Here’s what’s happening across the border: Parents of Pak student killed in Texas school shooting sue shooter’s family, and Reham Khan speaks up against corporal punishment in schools
China to invest in multiple sectors to boost Pakistan’s economy
China is investing in multiple sectors and launching business ventures to boost Pakistan’s economy, instead of providing loans to the country, Chinese consul general Long Dingbin told Geo TV in an interview Sunday.
The interview came a few days after three armed men attacked the Chinese consulate in Karachi, killing two policemen and injuring a security guard. The attackers were also, eventually, gunned down by the security forces.
Dingbin said that the 15 new agreements which were signed between China and Pakistan during Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan’s visit to China last month would lead to enhanced cooperation in politics and the financial sector between the two countries.
“Instead of hard cash, China plans to eventually provide multiple forms of bailout packages [to Pakistan] in the shape of phenomenal investments in fresh projects,” he was quoted as saying.
He said that these investments will help Pakistan to “overcome its financial crunch” and widen the scope of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) initiative.
When asked about Pakistan’s debt crisis, he asserted that CPEC was not responsible for “Pakistan’s debt burden”.
Parents of Pak student killed in Texas shooting sue shooter’s family
The parents of Sabika Sheikh, a 17-year-old Pakistani student killed in the 18 May Texas high school shooting, are suing the parents of the 17-year-old shooter for irresponsibly storing their firearms, reports Dawn.
Sabika’s parents — Abdul Faziz and Farah Naz — have become a part of a lawsuit in which a few of the 10 victims’ families are claiming that the shooter’s parents were aware of their son’s emotional distress and yet failed to take precautionary measures in terms of preventing him from accessing their firearms, according to a 28 November press release issued by Everytown for Gun Safety’s prosecution team.
The suit also alleges that the “shooter’s parents failed to respond to and address warning signs that their son posed a risk to others”.
Sabika’s parents were quoted as saying: “No other parent should ever have to experience this unbearable grief”.
“Sabika’s picture is in front of our eyes every single moment, and her voice and laughter echo in our ears. For a mother and a father, this trauma and mourning stay until their last breath,” the bereaved parents added.
They further said that they “are grateful to everyone in the US and around the world who met us in person and reached us through emails, print, electronic and social media to express solidarity and empower us to endure this most profound tragedy.”
Sabika, hailing from Karachi, was a student at Santa Fe High School in Texas on a United States State Department scholarship offered under the Kennedy-Lugar Youth Exchange and Study programme. Sabika, who was to return on 9 June, was buried in Karachi.
Snake catchers in Lahore cashing in on rising demand for venom
Snake catchers in Lahore are doing brisk business because of the increasing demand for snake venom for medicinal use, The Express Tribune reports.
Shahid Mehmood alias Billa, a resident of Lal Pul area in Lahore, has caught about three dozen snakes, including rare species of two-headed snake and black cobra. He has been into this business for the past several years now.
Mehmood says that these snakes are caught from border areas and people call catchers like him whenever they spot snakes in their localities.
“Snake catching is a very dangerous business and rewards are not very encouraging as well,” Mahmood said.
While the sale of these snakes fetch traditional snake catchers small sum of money, the professional ones are minting money by displaying these snakes in posh hotels.
Two-headed snakes are sold for anywhere between Rs 400 and Rs 500, water snakes for Rs 300 and Black Cobra are priced around Rs 1500 and Rs 2000.
Many people in Lahore use snake’s venom for medicinal uses.
Wildlife authorities claim that snakes are not included in the protected list but catchers need a licence for their work. But the problem remains that local catchers such as Mehmood do not have any licence.
Journalist Reham Khan speaks up against corporal punishment in schools
Journalist and writer Reham Khan has reached out to people in Pakistan to end the practice of corporal punishment in schools. On Sunday, she uploaded a video on Twitter in which a teacher could be seen mistreating his students.
The teacher beat girl students on their palms with a stick and many of them seemed frightened.
Khan’s Twitter caption read, “This man is recognisable. Let’s have him removed. Say No to corporal punishment in Pakistan schools. 22.6 Million children out of school & those who do come to get this treatment.”
This man is recognisable.
Let's have him removed. Say No to corporal punishment in Pakistan schools.
22.6 Million children out of school & those who do come get this treatment. pic.twitter.com/aedpNVZztt
— Reham Khan (@RehamKhan1) December 1, 2018