Blasphemy in a human world — by Sikander Amani: Whether you like it or not, the notion of blasphemy, or of ‘defamation of religion’, creates a hierarchy of beliefs which is simply incompatible with the plurality of the world, and the very right to hold a belief The
PML-N’s Sipah-e-Sahaba group and its cost to Punjab: The pattern of by-elections in Jhang and PML-N’s alliance with Sipah-e-Sahaba is a worrisome development. However, this is not the first time that PML-N has established alliances with terrorist organisations. Only a few days ago (in February 2010), PML-N
Shazia’s death and the shameful role of the lawyer fraternity: The torture and slaughter of Shazia, a 12-year-old maid, in DHA, Lahore has caused a stir. Here are a few reports which suggest that: 1. Domestic servants in Pakistan, house maids in particular, remain vulunerable and subject to physical, emotional
Pakistani Christians fear more extremist attacks: Thursday, 08 Oct, 2009 (Dawn) A man stands guard at the door to a church in Gojra.— Photo by AFP GOJRA: Almas Hameed lost seven relatives when an angry mob burnt down his home in a rampage against Pakistan’s
Religion, Politics and Minorities in Pakistan: Religion and politics Rubina SaigolMonday, September 21, 2009 The writer is an independent researcher specialising in social developmentIn the past few months, there has been a noticeable increase in religiously-motivated violence against minority communities, especially in Punjab. The most
Gojra and education: Zubeida Mustafa TALKING to a Dawn panel several years ago, Asghar Ali Engineer, head of the Centre for Study of Society and Secularism, Mumbai, had commented that every communal riot in India that he had investigated was found to
A true story from Gojra: Nosheen Abbas Wide eyed, and alert, Javed and Irfaan, two brothers, step in to the house. They sit close to each other, almost in a huddle. Both look slightly anxious not knowing what to expect from our conversation, but
Christians’ homes burnt over ‘desecration’: A burnt house of a Christian family in Azafi Abadi at Chak 95-JB on Gojra-Faisalabad Road. –Photo by White Star By Tariq Saeed Saturday, 01 Aug, 2009 TOBA TEK SINGH: A mob burnt 75 houses of Christians over the