Political parties debate Elections Bill

Dr. Jassim Taqui

DG Al-Bab Institute for Strategic Studies

Islamabad, December 16,  2021:  UNDP in collaboration with PILDAT organized a Consultation ‎Forum today on the latest Electoral Reforms currently under debate in the Parliament. The ‎objective of today’s event was to inform and engage citizens and policymakers to strengthen the ‎electoral processes in Pakistan for free, fair, and credible elections in 2023.‎

‎The Consultation Forum was attended by representatives of nine political parties including Pakistan ‎Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), Pakistan Peoples Party ‎Parliamentarians (PPP-P), Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam Pakistan (JUI), Muttahida Quami Movement-‎Pakistan (MQM-P), Balochistan Awami Party (BAP), Awami National Party (ANP), National Party (NP) ‎and Balochistan National Party-Mengal (BNP-M).‎

‎MNA & Federal Minister of Information & Broadcasting, Chaudhry Fawad Hussain, provided ‎the government’s perspective and overview of the proposed amendments in the bill.‎

In her welcome remarks, Ms. Aliona Niculita, Resident Representative a.i. UNDP Pakistan expressed ‎her pleasure upon seeing all the major political parties of Pakistan as well as civil society and media ‎together to discuss electoral reforms for credible, fair, and inclusive elections in Pakistan. She said that ‎UNDP’s project on Strengthening Electoral and Legislative Processes (SELP) works to promote ‎accountability and transparency and it was an honor for the UNDP to organize today’s event.‎

‎Meanwhile, Mr. Ahmed Bilal Mehboob, President PILDAT said that the purpose of today’s forum was ‎to discuss and debate those electoral reforms that are currently before the Parliament and take ‎perspectives along with the exchange of view among political parties, civil society, and media. It was ‎hoped that some level of consensus or a contribution may be made towards consensus on electoral ‎reforms in Parliament.‎

‎UNDP Pakistan’s Strengthening Electoral and Legislative Processes (SELP) Project seeks to ‎develop more inclusive, and accountable democratic institutions, systems, and processes. It ‎improves the supply side of governance by enhancing the capacity of the Election Commission of ‎Pakistan (ECP), the Senate, and Provincial Assemblies of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and ‎Balochistan. Moreover, the project supports the demand side by developing the capacity of civil ‎society in advocacy and civic engagement. Increasing the representation of women, youth, and ‎minorities, the project informs all aspects of programming.‎

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 UNICEF welcomes the announcement of the next Executive Director

Dr. Jassim Taqui

DG Al-Bab Institute for Strategic Studies

Islamabad, December 14,  2021:  UNICEF welcomes United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres’ announcement today that Catherine M. Russell will succeed Henrietta H. Fore as UNICEF Executive Director.

Ms. Russell brings to the role decades of experience in developing innovative policy that empowers underserved communities around the world; delivering high-impact programs that protect women and girls, including in humanitarian crises; building, elevating, and managing diverse workforces; and mobilizing resources and political support for a broad range of initiatives.

She currently serves as Assistant to the President and Director of the White House Office of Presidential Personnel. From 2013 to 2017, she served as Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women’s Issues at the U.S. Department of State. In that post, she integrated women’s issues across all elements of U.S. foreign policy, represented the United States in more than 45 countries, and worked with foreign governments, multilateral organizations, and civil society. She was the principal architect of the ground-breaking “U.S. Global Strategy to Empower Adolescent Girls”.

Previously, Ms. Russell served as Deputy Assistant to the President at the White House under President Barack Obama, Senior Advisor on International Women’s Issues on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Associate Deputy Attorney General at the Department of Justice, and Staff Director of the Senate Judiciary Committee. Before re-entering government service in 2020, she taught at the Harvard Kennedy School as an Institute of Politics Fellow. She also served as the board co-chair of the Women’s Foreign Policy Group, as a board member of Women for Women International, as a member of the Sesame Street Advisory Board, as a member of the non-profit organization, KIVA Advisory Council, and as a member of the Thomson Reuters Foundation’s Trust Women initiative.

Ms. Russell holds a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy, magna cum laude, from Boston College and a Juris Doctor degree from the George Washington University Law School. 

“Catherine Russell will bring a wealth of expertise to UNICEF’s work, and I am delighted to hand over to someone with her knowledge, experience, and deep care for children and women,” said UNICEF Executive Director Henrietta Fore. “I do not doubt that UNICEF and the world’s children will be in capable hands under her leadership.”

“I warmly welcome Catherine Russell and I look forward to working with her. She has the full support of the UNICEF Executive Board to carry out this critical leadership role,” said Rytis Paulauskas, Ambassador of Lithuania to United Nations and President of the UNICEF Executive Board. 

Ms. Russell will assume her new functions early in the new year. She is UNICEF’s eighth Executive Director, and the fourth woman to lead the 20,000-person-strong agency in its 75-year history.

 

 

 

 UNHCR pays tribute to men who support women and raise voices for their rights

Dr. Jassim Taqui

DG Al-Bab Institute for Strategic Studies 

Islamabad, December 11,  2021:  UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, paid tribute to men who actively support women and girls and played a positive role in fighting against gender-based violence and in advancing gender equality.

UNHCR called for combined efforts to advocate and increase awareness to prevent, mitigate and respond to gender-based violence. 

To mark the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence, UNHCR together with Inspire Pakistan organized an event that was attended by UNHCR Representative Noriko Yoshida, CEO Inspire Pakistan Qaiser M. Siddique, UNHCR and Inspire staff, representatives from civil society, and, most importantly refugee women and men.

The event recognized the role of refugee men who raise their voices for girls and women’s rights and support them in various fields of life, notably gaining an education.

This year marks the 30th anniversary of the 16 Days campaign running under the global theme “Orange the world: End violence against women now!” The color orange symbolizes a brighter future, free of violence against women and girls.

The international campaign “16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence” runs from 25 November through 10 December.  UNHCR arranged several activities across the country with the support of partners and other UN agencies.

Speaking on the occasion, Ms. Yoshida said that we all must stand together against gender-based violence that affects every one of us, not only in Pakistan but across the globe, not only women but also men.

She said that those refugee men who went the extra mile by supporting women deserved to be appreciated and acknowledged.

Ms. Yoshida added that the stories narrated by some of the refugee men reflect the daily actions they take in fostering gender equality and thus fighting against gender-based violence. “You and the successes of women in your families set an example for other men in your communities,” she said.

Earlier, speaking on the occasion, Abdul Rehman, whose daughter Dr. Saleema Rehman won this year’s regional UNCHR Nansen Award for Asia for her dedication to promote girls’ education in her community, said that education is a fundamental right of all girls and boys.

“My daughter’s success is not only mine but of all Afghan community. I urge all parents and brothers to support the education of their daughters and sisters for a better future,” he said.

Other Afghan male refugees including Fazal Nabi and Inayat Shams shed light on the importance of girls’ education. “The world is colorless without women and their participation,” Inayat Shams narrated one line from his poetry.

 

 

 

 Human Rights Day

Dr. Jassim Taqui

DG Al-Bab Institute for Strategic Studies

Islamabad, December 10,  2021:  The following is the message of the UNSG His Excellency Antonio Gutters of the occasion of Human Rights Date:  

Our world is at a crossroads.

The COVID-19 pandemic, the climate crisis, and the expansion of digital technology into all areas of our lives have created new threats to human rights.

Exclusion and discrimination are rampant.

Public space is shrinking.

Poverty and hunger are rising for the first time in decades.

Millions of children are missing out on their right to education.

Inequality is deepening.

But we can choose a different path.

Seventy-three years ago today, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

The principles set out in this simple Declaration remain the key to realizing all human rights – civil, economic, cultural, social, and political – for all people, everywhere.

Recovery from the pandemic must be an opportunity to expand human rights and freedoms, and to rebuild trust.

Trust in the justice and impartiality of laws and institutions.

Confidence that a life of dignity is within reach.

Faith that people can get a fair hearing and resolve their grievances peacefully.

                   The United Nations stands for the rights of every member of our human family.

Today and every day, we will continue to work for justice, equality, dignity, and human rights for all.

Happy Human Rights Day.

 

 The French exhibition

Dr. Jassim Taqui

DG Al-Bab Institute for Strategic Studies

Islamabad, December 9,  2021:  The Embassy of France in Pakistan is reconnected with Islamabad’s cultural scene through an exhibition that brings together a talented all-female cast from France, Pakistan, and Morocco.

In these uncertain times we are living in, with the world going through a pandemic, the theme of the show Lumières could not be more symbolic and timely.

The works of art displayed in this exhibition reveal how the artists’ perception of light and artistic process has evolved at a time of pandemics and lockdowns.

Lumières reminds us that light gives life to art. It is the artist’s main tool of composition. It directs the gaze.

This exhibition also reminds us that women artists have played a central part in the history of art in France and Pakistan, not least in contemporary art.

While Lumières reveals similarities and differences in artistic processes, it is once again the universality of contemporary art that shines through this exhibition.

Lumieres, opening this December in Islamabad, is an exhibition curated by two women curators, Zara Sajid (Pakistan) and Stephanie Borsa (France) featuring 6 women artists; Marium Agha, Farida Batool and Risham Syed from Pakistan, Safaa Eruass from Morocco, Christine Ferrer and Genevieve Gleize from France. Supported by the French Embassy in Pakistan and the Pakistan National Council of the Arts, the project was conceptualized over a year ago amidst the various lockdowns due to a worldwide pandemic, the exhibition shall be on display and open for the public viewing from Dec 9th to the 20th, 2021.

The curatorial note ‘Reflection’ for the exhibition has been written by Odile Guichard, Curator, Musee Volland, Avignon, France.

The second part of the project is an exhibition in France in 2023 featuring the same artists.

Practical details :

Date: Dec 9 - 20, 2021

Venue: PNCA, Islamabad

 

 

 

 National Incubation Center and United Nations Development Programme 

Dr. Jassim Taqui

DG Al-Bab Institute for Strategic Studies

Islamabad, December 4,  2021:  Innovation-Acceleration-Lab, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Pakistan collaborated with National Incubation Center Lahore (NICL) at LUMS to host SolutionsFest 2.0: Reimagining our Relationship with Plastics in Pakistan. This three-day event to discuss, strategize and create solutions for plastic pollution was held from November 29 to December 1 at NICL at LUMS. 

SolutionsFest2.0 brought together people at the heart of the design process and curated a community-led problem-solving engagement opportunity to address the issue of plastic waste management in Pakistan. During the event, plastic problem-solvers explored materials, tested connectivity, worked with tools and mechanics, created structures, and improved on iterations by focusing on and responding to the problem of plastic waste generation and on creating a system for a circular economy. 

Solutions included a mobile app to facilitate door-to-door collection of recyclable plastics; prototypes of interlocking plastic bricks to enable low-cost housing for slums; upcycled, aesthetic furniture; another solution to turn non-recyclable plastics from waste to energy; and eco-friendly, low-cost, specialized shoes made of recycled material for children born with clubfoot. All prototypes were created at NICL’s state-of-the-art Makers Lab, which includes metal, CNC, PCB, wood, and 3D printing facilities for speedy, high-quality hardware solutions.

Mr. Ehsan Gul, Head of Experimentation at Innovation-Acc-Lab, UNDP Pakistan stated, “We need to rapidly prototype and experiment to find solutions for fixing the rapidly increasing plastic waste management problem in Pakistan. Soutionsfest 2.0 provided an opportunity to bring sustainability enthusiasts, local recyclers, private sector partners, etc. together to catalyze ideation and invention. The National Incubation Center, Lahore at LUMS was a natural choice for us as a key partner, because of their mission to enable Pakistani problem-solvers and their all-inclusive space, which offers critical prototyping facilities and fosters an environment of innovation and  problem-solving.”

In his keynote address, Mr. Hammad Naqi Khan, Director General of World Wildlife Fund (WWF)  Pakistan, appreciated the efforts of the participants and organizers: “We saw a myriad of good ideas today, quite a few ideas were both viable and scalable. In terms of plastic use, radical change is important, but so are small steps in the right direction; for sectors like healthcare plastic usage may be imperative, but for most other sectors it boils down to mere convenience and that is where we need to intervene and make a change.” He emphasized the importance of taking a collaborative approach, and involving stakeholders across the value chain, from consumers to multinational corporations to the government to create synergies and tangible impact.

The National Incubation Center at LUMS is a springboard for venture incubation and corporate innovation through an intersection of applied research, industry, and talent, to solve Pakistan’s biggest problems.

SolutionsFest 2.0 is part of a larger portfolio of Innovation-Acceleration-Lab, UNDP Pakistan. UNDP Innovation-Accelerator Lab is a dedicated learning space to reimagine development solutions. We, along with the country office programs and partners, explore and experiment with new approaches, from ethnography to design, to find inclusive and human-centered approaches for meaningful change. In the last two years, the Innovation-Act-Lab has been exploring this issue with the learning question: how we can reimagine the relationship with plastics in Pakistan.

 

 

 

 International Day Of Persons With Disabilities

Dr. Jassim Taqui

DG Al-Bab Institute for Strategic Studies

Islamabad, December 3,  2021:  The following is the message of the UNSG His Excellency Antonia Gutters on the occasion of The International Day Of Persons With Disabilities:

Realizing the rights, agency, and leadership of persons with disabilities will advance our common future. 

We need everyone, including persons with disabilities, onboard to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. Around the world, persons with disabilities and their representative organizations are taking action to realize the call: ‘Nothing about us, without us’. 

COVID-19 has laid bare the persistent barriers and inequalities faced by the world’s 1 billion persons with disabilities, who have been among the hardest hit by the pandemic. 

A disability-inclusive pandemic response and recovery should be guided by persons with disabilities themselves, forge partnerships, tackle injustice and discrimination, expand access to technology and strengthen institutions to create a more inclusive, accessible, and sustainable post-COVID-19 world.

I urge all countries to fully implement the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, increase accessibility, and dismantle legal, social, economic, and other barriers with the active involvement of persons with disabilities and their representative organizations.

On this International Day of Persons with Disabilities, let us commit to building a sustainable, inclusive, and just future for everyone, leaving no one behind.

 

 International Day For The Abolition of Slavery

Dr. Jassim Taqui

DG Al-Bab Institute for Strategic Studies

Islamabad, December 2,  2021:  The following is the message of the UNSG His Excellency Antonia Gutters on the occasion of The International Day For The Abolition of Slavery:

The International Day for the Abolition of Slavery is a day of remembrance and recognition and an urgent call to action.

We must never forget the immeasurable suffering of millions of African men, women, and children under the evil of the transatlantic slave trade.

We honor the resilience of those who endured and pay tribute to those who sacrificed their lives in the universal quest for freedom.

The racist legacy of slavery reverberates to this day.

And while some may believe slavery to be a thing of the past, this evil continues to blight our modern world.

Debt bondage, serfdom, and forced labor, trafficking in persons for exploitation -- including sexual exploitation, forced marriage, child labor -- and the recruitment of children in armed conflict – are contemporary manifestations of slavery.

All are crimes and egregious violations of human rights.

Modern slavery often hides in plain sight.

Of the over 40 million victims of slavery today, one in four are children; three in four are women and girls.

Some are forced to produce the clothes we wear, the food we eat or construct the buildings we live and work in.

Poor and marginalized groups -- in particular racial and ethnic minorities, indigenous peoples, refugees, and migrants -- are at the highest risk.

Women and girls from minority groups are among the most vulnerable of all.

Two decades ago, the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action recognized the connection between racism, discrimination, and human trafficking.

The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the urgency for greater vigilance.  We must ensure decent work and prevent human rights violations across global supply chains.

I call on the Member States, civil society, and the private sector to strengthen collective action to end the heinous practice of slavery.

I urge all countries to intensify their efforts to identify and protect victims and survivors – including by contributing to the United Nations Voluntary Trust Fund on Contemporary Forms of Slavery.

Let us join forces to end the degradation and inhumanity of modern slavery once and for all.