Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani has said he likes President Pervez Musharraf because he is supportive of democracy and is straight and candid.

“Musharraf supports democracy. He is very frank and straightforward,” Gilani said in an interview with a private television channel. He, however, said among leaders, he liked Asif Zardari most because of his political insight and facile style.

Gilani agreed with President Musharraf’s statement in his memoir, “In the Line of Fire” that governing Pakistan was the most difficult job in the world. Asked about his opinion on Musharraf’s policies, Gillani said he approved of many of those that conformed to the manifesto of the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP).

He said the PPP supported him on issues such as the Women’s Protection Bill and women’s representation in assemblies.

Gilani said he had changed the previous government’s policy on the war on terror by focussing on finding the root causes instead of on the use of force. He said the filing of a reference against sacked Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry on March 9, by Musharraf cast a negative impact on his political goodwill.

He said the government would resolve the issues of power deficit, wheat shortage, inflation and worsening law and order. He said the government inherited these problems from the previous government. The next budget would focus on primary education, health and increase in wages.

He said the government stood by its commitment to ensure the freedom of the media. “We want the freedom of the media. We should not mind the media’s criticism’. We are in a position to defend ourselves,” he said.

Regarding the movement for judicial restoration, he said it was the movement of the entire nation with a lot of input from the PPP.

On continuation of Dr Nasim Ashraf as chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board, he said it was a ‘prerogative of the government’, but added that nobody was indispensable.

“Youme Takbeer” commemorating the 10th anniversary of the atomic bomb blast by Pakistan in May 1998, in response to the Indian explosions a week earlier, was celebrated across the country mainly by the Nawaz Sharif faction of the Pakistan Muslim League (PML-N).

The festivities also marked the demand for release of father of Pakistan’s atom bomb, Dr. Abdul Qadeer Khan. The Islamabad High Court also issued notice to interior minister to furnish detailed reasons for keeping Khan under detention. The day-long engagements included rallies, seminars and media talk shows during which Nawaz Sharif was praised for resisting international pressure and making Pakistan an atomic power.

The speaker also lauded former Prime Minister Z.A.Bhutto for launching the country’s nuclear programme in 1970s, which culminated in making Pakistan the only Muslim nuclear power and the seventh in the world.

The speakers noted that because of international conspiracies Bhutto was hanged, Sharif was sent into exile and Khan put under house arrest after humiliating public confession that he sold nuclear secrets to Iran, Libya and North Korea. The speakers said Khan made the confession to save the country from international reprisals.

In Balochistan, however, sporadic rallies were organised by anti-bomb lobbies.

London, May 28
A top surgeon of Indian origin has provided a ray of hope for millions of breast cancer victims by pioneering a new method for early detection of the disease.

Jayant Sharad Vaidya, who graduated from the Goa Medical College in 1988, is a leading member of a team of surgeons at Dundee University in Scotland which discovered that malignant tumours remain cold when surrounding breast tissue is heated to about 20 degrees Celsius. Vaidya is a senior lecturer and consultant surgeon at university and specialises in cancer surgery.

Experts hope that the discovery will make it easier for doctors to determine if a lump is cancerous and also lead to advances in understanding of the disease.

A study conducted by the team tested tumours removed from six women an hour after they had undergone surgery at the Ninewells Hospital in Dundee.

Each piece of tissue was treated with a hot-air gun, and on each occasion the tumour stayed cold. Terming the discovery as ‘very exciting’, Vaidya said: “Nothing like this has been done before. We heated up a specimen and used a high-resolution thermal imaging camera to take a picture. We found the tumour stayed cold while the rest of the tissue heated up. Then we did the same thing on another five samples and every single one had the same outcome. This could open up a lot of doors for breast-cancer treatment.” — PTI

London, May 28
The first novel in 40 years to chronicle the adventures of James Bond has been launched onboard HMS Exeter in central London. Devil May Care, by Sebastian Faulks, has been published to mark the centenary of Bond creator Ian Fleming’s birth, and features 007 travelling to Paris, London and the Middle East during 1967.

The book’s plot is being kept under wraps, though it is known the story is set in 1967 during the Cold War.

Speaking a little about the book, Lucy Fleming, Fleming’s niece, revealed that Bond’s love interest was named Poppy.

She also said the villain, named Gormah, was “a bit like Blofeld or Dr No - really sinister”.

Faulks, who was chosen to write the novel at the request of Fleming’s family, added it was a “pleasure to be aboard the ship Bond himself sailed on”.

Faulks is famous for the war trilogy “Birdsong”, “The Girl at the Lion D’Or” and “Charlotte Gray.” — ANI

Houston, May 28
The three US men arrested for the brutal double murder of Indian doctoral students at Louisiana State University had a lengthy criminal record, including charges of rape and kidnapping.

Michael Lewis ( 19),Casey Gathers(20) and Devin Parker(19) were arrested last week for the killing of Chandrasekhar Reddy Komma and Kiran Kumar Allam, both hailing from Andhra Pradesh.The two were found shot in the head in a "home invasion" of Allam's apartment on December 13.

All the accusued, African Americans from Baton Rouge, will be charged with two counts of first degree murder.

Each has a criminal history, according to court records. — PTI

BRIEFLY

Mukherjee's gifts Pak PM Aishwarya Rai's movies
ISLAMABAD: External affairs minister Pranab Mukherjee carried a special gift for Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani during his recent visit to Pakistan, a box full of DVDs of movies of Aishwarya Rai. Gilani, who lists Rai and Shah Rukh Khan as his favourite film stars, said it was a "pleasant surprise". Mukherjee visited Islamabad during May 20-21 to resume the composite dialogue process with his Pakistani counterpart, Shah Mahmood Qureshi. — PTI

funds for quake relief
BEIJING: The Indian community in Hong Kong has pitched in to contribute its mite to relief efforts in the devastating earthquake-ravaged South-West China by donating $ 89,743. Council of Hong Kong Indian Associations president Raj Sital presented the relief amount cheque to Lu Xinhua, commissioner of the ministry of foreign affairs in Hong Kong, on Tuesday. — PTI

Indonesia to quit OPEC
Jakarta: Indonesia will quit the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) because as a net oil importer it s not happy with the high global crude prices, the energy minister said on Wednesday. — Reuters