News

USAID provides assistance for following Projects in Pakistan

LIGHTS FOR BORDER CUSTOMS OPERATIONS - USAID procured three generators and 32 street lamps for the Chaman border post to provide a constant supply of electricity for customs operations at both highway and railway crossing points between Pakistan and Afghanistan. Chaman experiences load shedding up to 18 hours a day, delaying the transshipment of goods and people at this critical border post.  USAID will also support maintenance of the donated equipment. 

ASSISTANCE TO RIOT - AFFECTED ENTREPRENEURS - This week USAID delivered checks of $3,000 to $5,000 to the first 20 of more than 2,000 entrepreneurs who lost their businesses in a fire ignited during a riot near Bolton Market in Karachi on December 28. Bolton was Pakistan's largest wholesale market providing commodities to retailers nationwide and included 35 warehouses as well as family-owned businesses. In just one month, and in partnership with the American Business Council and a leading bank, USAID arranged to distribute $10 million in grants and $2 million in credit support. For more information, http://www.usaid.gov/pk/newsroom/news/growth/100216.html

INTERNET ACCESS LIGHTS UP JALALABAD - A new public-private partnership, Light Up Jalalabad, is bringing Internet connectivity to educational institutions in this eastern province of Afghanistan. By increasing educational access to computers and the Internet, USAID is helping Afghanistan improve the quality of its education system, develop its workforce, and pursue sustainable economic development. For more information, http://afghanistan.usaid.gov/en/Article.993.aspx 

CREDIT UNIONS HELP SMALL BUSINESSES GROW – Using a Sharia-compliant financial advance, Sayed Mohammad, a fruit merchant from Gomen village in Laghman province, transformed his business from a one-man fruit cart into a large fruit and juice stall with employees, and has become the primary supplier of watermelons to area cart vendors.  After only five years, 16 member-owned Islamic Investment and Finance Cooperatives are bringing financial services to approximately 47,000 members across Afghanistan. More information, http://afghanistan.usaid.gov/en/Article.989.aspx

WORLD-CLASS SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY FACILITIES DEDICATED - USAID dedicated a science and computer laboratory building to Forman Christian College in Lahore on February 13, funded and equipped by a $5 million grant from USAID in partnership with the provincial government. The grant also helped the college develop a new four-year secular curriculum, provided 1,400 student scholarships, upgraded and expanded the new library, and funded postgraduate studies for faculty. For more information, http://www.usaid.gov/pk/newsroom/news/education/100216.html

MEDIA CAMPAIGN PROMOTES ZINC DROPS - Diarrhea kills almost 630 Pakistani children each day; zinc is seen as “magic bullet” for reducing these deaths.  After research showed minimal awareness among Pakistan’s doctors and health specialists about the effectiveness of zinc drops to prevent diarrhea in children under five, USAID launched a media campaign to educate health providers and families of the importance of using zinc mixed with Oral Rehydration Solution.  For more information, http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=zinc-childhood-diarrhea

Pakistan Economic woes

THE outgoing Finance Minister Shaukat Tarin has spelled out the challenges to the Pakistani economy in the months ahead, much of this being common sense. These include lack of good governance, decline in investments, cost of the war against militancy, haemorrhaging public-sector enterprises, colossal waste in development projects, a dismal tax base and the politicians’ preference for import-based solutions rather than initiating serious structural reform to make the local economy more competitive internationally. Worse, with Mr Tarin set to exit, it’s not clear if the present government has the political will to address any of those serious problems. For many months it seemed that the finance minister was waging a lonely battle for good governance and with him gone it’s not clear who else will step up to be the ‘conscience’ of the cabinet.

Consider this. On Thursday, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton raised the issue of tax dodging by rich Pakistanis in testimony before the US Senate: “The very well-off do not pay their fair share for the services that are needed, in health and education primarily.” As if proof of this was needed, the declarations of assets by parliamentarians made public earlier made for truly shameful reading. Pakistanis are expected to believe that their multi-millionaire and billionaire elected representatives in many cases do not even own a car. In such a scenario, it is difficult to see parliament doing the right thing and getting serious about tax reform when the parliamentarians themselves are habitual tax dodgers.

And yet at some point the reckoning must come. Presently, the country is paying for the profligacy and mistakes of the stewards of the economy in the last part of the Musharraf era. But the future may be worse if the present government simply keeps kicking serious reform down the road. Take the issue of tax reform and budget deficits. Arguably, with the economy in the doldrums, containing budget deficits should not be the central plank of the economic program because other areas such as a security net for the vulnerable and spending to spur growth must also be emphasized. This is partly why the IMF has been tolerant of Pakistan’s rising budget deficit and has accepted a target of over five per cent (though that too may be exceeded). But the real issue for Pakistan is that revenue generation through taxes is beset by structural problems, meaning that not only is existing revenue generation unacceptably low but also that revenue generation cannot easily be ramped up when the time comes for paying all the debt the country is increasingly being saddled with. Read More

US govt forwards $1.45bn aid for Pakistan

The Obama administration sent lawmakers a plan for $1.45 billion in aid for Pakistan this year, funding water, energy and other projects as well as a media campaign to counter extremist views. The 2010 spending plan, obtained by Reuters, was sent to lawmakers late as part of the US administration’s obligation to consult Congress over the civilian aid package. The aid is aimed at expanding ties with Islamabad beyond military spending, which amounted to more than $10 billion over the past nine years. “It represents a rebalancing of the military and civilian assistance,” Deputy Secretary of State Jack Lew told Reuters of the package, part of a $7.5 billion, five-year aid plan passed by Congress for Pakistan last year. The 15-page spending plan said the Obama administration was working closely with Pakistan’s government to design “high-impact” projects in energy, agriculture, water and education and to improve services and economic opportunities for people in areas susceptible to extremism. The biggest chunk of the money – just over a billion – covers economic support, including funds to build up weak government capacity at both the local and national levels. Infrastructure projects took up $55 million, with a focus on energy and helping to ease rolling blackouts that have crippled some industry and are a major public irritant. Read More

Indian American Muslims demand transparent investigation of the murder of Advocate Shahid Azmi

IMC-USA, an advocacy group dedicated towards safeguarding India's pluralist and tolerant ethos was extremely shocked and disheartened to hear that well-known Mumbai based advocate Shahid Azmi was gunned down in broad daylight on February 11 in his office in Taximen's Colony, Mumbai. Mr. Azmi was defense counsel to numerous Muslim youth who were arrested and detained in cases such as the 2006 Malegaon case in Maharashtra. Reportedly the assailants pretended to be his clients. It is also reported that Mr. Azmi had approached the police about threats to his life; however he was not given security by the government. In his very young but impactful career, Mr. Azmi became the outspoken voice for downtrodden and defenseless youth.

Dr. Hyder Khan, National Vice President and spokesperson for IMC-USA said, "All injustice, particularly murders are injurious to the functioning of a civil society. The democratic system is weakened when government fails to protect the life and liberties of its citizens." 

IMC strongly feels that the murder of Shahid Azmi is not a murder of an individual only, but rather a brazen effort to intimidate and ultimately obliterate the idea of justice and silence the voice of the Indian conscience. IMC strongly urges the central government of India to conduct an independent and transparent investigation and bring the murderers of Mr. Azmi to justice. The Indian Judicial system and legal experts are the ultimate defense of the Indian Constitution for which many have sacrificed their lives and serve as the core of a civil and secular Indian state.

Viewpoint

What Can Pakistan Teach Us About Yemen? - Matthew Frankel

The last two weeks have yielded some amazing developments in the fight against extremists in Pakistan and Afghanistan. The Pakistani Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), historically a skeptical partner at best, has gone on the offensive against the Taliban inside its own country. The most notable development was the capture of Taliban deputy commander Mullah Baradar, but the ISI has also reportedly wrapped up nearly half of the Quetta Shura, a leadership council for the group. While it is unclear whether these arrests will turn the tide of the war against the Taliban in Afghanistan, the case has strong implications for another theater in our fight against al Qaeda and its affiliates: Yemen.

In the wake of the failed Christmas Day bombing perpetrated by Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), the United States has increasingly turned its attention to Yemen. With no support for military deployments to the area, the main thrust of U.S. strategy has been a high-value targeting (HVT) campaign against group leadership. The problem is that history has shown that simply eliminating insurgent or terrorist commanders does not automatically lead to victory. For example, who can forget the “Iraqi deck of cards” that became the primary metric for U.S. “success” after the fall of Saddam Hussein? My research of 20 different HVT campaigns since 1945 identifies three key lessons for the United States to improve its chances of success in Yemen: local forces have a better chance of success than outside forces, HVT campaigns can’t succeed in a vacuum, and understanding the dynamics of the enemy is essential. Read More

Pakistan Plays Ball - Imtiaz Gull

Since Oct. 7, 2001, when the first U.S. B-52 bombers began bombarding Taliban installations around Kabul, the United States and its allies have been waiting for Pakistan to demonstrate its sincerity in the war being fought on Afghan soil. The arrest of nine Taliban militants in the Pakistani city of Karachi, including the Afghan Taliban's second in command, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, may indicate a fundamental shift in Pakistan's relations with the NATO states fighting in Afghanistan.

Despite former President Pervez Musharraf's repeated public commitment to the war on terror, the U.S. intelligence community has remained wary of its Pakistani interlocutors -- the military and the mighty Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), Pakistan's main spy agency -- because of their longstanding complicity with Afghanistan's Taliban factions. Its suspicions kept falling on the ISI for allegedly protecting Afghan Taliban leaders such as Mullah Omar, Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, and Sirajuddin Haqqani, the eldest son of veteran jihadist leader Jalaluddin Haqqani.

The arrest of Baradar, known as the Taliban's master strategist, might put an end to these rumors. This success was followed by a deluge of arrests of other Taliban and jihadi leaders, likely on evidence provided by Baradar. These include Ameer Muawiya, an associate of Osama bin Laden responsible for foreign al Qaeda militants in Pakistan's border areas, and Akhunzada Popalzai, also known as Mohammad Younis, a former Taliban shadow governor in Afghanistan's southern Zabul province and ex-police chief of Kabul. Earlier this week, the Pakistani police also picked up Maulvi Kabir, a former governor of Afghanistan's eastern Nangarhar province, from a town about 20 kilometers east of Peshawar. Read More

Assessing Pakistan's Crackdown on the Afghan Taliban - Bernard I. Finel

Who knew it would turn out to be quite so simple to round up much of the senior leadership of the Afghan Taliban? Well, the reality is that most of us suspected it would be easy.  They’ve been operating more or less openly in Quetta since 2002, and have been active in Karachi for at least the past three years as well.  So, the assumption — by me at least — was always that Pakistan’s failure to round up the Quetta Shura Taliban (QST) was a matter strategic choice.

The strategic argument was that the Afghan Taliban provided a significant point of leverage on developments in Afghanistan.  It allowed the Pakistanis to continue to angle for the creation of “strategic depth” in Afghanistan, and it provided Islamabad a tool to try to block Indian influence in Afghanistan.  This line of argumentation provided a durable interpretation for Pakistan’s apparent ambivalence about weakening the QST. Read More

Elections 2010

Democrats could loose control of US Senate

PAKPAC will be monitoring close races in US Senate, House of Representative, and State Governors. Various polls are listed to help you understand which way US voters are leaning during the mid term elections. The wild card in voter opinion at this point is the level of anti-incumbent sentiment, which is as extensive as it has been in 16 years of Pew Research Center surveys. About three-in-ten voters (31%) say they do not want to see their own representative reelected, which is well above the average percentage expressing this view in 29 previous surveys (23%). Most Americans (52%) say the Democratic Party has done a poor job in offering solutions to the country’s problems; 40% say the Democrats have done a good job in proposing solutions. But the Republican Party gets even lower marks in this regard: 60% say the GOP has done a poor job offering solutions for national problems while only about half as many (29%) say the GOP has done well. The top issues for American public are Economy, Jobs, Terrorism, Social Security, Education, Medicare, deficit Reduction, Health care.

The partisan playing field for the 2010 Senate elections is even, with the Republicans defending 18 seats and the Democrats also defending 18. Pundits believe that Republicans have an opportunity to take control of US senate with victory in 8 of the toss up seats in following States of New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Kentucky, Illinois, Missouri, Colorado. and Neveda.  

At this point in time, 25 U.S. Representatives are voluntarily retiring from the House at the end of their current term. Most non-partisan pundits predict that the Republicans will gain seats in the 2010 elections, but expressed doubt that the Republicans could retake control of the House in 2010, however they project that Democratic majority in house may get reduced to 21 seats from the present 41 seats.. Check ratings for tough house races.

There are 37 states that will elect governors in November 2010, with a near-even partisan split: The Democrats are defending their hold on 19 of those seats, while Republicans are the defenders in 18 states, including Utah, where there is a special election. State budget problems, greatly exacerbated by the recession, are creating political difficulties for incumbents of both parties. Read a complete breakdown of governor races.

Events & Activities

PAKPAC Board meets with White House Official

PAKPAC Board members Amina Khan, Shehzad Akhtar, and Irfan Malik met with White House official Mr. Kalpen Modi. Mr. Modi is Associate Director in the White House Office of Public Engagement and is responsible for engaging with South Asians and Asian Pacific Communities. This is the first such meeting between a Pakistani American Organization and White House Official. At this meeting Mr. Modi shared with the group the open and more accessible policy at White House, and welcomed the opportunity to share Office of Public Engagement initiatives with Pakistani American Community. PAKPAC Board apprised Mr. Modi of PAKPAC initiatives on Census 2010 and Youth Programs. PAKPAC shared the issues of jobs, small business opportunities, profiling, travel, and immigration faced by our community. Few other issues that were discussed at this meeting were

• Underrepresentation of Pakistani American Community in Obama Administration Staff
• Lack of Interaction between Obama Administration and  Pakistani American Community

PAKPAC engages with USCIRF on religious freedom in Pakistan

PAKPAC has sent a brief response to United States Commission on International Religious Freedom about the status of Religious Freedom in Pakistan. The Commission in their 2009 report had listed Pakistan as a Country of particular concern and had recommended to US Administration and State Department to put Pakistan on notice due to lack of religious freedom in Pakistan. PAKPAC believes that the Commission had incorrectly listed Pakistan as a country of particular concern and has asked for its removal in the Commission 2010 report. PAKPAC found that the Commission 2009 report does not correctly draw a distinction between religious freedom and insurgent activity and its root causes. PAKPAC also found inconsistency in Commissions report about its approach for religious freedom in various countries.  PAKPAC also highlighted the inconsistency between State Department report on religious freedom and the Commissions’ report.

PAKPAC to take up new TSA guidelines with Department of Justice

In a meeting with US Department of Justice PAKPAC and other Civic organizations plan to take up besides others, the following issues of

• Security screening of individuals from particular countries introduced after December attempted plane bombing
• Assurances of confidentiality protections during the 2010 Census

Immigration

USCIS Announces Citizenship and Integration Grant Opportunities

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced the availability of two different grants totaling $7 million designed to promote citizenship education and immigrant integration in communities across the country. Funding will expand local capacity to prepare legal residents for citizenship

“Each aspiring citizen represents a personal story of sacrifice and triumph,” said USCIS Director Alejandro Mayorkas. “This funding will increase opportunities for English language instruction, promote the rights and responsibilities that define our nation, and provide much-needed support for individuals on the path to citizenship.” The first grant will strengthen locally-based citizenship preparation programs. The second grant will increase the capacity of members or affiliates of national, regional, or statewide organizations to offer citizenship services in underserved communities. USCIS expects to announce an estimated 50 award recipients in September 2010.  Read More

Those organizations planning to apply for either of the grants must send a mandatory letter of intent to citizenshipgrantprogram@dhs.gov by March 26, 2010. To apply for either program, visit www.grants.gov. Applications for both grant opportunities are due by April 30, 2010. During fiscal year (FY) 2009, USCIS awarded $1.2 million in grants to 13 immigrant-serving organizations across the country. These awards are currently expanding services and outreach on U.S. citizenship, educational opportunities, and available resources to nearly 70,000 LPRs in 11 states. For more information about the FY 2010 Citizenship Grant Program, visit www.uscis.gov/grants. To learn more about USCIS and its programs, visit www.uscis.gov.

Civil Liberties

Congress Reauthorizes  Patriot Act Provisions with No Privacy or Civil Liberties Safeguards

US Congress passed a one-year extension of three expiring Patriot Act provisions without making much-needed changes to the overly broad surveillance bill. PAKPAC and other Civil Liberty Organizations had conducted an Advocacy Day on Hill on Feb 3^rd to oppose reauthorization of these provisions without reforms, With this extension, Congress failed to address proper privacy safeguards in the Patriot Act, including:

·                     Amending the national security letter (NSL) statute to ensure that the government obtains financial, communication and credit records only of people believed to be terrorists or spies;

·                     Requiring the government to convince a court that a national security gag order is necessary;

·                     Terminating the "lone wolf" authority that permits the government to spy on people who are not part of a terrorist organization; and

·                     Ensuring that the so-called "library records provision" does not authorize collection of library and bookstore records if they contain information on a patron unless he is a terrorist or spy.

Since the Patriot Act's passage in 2001, there have been several consecutive reports — including one released in January — from the Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General that have outlined widespread and blatant abuse of the statute. FBI agents routinely claimed false terrorism emergencies to use "exigent letters," or emergency letters, in order to gain private records for investigations when no emergency existed. The FBI also regularly issued NSLs after the fact in an attempt to legitimize the use of exigent letters.  Although the outcome is not what we had hoped, we made progress. In the House, 97 representatives, 10 of which were Republicans, voted against extending the Patriot Act. Some members of Congress justified this extension by promising that the next year would provide time for real reform. You can bet we're going to hold them to their promise. And we'll be turning to you to help keep the pressure on.

Religious Freedom

Townhall meeting with National Security Advisor John Brennan at NYU

The Islamic Society of North America (ISNA) facilitated a meeting with John Brennan, Assistant to the President on National Security for homeland security and counter terrorism. The meeting was intended to start a dialogue between government officials and Muslim American leaders to explore issues of national security, including the important role the Muslim American community plays to thwart security threats and improve the deteriorating relationships with Muslim countries. The meeting, organized by the White House under the title “A Dialogue on Our Nation’s Security,” was co-sponsored by the Islamic Center at New York University, the Islamic Law Students Association at NYU, and the White House Office of Public Engagement. John Brennan affirmed the president’s commitment to protecting the civil rights and civil liberties of All Americans including Muslims. He emphasized the president’s message to Muslims, Arabs and Sikhs that American civil rights and American values must not be defined by violent extremists. Mr. Brennan acknowledged the importance of the Muslim community in fighting terrorism, recalled the important roles it played in thwarting a number of terrorist plots, and underscored the need for continuous cooperation in countering terrorism.  Muslim leaders assured Mr. Brennan of their support of the government’s efforts to protect the nation against security threats, and pointed out ongoing efforts by national Muslim organizations to counter the extremist narrative in the United States and beyond. They also expressed concerns about certain government policies that infringe on the civil liberties of Muslims and undermine the community’s ability to use its resources in positive ways. These concerns were expressed in ISNA president’s statement, identifying several threats to the Muslim American identity and presence. These included “government actions that impinge on the freedom of [Muslim American] community to organize, to freely express our religious values and to engage in the lawful advocacy of our positions,” Dr. Mattson argued. “We need the freedom to build an ethical, productive community of faithful American Muslims – something we cannot do if we have to fritter away our resources defending ourselves against bogus charges,” she stressed.

View John Brennan’s remarks here:

View Q & A session

Community Action

Tell Google: No Deal with the NSA

Google and the NSA. It is hard to imagine a more potent—or frightening—combination when it comes to the collection and safety of Americans' private information.  Such an alliance is underway, however. As reported by the Washington Post, Google — the world's largest search engine company with access to intimate details of our lives — is negotiating an information security agreement with the National Security Agency (NSA) — the world's largest spying network.  The implications of this deal are very troubling. The NSA — a component of the Department of Defense — is an intelligence collection agency with few effective checks against abuse and no public oversight of its activities. In the last decade, the NSA's vast dragnet of suspicionless surveillance has targeted everyday Americans, in violation of the law and the Constitution. The deal would reportedly allow the NSA to assist Google in securing its data from attack after some its accounts, including those of human rights activists, were accessed by hackers. Google has an obligation to protect its subscribers' personal accounts, but it can — and must — do this without turning to a military surveillance agency for help.  Google needs to know that you do not want this deal to go through. Send a message to  Google CEO Eric Schmidt that you don't want the NSA anywhere close to your personal information.

Census Questionnaire to be mailed this month

US Government is conducting a count of its residents; such a count -census is conducted every ten years. The 2010 Census will be mailed or delivered to over 130 million households by March. Participation is not only mandatory, it is crucial for the Pakistani American community as one of the fastest growing and traditionally undercounted populations. An accurate count through the census will allow for fair allocation of federal funding and political representation. Make yourself count by participating in the 2010 Census! It will also indicate what is the total count of Pakistani Americans in USA, and in which states, towns they reside in.

An accurate count of the U.S. population forms the basis for many important but often overlooked political, economic, and social decisions that are made that end up affecting our daily lives. By filling the Census form you’re making a statement about what resources your community needs going forward. Starting February US households will start getting Census forms in mail. PAKPAC requests to all Pakistani Americans to fully participate and make sure that they and their loved ones are counted. Anyone in the family can complete the Census papers and it is required to have information on all people in the household.

Participation in census is not dependent on your visa or residency status. The census does not ask about your status. (Your information is protected). Please complete the form and include any relatives and friends even if temporarily staying at your address. To make it easier for US residents, Census Bureau have translated many forms and instructions and other information in many languages including Urdu. Read Census form in Urdu.

In 2000 Census the questionnaire had problems confusing the Pakistani Americans to be wrongfully counted as Asian Indians. To find out how to correctly fill the form checkout PAKPAC instructions.

If you have any questions about 2010 Census please contact ed@pakpac.net or 202-558-6404.

There are many job opportunities still available for 2010 census, many of them are temporary jobs, if you or someone you know is interested they can check for available job postings at Census 201o website. The following link provides practice tests for Census 2010 jobs.

Census Timeline: Key Dates to Remember

February 2010 – April 2010: Questionnaire Assistance Centers and Be Counted sites open to answer questions

March 2010: United States Postal Service delivers census questionnaires

April 1, 2010: CENSUS DAY Send your questionnaire back!

May 2010 – July 2010: Census takers follow up with households that did not return questionnaires

December 31, 2010: U.S Census Bureau delivers apportionment counts to the president.