Three Hazaras shot dead in Quetta

Thursday, December 16, 2010

QUETTA: Three people, including two brothers and a child, were gunned down and another sustained bullet injures in an incident of sectarian target killing on Arbab Karam Khan Road in Quetta on Wednesday. The incident took place despite tight securityand the department of more FC personnel and police on the city’s roads to protect the life and property of the people. According to official sources, four people were on their way to Hazara Town from the main city centre in their car when unidentified assailants on a motorbike opened fire at them. Resultantly, two people died on the spot while two others, including a motorcyclist, sustained bullet wounds. In another incident of firing, unknown motorbike riders shot dead Barkat Ali at the Kirani road and fled from the scene. staff report

News Source: http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2010%5C12%5C16%5Cstory_16-12-2010_pg7_11

Afghan detainees to be sent home

AUSTRALIA and Afghanistan have finalised an agreement that will pave the way for hundreds of failed asylum-seekers to be returned to Kabul.

Paul Maley and Lanai Vasek

From: The Australian

December 14, 2010 12:26AM

In a coup for the Gillard government, Canberra and Kabul have agreed on a draft memorandum of understanding, which is likely to be signed within weeks, The Australian has been told .
News of the agreement came as ASIO figures revealed the strain the constant flow of asylum-seeker boats is having on authorities. In answers to a Senate committee yesterday, ASIO said 330 asylum-seekers remained in detention while they waited for the agency to conduct security assessments.
The figures also reveal a blow-out in the number of security assessments ASIO is being asked to conduct. In the 10 months to October, 2460 boatpeople received checks, compared with 1093 for the whole of last year. The rise is consistent with the spike in unauthorised arrivals, which have hit 6224 this year, more than double the 2867 who arrived the year before.
The government has long maintained that deporting failed asylum-seekers was a key part of its strategy to stop the boats, which have been coming in ever-greater numbers since late 2008.
Afghans comprise the largest nationality of boat arrivals. Most are ethnic Hazaras, who have been subjected to persecution throughout central Asia.
According to the Immigration Department, 4342 Afghans have arrived since the flow started in late 2008, about half the overall total of 9252.
Although Afghans are overrepresented in asylum figures, only two out of the 181 unauthorised arrivals who have been returned to their home countries in that time were Afghans. Both returned voluntarily.
Several sources familiar with the negotiations said the agreement would involve Afghanistan, Australia and the UNHCR.
One source said the agreement could be signed as early as next week, although another source contacted by The Australian played down that possibility. It is understood the major barrier is getting all the participants "in the same room together" to sign the document.
Crucially for Australia, the agreement is understood to include involuntary returns. Since the beginning of the year, the success rate for Afghan asylum-seekers has dropped from more than 95 per cent to about 50 per cent, meaning half of all Afghan asylum-seekers being refused refugee status could be subject to the new agreement.
It is understood the memorandum of understanding will be accompanied by a comprehensive reintegration package aimed at settling returned Afghan asylum-seekers.
News of the agreement drew a critical response from Khalid Koser, a Geneva-based expert on people-smuggling and non-resident fellow at the Lowy Institute.
Dr Koser said return programs were hugely expensive, added to the pool of internally displaced people inside Afghanistan and offered no clear deterrent to would-be asylum-seekers -- a key selling point of the plan.
"If you look at (people-smuggling) as a cost per head, it's always a massive figure," Dr Koser said, adding it was impossible for authorities in Afghanistan to effectively monitor returned asylum-seekers, all of whom would "certainly" be returned to Kabul.
"It can't be returned to the regions," Dr Koser said of the agreement. "What you're risking is returning people and making them internally-displaced people."
In a paper on people-smuggling written for the Lowy Institute, Dr Koser said the costs borne by the taxpayer were among the highest in the world. "It is very unlikely that any other country in the world currently spends as much on asylum-seekers in terms of the ratio of costs to individuals involved as Australia," he said.
The problem has also pushed Australia's detention network to breaking point.
Last night, Curtin immigration detention centre was running at almost double its original recommended capacity, while the Christmas Island, Leonora and Scherger facilities were also operating above their limits. A total of 1016 asylum-seekers were being held at the Curtin facility, in the remote West Kimberley region of Western Australia -- despite an initial limit of 600.
A redevelopment of Curtin, which will allow for an extra 600 places, is not due to be completed until April, however it is understood 150 beds are currently being used.
On Christmas Island last night 2726 people were being housed at a facility originally designed to hold just 400.
Nearly 400 of those people were in tents, despite warnings from the Immigration Department that tents were flammable and exacerbated tensions inside the overcrowded centre.
The Leonora detention centre, in outback Western Australia, was housing 207 asylum-seekers despite only having a recommended capacity of 200. The Scherger base near Weipa in northern Queensland -- which opened in September -- was six people over its 300-person limit.
The updated figures came as Immigration Minister Chris Bowen yesterday attended a meeting in Geneva, with the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Antonio Guterres, as well as the Director-General of the International Organisation for Migration, William Swing, about the plan for a regional processing centre.
Opposition immigration spokesman Scott Morrison said the problem of overcrowded centres would not be solved until the government amended its domestic border protection policy.
"The simple fact is under this government we will see more beds and more boats," Mr Morrison said.
"This government is just bankrupt on policy that works."

News Source: http://www.heraldsun.com.au/ipad-application/afghan-detainees-to-be-sent-home/story-fn6bfmgc-1225970593767

بلوچستان:’تعلیم کا مستقبل خطرے میں‘

 

’بلوچستان میں تعلیم تنازعات کے پیچ پھنس کر رہ گئی ہے‘

حقوقِ انسانی کے لیے کام کرنے والی عالمی تنظیم ہیومن رائٹس واچ نے کہا ہے کہ پاکستان کے صوبے بلوچستان مسلح جنگجؤ صوبے میں تعینات اساتذہ اور تعلیم کے شعبہ سے وابستہ افراد کے خلاف کارروائیاں فوری طور پر بند کریں کیونکہ ان کارروائیوں بلوچ طالب علموں کا نقصان ہو رہا ہے۔

بلوچستان میں تعلیمی مشکلات کے حوالے اپنی ایک رپورٹ میں تنظیم نے کہا ہے کہ جنوری سنہ 2008 سے اکتوبر سنہ 2010 کے دوران بلوچستان میں بائیس اساتذہ اور دیگر تدریسی عملہ مختلف حملوں میں مارا گیا ہے۔
کلِک تفصیلی رپورٹ پڑھنے کے لیے کلک کریں
چالیس صفحات پر مشتمل یہ رپورٹ پیر کو جاری کی گئی ہے۔
اس رپورٹ میں بلوچستان میں کام کرنے والے اساتذہ، طلبہ، حملوں کا شکار بننے والے افراد کے لواحقین اور حکومتی عہدیداران سے بات کی گئی ہے۔

ونڈوز میڈیا یا ریئل پلیئر میں دیکھیں/سنیں

اس رپورٹ کے بارے میں ہیومن رائٹس واچ کے جنوبی ایشیا کے لیے محقق علی دایان حسن کا کہنا ہے کہ ’بلوچستان میں اس وقت تعلیم دینا یا حاصل کرنا اپنی زندگی خطرے میں ڈالنے کے مترادف ہے‘۔
ان کا یہ بھی کہنا ہے کہ ’مسلح گروہوں کی پاکستانی ریاست کے خلاف شکایات اس بات کا جواز نہیں کہ وہ اساتذہ کو قتل کرتے پھریں۔اساتذہ کو مار کر، طلباء کو نقصان پہنچا کر اور سکولوں کو نشانہ بنا کر یہ جنگجو صرف بلوچستان کے مسائل میں اضافہ کر رہے ہیں‘۔
ہیومن رائٹس واچ کا کہنا ہے کہ سنہ 2008 میں اس صورتحال کے سامنے آنے کے بعد سے دو سو سے زائد اساتذہ اور پروفیسرز یا تو صوبے کے نسبتاً محفوظ مقامات پر اپنا تبادلہ کروا چکے ہیں یا پھر انہوں نے صوبہ ہی چھوڑ دیا ہے۔یہی نہیں بلکہ مزید دو سو اساتذہ اپنے تبادلے کے لیے سرگرم ہیں۔

بلوچستان میں اس وقت تعلیم دینا یا حاصل کرنا اپنی زندگی خطرے میں ڈالنے کے مترادف ہے۔

علی دایان حسن

رپورٹ کے مطابق بلوچستان میں تعلیم تنازعات کے بیچ پھنس کر رہ گئی ہے اور وہ یہ کہ علیحدگی پسند مسلح بلوچ قوم پرست پنجابیوں اور دیگر اقلیتوں کو نشانہ بنا رہے ہیں جبکہ اس کے ساتھ ساتھ شیعہ آبادی مسلح سنّی گروہوں کا نشانہ ہیں۔
رپورٹ میں یہ بھی کہا گیا ہے کہ اگرچہ بلوچستان میں ہر شعبۂ زندگی کے افراد ان گروہوں کا نشانہ بن رہے ہیں لیکن صوبہ پنجاب سے تعلق رکھنے والے افراد خصوصاً ان کا نشانہ ہیں کیونکہ وہاں انہیں ریاست کا نمائندہ اور فوج کے جبر کی علامت سمجھا جاتا ہے۔
News Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/urdu/pakistan/2010/12/101213_hrw_baluchistan_education_zs.shtml

Human Rights Watch report: Attacks on Teachers and Schools in Pakistan’s Balochistan Province

Link to report:
http://www.hrw.org/en/embargo/node/94653?signature=0d8d9ca370eb5de5bc977f6edc0d4c08&suid=6

آغاز زمستان و دشواری‌های حمل و نقل در هزاره‌جات

http://www.bbc.co.uk/persian/afghanistan/2010/12/101211_k02-hazarajat-transportioan-winter.shtml

Kiwi effort makes difference in Bamiyan

When Inspector Ged Byers joined the police in 1978, he never thought the job would take him to Afghanistan.
The long-serving police officer has just returned from a six-month stint working to streamline the judicial and prosecution system, combat corruption and train police in how to work with the community.
Acting as superintendent to two other police officers from Auckland and Christchurch, Mr Byers was based at the New Zealand Defence Force headquarters in Bamiyan province.
Working under the United Nations Police Mission banner, Mr Byers said one of the toughest things was trying to restructure the police force from a military role to public service.
"The issue is these people have been fighting for 40 years or so and their police have been in a military-type role where very much it is `might is right' ... and my take on things is that they've struggled with the sort of relationship they have with the public."
Working to establish a judicial system had been rewarding, leading to the first public trial in Bamiyan history.
Admitting to a few nerves when he first arrived, Mr Byers said he soon realised the province was relatively safe as long as protocol was followed. There was always a chance an insurgent could attack but the New Zealand forces were well-prepared and professional.
"I think naturally you're a wee bit concerned because while you've had pre-deployment training you're still influenced by what you hear in the media ... but the reality is it's very different in Bamiyan. Having said that, if you went to Kabul or one of the other bases you visited the situation is different, very different."
When the New Zealand forces suffered their first casualty, Lieutenant Tim O'Donnell, this year, it was a tough time in the camp. Mr Byers had worked with Mr O'Donnell's father so knew the family. He was confident the knowledge that familiar people were working hard to bring their son home had helped the family.
Asked if a New Zealand police presence in Afghanistan was necessary, Mr Byers said: "I think so. If we don't do this work then you're not going to have civilian policing. If you want development in that country, if you want to do away with the corruption you want people to have confidence in the law – and the lack of confidence in the law was one of the breeding factors for the Taleban."
News Source: http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/middle-east/4442754/Kiwi-effort-makes-difference-in-Bamiyan

8 December 2010 Last updated at 20:40 ET

 

Afghan poll results threaten ethnic balance

The vote was held in September

Afghan officials say the result of the September vote for the lower house of parliament is threatening to worsen the tribal and ethnic balance in the country. BBC's Bilal Sarwary reports from the capital, Kabul.

The final outcome of the 18 September ballot has brought disappointment for Afghanistan's largest ethnic group, the Pashtuns.
More than 40% of the country's more than 28 million people are Pashtuns and most live in areas where insurgency is strongly visible.
Most Pashtun voters did not exercise their right to vote two-and-a-half months ago, either out of their mistrust for the government of President Hamid Karzai - who is also a Pashtun - or out of fear of reprisals from the Taliban, most of whose commanders are Pashtuns too.
Although the community was preparing itself to see its strength reduced in parliament, the final tally disappointed even the most optimistic of Pashtuns.
Pashtuns will now occupy 96 seats in the 249-member lower house, Wolesi Jirga. They had 116 seats in the last house.
The results have worried President Karzai who, according to some of his aides, "fears the group's political alienation".
In one meeting with his advisers, the president said the poll outcome could "drive Pashtuns into the hands of the Taliban".
The Pashtuns' loss has been the gain of the minority ethnic communities, particularly the Hazaras who make up only 9% of the population.
The Hazaras had only 34 seats in the outgoing house. But this time they have secured 41 seats.
A big boost to the Hazara numbers came from the southern province of Ghazni where all the 11 seats went to the community.
"The Hazara-dominated areas remained peaceful throughout the poll process. This encouraged the supporters of Hazara candidates to go out in full strength and vote," a Pashtun candidate from Ghazni said over the phone, requesting anonymity.
'Feeling abandoned'
"But look at us [Pashtuns]. We and our voters had to bear the brunt of bombs and rockets, and on top of it the Election Commission invalidated thousands of our votes accusing us of ballot stuffing and fraud."
Another minority, the Tajiks, have also done better this time. The community, which makes up 27% of the population, now commands 69 seats as against 51 in the outgoing house.
Just like the Hazaras in Ghazni, the Tajiks gained in the north and north-eastern provinces - few or no Pashtuns made it from the north.

“Start Quote

Candidates with a dubious past are a bigger threat to the country than the ethnic composition of parliament ”

End Quote A western diplomat

A senior official working in the country's south for the National Directorate for Security, the Afghan spy agency, said many in the government fear that less or no representation from insurgency-ridden provinces would make it easier for the Taliban to recruit Pashtuns.

"Pashtuns in these areas feel abandoned," he said.
"We are not America or Japan. We are a country at war. Anything that makes people feel disenfranchised could prove toxic for the country," he said.
A senior official with the National Security Council said: "We know President Karzai was accused of trying to favour Pashtuns. But he was not behind anyone.
"[Mr] Karzai's legacy is to unite this country not divide it. We shouldn't be expected to meet world standards."
A winning candidate, however, welcomed the poll outcome saying winners should not be seen from the ethnic prism.
"Pashtun, Hazara or Tajik, they are all Afghans first," he said.
According to a Western diplomat, candidates with a dubious past are a bigger threat to the country than the ethnic composition of parliament.
"You have people who will represent the interests of the warlords. Some are militia commanders accused of kidnappings, drug trade and human right violations. This has opened a Pandora's Box," he said.
Meanwhile, President Karzai's chief of staff, Mohammad Umer Dawoodzai, rejected reports that a drop in Pashtun members would make it difficult for the president to get his future cabinet ratified by the parliament.
"We are confident that we can work with this parliament. We will get the future cabinet approved easily," he said.
News Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south-asia-11934290