The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

	Pak cabinet pre-empting Ashraf’s disqualification Approves draft bill to change contempt law Afzal Khan in Islamabad Confronted with another unsettling Supreme Court threat of disqualification of the new premier Raja Pervez Ashraf, the Pakistan government has initiated deliberations on steps to pre-empt judicial actions. At a meeting on Wednesday, the federal cabinet approved a draft bill to change the contempt law and clip the judiciary’s wings. The proposed bill will provide immunity to federal and provincial government leaders from being charged with or convicted of contempt of court. Ironically, the bill is similar to what Nawaz Sharif had, as prime minister, introduced in 1997 during his clash with the then chief justice Sajjad Ali Shah, who had struck down the measure, declaring it as unconstitutional. Legal experts believe that with the adoption of the proposed changes in the contempt law by parliament, a new round of confrontation between the executive and the judiciary might start. Former PM Yousuf Raza Gilani was convicted in a contempt of court case for refusing to implement a Supreme Court order regarding writing of a letter to Swiss authorities against President Asif Ali Zardari. His successor Raja Pervez Ashraf has been asked to submit his reply on the same issue on July 12. Briefing mediapersons after the meeting, Information Minister Qamar Zaman Kaira said the cabinet had given its approval to the Contempt of Court Bill, 2012, for introduction in either house of parliament. If adopted with simple majority, the bill will provide a constitutional cover to the powers of top government functionaries against the effects of contempt law. Through the bill, Kaira said, the scope of the right to appeal has been enlarged, including incorporation of other necessary provisions relevant to contempt proceedings. After passage of the bill, the Information Minister said, contempt proceedings could not be initiated against holders of public office as mentioned in Article 248(1) of Constitution. Article 248(1) reads, “The President, a Governor, the Prime Minister, a Federal Minister, a Minister of State, the Chief Minister and a Provincial Minister shall not be answerable to any court for the exercise of powers and performance of functions of their respective offices or for any act done or purported to be done in the exercise of those powers and performance of those functions.” The minister dispelled a perception that the government intended to undermine the superior judiciary. With the enlargement of scope of right to appeal, the minister said, once an appeal by a convict in a contempt case is accepted, his/her punishment would automatically stand suspended. A bid to clip judiciary’s wings At a meeting, the federal cabinet approved a draft bill to change the contempt law and clip the judiciary’s wings Ironically, the bill is similar to what Nawaz Sharif had, as prime minister, introduced in 1997 during his clash with the then chief justice Sajjad Ali Shah Former PM Yousuf Raza Gilani was convicted in a contempt of court case for refusing to implement a Supreme Court order regarding writing of a letter to Swiss authorities against President Asif Ali Zardari
	Seven-month blockade over, radicals resist reopening of NATO supply routes Vow huge protests on July 8 Govt says transporting lethal weapons not allowed Afzal Khan in Islamabad With opposition and religious groups vowing to stage a massive protest on July 8 against reopening of the NATO supply routes, the foreign office on Thursday clarified that Pakistan had not given permission for transport of lethal weapons. Trucks have started entering Afghanistan as Pakistan ended the seven-month blockade of the route. During his weekly press briefing, foreign office spokesman Moazzam Khan said the decision to reopen the NATO supply route was made in national interest and the US had clearly said “sorry” to Pakistan for the Salala incident. When asked about the rules and regulations under which the route was restored, the spokesman replied that both parties were working out new arrangements. According to Federal Board of Revenue chairman Mumtaz Haider Rizvi, all NATO containers are being scanned in Pakistan, thus no lethal weapons could be transported. The Defence Committee of the Cabinet (DCC) approved the reopening of the route on Tuesday and decided that no transit fees would be charged. The cabinet also endorsed the DCC decision on Wednesday. Khan said no lethal cargo will go to Afghanistan except equipment for Afghan National Security Forces, essential for ensuring peace and stability in Afghanistan. .
	Pak likely to receive $2.5 bn from US Islamabad, July 5 Cash-strapped Pakistan is expected to receive $2.5 billion as financial assistance from the US during the current fiscal following the end of a standoff between the two sides on NATO supply routes to Afghanistan. The disbursements, especially reimbursements from the US Coalition Support Fund (CSF) for Pakistan's expenses on the war on terror, might relieve the government of pressure it is facing because of depleting foreign exchange reserves which necessitated an immediate bailout from the International Monetary Fund. The US is expected to pay $1.5 billion to two billion during the current fiscal year from the CSF, the Dawn newspaper quoted its sources as saying. About USD 700 million to USD one billion is expected under the Kerry-Lugar Berman Act and Foreign Military Financing (FMF). — PTI
	Britain bans Indian Mujahideen London, July 5 Britain today banned terrorist outfit Indian Mujahideen (IM), citing the group's "indiscriminate mass casualty attacks" in India which "posed a threat" to British nationals there. Members of UK's House of Commons unanimously approved a motion last night proscribing IM and placing it on the list of 47 organisations that have been banned from functioning in UK. "Indian Mujahideen is a terrorist organisation which has carried out a number of indiscriminate mass casualty attacks in India since 2007. It uses violence to achieve its stated objectives of establishing an Islamic state in India and implementing Sharia law," Home Secretary Theresa May said. She added: "Proscribing Indian Mujahideen sends a clear message that we condemn its activities and enables the UK to demonstrate our commitment to counter-terrorism to our international partners." The ban on LeT linked group was slapped based on available evidence and information and it comes into effect from tonight which makes it a criminal offence to join and support it. — PTI
	Fukushima was ‘man-made’ disaster: Japanese probe Tokyo, July 5 Last year's Fukushima nuclear accident was a man-made disaster caused by Japan's culture of "reflexive obedience" and not just the tsunami that hit the plant, a damning parliamentary report said today. Ingrained collusion between plant operator Tokyo Electric Power, the government and regulators, combined with a lack of any effective oversight led directly to the worst nuclear accident in a generation, the report said. "They effectively betrayed the nation's right to be safe from nuclear accidents. Therefore, we conclude that the accident was clearly 'man-made'," said the Fukushima Nuclear Accident Independent Investigation Commission. "We believe that the root causes were the organisational and regulatory systems that supported faulty rationales for decisions and actions," it said. The probe is the third of its kind in Japan since the huge tsunami of March 2011 crashed into the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power station. Reactors went into meltdown, sending clouds of radiation over a wide area, forcing tens of thousands of people from their homes, some possibly forever. — AFP
	Paris crash report faults pilots, sensors Paris, July 5 Investigators probing a 2009 mid-Atlantic Air France plane crash blamed a combination of pilot error, technical problems, inadequate training and poor oversight in a report that went further than expected in castigating the safety industry. The final report on the Rio-Paris Airbus A330 crash that killed 228 people more than three years ago called for improved pilot training and cockpit design among 25 recommendations to prevent a repeat of the disaster. Pilots' trade unions and Air France have been at loggerheads with planemaker Airbus over who or what was to blame for the airline's worst loss. France's BEA investigation authority confirmed earlier findings the crew had mishandled its response to the loss of speed readings from faulty sensors that became iced up in turbulent conditions over the south Atlantic on June 1, 2009. The doomed aircraft plunged for four minutes in darkness in an aerodynamic stall as its wings gasped for air while pilots failed to react to repeated stall alarms, according to flight recorders recovered two years after the crash. "This accident results from an airplane being taken out of its normal operating environment by a crew that had not understood the situation," said BEA director Jean-Paul Troadec. The report also found that the A330's speed sensors, known as pitot tubes and designed by France's Thales, were only upgraded after the disaster, even though there had been previous incidents with the equipment. It urged Airbus to review the aircraft's stall warning system following criticism of the alarm's erratic behaviour when the plane was deep into its 38,000-foot plunge. And it urged an overhaul of the way France's aviation and airline industries are supervised. — Reuters