SUGAR prices are rising again. According to reports, the sweetener is now being sold for up to Rs110 per kilo in different parts of the country. This is in spite of an early and improved domestic sugar harvest when compared to the one last year and the import of significantly large quantities. According to official data, sugar output from July to December jumped to slightly below 73pc to 1.9m tonnes from 1.1m tonnes during the same period the previous year. In addition, according to the data from the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics, the country has imported 278,482 tonnes of sugar in the seven months to January. The Trading Corporation of Pakistan is reported to have brought 130,000 tonnes of the sweetener between August and November for consumption in Punjab and KP while traders have imported 150,000 tonnes to make up for the shortage. Still, barring a very brief period, sugar prices have stayed at an elevated level. Producers blame middlemen for hoarding the commodity to rig profits, and the farmers for selling sugarcane at 25pc higher than the rate fixed by the government. The government, however, appears helpless against producers and hoarders and has failed to stabilise the commodity’s prices, its claims of proceeding against errant millers and middlemen notwithstanding.
Inflation continues to challenge the government’s resolve to control the prices of essential kitchen items, especially wheat flour and sugar, which has forced most lower- to middle-income households to slash their other expenditure in order to put food on the table. Sugar is not a staple food. But it is a source of daily caloric intake for millions. In spite of its repeated claims of deploying the administrative machinery against unscrupulous millers and hoarders, the government has played the role of a helpless bystander. The last one year has been very hard on the majority of those with fixed incomes because of Covid-19’s devastating impact. Real incomes have shrunk owing to high inflation. Millions have lost their jobs as businesses in the informal services sector struggle to cope with the effects of the health crisis. It is high time the government walked the talk and improved market governance to shield people from inflation, instead of making meaningless, empty claims. If no action is taken now, consumers will likely be compelled to pay more as sugar prices are set to rise further with an increase in demand during Ramazan, which is just around the corner.
Muslims targeted
FAR-right movements have gained ground across the globe, blaming ethnic and religious ‘others’ for all of society’s failings. In some countries, groups that were once labelled extremists are now controlling the levers of power, making life difficult for minorities. Amongst the xenophobic trends spreading across the world is Islamophobia, as Muslims are targeted for their faith.
In this regard, the OIC’s decision to observe the International Day to Combat Islamophobia is a welcome initiative to raise awareness about anti-Muslim hate and come up with solid strategies to counter bigotry. As the Foreign Office has observed in a statement to mark the day, Islamophobia takes many forms, such as negative profiling, mob attacks by cow vigilantes and harassment of women wearing hijab.
The fact is that in a number of states Islamophobic policies are being supported at the government level. In Sri Lanka, a minister recently announced that the burqa would be banned, along with the closure of 1,000 Islamic schools, though that country’s foreign ministry said on Tuesday that the ban was “merely a proposal”. Over the past few years, there has been a rise in xenophobic Buddhist nationalism in Sri Lanka and following the 2019 Easter bombing carried out by IS militants in the country, Muslims have faced problems as they are not able to practise their faith freely.
For example, the government was forcing Muslim families to cremate their loved ones who had died of Covid-19 until the decision was reversed last month. Elsewhere, voters in Switzerland recently banned the burqa and niqab in that country, although very few people in the alpine state wear them. And in India, the Hindu chauvinist BJP has apparently adopted Islamophobia as a central plank of its state policy, passing laws that discriminate against Muslims while looking away when acts of violence target the community. In a recent incident, a Muslim boy was beaten for drinking water in a Hindu temple in UP.
The OIC should emphasise that discrimination against Muslims will not be tolerated, and that those who indulge in hate crimes must face the law. While terrorists acting in the name of Islam must be brought to justice, their misguided acts cannot be used as a cover to tar all Muslims with the same brush. Moreover, the civil rights of Muslims must be ensured, and they must be allowed to practise their faith freely.
Perhaps rulers — Muslim and non-Muslim — can learn a thing or two about compassion and communal harmony from New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern. When mosques were attacked in the city of Christchurch by a far-right terrorist in 2019, Ms Ardern led from the front and embraced her country’s wounded Muslim community. On the second anniversary of the attacks, she again empathised with the victims, showing that if the state is determined, it can heal wounds instead of widening the communal gulf.
Attack on Rangers
MONDAY’S bomb attack targeting paramilitary personnel in Karachi left one Rangers official martyred and injured several people including members of the force. Though it is too early to say whether this incident signals the return of militancy to Karachi, the group that has claimed responsibility for the attack has also been behind several previous such incidents in the city. In 2018, militants of the Balochistan Liberation Army attempted to enter the Chinese consulate but were thwarted by security officials. Last year, it was behind an attack on the Karachi Stock Exchange building, in which two security guards and a policeman were martyred. In this week’s attack, it appears the bomb was planted in a motorcycle and detonated via remote control as a Rangers vehicle passed by — indicating that the area had been surveilled and that the attack was planned.
Though the previous attacks were foiled by a rapid and effective response from security forces, there is still a need for better intelligence gathering and vigilance. CCTV footage and evidence from the attack site should offer some clues to investigators, who must dedicate resources to getting more information in order to thwart the group’s future plans. The BLA time and again has signalled its intent to attack both security forces and Chinese-backed projects, citing its grievances with China’s involvement in Balochistan. It has claimed responsibility for some gruesome attacks on FC personnel in Balochistan, and has also carried out an attack on a hotel in Gwadar. As security and intelligence officials collect more information, it is worth noting that the BLA is part of a handful of armed resistance groups in Balochistan who for years have run an insurgency in the name of fighting for a greater share of resources in the province. Alongside counterterrorism operations, it is important for the authorities to address the grievances of disgruntled Baloch people to put an end to the bloody militancy that has hurt both the economy and the objective of peace in the country.
