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September 13, 2019 National Current Affairs
1. No second consular access to Jadhav
• Pakistan has said that there are no secret talks with India amid ever-growing tensions on the Kashmir issue, saying that India should stop misleading the international community and respect the right of self-determination of Kashmiri people. Islamabad also ruled out second consular access to Indian spy-terrorist Kulbushan Jadhav.
• Speaking at a weekly news briefing on September 12, 2019, Foreign Office spokesperson Dr Mohammed Faisal said Pakistan believed in the dialogue process but there were no backdoor talks taking place at this point.
• “There are repeated offers of mediation from different countries on Kashmir dispute but India is not agreeing to it. It is a considered view and policy of Pakistan that all matters can only be resolved through negotiations,” he said.
• Regarding the joint statement signed by different countries at UN Human Rights Council meeting, the spokesperson said this represented the growing international disapproval of Indian illegal and unilateral actions in Occupied Kashmir.
2. Jamal Mandokhail appointed chief justice of BHC
• President Dr Arif Alvi has appointed Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail as Chief Justice of the Balochistan High Court (BHC).
• According to an official notification issued by the law ministry on September 12, 2019, the president has approved the appointment of the senior most judge of the BHC as its new chief justice.
• Justice Mandokhail will be sworn in as the BHC chief justice on Oct 5 after the retirement of the current Chief Justice Tahira Safdar on Oct 4.
• Justice Tahira Safdar is the first female chief justiceof the BHC.
• Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail, who belongs to Zhob district of Balochistan, was born on Nov 12, 1961.
• He obtained his earlye ducation from F.G. High School, Quetta, and did his masters in political science and economics at the University of Balochistan.In 1987 he obtained an LLB from the University Law College, Quetta, and started his practice as a lawyer in 1988. He was awarded a licence in 1990 for practice in the BHC. On May 12, 2001 he was allowed to practice in the Supreme Court of Pakistan.
3. Alvi first president to use teleprompter
• Despite the opposition’s hullabaloo during the joint session of parliament on September 12, 2019, President Dr Arif Alvi delivered his 53-minute long address with undivided focus and confidence, without reading it out from paper.
• In the history of Pakistan’s parliament, Dr Alvi got the distinction of being the first president who used a teleprompter for his speech.
• Two clear glass screens installed in front of the president’s dais helped him deliver an uninterrupted and smooth read as the digital text ran before his eyes, without the hassle of turning over the pages of written speech as the opposition tried to hinder the proceedings with its noisy slogans. Teleprompters are used for delivering speeches by the world leaders, including the U.S. presidents. However, the technology has been used for the first time by a Pakistani president. Also, the official YouTube page of the National Assembly Pakistan live-streamed the president’s speech for the first time
4. PM commends 58 countries, EU over Kashmir cause
• Prime Minister Imran Khan on September 12, 2019 commended 58 countries and the European Union for supporting the cause of a peaceful resolution of the Kashmir dispute in the line with UN Security Council resolutions and international laws.
• The prime minister said in his tweet: `I commend the 58 countries that joined Pakistan in Human Rights Council on 10 Sept reinforcing demands of international community for India to stop use of force, lift siege, remove other restrictions, respect and protect Kashmiris` right and resolve Kashmir dispute through UNSC resolutions.
• `I welcome the EU`s call in the Human Rights Council for a peaceful solution of the Kashmir dispute in line with UNSC resolutions, international laws and bilateral agreements.
• Pakistan on Monday welcomed a new report of the United Nations on the situation in occupied Kashmir, which for the second consecutive year called for setting up of a commission of inquiry for investigating human rights abuses being perpetrated by Indian occupation troops in the valley.
5. Army announces high-level postings, transfers
• The Pakistan Army on September 12, 2019 announced postings and transfers on key positions, appointing Director General of Joint Staff Headquarters (JSHQ) Lt Gen Azhar Abbas as Commander of the important 10 Corps (Rawalpindi).
• He replaces Lt Gen Bilal Akbar, who has been designated as Chairman of the Pakistan Ordnance Factory (POF). The sitting Chairman of POF, Lt Gen Sadiq Ali, is among the three lieutenant generals due to retire in the last week of the current month.
• The Inspector General of Arms, Lt Gen Waseem Ashraf, has been named as the Corps Commander of Quetta. He will replace former director general of the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Lt Gen Asim Saleem Bajwa who is also retiring this month.
• The newly promoted three-star officers Lt Gen Khalid Zia and Lt Gen Mohammad Chiragh Haider have been posted as Inspector General of Arms and Director General of Joint Staff Headquarters, respectively.
• Those promoted were Maj Gen Mohammad Aamer, Maj Gen Mohammad Chiragh Haider, Maj Gen Nadeem Ahmed Anjum and Maj Gen Khalid Zia
September 13, 2019: International Current Affairs
6. Paris, four other French cities ban use of pesticides
• Paris and four other French cities on September 12, 2019 banned the use of synthetic pesticides within their boundaries, as an anti-chemicals movement that began in the countryside gained momentum.
• Lille in the north, Nantes in the west, Grenoble in the southeast and the central city of Clermont-Ferrand joined Paris in implementing the ban, citing the need to safeguard biodiversity and public health.
• A 2017 law already bans the use of synthetic pesticides in public parks and spaces. And since January, home gardeners countrywide have also been banned from using synthetic pesticides.
• They may use only those made with natural ingredients.
7. Lawmaker urges US govt to press India over situation in occupied Kashmir
• As resentment against India`s annexation of Kashmir grows, a US lawmaker has urged the Trump administration to `weigh in` while another asked India to let Kashmiris decide their future.
• `It is very much a matter for the administration and the administration has to take it more seriously,` said Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. `At the end of the day we do need the administration to weigh in.
• `I have been very dismayed with what`s happening in Kashmir. I strongly disagree with what Prime Minister (Narendra) Modi has done,` said Congressman Don Beyer, a Virginia Democrat who isalso a former US ambassador to Switzerland.
8. Water found for first time on ‘potentially habitable’ planet
• Astronomers have for the first time discovered water in the atmosphere of a planet orbiting within the habitable zone of a distant star. The finding makes the world – which is called K2-18b – a plausible candidate in the search for alien life.
• Within 10 years, new space telescopes might be able to determine whether K2-18b’s atmosphere contains gases that could be produced by living organisms. Details were published in the scientific journal Nature Astronomy.
• The lead scientist, Prof Giovanna Tinetti of University College London (UCL), described the discovery as “mind blowing”. “This is the first time that we have detected water on a planet in the habitable zone around a star where the temperature is potentially compatible with the presence of life,” she said.
• The habitable zone is the region around a star where temperatures are considered sufficiently benign for water to exist in liquid form on the surface of a planet.
9. Facebook’s Libra should be blocked in Europe, France says
• France says it will block development of Facebook’s Libra digital currency in Europe because it threatens the “monetary sovereignty” of governments. Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said Libra posed financial risks and could be open to abuse.
• However, he did not spell out how France could keep Libra out of the 28-member European Union.
• The social media giant announced plans for a currency in July, but the project has faced hostility and scepticism.
September 13, 2019: Sports Current Affairs
10. Lanka ‘reassessing’ Pakistan tour after security threat
• The Sri Lankan cricket association (SLC) said on September 12, 2019 it was reassessing the security situation in Pakistan after receiving a warning “of a possible terrorist threat” to its team.
• The team was scheduled to leave for the tour in less than two weeks, but the tour now hinges on a “reassessment of the security situation in Pakistan”. One security assessment – described as “meticulous” by an SLC official – had already been conducted, with the board formerly convinced that the tour was safe. But this new information about a specific threat on the team has sparked fresh fears.
• Sri Lanka is scheduled to play three one-day internationals and three Twenty20 international matches in Pakistan between Sept. 27 and Oct. 9 and 10 key Lankan players have already opted out of the series citing security concerns.
• SLC, which named weakened ODI and T20I squads for the tour earlier on Wednesday, said in a statement that it had received the warning from the Prime Minister’s Office.
