Benazir May Re-emerge on Pakistan’s Political Scene

“Yes, we [army] are considering many options to maintain continuity and becoming the president is one of those options.” --Military ruler Gen. Parvez Musharraf on a future political structure in Pakistan. *** "Throw me out (of power by your movement) if you can." --Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in an open challenge to the opposition. *** “We will continue our protest programs until Koirala resigns from his post.” --Opposition leader J.N. Khanal at the end of a massive demonstration against the government in Kathmandu.  *** "Such measures should not be encouraged unless there is a pronounced national interest involved." --Vinod Mehta, editor of India’s Outlook magazine on the tactic of uncovering the recent bribery scandal in India. *** "The plot is similar, only the star cast is different…” --Sucheta Dalal, a reporter of Indian Express newspaper on the latest financial scam in India.  *** "Dhaka's air pollution problem is very serious. The air we breathe is world-class dirty." --Frederick Temple, World Bank country director for Bangladesh at a seminar in capital Dhaka. *** “The country is heading toward a dangerous situation as these crops play a key role in the national economy…” --Zafar Altaf, an official of Agriculture Ministry on the water crisis in Pakistan. ***

ISLAMABAD -- Pakistan’s Supreme Court decision of setting aside the conviction of Ms Benazir Bhutto and her spouse has created a situation that may allow the self-exiled leader to come back home and even try to become country’s prime minister for the third time with General Musharraf as president. Political activities, that had been subdued after the exit of Nawaz Sharif from Pakistan’s political scene in December last year as a result of his secret deal with the military government, have resumed signaling a beginning of Pakistan’s eventual return to civilian rule. Full Story As Election Nears, Crisis Deepens in Bangladesh DHAKA -- Opposition parties in Bangladesh issued a call for countrywide general strike again – third in three straight weeks and this time for 96 hours from April 23 – demanding government’s resignation, transfer of power to a non-party caretaker government, and general elections for the nation’s eighth parliament. The opposition program comes amid firm declaration by the ruling party that it would complete its term and retraction of its offer to hold early election provided the opposition parties sit with it to sort out their differences. Full Story Opposition Presses on for Removal of Nepal’s Premier KATHMANDU -- The streets in capital Kathmandu looked like a battleground on April 16. Hundreds of opposition activists, led by the leader of the main opposition and general secretary of the Unified Marxist-Leninist party, Madhav Kumar Nepal, jammed the streets of the capital shortly after sunrise. Their mission: Stop Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala from entering his office at Singha Durbar.   Full Story Bribery Scandal Leaves Little Impact on India NEW DELHI -- Contrary to expectations, Tehelka changed nothing in India, least of all a government. The initial response to the expose was earth shattering. It looked like the mother of all scams. The coalition government was on the back foot. The allies were fuming, demanding resignations and action against those found accepting bribes. The opposition camp was on fire, slinging mud on those in power and holding the parliament to ransom. For the political observers though, a sense of déjà vu prevailed. They were aware that the raging storm was about to run out of steam, and there would be a hue and cry followed by indolence that so effectively cripples the political system of this country. Unfortunately, that was the right prediction. Full Story Now a Financial Scam Hits Indian Stock Markets BOMBAY -- It was the proverbial fall of the Icarus. The Bank Securities and Fraud Cell of India's Central Bureau of Investigations (CBI) on March 30 arrested Ketan Parekh, the man synonymous with the biggest boom in the history of Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE). The charge against him was allegedly defrauding the Bank of India (BoI) to the tune of Rs 130 crore. Parekh's arrest triggered crash of stock markets for the seventh consecutive Black Friday.  Full Story ‘The Air We Breathe is World-Class Dirty’ DHAKA -- When the mighty Mughals selected Dhaka four hundred years ago as a capital of one of its eastern states, it was perhaps one of the greenest cities of the world with three river systems entwining it like a creeper. Canals crisscrossing the new habitation with waterways, lined with trees and shrubs, were the main communication system. It went through phases of pomp and paltriness during four centuries of its existence journeying through the status of a capital of a state, then of a province, then headquarters of a district, again capital of a province and finally the capital of a country.  Full Story Sri Lankan Peace Process Moves into a Crucial Phase Britain’s decision to place Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), which has been spearheading an armed struggle to win a separate homeland for minority Tamils in northeastern part of Sri Lanka, on its list of “terrorist groups” has given a new twist to the on-going peace process in the country that has already seen some dramatic changes in the last few months. This new phase of peace process was kicked off in November last year when the LTTE leader, Velupillai Prabhakaran, made an unanticipated offer to initiate “unconditional talks” with Colombo to find a solution to this chronic ethnic grapple that had engulfed some 70,000 Sri Lankans. Within a few days, the LTTE amended this offer by adding an appendage of a precondition that it would not enter Norwegian-backed peace talks until the government declares a ceasefire. Full Story Pakistan Faces an Unprecedented Water Crisis ISLAMABAD -- Confronting crisis after crisis mostly created by men over the last fifty plus years right since her birth in 1947, Pakistan is now facing an unprecedented water crisis caused by nature. With no rain in the winter and less snow on the mountains, agriculture sector better known as the backbone of the country’s economy is not only collapsing but also creating a disharmony among various provinces. Especially Punjab and Sindh are bitterly vying over water sharing from Indus River. Pakistan's wheat crop, which was surplus last year, is expected to be less than what is required to feed nation’s 140 million. Full Story Bangladesh Genocide in the Eye of a Pakistani Poet On March 26, 1971, the Pakistani government—ruled by the West Pakistanis—launched a planned genocide on the East Pakistanis—mostly Bengalees. The purpose of the genocide was to suppress East Pakistan’s demand for political autonomy, which would become unavoidable should the government have followed a democratic path of settlement. During the next nine months three million people were massacred—the largest number of people killed in the shortest span of time in human history. People from all walks of life were summarily executed—students, teachers, professors, doctors, nurses, scientists, politicians, poets, artists, writers, government workers, military and paramilitary personnel, industrialists, shop keepers, rickshaw pullers. Full Story