ISLAMABAD: Chairman Senate Mian Raza Rabbani has said that the fate of Asia lies in the hands of Asian people and they themselves have to become masters of their own destiny as the West has always exploited its manpower and resources to promote its hegemonic designs and imperialist agenda.
The chairman Senate expressed these views at ceremony held in connection with taking over of the IT equipment gifted by the Chinese Peoples’ Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) which was earlier promised by the Chairman of National Committee of CPPCC during his visit on the invitation of Chairman Senate in April this year.
Mian Raza Rabbani said that the gesture of good will would long be remembered and these gifts generate a feeling of brotherhood and comradeship. He said that friendship between the two sides has a legacy behind it and has with stood the destitute of time and strains. “It is a friendship which brings the peoples of Asia together and this century is truly the Asian century”, Raza Rabbani remarked while addressing the participants.
He said that by becoming the masters of their own destiny, the people of Asian continent would be in a much better position to play active role in global politics and counter the neo-colonialist and imperialist agenda which is aimed at destabilization in countries under transition, forced regime changes and extended the tentacles of imperialism and neo-colonialism. He thanked the Chinese side and specially the leadership of CPPCC for the cooperation and generous gesture in the shape of IT equipment which he hoped would contribute in helping in modernizing the IT Department of the Senate Secretariat, improving the means of communication and converting the Pakistan Senate into an e-parliament.
Deputy Chairman Senate Molana Abdul Ghafoor Haideri in his address said that friendship between the two is all weather and time tested. He termed CPEC a landmark initiative while cautioning that different forces are trying to create hurdles in the way of the project. However, nation is united and consensus and unanimity of opinion exists among the political leadership and armed forces and nation has resolved to make CPEC a success story.
Secretary Senate Amjed Pervez Malik while expressing his gratitude regarded it a landmark event and said that this token of friendship will complement the Senate’s ongoing e-parliament initiatives and optimizing the working of the House and Committees.
He said that Pak-China friendship is a living example of how two nations can get closer in not only political and economic affairs but also in other fields and both countries continue to collaborate to each other at various forums. He said that cooperation between the two at macro and micro level is highly remarkable.
Chinese Ambassador Sun Wen Dong said that this gift carries a message of love from Chinese people. He said that China and Pakistan are strategic cooperative partners and both enjoy all weather friendship. He said that parliamentarians are the representatives of people and it is important to promote further parliamentary cooperation and deepen the mutually beneficial bilateral relation. NNI
========================
LHC orders Punjab govt to release judicial report on Model Town incident
LAHORE, Sep 21 (INP): The Lahore High Court ordered the Punjab government on Thursday to make public the judicial inquiry report into the Model Town killings.
The order was read out by Justice Mazahir Ali Akbar Naqvi while hearing a petition by the families of those injured in the 2014 clashes with police in Lahore to make the inquiry report public.
Later, sources said the government decided to file an intra-court appeal as the judicial report contains matters of national importance that cannot be disclosed at the moment.
According to the government’s legal officials, who requested anonymity, the appeal will be filed once the detailed verdict of today’s order is handed out.
Earlier, it was reported that a full bench of court will hear all the petitions on the Model Town tragedy on September 25.
A three-member bench of LHC headed by interim Chief Justice Yawar Ali will hear the different cases demanding the Model Town judicial report to be made public.
The petitions have been filed by the families of victims killed in Model Town during an ‘anti-encroachment’ operation conducted by police against the Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) headquarters. At least 14 people were killed and 100 others injured in the police action.
PAT chief Tahirul Qadri has continuously demanded that the Justice Baqir Najfi Commission report on the Model Town incident be made public, asking what Shehbaz Sharif is afraid of if he is not responsible for the tragedy.
Chief Minister Shehbaz Sharif has been held responsible for the incident in the report which is why he hasn’t made it public even after three years, Qadri said while addressing a sit-in held in remembrance of the 2014 incident, in which 14 PAT workers were killed and scores injured. INP