Author Archive
President Zardari addresses the people of Bahawalpur in Saraiki: Source: Waseb Development Organization One may agree or disagree with the political ideology or personal character of President Asif Ali Zardari, who also happens to be a co-chairman of the Pakistan People’s Party. However, one may not disagree with
Faiz on Iqbal – by Farooq Sulehria: Few students of Pakistani literature know that Faiz Ahmed Faiz translated Allama Iqbal’s Payam-e-Mashriq into Urdu. An equally little-known fact is Iqbal’s presence at the founding conference of the Progressive Writers Association. While Iqbal, being the national poet of
Constitutional amendments can’t be challenged in Supreme Court: Aitzaz Ahsan: Former president of Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) Chaudhry Aitzaz Ahsan has said amending the constitution is the right of the parliament and the constitutional amendment can not be challenged in a court. People of Pakistan are currently witnessing
Paradox republic – by Nadeem Paracha: Pakistan has been in the news for quite some time now. A country that (until about the early 1980s) was little known and usually mistaken for being a province of India in Europe and the United States, has rapidly
Interview with Abdul Baseer, a suicide bomber, an ex-student of Islamabad’s Lal Masjid madrassah: In this photo taken on Feb 18, 2010, alleged Pakistani militant Mohi-ud-Din, talks to the Associated Press while in police custody in Lahore, Pakistan. – AP Financed by Saudi Arabia, planned by the ISI, and executed by the Taliban
Religious minorities in an intolerant nation: Consequences of promoting Islamofascism: An intolerant nation Dawn Editorial Monday, 19 Apr, 2010 The site of the suicide attack outside an emergency ward at a local hospital in Quetta. A suicide bomber attacked a hospital emergency room where Shiite Muslims were mourning a
Ajoka’s Dara Shikoh: a story about the disputes between the Salafi and Sufi forms of Islam – by Taha S Siddiqui: Ajoka’s Dara – an ancient story of modern day proportions People say Lahore is rich with cultural treasures and that if one starts digging into the past, every street, lane and neighbourhood in this city contains in it a
Govt initiates action over UN report on Benazir Bhutto’s assassination: Officials named in UN report suspended By Syed Irfan Raza ISLAMABAD: Four days after the release of the UN Commission’s report on Benazir Bhutto’s assassination, the federal government went into action and suspended eight officials, including former City Police
How gay is being ‘gay’ in city? – by Andaleeb Rizvi: As Karachi continues to resonate with sparring political parties, sanctimonious religious outfits and bloodcurdling acts of terrorism in the post-Zia Pakistan, there is only one place where those who are ‘different’ could really be their own selves and get
Religious overtones of Pakistani media: It fell from the heavens – by Nadeem Paracha: It fell from the heavens “With the emergence and success of new, more modern sounding, albeit equally conservative and traditionalist preachers in various urban drawing rooms from 1995 onwards, the new trend was picked up by various TV channels
Tariq Ramadan and his ties to the Muslim Brotherhood – by Tarek Fatah: The Montreal Gazette Tariq Ramadan, the darling of the world Islamist establishment is back in Montreal. This time however, the Swiss scholar who usually camouflages his Islamist agenda under the niqab of ambivalent doublespeak, is going to do away
Deconstructing Dr Ijaz Shafi Gilani’s Gallup Pakistan: It is not uncommon to read results of various opinion surveys and polls on political issues and choices in Pakistani (and international) media. What however remains usually hidden is the real motive behind such polls and results. More often
The rise of Mehran man (urban middle class) in Pakistan – by Irfan Husain: Pakistan’s power elite will increasingly come from the cities and not from the rural hinterland. This will have a profound impact not just on politics, but on society as a whole. Writes Irfan Hussain.
After the UN Report, General Musharraf cannot think of returning to Pakistan – by Muhammad Amjad Rashid: The report of the UN Commission on the murder of the ex chairperson of PAKISTAN PEOPLE’S PARTY is the most unbiased and professional report on Benazir Bhutto’s murder. The report has declared the MUSHARRAF GOVERNMENT (1999 – 2008) as responsible
Punjabi Taliban (Sipah-e-Sahaba) slaughter Pakhtun Shias in Kohat refugee camp. Burqa clad suicide bombers kill at least 40 people: After yesterday’s brutal attack on Shias in a hospital in Quetta, terrorists of Taliban and Sipah-e-Sahaba have struck Shias once again, this time in a refugee camp in Kohat, killing more than 40 persons. Two suicide bombings at a
Bhuttos’ Rendezvous With Death: Shahnawaz, Benazir, Murtaza, Sanam, Nusrat and Zulfikar Ali Bhutto in northern Pakistan I Have A Rendezvous With Death — by Alan Seeger I have a rendezvous with Death At some disputed barricade, When Spring comes back with rustling shade
General Ziauddin Butt: Nawaz Sharif’s “Chief of Army Staff” becomes Shahbaz Sharif’s “Chief Inspector”: This is common knowledge that Sharifs cannot live without Generals. Right from their birth into Pakistani politics (courtesy Geneal Jilani), their ascendance to the Lahore throne (courtesy General Zia) and their premiership of the land of the pure (courtesy
Bad old ways of Pakistan People’s Party: The PPP Parliamentary Board (under the chair of President Asif Zardari) has decided to award election tickets to the following politicians who recently resigned after their academic degree was proven fake in the Supreme Court of Pakistan. Jamshed Dasti, NA-178,
Fatima Bhutto: Dad who would be king – by Nadeem Paracha: “Fatima’s attempt at setting the record straight regarding her father is understandable, but her deriding the woman who led her party into power not through the bullet but by the ballot is not.” The much-awaited book by Murtaza Bhutto’s
Psuedo Pakistaniat: Dancing to the tunes of Coke in the streets of Pakistan – by Aneel Salman: Dancing to the (capitalist / non-indigenous) tunes of Coca Cola in Lahore’s Liberty Market Source: All Voices Huntington wrote that: “the fundamental source of conflict in this new world will not be primarily ideological or primarily economic. The great
Al-Zulfikar: The unsaid history – by Nadeem Paracha: Pakistan is infamous for having a history cramped with assorted Islamist and sectarian organisations that have been unleashing havoc on its people and the state for over a decade. But long before violent terror groups like Sipah-e-Shaba, Lashkar-e-Taiba, Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, and
Asif Zardari: The sudden hero – By Nadeem Paracha: The historic passage of the 18th Amendment Bill in the current National Assembly is rightly being paired with the country’s first ‘Constitutional revolution’ i.e. the making and passage of the 1973 Constitution during the government of the country’s first
The Peace Pipeline – by Peter Chamberlin: First published at There Are No Sunglasses Obama is a flexible puppet in the empire-builders hands, readily facilitating the decades-old scheme to seize control of the former Soviet satellite nations and all of their vast energy resources. But, unlike
Fallacies of nationalism and the 18th amendment — by Dr Manzur Ejaz: For a large section of the establishment, religious identity was the only one compatible with Pakistan, thus seeking national identities was automatically unpatriotic The passage of the 18th Amendment, specifically, the naming of the NWFP as Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa is a
Giving credit to PPP government, being critical — by Munir Attaullah: The brutal fact, conveniently ignored by many, is that the price of the blowback from jihad and the search for glory — directly, as in the cost of current military operations, and indirectly as in an unfavourable investment climate
Kudos all around – by Kamran Shafi: First to Raza Rabbani who has been the target of many barbs from me in the days that the People’s Party was making, and breaking in quick succession, promises to restore the judiciary. They were aimed at him, first
Who is Shakeel Anjum, the author of ‘Who assassinated Benazir Bhutto’?: Related post: Shamsul Anwar’s fraudulent story has a few lessons for us Ansar Abbasi, as critical readers of Pakistani media and politics know, is a loyalist of (a certain sub-section of) a spy agency. Ansar Abbasi is notorious for
Taliban massacre at least 43 Pakhtuns in Dir: Enemies of Pakistan and Islam, known as Taliban, have once again struck the innocent people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. This time their target was a thanksgiving rally of Awami National Party (ANP) in Timargara, lower Dir. At least 43 people
Kill at least 10 Ahmadis a year: General Zia-ul-Haq’s legacy: While right wing jihadis and Taliban apologists in Pakistani media and politics are known for makings noises about real or perceived grievances of Muslims all over the world, they never seem to complain on Muslim on Muslim or Muslim
Imran’s stand on the Taliban – by Dr Arif Alvi: “We believe in a Pakistan envisioned by Jinnah in his speech of Aug 11, 1947, and an Islam as understood by Iqbal in his well enunciated Reconstruction of Religious Thought in Islam. Pakistan should be a non-theocratic country, though
A tribute to Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto – by Ali Nawaz Chowhan: Former premier Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto. — Photo by White Star Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto entered public life at the early age of 30, in 1958. In his book The Myth of Independence he writes about his views on foreign policy
The Swat flogging video — by Samar Minallah: At a time when the entire country was under the threat of militants, I not only brought the attention of the country to this video but also condemned it at the risk of my own life. Much to the
Full text of the 18th Amendment Bill: The National Assembly of Pakistan has now made public the full text of the 18th Amendment Bill, which is currently under review in the parliament. We are uploading a PDF version of the full text on LUBP for the
Some facts about Nawaz Sharif’s media team and their salaries: The aim of this post is not to belittle or doubt the principle-based politics and personal integrity of the Quaid-e-Punjab, Mujahid-e-Insaf, Ameer-ul-Momineen Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif. The aim is to provide a chronological record of newspaper reports in order
Deconstructing Fatima Bhutto – by Abdul Nishapuri: Contrary to the right wing propaganda that the PPP is a party of Bhutto worshippers, the party and its workers have on several occasions proven that they do not blindly follow any specific clan. Instead, they value individual characteristics
Qazi Anwar’s vilification crusade against politicians: Explicit or implicit supporters of military dictatorship in Pakistan, who usually lack significant vote bank in masses and dance to the tunes of right wing establishment, often criticise politicians holding them as solely and predominantly responsible for Pakistan’s failures
Thank you, democracy! NWFP to be renamed as ‘Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’: The Parliamentary Committee on Constitutional Reforms (PCCR) has agreed to rename North West Frontier Province (NWFP) with ‘Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’ on Wednesday. The PCCR met with its chairman Senator Raza Rabbani of Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) in chair to end
Understanding Nawaz Sharif – by Amir Mateen: Amir Mateen has recently written a series of extremely interesting and thought provoking articles on Nawaz Sharif and his politics. Amir has in the past written some of the most balanced articles on Pakistani politics, for example, his piece
CJ Iftikhar Chaudhry’s suicide attack on FIA – by Ahsan Abbas Shah: Here is an excellent article by Ahsan Abbas Shah on this topic:
Views on the constitutional review — by Peter Jacob: The review process has to foresee and incorporate a framework for social, legal and economic reforms. The part that seems to be missing as yet is, in fact, of immense importance for common Pakistanis. It concerns human rights Ever