Pakistan is extending the right to vote in general elections to overseas nationals. The decision was taken at a meeting of the election commission on Tuesday. Aleem Maqbool reports from Islamabad.
巴基斯坦将大选的投票权扩大到国外的巴基斯坦人,该决定在周三选举委员会的会议上被采纳。Aleem Maqbool从伊斯兰堡报道。
The move has been pushed through by Pakistan's electoral commission and will mean over three million overseas Pakistanis will now be allowed to vote from abroad, but there is a potential for many more to join them in the future. That's because the ruling not only allows Pakistani passport holders to vote, but also those who've got a Pakistani identity card, something that's available to all of those of Pakistani origin. The commission says that even a quota of seats in parliament for overseas Pakistanis is under discussion.
由巴选举委员会推进的这一举措意味着300多万巴基斯坦人有权在国外投票,将来这一数目有望增长。因为这一决定不仅允许巴护照执有者投票,而且还允许巴身份证执有者投票,即所有巴籍人。委员会表示将进一步讨论国外的巴基斯坦人在国会中的比例。
United Nations aid agencies are warning of a humanitarian catastrophe in the Sahel region of Africa following poor harvests in several countries. Speaking in Geneva, aid officials said up to 23 million people were at risk of serious food shortages in Niger, Chad, Mali, Mauritania, Burkina Faso and Senegal. Momodou Lamin Fye of the Red Cross warned that there could soon be a major crisis.