Newspaper Articles Archive
New low: DT editorial on Lashkar-e-Jhangvi’s attack on Afghan Shias: One might have thought a new low for Pakistan’s reputation would have been a little difficult to achieve given the attention it gets on a daily basis for ‘strategic depth’-led support for criminal and extremist elements within and without
Blasphemy: Australian Shia sentenced to 500 lashes in Saudi Arabia: The 45 year old man was arrested in Medina while making the annual pilgrimage, and sentenced to lashes and a year in prison because he has insulted “the companions of the Prophet.” The result is a diplomatic incident between
Is the U.S. on the wrong side of history in Bahrain?: By Josh Rogin President Barack Obama’s administration has sided with Bahrain’s ruling regime over its domestic protest movement more clearly than in any other country affected by the Arab Spring. But that position is unwise and unsustainable, according to
Inqalab: Laal’s new song on the bonded labour in Pakistan: Thirteen years after our Supreme Court declared bonded labour to be unconstitutional, and a decade after the National Assembly passed the Bonded Labour Liberation Act, there are still 1 million bonded workers in the brick kilns of Pakistan. Overall,
Book review: Humanising the monster —by Dr Mohammad Taqi: My life with the Taliban By Abdul Salam Zaeef Translated from Pashto and edited by Alex Strick van Linschoten and Felix Kuehn Hurst/Columbia University Press; Pp 331 In his foreword to Mullah Abdul Salam Zaeef’s book, Professor Barnett Rubin
Deconstructing the SC order on the memo – by Asad Jamal: The Supreme Court’s decision on the alleged memorandum has become controversial — and not just because the court’s nominee for the probe into the matter has refused to head the proposed commission. One criticism of the order is that
In TN village without Muslims, Hindus observe Muharram: We are pleased to post this news report, published in The Times of India, which provides a unique insight into how the Hindus observe Muharram as a mark of respect with a message of religious harmony in the remote
Imran Khan’s Political Innings – by Atif Salahuddin: Imran Khan and his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) have spent many years in Pakistan’s political wilderness. Despite his platform for change and condemnation of the incessantly corrupt Pakistani political culture, PTI has had very little to show for itself in
Media and rise in intellectual infertility -by Shafqat Aziz: Related Article: National media conference -by Arshad Mahmood مےڈےا اور بڑھتا ہوا فکری بانجھ پن عہد حاضر مےں مےڈےا اپنی تمام دوسری جہتوں کے ساتھ بعض بنےادی اصولوں پر عموماً کاربند دکھائی دےتا ہے۔ مےڈےا عام شہرےوں کو قومی
Pak Studies for Dummies – by Ali Aftab Saeed: Hoodwinking history by being clever-and-a-half Student of Matric? Intermediate? Bachelors? Fear no more and rejoice, for your Pakistan Studies-related troubles are finally over. The following is for the benefit of people like you, who have gone through severe mental
Who is the biggest aggressor, Taliban or US? -by Arshad Mahmood: The greater of the aggressors Nato choppers present in Afghanistan attacked Pak Army check posts and killed 24 of our soldiers. Presently our security establishment is furious and as a gesture of true patriotism our social, religious and political
HRW urges Pakistan to protect Shia Muslims: (New York, 3 December 2011) – The Pakistani government should urgently act to protect Shia Muslims in Pakistan from sectarian attack during the Muslim holy month of Moharram, Human Rights Watch said today. In recent years, Sunni extremist groups
The killing fields and fault lines of Pakistan – by Murtaza Haider: The killing fields of Pakistan The bloodbath in Karachi continues. The death toll in the last week alone has reached over 100. A glance at the online tally of dead bodies in Karachi leaves not much room for hope in Pakistan’s
The identity crisis of the urban middle classes – by Murtaza Haider: From the banks of river Nile to the sand dunes of Kashgar Prefecture, Muslims were perceived as one people by the poet philosopher Muhammad Iqbal. All other manifestations of a person’s identity were deemed irrelevant. The unity in faith
The misguided priorities of Pakistani academics – by Murtaza Haider: A recent public opinion poll revealed that the top-most research priority areas identified by Pakistanis included Chemistry, Urdu literature, Islamic studies, Arabic, Botany and Zoology. Those who responded to the survey asked of Pakistani academics to devote their energies
Memogate, plagiarism and ghost writers – by Murtaza Haider: While we may never know who indeed authored the ever so memorable memo, which has cost former ambassador Husain Haqqani his day job, we do know that President Asif Zardari has been a prolific writer who has contributed several op-ed
National media conference – by Arshad Mahmood: National Media Conference: The two-day of media conference entitled “Pakistan Media: Present and Future” arranged by Individualland(IL) in collaboration with Friedrich-Naumann-Stiftung für die Freiheit (FNF), drew a large number of journalists from all parts of the country including a
Not all deaths are mourned the same – by Murtaza Haider: Pakistanis of all political and religious persuasions are equally enraged by the tragic death of their soldiers caused by an indiscriminate air attack by the Nato forces. Pakistani soldiers, stationed at a border post in Mohmand region, were attacked
Minority report -by Sana Bucha: Blood, meat and hides marked the first day of Eid-ul-Azha in Pakistan. While most Muslims celebrated their holy festival by sacrificing animals, some decided to achieve new levels of faith by targeting Hindus in Shikarpur. Three doctors were shot
PPP’s Founding Day: President and PM urge the party workers to unite against anti-democratic forces: Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) is celebrating its 45th Foundation Day today. The President Asif Ali Zardari‚ and the Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani‚ in their separate messages on the occasion have urged the party workers to unite against forces
Qila Bhatianwala: A tiny oasis of Sunni-Shia unity in Pakistan – by Karamat Bhatty: LAHORE: A small village near Lahore has achieved what most of the country has failed to forge: religious tolerance. In Qila Bhatianwala village, Shia and Sunnis live, pray, celebrate and mourn together, while the rest of the country sinks
Why the memo issue is not dying down – by Fauzia Wahab: Cross posted from The News, November 28, 2011 We thought with the resignation of Husain Haqqani, the issue of the memo will die down. It has not! With each day the issue bounces back more forcefully than ever. Is
National Media Conference: Pakistan’s media, present & future: The two-day of media conference entitled “Pakistan Media: Present and Future” arranged by Individualland(IL) in collaboration with Friedrich-Naumann-Stiftung für die Freiheit (FNF), drew a large number of journalists from all parts of the country including a strong representation from
Bahrain Independent Commission’s report and the role of Pakistani mercenaries: Also read: LUBP articles on Bahrain KARACHI: Around 8,110 complaints and statements of various human rights abuses were received, and a “systematic practice of physical and psychological mistreatment” was uncovered when the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry (BICI) began
Husain Haqqani and Mansoor Ijaz deserve each other – by Ayaz Amir: Ours must be the most insecure country in the world, and the most paranoid. We are terrified not just by our nightmares but our very shadows. And judging by our behaviour we seem to think that the rest of
The dream of a new start in Pakistan – by Omar Ali: The rise of Imran Khan and memogate have enthused those who dream of a “reformed” democracy under the guiding hand of the army. A few days ago, I was planning to write about Imran Khan. Pakistan’s most successful
An open letter to Nawaz Sharif — by Gul Bukhari: Because you have firsthand experience of how democracy and the people’s will is thwarted and corroded, you must be cognizant of the role you must play at this crucial time, as you have done in the service of the
Husain Haqqani’s resignation letter – by Hakim Hazik: Source To, President Asif Ali Zardari President of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan And, Field Martial Avatar P Kayani The Supreme Leader, In-charge S Wing Father of the Nation Through the Good Offices of, Mr Mansoor Ijaz, Interlocutor to
Investing your future in a poison peace process – by Peter Chamberlin: The Indian analyst who authored the following piece (SEE: India, Pakistan, and God’s geostrategic will) is probably giving an accurate assessment of his government’s opinion of the current status of the Pakistani military, even though both his opinion and the
I’m not ready to live in Imran’s Pakistan – by Nadya V: Its 2013 and by some unlikely miracle of sheer inqilabi (revolutionary) voting, Imran Khan has been elected prime minister and his party is in power. Wait a minute – what party? That’s right, a hefty gang full of loafers
Pakistan’s security thinking -by Professor Ijaz Khan: Security is a concept that changes with the times, responding to systemic changes in human governance, priorities, technology, economy as well as sociology. The most important question is what you want to secure. A related question is defining the
Mullen confirms existence of secret memo; Husain Haqqani offers to resign – by Josh Rogin: Source: Foreign Policy Related posts: Memogate: Mullen throws Husain Haqqani under the bus A critical analysis of Husain Haqqani vs Mansoor Ijaz saga Mansoor Ijaz saga: An example of media mismanagement by PPP Pakistani Ambassador to the United
Is a Palace Coup Unfolding in Pakistan? – by Tarek Fatah: Source: Huffington Post A palace coup could be in the offing in nuclear-armed Pakistan as pro-Taliban army generals try to undermine democratically elected civilian government of President Asif Ali Zardari. First indications that something foul was afoot in Islamabad
Democracy triumphs: Parliament passes pro-women bill: Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani congratulated all parliamentarians, particularly women parliamentarians, for the unanimous passage of the Anti-Women Practices Criminal Law Amendment Bill 2008. Gilani recalled that Shaheed Benazir Bhutto had always given high priority to legislation that protected
Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, the sectarian face of Al Qaeda, and the State of Pakistan: The Pir Chambal shrine strike in Pind Dadan Khan on November 12 by the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) should disturb Pakistan because of what it means in terms of the country’s capacity to fight al Qaeda. The LeJ is a sectarian (anti-Shia, anti-Iran) terrorist organisation
PTI’s financial scruples — by Dr Mohammad Taqi: If one red US cent goes towards putting a US soldier in harm’s way, that does not reflect well on the US officials who had been cosying up to Imran Khan and had a meeting with him just before
Criminal cricketers and their accomplices — by Abbas Zaidi: The three cricketers are proven guilty and are thus criminals. They are shameless too. They never accepted their crime. Amir did confess, but only when it was too late and that too on the advice of his lawyer Now
Zardari’s zen politics – by Irfan Waheed: The objective of this article is not to criticise the government, for that has been done ad nauseum by all and sundry. Neither do I intend to foment the movement to oust the government, for removing a sitting government