aftab Alam, from Action Aid International, called for stopping the process of WTO negotiations and taking stock of the effects of trade liberalization on the developing countries.
He said as the rich countries dominate the WTO negotiations, development-related issues were ignored. Alam demanded a clear strategy to safeguard the developing countries’ interests. He said the so-called higher tariffs in the developing countries were still less than the tariffs in the developed world in the 1950s.
Alam questioned decision-making at the WTO, saying the decisions which are reached during the mini-ministerial and General Council meetings, were imposed, and the “one-country, one vote” rule of the WTO was set aside.
Alam said the protection of agriculture and the basic services should be the main concern of the developing countries at the forthcoming ministerial. He added that under the General Agreement on Trade and Services (GATS), basic services would be under threat.
Anwar Khan, from the Ministry of Commerce, backed gradual trade liberalization, and supported the idea of reviewing the effects of liberalization. But he said the stocktaking should have been done much earlier. He said the higher tariffs in the developed countries, when the industry was taking off, were linked to quality and standards. But the developing countries, he said, have been oblivious to quality and standards.
Anwar Ali Randhawa, of the Ministry of Commerce, termed agriculture a complex issue at WTO, adding it has three main pillars of market access, production subsidies and export subsidies.
He said the developed countries should open their markets for agricultural products by reducing import tariffs, and eliminating production and export subsidies, in exchange for market access for their industrial products under Non-Agricultural Market Access (NAMA).
Abid Suleri, of SDPI, said Pakistan must clearly define its course of action and come up with a firm stand in WTO in all its negotiations, keeping in view the interests of its people, mainly of the rural-based agricultural population.
Hasba Act: Prospects and Problems
July 25
Terming the Hasba Act contrary to Islam and the constitution, the experts feared it would lead to anarchy, making religion controversial and harming the state’s foundations beyond repair. They said the practice of enforcing religion through laws had never produced the desired results, and often led to more violent divisions.
However, a Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA) legislator said the fears about the act were groundless, adding that it was the right of the provincial government to go for legislation that it considers in line with Islam.
Farhatullah Babar, Pakistan People’s Party (Parliamentarians) senator, said when a state tried to enforce religion by force, its own existence was at risk. The senator termed the Hasba Act a fatal danger, saying it would bring in more divisions on the basis of religion and directly hit at the foundations of the state. He strongly criticized the lack of right to appeal in the act, saying a political appointee has been given the unchallengeable right to interfere in the people’s lives. Babar said the act was contradictory to the constitution, as laws exist to deal with the offences described in the Hasba Act.
Similarly, he added that the religious alliance was also violating the 17th amendment, which the MMA supported to give “political shoulder” to President Pervez Musharraf. Under the 17th amendment, he said, the provincial government has to take permission for change in the Police Order and the local bodies law. Khurshid Nadeem, head of Organization for Research and Education, said there was fallacy in Pakistan that the laws would bring in the desired Islamization. He questioned the purview of the Hasba Act, saying it gave the sense that the mohtasib could take any step against anyone in the name of Islam.
Nadeem said the Hasba Act again highlighted the dilemma of “parallel judicial systems in Pakistan”, adding that it was worse than Talibanization. He said the MMA was following the path of late Ziaul Haq in its zeal for Islamization.
Bushra Gohar, director of Human Resources Management and Development Centre, termed the Hasba Act a “conspiracy of the MMA, General Mushrraf and the US” against the people of NWFP. She said there was no consultation with the people before the passage of the act. She wondered why the act was passed when the NWFP chief minister was in the United States. Bushra said the act was for persecuting the people, but the powerful, including the army, are outside its purview. She said the powers of judge, jury, and the execution have been vested in one person, adding that the MMA wanted to “satisfy US and not the people.”
Maulana Shah Abdul Aziz, an MMA legislator, said the religious alliance’s government was elected democratically and it has the right to opt for such legislation. He said the act was the target of propaganda at the behest of West. He denied that there was any effort at Mullahism and Talibanization through the act. He said the MMA was open to suggestions, but added that the provincial government should be allowed to implement the act.
Naeem Mirza, from Aurat Foundation, said in the presence of various interpretations of Islam, the implementation of Hasba Act would generate more divisions in Pakistan. He said the religious parties have always sided with the dictatorships and the MMA was not different in its approach. He said the women and children would face the brunt of the negative effects of the act.
The audience, especially those from the NWFP, questioned the sincerity of the MMA’s government, saying they were worried about the future of the province.
Pakistani women on negotiating space, gender and rituals in Canberra
August 01
Pakistani women in Canberra, Australia, are trying to establish their individual and communal identities through a maze of class, space, gender, religion and disaspora.
Aneela Babar, a research scholar at the Center for Cultural Research, Sydney, said her work examined the influence of diaspora and trans-nationalism on gender identities. She said Pakistani women subscribed to religious networks to overcome unequal ethnic and class distribution they inherit. Aneela, looking at the influence of Al-Huda Organization on women, added that Pakistani women have managed to negotiate their own space within the areas available. Aneela said the growth of religious networks, which were mediated, funded, and guided solely by women, brought in new thinking about women’s roles in Pakistani diaspora.
Aneela’s work profiles Pakistani community in Canberra, which is conscious to class structure, and their association to Australia and Islamabad. Dividing the Pakistani community into the first settlers of Foreign Office officers and their families, Pakistani students, and the working class, she said the three were actively alive to associations of their class, relations and religious outlook.
The work also looks at the growing influence of scholars like Riffat Hassan and Farhat Hashmi, and the divisions on basis of religious outlook. Aneela said though the two women wanted to go back to religious texts, but their goals were different. “Hassan wants us to negotiate our voices in the text, to challenge the masculinist interpretations…Hashmi wants us to use the texts to reconcile what is designated to us.” Aneela also talked about two marriages in Pakistani community – one was a traditional affair with all the fun, performing all the rituals, and the other was a plain, segregated show, which was described as “accurately Islamic.”
She said a section of the younger generation of Pakistani women was trying to create space within Canberra where they could be acknowledged for their professional as well as Muslim identities, and their efforts to go to mosque and pray despite opposition.
During the discussion, it was suggested the research work should look at the sectarian nature of the Pakistani community in Canberra, and also how the definition of Pakistani identity is changing in Pakistan and abroad.
Dar pa Dar – documentary
August 3
The documentary, Dar pa Dar (Where the heart lies) captured the pain, misery and displacement that Afghan women have suffered because of war and destruction in their country for the last 25 years.
Directed, scripted and shot by Samar Minallah, an anthropologist and director Ethnomedia, the documentary showed the long lasting impact of war on Afghan women refugees living in the NWFP. “I want the world to hear the voices of Afghan women who have suffered most because of war,” Samar said.
Through print and electronic media, Samar has worked extensively on the social-cultural issues facing Pukhtun women. She said the documentary was a labor of love, as she wanted to show the world that in the euphoria of reconstruction of bricks and mortar, it should not forget the pain of Afghan women, who have suffered displacement, lost families, and live as aliens in Pakistan.
Though the stories of women in the documentary were apolitical, they suffer most when the political conflicts break out, she said.
The documentary predominantly focuses on the suffering of the women, who were the victims whether it was the Russian invasion or the American bombing after 9/11. The film also touched the issue of generation gap. The younger Afghan generation born in Pakistan does not feel the pain of homelessness as strongly as their elders do.
Dr Saba Gul Khattak, executive director of SDPI, said the documentary brought out the pain of homelessness of the Afghan women. The participants applauded the documentary, and said it aptly captured the affliction of Afghan women.
Contamination of Food due to Chemicals (POPs) Exposure
August 8
Toxic chemicals, especially high levels of DDT, have been found in eggs near a dumpsite on the outskirts of Peshawar, says a study, “The Egg Report – keep the promise, eliminate POPs campaign”. The study, which was conducted in 17 countries, was launched at the seminar.
Dr Mahmood A Khwaja, of SDPI, said the data was indicative, and should not be generalized. He said the Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) were long lasting and could travel long distances on air and water currents.
Prof Ishtiaq A Qazi, principal IESE, NUST, Rawalpindi, Prof M Rasool Jan, chairman chemistry department, University of Peshawar, and Dr S Touqeer Abbas, from NARC, Islamabad, reviewed the report, while Asif Shuja Khan, director general Pakistan Environmental Agency, chaired the seminar.
The study of free-range chicken eggs from 20 locations in 17 countries found high levels of contamination with POPs, such as dioxins and PCBs.
In Pakistan, Dr Mehmood said, the study was carried out by SDPI, Arnika Association of Czech Repbulic, and International POPs Elimination Network in collaboration with Pakistan Environmental Protection Agency at the dumpsite in Peshawar. The egg samples were analyzed in the Axys Varilab Laboratory in Czech Republic.
He said it was the first reported study of POPs contamination in chicken eggs in Pakistan. Though the presence of POPs like dioxins, furans, PCBs, HCB was not high, he said the egg samples indicated high levels of DDT, which was 4.5 times higher than the European Union limit.
Dr Mehmood demanded early ratification of Stockholm Convention on POPs by Pakistan, which it had signed in December 2001. He also called for strict enforcement of ban on the sale and use of DDT, especially in rural areas, besides launching awareness efforts and launching POPs monitoring projects and study of health impacts.
Prof Ishtiaq A Qazi said the report effectively re-established the connection between incineration and unintentional POPs, adding it could form the basis of significant corrective steps by the municipal authorities not only in Peshawar, but also in the rest of the country. However, he added that the study in Pakistan should have some data on eggs from a place distant from the dumpsite in Peshawar.
Prof Rasool Jan said as an agricultural and over-populated country, Pakistan was using excessive pesticides and producing more and more waste. He feared that the excessive use of pesticides would soon find its way to every kind of food web. Dr S Touqeer Abbas said the egg sample for the study in Pakistan was too small, adding that it may lead to fallacy of generalization.
Asif Shuja Khan said DDT was banned in Pakistan in 1992, but unfortunately it was still available freely and easily. He said the DDT was smuggled into Pakistan from the neighboring countries. He said awareness was needed on POPs on a large-scale in Pakistan.
Raising Revenue for Pakistan Health Care; Options and Problems
August 15
Experts said Pakistan needed to explore alternative mechanisms for generating resources for providing a comprehensive health care to the people. They said that at present Pakistan health scenario presented a disappointing picture of an inefficient public sector and unregulated private sector.
Dr Shafqat Shehzad, of SDPI, said that proper understanding about pro-poor health care financing policies was needed before developing them. Dr Shafqat said financing of health sector in Pakistan was not defined.
She said various financing instruments could be tested to raise revenue, but added that it is important to determine socio-economic and geographical profiling of people who need health care for gauging utilization level, as under-utilization is a major problem for Pakistan’s health sector.
She said Pakistan’s health care costs were consistently rising, and being a developing country and having a large rural and informal sector, the country’s taxation capacity is low.
Dr Talib Lashari, from TheNetwork for Consumer Protection, called for a new health care financing arrangement, which, according to him, should be a combination of tax revenue, community financing, and social and private insurance. He demanded an increase in public health sector expenditure of up to one percent for the medium term, and up to two percent for the long term.
Dr Fareed Midhat, from Asia Foundation, termed Pakistan health sector as least organized system in the world, and extremely polarized. He said the health sector was run by the qualified and the unqualified. The poor go to the unqualified, who are predominantly quacks.
Dr Fazal Hakim Khattak, from the Planning Commission, said the financing of health sector was defined, though it needs improvement. He said it was not the question of fewer resources, but of fully using them. He said Pakistan lacked political will in improving resources, their allocation and distribution in the health sector.
Trade Policy (2005-06) Review and Assessment
August 22
Terming the trade policy ambitious but an important step towards compatibility with the WTO regime, Dr Abid Suleri, of SDPI, said a strong political will was needed to implement the policy.
Without effective implementation, which includes inter-ministerial coordination and public-private partnership, he said Pakistan would not be able to benefit from the policy.
He said the inclusion of stakeholders’ suggestions came as a pleasant surprise, adding that it was an important step towards bringing compatibility with WTO regime. But he said the policy ignored the development of human perspective. “Human development perspective needs to be strengthened, without which none of the policy initiatives would be able to provide any relief.” He said there should be a link between trade and employment opportunities, as unemployment and under-employment were major problems for Pakistan.
Dr Abid said that trade policy was too export-oriented, and ignored consumer interests. He suggested that the Ministry of Commerce should aim to balance exports and imports, and identify sectors that should or should not be opened for trade. He said the automobile sector should be opened for trade so that small vehicles may become affordable for the middle-income group. Conversely the current trade policy has reduced the prices of large size vehicles.
Dr Abid said Pakistan lacked the culture of consumer rights’ protection, an aspect also missing in trade policy. He said there was no regulatory mechanism to ensure balanced prices and high quality for consumer. This is why, he said, the government was unable to include representative researchers and academia to identify the scope of different sectors where trade is beneficial.
He said there was no coordination among the Ministry of Commerce and other stakeholders when they make decisions. For example, Dr Abid explained, the Ministry of Commerce promotes growing organic cotton, but the Ministry of Agriculture and the agriculture research institutes have not been involved in the initiative.
Dr Abid suggested monitoring of the initiatives announced in the trade policy throughout the year. He said the policy was silent on the MFN status for India. Dr Abid said Pakistan has started importing vegetables from India, but the benefit in the form of lower prices has not been passed on to the people.
Price Hike and Poverty
August 29
Experts blamed poor governance for rising poverty in Pakistan, and maintained that the government seemed unable to control increase in prices. However, the government representatives said they were making sincere efforts to control rising prices and reduce poverty.
Osman Ghani, from the Ministry of Finance, claimed there had been improvement in the social well being of people. However, he admitted the trickle down effect was yet to be seen. Ghani was for strengthening the role of private and public sector to reduce poverty.
Presenting an analysis of inflation indicators, Zafar-ul-Hasan, also from the Ministry of Finance, suggested that food inflation was higher in Pakistan than any other type of inflation. He said the government was making sincere efforts to control prices. Hasan added that inflation was an unavoidable by-product of growth, but not the major reason of poverty in Pakistan.
Mohammed Arshad, from The Network for Consumer Protection, maintained that despite the impressive government statistics, the number of suicides because of poverty was on the rise.
Dr Nawaz Hakro, of the Quaid-e-Azam University, said Pakistan was essentially a military state where military’s industrial and commercial interests hindered the process of poverty reduction. He said the poor did not get any relief from government policies because the policy-makers were subservient to military interests. He said economic growth had always been high during military regimes in Pakistan, but it had been pro-elite, with little or no regard for the poor.
Bazam-e-Jahan-ki-Raunaq
Documentary
August 30
The documentary, “Bazam-e-Jahan-ki-Raunaq” (We are the Light of this World), captured the change and improvement in the lives of girls in Pakistan since 1991, brought about by the joint efforts of UNICEF, SDC and Family Planning Association of Pakistan Girl Child Project. According to the director of film Adeel Hashmi, the documentary was an effort to show the impact of the project in ten districts.
The film records the development of the Girl Child Project and its impact on the lives of its participants. The girls narrate change in their lives and how it affected their families, communities’ attitudes and behavior.
Under the Girl Child Project about 36,500 girls have been trained in different areas such as education, health and various skills for economic self-reliance. Most of the trained girls now see a better future for themselves. They have also become active members of their families and communities.
The documentary focuses on the issue of girl child and covers important aspects such as gender discrimination, rights of girls, education, food and nutrition, self-determination, community participation, mentoring, mobility and trust.
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