Pakistan looks at the US for bailout in Afghanistan

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One thing that Pakistan has been discussing nowadays is that, whether it is a toy at the hands of the US while it is dealing with the issues in neighbouring Afghanistan. At the recently concluded Lahore Literary Festival, senior journalist Zahid Hussain, who worked in Afghanistan since the early days of the Taliban, said Pakistan and the US have always been “frenemies”. He meant Pakistan and the US are friends and enemies at the same time when it comes to Afghanistan.

The story of tension between Pakistan and the US starts with the withdrawal of Soviet forces in Afghanistan in 1990. There was a feeling of betrayal by the US in Pakistan. However, the 9/11 attacks made Pakistan a need of the US to combat the Taliban. Pakistan played a double role on this front. It took action against Al Qaeda leaders but gave shelter to the Taliban in its territory. This did not get well with the US who had backed the Northern Alliance against the Taliban. The relations were at the worst stage when the US forces gunned down their biggest enemy Osama Bin Laden, protected by Pakistan, in Abbottabad in 2011.

Under General Pervez Musharraf Pakistan had claimed to have joined the US war against terrorism. He had said in 2001 that he had two options: either side with the US or get into a confrontation with it. As he could not fight with the US he preferred to help them. Now, with Joe Biden taking over as US president the talks on US-Pakistan relations have once again caught the attention of the capitals around the world. Pakistan always wanted the US to pressurise India on Kashmir and reduce the Indian influence in Afghanistan. Pakistan feels that India’s influence is a major cause of all its troubles in Afghanistan.

Pakistan

As per the US-Taliban deal, foreign troops are due to exit Afghanistan by May 1 on the 10th anniversary of Osama Bin Laden’s killing. Biden has said it will review the deal. The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) officials have said they have deferred a decision on troop withdrawal from Afghanistan. This, however, has put Pakistan in an awkward situation. Prime Minister Imran Khan has no option other than waiting for the US decision. “I think the US and Pakistan are still miles apart,” Hussain said. “It’s very ironic that while Afghanistan has always been the main cause of tension between the US and Pakistan over 20 years, it has also been a cause for them to stay together.”

Victory for women farmers

In a landmark amendment, the Sindh Assembly recognised the role of women farmers in water management for the first time. The Sindh Water Management (Amendment) Bill, 2018 guarantees women’s representation in around 45,000 watercourse associations, over 350 farmer organisations, and 14 area water boards in the province. With passing this amendment a long battle has reached a logical end.

In rural Sindh, women farmers form a significant workforce as many men migrated to urban areas to earn more income. Almost 77 per cent of farmers in Sindh are women. They work for 12-14 hours a day and are involved in crop production from sowing to harvesting stages.

Also Read: Row over making Arabic compulsory in schools

The water network in Sindh, where water scarcity is a big problem, comprises of three barrages, 14 main canals and about 40,000 field outlets. However, the tail end areas are largely deprived. The women farmers were kept out of the water distribution system because of the political influence of big landlords.

The amendment makes way for appointing two prominent women on the Area Water Board, which manages the water distribution. It is likely to help the women to have a major say in water resource management and irrigation structures in Sindh.

Indian booster to the content creator

An Islamabad-based content creator Dananeer Mobeen has been the most discussed Pakistani person on social media since last week across the sections in India. Her ‘Pawri video’ has not only left the social media users in laughs but also led to the creations of several memes.

The 19-year-old Mobeen had posted a video of her travel with friends in the northern Pakistan areas on Instagram in which she was heard saying, “yeh Hamari car hain, yeh hum hai aur yeh Hamari pawri ho ri ye”. Her accent of the party as pawri rocked the social media. Her video got five lakh likes within two days. An Indian content maker Yashraj Mukhate made a mashup on her pawri. His video on Instagram has got a whopping 62 lakh likes to date.

The Pawri video found resonance in Bollywood and cricket as well. Actor Shahid Kapoor and the team of his upcoming yet-to-be-titled web series adopted the trend. They recreated and improvised the viral meme on the sets and posted the clips on his Instagram. In this post, Kapoor was seen dancing and saying, “Yeh mere stars hai, yeh hum hai, Aur Kahan pawri ho Rahi hai.” Actors Deepika Padukone, Randeep Hooda, cricketer Virat Kohli too posted similar videos.

The fame, likes and re-enactment have left Mobeen excited. “Someone pinches me!” she exclaimed on her Instagram story. “I must be dreaming!” In another post, sharing Indian star Sidharth Malhotra’s post, she wrote, “Fan moment!”

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