The project to build Pakistanis’ faith in the state and government must include an overhaul of the judicial process.

In the launch of the drive to reform Swat’s legal system, it is apparent that the state is aware of the sort of steps needed to alter some of the realities that had formerly led the people of the area to extend support to the Taliban before disowning them. For nearly four decades, the area’s judicial system had been notoriously slow-moving and corrupt, leading to the erosion of the residents’ faith in the state. Little wonder then that the Taliban’s promise of a ‘quick, Sharia-based’ justice system resonated with Swat’s people. To the consternation of many, it became clear after the ‘peace deal’ brokered between the government and the militants by the Tehrik-i-Nifaz-i-Shariat Mohammadi that the Taliban’s version of the Sharia consisted of beheadings, floggings, the repression of women and other gross violations of fundamental human and constitutional rights. It appears that Swat’s rejection of the Taliban has finally been seen as an opportunity by the state to win over the population by installing a judicial system that will hopefully be quick, inexpensive and unbiased.

Judicial officials have launched a drive to speed up and reform the area’s legal system. Sixteen new judges have been hired and new courts have been created with the laudable aim of processing new criminal cases within four months and civil ones in six. The backlog of cases has reportedly been reduced from 18,000 to 2,300. The significance of this reduction ought not be underestimated given that each resolved case means a large number of people with newfound confidence in the state and government, which is crucial to the project of preventing the Taliban or other anarchist elements from regaining influence in the area. Legal and judicial systems in other parts of the country must make similar efforts. According to a statistical report released recently by the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, 1.52 million cases were pending in the superior and lower courts at the end of 2009. Each of these represents a miscarriage of justice, since justice delayed is justice denied. The project to build Pakistanis’ faith in the state and government must include an overhaul of the judicial process.

Baitullah Mehsud (R) was famously taken out by a missile fired from a drone and his successor, Hakeemullah Mehsud, is also believed to have been targe

That the US State Department has still not designated the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan as a ‘foreign terrorist organisation’ may seem astonishing. After all, whatever the legal and procedural steps involved, it seems inconceivable that any legitimate process for designating groups as terrorist organisations would not include the TTP on such a list. If it can be assumed that the Obama administration is dragging its feet on the issue — several senators wrote to Secretary Hillary Clinton last month requesting that the TTP be included on the State Department’s terrorist watch list — the question is, why? Some context here may help.

Despite the non-designation, the TTP remains the only Pakistan-based group that the US is militarily targeting, through drone strikes. Baitullah Mehsud was famously taken out by a missile fired from a drone and his successor, Hakeemullah Mehsud, is also believed to have been targeted. According to data compiled by the Long War Journal, nearly 30 drone strikes have targeted the sub-groups led by Baitullah, Hakeemullah and Faqir Mohammad. Moreover, according to analysts familiar with the issue, such action has been possible because the TTP is regarded by the US as a sub-group of the Taliban proper, known colloquially as the ‘Afghan Taliban’. Such designation means that the TTP is already exposed to the full array of legal measures that the US puts in place against foreign terrorist organisations.

Notwithstanding that explanation, there is still ambiguity on the American side. US State Department spokesperson P.J. Crowley gave what amounts to a non-answer when asked in a press briefing about the lack of the terrorist designation for the TTP specifically: “We are considering the question of designating the TTP and are following the procedures established in law … And we would expect to complete this process relatively soon and we would not see a legislative remedy here as being necessary.” Perhaps the US does not want to give the TTP a propaganda tool by giving it a separate identity or perhaps it may have complications for the drone strikes programme. Either way, the US government needs to clarify its position, otherwise, the conspiracy brigade here may have fresh ammunition.

Over the years, England supporters have acquired an inflated opinion of their team’s prowess.

An eerie silence descends over the entire country when England plays a major football match. And in the World Cup, every game is critical for a team battling to go forward to the second round. The big advantage of the national preoccupation with the sport is that the roads are virtually traffic-free. Pubs are packed with excited fans as giant TV screens bring the latest action from South Africa, and the sale of beer has soared.

Not that England fans have much to cheer about thus far: after drawing with both the United States and Algeria, their lacklustre team is struggling to avoid elimination. Its crucial match with Slovenia on Wednesday will undoubtedly bring the whole country to a grinding halt. Should it fail to secure the desperately needed three points from the encounter, there will be howls of outrage.

Ex-captain John Terry’s aborted coup against the team’s Italian manager had echoes of the Pakistan cricket team’s trials and tribulations over the last few years. But England fans and pundits alike drew some comfort from the antics of the French team. The open rebellion has caused fury back in France where President Sarkozy called a crisis cabinet meeting.

Over the years, England supporters have acquired an inflated opinion of their team’s prowess. It is true that England’s Premier League is probably the best national competition, attracting some of the finest players in the world. They are paid large sums, and play at a generally high level. In this setting, some English players occasionally shine, but they are supported by many top footballers from other countries. When their international colleagues return to play for their own national teams, the English side suddenly finds that its flair and attacking skills have evaporated.

In a World Cup marked by upsets and tentative play thus far, England’s performance has been distinctly poor. Although they were widely expected to easily trample over weak teams like Algeria and the United States, they have been unable to crack open solid defence, with their forwards like Rooney and Lampard struggling to make an impression. This fumbling approach has infuriated their supporters, many of whom booed their team off after the Algeria match. Here in England, many people acknowledged that the Algerians had shown greater soccer skills.

The newspapers and television are full of criticism and concern. Even people who don’t follow the game express their frustration. Indeed, the weak performance of the English team is the major topic across the country. When I went to the local newspaper shop the other day, I overheard one salesgirl speculating that perhaps the team was unable to play to its potential because of the African heat. I pointed out gently to her and her colleague that actually, it was winter in South Africa, and if anything, the players were probably feeling rather cold.

While England tries to find its rhythm, favourites Spain and Brazil have begun to hit form. Although the former was beaten by unfancied Switzerland, their second match against Honduras showed a more free-flowing Spanish side. And Brazil’s pedestrian 2-1 victory against a plucky North Korea was a reminder that even the great Brazilians cannot sparkle in every match. But their more convincing 3-1 win over Ivory Coast showcased some of their magical dribbling and passing skills.

I have placed a 20-pound bet on Brazil to win the Cup at 6-1 just to keep my interest in the tournament alive. So far, it doesn’t seem a bad wager. In this nation of gamblers, millions are being bet on any number of combinations. You can bet on the exact outcome of a game, or on how many goals a player will score, and with the Internet and cell phones, taking a punt has never been easier. Many people have accounts with bookies, and simply email their bet without leaving their homes. As I watched the Brazil-North Korea at my friend Robbie’s, he told me had a one-pound bet on Brazil to win 5-0. Within a few minutes into the match, he knew he had lost as North Korean defenders showed off their guts and their skills. I was tempted by the odds to take a punt on Spain meeting Brazil in the final: at 11-1, it struck me as a reasonable bet. But given Spain’s tentative start, I’m glad I kept my money. The upsets thus far have made this a very lucrative World Cup for the bookies.

The World Cup mania couldn’t have come at a better time for the government. Today, the Chancellor is going to announce an emergency budget that is going to inflict some serious pain on virtually every section of society. But with the football distracting popular attention from fiscal matters, the expected backlash will probably be quite muted, except from left-wing pundits. Even though the public has been prepared for the cuts to come, the message hasn’t quite sunk in. Indeed, the coalition government’s determination to reduce the deficit they have inherited from Labour is about to be translated into a very grim reality.

Even though a recent opinion poll shows that nearly 60 per cent support cuts, the majority knows that they will hurt the poor the most. From local councils to universities, people are expecting the worst. The Conservative Party made no secret of its intentions to slash public expenditure in the run-up to the election. But its coalition partner, the Liberal Democrats, are a left-of-centre party and based their campaign on their vision of social justice. The coming reduction in public services will no doubt alienate large sections of their supporters. Indeed, the city of Sheffield, Nick Clegg’s constituency, has already seen a major industrial training initiative launched by Labour disappear as a result of a savings measure. There will be a lot more pain to come as the government’s cost-cutting policies take hold.

Meanwhile, the St George’s cross flies defiantly from car windows and homes across England. Even though we have still to hear the loud roar of “Enger-land, Enger-land!” that follows victory, people continue to be fixated by the football. Should things go badly against Slovenia on Wednesday, the flags will be unfurled, and the country will wake up to the reality of the deep cuts that will transform the welfare state.

However, there is a haven for those who cannot stand football: I saw a sign outside a London pub that proclaimed: “We loathe football. No plasma screen or World Cup matches here.”

The anti-Islam vote in the Netherlands elections

he enormous success of the right wing anti-Islam party in the recent elections in the Netherlands indicates a widespread schism within the Dutch and wider European societies where the presence of the Muslims as equal participants of society is disputed.

“Stop migration from the Muslim countries! Block the building of mosques or Muslim schools! Stop subsidising the multicultural programs,” were prominent slogans of Geert Wilders, head of Freedom Party (PVV) during the election campaign in the Netherlands. His party obtained 1.5 million votes and increased its number of seats from 9 to 24 in the parliament. It is probable that the PVV may enter into a coalition with the mainstream liberal party VVD to form a government. This can lead to an extremely xenophobic and an anti-Muslim government in western Europe.

The anti-migrant propaganda of Wilders appealed to certain quarters within the Dutch society. The old working-class neighborhoods that traditionally supported the Labor and Socialist parties got disillusioned with the presumed ‘elitist’ attitude of these parties. With increasing unemployment, economic downfall, changing neighborhood demographics – with more migrants, caused a feeling of isolation among these groups (“this is not my street” is a complaint heard often). The migrants are easy targets of such socio-economic isolation. Add to this the fast integration of Europe that increased distance between the people and decision-makers, thus ‘evaporating our national symbols’, as neo-nationalist like Wilders will argue for.

The traditional polarisation of the Dutch political scene further added to the election win of the PVV. Wilders chided the traditional political parties for ignoring the worries of ‘common man’ on burning issues of migration, criminality and security. Afraid of loosing their vote bank the other political parties, the traditional parties did not present a clear opposition to Wilders’ accusations. In the process they lost to Wilders’ sentimental political ploy on such issues.

The success of parties like the PVV is a dangerous development with respect to the future of democratic values in Europe. Wilders’ party does not follow the rules of a traditional political party: it does not have a membership or party hierarchy or hold any party elections. In this sense it is mere a ‘movement’. Wilders successfully avoided any questions about bringing democracy within his own party. For the PVV, Wilders is a party ideologue, he formulated his party’s election program, chose the candidates and acts as the main media person of the party. An acceptance of such one-man demagogy within the Dutch political system shows an approval of certain undemocratic tendencies within a society that projects itself as a tolerant one.

This is even clearer if we look at Wilders’ ideas and his political program. In the past he advocated to “ban the Quran” and he likes to declare “Islam as a fascist ideology.” Such a theme is also reflected in the film ‘fitna‘ that he produced about the negative aspects of Islam. In his election campaign he asked for banning migration from the Muslim countries, and deporting the ‘criminal’ Muslims to the country of their origin. His anti-Islam program is based on the notion that European civilisation is founded on ‘Jewish-Christian tradition’ thus denying any role of the Muslims in the recent history of the country. Moreover he even asked for ‘ethnic registration’ of non-white population thus importing the kind of practices that the Nazi-German applied to its subjects.

Even more worrying is that Wilders’ political agenda was received without a broader outrage within the Dutch public space. It indicates a clear indifference, if not an implicit support, within the broader public space about Wilders’ program. The political win of the PVV nonetheless present a dangerous tendency within the Dutch society where the majority of voters elected a group that tries to usurp the democratic rights of a minority.

The win of Wilders in the Netherlands cannot be seen without taking into account the broader debate about Islam and Muslims in the European countries. Whether it is debate about banning of hijab in public spaces in France and Belgium or the issue of height of minarets in Switzerland, Islam has become a politicised subject in Europe. These reactions to the Muslim presence however indicate non-acceptance of the emerging realities within the Dutch or European societies.

Congress intends to pressure Tehran into curbing its nuclear programme.

WASHINGTON: The US Senate on Thursday approved tough new unilateral sanctions aimed at squeezing Iran’s energy and banking sectors, which could also hurt companies from other countries doing business with Tehran.

The Senate passed the bill 99-0. The House of Representatives was expected to follow suit later in the day. Then the measure will go to President Barack Obama for his assent.

Congress intends to pressure Tehran into curbing its nuclear programme.

Lawmakers from both parties have been pushing for months to tighten US sanctions on Iran. At the Obama administration’s request, they held off until the United Nations Security Council and the European Union agreed to new multilateral sanctions. But the lawmakers then declared that still tougher measures were needed.

“The UN sanctions, though a good first step, are quite tepid. And they are tepid because there are other members of the Security Council who want to keep doing that business with Iran ... The United States therefore has to pass these unilateral sanctions,” Democratic Senator Barbara Mikulski said during debate in the Senate.

The legislation penalises companies supplying Iran with gasoline as well as international banking institutions involved with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, its nuclear programme or what the United States calls its support for terrorist activity.

It would effectively deprive foreign banks of access to the US financial system if they do business with key Iranian banks or the Revolutionary Guards.

Global suppliers of gasoline to Iran could also face bans on access to the US banking system, property transactions and foreign exchange in the United States.

Former Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong, eats a piece of coconut cream pie during a seven-day bike ride across Iowa in Sully, Iowa. Though many a

LONDON: Running on empty may not be such a bad idea after all.

Though many athletes eat before training, some scientists say that if you really want to get rid of more fat, you should skip the pre-workout snack.

Several studies suggest exercising while your body is low on food may be a good way to trim excess fat. In a recent paper, European researchers found that cyclists who trained without eating burned significantly more fat than their counterparts who ate.

Muscles usually get their energy from carbohydrates, which is why athletes like Lance Armstrong and Michael Phelps scarf down enormous amounts of food before a race. But if you haven't eaten before exercising, your body doesn't have many carbohydrates in reserve. That forces it to burn fat instead, scientists say.

''When you exercise (after fasting), your adrenalin is high and your insulin is low,'' said Peter Hespel, a professor of exercise physiology at the University of Leuven in Belgium.

''That ratio is favorable for your muscles to oxidize (break down) more fatty acids.'' Hespel said that people who exercise without having eaten burn more fat than they would if they had grabbed a bite beforehand.

In a study published in April, researchers at the University of Birmingham and elsewhere assigned seven people to cycle three days a week, followed by an intense session an hour later without eating. Another seven people followed the same regime, without the instruction to fast.

Though members of the group that didn't eat performed worse on the intensive training, they burned a higher proportion of fat to carbohydrates than the group that ate. The results were published by Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, the journal of the American College of Sports Medicine.

In a 2008 study, Hespel and colleagues tested the effects on men who did endurance training without eating versus those who ate. In the athletes who hadn't eaten, the researchers found a spike in the amount of proteins needed to process fat, meaning their bodies had been primed through fasting to burn more fat.

Hespel recommends people do this kind of training before breakfast, since eating carbohydrates interrupts the process of metabolizing fat for about six hours afterward.

Though he and colleagues have primarily studied the effects of exercising without eating in young, healthy people, he thinks the method could also help people with problems like diabetes.

Because exercising without eating produces muscles that are better at absorbing glucose - which is important for preventing diabetes - Hespel theorized the strategy would also help diabetics control their insulin levels.

Other experts said that even though people may burn more fat this way, it is mostly fat within the muscles that will be lost and won't make a big difference to people trying to lose weight.

''When you exercise (without eating), fat is broken down more quickly in the muscle,'' said Andrew Greenberg, director of the Obesity and Metabolism Laboratory at Tufts University.

''You may enhance how you burn the fat in the muscles, but it doesn't affect your overall body fat,'' Greenberg said. He said more intense exercise may prompt the body to burn more fatty acids in other regions of the body, but that a lot of training would be required to see a big difference.

For recreational athletes interested in maximizing their exercise regimen, some experts recommend a regular training session where you deliberately do not eat beforehand.

''Science is finally catching up with what smart runners have always known,'' said Ron Maughan, a professor of sport, exercise and health sciences at Loughborough University in Britain.

''If you have a long, hard run without breakfast once a week, that hard run will train you to burn fat,'' he said. ''And for the rest of the week, have plenty of carbohydrates so you can train hard.''

Maughan cautioned against doing too much exercise on an empty stomach. ''That might help you get very good at burning fat, but you won't be very good at whatever exercise it is you're doing,'' he said. ''Without enough fuel, you won't get the intensity of training you need to get improvements.''

Others were more skeptical and said people shouldn't exercise without having at least a small snack first.

''I think it's actually a pretty bad idea,'' said Dr. Alexis Chiang Colvin, a sports medicine expert at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York who has worked with professional football and hockey teams.

''If your blood sugar is low, you could wind up getting dizzy and you might not be able to exercise as well as if you were well-nourished,'' she said.

Colvin recommended having something small like a banana before training. She also warned the strategy might make people more prone to injury and that eating was important so the body would have enough nutrients to recover from a bout of exercise.

Hespel acknowledged the method wasn't for everybody and that aside from the pain of struggling through an exercise session while hungry, there are other potential pitfalls.

"When you postpone breakfast to exercise, it is possible you might eat more afterwards," he said. "People exercising (without eating) need to respect all the normal strategies of weight control like not overeating."

Daniel Kobbina, a personal trainer who also runs a martial arts school in London, said the method requires discipline — but it works.

"If you train on an empty stomach, you'll see that six-pack a lot sooner," he said.

The Rev. Paolo adrini, a consultant with the Vatican's Pontifical Council for Social Communications, said the free application will be launched in Jul

ROME: An Italian priest has developed an application that will let priests celebrate Mass with an iPad on the altar instead of the regular Roman missal.

The Rev. Paolo adrini, a consultant with the Vatican's Pontifical Council for Social Communications, said Friday the free application will be launched in July in English, French, Spanish, Italian and Latin.

Two years ago, Padrini developed the iBreviary, an application that brought the book of daily prayers used by priests onto iPhones. To date, some 200,000 people have downloaded the application, he said.

The iPad application is similar but also contains the complete missal – containing all that is said and sung during Mass throughout the liturgical year. Upgrades are expected to feature audio as well as commentaries and suggestions for homilies as well as musical accompaniment, he said.

''Paper books will never disappear,'' he said in a phone interview from his home parish in Tortona, in Italy's northern Piemonte region. But at the same time ''we shouldn't be scandalized that on altars there are these instruments in support of prayer.''

Padrini, 36, said he expected priests who have to travel a lot for work would find the application most useful, noting that he recently had to celebrate Mass in a small parish where the missal was ''a small book, a bit dirty, old.''

''If I had had my iPad with me, it would've been better than this old, tiny book,'' he said.

Pope Benedict XVI, a classical music lover who was reportedly given an iPod in 2006, has sought to reach out to young people through new media: the Vatican has a regularly updated presence on You Tube and Facebook. Based on the success of the iBreviary, Padrini was recruited by the Vatican to oversee its youth outreach program in the new media, www.pope2you.net.

He stressed that the iPad application, like the iBreviary, was launched at his own instigation and with his own money and is not an official Vatican initiative. Vatican officials have previously praised the iBreviary as a novel way of evangelizing.¬–AFP