KARACHI: The latest “honor killing” of two teenage girls in Pakistan after a video of them with a man surfaced online shows women need better control over their digital presence, said an activist appointed to Facebook’s new oversight board this month.
The sisters were shot dead last week in Pakistan’s remote North Waziristan, the latest victims of a conservative honor code which has led to hundreds of deaths, including the 2016 strangling of social media star Qandeel Baloch by her brother.
“The Waziristan killings highlight how the Internet can be used against women, especially in a patriarchal society like Pakistan’s,” said Nighat Dad, a Pakistani lawyer who founded the country’s first cyber-harassment helpline.
“Because more and more people are getting access to technology, its dark side is also becoming visible, with the onslaught of the entire spectrum of harassment brought into the virtual world.”
Dad has achieved global prominence for her work to protect women online in a country where their modesty is prized and they are often not allowed to work outside the home, fraternize with men or choose their own husbands.
After winning recognition as one of Time magazine’s next generation of leaders in 2015 and a Human Rights Tulip award in 2016, this month Dad joined what some have dubbed Facebook’s “Supreme Court” to rule on whether certain content is allowed.
Most of the calls to the Digital Rights Foundation advocacy group, which Dad founded in 2012 with a focus on protecting women online, are about revenge porn — the blackmail of women by ex-partners or boyfriends over online posts of intimate images.
“There are pockets of people on the Internet that find and leak footage of women without their consent,” the 39-year-old told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.
“This online activity has very severe consequences for women ... in some segments of Pakistani society, a woman’s worth is measured using her ‘honor’, and the moment she ‘dishonors’ her family, she is often made to pay with her life.”
The murder of the two teenage girls has sparked debate in Pakistan around women’s digital safety, with the women who shared news of the killings also coming under fire online.
Dad said women needed the autonomy to control their own digital presence, rather than being stopped from using the Internet at all, which many men tried to do after social media star Baloch’s murder in 2016.
“There was a real fear that (women) could be killed for their online activities, even for so much as owning a phone,” Dad said, adding that distress calls to her charity surged by 50% in the wake of the killing.
“There needs to be work done on laws and implementation, as well as building better channels of reporting content against women on social media platforms and the Internet,” she said.
Pakistan’s ‘honor killings’ show women need digital skills, says Facebook oversight board member
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Pakistan’s ‘honor killings’ show women need digital skills, says Facebook oversight board member
- Two teenage sisters were shot dead in Pakistan’s North Waziristan last week after they appeared in a video with a man
- The murder has sparked debate in Pakistan around women’s digital safety
Pakistan stocks hit new high in intraday trading on investor confidence, IMF review optimism
- Benchmark KSE-100 index climbed 1,215.46 points, or 1.03 percent, to reach 119,189.48
- Index eventually settled at 118,769.77, up by 795.75 or 0.67 percent, from the previous close
ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) crossed the 119,000-point threshold in intraday trading for the first time, largely driven by aggressive buying from local mutual funds and confidence over a positive review of an International Monetary Fund bailout program, a top brokerage house said.
The benchmark KSE-100 index climbed 1,215.46 points, or 1.03 percent, to reach 119,189.48 from the last close of 117,974.02 at 9:43am. The index settled at 118,769.77, up by 795.75 or 0.67 percent, from the previous close.
“This strong upward movement was largely driven by aggressive buying from local mutual funds, as investor confidence remained high on expectations of an imminent IMF review, which might be completed earlier than expected,” Topline Securities said in its daily market review.
Market activity remained robust, with 666 million shares traded, amounting to a turnover of Rs38.5 billion. Cnergyico Pk Ltd. oil refining company led the volume charts, with 163.9 million shares changing hands.
“The positive trajectory in the Pakistan Stock Exchange signifies the increasing trust of traders and investors in the government’s economic policies,” Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said in statement.
“The government is providing all necessary facilities on a priority basis to ensure a conducive environment for business and investment in the country.”
Earlier this month, an International Monetary Fund (IMF) team concluded its first review of Pakistan’s economic reforms under a $7 billion loan program, describing Pakistan’s progress as “strong,” though the mission departed without finalizing a staff-level agreement.
BankIslami unveils ‘Aik,’ Pakistan’s first fully digital Islamic banking solution
- ‘Aik’ is designed to seamlessly integrate essential banking features, offers Qibla direction tool
- The bank says it is spearheading digital transformation of Islamic finance for tech-savvy clientele
KARACHI: An Islamic commercial bank in Pakistan announced on Wednesday it had launched the country’s first digital Islamic banking solution designed to deliver seamless Shariah-compliant financial services nationwide.
BankIslami Pakistan Limited was incorporated in Pakistan in 2004 and commenced operations in April 2006 as the first Islamic bank in the country to receive a license from the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) under the 2003 Islamic Banking Policy.
It announced the launch of “Aik” in a statement, saying it would help lead the way in the digital transformation of Islamic finance in Pakistan.
“Aik translates to ‘one’ — a symbol of simplicity, unity and our shared vision for an ethical, Riba-free financial future,” Ashfaque Ahmad, the project lead, was quoted as saying in the statement.
“This platform fulfills a critical need in Pakistan’s banking landscape for a fully digital solution that aligns with Islamic principles without compromising convenience and accessibility,” he added.
The statement said the platform integrates essential banking features, including digital account opening with biometric authentication, instant money transfers, secure bill payments, mobile top-ups and an internationally accessible debit card, with other functionalities such as a Qibla direction tool.
Available for download on Google Play and the Apple App Store, Aik allows users to register using their CNIC and instantly access a secure, fully digital Islamic banking experience.
As one of Pakistan’s leading Islamic financial institutions, BankIslami currently operates over 540 branches and offers a comprehensive suite of Shariah-compliant products.
With the launch of Aik, the bank said it was spearheading the digital transformation of Islamic finance for a tech-savvy clientele in the country.
Pakistan to investigate alleged visit of journalists to Israel, says ‘no question’ of recognizing Tel Aviv
- Israeli newspaper reported this week 10-member Pakistani delegation visited Israel for a week
- Foreign office says has no knowledge of delegation members and what passports they were traveling on
ISLAMABAD: The Pakistani Foreign Office said on Thursday there was no change in the country’s position that it did not recognize Israel, adding that officials were gathering information on an alleged visit to the Middle Eastern country by a local delegation of journalists and influencers.
A media report by the Israeli newspaper Israel Hayom said on Wednesday a 10-member Pakistani delegation of journalists, intellectuals and influencers had visited Israel for a week.
Pakistan does not recognize the state of Israel, and its passport explicitly states that it cannot be used for travel to the country. Islamabad has repeatedly called for an independent Palestinian state based on “internationally agreed parameters” and pre-1967 borders with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital.
“As far as Pakistan’s position is concerned, it’s very unambiguous,” Pakistan foreign office spokesperson Shafqat Ali Khan told reporters at a weekly media briefing in Islamabad.
“There is no question of a change in Pakistan’s position on the question of recognition of Israel or on the question of Palestine or Israel or on the question of Palestine or the Arab-Israel problems.”
Responding to a question on the reported visit of the Pakistani delegation, the spokesperson said the trip had nothing to do with the foreign ministry or government.
“We are gathering information and when we have a clearer picture, we will be able to comment on that,” he added.
“We don’t know who was there [Israel] and what kind of passport they were carrying, maybe they were dual nationalities.”
The Hayon newspaper report said the ten Pakistani journalists and researchers, including two women, arrived in Israel last Monday and carried passports declaring their invalidity for travel to Israel.
“Despite this, they bravely accepted an invitation from Sharaka, an organization working to strengthen relations between Israel and South Asian countries,” the report said.
“To protect the delegation members, their passports were not stamped, and publication of their visit was delayed until they returned safely home.”
RESUMPTION OF GAZA WAR
Commenting on Israel resuming its bombing campaign and ground operations in Gaza, the FO spokesman said Pakistan “unequivocally condemned” the assault in the occupied West Bank and Gaza, calling it a “blatant violation of the ceasefire agreement [signed in January].”
Tuesday’s first day of resumed airstrikes killed more than 400 Palestinians, one of the deadliest days of the war. At least 510 Palestinians have been killed in the past three days, more than half of them women and children, Khalil Al-Deqran, the spokesperson of Gaza’s health ministry told Reuters.
The surprise bombardment has threatened to fully reignite the 17-month-old war, with Israeli officials saying the operation was expected to expand.
“Israel’s airstrikes and raids are a flagrant violation of the ceasefire agreement; international humanitarian law; the UN Charter, and hampers the confidence and faith in the global community and international law,” Khan added.
“We also call on the international community to increase its efforts to end Israel’s genocidal campaign against the innocent people of Palestine. We call for accountability of Israeli crimes committed in this brutal war, as a crucial step toward restoring international legitimacy.”
FO rejects Indian minister’s claim Pakistan ‘occupied’ Kashmir after 1948 ‘invasion’
- Pakistan says Jammu and Kashmir an “internationally recognized disputed territory” whose final status is to be determined by its people
- Urges Kabul government to take “visible and verifiable” action against militants harboring in Afghanistan and launching regular cross-border attacks
ISLAMABAD: The foreign office on Thursday rejected Indian External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar’s remarks that Pakistan was “occupying” a part of Kashmir after “invading” it in 1948, saying the region was an “internationally recognized disputed territory.”
The Muslim-majority Himalayan region of Kashmir has remained a flashpoint between Pakistan and India since their independence from British rule in 1947. Both countries administer parts of the region but claim it in full, having fought three wars over the territory. The part governed by Pakistan is called Azad Kashmir while the Indian part is called Jammu and Kashmir.
Addressing an event in New Delhi this week, Jaishankar called the “occupation” of some parts of Kashmir by Pakistan “the longest standing illegal occupation” of territory by another country after the Second World War. He said Indian had taken the “invasion” to the UN, which had declared it a “dispute,” putting the “attacker and the victim ... on par.”
During a weekly press briefing on Thursday, Foreign Office Spokesperson Ambassador Shafqat Ali Khan said Pakistan was “alarmed” by the increasing frequency of such statements about Kashmir by Indian leaders.
“It was India that took the Jammu and Kashmir issue to the United Nations in 1948,” he told journalists. “Today, it has no right to blame the Security Council and its erstwhile members for the resolutions that were subsequently adopted.
“Repetition of baseless claims cannot deny the fact that Jammu and Kashmir is an internationally recognized disputed territory whose final status is to be determined by its people through a UN-supervised plebiscite, as stipulated in the relevant UN Security Council resolutions,” Khan added.
The spokesperson said Pakistan believed in peaceful co-existence and lasting peace in South Asia would require the resolution of the Kashmir dispute in line with UN resolutions and the aspirations of the Kashmiri people.
He accused India of blocking peace efforts through its “rigid approach and hegemonic ambitions.”
“The anti-Pakistan narrative emanating from India vitiates the bilateral environment and impedes the prospects for peace and cooperation,” the FO spokesman added. “It must stop.”
AFGHANISTAN
During the briefing, Khan also urged the Kabul government to take “visible and verifiable” action against the Pakistani Taliban, Baloch separatist militants and Daesh insurgents that Islamabad says are harboring in neighboring Afghanistan and launching cross-border attacks from there.
His remarks come after a surge in militant attacks in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and southwestern Balochistan provinces in recent months.
Last week, an unprecedented train hijacking by the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) in Pakistan’s southwest killed 31 people, including troops. This was followed by a suicide attack in Nushki that killed five on Sunday. Pakistan said the attacks were carried out by militants who were in touch with “handlers” in Afghanistan.
The Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and other militant groups have also intensified their attacks in KP province, frequently targeting security force convoys and check posts, as well as carrying out targeted killings and kidnappings of security and government officials.
“Indeed, the terrorist threat against Pakistan from terrorist entities including TTP, BLA, and Daesh is our foremost concern,” Khan said in reply to a question during his weekly press briefing.
“We continue to impress upon interim [Afghan] authorities to take visible and verifiable action against them.”
Pakistani government and military officials have variously accused neighboring India and Afghanistan of fueling militancy in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, claims both New Delhi and Kabul deny.
PM Sharif hails investor confidence as Pakistan Stock Exchange crosses 119,000 points
- KSE-100 index soared by over 1,400 points after trading commenced, hitting an all-time high of 119,421.81
- Shehbaz Sharif says his government is trying to ensure conducive business and investment environment
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday lauded the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) for surpassing the significant 119,000-point threshold for the first time, saying the market’s bullish opening session mirrored growing investor confidence.
The benchmark KSE-100 index soared by over 1,400 points shortly after trading commenced, reaching an all-time high of 119,421.81 points.
The market rally coincides with Sharif’s four-day visit to Saudi Arabia, where he met separately with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Investment Minister Khalid Al-Falih to discuss strengthening economic cooperation.
“The positive trajectory in the Pakistan Stock Exchange signifies the increasing trust of traders and investors in the government’s economic policies,” the prime minister said in a statement issued by his office from Jeddah.
“The government is providing all necessary facilities on a priority basis to ensure a conducive environment for business and investment in the country,” he added.
Earlier this month, an International Monetary Fund (IMF) team concluded its review of Pakistan’s economic reforms under a $7 billion loan program.
The international lender described Pakistan’s progress as “strong,” though its mission departed without finalizing the staff-level agreement.
The IMF’s positive assessment, nevertheless, led to bullish sentiment in the market, despite recent upticks in militant violence.
The ongoing PSX session saw the KSE-100 index dip below its earlier high, trading at 118,526.63 points at the time of filing this report.
