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October 21, 2019: National Current Affairs
1. IMF asks govt to carry out long-delayed structural reforms
• The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has asked Pakistan to address its longstanding issues through structural reforms and strengthening of institutions through legal framework to help economy be competitive.
• The government was also advised to strengthen cooperation at the federal and provincial levels for greater fiscal and economic calibration, said IMF`s Middle East and Central Asia Region Director Jihad Azour.
• An important track for the country was `the structural reforms that will allow Pakistan economy to be more competitive by addressing some of the longstanding issues related to the weaknesses`, he said.
• Mr Azour did not directly respond to a question on the timing of the bond launch. He was asked if in his view the current zero-interest rate environment in the capital markets provided an opportunity to Pakistan to go for $3 billion to $4bn bonds, both Islamic and Eurobond
2. Navy joins 32-member Trans Regional Maritime Network
• Pakistan Navy has joined a 32-member Trans-Regional Maritime Network (T-RMN), based in Italy.
• Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Zafar Mahmood Abbasi formally signed the ‘Note of Accession’ for joining the organization at Naval Headquarters, Islamabad.
• Ambassador of the Itali, Stefano Pontecorvo, was also present at the occasion.
• The Trans-Regional Maritime Network was established in 2008 to facilitate exchange of maritime information at trans-regional level amongst the participating nations. By joining the T-RMN community, Pakistan Navy will have access to maritime related information which will augment the comprehensive maritime picture already being maintained at Joint Maritime Information Coordination Center (JIMCC) of Pakistan Navy at Karachi
3. PMDC dissolved, new body to regulate medical profession
• President Dr Arif Alvi has promulgated an ordinance which has left the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) dissolved and paved the way for establishment of a new organisation namely Pakistan Medial Commission (PMC).
• The PMC will be run by a nine member body and the head of the commission would be called president.
• The notification for the new ordinance is expected to be issued on Monday (today).Moreover, the Ministry of National Health Services (NHS) through the Islamabad district administration and police took over the possession of the PMDC building and directed 220 employees of the council that the office will remain shut for one week.
• However, the representative body of doctors, Pakistan Medical Association (PMA), has termed the decision undemocratic and appealed to political parties to reject the presidential ordinance
4. Punjab govt bans ex-Pakistan leave
• The Punjab government has banned all kinds of ex-Pakistan leaves and visits abroad, including those which are fully funded.
• According to a directive issued by the Punjab government’s Services and General Administration Department, Chief Minister Usman Buzdar has imposed complete ban on all kinds of ex-Pakistan leave and visits abroad of all the government officials with immediate effect.
• The ban also covers the leaves and visits, which are fully funded.
• However, the ex-Pakistan leave to perform Umrah, Haj and Ziarat and leave for medical emergencies would be exempted after consideration by the competent authorities.
5. World’s largest Kashmiri flag draped in Islamabad
• The world’s largest Azad Jammu and Kashmir flag on Sunday draped in federal capital during ‘Azadi Million March’ to express solidarity with Kashmiri people.
• The activists of Jammu and Kashmir Solidarity Movement (JKSM) headed by Uzma Gul hoisted the some five-kilometre-long flag from D-Chowk to Kutcheri Metro Bus Station.
• Delegates from civil society, journalist bodies, student and trade unions, religio-political organisations, youth organisations, minorities and communities from all walks of life also participated in the activity.
• JKSM chairperson Uzma Gul said the objective of organizing the Million March was to express solidarity with Kashmiri brethren and to condemn Indian brutalities on Muslims in occupied Kashmir. The participants chanted slogans against India and expressed solidarity with the Kashmiri people.
October 21, 2019: International Current Affairs
6. Trump drops plan to host G7 summit at his resort
• US President Donald Trump abandoned plans to host next year`s Group of Seven summit at his Florida golf resort, after Democrats and others had decried the selection as evidence of the president misusing his office for personal gain.
• In a series of tweets, Trump said he would drop the plan announced on Thursday by White House acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney to host the meeting at Trump National Doral golf resort near Miami from June 10 to12.
• On Saturday, Trump sought in his unusual reversal to emphasise what he said were the resort`s positive features for hosting a large gathering. `I thought I was doing something very good for our Country,` he wrote on Twitter.
• The US constitution`s emoluments clause prohibits government officials from receiving salaries, fees or profits from foreign and domestic governments without congressional approval.
7. Widodo kicks off second term at heavily guarded ceremony
• Indonesia`s President Joko Widodo was sworn in for a second term on October 20, 2019, as helicopters flew overhead and troops kept watch in the capital Jakarta days after Islamist militants tried to assassinate his top security minister.
• Foreign heads of state, lawmakers and political rivals looked on as Widodo,58, and Vice President Ma`ruf Amin, 76, read an oath to start a five-year tenure leading the world`s biggest Muslim-majority nation.
8. US defence chief in Kabul for revival of peace talks
• US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has said that Washington remains committed to peace and stability in Afghanistan as America`s defence chief arrives in Kabul on October 20, 2019 in a bid to revive the stalled talks with the Taliban.
• `The United States remains committed to peace and stability in Afghanistan and will continue to fight against terrorism, said Secretary Pompeo in a statement issued by his of fice. `We stand by the people of Afghanistan who only want peace and a future free from these abhorrent acts of violence.
• This reiteration of the US desire to peacefully end the 18-year old Afghan war is particularly significant because it`s included in a statement condemning Friday`s mosque attack that killed at least 69 people in Nangarhar.
9. Greens seen gaining as Switzerland elects new parliament
• Two Green parties appeared to have made significant gains as Switzerland elected a new parliament October 20, 2019, while a populist right-wing party remained the country’s strongest but saw its support slip, a projection showed.
• The projection for SRF public television, several hours after polls closed, tallied with pre-election expectations that environmental concerns would play out in Switzerland too after boosting green parties in neighboring Germany and Austria in recent European and national elections.
• The wealthy Alpine country of 8.2 million people has a traditionally stable political landscape, with parties ranging from the center-left to the right-wing populist Swiss People’s Party — which has established itself as the country’s strongest over the past two decades — represented on the governing Federal Council. The executive doesn’t include the two green parties
10. Qantas completes test of longest non-stop passenger flight
• Australian carrier Qantas has completed a test of the longest non-stop commercial passenger flight as part of research on how the journey could affect pilots, crew and passengers.
• The Boeing 787-9 with 49 people on board took 19 hours and 16 minutes to fly from New York to Sydney, a 16,200-km (10,066-mile) route.
• Next month, the company plans to test a non-stop flight from London to Sydney.
• Qantas expects to decide on whether to start the routes by the end of 2019.
• If it goes ahead with them, the services would start operating in 2022 or 2023.
