environment
The price of inaction
Pakistan lags far behind in integrating climate change considerations into development planning
By Arjumand Nizami, Dr Sajidin Hussain, and Fakhruddin Ahmad
Disaster preparedness at all levels and early warning systems must be on our priority list now. A lot of work is required to be done to ensure this. A price of non-action is much higher in the form of life and livelihoods than what is required to adapt to the change which is inevitable. The greatest challenge of the world today is our changing global climate. A dilemma for world economies, how can we reduce the Green House Gases (GHGs) responsible for global warming while striving for our economic growth and sustainable development? Developing countries are far more vulnerable to climate change due to lack of resources and capacities to cope against hazards. Being at the bottom of the rung, the poorest of the developing countries will be hit earliest and hardest.

Private matter
The proposed Punjab Healthcare Bill seeks to regulate private medical practice by government doctors. Will it succeed this time?
By Waqar Gillani
The recently tabled, The Punjab Healthcare Bill in the Punjab Assembly to regulate the public and private health sector has triggered a new controversy. The campaign against the bill, led by doctors doing private practice at private health facilities of the province, has termed the proposed legislation as "faulty". According to government figures, there are about 250 hospitals (public and private) and about 25,000 other medical facilities, excluding traditional and herbal practitioners in the province.

If nothing else, the unveiling of the proposed Aghaz-e-Huqooq-e-Balochistan during a joint session of parliament has given the entire nation respite from the mindless sensationalism surrounding the NRO. Balochistan's alienation -- which is the most obvious fallout of the centralised political-economic structure that prevails in this country -- is a real issue which demands meaningful debate and action. The hullabaloo over the NRO and other such shenanigans that have dominated "public" debate in recent weeks distract from such real issues; it is about time that these distractions be put in their proper place.

Having said this, Raza Rabbani's speech has been greeted with a fairly hostile reaction from the main Baloch politicians and intellectuals. Most of the response has called attention to the fact that none of the proposed initiatives are anything more than proposals, that is, there is no guarantee that these proposals can actually be implemented on the ground. Additionally, the government has been criticised for not taking the most obvious steps that would generate the much-needed confidence. For example, ordinary Baloch are regularly subject to harassment and intimidation by the Frontier Corps (FC) but there is nothing in the package to suggest that the FC's invasive role will be scaled back. Another obvious step would have been to announce a general amnesty for all political prisoners. Nothing on this count either.

It is important to try and understand that the Baloch people have very little trust in announcements made in Islamabad. For the best part of the last 62 years, rulers at the centre have invoked the 'greater national interest' to actively suppress the aspirations of the Baloch. Most recently, during the Musharraf dictatorship, Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain and Mushahid Husain visited Nawab Akbar Bugti and promised confidence-building measures but soon afterwards Bugti was hounded out of his home and eventually killed after a well-planned manhunt. Then Balach Marri, son of veteran Baloch leader Khair Bakhsh Marri, was tracked down and killed in exile; the security establishment congratulated itself on yet another feat while the Baloch nation mourned yet another martyr.

Soon after coming to power, President Zardari made a high-profile apology to the Baloch nation for the injustices that it has had to suffer in the past. But subsequent to this, little has changed. It is now more than eighteen months since the Pakistan People's Party (PPP) took over the reins of government, yet kidnappings of Baloch youth continue, sporadic military strikes cause death and destruction and the provincial government is essentially a clearing house for personal favours rather than meaningful policymaking.

Most seasoned analysts and political activists are well aware that the PPP has little meaningful say in state policy on Balochistan, just as it has little say in the way the military is operating in NWFP and FATA. The more insightful reactions to the Aghaz-e-Huqooq-e-Balochistan package have noted that regardless of the PPP's intentions, it simply does not have the power to challenge the status quo.

If it is, in fact, the case that the elected government is unable to take on the security establishment on Balochistan (or in NWFP and FATA for that matter), then it is necessary to ask why Zardari & co. are so keen on making it appear as if they are indeed actually making all the decisions that count. If the elected government is not responsible for the kidnappings, indiscriminate violence and the like, why does it not say so?

Looked at in this way, the situation does not appear as simple as the hypothesis that the elected government is not able to take on the security establishment. A more accurate description would be that the elected government is not willing to take on the security establishment. Presumably, this is because such a challenge might endanger the existence of the elected government itself. A look into our chequered past suggests that the security establishment has not hesitated to engineer the dismissal of elected governments whenever the latter have tried to disturb the civil-military (im)balance of power.

Has today's PPP learnt from its past? In other words, what has the PPP gained from its repeated attempts to 'manage' its relationship with the security establishment? Has the latter ever been forced from its perch? Perhaps the argument this time is that elected rule should be maintained at all costs, that the continuity of the democratic process itself constitutes the major challenge to the military's monopoly over state affairs. Looked at from the perspective of mainstream political parties, this is not a bad strategy. But there are other perspectives that have to be considered as well.

Is it not true that the Baloch are likely to become even more disillusioned with the 'political process' if the elected government is seen as unable, or even worse, unwilling to take on the security establishment? Surely, the people of the NWFP are increasingly cynical about democracy given that it has not delivered the peace that they were promised. These are admittedly not easy questions to answer.

Indeed, even those of us who have spent the majority of our political lives on the streets fighting against military dictatorships so as to restore 'democracy' have always had to later confront the reality of the 'democracy' we have succeeded in restoring. Add to this quandary the fact that the security establishment and the right-wing media go out of their way to demean democracy and politics more generally and it becomes easy to understand why there are so many voices that insist that 'democracy' does not produce the goods.

Nevertheless, it is at times like these where it is important to remember that the vast majority of the political conflicts that exist in this country are a direct product of the military's overbearing power and its pathological hatred of the political process. There is no military solution to the mistrust that exists between the Baloch and the Pakistan state, yet time and again military means have been employed to crush the rights of the Baloch people. It is at times like these that we need to overcome our collective amnesia and recall that Pakistan is the only modern state which has suffered the ignominy of the secession of the majority of its population, thanks to the hubris of the men in khaki. It is at times like these that we need to remind ourselves that the jihadi militants who have turned inwards are products of GHQ's delusions of grandeur.

Only then will we see that there can be no other option than to persist with democracy. And democracy means holding our elected leaders accountable. So President Zardari has to answer why the PPP government has not been able to stop kidnappings and killings of innocent civilians. The PPP will have to prove that the Balochistan package is not just another eyewash. This is as important for the people of Balochistan as it is for this latest democratic experiment. And failure could have equally disastrous results for both.

profile

Mohsin Hasan Pirzada or Pir as he was lovingly called by so many people, who loved and adored him, represented that breed of advertising professionals who chose advertising and not the other way round. After a fine and scholastic career, when he was ready with all that university life could teach him, he turned to this profession and remained loyal to it throughout the rest of his life. He never ever thought of doing anything else. A trio of louts riding a motorcycle recklessly hit him on the evening of Saturday the November 7 as he crossed a road in a busy part of Lahore. He was taken by passers-by to a nearby hospital where he lay unattended while the hospital debated, as they do here, whether this was a police case or not. Pir's wife and family were somehow contacted, then he was shifted urgently to Ittefaq Hospital. Mohsin fought tenaciously but on Thursday night, the Grim Reaper had the last word.

How does one begin to explain what he was? He was born to be an advertising pro but only on his terms. It was a profession that was in his bloodstream and while he savored it passionately, he took the punches and the praise in his usual nonchalant manner, never being impressed by pompous and ignorant clients and never being cowed down by the big occasion. He took many things lying down quietly because at heart he was a peaceful man who wished to stray clear of conflict – though conflict was never too shy of barging into him every now and then. There was no doubt even in those who accosted him that behind that affable smile and the ability to convert the most serious thing into the sum total of its absurdities, there was a man who knew what he was doing. He was one of the very few I know who could create an imaginative campaign in minutes without so much as a brief because he instinctively knew what was required. Often he would run into lesser mortals who without his comprehension and deep understanding of people and this difficult art-science craft were unable to share his insight.

I had barely started my first advertising agency early in the 80s when Pir sauntered in one day, just having returned after a stint in the Gulf but firmly convinced that it was Pakistan where he wished to be. He had already put in time at that great agency, SASA, led by Lal Mian and including such stalwarts as Fakhri, Zaidi, Mirza, Sohail, Sharafat and Anwari among others and at whose table supped the likes of Mahmud Sipra, Zakaria Mohammad and other men and women of exemplary qualities who made Pakistan advertising shine with their brilliance. On my persuasion, Pir joined Midlink whom we always referred to as "The Missing Link," and seriously toyed with the idea of a monkey as an icon.

He stayed with me till Midlink died on a hot July afternoon in 1997 and I walked out with a bunch of people who refused to stay behind. Pir, wooed relentlessly with one tempting offer and another to remain, dilly-dallied but I think he enjoyed being wooed and was not intending to stay back. Lubna who had walked into the agency in 1987, probably having driven up straight from the Department of Fine Arts, University of Punjab, armed with a degree and a clear focused approach to adopt this strange profession, was the other pillar. We somehow found a lower portion of a house near Lahore's Café Zouk, but we neither had clients, furniture, equipment or indeed money. Frightened out of our minds, we must have waited but a few hours before the first of our clients walked in and wanted a full page ad, released the next day. We drew the rough layout on a car bonnet, then rushed all over town to lay our hands on a computer and a printer to complete the layout. That was how Headstart began and when my late brother Khalid Hasan remarked that it was the name of an organisation that dealt with people with mental disabilities, I meekly concurred, for indeed we were just that.

In a little less than six months, the French streamed in, looking for an agency preferably one that was not too expensive but had a smattering of professionals who owned the business. In us they found both and I remember Mohsin signing the MOU and telling Guillaume, "Be gentle. It's our first time." The launch of Nestlé's foray into a new category, water, was what brought the French to our neck of the woods. They had little or no interest in whatever else we did or could do and after a particularly long and bitter altercation one day, Mohsin who took quite a few below-the-belts from the network's Vice President and a powerful one indeed, lost his temper. Flinging his chair back that crashed into the wall, he stood up and yelled, "Are you calling me a liar? How dare you," and stomped off and refused to return. The VP not used to this, particularly from one who seemed quite indifferent which way the rope was swinging, got subdued. Mohsin had made his point. As we struggled through the late 90s and into the new millennium, Mohsin decided that this daily grind was killing the joy of creativity that he enjoyed and the last thing he wanted was to slave for his next meal. So we parted company but remained, as we always had been, close and good friends. The Sunday morning sessions devoted to coffee, gossip, the latest jokes and the latest books at my house gave way to occasional meetings and calls but there was never any doubt of the affection from both sides that settled to feel like a soft and warm blanket on a cold rainy day.

A few years ago I wrote some of the escapades that I knew of where Pir was the leading character and was reminded gently by editor that I may please stick to fact and not fiction. When I insisted that this was indeed a factual narration, I got disbelief from the other side! Just about most of my funny stories about this quirky profession feature Mohsin in one form or another. And it's a long, long list. Long before we both joined together, he while at SASA had to make a presentation to one of their large accounts, The Saigol Brothers. All was well other than the small fact that the campaign was miles away from being ready, so Mohsin having run out of excuses arrived at his client's office, out of breath and excited and informed Malik Sahib, that the campaign was indeed ready. In what only he could pull off, he lunged for the large white cardboard cover that housed the artworks and registering a look of utter horror mumbled that he had forgotten it in the rickshaw! As he shot out of Malik Sahib's office who was having a coronary by now and rushed down into the chaos that was The Mall, he ran hither and yon and finally returned to tell Malik Sahib that the rickshaw had vaporised and could not be found for love or money. Malik Sahib put an arm around Mohsin and said not to worry, that the campaign could be re-created and he shouldn't blame himself. The great end to this caper came later when Mohsin indeed did arrive with the "new" campaign but in what I can only describe as life imitates art, actually forgot the campaign in the rickshaw, made this startling discovery in Malik Sahib's very skeptical office and rushed out again. This time the rickshaw was waiting!

In the early 90s one of our clients insisted we do the post-op work on a commercial we had shot in Lahore at, of all places, the CNN studios in Atlanta. There was no way we could convince our client otherwise. As we circled to land in that city, the home of Coca Cola, one fine summer afternoon, I turned to Pir and said, "Mohsin ask for anything in this city but please don't ask for Pepsi," so you can understand that the first thing he did ask was if there was any Pepsi to be had. On our way back, we stopped briefly in New York to stay with my jazz musician friend, the trumpet and flugelhorn player, Jimmy Owens who has played with the likes of Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie and Duke Ellington. One of Jimmy's most treasured possessions is a trumpet Miles gave him. It hangs on a wall in his living room and is a hallowed object. Mohsin who didn't give two hoots about jazz, plucked it off the wall as Jimmy in the middle of making us drinks, simply froze. Pir blew the dust off it, gave it a skeptical look and blew into the mouthpiece. A terrible sound came out as Jimmy Owens had a seizure. "Hmmm," remarked Pir not the least bit rattled. "Could never play the damn thing," he said, flinging it on the sofa. It remains a miracle why Jimmy Owens didn't strangle him right there on his sofa.

Our return journey brought us to England where Pir had spent many of his early years. While I took a train to Oxford to spend time with my nephew, Pir took off for Birmingham where a colony of uncles, aunts and various other members of the Pir clan were in happy existence having been there for years and accumulated impressive amounts of money and real estate. In answer to my query, Pir said that he would tell the nephews and uncles to show him the "lights of Pind Birmingham" and go pub-crawling like all decent folk. Three days later, he called and said he was on his way to Oxford. "But Pir you said you were staying there for at least a week or two."

"Will explain later Chief," he said. "I did all the family news bit – you know who's dead, who's not, who's where and who's doing what," he explained.

"When I asked them to show me some 'rounak,' (fun), the uncles went into a huddle and said that we all could troop off to the grand mosque. We can introduce you to the community and you can meet all the Pakistanis you need to meet." "What about the pubs, some lager?" Pir asked. "Oh we don't go there. All our social life is at the mosque." That's when Pir decided to hightail it out of that city.

There are countless stories but at least one must be shared. In 1992 or thereabouts, we pitched for the PAF account and almost got killed getting to Chaklala from Lahore on a rainy and treacherous day. This did not impress the gathering of the eagles – almost two dozen of the PAF's top officers with the Air Chief presiding because we were late by 15 minutes. It was a hostile group of steely-eyed men who started at us as we, our clothes still damp, tried to put our considerable campaign into some order. Clearly we were starting off the wrong foot.

Pir stood up to speak, ran a finger carelessly through his hair and with a theatrical flourish plucked a single sheet of paper from the sheaf in front of him. "I have here before me," he said in his warm and wonderful tone, "a recent survey we have conducted with 100 girls from ten leading women institutions in Lahore on the choice of a marriage partner." He paused for what seemed an eternity as the words sank in. "On a scale of 1 to 10, 1 being the most sought after and 10 being the pits," he added, "the Pakistan Air Force gentlemen ranks at a dismal 9, slightly above the Pakistan Postal Service."

There was commotion at this verdict. Everyone had sat up, the complacence replaced by disbelief. "We did no such survey," I hissed to Pir. "I know," he said. "I made it up to get their attention." "Gentlemen," he spoke loudly and clearly. There was respectful silence. "What you need is Tom Cruise." With that he brought the house down.

"And let's face it," Mohsin added as a parting missile, "the only time you guys make the news is when your F-16 hits a wild boar on a runway in Sargodha," and as they were still reeling from this assault, he added, "or one of your birds goes down… Gentlemen," he continued, "where is your USP – your unique selling proposition? Your fighter jets, your ace pilots. Where have you hidden them?" He picked up a layout carelessly and flashed it towards the Chief.

A day earlier, Mahmud Sipra had been quietly sipping his coffee in my office as we were preparing the campaign. He had suddenly shot up from the sofa, grabbed a paper, made a doodle and written a headline. That was what lay now before the Chief. It showed a dozen or so smartly turned out pilots in their flying suits, helmets in hand, arrayed neatly on either side of a gleaming jet facing the camera. The headline was vintage Mahmud Sipra. "The F-16 costs US$ 43million. The men are priceless."

Chaklala experienced a sonic boom that morning without a jet having taken off. What had indeed taken off was the Pakistan Air Force Boardroom, now excited as an adrenalin-charged campaign unrolled on and on before them. We won the account hands down that rainy morning but never released it or for that matter made a single penny from it. PAF had an apology of an in-house charity agency (they still do a couple of decades later). Had we been given the work, they would have had to be terminated. It was not to be.

From Publicis to Midas, then a brief sojourn with Worldcall and back to Midas was Mohsin's flight path till death took him away so cruelly and so needlessly. To his friends who loved him to distraction, he was always the rascal, the Peter Pan in him always resilient and his irreverence about all things that reeked of authority, an endearing quality in a world full of men without much substance. To people like Lubna who worked with Mohsin non-stop for 15 years or more, he was the teacher, the one who opened the doors of advertising to her. "He taught me computers saying never to fear them and he taught me to have faith in my belief, my professionalism. Whatever I learnt began with him."

And that was Pir, always ready to share what he knew, always willing to do one more twist to what he knew best. He taught at colleges, forums and wherever he was called. He always shared what he had learnt, never holding back on nuggets that only a wide scale exposure to this art can provide. All you had to do was ask.

He loved beautiful women but was single-mindedly devoted to Guddi, the woman in his life. They had an easy, laid back relationship and were great buddies. He was the same with his two daughters – Ayesha and Sarah and when the grandchildren arrived, who could have asked for a more doting and caring grandfather? They have lost a great father but should take some heart that he was a most unusual man, generous to a fault and always willing to share even if he didn't have much, which is the real test as we all should know. Books were another passion and he was forever introducing me to his eclectic choice of fiction that he would sniff out. The Hitchhiker's Guide was one such book that he was immersed in just about all the time.

He was always a guide to so many who are in the industry and to all new challenges he was more than happy to meet half way. Voiceovers, parts in commercials – young man to grand daddy he managed it all – "actor, director and ticket collector," as he once put it. But in all this he maintained a healthy contempt for money. It was just paper necessary to pay mundane things like bills and rents. After years of rentals, when he finally built his own home, fate did not let him spend the rest of his days in that home of his. He had been there hardly a few months when tragedy struck. Some years ago, when he turned religious, he gave it the same passionate embrace that he did to just about whatever fell in his path, but while he practiced it with vigour, he never forced his views on any body least of all his friends. We forget those who walk amongst us far too easily. It is my hope and one that I think would be shared by many who knew him, that the industry institutes some awards for its best practitioners. The newly formed AAP – Advertising Association of Pakistan, the one truly representative body of advertising, should honor his memory and others like him – Lal Mian, S.H. Hashmi, Naseer Haider, and Umar Thanvi – I am sure they know the names. 

A few months back, Pir's father – both his parents survive him, called late at night and asked him to hurry over to his house the other end of town. "I think my time has come," when Pir questioned him. There was nothing Pir could do so he got into his car and soon enough was with Pir the Elder. "Pull up a chair son, I don't have much time." Pir obliged but as the long night ticked away there was no sign of Pir Sahib the Elder, making his way off the planet. By 6 am Mohsin had had enough. He gently prized his hand from his father's and said, "Abba Jee I don't think your time has come yet, so I am going home if you don't mind. As and when you get a positive call, let me know." Pir could pull off stunts like that.

Pir's time did come but it was no time to go. As we buried him on a half-dry half-rainy afternoon below a polluted and dust laden Lahore sky, one's heart went out to his loyal and long time wife and best friend Guddi, his two daughters and grandchildren. We cannot bring him back but we do know that he was a prince who walked with us and touched so many lives. As Mahmud Sipra wrote so eloquently from Dubai, "a peerless communicator". Rest in eternal peace my dear friend and abstain from making any campaigns for the facility you are undoubtedly grabbing with your usual enthusiasm and joy of living.

Copyrights are internationally regulated by the Agreement on Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPs) of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), to which Pakistan is also a signatory. Regarding copyrights, the TRIPs Agreement incorporates the substantive provisions of the Berne Convention 1971 and adds certain other provisions. The agreement sets out the minimum standard of protection to be provided by each member country. As for implementing the TRIPs Agreement's various provisions, the members are free to adopt appropriate methods. The salient features of the agreement with regard to copyrights are as follows:

1. Under Article 3 of the TRIPs Agreement, for protection of copyrights, a country shall not discriminate among its own nationals and those of other countries -- called the national treatment principle. Article 6 of the agreement makes it obligatory upon a member country to extend any favour or advantage given to the nationals of another member to those of other members -- called the most favoured nation (MFN) principle.

2. Article 8 empowers members to adopt measures to prevent the abuse of copyrights that unreasonably restrict trade or transfer of technology. However, such measures have to be consistent with the agreement.

3. Under Article 10, computer programmes are to be treated as literary works.

4. A copyright work is to be protected until 50 years after the death of the author. However, in certain cases, the term of protection is shorter.

5. Under Article 13, the grant of copyrights is subject to certain limitations and exceptions. However, these should not prejudice the legitimate interest of the right holder or prevent normal exploitation of the work.

In Pakistan, the Copyright Ordinance, 1962 as amended protects copyrights and neighbouring rights; the last amendment being in the year 2000, again vide a presidential ordinance.

The Copyright Ordinance protects the rights of the authors of original literary, musical, dramatic and artistic works, and the rights of performers, broadcasters and producers of films and sound recordings. Section 3 of the ordinance gives a comprehensive definition of copyright. Copyright is defined as the exclusive right to reproduce, adapt, translate, and publish a work and to restrain others from doing so without authorization. However, fair dealing with a work for research and criticism is allowed.

In case of literary and artistic works, copyright subsists until 50 years after the death of the author. In case of cinematographic works and sound recordings, the period is 50 years after the work was produced or published. The ordinance also protects the right of the authors of works produced outside Pakistan. Section 54 empowers the government to extend any provision of the ordnance to a foreign work.

Though copyright subsists the moment the work is created, registration is a prima facie evidence of its validity. Accordingly, section 43 sets up a Copyright Office headed by the Registrar for copyright registration. The office was previously an attached department of Ministry of Education. However, in 2004, an autonomous entity called Intellectual Property Organization of Pakistan was created for protection of intellectual property rights including copyrights. There is also a Copyright Board for the enforcement of copyrights sand dispute settlement. Headed by a chairman (qualified to be a high court judge); representatives of authors, publishers and film industry are also on the Board. Under Section 78, both the Board and the Registrar have the powers of a civil court.

The ordinance also allows authors to license or assign their work i.e., to transfer their right to reproduce or publish their work. There are also provisions of compulsory licensing. For example, under section 36, the federal government or the Copyright Board may allow a government or statutory institution to publish or translate a textbook on non-profit basis. Under the same section, permission may be granted to publish a work with due compensation to the author on the ground that the work is withheld from the public for no valid reason.

As for the safeguards against copyright infringement, both civil and criminal remedies have been provided. Under Section 60, the owner of a copyright is entitled to all such civil remedies as are available against the infringement of any other rights. These remedies are available by way of in- junction, damages and accounts enforceable through a decree of the court or the Board. Import or export of the infringing copies of a copyright work is not allowed (Section 60-A).

Regarding criminal remedies copyright infringement is a cognisable offence punishable under Section 66 with a three-year imprisonment or Rs 1, one lakh fine or both. Section 74 empowers the police to seize without warrants all infringing copies of a work.

Thus the copyright law of Pakistan has adequate provisions to safeguard copyrights. Though there are limitations and exceptions to enjoyment of these rights for instance provisions regarding compulsory licensing these are in public interest in keeping with the TRIPs Agreement. The law also in compliance with TRIPs Agreement protects works of foreign authors. Import or export of infringing copies is prohibited and infringement has been made a cognisable offence.

However, notwithstanding these legal safeguards, piracy is rampant in Pakistan. Most markets in the major cities inundated with pirated books, CDs and software. The serious piracy level in Pakistan cannot be attributed to the absence of a suitable legal framework. As stated above, the country's copyright provides effective safeguards against both software and hardware piracy. The fault lies not with the law per se but with its enforcement. The Copyright Office, Copyright Board and law enforcement agencies have not been able to effectively use powers given to them by various provisions of the law to curb piracy. Their performance needs to be improved, otherwise the country may face a serious action from its trading partners, particularly the USA and the EU for inadequate protection of copyrights of their nationals.

However important, administrative measures are not enough. Piracy is essentially a socio-economic problem. The price of original works is very high, in most cases beyond the purchasing power of potential customers. On the other hand, there is a strong demand for these works. This mismatch between demand and supply is met through piracy. Most of us faced with a choice between buying an original but expensive book or CD and a pirated but expensive copy of it will go for the latter. This is not a justification for piracy but only an explanation of it, which has to be taken into account in the efforts to protect copyrights.

Thus multinational companies (MNCs) instead of merely criticising the government of inadequate protection of copyrights should also help it by curtailing their profit margins and selling their copyright works at reduced prices. In other words, they should resort to price discrimination -- charging different price for the same product in different markets. As long as the price of copyright works remains high given a strong demand for them, even the best administrative efforts will not curb piracy.

The news of increase in Special Federal Excise Duty by one percent, 18 percent power tariff hike and 26 percent gas tariff increase have jolted the entire business community. These measures are announced when industry is on the verge of collapse. The expected increase in cost of doing business, after these steps, will be the final death blow for the entire economy. The government, instead of reducing wasteful expenses and bringing more people into the tax net, is increasing value of inputs utilised by the business houses, without realising its impact on common man's life. Businessmen can no longer recover the cost of various inputs from the end users -- the purchasing power of the masses is fast diminishing due to inflation and decrease in earning in real terms. The untapped avenues of resource mobilisation -- introduction of progressive taxes and increase in production -- are being totally ignored by the government. The result is overall industrial recession, closures of more and more units, rising unemployment and poverty.

The businessmen have rightly stressed upon the government to explore new avenues for broadening tax base instead of putting more pressure on the existing taxpayers. The proposed taxation measures in the second half of current fiscal year -- special excise duty (SED) from one percent to 2 percent and withholding tax on cash withdrawal from banks from 0.3 percent to 0.5 percent -- would further deteriorate the economic situation in the country. The enforcement strategy of the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has already created harassment among the business community. The government has gradually restored discretionary powers of the tax officials, which were available under the repealed Income Tax Ordinance of 1979. The President promulgated unlawfully Finance (Amendment) Ordinance, 2009 of 26-10-2009 when National Assembly was in session. It was done at the command of IMF and World Bank. In this Ordinance, section 177 of the Income Tax Ordinance has been amended giving unbridled powers to the newly designated 'Officers of Inland Revenue' to raid any business house without any reasons -- even where returns are accepted under section 120.

Undoubtedly, the government needs more financial resources to steer the country out of poverty and bring economic stability in the country. But it does not imply that the government should spend all its energies on exploiting the existing tax bases. Rather, it should take measures to expand the tax base as there exists enormous opportunities to broaden the tax net by eliminating tax exemptions. For example, agriculture accounts for 22 percent of the GDP but contributes just 1 to 2 percent to tax revenue. The government instead of giving bail-outs to ailing industrial units is increasing electricity and gas tariffs. These steps would push businessmen to the wall by exorbitantly increasing the cost of doing business. This situation would lead to closure of more industrial and manufacturing units, rendering thousands of workers jobless and making our exportable products highly uncompetitive in international markets.

The existing business environments do not justify increase in tariffs and taxes. The country is confronting several macro-economic challenges. The foreign direct investment (FDI) has already posted a decline of 53 percent and exports have fallen by 9 percent in the first four months of the current financial year. There is 75 percent decline in the IT sector alone. The business community is struggling for its very survival -- under immense pressure due to adverse environment, energy crisis, and devaluation of the currency. The incidents of theft and armed robberies, blockades at every avenue and terrorised population are the factor seriously hampering the business activities. Under these circumstances, irrational increases in utility tariffs and taxes will cause further deterioration in economic activities apart from discouraging any new investment.

It is a fact that our tax collectors have utterly failed to tap real tax potential. The mighty sections of society -- absentee landlords, politicians, generals -- are not paying due taxes on their incomes and wealth. Resultantly, the burden is shifted to the poor through levy of regressive taxes: sales tax and federal excise and petroleum development surcharge. These levies have pushed an overwhelming majority of Pakistanis towards the poverty line.

The FBR depends heavily on import-based taxation. It brings 40 percent revenue on landed cost of goods without any effort. It results not only in huge current account deficit but also unprecedented surge in imports of luxury goods. We should tax import of such luxury goods heavily and give relief to local industry. Instead of exporting yarn, we must concentrate on producing value added textile products. Paradigm shift is needed in all areas. FBR collected tax revenues to the tune of Rs. 1130 billion in fiscal year 2008-09, yet it was just 8.8 percent of GDP. On the one hand, we are not tapping the actual potential of taxes of Rs. 4000 billion and on the other whatever is collected is wasted by the ruling elite.

Due to huge fiscal deficit, the government borrows more and more money. The IMF and World Bank then impose their conditions. We must first put our house in order. The government must collect taxes of Rs. 4000 billion by bringing all persons having taxable income within the tax net. There should be no exemptions. Serious efforts should be made to use taxation as a catalyst for economic development and industrial growth rather than burdening the poor. We need progressive taxes, incidence of which is on the rich segments, rather than regressive taxes like Value Added Tax (VAT), being emphasised these days by the FBR at the dictates of IMF and World Bank. VAT, being regressive tax, will take larger portion of meagre income of a poor man but a very thin slice of a rich man's cake. Our rulers at the behest of IMF and World Bank are keen to levy more regressive taxes, knowing very well that these will not hit them. End users will bear the burden; they are not ready to pay income tax, wealth tax, estate duty, capital gain -- progressive taxes -- on their colossal incomes and wealth. If these taxes are imposed and collected, we can easily collect Rs. 4000 billion and there will be no need to burden the masses with VAT, FED and other regressive taxes.

According to official figures, the contribution of income tax -- although major portion of it is now composed of indirect levies or expenditure taxes as percentage of GDP is continuously declining; it was merely 2.2 percent in 2008-9, 2.4 percent in 2007-08, 2.8 percent in 2006-07, 3.01 percent in 2005-2006, whereas in 2004-2005 it was 3.15 percent (FBR Year Books 2004-05 to 2006-07 and Economic Survey 2007-08 and 2008-09). These figures establish beyond any doubt that rich segments of society are paying negligible tax.

The sole reliance on indirect taxes that constitute over 78 percent of total collection proves beyond any doubt that the tax system is directly contributing to rising cost of doing business and abject poverty. People who possess enormous income and wealth are not being subjected to income taxation (wealth tax and other progressive taxes like capital gain tax, gift tax and estate duty). Thus, the very purpose of taxation as a tool for redistribution of wealth is being defeated.

Indisputably, the prevalent economic and tax policies are detrimental for business and industry. Those who possess more economic power (income and wealth) should contribute more to the public exchequer and vice versa. In Pakistan it is the other way around. It is tragic that in a country where billions of rupees are earned by the rich absentee landlords as rent of land and orchards, enormous money is made in speculative transactions; tax-to-GDP ratio is pathetically low at 8.8 percent. The priority of government should be improving productivity and economic growth that will ultimately lead to more revenue generation. At present, our economy is faced with a dilemma, where it can neither afford to give any meaningful tax relief package to the common people, trade and industry (due to huge fiscal deficit) nor can it achieve a satisfactory level of economic growth (due to retrogressive tax measures). This is a vicious circle that the government needs to break. It must come out of this tangle to make Pakistan a competitive economy where investors, both domestic and foreign, find satisfactory conditions to live and invest.

The writers, tax lawyers, teach at Lahore University of Management Sciences

The tragic murder of comrade Nisar Baloch on November 7, 2009 is not the first atrocity committed against crusaders of public causes in Karachi. Many activists and their kins have lost their life and limb in bids to safeguard public lands.

The shady attempt to dispose of Gutter Baghicha is only one of the several moves to grab land by quasi official actors. Many other examples highlight the trend: The clandestine moves to privatise the coastal belt of the city and open it to real estate development of an elite kind; reckless sale of land along the Northern Bypass, unabated pressure on Pakistan Railways to sell its priceless land assets to "offset" its financial losses, mindless creation of factory built hawker stalls and placement along public open spaces and the creation of a plush housing scheme for military officers adjacent to National Stadium are all examples of non-transparent land transactions without any logical reasoning or reference to urban planning practices.

The policy makers, including members of legislature, view land as a commodity, which can be traded to obtain short-term financial gains. This is not correct from an urban planning and sociological perspective. Land is a finite asset which can only be used for public benefits. Its utilisation is best determined through a professionally sound and socially appropriate planning process. A healthy urban life cannot be imagined without a proper utilisation policy for land with a detailed master plan to lay down all the proposed functions in relation to existing constraints and potentials.

Given the ongoing crisis of infrastructural decay, poor governance and declining urban management capacities, it is crucial that any new venture must be examined for its operational viability and sustainability in the short and long term periods. For example, the Karachi Port Trust has begun the unabated process of land reclamation along the Mai Kolachi Bypass. This area has been the site of backwater and thick mangrove vegetation for ages. The British had left this area open due to the fact that water from the port would enter this area through Chinna Creek and after interface with the marine forests, get finished and cleaned. This natural ocean cleansing operation has been completely disrupted due to the reckless land reclamation for anticipated real estate development.

Similarly, the federal government acquired an exceptionally wide land strip for the construction of Lyari Expressway (16.5 kilometer stretch from the port to Sohrab Goth). The allotment has created the lucrative provision of over 1.8 million square yards of land for real estate. It is important to note that none of these lands have been allotted or utilised according to any openly pursued or applied land-use policy for the city.

During the reign of an enthusiastic Chief Controller of Buildings, the Karachi Building Control Agency (KBCA) developed a colourful land-use plan for the Northern Bypass. Townships for jurists, government officers, diplomats and other influential lobbies were outlined. To please the all powerful lobby of builders and developers, half a dozen towns with politically-correct nomenclature were earmarked. This fantastic scheme was unveiled in a crowded exhibition on housing industry during 2005; and this despite the fact that KBCA has no direct role in planning process.

Decision making pertinent to urban lands has remained highly centralised. One finds the federal government departments or the chief executive of the country directly fiddling with the allotment procedures. Few years ago, the management of Sindh Industrial and Trading Estate (SITE) was unnecessarily pressurised to accommodate the political favourites in land allotment in one of the new emerging industrial schemes.

As per rules, the chief minister possesses the discretionary power to allot land to any party as he deems appropriate. It is deplorable to note that these powers have been used most injudiciously in the past. From 1985 to 1993, four chief ministers of Sindh allotted land in Karachi worth more than six billion rupees to cronies or party favourites.

The institutionalised procedures of land allotment are also not free from corruption. The standard procedure is through balloting. People are free to fill any number of application forms as they can afford. Thus rich people file dozens of applications by specifying different names of their family members, relations or even servants. The probability of computer ballot automatically increases compared to the poor and needy who file only one application with great financial hardship. As a result, schemes for low income groups become the high ground for speculation.

It was found that land policies do not reflect the range of quasi-legal situations existing between formal and informal housing. Various intermediate situations have been discovered in the land and housing scenario which cannot be described as legal from the statutory standpoint. As per standard definitions, the land or housing which is formally registered through the offices of registrar after completion of formalities related to the title are recognized as legal properties. According to another definition, the property which can be accepted by a housing finance institution for mortgage financing is a legally valid property.

Spot field studies have shown that there are many lacunae where land and housing units fall short of meeting any of the two conditions. In reference to land, the plots floated in any scheme of development authorities, legally-constituted cooperative societies or any other land owning agency are termed as formally titled land. Legality of such land parcels is only verified and accepted when the leasing conditions of the concerne neighbourhood/locality are completely fulfilled. katchi abadies which have been approved for regularisation but await the initiation of leasing process; neighbourhoods which await the notification of amelioration plans; localities where change of land use has taken place and areas that have a change of status or jurisdiction are only a few types which cannot be compared with a normally leased area. Owners and prospective buyers have to suffer due to indifference of planning and development agencies. However powerful groups acquire such properties at lower prices and harass the stakeholders, including legal heirs, to submit to their demands.

Land and housing floating mechanism is so designed that speculation automatically evolves in the process. Land development agencies from civilian and military domain allot land parcels at a very low selling price. As the owner completes the formalities, he already possesses the opportunity of delaying construction and accruing profits on idle land. Since powerful interest groups are averse to changes as they benefit from this in-built procedural defect.

Regulatory controls in the form of non-utilisation fees or any other form of levies are either non-enforceable or too miniscule to bother the property owners. A simple outcome is the artificial rise in property demands that results in a rush supply of land and housing without any urban planning blue print. Land sales along Super Highway, Defence Housing Authority and space along major transportation projects are examples. These instances render land management and control to be an even more uphill task.

It may also be understood that an absolutely uncontrolled market mechanism soon becomes a detrimental entity for the stakeholders. In Karachi, the impotence of land control bodies has been historical. Vested interests, in connivance with government functionaries, have managed to keep planning agencies and building/town planning control departments separate from each other. Thus urban planning, wherever and whenever performed, only becomes a ritual. Nobody is bound or regulated to follow its prescriptions.

It is assumed that by revising the statutes and regulations of building and town planning, land management strategies would emerge automatically. The realities are otherwise. Building and town planning controls affect a small minority of urban areas of the city. Federal districts, cantonments and military estates, port authorities, railways, katchi abadies are not under the writ of building control mechanism of the city. Thus the land market and construction boom generated from these locations soon exert pressure on other city areas. Building code violations, blatant changes in land use and mindless adoption of street commercialisation policies play havoc in the domain of land control.

The current scenario demands various actions without any further delay. It is an established fact that land is a finite asset which requires careful utilisation, largely on the basis of social needs. Any land transaction that is initiated must be finalised after inviting views and observations from the concerned stakeholders. To instill transparency in the routine processes, the various government departments, including the military authorities, must be requested to publish the details of the land owned or controlled by them. The provincial and city government must create an autonomous planning agency for Karachi to deal with land management, infrastructure and planning issues for the city. This step shall greatly help streamline the otherwise haywire scenario of misappropriation and ill-managed utilisation of land in Karachi.

Disaster preparedness at all levels and early warning systems must be on our priority list now. A lot of work is required to be done to ensure this. A price of non-action is much higher in the form of life and livelihoods than what is required to adapt to the change which is inevitable. The greatest challenge of the world today is our changing global climate. A dilemma for world economies, how can we reduce the Green House Gases (GHGs) responsible for global warming while striving for our economic growth and sustainable development? Developing countries are far more vulnerable to climate change due to lack of resources and capacities to cope against hazards. Being at the bottom of the rung, the poorest of the developing countries will be hit earliest and hardest.

Did the climate start changing last year, or the year before that? A subject that has undergone as many moulds as the changing weather, the climate with its unprecedented variability and impact has started showing its moods more evidently since the last decade. Taking an extremist approach in the form of intense heat waves, droughts, floods and epidemics, it affects our lives severely. No longer limited to being a theme for global deliberation between climatologists, or Greenpeace protesting over the ozone, it has taken center stage, it is here to stay.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) assessment reports 2001 and 2007, the Stern Review, and 'An Inconvenient Truth' -- the excellent documentary by Al Gore all bear testimony to the brewing emergency. The changing climate causes several risks which in turn invite disasters, making us highly vulnerable. In our region, the poor bear the brunt of such shocks. The cost of inaction is high due to high costs associated to hazards which turn into disasters. A cheaper option would be to integrate climate change adaptation and mitigation interventions in the ongoing development programmes.

Intercooperation (IC), a Swiss Foundation for Development and International Cooperation (SDC) under its Livelihoods Programme (funded by SDC) conducted a series of workshops on the subject this August in Pakistan. Experts from Asian Disaster Preparedness Centre (ADPC), Pakistan Meteorological Department, Global Impact Studies Centre (GCISC), Islamabad, WFP and host of other national organisations shared views. Being a learning experience for all involved, the events helped provide a direction for the senior policy makers from the NWFP government. The training opportunities on the basics and on mainstreaming this theme into development projects were highly welcomed by the senior and mid-level management personnel.

Some of the indicators of climate change could be increased temperatures in most parts of the country, changes in precipitation in an uneven pattern, melting of glaciers, rise of sea level, increased frequency and intensity of extreme weather events. These will result in uncertain water availability and stream flows, reduction in crop yields, newer perspectives for energy (e.g. solar, nuclear), loss of biodiversity and increased risks to human lives. The Centre for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters (CRED) Brussels: Annual Disasters Statistical Review 2007 suggests that while the extreme climatic events in the form of hydro meteorological disasters (floods, cyclones and droughts, etc.) as caused by climate change variability have increased all over the world, these disasters have become more frequent also in Pakistan.

Increasing frequencies of the climatic variabilities are strongly associated with the disasters which have major implication for rural population in Pakistan. Those which are largely dependent on climate sensitive natural resources particularly agriculture and hence face immense problems in food production ultimately in their livelihoods.

Pakistan is not a large contributor to greenhouse gas emissions but globally it is one of those countries which are highly vulnerable to impacts of climate. The Clean Development Mechanism is a great opportunity for Pakistan but it stands untapped. Being a latecomer in this mechanism, (Kyoto was signed only in 2005), through this several potential areas can be looked into for selling reduction of greenhouse gases as credits. These financial benefits, in a flexible market mechanism, can bring a substantial benefit to the country in the form of additional revenue, technology transfer and added sustainable development practices. Energy, transport, and forestry can bring the most wanted and significant start in this regard.

Rain-fed mountains and dry land agriculture contribute less than 30 percent to the national food basket. Yet agricultural production in these areas is a basic source for meeting the subsistence need of farmers. Our production system is not strong enough to support itself due to environmental fragility. With increasing risks of droughts and flash floods, these areas will be most affected and hence subsistence economy will be hard hit, resulting in displacement of people (climate refugees) and an increased burden on irrigated agriculture for feeding the growing population.

As Pakistan's graph for natural disasters has risen over the last few decades; there has been a normal tendency to attend to a 'post disaster situation' in the form of providing relief and rehabilitation. Little has been done on preparedness and risk reduction measures in order to minimise both the impact and the risks from these catastrophes or when disasters occur, there being enough resources to face them. Two concepts are necessary to understand here: This term has a different meaning in the context of climate change and disaster risk reduction (DRR). In the context of climate change, it refers to the measures that can help reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the atmosphere, e.g., less use of fossil fuels through introduction of new technologies for improved efficiency, alternate cleaner technologies and energy resources, etc.

How do we adapt ourselves to the changing scenario of the climate? For instance, if we know that the growing seasons are now different from the past, or that we have lesser water than we used to have for our crops, how do we adapt our cropping practices? We may need to change varieties, farming systems or cultural practices.

For addressing the DRR and climate change in a holistic way, it would be necessary to assess the possible impact of climate change and also to assess vulnerabilities, especially the coping capacities of the communities to adapt to these threats. Managing climate risks has existed for some time but pro-actively managing risks through the use of scientifically-generated climate information is a recent development. Climate information may be grouped into four broad categories, namely 1) historical climate data, 2) current climate information (real-time), observable trends; 3), climate forecasts (medium-range, extended range, and seasonal), and 4) long-term climate change scenarios. Climate information provides institutions with tools to understand, anticipate, and respond to the opportunities and challenges brought about by the climatic system.

The Foreign Office together with the Ministry of Environment represents Pakistan during international events and negotiations. They have an important role to play. They should be well versed with the subject and well informed about the national priorities at levels including the needs of the rural and urban communities. This would only be possible if the delegation from Pakistan conducts consultative meetings with the experts, involving the relevant stakeholders before the meeting. On their way back it is necessary that they provide feedback on the conclusions and outcomes of the negotiations, along with the implications for Pakistan. Ideally, the delegation attending such negotiations should not only defend Pakistan's position in global articulation but also play an active role on its return to guide the main players eventually working in this important arena. The readers of this paper must take note that UN Climate Change Conference (COP15) is being held in December in Copenhagen and Pakistan is sending an official delegation to attend the conference.

Politicians, media people and the common masses must be made aware of the nature and level of climate change. Many of us still consider this topic as a far-fetched global discussion. At the same time, community-based awareness is a must. Indigenous knowledge on this issue is a great asset that should be utilised for addressing and adapting to the climate change and variability. Complementing this with scientific knowledge is important so that we fully understand the issue and pass on the knowledge and proposed actions to the policy-makers and politicians to take timely decisions. Early warning system is one tool that can make an effective use of the existing indigenous knowledge in the community.

Pakistan lags far behind in integrating climate change considerations into development planning, policies, and actions. There has been limited work done to promote scientific research, same goes for mitigation and adaptation. Pakistan has hardly any local capacity in developing CDM projects due to which we do not get to receive much benefit which we could as a country through carbon financing.

We have not developed a strategy on climate change adaptation. The issue of vulnerability has not been studied at all so that we know who is the most vulnerable to climate change and who are at the largest risk to the changing climate/variability in the country. Pakistan being largely an agrarian economy with a large population (more than 60 percent) dependent on agriculture especially in the rural areas, is at risk to the impact of climate change and related hazards. The most urgent need is to attend to the issue of food security in the country in the changing scenario and hence agriculture sector should look into methods of adaptation without loss of time.

Disaster risk management is an entry point to climate change adaptation. We must start with 'us'. In our own capacity we need to influence whatever action plans our organisations prepare and implement. We need to integrate climate change/DRR related activities into our work. Some of the sectors may be more vulnerable than others and some may offer support roles. Water and agriculture are the most vulnerable sectors which can step in to reduce vulnerability of farmers and nation as a whole.

The recently tabled, The Punjab Healthcare Bill in the Punjab Assembly to regulate the public and private health sector has triggered a new controversy. The campaign against the bill, led by doctors doing private practice at private health facilities of the province, has termed the proposed legislation as "faulty". According to government figures, there are about 250 hospitals (public and private) and about 25,000 other medical facilities, excluding traditional and herbal practitioners in the province.

The Punjab Assembly's treasury introduced the bill on November 8, 2009, to set up a healthcare commission and appoint a health ombudsman to take up and redress public complaints regarding healthcare services. The bill seeks to ensure organisational standards of health service, clinical governance, patients' rights, inspection, audit and investigation, for promoting effective and efficient resource use. Under the proposed law, the commission will have powers of imposing fine of up to Rs five million on healthcare providers and order closure of the facility if it is found to be dangerous or detrimental to any person and shows maladministration or failure in the provision of healthcare services.

A reading of the draft shows that the inspectors appointed by the commission may enter a health-related facility even without carrying warrants and the person hindering them shall be liable to up to Rs five million. The ombudsman may investigate allegations of maladministration or malpractice on the part of healthcare service providers, or the commission, or any officers or employees of the healthcare provider or the commission and will have the powers of a civil court in summoning any person and issuing commission for the examination of witnesses. "The bill aims at regulating the unregulated healthcare sector in public and private sector with a view to curb unethical medical practice and improve the standard of healthcare in the province," the Punjab Health Secretary Anwar Ahmed Khan tells TNS.

The proposed bill is the work of a consultant of international repute from Oxford Policy Management (OPM), UK, Mike Naylor, who came out with a 150-page document in consultation with all stakeholders. Private health facilities in the country remains unregulated for the last 62 years. A lobby of doctors has opposed the proposed bill and held protests, claiming that the number of patients in the country is high and the government is unable to provide health facilities. Doctors want open competition rather than agreeing upon the categorisation and streamlining of the functioning of the private health facilities.

During the last government's tenure, the three provinces: NWFP, Balochistan and Sindh, except Punjab, imposed certain restrictions on private hospitals and clinics through ordinances. These ordinances not only govern the functioning of existing hospitals but also lay down certain parameters to regulate private health facilities. However, these laws are not implemented in a letter and spirit. Only in Sindh, according to law, doctors serving in the private sector are not eligible for government service. This development also sparked unrest in the medical community of Sindh almost a year ago.

Many principals and chief executives of public sector medical colleges and teaching hospitals across the country reportedly run private hospitals, or do private practice. According to an estimate, 2,600 government doctors in Punjab are getting (non) private-practice allowance but they are running private clinics. Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC), a body that registers doctors and their qualifications in Pakistan, also cannot intervene in the affairs of private hospitals, says Prof Dr Syed Sibtul Hasnain, council president and former principal Allama Iqbal Medical College Lahore.

Doctors term the bill "poorly written", and a product of perfunctory analysis that provides the proposed commission with draconian powers but little responsibility or accountability. Doctors are threatening to give a strike call across the province. "These include licensing powers to healthcare service providers, a job that is already performed by the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council. The bill also includes within the Commission's purview monitoring and regulation of quality and standards of healthcare services. Doctors say the role of medical inspector is also controversial as there was no basic qualification recommended for them.

Doctors also demand proper qualification of the proposed board and health commissioners. Doctors fear exploitation by the commission as there is no accountability mechanism of the commission itself. The bill protects the Commission and its personnel from any liability under a court of law and limits the ability of the healthcare provider to appeal to only five of the numerous actions that the Commission may take against him.

Dr Javed Asgher, chairman Doctors' Hospital, tells TNS that the leading private health facilities have proposed an alternative healthcare commission to tell the government they want regulation but a transparent one. "An independent commission called Punjab Healthcare Commission should be constituted." "The functions and powers of the commission can be to maintain a register of all healthcare service providers and grant, cancel, and renew registration/licenses of healthcare services, etc. The commission shall be able to revoke license of any health service provider if, after due enquiry, they are found to have violated the terms of their license. Any penalties against the healthcare providers must be ordered by court of law, he maintains.

Doctors doing private practice want change in the constitution of the Commission. They want the board to consist of seven Commissioners who will elect Chief Executive Officer and that the government should not appoint any Commissioner. Those contesting for the above post should have minimum of twenty years experience in the field of healthcare. The commissioners shall serve for a period of five years and two commissioners shall be replaced every two years so that the total number remains seven.

Rejecting the concerns of the private doctors, the health secretary says the commission will not go into punitive mode right away. Presently, there is no regulatory body to check quackery and other malpractices in medical profession, he added. According to Dr Muhammad Rafique Chaudhry, President of Private Hospitals Association (PHA), Lahore, there are no regulations or registration process of private hospitals. A few years ago, the PHA wrote to the chief minister to take up the issue but no serious efforts were made.

Ruling out the protest of doctors from the private sector, the Punjab Health Secretary says, "The commission will be an independent and separate entity completely free of external influence by the government or other channels." It would inspect health facilities in the public and private sector in an extremely impartial and systematic manner with an ultimate objective to regulate the delivery of healthcare services in Punjab, he maintains, adding the government will try its best to follow international standards. He negates reports that the commission will be conducting raids through traditional inspectors, such as from health, food, or customs departments, etc.

In Punjab, the government has been unsuccessful to formulate a regulatory authority for private hospitals. An effort was made in the year 2000 when the caretaker set up of Punjab, under the Musharraf regime, tried to bring a law to regulate the private health sector and private practice of doctors. But all went in vain. Late Dr Mahmood Ahmed Chaudhry, founder of University of Health Sciences (UHS), during his tenure as Punjab Health Minister (1999-2002) made an attempt to abolish private practice of government doctors.

In 2005, Jehanara Ijaz, a 16-year-old daughter of a country manager of a private bank in Pakistan lost her life, allegedly, due to the negligence of doctors at one of the most visited private hospitals in Lahore. This caused the government to conduct an inquiry. The inquiry committee recommended forming a regulatory authority to run the affairs of private hospitals. But no legislation was passed. The case of the current government does not seem different from the previous ones. Will there be a transparent, independent, dutiful commission to fairly regulate the public and private health sector in the Punjab? Or will the government again succumb to the pressures of powerful lobby?