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Bracing for New Challenges -9 | JANUARY 2020 -1 | ISSUE UME VOL American Absolutism & Dangerous Neo-Normal Why is the Taxation System Bleeding? Success Demands Clarity & Exclusively with Commitment Junaid Khan Tribute to Kobe Bean Bryant Editor in Chief Imtiaz Gul Managing Editor Sameena Durrani TRIX Associate Editor A Saad Gul Content Editor Aliya Naseer Farooq M Editor at large Zeeshan Salahudin TEA Content Writer Mawara Tahir Faizah Gilani - London Jehangir Khattak - New york Nazir Gillani - London Lubna Khan - Toronto Durdana Najam-Lahore Syed Ibrahim (Production Manager) M. Ziauddin Saddam Hussein EDITOR’S NOTE During their meeng in Davos (January 21, 2020) “When the Chinese came to help us with this Belt CONTENTS PAGE President Donald Trump called Prime Minister Imran and Road Iniave (BRI) and CPEC, we were really at Khan as a “very good friend of mine”, adding, the rock boom . They came and pumped in, not just The Futile Quest for Civilian Supremacy 04 “…we’ve never been closer with Pakistan than we they gave us loans – and the loans, by the way are are right now.” Almost at the same me, Alice Wells, barely five or six percent of the total porolio. (The Merits of Bilateral Engagement on Kashmir 06 Trump’s Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State suggeson that the CPEC is a debt-trap) is nonsense. Ugly Geopolitics Hypocrisy at Best 08 for South and Central Asia, made lile secret of the They are especially helping us in agriculture because US aversion to China and its globe-spanning Belt and Chinese technology (can boost) development (in this Outlaw Use of Drones for Political Assassinations 11 Road Iniave (BRI). sector) much beer than Pakistan’s. American Absolutism and the Dangerous Neo-normal 12 Between her appearance at Woodrow Wilson Centre The Chinese ministry of foreign affairs snapped back Post Solemani: Is the World Safer? 14 in November last year, and her exchanges in in the same unequivocal terms. Violence Continues to Pile Misery on Afghans 15 Islamabad in January, the content of Wells’ Why is the taxation system bleeding? 16 conversaon on the China Pakistan Economic “The comments hold nothing new, but the same Corridor (CPEC) has hardly changed - consistently cliché in her speech in November, 2019, which has Science & Technology 18 resonang “reservaons” about the BRI. been repeatedly rejected by China and Pakistan. “We must not let the truth be distorted and the lies Omer Chaudhary – A Lifestyle Icon 20 Common elements of her speeches - disguised in run wild. The enre process is open and transparent Success Demands Clarity and Commitment 22 “advice” to Pakistan - are geo-polical in nature at and is in line with internaonal norm… it is agreed best, simply because they flow from the challenge that the CPEC is clean… we reject the negave Self-Forgiveness 24 posed by the Chinese economic model to the US and propaganda by the US.” Exclusive with Junaid Khan 26 the West. The US and western officials, driven by their dislike, if Happening Islamabad 28 Wherever Wells goes, she complains of a lack of not contempt, for the phenomenal economic rise of In Conversation with Daniyal Raheel 30 transparency in CPEC projects, warns of the growing China, overlook a fundamental reality rooted in the Chinese debt burden on Pakistan, and cauons Chinese civilizaonal norms: never be overbearing 5 Best Homemade Hair Packs 31 against involving Chinese companies which have to your friends; never forget the good that friends For Sama: Predicament of the Syrians Documented 32 been “blacklisted by the World Bank.” and neighbors bring you - even if decades go by; never project your superiority onto economically Recipes: Lemon Butter Chicken & Keto Peanut 34 Wells’ harsh assessment – which borders on disadvantaged friends, and never speak with your Butter Cup Fat Bombs unqualified prejudicial cricism of the Chinese friends in two tongues. Giorgio Armani's Prive Collection: Paris Show 36 support to Pakistan – drew unusually strong governmental reacons from both Islamabad and Both China and Pakistan have rescued each other PSL Schedule 38 Beijing. and collaborated on many fronts umpteen mes, Tribute to Kobe Bean Bryant 39 and hence PM Khan’s righul asseron that “this Pakistan’s strongest ever response came from Prime relaonship goes beyond BRI (and CPEC).” It stands Pakistan Bracing for New Challenges in 2020 40 Minister Imran Khan himself during his interview out as a real friendship anchored in the principle of with the CNBC News in Davos. In unambiguous mutual respect and sincere support for economic terms, Khan offered a categorical defense of China development. Had it been a transaconal and the cooperaon with it. Here is a summary of relaonship accompanied by decepon, bullying, what Khan said, as reported by several naonal and scks, and gunpowder, it would have long dissipated. foreign media outlets. POLITICS The Futile Quest for Civilian Supremacy! M. Ziauddin What will it take for the civilians to establish their authority? Is decides, one fine morning, to go back to the barracks for good, mere electoral exercise enough or does it require financial never to return. integrity as an addional criteria? But that is not going to happen tomorrow. And aempts by The military (M) supremacy is too deep rooted to respond to civilians to wrench power from M has ended only in the such noble noons as 'financial integrity'. More so because M's ignominious ouster of those who made the mistake. ZAB was own 'financial integrity' has never been known to be hanged and Nawaz was disqualified for life and jailed on aboveboard. corrupon charges. M's commercial ventures, especially the Army Welfare Trust M did not take over the country on the day Pakistan was born. being and why it won't exist for long without a constuon is During the nine-year rule of General Musharraf, the grip of the (AWT), the Fauji Foundaon, and the Froner Works That happened in October 1958. But things had started directly related to the mindset of our military officers. M further ghtened over the country. During his six years as Organisaon (FWO) are not cost-efficient. Audit reports of the happening around 1954 when Pakistan joined the Central the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), General (retd.) Ashfaq Pervez government have also established the fact that resources are Treaty Organizaon (CENTO) and Southeast Asia Treaty During the first three decades of our independence, the career Kiyani also tried to further deepen the Army's role in the connuously transferred from the government's treasury to Organizaon (SEATO), US backed military pacts aimed at preference of the brightest among our educated youth would government. these companies, although they are supposed to operate in keeping the region insulated from incursions of communism. be according to the following order: 1) medicine, 2) the private sector. And perhaps by the 1970s the General Headquarters (GHQ) engineering, 3) the central superior services, 4) the air force, 5) The reacon of M to the guilty verdict of President General was framing almost all the naonal policies including those the navy, 6) the army, and 7) the private sector. (retd.) Musharraf on treason charges was too abrupt and too Defense Housing Authories (DHAs) are the biggest and related to internal, economic, defence and foreign affairs. The terse, reflecng M's self-image of feeling superior even to the elected houses were being used only as civilian façade to cover richest housing projects in the country. The Naonal Logiscs That is the kind of stuff that had reached the staff colleges in judiciary. up the reality of being a security state. Cell (NLC) is the country's biggest goods transport company. the early decades following independence. Things have only FWO is the country's biggest construcon company. The Fauji worsened subsequently. Now, it is the private sector, mostly Nawaz has been replaced by Prime Minister Imran Khan, a Foundaon is the country's biggest corporate conglomerate. Had Ayub abdicated as per the constuon in favour of the mulnaonals which aract most of our brightest and not-so cricket celebrity and a world famous social worker, being the Askari Bank, Askari Insurance, and Askari Leasing are highly then Speaker of the Naonal Assembly Abdul Jabbar Khan and brightest educated youth. That is why most of the bright founder of Shaukat Khanum Cancer hospitals. So far PM Khan lucrave financial organizaons. not tried to hand over the country to General Yahya Khan, youngsters today are joining business schools. has tried not to leave M's page. And to prove the point that the perhaps we would have escaped the humiliaon of civil war in two are connuing on the same page the current incumbent the then East Pakistan. We did not have a constuon when The defence services have job quotas in civil services, including Despite the wide intellectual gap between the civil and military COAS General Qamar Javed Bajwa has been given an extension Bangladesh was born. the police and railway services from the top slot down to the mindsets, M occupies a higher moral ground relave to of three years. level of coolies. On every promoon officers are alloed plots civilians in its own self-image and also in the eyes of the general at throwaway prices and newly built houses in DHAs are sold to Pakistan is a product of a constuonal process and it was born public. This is because of the heroic metaphors it has Finally, most of those craving for civilian supremacy ignore the officers at nominal prices which the owners sell to private out of Brish India Act of 1935. So, while the naon of Pakistan developed on its own, wring the narraves of all the wars it elephant in the room – the judiciary.