ISLAMABAD: Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar emphasized on Saturday all citizens of Pakistan, regardless of their faith, enjoyed equal rights while addressing an event organized by the human rights ministry to celebrate Christmas in the federal capital.
The event, symbolizing unity and diversity, saw leaders from various faiths come together to cut a Christmas cake, as Kakar extended festive greetings to the Christian community on behalf of the government and people of Pakistan.
Despite striving for religious harmony, Pakistan has faced challenges in maintaining peace among different faith-based groups, with the Christian community being targeted in certain instances.
Earlier this year in August, violence erupted in Jaranwala, a small town in Punjab’s Faisalabad district, following accusations against two Christian men of desecrating the Holy Qur’an.
While there were no casualties, the incident marked one of the most destructive attacks against Pakistani Christians and drew strong condemnation from political and religious leaders across the country.
“We will resist all kinds of fascism,” declared the prime minister at the ceremony, as reported by the Associated Press of Pakistan (APP) news agency. “Pakistan is the flag carrier of inclusiveness and harmony.”
With the festive season approaching, the Christian community across Pakistan is busy with preparations for their annual religious celebration.
In Multan, a city known for its vibrancy, Christian families have been gearing up for Christmas amid bustling markets, with many of them buying news clothes, jewelry and festive decorations, creating an atmosphere filled with joy and anticipation.
“We came here to prepare for the Christmas festival on December 25,” Grace Samia, a Christian resident of the city, said with enthusiasm while speaking to AFP. “We’re purchasing clothes and jewelry for our kids and ourselves to fully celebrate Christmas.”
Robina Daniel, echoing the sentiment, underscored the significance of these preparations.
“We do Christmas preparations with full swing because it’s our biggest event, celebrated every year,” she said. “As soon as December begins, our preparations start.”
Umella Amir emphasized the communal nature of the preparations:
“Our whole family is here for Christmas shopping. We’ve almost finished because the days are drawing near, and we need to wrap up our preparations.”
Reflecting on the day’s spiritual significance, Pastor Faheem Shahzad, head of the Presbyterian Church, said Christians always prayed for peace and unity on the special day.
“Christmas is our happiest day,” he said. “People come to churches to attend prayers and participate in various functions. I am thankful to God that people always express love, peace, and unity through these prayers.”
(With input from AFP)
As Christians ready for Christmas, Pakistan PM emphasizes religious equality and tolerance
https://arab.news/2k3w8
As Christians ready for Christmas, Pakistan PM emphasizes religious equality and tolerance
- PM Kakar says Pakistan will resist fascism at a Christmas ceremony attended by leaders of different faiths
- Christian families in Pakistan say they started preparing for the festival as soon as the ongoing month arrived
Pakistan hosts Islamic Capital Markets Conference in push to make financial system shariah-compliant
Pakistan hosts Islamic Capital Markets Conference in push to make financial system shariah-compliant
- Islamic Capital Markets promote shariah-compliant securities and instruments as alternatives to conventional ones
- Finance minister says 56 percent of market capitalization at the Pakistan Stock Exchange comprises Shariah-compliant securities
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb highlighted the importance of Islamic capital markets in helping the country remain on the road to economic stability, as the South Asian nation hosted the second International Islamic Capital Markets Conference & Expo in Karachi on Thursday.
Islamic Capital Markets are a sub-sector of capital markets that promote shariah-compliant securities and instruments as alternatives to conventional ones.
The minister was addressing the inaugural session of the conference that opened on Thursday in Karachi, Pakistan’s financial hub, where senior officials such as Dr. Sami Al-Suwailem, acting director general of the Islamic Development Bank Institute, Akif Saeed, chairman of the Securities Exchange Commission of Pakistan, Saleemullah, deputy governor of the State Bank of Pakistan, and other senior delegates were in attendance.
The minister noted that Islamic finance, specifically Islamic capital markets, can play a pivotal role in Pakistan’s economic progress as instruments such as sukuk, equity funds, and Shariah-compliant investment vehicles not only attracted investment but also reduced reliance on interest-based borrowing.
“In his keynote address to the session, the finance minister described the conference as reflective of Pakistan’s growing commitment to fostering a robust Islamic capital market, highlighting the country’s dedication to transforming its financial ecosystem in line with Shariah principles,” Pakistan’s Finance Division said in a press release.
Aurangzeb revealed that as of June 30, 2024, 56 percent of market capitalization at the Pakistan Stock Exchange comprises Shariah-compliant securities.
“In the collective investment segment, 48 percent of assets under management of mutual funds, 66 percent of assets under management of voluntary pension funds, and 95 percent of assets under management of REITs are already Shariah-compliant,” the press release said.
“These statistics deflect the progress that we have made over a year.”
Aurangzeb said that a growing interest in Shariah-compliant investment products was a testament to the increasing global demand for ethical and sustainable financial solutions.
“The steady and healthy growth of Islamic finance, both in Pakistan and internationally, reflects the shifting preferences of investors toward value-based financial systems,” he said.
The minister noted that the full realization of Islamic finance’s potential was not possible without the collaborative efforts of scholars, financial institutions, regulatory bodies, and industry practitioners.
They, he said, can address existing challenges, develop innovative Shariah-compliant financial products and build public trust.
“We must ensure that Islamic finance is not only rooted in Shariah principles but also practical, transparent, and capable of meeting the evolving needs of our people,” Aurangzeb said.
Pakistan stocks smash 113,000 mark on strong performance by energy, fertilizer sectors
- KSE-100 index climbed 2784.61, or 2.51 percent, to stand at 113,594.82 points at 2:48pm
- Investors confident of significant interest rate cut at next monetary policy meeting on Dec. 16
ISLAMABAD: Pakistani stocks continued their record-breaking streak on Thursday, crossing the 113,000-point mark for the first time during intra-day trading, with the strong performance of energy and fertilizer shares contributing to the gains.
The benchmark KSE-100 index climbed 2784.61, or 2.51 percent, to stand at 113,594.82 points at 2:48 pm, from the previous close of 110,810.21 points.
“Lower T-Bill yields, leading up to next week’s monetary policy, are driving investor enthusiasm,” Head of Equities at Intermarket Securities Raza Jafri told Arab News. “Index heavyweight energy and fertilizer contribute most to today’s rise.”
Arif Habib Corporation Chief Executive Officer Ahsan Mehanti attributed the record-breaking streak to surging global crude oil prices, upbeat Pakistan Oil Fields sales, car sales, cement dispatches data for November 2024 and the Asian Development Bank raising the growth forecast to three percent for FY25.
“These factors played the role of a catalyst in the record surge,” he told Arab News. “Stocks showed record bullish activity after government bonds yields fell by up to 100bps in the State Bank of Pakistan auction expected to bring significant policy easing next week.”
Stocks have been performing well this week on the back of investor confidence of a significant interest rate cut by the central bank at the next monetary policy meeting on Dec. 16.
Pakistan’s central bank has already slashed interest rates by 700 basis points (bps) in four consecutive meetings since June, bringing it to 15 percent.
According to a poll by Topline Securities, 71 percent of participants expect the central bank to announce a minimum rate cut of 200bps next week.
Pakistan’s annual consumer inflation also slowed to 4.9 percent in November, lower than the government’s forecast and the lowest in nearly six years. This is down from 38 percent last year.
Trade data released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics also supports positive investor sentiment as the trade deficit narrowed by 7.39 percent during the first five months (July-November) of the current fiscal year, standing at $8.651 billion, compared to $9.341 billion during the same period last year.
Exports rose by 12.57 percent to hit $13.69 billion, while imports increased by 3.90 percent to $22.342 billion during this period. November’s trade deficit narrowed even further, dropping by 18.60 percent year-on-year to $1.589 billion compared to $1.952 billion in November 2023.
Pakistan’s Imran Khan, wife indicted in second graft case involving state gifts
- Couple is accused of undervaluing gifts from a state repository and buying them at a lesser price
- Khan, who has been in jail since August 2023, says all cases against him are politically motivated
ISLAMABAD: A special court in Islamabad on Thursday indicted jailed ex-premier Imran Khan and his wife in a case involving the sale of gifts from a state repository, his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) said.
The reference, popularly called the new Toshakhana case, was filed in July and involves a jewelry set worth over €380,000 gifted to Bushra Khan, the former first lady, by a foreign dignitary when Khan was prime minister from 2018-2022. The couple are accused of undervaluing the gift and buying it at a lesser price from the state repository. Both deny wrongdoing. This is the second case against the couple involving the sale of gifts from the state repository.
Khan has been in jail since August last year following his conviction in four cases, two of which have been suspended, including an original one relating to state gifts, and he was acquitted in the rest. He was also granted bail in the new Toshakhana case last month but remains behind bars in other cases. Bushra has been out on bail since October.
“This is a classic example of how a politically motivated case is being driven to keep one man in prison,” the PTI said in a statement sent to reporters, confirming his and Bushra’s indictment by a special court of the Federal Investigation Agency.
Khan’s convictions earlier this year prevented him from contesting the Feb. 8 election. The former prime minister and his party allege the cases are politically motivated and were a ploy by the then caretaker government, Pakistan’s electoral watchdog, the powerful military and his political rivals, led by the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) party, to keep Khan and his party away from elections. All deny the allegations.
Khan, who was ousted from office after a parliamentary vote in April 2022, has since waged an unprecedented campaign of defiance against the country’s powerful military, which is thought to be aligned with the government. The military denies it interferes in politics.
Khan continues to remain popular among the masses, especially the youth, with his party’s rallies drawing thousands of people. The PTI has held several rallies over the past few months to build public pressure to secure his release from prison.
Four troops and 12 PTI supporters were killed in the latest protest in Islamabad last month after security forces raided the protest site to disperse demonstrators who had gathered at a square that is in the federal capital’s heavily-policed red zone, home to key government and diplomatic buildings as well as the Supreme Court.
Afghanistan, Pakistan should accelerate efforts to achieve universal birth registration by 2030 — UNICEF
- New UNICEF report shows that 42 million children under age five are still without legal identities in South Asia
- According to report, one-fourth of total number of unregistered children under five globally lives in South Asia
ISLAMABAD: South Asia has seen the fastest increase in birth registration rates among all regions in the last two decades, soaring from 39 percent in 2008 to 76 percent in 2024, according to a new UNICEF report released this week, which called on Afghanistan and Pakistan to speed up efforts to achieve universal birth registration by 2023.
India, Nepal, and Bangladesh have made significant strides in securing legal identities for millions of children, as per the report, ‘The Right Start in Life: Global Levels and Trends in Birth Registration, 2024 Update.’ Maldives, Bhutan and Sri Lanka have near 100 percent coverage due to prioritizing timely registration, using health, social protection, and education systems to register babies, expanding services to more locations, digitizing the process and eliminating fees.
Released on UNICEF’s 78th birthday, the report is the latest update on the number of children registered since 2019. Article 7 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child states affirms every child’s right to have their identity established ‘immediately’ after birth through birth registration.
“To achieve universal birth registration by 2030, Afghanistan and Pakistan, in particular, must accelerate their efforts,” UNICEF said on its website in a statement about the report.
“Bangladesh, which has made significant increases over the past decade, needs to scale up birth registration. India has also made remarkable progress over the last ten years, and a ‘celebrating the last-mile’ strategy would enable the country to reach universal birth registration by 2030.”
Sanjay Wijesekera, UNICEF Regional Director for South Asia, said in a statement a birth certificate was the foundation for legal identity.
“But it’s so much more than a document, it protects children’s rights and enables them to access essential services like health care, education and other social services,” she said.
“Today, as UNICEF marks 78 years of championing children’s rights, we celebrate the millions of children who now have their right to a legal identity and a lifetime of promise and possibility.”
Over 42 million children under age five are still not registered and remain ‘invisible’ in South Asia.
This means they are deprived of their right to legal identity and social services. According to the report, one-fourth of the total number of unregistered children under five globally lives in South Asia.
Countries can recommit to scale up birth registration across South Asia, ahead of the ‘Third Ministerial Conference on Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (CRVS) in Asia and the Pacific’ in June 2025, UNICEF said, calling for every child to be registered at birth, for the registration process to be streamlined and for health, social protection and education programs to be used in scaling up birth registration.
“To uphold our commitment to leave no child behind, we must prioritize birth registration to protect children and give them the best start in life,” said Wijesekera.
“UNICEF calls on leaders across South Asia to accelerate efforts so that every child in the region is registered at birth. It’s the right thing to do.”
Pakistan welcomes UNGA resolution demanding Gaza ceasefire, unrestricted aid access
- Ongoing Israeli military campaign in Gaza has killed over 44,000 people, injured thousands more since Oct 7, 2023
- UN-backed assessment last month warned famine was looming in northern Gaza due to a near-halt in food aid
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Thursday welcomed a United Nations General Assembly resolution demanding an immediate, unconditional and permanent ceasefire between Israel and Palestinian group Hamas in the Gaza Strip and unrestricted access for the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) to deliver aid.
The ongoing Israeli military campaign in Gaza has killed more than 44,000 people and injured thousands more since Oct 7, 2023 attacks by Hamas in which Israel says 1,200 people were killed and 250 taken hostage.
Israel’s 13-month military campaign has displaced an estimated 1.9 million Palestinians, many of them multiple times. Bombings, movement restrictions and evacuations ordered by Israel’s military block access to health care and keep aid workers from reaching people in need, with aid organizations and charities repeatedly warning of crisis-level hunger affecting nearly two million people.
A UN-backed assessment last month warned famine was looming in northern Gaza due to a near-halt in food aid. Essential goods such as water, fresh produce, and medicines are also scarce.
“Pakistan welcomes the UNGA resolution of yesterday demanding an immediate and unconditional ceasefire in Gaza and removal of restrictions against UNRWA in its aid operations in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank,” Foreign Office Spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch said at a weekly briefing on Thursday.
She called for the immediate “cessation of hostilities” in Palestine, an end to Israel’s “genocide,” protection of civilians and infrastructure, humanitarian access for the needy, and full support for UNRWA’s health care activities.
“We also urge the international community to hold Israel accountable for its war crimes and crimes against humanity in occupied territories,” Baloch added.
Since the beginning of Israel’s war on Gaza, Pakistan has repeatedly raised the issue at the UN, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and other multilateral platforms, demanding international powers and bodies stop Israeli military actions in Gaza.
Pakistan has dispatched a total of 1,273 tons of relief items to the war-affected people of Gaza until Nov. 27, according to the National Disaster Management Authority.
The South Asian nation does not recognize nor have diplomatic relations with Israel and calls for an independent Palestinian state based on “internationally agreed parameters” and the pre-1967 borders with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital.
