PAKISTAN

Women — the vanguard of financial digitisation

Mutaher Khan | Halima Iqbal

Published September 4, 2023 

Rehan Ahmed

For a country this size and demographics, Pakistan’s financial services ecosystem is particularly underdeveloped, where traditional institutions continue to be locked out of a large segment of the real economy. One indicator is our overwhelming dependence on cash, as reflected by the currency in circulation crossing Rs9.1 trillion in June.

For decades, the financial institutions in the country have skirted around their responsibility and made access to their services cumbersome for ordinary folks. According to the World Bank’s Findex, only 16.29 per cent of the adult population in Pakistan had a financial institution account, putting us ahead only of five states: South Sudan, Afghanistan, Guinea, Sierra Leone, and Iraq.

And as always, things happen to be much worse for women, where the corresponding percentage is estimated to be only 11pc. Anyone who has ever visited a bank branch can probably attest to how difficult it is to bank as a female customer in Pakistan. To address this problem, we have seen a number of policies, whitepapers and conferences over the last few years. But have things really changed? Let’s look at the data.

As far as financial institution accounts are concerned, Pakistan has indeed noticed considerable progress, with the number reaching 167.4 million in December 2022, compared to just 69.6m back in June 2017. Almost 27pc, or 45.95m, of the total, belongs to women, of which 28.07m were unique depositors.

Numbers indicate that for females, for every Rs100 spent through a payment card, Rs12.7 is paid via point of sales and Rs4.4 through e-commerce

Going by these numbers, 39pc of all adult women in Pakistan are banked. In contrast, the World Bank and Karandaaz estimate that proportion at 11.5pc and 13pc, respectively. While it’s true there will always be differences in demand and supply side numbers, such a massive gap is questionable: either about the survey methodology or the reported data.

More importantly, active female unique depositors also increased to 21.82m as of December 2022, compared to only 8.2m in June 2017. Over the same period, the corresponding numbers for males are 42.05m and 21.26m, respectively. While this is great progress, focusing too much on just account openings is a little futile because what really matters is their quality. Ideally, that is measured using the transaction activity, but no such data is available.

Luckily, there are a few ways we can assess that quality. First of all, 28.7m — or 62.5pc of the total — female accounts were branchless as of 2022. This is not just for women: the corresponding share for males was also 59pc. The credit for this goes to players like JazzCash and Easypaisa, who have, to some extent, plugged the gap left by legacy institutions in providing access to financial services.

However, let’s be mindful that mobile money wallets offer a tamed-down version of banking, further lowering the bare minimum standards of financial inclusion.

The second indicator is to look at the number of female-owned debit cards, which stood at just 6.2m as of December 2022. That’s 19pc of all debit cards in the country. Put another way, only 36.2pc of the scheduled banking accounts of women had a debit card, compared to 55.3pc for males. So even when women have a proper bank account — not a digital wallet — they are far less likely to get something as basic as a debit card.

Let’s not even talk about credit cards because our banks just don’t bother with that segment, regardless of gender, and given the current interest rate environment, even the existing users are feeling the strain.

Interestingly, as banks double down on digitisation initiatives, women may even be better customers to target. For example, of the total female spend through payment cards, 12.7pc was on point of sale (POS) and 4.4pc on e-commerce — both substantially higher than the corresponding figures of 7.7pc and 2.5pc for males. That means if women are spending Rs100, every Rs12.7 is paid via POS and Rs4.4 through e-commerce.

Volume-wise, women had an even larger share in POS and e-commerce, at 29.4pc and 10.2pc, respectively. Again, this is substantially higher than men’s 18.3pc and 5.5pc, respectively. Basically, of all the transactions from female-held cards, almost 40pc are truly digital — i.e. not on ATMs.

One could argue that this may be because female customers who have debit or credit cards are already relatively well off (because banks don’t issue them to the rest) and thus are more digital. While the reasoning makes sense, it ignores one thing: women usually manage household expenses even if the card itself belongs to men. So, if a wife goes to Imtiaz and pays for monthly groceries (high value) via her husband’s card, the data should be reflected in at least a higher POS value for males.

Nevertheless, the data so far points to two contrasting realities: despite being more digitally savvy in terms of spending, female users struggle to access even the most basic of financial services. Unfortunately, no one in the status quo really wants to do anything to bring a meaningful change, apart from a few marketing gimmicks here and there.

Mutaher Khan is co-founder of Data Darbar and Halima Iqbal is the founder of Oraan

Published in Dawn, The Business and Finance Weekly, September 4th, 2023

WILDLIFE: MADHUBALA’S LAST STAND

Muzhira Amin Published September 3, 2023 

Zoo authorities hope Madhubala’s health will improve once she is relocated to Safari Park

 | Photo by Fahim Siddiqui

Five months after her ‘pen pal’ Noor Jehan passed away, Madhubala, caged behind concrete bars at the Karachi Zoo, stands under the tree where her best friend is now buried. She gazes at onlookers with vacant eyes that only show emotion when her mahout enters her enclosure with sugar cane.

Approximately 12 kilometres away, Madhubala’s herd partners Sonu and Malaika, housed at the Safari Park, suffer from knee swellings, cracked feet and joint pains.

All these African elephants, the last of the species in Pakistan, are suffering a fate they never signed up for. They — along with Noor Jehan — arrived in Pakistan 14 years ago. They were captured from Tanzania, after poachers shot their mother in front of them.

According to the zoo staff, these young ladies, now between the ages of 16 and 17, were just young calves when they were brought as captives to Karachi. They were then separated: Noor Jehan and Madhubala were sent off to the zoo, while Malaika and Sonu were kept at the Safari Park.

While the three remaining elephants are inching towards a reunion, it is at the cost of losing one of their companions.

The African pachyderm Madhubala will join two elephants from her original herd when she is rehomed at Karachi’s Safari Park. But will this guarantee a better life for her?

After Noor Jehan’s painful death earlier this year due to a tumour, the international animal welfare organisation Four Paws — which is closely working with the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC), which runs the Karachi Zoo — recommended immediately moving Madhubala to the Safari Park, a relatively greener and calmer place, for a “better chance at life.”

After some back and forth, a decision was made to move Madhubala to the Safari Park by mid-September, says an official at Karachi Zoo who did not want to be named.

He says Four Paws — who are currently in the city — had visited Madhubala and declared her fit to be moved to the new abode. “They said she is absolutely fine,” he says.

The elephant’s mahout Yusuf, on the other hand, says he was given special instructions by the doctors to ensure Madhubala was stress-free. “For the next few days, we have been told to stay with her day and night,” he says.

But a visit to the zoo shows Madhubala was anything but relaxed. She repeatedly made attempts to break down the door of her enclosure and kept banging her head on the steel bars of the cage — what experts call a “clear” sign of distress.

Yusuf has also noticed this. “She just doesn’t want to be alone. She wants you to sit next to her and talk to her. She gets agitated whenever she is alone,” he says.

“Imagine losing someone you have spent over a decade with… it gets very lonely,” says Yusuf. The mahout, who has been looking after the elephants at the zoo, adds that he had no idea what he would do once Madhubala was moved to the Safari Park. “We have spent a lifetime with these elephants.”

A closer view of Madhubala’s enclosure proves that preparations for her relocation are in full swing. Apart from her main cage, two other small pens have been taken down and transported to the Safari Park.

“They want to save money,” the official at the zoo says, pointing at the dismantled pens.

At the Safari Park too, a 25 foot by 38 foot concrete cage, identical to the one at the zoo, is under construction.

Earlier, Dr Amir Khalil, who is heading the Four Paws team, visited the Safari Park to oversee arrangements there for Madhubala’s enclosure. After the assessment, he suggested some measures, including a larger allocation of space for the elephants, from three acres to five acres.

Dr Khalil adds that Four Paws would also train the on-ground staff before Madhubala is rehomed. But given the KMC’s tainted past , doubts remain regarding whether relocating Madhubala is the solution to the wildlife crisis.

Despite living at Safari Park, which is termed a better place for elephants, Malaika and Sonu have been diagnosed with several diseases over the past several years. Recently, a report found that Sonu was suffering from a foot injury that seemed to have occurred due to the damaged concrete floor and moist conditions in her enclosure. Meanwhile, Malaika had developed a parasitic infection, the same that had eventually led to Noor Jehan’s death.

Zohare Ali Shariff, who has hands-on experience of captive wildlife management, explains to Eos that one common reason that captive animals, including elephants, were less immune to illnesses was the non-fulfilment of their basic needs.

“Elephants are highly intelligent animals, who have a very strong memory, they remember everything,” he says. “From the day they were put in captivity, these animals have been mistreated and tortured. They are beaten with sticks and are screamed at. All of this causes the elephants continuous stress and ultimately affects their health.”

Shariff says Madhubala may be suffering from several traumas. The primary one may be the loss of a loved one. “She was attached to Noor Jehan and witnessed the entire drama that unfolded before her death… this must be deeply embedded in her memory.” This explains her long visits to Noor Jehan’s grave.

Solitary confinement at the zoo and years of abuse have also deeply affected Madhubala, and a new enclosure at the Safari Park may not help with her healing, as Shariff says it is “too small and another torture cell.”

Elephants, he elaborates, need an environment that, if not a mirror, is similar to their natural habitat — land spread over hundreds of acres, earth underneath and abundant trees.

“Even with captive elephants, they should be provided an environment that functions according to the animal’s needs,” he points out.

Shariff also highlights how it may take Madhubala several months to adjust with the other elephants, even if they were originally members of her herd. He says elephants are not predators and the chances of a fight among them are relatively low, but there is a standard protocol in such matters that must be followed.

This includes first introducing the elephants to each other from a distance — or adjacent enclosures — and then slowly increasing their interaction.

Shariff hopes that moving Madhubala to the Safari Park would improve the quality of her life, but at the same time expresses apprehensions on whether government organisations, such as the KMC, can be trusted with taking care of the elephant.

He laments the KMC’s previous mismanagement, adding that neither the diet nor the veterinary care provided to captive animals in the city was at par with international standards.

“It is not possible to release these animals in the wild, they have been in captivity almost their entire life,” the expert adds. “The only option is to make zoos better.”

On the other hand, Jude Alan, animal activist and founder of the ‘I Am Noor Jehan Movement’, says the elephants in Karachi should be sent to an international sanctuary, such as the Islamabad elephant Kaavan was.

He tells Eos that when talks pertaining to Madhubala’s relocation had first started circulating, the KMC had agreed on providing 16-18 acres of land at the Safari Park. “But they have now agreed over less than five acres… Is this a joke?”

Elephants, on an average, walk for over 30km in a day. The Safari Park land cannot even be regarded as a drop in the ocean.

“The government does not care about these animals or their well-being, they have robbed the elephants of their rights,” Alan asserts, adding that African elephants belonged to Africa and should be sent back. “Let’s show them some dignity, we owe them this.”

The activist added that he, along with 22 other people, were working on taking this battle to court.

According to a 2008 study, zoo life can be deadly for elephants. It states that elephants born and raised in zoos live less than half as long as elephants living in their native areas. African elephants live an average of 60-70 years in the wild.

Scientists link most of these deaths to obesity because, even though the animals are well-fed, they get very little exercise. More recently, science has also revealed that elephants possess elements of neural wiring in their cerebral cortex, just like humans, linked with higher cognitive functions such as social awareness and language.

However, the same networks also makes these giant mammals susceptible to extreme boredom, depression and stereotypical behaviour during imprisonment — as in the case of the Karachi elephants.

And yet, all that zoos care about in Pakistan is entertainment for people during holidays.

The writer is a staff member of Dawn.com and tweets @NMuzhira

Published in Dawn, EOS, September 3rd, 2023

Read more


Elephant Madhubala may have to wait till Sept-end for move to Safari Park, say experts

Solitary confinement at Karachi zoo takes toll on elephant Madhubala

Karachi zoo’s Madhubala again tests positive for potentially fatal blood parasites

LA REVUE GAUCHE - Left Comment: Search results for LUCY EDMONTON 

 

Natural disasters transformed into man-made catastrophes

China Daily | Updated: 2023-09-04 

Fire damage is seen in Lahaina, Hawaii, on Aug 21, 2023. [Photo/Agencies]

The wildfires in Maui, Hawaii, which were first spotted on Aug 8, lasted for more than 20 days. They resulted in the death of 115 people as of the end of August, with more than 300 people still missing and thousands more injured. The largest wildfire in the United States since 1918 has turned the former vacation paradise into a Hell on Earth.

Similarly, the wildfires in Canada have been raging for over four months. As of Aug 30, the total area affected by the fires exceeded 154,000 square kilometers, and the situation in 702 areas remains out of control. The carbon emissions from this disaster have reached 290 million metric tons, accounting for over one-quarter of the global emissions this year, and these numbers will keep rising as the fires continue.

The inadequate and slow responses from both the US and Canadian governments to these wildfires reveal institutional shortcomings and their callousness toward the well-being of people and the environment. This is ironic considering the two governments' claims in these areas.

Let's consider the Maui wildfires as an example. While drought and hurricanes were contributing factors to the disaster, the disorganized and sluggish response was the main reason why the wildfires were allowed to persist for so long, resulting in significant loss of life and property. It should be noted that Hawaii has top-of-the-line emergency monitoring and early warning systems.

Local residents have commented that the fires were left to burn themselves out. The wildfires have left people disillusioned with the government given its inability to handle the emergency. Nor should it be considered a coincidence that the wildfires largely spared the affluent neighborhoods on the island, concentrating their destruction in areas where lower-income communities reside.

The Joe Biden administration, which has acted quickly in the ongoing disaster relief work in the areas in Florida hit by Hurricane Idalia on Wednesday, has apparently learned some lessons from the Maui wildfires.

However, it remains a problem that the most powerful country in the world appears to have lost the ability to coordinate and allocate resources effectively in response to natural disasters. Furthermore, it is surprising that the more than 60,000 troops stationed in Hawaii from the US military did nothing to help during this extended period of time, ignoring the pleas of their neighbors.
The wildfires in the US and Canada were natural disasters that were transformed into man-made ones.

UN experts slam India’s ‘inadequate’ response to Manipur abuses

HINDU NATIONALIST PROVOCATION

AFP 

Published September 4, 2023

UN experts condemned on Monday the Indian government’s “slow and inadequate response” to reported serious rights violations, including sexual violence, amid deadly ethnic clashes in the country’s remote northeast.

“We have serious concerns about the apparent slow and inadequate response by the Government of India, including law enforcement, to stem physical and sexual violence and hate speech in Manipur,” they said in a statement.

The nearly 20 independent United Nations rights experts, including the special rapporteurs on violence against women and girls and on torture, responded to the abuses reported since clashes broke out in Manipur in May.

Reports indicated that by mid-August, around 160 people were killed and 300 others injured in the violence, they said, also pointing to tens of thousands of people displaced, thousands of homes and hundreds of churches burnt down and farmland destroyed.

In particular, the experts said they were “appalled by the reports and images of gender-based violence targeting hundreds of women and girls of all ages, and predominantly of the Kuki ethnic minority”.

“The alleged violence includes gang rape, parading women naked in the street, severe beatings causing death, and burning them alive or dead,” they said.

The experts, who are appointed by the UN Human Rights Council but who do not speak on behalf of the United Nations, said they were especially concerned “that the violence seems to have been preceded and incited by hateful and inflammatory speech”.

Such hate speech, spread online and offline, was used “to justify the atrocities committed against the Kuki ethnic minority, particularly women, on account of their ethnicity and religious belief”, they said.

Manipur has been fractured along ethnic lines, with rival militias setting up blockades to keep out members of the opposing community.

Tens of thousands of additional soldiers have been rushed from elsewhere to patrol towns and highways, and a curfew and internet shutdown remain in force across Manipur.

The UN experts called on the Indian government “to step up relief efforts to those affected and to take robust and timely action to investigate acts of violence”.

They stressed the need to “hold perpetrators to account, including public officials who may have aided and abetted the incitement of racial and religious hatred and violence. “

Japan fishermen, locals seek halt to Fukushima water release

AFP 

Published September 4, 2023 

More than 100 fishermen and locals living near Fukushima will file a lawsuit this week seeking to stop the release of wastewater from the stricken Japanese nuclear plant, they said on Monday.

Twelve years after one of the world’s worst nuclear accidents, Japan began on August 24 discharging treated cooling water diluted with seawater into the Pacific, insisting it was safe.

Many Japanese fishermen have been against the release, fearing that it will undo years of efforts to improve the industry’s image in the wake of the 2011 catastrophe.

The more than 100 plaintiffs in Fukushima and neighbouring prefectures will file the lawsuit in the Fukushima District Court on Friday, Sugie Tanji, a member of the group’s secretariat, told AFP.

“The government failed to keep to its promise of gaining agreement from fishermen before taking such a decision to release,” she said.

“This is a wrong policy as it ignores strong opposition from not only the Fukushima fishermen’s cooperative but also from cooperatives across the country,” a group statement said.

“The release to the ocean can never be tolerated as it brings about further suffering to victims of the nuclear accident,” it added.

The water release has generated a fierce backlash from China, including a blanket ban on Japanese seafood imports.

Japanese government offices and businesses have also been bombarded with thousands of nuisance calls from Chinese phone numbers.

The Tokyo city government alone received 34,300 calls from August 24-31, it says.

Japanese government officials have made efforts to reassure the public that fish and other produce from Fukushima is safe to eat.

Last week, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and the US envoy to Japan, Rahm Emanuel, among others, ate Fukushima fish in front of TV cameras.

‘Ours is the best’

Before the water release, China was Japan’s biggest export destination for seafood and Beijing’s ban has people in the sector worried.

Tokyo wholesaler Yoshinobu Yoshihashi’s business has seen shipments of items including oysters, sea urchins and splendid alfonsino to some Asian neighbours “more than half”.

“We’re having it quite rough,” Yoshihashi told AFP at the huge Toyosu fish market on Saturday.

“Especially in places like Hong Kong and Macau, the damage is quite acute. We’re hearing from our clients there that their customers aren’t coming in any more, and that they are shunning Japanese fish,” he said.

The Japanese government “should have done more to communicate globally the safety of the water before releasing it. There are some people even within Japan who say they’re scared,” he said.

“I have always been and still am proud of Japanese fish. Ours is the best,” he added.

Kishida has already promised aid for the industry and ministers were reportedly set to hash out details on Monday.

Japan boosts aid to fish sector after Fukushima discharge

The release of wastewater from the Fukushima nuclear plant prompted China to ban Japan's seafood imports. Japanese officials say they are now looking to boost export markets in places such as Taiwan, the US and Europe.

Japan's government has announced a new aid package of 20.7 billion yen ($141 million; €130 million) to help the local fishery industry following a Chinese ban on all Japanese seafood exports.

Beijing imposed the blanket measure after Japan started discharging treated radioactive water from the damaged Fukushima nuclear plant into the Pacific Ocean on August 24.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said the funding came on top of an existing 80 billion yen set aside to help seafood businesses stay afloat and combat damage to the reputation of Japanese products.

"We will protect the Japanese fisheries industry at all costs," Kishida said.

The new aid package will be used to find markets for Japanese seafood to replace China and fund government purchases of seafood. Officials said they planned to foster new export destinations in Taiwan, the US, Europe, the Middle East, and some southeast Asian countries.

How have the bans affected Japan's fish sector?

Before the release of the wastewater, China was the biggest export destination for Japanese fish, accounting for 22.5% of the total.

Hong Kong, the second-biggest market with 20%, has also blocked seafood imports from Fukushima and nine other prefectures.

The bans are a major blow to Japan's seafood industry, affecting prices and sales of products as far away from Fukushima as the northern island of Hokkaido.
Japan's Fukushima decision may impact fish exports

A massive earthquake and tsunami in 2011 caused core meltdowns at the Fukushima plant. Since then, the shut-down reactors have had to be cooled with water that was then stored in tanks.

The decision to start releasing that wastewater into the ocean, a process that is expected to take decades to complete, was met with an outcry at home and abroad.

The government has sought to reassure the public that seafood from Fukushima is safe to eat. Last week, Kishida and US envoy to Japan Rahm Emanuel visited the area to eat local fish in front of TV cameras.

Prime Minister Kishida wants the Japanese public to eat more seafood to help the local industry hit by China's ban

 Kyodo/AP Photo/picture alliance

Japanese officials say all seawater and fish samples taken since the release of the treated wastewater have been far below set safety limits for radioactivity.

nm/jcg (AP, AFP)

Israeli-Iranian film Tatami receives standing ovation in Venice

The first production co-directed by Iranian, Israeli filmmakers was shot in secret to prevent interference by the Iranian government.



Reuters
04 Sep, 2023

The first production co-directed by Iranian and Israeli filmmakers had to be shot in secret to prevent possible interference by Tehran, directors Zar Amir Ebrahimi and Guy Nattiv said on Sunday.

Tatami, a tense thriller centred on a world judo championship, got its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival at the weekend, receiving a standing ovation.

The film takes place over the course of the single day of competition as an Iranian judoka champion, played by Farsi-speaking US actress Arienne Mandi, is ordered to fake an injury to avoid a possible match-up with an Israeli competitor.

Amir Ebrahimi and Nattiv shot the movie in Georgia, a country Iranians can easily visit. They stayed in separate hotels, spoke English and did not let on that they were making such a politically charged film.

“I knew there are many Iranians there, so we were trying to keep it calm and secret,” said Amir Ebrahimi, who is an award-winning actress and also stars in the film, playing the judoka’s increasingly terrified trainer.

“We were undercover. We knew it was a dangerous thing,” said Nattiv, whose previous movie Golda premiered at this year’s Berlin Film Festival. Iran does not recognise Israel’s right to exist and has banned its athletes from competing against Israelis.

In an incident that inspired Tatami, the International Judo Federation in 2021 gave Iran a four-year ban for pressuring one of its fighters not to face an Israeli.

Amir Ebrahimi, who won the best actress award in Cannes in 2022 for Holy Spider, fled Iran in 2008 for fear of imprisonment and lashings after a private video of her was leaked.

She said she had to take time to think through the possible consequences before accepting Nattiv’s offer to make the film.

“What I have learnt about the Iranian government is that as long as you are afraid they can arrest you, they can kill you, they can make trouble around you. But as long as you are not afraid … it is going to be fine,” she said.

Originally published in Dawn, September 4th, 2023

Pakistani traders strike countrywide against high inflation and utility bills

Pakistani shopkeepers close their businesses during strike against inflation in Lahore, Pakistan, Saturday, Sept. 2, 2023. Pakistani traders on Saturday went on strike against the soaring cost of living, including higher fuel and utility bills and record depreciation of the rupee against the dollar, which has led to widespread discontent among the public. (AP Photo/K.M. Chaudary)Read More

Supporters of Jamaat-e-Islami chant anti-Pakistan government during a strike against inflation in Hyderabad, Pakistan, Saturday, Sept. 2, 2023. Pakistani traders on Saturday went on strike against the soaring cost of living, including higher fuel and utility bills and record depreciation of the rupee against the dollar, which has led to widespread discontent among the public. (AP Photo/Pervez Masih)

Pakistani shopkeepers close their businesses during strike against inflation in Karachi, Pakistan, Saturday, Sept. 2, 2023. Pakistani traders on Saturday went on strike against the soaring cost of living, including higher fuel and utility bills and record depreciation of the rupee against the dollar, which has led to widespread discontent among the public. (AP Photo/Fareed Khan)

10 PHOTO GALLERY

BY ZARAR KHAN
September 2, 2023

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistani traders on Saturday went on strike against the soaring cost of living, including higher fuel and utility bills and record depreciation of the rupee against the dollar, which has led to widespread discontent among the public.

The traders pulled their shutters down across the country, while protesters burned tires on roads to express their anger.

The strike was called by ex-senator Sirajul Haq, who heads the religious political party Jamaat-e-Islami, and it was largely endorsed by trade and business bodies, market associations, lawyers associations and transporters.

The country’s commercial and economic hub, Karachi, was almost completely closed and vehicle traffic was thin on roads, with all markets and shopping centers closed.

“We have shut our shops in protest so that our message reaches the ruling class. If they don’t consider our problems, we will devise further strategies, said Fahad Ahmed, a trader in Karachi, adding, “If you pay 100,000 rupees ($330) in rent for your shop and you have to pay an equal amount in electricity bill, how can you survive?”

In the eastern city of Lahore, the capital of Punjab province, all the main markets were closed for the day, lawyers remained out of courts and intercity and local public transport weren’t operating. The northwestern city of Peshawar and southwestern city of Quetta were partially closed.

Pakistan’s annual inflation rate was 27.4% in August, according to data released by the state-run Bureau of Statistics.

Pakistan was on the verge of default before securing a lifeline deal with the International Monetary Fund. As part of the conditions for the bailout package, Pakistan was required to reduce subsidies that had been in place to cushion the impact of rising living costs. This likely contributed to the increase in prices, especially energy costs.

Mohammad Sohail, a prominent economist and head of Topline Securities, said that in spite of the IMF program Pakistan is going through a challenging time. He said the government is trying to implement the painful IMF-dictated reforms while political polarization is affecting sentiments.

“Inflation is a big problem for common Pakistanis. And this inflation is mainly led by the falling rupee. Strict stabilization measures with improving foreign exchange reserves can stabilize the currency and inflation going forward,” Sohail said.

The value of the Pakistani rupee has significantly depreciated against the dollar, crossing a historic threshold of 300 rupees to the dollar. Exchange rate depreciation has led to higher import costs which in turn can contribute to inflation.

Jamal Uddin, a shopkeeper who was participating in a protest rally in Dera Ghazi Khan, said he and other traders were keeping their businesses shut in protest because it simply wasn’t possible anymore for them to feed their families.

Shamim Bibi, a widow and mother of three in Multan, said that her daughters had to quit school and her young son went to run a food stall to meet the daily needs of the family.

“But now our life is miserable due to extremely inflated electricity bills, high fuel and food prices and increasing house rent,” she said.

But the caretaker prime minister, Anwaarul Haq Kakar, downplayed the significance of the protests, referring to the complaints as a “nonissue.”
___

Mohammad Farooq in Karachi, Babar Dogar in Lahore, Asim Tanveer in Multan, Riaz Khan in Peshawar and Abdul Sattar in Quetta, contributed to this report.

Power failure

Maleeha Lodhi

Published September 4, 2023 

PRESSURE is mounting on the caretaker government and the establishment on multiple fronts — political, economic and legal. Several developments have fuelled more uncertainty at a time when the country is already in a tense and unsettled state. This has created the prospect of greater instability ahead. The conflation of crises could even push the country towards a tipping point.

Nationwide street protests by traders and members of the public over the sudden and excessive rise in electricity bills have confronted the government with a challenge. It is now struggling for a response that can quell the protests but also not upend the stand-by agreement with the IMF, which provided the financial bailout the country needed to avert a debt default.

While talks with Fund representatives are underway to find a way to provide ‘relief’ to consumers, protests continue across the country.

These protests come on the back of a cost-of-living crisis fuelled by record inflation — mostly the result of economic mismanagement by governments in the recent past. This has worsened people’s plight in a deteriorating economic environment and bred widespread public discontent.

It was always a question of not if but when this discontent would spill over into the streets. The spark was provided by the exorbitant hike in utility charges. These protests can snowball into wider social unrest if other issues of public grievance — there are many — kick in. Such a potentially explosive situation would be beyond the interim government’s capacity to control.

When people see no hope of improvement in their economic condition, it is hard to douse the flames of their anger. What has contributed to public rage is the fact that they are being asked to bear the burden of governance failures — mismanagement of the power sector by successive governments, failure to deal with its inefficiencies, and lack of reform.

Added to this is a glaring inequity. Certain sectors are exempt from additional electricity taxes, while several categories of state officials receive preferential treatment by way of free electricity. There cannot be a more telling example of a policy that only privileges the elite while the public pays the price. With the rise in petroleum prices and more painful measures ahead, public discontent is likely to intensify, not dissipate.

Already, cities across the country have seen a complete shutter-down strike by retail establishments in response to a call by the traders’ association. Such strikes have obvious economic consequences.

The conflation of crises can push the country to a tipping point.

Meanwhile, political pressure is growing for elections to be held in 90 days, as stipulated by the Constitution. Last month, the Election Commission of Pakistan ruled this out when it issued a schedule indicating it needed four months for fresh delimitation of constituencies, which it said it would complete in mid-December. This followed approval of the new population census, secured by the PDM government from the Council of Common Interests in its final days in power. The ECP’s decision to delay general elections and not specify a date prompted speculation that the polls could be pushed to February and even beyond. Uncertainty was also fuelled by installation of a gratuitously large caretaker government that began to act as if it were anything but a short-duration arrangement.

The election delay predictably provoked an outcry from several political parties, as well as a spate of legal challenges. Imran Khan’s PTI and the PPP demanded elections within the 90-day time frame. The PPP was party to the unanimous CCI decision on the digital census. Its latest stance suggested it has doubts on whether elections will even be held after completion of the delimitation process. Its U-turn is also an effort to distance itself from its former coalition partner, PML-N.

A cynical explanation is that PPP is mounting pressure in response to administrative actions taken against some of its sympathisers, hoping the establishment will remedy this. In any case, this has left PML-N isolated as the only major party that wants a delay in elections. This signals a lack of confidence in its electoral prospects, especially after Shehbaz Sharif’s lacklustre tenure.

The Supreme Court Bar Association has filed a constitutional petition in the apex court that seeks suspension of the ECP decision to hold elections on the new census. It points to the ECP’s responsibility to convene elections within 90 days of the Assembly’s dissolution. The Bar Council of Pakistan has made a similar demand. PTI and Jamaat-i Islami also filed petitions in the top court seeking general elections within 90 days as mandated by Article 224(2) of the Constitution.

While a legal battle looms, it also puts pressure on the interim government to weigh in on this even though that decision is for its patrons to take. The government’s response through the law ministry to President Arif Alvi’s letter to ECP asking for an election date questioned his authority to do this. But it skirted around the issue of when the polls should be called. During a meeting with journalists, Prime Minister Anwar-ul-Haq Kakar simply said it was for ECP to decide the timing.

For its part, the Supreme Court dismissed ECP’s plea for review of the Punjab election order last week, and made it clear it will not accept any transgression from the Constitution. Its ruling reiterated that elections within 90 days was a constitutional requirement. The chief justice said the court will intervene if there is any violation. The court verdict has intensified pressure on ECP to announce a schedule for general elections. So far, ECP’s response has been to shorten the time frame for the delimitation process to end-November without issuing a new schedule.

Not announcing an election date has become a source of growing political controversy and legal contention. Doubts persist that elections may not even be held by February/ March. This is deepening polarisation in the country and having a damaging fallout on the economy. More uncertainty will raise the cost to an economy that is already on life support.

It will continue to produce instability in the capital market, vitiate the investment climate, encourage capital flight and delay any significant economic policy decisions. Whether or not the authorities realise this, it puts Pakistan’s economic future at grave risk.

The writer is a former ambassador to the US, UK and UN.

Published in Dawn, September 4th, 2023

Canada wildfires inflict brutal toll on tourism, other areas of economy

By AFP
September 2, 2023

Wildfire in the Northwest Territories, Canada. 

Paula RAMON, with Michel COMTE in Ottawa

Joanna Schlosser found refuge from advancing wildfires at a winery where she works, but is now dealing with a tourism downturn and other wide-ranging fallout on the business — and Canada’s economy.

An inferno jumped Okanagan Lake and was barreling down hills behind her Kelowna home when a knock on the door woke up the family of five, ordering them to leave immediately.

For two weeks, they stayed at a guest house at Quails’ Gate winery with other evacuees, some of whom lost their homes. About 200 houses in the valley would be destroyed.

“Your home is your biggest investment and with only five minutes to get out you start to reel about things you left behind that you might not ever see again,” Schlosser told AFP.

She also fretted about the grape harvest now underway.

None of the 222 wineries in the region reported any direct fire damage. But they suffered a big drop in revenues as tourists stayed away during the peak month of August.

Kelowna’s airport and main highway closed temporarily. Tasting tours, weddings and other events at the wineries were cancelled.

“We’re now facing a pretty devastating season in terms of winery traffic and sales,” said Schlosser.

Across Canada, more than 15 million hectares (37 million acres) have been scorched, and 200,000 people displaced, spanning from Halifax on the Atlantic coast to parts of the Northwest Territories.

Stephen Brown of Capital Economics noted that forest fires do not normally have a measurable impact on the Canadian economy.

But this year, he said in a research note, “with the fires so widespread, we are seeing more of an impact than usual.”

Canada wildfires have brought an economic toll, including hitting tourism in its top wine region in the Okanagan Valley — © AFP SHAUN CURRY

“The worst Canadian wildfires on record appear to be behind much of the recent weakness in GDP and, with more areas now under evacuation orders, the data are likely to remain weak in the coming months,” he said.

– Sun blocked, roads closed –

Statistics Canada on Friday reported a 0.2 percent contraction in the second quarter and a weak start to the third.

It pointed to wildfire disruptions at mines and oil facilities. Lumber mills were also idled.

Outfitters saw their livelihoods upended by fishing bans. A road to Tofino, a tourist hotspot on Vancouver island with ancient forests and sandy beaches, was cut off.

In the Okanagan Valley, orchards lamented smoke blocking out the sun delaying the ripening of apples.

The toll, however, is “not as bad as it could have been,” said Tony Stillo at Oxford Economics.

“Even though the wildfires are record-setting, they’re happening in more remote areas with less of an implication for large population or economic centers or transportation corridors — things that would cut off supply lines,” he explained.

Disruptions have also been relatively short.

Oxford Economics in a June report warned that wildfires could slash Canada’s economic growth this year by as much as 0.3 to 0.6 percentage points.

– Firefighting costs rise –

Ottawa estimates the annual cost of fighting wildfires at Can$1 billion (US$737 million), and noted that, according to the Canadian Climate Institute, climate impacts such as more and bigger fires could halve Canada’s projected economic growth in the coming years.

By 2030, the average annual losses from disasters is forecast to reach Can$15.4 billion.

Insurance losses have already jumped fivefold since 2009 to more than Can$2 billion annually, according to the Insurance Bureau of Canada.

The bureau’s Jason Clark said the number of catastrophic events and insurance payouts will continue to rise.

Most worrying, he said, is that Canadians aren’t dealing anymore with one localized disaster every few years or decades, but rather “several events stacked on top of each other in a single year” — including fires, floods, heatwaves and powerful storms.

“Where countries regularly experience large losses it has a significant impact on insurance risk assessments and premiums,” he said.

“We need to be better prepared.”

Back at Quails’ Gate, Schlosser assessed the smoke’s impact on grapes, noting that the industry has developed mitigation techniques.

“Sometimes it works quite well and others (the smoke taint) is just not something you can avoid,” she said, adding that “sommeliers may talk about it in terms of terroir, like it’s part of that vintage.”

Smoke taint can add character to a wine, but also risks producing overpowering burnt or medicinal notes.

Hackers force shutdown of 2 of the world’s most advanced telescopes


By Karen Graham
September 2, 2023

The Gemini North telescope with the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope in the background near the summit of Maunakea in Hawai‘i.

 Credit - International Gemini Observatory/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA/ T. Slovinský. (CC BY 4.0)

Operations at both the North and South Gemini telescopes have been temporarily suspended following a cybersecurity incident.

As detailed in a statement from the National Optical-Infrared Astronomy Research Laboratory (NOIRLab) on August 24, 2023, the computer hack took place on the morning of August 1, and led to the suspension of the Gemini North and South Telescope.

“Our staff are working with cybersecurity experts to get all the impacted telescopes and our website back online as soon as possible and are encouraged by the progress made thus far,” NOIRLab wrote in the statement.

The Gemini North telescope is in Hawaii and the smaller Gemini South telescope is located in Cerro Pachón, according to Live Science. Other, smaller telescopes on Cerro Tololo in Chile were also affected.

Together, the two telescopes can access nearly the entire sky. The pair of telescopes have helped astronomers view an array of celestial events, including the births of supernovae. In 2022, researchers using Gemini North made observations of the closest-known black hole to Earth.

In a fantastically planned shot of the Moon, this image of Gemini South was timed to capture an almost perfectly full Moon framing the telescope

 Credit – International Gemini Observatory/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA/R. Rutten. CC SA 4.0.;

It’s unclear exactly what the nature of the cyberattacks was or from where they originated. NOIRLab points out that because the investigation is still ongoing, the organization will be cautious about what information it shares about the intrusions. However, the shutdown has been disruptive to scientists who rely on the telescopes for research projects.

“When people are like, ‘Oh, where’s the data?’ Then I’ll have to say, ‘Well, I don’t have any data, because a hacker somewhere took down the computer,’” Luis Welbanks, an astronomy researcher at Arizona State University, tells Science. “I don’t know if any hiring committee will be sympathetic to that.”

Research institutions face unique security challenges because of their open and collaborative nature, per Science. But observatory staff have been “working around the clock to get the telescopes back into the sky,” a NOIRLab spokesperson tells the publication.

Sadly, this latest cyberattack is not the first time that astronomical observatories have been the target of hackers. In Oct. 2022, hackers disrupted operations at the Atacama Large Millimeter/Submillimeter Array (ALMA) in Chile.

NASA has been the victim of cyberattacks for years. In 2021, the agency was affected by the worldwide SolarWinds breach that NASA leadership called a “big wakeup call” for cybersecurity.

As to who is responsible for the hacks, or their motivations, that remains either unknown or undisclosed. NOIRLab has been tight-lipped about the incident, claiming that it is “limited” in what it can share about its “cybersecurity controls and investigatory findings.”

From art squat to Berlin gentrification lightning rod

By AFP

September 2, 2023

From art squat to luxury urban complex, the Tacheles is latest example of the gentrification of east Berlin 

- Copyright AFP John MACDOUGALL

Céline LE PRIOUX

Berlin’s Tacheles art squat, a symbol of the anything-goes vibe of the city after the fall of the Wall, is completing a disputed transformation into offices, shops and luxury flats.

An outlet of the Fotografiska museum chain is set to open inside the hulking, battle-scarred edifice on September 14 and the first residents of newly built homes will move in this autumn.

When it is completed, planned for the end of 2024, the complex will boast 265 apartments sized from 25 to 360 square metres (269 to 3875 square feet) as well as new digs in the German capital for the likes of Netflix and Pfizer.

Of the 176 apartments available for purchase — with prices per square metre ranging from 9,500 to 30,000 euros ($10,300 to $32,600) — around 45 are still for sale, according to developer PWR.

The remaining 89 apartments are reserved for rental.

Investment fund Perella Weinberg Real Estate bought the property encompassing 25,300 square metres in 2014 for 150 million euros — a steal in the current market.

In addition to the historic building that will house Fotografiska Berlin, the site will include an ultramodern open-air shopping plaza and glass-and-steel office compounds.

Tacheles, which means “straight talk” in Yiddish, was a popular department store in the early part of the 20th century but suffered damage during World War II and was partially demolished by the East German communists.

Young artists flocked to east Berlin after the fall of the Wall in 1989, drawn by the low cost of living, and squatted disused buildings including the dilapidated five-storey complex on Oranienburger Street.

At its peak as a subculture mecca, the graffiti-covered Tacheles housed a cinema, restaurant and bar as well as art studios and galleries, drawing about 400,000 visitors a year.

However in 2012, bailiffs and police evicted the artists to make way for construction work, signalling the end of an era.

“Between 2010 and 2012, we were threatened, offered money to leave and had our electricity cut off,” Bruno di Martino, a 56-year-old Frenchman who had his studio at the Tacheles since 2006, told AFP.

– Waves of displacement –

“After the downfall of the communist regime in the former GDR in 1990, it was no longer clear who owned the buildings,” said Hanno Hochmuth, historian at the Leibniz research centre in Potsdam.

The chaotic conditions allowed for creative ferment, making the “new” Berlin a unique attraction with countless blank slates for development.

“In East Berlin, many properties were returned to their former owners or their descendants, and this almost always resulted in resale to real estate speculators,” Matthias Bernt, an urban planner at the Leibniz centre, told AFP.

Property prices soared, touching off waves of displacement from the heart of the city that have gathered pace in recent years.

– ‘Playground’ –

Bruno di Martino was among those impacted. When forced to leave Tacheles, he set up his studio in the Friedrichshain district on another disused site, RAW, previously owned by the German railways.

For him, the new Tacheles complex is “a pure profit project aimed at the privileged few”.

“Berlin used to attract tourists for its artists, its underground, its alternative side, but all that is in danger of disappearing,” he said.

There is a certain irony that the Fotografiska photography museum is moving into the building where art was once made. A top-to-bottom renovation has nevertheless retained some of their graffiti and artwork.

“We think it’s important to continue the spirit of the building,” Fotografiska executive chairman Yoram Roth told AFP. “It was a creative hub. It inspired creativity”.

Born in West Berlin and a descendant of Holocaust survivors, Roth rejects criticism of the city’s rampant real estate development.

“There is this romantic view of what happened here after the Wall fell,” he said.

“People want to keep certain things for ever in a certain way. But I think it’s also important to remember that whatever happened there was born out of serious tragedy,” including two world wars and the Cold War.

Roth said Berlin was calling time on the city as a “playground” of vacant lots and squatted property.

“It’s normal to expect this space to fill back in with something.”