Pakistani girl to be torch-bearer at London Olympics

Zainab Imran

KARACHI: When young Zainab Imran puts on her running shoes on June 28, she will be doing it for her country and her people. The 16-year-old Karachi girl, a student of Nasra Trust School, Malir, will be carrying the Olympic torch as it makes its way to London.

Zainab, who has only recently done her Matric, is one of 21 people selected as torch-bearers from Azerbaijan, Brazil, Bangladesh, Egypt, Ethiopia, Ghana, Jordan, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mozambique, Nigeria, Palau, South Africa, Tanzania, Turkey, Trinidad and Tobago, Uganda and Zambia through the International Inspiration programme.

The programme looks to use the power of sport to enrich the lives of tens of millions of children, young people and grown-ups, too, of all abilities in schools and communities across the world, particularly in developing countries, by offering them the opportunity to access and participate in high-quality and inclusive sport, physical education and play.

“There are young as well as older people [who have been] selected as torch-bearers through the programme and I’m the only one from Pakistan,” teenaged Zainab, who will be flying off to Nottingham on Sunday, excitedly told Dawn. “The oldest person selected as torch-bearer through the programme is a 53-year-old,” she added.

Each International Inspiration torch-bearer was selected either for their dedication and commitment to inspire children and young people in their communities through the power of sport or for the personal challenges they have overcome in their lives.

Zainab, who was nominated by the Nasra Trust School after she demonstrated strong leadership qualities, is also a member of the Young Leader of International Inspiration Club. She has taken Young Sport Leadership training and is also very active to cascade this training in her local community.

The spirited all-rounder enjoys playing netball for her school team. She has also done volunteer work as coordinator for the Sindh Institute of Urology and Transplantation (SIUT), she said. “Then I regularly take part in Dawn’s Spelling Bee competitions, although I’ve yet to win it,” she chuckled. “But I got a position in the Pak-Turk Math Olympiad. I was 20th,” she said with pride.

About her selection, the young leader informed that she had to go through an entire process. “My school, as you may know, is one of British Council’s partner schools also taking part in the International Inspiration programme. So we, the students of Nasra Trust School, were given questionnaires to fill out. From there I was shortlisted for interviews, and I guess my interview must have gone pretty well because I got selected,” she remarked. The school partnerships are managed by the British Council, which has extensive experience of linking schools internationally, working in partnership with the Youth Sport Trust, which utilises its expertise in developing teachers and young leaders through sport.

Asked if she has trained well for the Olympic relay, Zainab laughed, saying: “Well, I think so. Although I am not as yet sure what distance and exact route I’ll be taking. That will be disclosed to me after I reach Nottingham.”

But what she is sure of is that she will be running in an area in Nottingham, which has a big Pakistani community, who will be cheering her all the way. She would be needing that, too, as she is travelling alone to the UK, and that, also, for the very first time.

News Details: Dawn News

World Telecom Day Celebrated in Pakistan

Pakistan, along with the whole world, celebrated Telecommunication and Information Society Day (WTISD) on 17 May.

Theme for this year’s WTISD was: “Women and Girls in ICT”.

Telecom day is commemorated under the banner of ITU – United Nation’s body for information and communication technology – and celebrations stretch all over the world.

The purpose of World Telecom Day is to help raise awareness of the possibilities that the use of the Internet and other information and communication technologies (ICT) can bring to societies and economies, as well as of ways to bridge the digital divide.

There went several events in Pakistan, particularly in capital, to commemorate the day. The most significant of which was organized by Ministry of Information Technology at Pak China Center where Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gillani was the chief guest.

PM on the occasion announced a fund of Rs. 300 million for girls studying Information Technology (IT). He also announced the establishment of an IT center for women in Islamabad. This center will be named in honor of computer prodigy Arfa Karim, who became the youngest Microsoft Certified Professional in 2004 and remained so until 2008.

Prime Minister on the occasion also announced the creation of a venture capital of Rs. 1 billion, which he believes will encourage innovation, entrepreneurship research and development in the IT industry.

The government, he added, has established more than 1,000 educational and community broadband centers across the country, including some of the remotest areas.

Prime Minister, during the event, also inaugurated Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL) celebration of achieving Pakistan’s first one million Broadband customers.

IT and Telecom Minister Raja Pervaiz Ashraf, also present on the occasion said, “I believe that we can harness the power of information technology by focusing on improving the capacity of women, especially in underdeveloped and rural areas.”

Secretary IT & Telecom, Farooq Ahmed Awan also shared his thoughts at the event. Mr. Awan briefed the attendees about ongoing projects and said that the sector has shown marvelous achievements during the last four years.

He claimed that currently there are 1700 IT companies operating in Pakistan which is a symbol of customer service providers’ trust on the policies and services of the ministry and its allied departments.

Chairman PTA, Dr. Muhammad Yaseen also issued a statement on Telecom Day saying that almost 92 percent of population in the country has access to telecom services.

He said there are still many areas in the country where despite the prevalence of favorable telecom regime the fruits of Information Communication Technologies (ICTs) are not accessible to many especially the women.

Societies cannot develop without equal contribution by all segments, he said and added this year, 2012, the theme of World Telecom and Information Society Day (WTISD) “Women and Girls in ICT” is prove to the fact how critical it is to empower women to be a progressive nation.

In connection with World Telecom day celebrations, this year Secretary General ITU, Dr. Hamadoun Toure was in Pakistan for around a week. He visited various IT companies, PTA headquarters, and Ministry of Information Technology.

Pak Datacom also organized a event at Marriott Hotel to honor Secretary General ITU. The event highlighted the communal vision of ITU and Pakistan’s IT sector i.e. “Committed to Connecting Pakistan”.

News Details: ProPakistani

School in Karachi named after Malala Yousufzai

Karachi: Sindh Education Minister Pir Mazharul Haq on Monday formally named Government Girls School Mission Road after Malala Yousuf Zai, a nominee of International Children Peace Prize.

During a ceremony to officially name the school after Yousufzai, a young girl of Swat who braved hardship and Taliban atrocities to go to school,  Pir Mazhar hand over a cheque of Rs5 lacks to Malal Yousufzai. Deputy Speaker Sindh Assembly Shehla Raza, Sindh Information Minister of Sindh Shazia Muree and other were also present on the occasion.

On the occasion, Malala said that she will continue working for promotion of girls’ education.

News Details: The News Tribe

Earlier, National Peace Award for Malala Yousufzai

Pakistani woman conferred “International Women of Courage” award

Washington: Pakistani woman activist from Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa has been conferred with the International Women of Courage award by the US.

Shad Begum was presented the award by US First Lady Michelle Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at a ceremony on Thursday, which was also attended by Pakistan’s Ambassador to the US Sherry Rehman.

Shad Begum is a courageous human rights activist and leader who has changed the political context for women in the extremely conservative district of Dir, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

As founder and executive director of Association for Behavior and Knowledge Transformation (ABKT), Ms. Shad provides political training, microcredit, primary education, and health services to women in the most conservative areas of Pakistan.

Ms. Shad not only empowered the women of Dir to vote and run for office, she herself ran and won local seats in the 2001 and 2005 elections against local conservatives who tried to ban female participation. Despite threats, Ms. Shad continues to work out of Peshawar to improve the lives of women in the communities of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

News Details: The News Tribe

PkStories: Mrs Kubra Amjad

“Hey, look ­— an aunty is driving a van!” This is what a young boy hollers as he calls his friends to see the unfamiliar sight in front of him.

He isn’t the only one to have reacted in this fashion, and people ranging from parents to bus drivers have been astounded upon seeing Mrs Kubra Amjad drive her school van. Driving since 2007, she says that she and her van have elicited this reaction many a times. “Once a group of youngsters were driving past my van, they stopped in the middle of the road, got out of their car and gave me a thumbs up, saying, ‘Way to go aunty! Keep it up!’ That was a really proud moment for me,” she says with a smile.

Her life was smooth sailing, even without her making any contribution to the household finances, until her husband died of a sudden heart attack. Her life changed dramatically after that. Widowed and without much money, she had to struggle to support herself.

Initially, her family came to her aid and took her in. She accepted their support till the time she came to terms with the mishap that had befallen her. When she was emotionally stable enough to take charge of things, she decided she would go back home and fend for herself. Her family tried to persuade her not to leave and live alone, offering to take care of everything. But she insisted that she had to find her own way to make ends meet. “I am very blessed to have such a wonderful family, but that was not the life I wanted for myself. I didn’t want to lose my identity and become a burden on anyone,” she explains.

Although trained as an Association Montessori Internationale  teacher, she couldn’t pursue her line of work due to her chronic back problem which wouldn’t allow her to stand for too long. Instead, she thought about using her van to earn a respectable living for herself, by driving students to school.

In her favour, the parents of young children felt much more comfortable sending their little ones under the supervision of an educated lady rather than regular drivers. She started off with just one passenger, a girl from her neighbourhood, and gradually the number rose to 25.

When she shared this new business proposition with her family, they discouraged her, saying she should either accept their financial help or else take up teaching since driving a van was neither lady-like nor socially acceptable. Giggling at the memory, she relates what she told them: “For a halal income, even if I have to become a vegetable vendor, I will do it. I know there’s nothing wrong in what I am doing and being around the kids gives me immense joy.”

Despite the cynicism of those around her, she says this profession didn’t really present any serious challenge. Of course, she faced her set of difficulties, but at the same time she received a massive amount of appreciation from the parents of the children she picks and drops. Speaking of her difficulties, she mentions a certain van driver who couldn’t accept her in this line of work, and was always picking fights and trying to get her children to leave her van. But the support she got from others encouraged her to carry on.

“There have been times when a parent has said harsh words to me and it does hurt a lot, especially if I am not at fault. But that’s a part of my job,” she adds, consoling herself. Moreover, she feels extremely grateful when the traffic police, whom everyone in Karachi seems to complain about, greet her and respect her by going out of their way to help her if the need arises.

If there’s one thing Kubra is clear about, it’s that women should try to earn their own income no matter how meagre it may be. “Plan wisely, utilise your skills to mould your own identity, and be self-reliant. Whether it is a job or a business, choose one that gives you respect and happiness. You might not be encouraged by others in the beginning, but if you stay resolute, you will eventually earn acceptance,” she advises.

“A helping hand can go away as soon as it came, and then you are left worse off than before,” she says. With a steady hand on the steering wheel, it’s clear that Kubra is one lady who knows which road she wants to be on, and isn’t afraid of a few bumps in the way.

Details: ETribune

Pakistani director Sharmeen Obaid wins Oscar Award

Los Angeles: For the first time in the 84 year history of ‘Oscar Award’, world’s prestigious award, Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy, a Pakistani director has won ‘Oscar Award’ for her documentary film ‘Saving face’.

Chennai present at the occasion said that she wanted to dedicate her award to all those who worked in the film. “For all those women in Pakistan working for change this is for you” she added.

The story of the documentary film was based on Pakistani women who suffered from the acid attacks on their faces. Former MNA Marvi Memon also participated in the film.

The film was released in the year 2011. The film stars and other people related to showbiz in Pakistan have appreciated the effort of Sharmeen to raise voice for the deprived women in Pakistan.

News Details: The News Tribe

Sharmeen Obaid is the first non-American to win the Livingston Award, She also won Emmy Award in 2010.

ProPakistani Tribute to Arfa Karim

 ProPakistani is largely known for publishing exclusive and topnotch content relating to local telecom and broadband industry.Their site is http://propakistani.pk.

ProPakistani Published a special report  about Arfa Karim, Few selected parts of this article are mentioned below for details Kindly visit this link "ProPakistan.com" 

Arfa Karim; it’s a name that needs no introduction. She made the nation proud when she became the youngest ever Microsoft Certified Professional (MCP) in 2004 at the age of 9.

"“Actually when I was six years old, I saw my first computer; whenever you see something new you want to find, what is it? How does is it work? So I used to mess around and I got to know quite a lot of things about it from the hit and trial method and in about two years I got to know how to operate windows and different software’s completely." : Arfa,

Arfa won numerous awards and accolades. Among the ones awarded by the government were the Fatima Jinnah Gold Medal in the field of Science and Technology, the Salam Pakistan Youth Award and the Presidents Award for Pride of Performance of which she was the youngest recipient ever.

Arfa represented Pakistan on various international forums like the IT Professionals of Dubai in which she was given various medals and awards. In 2006, she was invited by Microsoft to be a part of the keynote session in the Tech-Ed Developers conference held in Barcelona. The theme of the conference was “Get ahead of the game” and she was the only Pakistani in more than 5000 developers in that conference.

Arfa was proud of her achievement and even put “Youngest MCP in the world” in her email signature. Her dreams were to study at Harvard, work in a company like Microsoft and return to Pakistan to revolutionize the field of satellite engineering.

It’s a pity that she died so young. Our thoughts and hearts go out to her family who must be devastated at her loss. May Allah grant her a place in heaven.

National Peace Award to Malala Yousufzai

 Islamabad: Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani has given National Peace Award to Malala  Yousufzai, a class 8th student from Swat who has been nominated for International Peace Award for Children for her work for peace and education.
Gilani on November 24 had announced Rs.500,000 reward for Malala  Yousufzai and directed the Cabinet Division to announce National Peace Awards for Children for their work for peace and education.
Malala,13,  had written a  diary with a pen name for the BBC Urdu service in the days Taliban were the de facto rulers of the region .

News Details: The News Tribe

Malala Yousufzai was runner-up for International Children's Peace Prize

Pakistan won South Asian Karate Championship

Pakistan Karate squad grabbed first position by defeating strong India in the team Championship final besides winning seven gold medals, four silver and four bronze medals in the South Asian Karate Championship to stand first overall at the points table of the South Asian Karate Championship played at New Delhi, India.

The 17-member Pakistani Karate squad including six female players gave stunning performances in various categories in the first South Asian Karate Championship

Benish Akbar recorded first gold medals in -50kg, Kulsoom got gold medal in -69kg, Uzma Asghar claimed silver medal in -55kg besides the teams comprising Uzma, Benish Akbar and Kalsoom took bronze medal. In the Individual Kata, Kulsoom won bronze medal.

Ramzan also has the honor of winning gold medal in the last South Asian Games held in Dhaka, Bangladesh.

News Details: The News Tribe

Pakistan Women team qualifies for Cricket WC 2013

Pakistan women team entered into the semifinal of ICC Women’s World Cup Qualifier after beating the Netherlands by 193 runs in the quarterfinals being played at Narayanganj Osmani Stadium, Fatullah Dhaka.
With this victory Pakistan Women team qualified for the ICC Women’s World Cup 2013 scheduled in India and for ICC T20 Championship scheduled to be played in 2012 in Sri Lanka.

In 2008, Pakistan team had to participate in the ICC Women World Cup Qualifiers which were held in South Africa and after the event the team qualified for the ICC Women World Cup which was held in Australia in 2009; therein the team played exceptionally well and made its presence felt and proceeded to the super sixes stage. In this Event team improved their ranking from no. 10th to no. 6th in the world.

Under the dynamic leadership of the current Chairperson Mrs. Bushra Aitzaz and the full fledged support of the Pakistan Cricket Board, the current Pakistan Women Team achieved another hallmark and historic feat by qualifying for the ICC Women World Cup, 2013 and for the ICC World T20, 2012.


News Details: PCB Site

Nida Daar: First Pakistani woman Cricketer scores Century

Dhaka: Nida Dar has become the first Pakistani woman cricketer to score a 100 score in International cricket.

According to report, Pakistan’s woman cricket star Nida Dar scored 124 run against Japan in Dhaka during ICC Women Cricket World Cup qualifying round.

The 25-years-old star is a resident of Gujranwala and she is right hand bats-woman and off-break bowler.


News Details: The News Tribe

Pakistani director documentary shortlisted for Oscars nomination

Saving Face, a film chronicling the work of a British Pakistani plastic surgeon, Dr Mohammad Jawad, aiding victims of acid attacks in Pakistan as directed by Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy and Daniel Jung has been shortlisted as one of only eight documentaries from across the globe for the Best Documentary, Short Subject as announced by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences.

Indeed Saving Face is set to air on America’s premier television cable network HBO, in March 2012. Saving Face was filmed entirely in Pakistan in the Seraiki belt as well as in Rawalpindi, Karachi, Islamabad and its outskirts.


Speaking about this international achievement, Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy said: “It still hasn’t quite sunk in that Saving Face has been shortlisted for an Oscar nomination. It is a huge honour for me and a tremendous feeling to know that this film, based in Pakistan, has been appreciated and acknowledge by a global jury - My co-director Daniel Junge and I are now keeping our fingers crossed and hoping that the shortlist turns into a nomination come January 24th!”


News Detals: Pride OF Pakistan

PkStories: Zabita Khan & Wajiha

7 Years Old, Zabita Khan

Zabita Khan: work all afternoon, dodging vehicles, rickshaws and donkey carts to carry drinks for thirsty customers in a hot, crowded Pakistani market. His father Khairullah was killed in one of Pakistan’s deadliest attacks.

More details: Dawn

11 Years Old, Wajiha

 Wajiha, the rickshaw driver, Her father Inamuddin badly injured in a terrorist attack on his paramilitary check post in the northwestern valley of Swat.
After two years in hospital, he was discharged from service with a withered leg and bought a rickshaw for 40,000 rupees ($465) with his pension. At first he worked alone, and sometimes Wajiha would sit up front with him for fun. But when she realised how painful he found his wounded leg, she took on solo shifts to earn more money.

“I feel good to help my father, I also enjoy the drive, it is easy to drive motorcycle rickshaw and earn some money for the family,” she said.

More Details: Dawn

 

Pakistani woman scientist received OWSD award 2011

Dr Farzana Shaheen

Dr Farzana Shaheen, a Pakistani woman scientist, has been recognised by The Elsevier Foundation, Third World Academy of Sciences (TWAS) and the Organization for Women in Science for the Developing World (OWSD) for research excellence.

She is among the eleven women from the Middle East, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean recognised for their research excellence.

An official of the International Centre for Chemical and Biological Sciences (ICCBS), Karachi University (KU), said that these women scientists were awarded OWSD prizes at a special ceremony held during the International Symposium on Women in Science and Engineering (WISE 2011) hosted by the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation, and Institute Kimia, Malaysia, in Kuala Lumpur from September 29-30. Each winner received a cash prize of 5,000 US dollars.

Shaheen, Assistant Professor at H.E.J. Research Institute of Chemistry, University of Karachi, received OWSD award 2011 for Young Women Scientists for her outstanding achievements in Chemistry.

Dr Shaheen earned her Ph.D. degree in chemistry from the H.E.J. Research Institute of Chemistry under the supervision of Director ICCBS Prof. Dr. M. Iqbal Choudhary.
She did her first postdoctoral studies with Prof. A. Ganesan (University of Southampton, UK) in the field of combinatorial chemistry through the award of UNESCO Fellowship for Young Women in Life Sciences in 2005.

She learned the advanced techniques of combinatorial chemistry from Prof. Dr. Kit S. Lam (UC-Davis, USA) under J. William Fulbright Scholar Program 2008-2009.

She has over 50 research publications in international journals and two patents.
KU Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Pirzada Qasim Raza Siddiqui, former Chairman of Higher Education Commission Prof Dr Atta-ur-Rehman and Director ICCBS Prof Dr M Iqbal Choudhary have congratulated Dr Shaheen on her achievement.

News details: The News Tribe