GENEVA: Despite COVID-related declines in rhino poaching and the illegal trafficking in their horns, a conservation organisation warned on Monday that the rhino’s survival remains in severe jeopardy.
Poaching remains “an extreme threat” to the continued existence of the species, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).IUCN reports that 2,707 rhinos were killed between 2018 and 2021 as a result of poaching in Africa, the vast majority of which occurred in South Africa, primarily in the Kruger National Park.
The majority of rhinos in the world reside in South Africa.According to the Swiss-based organisation, rhino poaching rates in Africa have decreased from a peak of 5.3% of the overall population in 2015 to 2.3% in 2021.
TikTok, a well-known platform for short videos, refuted allegations that its in-app browser was used to “scrape” passwords, credentials, and other sensitive information from its users.Developer Felix Krause claimed that a code in TikTok’s iOS app enabled the corporation to track “all keystrokes, including passwords, and all touches.
“The engineer learned about privacy and security issues from his prior work with Twitter and Google.The developer said on Twitter and in a blog post that clicking a link within the TikTok iPhone app launches an in-app browser.
Due to some JavaScript code incorporated into the app, including those on third party websites in TikTok itself, he said that the application “injects tracking code” that is capable of monitoring all text inputs, including “passwords, and all taps.”
After dominating Derbyshire this year, Pakistan’s left-handed opener Shan Masood signed a two-year contract with Yorkshire, a county in northern England.
Shan, who has amassed 1,779 runs for the English East Midlands county of Derbyshire this season, will represent Yorkshire for the following two years.
A 32-year-old man spoke: “I’m excited to be joining Yorkshire.He went on to say: “The Yorkshire CCC has a storied past, and playing at Headingly every week would be a dream for anyone.
It’s really exciting to follow in the footsteps of Yorkshire’s three Pakistani captains, Inzamam ul Haq, Younis Khan, and Sarfaraz Ahmed.
Tsuneko Sasamoto, a pioneering photographer and the country of Japan’s first female photojournalist, died on Monday at the age of 107, according to domestic media. She was known for swearing by a glass of red wine every night as one of the secrets to good health.
Just over two weeks before her 108th birthday, she passed away on August 15 from old age, according to the media.Sasamoto, who was born in Tokyo the year that World War One started, initially intended to be an artist but was dissuaded from pursuing it by her father.
She started working as a photographer after being moved by a black-and-white movie she saw with a friend, and in 1940 she joined the Photographic Association of Japan.
Imran Khan, the leader of the PTI and a former prime minister, claimed on Monday that he was uninformed of the remarks made by party supporter Shahbaz Gill on a pay channel that ultimately resulted in his imprisonment.
Speaking in the nation’s capital at a conference on judicial independence, Khan claimed that Gill later told him about his remarks.In his remarks, Khan claimed that there was no arrest warrant for Gill when she was brought into jail. He said, “Gill was stripped naked and his images were taken.”
According to the former prime minister, the magistrate was informed by the report that his chief of staff had been tortured, but the man was nonetheless reported to the police.
Separately, Khan dared the coalition government to arrest him when he was presiding over a parliamentary party meeting at his Bani Gala home.
The former prime minister filed a pre-arrest bail application in the Islamabad High Court earlier today to escape being arrested in a terror case brought against him yesterday (Sunday) night, and he was granted transit bail for three days until August 25.
The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) said that the metropolis and the rest of the province may be impacted by the rain-producing system existing in central India a day after forecasting heavy showers for the next 24 hours in Karachi.
According to chief meteorologist Sardar Sarfaraz, the Indian monsoon system is expected to bring further rain to Karachi on August 23.Sarfaraz provided information about the incredibly low-pressure system, stating that it is currently over central India and is headed for the Indian state of Rajasthan.
Rainfall may result from this across Karachi, upper and central Sindh, as well as northern and eastern Balochistan.He continued by saying that one of the meteorological charts showed the monsoon system heading towards upper Sindh and South Punjab, while the other showed it heading west.
Many people have been motivated by Babar Sheikh’s social media posts regarding his wife’s cancer battle.Sheikh described how his wife Zahra Khan continued to work and run a side business despite having an illness.
Khan was identified as having stage 2 invasive ductal carcinoma, or breast cancer, early this year, according to a LinkedIn post.The couple’s life came crashing down after “countless hours of sitting in hospital lobbies and meeting various oncologists and breast surgeons.”
Sheikh described how the couple was forced to move in with their in-laws due to Khan’s need for additional care.He described in full her difficulties with treatment.
He stated in the post, “A nerve-wracking 6 months of chemotherapy saw her lose her hair, not function for days following a chemo session, lose her taste of food or drink for days on end, and was overall weariness and lethargy.
In 2008, back when she was a fresh-faced Disney star, a reporter asked Demi Lovato about her taste in music.
Demi Lovato
“What fascinates me,” she said, “is metal.”
She continued by namechecking hardcore bands Dimmu Borgir and Job For A Cowboy, whose songs were called things like Reduced to Mere Filth and Tormentor of Christian Souls.
Then, the 15-year-old had second thoughts.
“I think [Disney Channel president] Gary Marsh would kill me.”
That irreverent candour has always been part of Lovato’s appeal. from her days on kids’ TV to her platinum-selling music career, via stints on the US X Factor and the sitcom Will & Grace. But she’s never fulfilled the promise of a Demi Lovato metal album until now.
The singer’s eighth album, Holy Fvck, is a sonic assault of razor blade guitars and throat-scorching vocals that strips away the radio-friendly veneer of her earlier material.
She signalled the stylistic shift earlier this year, with an Instagram post captioned: “A funeral for my pop music.” In the accompanying photo, Lovato raised both middle fingers to the camera, while surrounded by her record label team.
“It wasn’t an actual funeral,” laughs the star, “but I was in a label meeting and we all happened be wearing black and I was like, ‘This is perfect because I’m not playing pop music anymore. This is a rock album.’
“I definitely wanted to go harder with the sound.”
Madrid : Robert Lewandowski got off the mark for Barcelona with a double as Ansu Fati starred as a substitute in a 4-1 victory over Real Sociedad on Sunday, while Villarreal won at Atletico Madrid.
Poland striker Lewandowski, celebrating his 34th birthday, put Barca ahead inside 50 seconds before Alexander Isak levelled for La Real in San Sebastian.
But Fati came off the bench to create goals for Ousmane Dembele and Lewandowski, before completing the scoring himself.
Barca’s first win of the season followed a disappointing goalless draw at home to Rayo Vallecano on the opening weekend.
Coach Xavi had called for “patience” from supporters after a summer spending spree which saw Lewandowski, Raphinha, Andreas Christensen and Franck Kessie all move to the Camp Nou.
That quartet all made their debuts against Rayo, but France defender Jules Kounde is still to be registered by the club after his transfer from Sevilla as they look to overcome financial problems.
The visitors made a dream start on Sunday, though, as 18-year-old full-back Alejandro Balde raced clear and sent in a low cross which was tapped home by Lewandowski.
He scored 344 goals during a trophy-laden eight-year spell at Bayern Munich before leaving for 45 million euros in July.
But the home side hit back in the sixth minute, as Frenkie de Jong lost the ball in midfield and Isak raced clear before lofting the ball into the net.
Sociedad were proving a tough nut to crack for Barca, but the game changed when Fati was sent on in the 64th minute.
The 19-year-old’s brilliant backheel teed up Dembele to drill a left-footed strike into the bottom corner just two minutes later, before another clever touch found Lewandowski to score.
Fati, who endured two injury-plagued seasons after breaking into the first team in 2019/20, got a goal himself late on as he collected Lewandowski’s volleyed flick and slotted in.
Earlier, Villarreal moved to the top of the fledgling table as second-half goals from Yeremy Pino and Gerard Moreno secured a 2-0 victory at Atletico.
Unai Emery’s men opened their season with an impressive 3-0 win at Real Valladolid last weekend but the scalp of Atletico will raise hopes of a possible challenge for Champions League qualification.
The result was a reality check for the capital side, though, who had also started the campaign with a 3-0 success at Getafe.
Villarreal, who reached last season’s Champions League semi-finals, are one of four teams with two wins from two matches and edged above reigning champions Real Madrid on goal difference.
The away side made a fast start at the Estadio Metropolitano, with Atletico goalkeeper Jan Oblak forced into fine saves from Giovani Lo Celso and Etienne Capoue.
Moreno thought he had given Villarreal a half-time lead, but his effort was ruled out for a handball.
Matheus Cunha was introduced midway through the second period by home coach Diego Simeone in place of Alvaro Morata and almost broke the deadlock in the 72nd minute, only to be denied by ‘keeper Geronimo Rulli.
Teenage winger Pino instead put Villarreal in front just a minute later, capitalising on a poor clearance to fire a fine low shot into the bottom corner.
Atletico’s Nahuel Molina was sent off deep into injury-time and Moreno netted in the 97th minute to send Villarreal top.
South Korea and the United States began their annual joint military drills on Monday with a resumption of field training, officials said, as the allies seek to tighten readiness posture over North Korea’s potential weapons tests.
The summertime exercises, renamed Ulchi Freedom Shield this year and scheduled to end on Sept. 1, came after South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol, who took office in May, vowed to “normalise” the combined exercises and boost deterrence against the North.
The drills were scaled back in recent years because of COVID-19 and as Yoon’s predecessor sought to restart talks with Pyongyang, which has called the exercises a rehearsal for invasion.
North Korea fired two cruise missiles from the west coast town of Onchon last week, after South Korea and the United States kicked off preliminary training for the exercises.
North Korea has conducted missile tests at an unprecedented pace this year and is ready to conduct its seventh nuclear test at any time, Seoul officials said.
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Yoon has said his government is willing to provide economic aid if Pyongyang takes steps toward denuclearisation, but North Korea has rebuffed his offer, openly criticising him.
Seoul’s defence ministry has said the allies would stage 11 field training programmes, including one at brigade-level – involving thousands of soldiers – this summer.
To better counter North Korea’s growing missile threats targeting the South’s capital, the ministry said it would improve missile detection capabilities and push for an early deployment of a new interceptor system.
The United States, South Korea and Japan participated in a recent ballistic missile defence exercise off Hawaii’s coast, the first such drills since 2017, when relations between Seoul and Tokyo hit their lowest point in years.
London : A quarter-century on from the death of their mother, Princess Diana, Princes William and Harry are struggling to maintain their once-close relationship.
“Harry and Wills are barely on speaking terms after Megxit,” The Sun tabloid reported this month, referring to Harry and wife Meghan Markle’s decision to quit frontline royal roles in 2020 and move to the United States. As William has turned 40, the elder brother has embraced the royal establishment and taken on more duties, while the younger “spare” prince, aged 37, has rejected traditions for a life in California. “I suspect… that rift is very deep,” royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams told the Daily Mail Things used to be so different.
After Diana died from car crash injuries at 36, the boys touched the world walking behind her coffin. William was 15 while Harry was just 12. Both attended Eton boarding school and Harry pursued military training, while William went to university. They appeared to share a close bond as William married long-term girlfriend Kate Middleton in 2011 and stated a family.
“This idyllic sort of brotherly relationship that they projected… did much to put the monarchy back on track,” royal historian and author Ed Owens told AFP. But following Harry’s 2018 marriage to Meghan, relations have become strained. He told a 2019 interview that he and his brother were “on different paths”. A year later, Harry and Meghan sensationally announced their move to the US. The couple’s subsequent explosive Oprah Winfrey interview in March 2021 saw Meghan publicly claim Kate had made her cry. The most damaging claim, however, was that an unnamed royal had speculated about the skin colour of mixed-race Meghan’s future child. William reacted later by telling a journalist that the royals were “very much not” a racist family.
Both brothers have an enduring dislike for Britain’s tabloid press after their mother’s death.
Harry told Winfrey he left the UK to prevent “history repeating itself”, likening Meghan’s treatment by reporters and photographers to Diana’s hounding.
But their shared disdain for large parts of the media has done little to unite them during their current estrangement.
They appeared to barely speak to each other as they jointly unveiled a statue of their mother outside Kensington Palace in July 2021.
During Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations in June 2022, they sat far apart at a church service.
The Daily Telegraph wrote that “there has been no interaction whatsoever”, citing William’s grievances over the Oprah interview.
Harry and Meghan are set to visit the UK again in September — just three months since their last visit — when they will stay on the queen’s Windsor estate, close to William’s new family home there.
But British newspapers say there are no plans for the brothers to meet.
Former royal correspondent Robert Hardman raised the possibility of reconciliation, however.
“Obviously they are estranged but they are brothers, this is a family,” the author of this year’s “Queen of Our Times: The Life of Queen Elizabeth II” told AFP.
He praised Harry and Meghan’s “dignified role” when they came back to Britain for the Jubilee and visited the queen.
“To me, that looks like a move towards semi-regular trips back to the UK,” he said.
“And each time that happens, things just gradually become less fraught.”
‘Anxiety’ at memoir Much could still depend on a ghost-written memoir from Harry, set for publication later this year.
The Telegraph reported that this is “causing some anxiety” among royals who fear it could be used “to settle scores and make further sensational claims”.
“The book is going to be very explosive,” said Hardman.
“I expect it to be extremely harsh on the media, fairly harsh on the palace establishment.
“I’d be very surprised if he starts making family relations any worse,” he added, in contrast to much of the speculation.
Another royal expert, Phil Dampier, is more pessimistic.
“I can’t see any chance of a reconciliation between the #Sussexes and the #Cambridges until Harry’s book is out of the way. And it’s likely to make things worse!” he tweeted.
Opinions differ on whether the royal family need Harry.
“No one person is bigger than the institution, so the monarchy will carry on with or without them. They’re not essential,” Hardman said of Harry and Meghan.
But Owens argued Harry’s exit has “deprived the monarchy of one of its saviours… the informal royal” who is “more down to earth, much more tactile”.
“I do think at a certain point, they’re going to need Harry back,” royal author Tina Brown told The Guardian, calling him “an asset” who could relieve pressure on William and Kate.
Wellington : Veteran lock Brodie Retallick is on the verge of returning from a broken cheekbone after being included as a non-playing member of the All Blacks squad for Saturday’s home Test against Argentina.
Captain Sam Cane heads a 35-man squad for the Test in Christchurch as the All Blacks look to build on their impressive 35-23 win over South Africa in Johannesburg a fortnight ago.
The win over the world champions ended a three-match losing streak to ease some of the pressure on coach Ian Foster going into their third game in The Rugby Championship.
Foster was last week given a vote of confidence to take New Zealand to next year’s World Cup.
“We saw plenty of desire in the win over South Africa, now we have to continue that against a very strong Argentina side,” Foster said on Monday.
Retallick, who has played 95 Tests for New Zealand, has been sidelined since suffering the horror injury in New Zealand’s series-deciding third Test defeat to Ireland last month.
The 31-year-old is available to play for his provincial team this weekend to regain match fitness.
“Brodie is ahead of schedule with the likelihood of playing for Hawke’s Bay and if that goes well, we will reassess,” Foster said.
The All Blacks are definitely without centre Jack Goodhue, who needs surgery on a persistent knee injury.
“He has a niggly knee with a lot of swelling, so he will have a tidy-up (operation),” said Foster with the timescale for Goodhue’s absence unknown a year before the Rugby World Cup kicks off.
It’s a cruel blow for the 27-year-old Goodhue, who had just forced his way back into the New Zealand squad after a year sidelined by a previous knee injury.
Forwards: Sam Cane (capt), Dane Coles, Samisoni Taukei’aho, Codie Taylor, George Bower, Ethan de Groot, Tyrel Lomax, Fletcher Newell, Aidan Ross, Angus Ta’avao, Scott Barrett, Josh Dickson, Brodie Retallick, Tupou Vaa’i, Samuel Whitelock, Shannon Frizell, Akira Ioane, Dalton Papali’i, Ardie Savea, Hoskins Sotutu.
Backs: Finlay Christie, Folau Fakatava, Aaron Smith, Beauden Barrett, Richie Mo’unga, Stephen Perofeta, Braydon Ennor, David Havili, Rieko Ioane, Roger Tuivasa-Sheck, Quinn Tupaea, Jordie Barrett, Caleb Clarke, Leicester Fainga’anuku, Will Jordan, Sevu Reece.
Russian forces pressed on with their offensive across several Ukrainian regions on Monday as President Volodymyr Zelensky warned of the potential for “particularly ugly” attacks ahead of Ukraine’s 31st anniversary of independence from Soviet rule. Follow our liveblog for all the latest developments. All times are Paris time (GMT+2).
7:14am: Russian forces pound Ukraine, Zelensky warns of more serious attacks Russian forces pressed on with their offensive across several Ukrainian regions on Monday, while President Volodymyr Zelensky warned of the potential for more serious attacks ahead of Ukraine’s 31st anniversary of independence from Soviet rule.
Artillery shells rained down on Nikopol, a city near Zaporizhzhia – Europe’s biggest nuclear plant, while missiles struck near the Black Sea port of Odesa over the weekend.
Zelensky has called for vigilance, saying Moscow could try “something particularly ugly” ahead of Wednesday, which marks Ukraine’s Independence Day and also half a year since Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24.
6:14am: Germany must expect Russia to cut gas supply further, economy minister says Germany has a good chance of getting through the coming winter without taking drastic measures but nonethless faces a difficult time and must prepare for Russia to tighten gas supplies further, Economy Minister Robert Habeck said on Monday.
“We still have a very critical winter ahead of us. We have to expect that (Russian President Vladimir) Putin will further reduce the gas,” Habeck told German broadcaster ARD from Canada, where he is on a three-day trip with Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
1:55am: Dennis Rodman planning Russia trip for jailed Griner Eccentric former NBA star Dennis Rodman is planning a trip to Russia in an effort to seek the release of imprisoned WNBA player Brittney Griner,
The network quoted Rodman as saying that he was hoping to fly to Russia this week in an attempt to help basketball superstar Griner, who was sentenced to nine years in jail by a Moscow court earlier this month on a drug charge.
“I got permission to go to Russia to help that girl,”I’m trying to go this week.”
No further details were provided by Rodman, who was speaking at a restaurant in Washington where he was attending a sports apparel convention, according to web news
Pakistani police have filed terrorism charges against former Prime Minister Imran Khan, authorities said Monday, escalating political tensions in the country as he holds mass rallies seeking to return to office.
The terrorism charges come over a speech Khan gave in Islamabad in which he vowed to sue police officers and a female judge and alleged that a close aide had been tortured after his arrest.
Khan himself appeared to still be free and had not immediately addressed the police charge sheet being lodged against him. Pakistan’s opposition Tehreek-e-Insaf party, Khan’s political party, published online videos showing supporters surrounding his home to potentially stop police from reaching it.
Khan came to power in 2018, promising to break the pattern of family rule in Pakistan. His opponents contend he was elected with help from the powerful military, which has ruled the country for half of its 75-year history.
After his ouster in April in a no-confidence vote by the Pakistani parliament, Khan alleged without providing evidence that the military took part in a U.S. plot to oust him. Washington, the Pakistani military and the government of Khan’s successor, Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif, all have denied that. Khan also has been carrying out a series of mass rallies trying to pressure Sharif’s government.
On Sunday, the internet-access advocacy group NetBlocks said internet services in the country blocked access to YouTube after Khan broadcast a live speech on the platform despite a ban issued by the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority.
Pakistani police have filed terrorism charges against former Prime Minister Imran Khan, authorities said Monday, escalating political tensions in the country as he holds mass rallies seeking to return to office.
The terrorism charges come over a speech Khan gave in Islamabad in which he vowed to sue police officers and a female judge and alleged that a close aide had been tortured after his arrest.
Khan himself appeared to still be free and had not immediately addressed the police charge sheet being lodged against him. Pakistan’s opposition Tehreek-e-Insaf party, Khan’s political party, published online videos showing supporters surrounding his home to potentially stop police from reaching it.
Khan came to power in 2018, promising to break the pattern of family rule in Pakistan. His opponents contend he was elected with help from the powerful military, which has ruled the country for half of its 75-year history.
After his ouster in April in a no-confidence vote by the Pakistani parliament, Khan alleged without providing evidence that the military took part in a U.S. plot to oust him. Washington, the Pakistani military and the government of Khan’s successor, Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif, all have denied that. Khan also has been carrying out a series of mass rallies trying to pressure Sharif’s government.
On Sunday, the internet-access advocacy group NetBlocks said internet services in the country blocked access to YouTube after Khan broadcast a live speech on the platform despite a ban issued by the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority.
ISLAMABAD: on special Directions of IGP ISLAMABAD Dr. Akbar Nasir Khan, Islamabad Capital Police (ICTP) is striving to ensure traffic discipline and minimize violation of rules through educating road users and arranged 509 road safety workshops AND 2,53,632 Citizens Educated during ongoing Year.
These traffic workshops were arranged for driving license applicants, volunteers, students of educational institutions and staff of government and non-government organizations. In a bid to educate motorists on the correct traffic procedures , SSP (Traffic) Dr. Syed Mustafa Tanveer said that ICTP is arranging such workshops and creating awareness amongst people about consequences of traffic rules violations, including over speeding, one-wheeling, inappropriate number plates, juvenile driving, lane-line discipline, zebra crossing, the use of helmets and so on.
He said this effort is meant to infuse traffic discipline, which will help protect the lives and property of road users. The SSP (Traffic) said road safety workshops were being arranged in government and private organizations, including educational institutions, to sensitize road users about various traffic rules. The awareness campaign for the safety of road users is in full swing, he added.In this regard, special teams have been constituted to teach road users how to ensure their safety before travelling on roads, particularly motorbike riders were being advised how to take the left lane while travelling.
The SSP (Traffic) said that these teams were performing duties at various main roads of the city and briefing motorbike riders and other motorists about safety Those motorbike riders driving without helmets and side mirrors or having defective indicators, headlights, rear lights and speed meters are being cautioned and urged to get their bikes and vehicles repaired. He explained that a number of motorbike riders suffer road accidents due to faulty lights or indicators. An exemplary traffic system would be ensured in the city through cooperation of citizens, he added. Police public relation officer
The concept of protocol in Pakistan is a legacy of colonial British rule, who had devised a system of divide and rule for their colonies. They created tiers of jagirdar, zaildar, numberdar and chaukidar. In states there were Mahrajas, Ameers, NawabsSardars, and Chief of tribes.
Theoretically there were two systems of governance in the world, in addition to a separate colonial rule. One system is followed by the British and their previous colonies.The other system by the United States, China, Russia, South Korea etc. The British system cherished status-minded system with special prestigious epithets and designations like Prime Minister, Ministers, Chiefs, Generals, Commissioners, Deputy Commissioners and Ambassadors etc.
The second system is the business-oriented with designations as secretary of the state, Managers, Executives, with least protocol except security objectives.
The British rulers had conspicuously different designations for their colonies, emphasizing status-mindedness. It is surprising that they had even a list of “KursiNisheen” in their entire Indian Sub-continent enrolled as such by respective Deputy Commissioners. A kursi could only be offered in Government offices or in meeting with gentlemen, to persons registered as “KursiNisheen” by the relevant Deputy commissioners.
The situation of the civil administration in the USA stands explained by one Mr. Ahmed Raza Qureshi from Texas, USA, living there since 2001 as under.
“They do not follow much formed protocol very casual. I have never seen any flag car, never seen any traffic stop due to any VIP. Never seen any number plate which says it is an official. Government servants in Pakistan enjoys more perks than US officials”.
So far as the administration in United Kingdom is concerned one Mr. Abdul HafeezSuharwardy from Birmengham, living there since 1980, younger brother of the first and last local Chief Secretary of AJK Abdul HaqSuharwardy has described as follows.
“Here no DC/AC/Mall officer, Tehsildar, Patwari etc. City is run by Council. Council members are elected every five years. Council is headed by Mayor who is also elected. Only Mayor,s car have flags and can have use of it in official duty”.
Unfortunately, Pakistan being a part of British colony inherited the ruling system devised for a colony and not for an independent and democratic country. But as the dominant part of our elite was the creation of colonial rule. They had the psyche of liking for the colonial rule showing status-mindedness. As in recent past when in Murree, there was a catastrophic mishap. The then Chief Minister Punjab announced that there should be a Deputy Commissioner for Murree whereas it was the hopeless failure of Deputy Commissioner of Rawalpindi who could have reached the scene within an hour and with ample resources but it was the duty of PWD.
In Pakistan in the first phase the institution of Deputy Commissioner was occupied by the officers of CSP class, vested with special status and too much influence in government administration. So one Prime Minister abolished the CSP class and rendered it as a District Management Group. We can compare the merit, status and perks of Assistant Commissioner B-17 and a Civil Medical Officer B-17.
In fact, in respect and honor does not depend upon protocol. It needs other merits of high caliber and qualities of character. How personalities become popular, there are few examples.
In 1965 war, the Pakistanis were so emotionally united that they would shower crates of fruits to passing by Army vehicles. AsIftikhar Abad war front was very vital so there were “lungers” in Gujrat arranged by Chaudhry ZahoorEllahi, Nawabzada family of Gujrat and Khan Mulkof village Ajnala. Raja Muhammad Afzal of Jhelum donated everything to war fund.
Once I had the opportunity to accompany Ch. ZahoorEllahi from 41-C Gulberg Lahore to district courts. The then government had registered fake and frivolous cases against Ch. ZahoorEllahi and the similar case was fixed in the court of Ch. Muhammad Zar,a Magistrate. ChZahoorEllahi stayed in district court and sent me to the said Magistrate to tell him he should not extend any courtesy or protocol to him as he would face difficulties. The then Governor Ameer Muhammad Khan was famous for his charity and generosity that in his area all disabled and insane personswere served free meals in all hotels in his area and their bills were paid by the Nawab House.
After his release from Kollhowjail ,Balochistan, Ch. ZahoorEllahi became Federal Minister. I went to congratulate him at his residence at Peshawar road Rawalpindi. It was breakfast time and I was invited toup stairs to join breakfast where two delegations of overseas Sikh leaders and Chiefs from Balochistan who were there to congratulate Minister on his release and elevation as Federal Minister. In this background, on the occasion of death of Ch. ZahoorEllahi, the BBC, in their Urdu service broadcast the biography and declared that the most generous and champion of charity in Pakistan has died.
So the political and non-political personalities should realize that greatness does not lie in protocol which cast heavily to the nation, rather it is achieved by qualities of character.
The writer of the article is former Additional Chief Secretary of AJK.
It is true that Pure and fresh edible items are blessing for Human Life. Fresh and quality Milk is one of the important supplements for healthy life. It is as important as water for human life. The hidden benefits of natural Milk cannot be compensated with any drink or edible items. It is regret to apprise that Pakistan has been facing severe issues in all walks of life. Adulteration in edible items is not excluded. It is quite unfortunate to say that adulterated milk having life threatening chemicals, for increasing quantity and viscosity of it, has become a fate of common people in Pakistan especially in urban areas of Sindh Province. It includes Shikarpur, Khairpur, Jacobabad,Sukkur and other small cities.
It is woefully that Cattle firm’s owners and Milk Sellers in Small cities like Shikarpur use health hazard Chemicals in natural milk in order to maximize their lucrative business by increasing the volume of Milk using adulterated means. Some of the major adulterants in milk having serious adverse health effect are urea, formalin, detergents, ammonium sulphate, boric acid, caustic soda, benzoic acid, salicylic acid, hydrogen peroxide, sugars and melamine. It has become a lucrative business with small investment of having only 2, 3 Cows to full fill the needs of a large chunk of society by producing more quantity of Milk through food adulteration means. It is life threatening practice that leads to incurable diseases like Cancer, diabetic, pancreatitis, malfunctioning of organs, issues related to the heart, Poor eyesight, kidney issues and death. 33 million adults in Pakistan are living with diabetes. A 70% increase since 2019. This means that Pakistan now has the third highest number of people living with diabetes in the world. Vomiting, dizziness, stomach pain and chronic indigestion issues in most of households are common ramifications of using such health hazard milk in everyday use such as tea and drinks. Lack of access to fresh milk, a natural supplement, in interior cities of Sindh and Punjab is the reason behind the alarming increase in such life threatening diseases. Natural milk is blessing in disguise that is a complete diet for healthy life. It boosts the Immunity system, strengthens the bones and muscles by supplying the calcium and delaying the aging process by keeping human young. It is sadden to learn that peoples of developing country like Pakistan, which is already lagging behind in delivering health services are deprived of pure milk, a biggest natural gift for human being. World Health Organization stated that Pakistan produces 140 million litres of milk annually, while 500 million litres of it is sold. In Pakistan, now days, it has become a day dream for common people to get milk in its pure and natural form. Adulterated milk is dangerous as it may be toxic and lack nutrients essential for growth and development. To Sum up, it is need of hour that the government chalk out effective strategies to ensure the access of fresh and quality Milk to people in every corner of state so that common man can enjoy the healthy life by having natural milk. Lactometer is used to measure milk viscosity. Pure milk will have greater viscosity than water. The Food Quality Department must ensure the lab tests of Milk from Milk vendors using lactometer and other efficient and modern techniques on monthly basis in order to facilitate every citizen by delivering quality in Milk. There would be mechanism of registration and renewal of license of Milk sellers based on milk Quality. Media which is fourth pillar of state should be used as tool to bring awareness among masses about the checking of Milk. This panacea would win their hearts and soul and ensure happy and prosperous life of common man in Pakistan.
You are not only the grand son of Hazrat Allama Iqbal, but are a specialist on his poetry and philosophy. It is my proud privilege to be the friend of your esteemed father Dr. Javed Iqbal. My love for you is also tremendous. On your Facebook, while referring to the two speeches of Quaid- I- Azam, one delivered on August 11, 1947 and the other on August 14, 1947 in the presence of Lord Mountbatten, the last viceroy of British India, in Legislative Assembly, Quaid-I- Azam talked about the fraternal and inclusive spirit of Islam and said that Islam gave religious freedom to all people irrespective of their differing faiths.
By this statement, some people deduce the inference that he believed in Secularism and he did not announce Pakistan to be an Islamic state. It is absolutely a wrong conception based on ill attention. Quaid- I- Azam time and again said that Pakistan would be an Islamic democratic welfare state. The problem arises of misconception of the term Secularism. A Secular state in Western sense is a non- religious state. Islam is a pluralistic and inclusive religion. Pakistan is not a secular state in the Western political term. Islam is a secular religion in modern political sense , which means that an Islamic state protects the religious rights of all religions and permits them to act according to their faith.
When the Holy Quran in Surah The Unbelievers says:” لُکم دینکم و لی دین” ( For you your religion and for me my religion “. Then the Holy Quran says:” لا اکرہ فی الدین( There is no compulsion in religion). So, we can deduce the inference that Islamic state is an ideological religious state with accommodating and inclusive spirit. The Holy Quran emphasizes on the need of protecting the sanctuaries of non- Muslims and provides them the protection of life, property, honor and faith. The Holy Prophet made a Peace Accord with the Jews of Medina. That document is an exemplary truce and parchment which became the basis of human rights charter of UNO.
Some dogmatic and retrogressive Muslim clerics are allergic of modern political terminology. They take the term secularism as a non- religious phrase and oppose it. There is no need of getting embraced. When, we use the economic term Islamic Socialism which is different from Marxian Socialism, then what is the harm in accepting and adopting the modern political term “ Islamic Secularism.” Dr. Allama Iqbal and Quaid-I- Azam also used the term Islamic Socialism. It was no innovation but a modern economic term. Similarly, Islamic Secularism is a modern political term to distinguish and differentiate Western Secularism from Islamic Secularism and I endorse it. Dr. Maqsood Jafri
Dr. Frances James has put me a question, seeking my opinion on the matter of religious conversion. He says what is the need of converting people and convincing them to embrace their faith and abandon the faith of their ancestors? Is conversion necessary or religious obligation? To answer this burning question, one needs to write volumes and discuss the hazards of religious extremism and dogmatism. The human history is replete with human blood in the name of religion. The people of other faiths have been burned alive and forced to abandon their faith. What is conversion? It is the adoption of a set of beliefs identified with one particular religious denomination to the exclusion of others. This religious conversion would describe the abandoning of adherence to one denomination and affiliation with another. Religious Conversion is called “ proselytism.” There are several kinds of conversion. Ideological conversion by free choice, conversion for convenience, marital conversion, forced conversion , conversion for asylum and conversion for political or economic benefits.
There is no official or temple-oriented conversion in Hinduism. There is no religious process or ceremony for converting to the Hindu faith. To become a follower, one needs only to have the Will and the commitment to study Hindu Scriptures and abide the proper religious rituals, rites and practices. Even then, because of Class System, the upper Class of Hindus called Brahmins do not accept them as Hindus and ostracize them. They are ousted from their circle and treated as untouchable.
It is Christianity and Islam which proselytize vigorously, while others such as Judaism and Sikhism do not generally encourage or accept conversions to their ranks. Some sects of other religions such as Druze, Yazidis, Zoroastrians and Yarsans do not accept converts at all. Studies in the 21st century testify that, in terms of percentage and world wide, Islam is the fastest growing religion in the world. Pew Research Center has predicted that by the advent of 2050, the global Muslim population will grow at a faster rate. The Christian missionaries have rendered unprecedented services and sacrifices for spreading Christianity in Asia and Africa. Similarly, there are some Muslims who are all out to spread Islam in non- Muslims.
Now, the question arises as to why only the Christians and Muslims are busy converting others to their faith? The answer is simple. They consider it their religious obligation. Jesus Christ said to Simon Peter:” when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren”. In the Holy Bible in the Gospel of Matthew 16: 16- 17 and in the Gospel of Luke 22: 32- 33, there is a conversation between Jesus Christ and Simon Peter, regarding the spread of the mission and message of Jesus Christ. Saint Paul took the standard of this mission and traveled near and far with the mission of Jesus Christ and later on his adherents were called Missionaries. Similarly, the Holy Quran asked its followers to spread Islam. It says:” Call the people to the way of God by decent way and wisdom”.
The Holy Quran invited all humanity to unite and respect human norms. It says: “ The whole of humanity is one community.” The very alarming and fraternal verse of the Holy Quran invites our attention to the Oneness of humanity and universal salvation. In Surah The Cow in verse 62, the Hoy Quran announces: “ Surely, the believers and the Jews and the Christians and the Sabians , whichever party from among those truly believes in God, and the last day and does good deed shall have their reward with their Lord, and no fear shall have come upon them, nor shell they grieve.” Now, the point to be considered is that if we succeed in producing the men of piety, virtuosity and purity, who are good humans, we succeed in religious mission.
Just converting people to our religions with out application of the human rights, human values and human norms, what are we up to? The acceptance of Christianity or Islam or any other religion is absolutely purposeless, if we ignore the real message and mission of religion. In so many Muslim countries, there are monarchies and human rights are trampled under feet. There is no political freedom and social justice. Then what sort of Islam they are preaching? Islam needs practice, not preaching. There are 57 Muslim countries which only practice the religious rituals and have not implemented Islamic codes based on political, social and economic justice. Their clerics stress more on prayers instead of emphasizing the need of practicing Islam. They are even busy in inter sectarian conversions.
It is also with Christians. The external and internal conversion is also their chosen religious task. They like Muslims have several sects. All claim to go to heaven. In the name of heaven, the hardliners of all religions have made the earth worse than hell. To increase the population and boast that our number is the largest is a mockery in the age of qualitative world. Quantity is not required. Jesus Christ preached justice and raised voice against rabbis and the corrupt fascist rulers and officials. This was his mission , when he said that he would establish the “Kingdom of God” on earth. The Kingdom of God is the state based on justice and human values and human rights. Unfortunately, the Christians adopted papacy and monarchy , which are quite antagonistic to the mission of Jesus Christ.
The Muslims did the same. Islam came to establish the Rule of God on earth and free people from the tenacious clutches of clergy and monarchy, but the Muslims are even today under the stone wall of dictatorship of callous and uncouth Monarchs and sectarian Mullahs. Let all humans join hands for peace, progress and prosperity of all humans. Instead of fighting in the name of religion and shedding each other’s blood, let us serve and love humans as it is the Spirit of all Religions. “Humans Unite, and shun racial discrimination and religious extremism”. The business in the name of God must stop and human welfare states should be established as humanism is the core and crux of all religions.
We are experiencing the greatest technological revolution in the history of mankind. This revolution is four times greater in terms of impact than the Industrial Revolution. Furthermore, it has only just begun. Slavery is a potent and touchy term recounting repugnant violation of fundamental human rights and should not be functioned carelessly. Self-ownership in a legal sense and escalating trafficking of personal data to supply algorithm-based analytics and AI is enabling a new form of digital enslavement that has the budding to cut back liberty and perturbing risk of collective and individual autonomy. Slaves offer free labour for their owners; in return of food, clothing and shelter.
The digital slaves also offer free access to their data in return of some services. Traditional slaves had to pay to get freedom from their ruthless masters. The digital slaves also pay for their shift from one platform or app to another in the form of data. Both the traditional or digital slaves own nothing. The digital slaves are some extent more pathetic than traditional salves. The traditional slaves were under compulsion to work as slaves but the digital slaves are willing slaves. They are happily and willingly ready to leave their friends and acquaintances, their reputation and all other external aspects of their digital identity. Users have no assurance that the value of the free data they provide bears any relation to the value of the free services they receive. We generate data around the clock from awakening to sleep even during our sleep too.
Where we are, how we pay our bills, how many there are of us at home, what videos we watch, what websites we visit, what we buy, where we go, who our friends and family are, where we work, what teams we support etc.
With every passing day we generate an ever-increasing volume of data. According to a study published in 2018 by the Harvard Business Review, the value of the data generated by a household of four people is about $20,000 annually. Data that is valuable not only from the advertising point of view, but also insofar as it is a vital component for Artificial Intelligence. In the digital world we are all slaves to Tech-giants namely the Big Five. We provide dates free of cost. This free labor enables digital ‘Big Five’ (Apple, Facebook/Meta, Amazon, Google, and Microsoft) to hoard vast fortunes. In return, we receive free apps and other internet services. We have no property rights on the data. This relationship between the digital networks and their users is digital slavery.
There is of course no assurance that, for every individual, the marginal value of the free internet services is equal to the marginal value of the users’ information. Much like the marginal value of slave labour far surpassed the marginal value of the food, clothing, and shelter that the slaves received. Hal Varian, the chief economist at Google, squabbles that presently data is abundant and thus almost valueless, whereas the designers of the networks are scarce and thus generate most of the value of the digital network services. This self-serving argument is analogous to arguing that slave labour, in the heydays of slavery, was plentiful and that most of the value was generated by the designers of the slave plantations.
The system is also unjust, since the owners of the digital networks exert irresistible authority. They possess the entrée to the digital data on which their users rely, much as old-style slave-owners owned the access to their slaves’ basic provisions. The slave-owners were in a position to abuse their market control to their own material gain, much like the digital networks nowadays are doing. As a result more than 40 million people around the world are enslaved today. Chancellor Merkel suggested that digital data should be priced and users must be able to sell their data contrary to that we are digital slaves and our digital identity is fully controlled and used by organization. The notion of ‘self-sovereign identity’ of digital users is at risk. Most of the users are entirely unaware of the digital system. They consider ‘Privacy’ in their own hands while it is the other way round.
Privacy means that only authorized recipients can entrée your digital identity; ‘trustworthiness’ means that the information enclosed in your digital identity is correct. The Cambridge Analytical scandal and other misdeeds suggest serious problems concerning privacy. We are living in the digital regime under powerful digital monopolies, linked to the rise of inequalities in major market economies, large-scale exploitation of digital users for political purposes, and the prevalent incapability of digital users to clutch the business purposes that their data serves intimidation to dent market economies and democratic processes. It is so easy to be taken in by the positive spin surrounding ICT.
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights must include digital slavery in its declaration. The digital world is shaping and reshaping our beliefs, dictating how and what we consume and enforcing the rules. International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition is observed annually on August 23. This day raises awareness about the gruesome nature of the slave trade and reminds people about the transatlantic slave trade and its implications. Transatlantic slave trade affected over 15 million people, including children, for more than 400 years. This day is observed in memory of all victims of the slave trade and also aspires to promote critical examinations of such behaviors that could lead to modern forms of exploitation and slavery.
Crises threaten UK monarchy’s image 25 years after Diana’s death
The royal family’s perceived botched response to Diana’s death sparked a gradual and largely successful shift in its image management, but recent crises have renewed questions about that modernisation effort.
The death of the princess of Wales on August 31, 1997, prompted an outpouring of national grief that senior royals, including Queen Elizabeth II and her son Prince Charles, initially seemed out of step with.
There was eventually an acknowledgement missteps were made and that the family needed to turn the page on a damaging decade of divorces, family infighting and scandals that had dented their public standing.
A quarter-century on, the monarchy now has a far more nimble PR operation, adept at social media and rapid-response while still able to stage grand events like June’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations with aplomb.
However, recent controversies — notably Prince Andrew’s links to billionaire paedophile Jeffrey Epstein, and Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle quitting frontline royal duties — have cast doubts on the monarchy’s remoulding.
Royal rebel elevated to ‘saint’: Diana 25 years after death
From her engagement to Prince Charles as a shy teenager to her roles as doting mother, humanitarian and global celebrity, Diana’s turbulent 36-year life still captivates people around the world.
Young, beautiful and fun, she seemed refreshingly informal when she married the heir to the throne in 1981 aged 20, after what the media portrayed as a fairytale romance.
But the acrimonious breakdown of her marriage to Charles, with salacious details filling the tabloids, tipped the monarchy into perpetual crisis while driving her to self-harm.
In an extraordinary 1995 interview, she spoke out candidly about her husband’s affair with Camilla Parker Bowles and her own infidelity.
Stripping the monarchy of its mystique and casting doubt on Charles’s ability to be king, the interview drew horror in parts of the British establishment.
In recent years, her image has shifted as her sons fiercely defend her memory and use her purported mistreatment by the press in their own battles with media outlets.
“Now she is the sainted figure and they have elevated her as such, because they have talked repeatedly of how she was hounded to her death by the media,” said royal historian and author Ed Owens.
A recent Hollywood film and popular Netflix series “The Crown” have presented fictionalised accounts sympathetic to Diana, reviving interest in her life and style.
“I think ‘The Crown’ is going to do much when it returns to our screens this autumn to embellish that idea of a human tragedy, again a saintly figure,” Owens added.
Europe huddles down for a winter without Russian gas
Woolly socks and thermostats turned down a notch: Europeans are preparing for a difficult winter without gas supplies from Russia, part of the fallout from the war in Ukraine.
Latvians have been adjusting since the end of July, when Russia stopped supplying gas to the Baltic former Soviet state.
They know what to expect in the coming months.
“Energy prices are so exorbitant that we already cut off the hot water from the city pipeline and installed our own hot water boiler,” said Juons Ratiniks, who lives in the city of Rezekne, near the Russian border.
“It is cheaper to use it when we actually need it than pay for constantly heated hot water,” supplied centrally, the retired border guard explained.
Politicians need to understand that people expected help when their energy bill started shooting up, said Ratiniks.
With elections due in October, he warned, “they better support heating for us — otherwise we’ll give heat to them!”
Bulgaria, Denmark, Finland, the Netherlands and Poland have also already had their gas cut, while other countries have seen their supply reduced drastically.
Deliveries of Russian gas to Germany via the Nord Stream pipeline will be halted for several days at the end of this month, the second stoppage this summer. While ostensibly for maintenance, Berlin has accused Moscow of halting supplies over Western sanctions imposed over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Overall, supply was down in July by around 70 percent, year on year, according to several experts consulted .
‘Global energy crisis’ Governments around Europe are not relishing the prospect of cold radiators and factories forced to stop operating.
Many believe Russian President Vladimir Putin is using energy supplies as a strategic weapon to put pressure on nations that have applied sanctions against Moscow for its invasion of Ukraine.
The cut in supply has pushed the price of gas — and electricity — through the roof given that is what many power stations run on.
A surge in oil prices has further complicated matters, even if its value has fallen back somewhat recently.
“The world is experiencing the first truly global energy crisis in history,” Fatih Birol, executive director of the International Energy Agency, wrote last month.
“The situation is especially perilous in Europe, which is at the epicentre of the energy market turmoil.”
Natural gas is so important to so many countries — particularly Germany, which needs it for its heavy industries — that it was exempted from European sanctions against Russia.
Coal, in contrast, is subject to a total embargo, while for oil, a progressive embargo applies.
‘Operation Thermostat’ The gas supply from Russia to Germany from the Nord Stream 1 pipeline has already been drastically cut back.
“We now assume that Russian gas flows to Europe via Nord Stream 1 will fluctuate between zero and 20 percent capacity in the coming months,” said Matt Oxenford of the Economist Intelligence Unit.
And that, he added, would lead to a recession in Europe in the winter of 2022-2023.
“Given current gas infrastructure, Germany cannot compensate for an 80 percent cut in Russian gas without a drastic reduction in demand, leading to a recession over the winter,” he added.
And with Germany a centre of industrial supply chains, that would have a knock-on effect across Europe, wrote Oxenford.
Businesses will suffer cuts before households, and the governments in France and Germany are already looking at who will have to suffer first.
But ordinary people are also being told they will have to adjust to the new reality.
The European Union has told its 27 member countries that they will have to cut their gas consumption by 15 percent.
Italy launched earlier this year what it called “Operation Thermostat” to try to lower heating and cut back on air conditioning in schools and public buildings. Spain and Germany have followed suit.
Germany’s summer campaign focussed on lowering the air conditioning on public transport and buying more water-efficient shower heads. Several cities have lowered the temperature in their swimming pools and made cuts in urban lighting.
South Korea, US begin military drills amid tensions with North Korea South Korea and the United States began their annual joint military drills on Monday with a resumption of field training, officials said, as the allies seek to tighten readiness posture over North Korea’s potential weapons tests.
The summertime exercises, renamed Ulchi Freedom Shield this year and scheduled to end on Sept. 1, came after South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol, who took office in May, vowed to “normalise” the combined exercises and boost deterrence against the North.
The drills were scaled back in recent years because of COVID-19 and as Yoon’s predecessor sought to restart talks with Pyongyang, which has called the exercises a rehearsal for invasion.
North Korea fired two cruise missiles from the west coast town of Onchon last week, after South Korea and the United States kicked off preliminary training for the exercises.
North Korea has conducted missile tests at an unprecedented pace this year and is ready to conduct its seventh nuclear test at any time, Seoul officials said.
Once-close royal brothers William and Harry now estranged
A quarter-century on from the death of their mother, Princess Diana, Princes William and Harry are struggling to maintain their once-close relationship.
“Harry and Wills are barely on speaking terms after Megxit,” The Sun tabloid reported this month, referring to Harry and wife Meghan Markle’s decision to quit frontline royal roles in 2020 and move to the United States.
As William has turned 40, the elder brother has embraced the royal establishment and taken on more duties, while the younger “spare” prince, aged 37, has rejected traditions for a life in California.
“I suspect… that rift is very deep,” royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams told the Daily Mail.
Things used to be so different.
After Diana died from car crash injuries at 36, the boys touched the world walking behind her coffin. William was 15 while Harry was just 12.
Both attended Eton boarding school and Harry pursued military training, while William went to university.
They appeared to share a close bond as William married long-term girlfriend Kate Middleton in 2011 and started a family.
“This idyllic sort of brotherly relationship that they projected… did much to put the monarchy back on track,” royal historian and author Ed Owens .
But following Harry’s 2018 marriage to Meghan, relations have become strained.
He told a 2019 interview that he and his brother were “on different paths”. A year later, Harry and Meghan sensationally announced their move to the US.
The couple’s subsequent explosive Oprah Winfrey interview in March 2021 saw Meghan publicly claim Kate had made her cry.
The most damaging claim, however, was that an unnamed royal had speculated about the skin colour of mixed-race Meghan’s future child.
William reacted later by telling a journalist that the royals were “very much not” a racist family.
‘No interaction’ Both brothers have an enduring dislike for Britain’s tabloid press after their mother’s death.
Harry told Winfrey he left the UK to prevent “history repeating itself”, likening Meghan’s treatment by reporters and photographers to Diana’s hounding.
But their shared disdain for large parts of the media has done little to unite them during their current estrangement.
They appeared to barely speak to each other as they jointly unveiled a statue of their mother outside Kensington Palace in July 2021.
During Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations in June 2022, they sat far apart at a church service.
The Daily Telegraph wrote that “there has been no interaction whatsoever”, citing William’s grievances over the Oprah interview.
Harry and Meghan are set to visit the UK again in September — just three months since their last visit — when they will stay on the queen’s Windsor estate, close to William’s new family home there.
But British newspapers say there are no plans for the brothers to meet.
Former royal correspondent Robert Hardman raised the possibility of reconciliation, however.
“Obviously they are estranged but they are brothers, this is a family,” the author of this year’s “Queen of Our Times: The Life of Queen Elizabeth II .
He praised Harry and Meghan’s “dignified role” when they came back to Britain for the Jubilee and visited the queen.
“To me, that looks like a move towards semi-regular trips back to the UK,” he said.
“And each time that happens, things just gradually become less fraught.”
‘Anxiety’ at memoir Much could still depend on a ghost-written memoir from Harry, set for publication later this year.
The Telegraph reported that this is “causing some anxiety” among royals who fear it could be used “to settle scores and make further sensational claims”.
“The book is going to be very explosive,” said Hardman.
“I expect it to be extremely harsh on the media, fairly harsh on the palace establishment.
“I’d be very surprised if he starts making family relations any worse,” he added, in contrast to much of the speculation.
Another royal expert, Phil Dampier, is more pessimistic.
“I can’t see any chance of a reconciliation between the #Sussexes and the #Cambridges until Harry’s book is out of the way. And it’s likely to make things worse!” he tweeted.
Opinions differ on whether the royal family need Harry.
“No one person is bigger than the institution, so the monarchy will carry on with or without them. They’re not essential,” Hardman said of Harry and Meghan.
But Owens argued Harry’s exit has “deprived the monarchy of one of its saviours… the informal royal” who is “more down to earth, much more tactile”.
“I do think at a certain point, they’re going to need Harry back,” royal author Tina Brown told The Guardian, calling him “an asset” who could relieve pressure on William and Kate.
Ukraine’s punk poet sees victory for ‘transformed’ homeland
Six months on from the start of the war, writer Serhiy Zhadan believes that Ukraine will win against Russia thanks to the courage and extraordinary mobilisation of its citizens.
Zhadan, a key figure in the Ukrainian literary world, is convinced that his country is emerging from the war a “transformed” country.
“I’m impressed by Ukrainian people’s capacity to fight for their freedom, for their land, for their territory. This gives me strength and confidence,” he told AFP in an interview, a few minutes before reciting his poems in a theatre in Kyiv.
With his piercing blue eyes and his blond slicked back hair shaved on the sides, the 48-year-old writer looks his part: a punk poet.
Serhiy Zhadan is an icon in Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second biggest city. Originally from the now war-ravaged industrial region of Donbas in eastern Ukraine, he moved to Kharkiv to study in the 1990s.
In his novels, set in the Kharkiv region, he fondly speaks about life in neglected areas of post-Soviet Ukraine.
The region and its capital city have been heavily targeted since the beginning of the war — 19 civilians were killed in strikes last week.
But despite Kharkiv coming under intense fire from Russian troops, Zhadan stayed there even when it seemed the city could be seized in March.
AFP journalists ran into him in April under the purple neon lights of a bunker-turned-shelter where he was reciting verses to bolster people’s morale.
Ukraine’s ‘conscience’ Zhadan’s poems, novels, music and translations have earned him praise accross the country.
But, six months ago, he traded his craft for more urgent matters: humanitarian aid and support for the Ukrainian army.
“I put it all on pause,” he says.
As did his compatriots, he adds: “The citizens of this country have rallied to defend it.”
Ukrainian civil society has mobilised on a massive scale since the beginning of the invasion.
Many have been helping refugees, assisting victims, or fundraising for the armed forces.
“Seeing how many people decided to join the fighting or volunteer made me realise the Ukrainian society’s enormous potential. There’s tremendous power here,” the writer continues.
He is convinced that his country is “undergoing deep transformations”.
In fact, Zhadan is performing in Kyiv to raise funds for two new vehicles for the Kharkiv armed forces. For two consecutive nights, The House of Cinema — and its 670 seats — is fully booked.
The audience fervently applauds when Zhadan appears on stage.
The short poems that he recites for an hour-and-a-half were written before the war, but they hit home.
Glimpses of Mariupol before it was destroyed, of life and love in the Donbas despite the fighting.
“Zhadan is our conscience… His poems talk about us, about who we are and what is happening around us,” says Taras Katrychenko, a 34-year-old in the audience.
‘Don’t forget about Ukraine’ Zhadan was also in Kharkiv during the Maidan movement in the winter of 2013-2014. Already famous at the time, he took an active part in the pro-European movement.
The takeover of the more eastern cities of Donetsk and Lugansk by Kremlin-supported forces had divided Kharkiv.
When pro-Russian demonstrations erupted in his city, Zhadan went to defend the local administration buildings. He was beaten up, his nose was broken.
This year, Russian troops took over his native city of Starobilsk, Lugansk region, early in the invasion. Zhadan was left with few illusions.
“I don’t really like it when people say ‘culture is a weapon’, that’s not accurate. A weapon is a weapon, and war is won with weapons,” the writer says.
“Culture will come into play after the victory, for us to live our lives to the fullest.”
Zhadan left his country a week ago to go on a fundraising tour in Europe. He has got a clear message for Europeans: “Don’t forget about Ukraine.”
“We will remind the world that the biggest military operation since the Second World War is taking place right now.
“And that during this operation people must clearly position themselves: either you support the aggressor, or you support Ukraine.”
Philippine classrooms reopen after more than two years
Millions of children in the Philippines returned to school as the academic year started on Monday, with many taking their seats in classrooms for the first time since the Covid-19 pandemic hit.
The Philippines is one of the last countries in the world to resume full-time, in-person lessons — sparking warnings that the prolonged closure of classrooms had worsened an education crisis in the country.
Children in masks and uniforms lined up for a temperature check and squirt of hand sanitiser at Pedro Guevara Elementary School in Manila, which had shut classrooms since March 2020.
The school has adopted a hybrid system of in-person and remote learning as it transitions its nearly 6,000 students back to face-to-face classes by November — a deadline set by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr soon after he took office two months ago.
Grade six student Sophia Macahilig said she was “excited” to meet her classmates and teachers after two years of Zoom lessons.
“We used to have fun and now I can have fun again,” 11-year-old Macahilig told .
But many students have a lot of catching up to do.
Even before the pandemic, nine out of 10 Filipino children could “not read a simple text with comprehension” by age 10, the World Bank and other agencies said in a recent report.
Only 10 countries were worse off, including Afghanistan, Laos, Chad and Yemen.
Lagging behind After Philippine schools closed, a “blended learning” programme involving online classes, printed materials and lessons broadcast on television and social media was introduced.
As face-to-face classes resume, old problems persist: large class sizes, outdated teaching methods, poverty, and lack of basic infrastructure — such as toilets — have been blamed for contributing to the education crisis.
Pedro Guevara science teacher Ethel Tumanan, 32, said she was worried that students had missed out on valuable learning over the past two years.
“As a teacher, we really prefer face-to-face, at least we are the ones who can gauge and assess where our pupils are at.”
In the lead-up to the reopening of classrooms, the government has been ramping up a vaccination drive and will provide students with free public transport until the end of the calendar year.
On Saturday, the government began handing out cash aid to students and parents struggling to cover expenses, leading to chaotic scenes outside distribution centres.
In the city of Zamboanga, 29 people were injured when several thousand tried to push through the gate of a high school.
On Saturday, Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif gave the go-ahead to stop collecting fixed sales tax from retailers through their electricity bills.The economy of the nation, businessmen’s issues, and potential remedies were reviewed at a meeting that the prime minister presided over in Lahore.
Of particular importance were the fixed sales tax rates and the discussion of how to collect them through power bills.PM Shehbaz addressed the gathering and directed the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to immediately stop collecting fixed sales tax from small traders and retailers via electricity bills and to create a new plan in cooperation with traders.
Engineer Khurram Dastagir, Minister of Energy, Minister of Finance Miftah Ismail, Minister of State for Petroleum Dr. Musadik Malik, FBR Chairman, pertinent federal secretaries, and other senior officials were present at the meeting.
ISLAMABAD: The ruling coalition urged the Supreme Court of Pakistan (SC) on Sunday to pursue legal action against PTI Chairman Imran Khan for making threats against a female judge and police officials on Saturday during a public rally in Islamabad.
Imran Khan had threatened to bring legal action against the female magistrate, deputy inspector-general, and inspector-general of Islamabad the day before for allegedly torturing PTI leader Shahbaz Gill. At a public event in the F-9 park, he had declared, “We will not spare the IG and DIG.” Zeba Chaudhry, Additional District and Sessions Judge, received criticism from the former prime minister.
Due to the muted demand for the domestic currency from importers in the upcoming week, traders predict that the rupee will remain constant versus the US dollar.
They claimed that market participants will be watching the monetary policy meeting of the central bank on Monday.
The dollar fluctuated between 213-214 during the previous week. It ended at 214.65 on Friday after ending at 213.98 on Monday. During the week, the rupee lost 0.31% of its value against the dollar.
A foreign exchange broker stated, “The market has stabilised during the past week, and the rupee will probably remain stable at the same levels in days to come.”
