Monthly Archive:: March 2012

The tale of my gallant warrior princess begins… – by Saria Benazir: The name “Benazir”has an exhilarating upshot on my soul; for here is my identity – commencement, continuation and conclusion, and subsistence is too crammed with obligation and stimulation that there is no availability of a room for any entity
Brussels Shia mosque attack was not carried out by a Sunni Muslim: Despite the propagation of urban legend in ill-informed, ill-advised Western media, the attack on a Shia Muslim mosque in Burssels, in which a prayer leader (Imam) Sheikh Abdallah Dadou was killed and various copies of the holy Quran burnt, was
Pakistan and the plight of Shia Muslims -by Ali Salman: On August 11, 1947, Muhammad Ali Jinnah gave expression to his vision of Pakistan in an address to the Constituent Assembly. He spoke of an inclusive and impartial government, religious freedom, rule of law and equality for all. His
Equality of citizens: Common sense that’s not so common! – by Dur-e-Aden: A bomb explodes in a market, some 80 people die and 100s get injured. Can anyone tell me the identity of those who lost their lives? Do bombs differentiate when they explode that I am only going to hurt
Good riddance, General Pasha!: Related posts: Stop it, General Kayani – by Lala Jie General Kayani’s extension as army chief: A bad decision – by Abdul Nishapuri Lieutenant-General Ahmad Shuja Pasha (born 18 March 1952), the current Director-General of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI),
An open letter to Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy – by Ravez Junejo: Dear Miss Chinoy, Before I move on to the main theme of this post, I must clarify its purpose as not being the blind adulation you have received from some quarters at your Oscar win. I wish I could
Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Jordan are the Middle East Axis of Evil: Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Jordan are the Axis of Evil in the Middle East. U.S. President George W. Bush coined the term “Axis of Evil” when refering to North Korea, Iran, and Iraq in his 2002 State of the
Pakistan’s modernity: Between military and militancy – by Dr. Ayesha Siddiqa: Editor’s note: We are cross-posting a thought provoking article by Dr. Siddiqa which was recently published in The Friday Times. This is an important theoretical piece, which may be used as guidance document for further analysis. It provides the
Shaheen Sehbai’s Asif Zardari Phobia: Pakistan’s top fiction writer, Shaheen Sehbai, who should be writing novels than editing newspapers while sitting in Dubai is in deep shock for the last many months. having written many a script that has never taken off, he is
Mehran Gate reveals ISI’s dirty role in Pakistani politics – by Saleem Safi and Hasan Nisar: Related post: Good riddance, General Pasha! Stop it, General Kayani – by Lala Jie ہیں کواکب کچھ نظر آتے ہیں کچھ ...جرگہ…سلیم صافی اپنی صحافتی زندگی کے مشاہدات کا تونچوڑ یہی ہے کہ اس ملک میں ”ہیں کواکب کچھ نظرآتے
Massive pro-democracy protest rocks Bahrain: Related post: Shouting in the dark: Al Jazeera’s documentary on Bahrain Tens of thousands of Bahrainis demonstrated on Friday (9 March 2012) to demand democratic reforms, stepping up pressure on the U.S.-allied, Saudi-backed Bahrain’s government with the biggest protest
Rinkle Kumari and Islamists sudden support for love marriage: Dr Omar Ali comment on Rinkle Kumari :  Notice that all the Islamists are saying “it was a love marriage, she left on her own accord to marry Naveed”. This must be the first time they have approved of
Nexus between virtue and vice – by Zafar Hilaly: It took the screams of a young woman being beaten in Swat to galvanise the country and the army to take a stand against the gruesome cruelties inflicted by the Taliban on the local population. Till then a sense
The excitement of PML-N backed journalists: Ansar Abbasi who is known for his rabid attacks on the PPP and those who are its allies, is known to have a soft corner for the PML-N. He is on record saying that PML-N is leading a good
Stratfor emails about Saleem Shahzad: Some lessons for Pakistani journalists: Here are some quick comments on the Stratfor emails (via WikiLeaks) that point towards late Saleem Shahzad’s possible affiliation with two intelligence agencies, ISI (previous affiliation) and CIA (affiliation at the time of his murder). Despite our unconditional and
Darogh-bafi: Praising Osama bin Laden? – by Naseer Ahmed:
Journalism in conflict areas of Pakistan: Individualland Pakistan (IL-Pakistan) is an active non-partisan, not for profit registered civil society group. Since its inception, IL has worked on pertinent issues in respect to governance, rule of law, media communication skills, strengthening civil society and democratic development.
Name and Remind: Nadeem F. Paracha’s silence on Shia genocide in Pakistan – by Mustafa: [poll id=”9″] Related posts: 71 Shia Muslims target killed in Pakistan during February 2012  58 Shia Muslims killed in Pakistan during January 2012 Nadeem F. Paracha is Pakistan’s leading progressive columnist whose articles and blogs are regularly published at
An interview with Comrade Sobho Gianchandani – by Salam Dharejo: Sobho Gianchandani  (born 1920) in Larkana), is a leading Pakistani Sindhi social scientist, and revolutionary writer. At age 91, Comrade Sobho Gianchandani is one of the oldest living communists in the subcontinent. He has seen it all, done it all
We condemn abduction and forced conversion of Rinkle Kumari: We at LUBP have always condemned all sorts of religious persecution and violence against Pakistan’s oppressed groups in the strongest possible terms. Meanwhile, the religious persecution of “the infidels” (read non-Muslims) by the fanatic mindset continues. It is not
Election Commission’s secretary resigns in protest against undue interference by Supreme Court: Editor’s note: We condemn Pakistan army-backed Supreme Court judges’ illegal and unconstitutional interference in the affairs of another autonomous institution, Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP). The Supreme Court’s January order for the ECP to postpone the Feb 20 by-elections
Oh, those relentless liars!: In our childhood, whenever we told a lie and were caught, our elders gave us a piece of advice “Aik jhoot sabit karnay kay liye 100 jhoot bolnay partay hayn” or “To prove one lie, you need to tell
What role did Pakistan’s Shias play against Ahmadis?: Related posts: Debate on Shia role in Ahmadi persecution – by Ali Abbas Taj Polemics of apostatizing in Pakistan Recently I read two articles on the systematic murder of Shia Muslims in Pakistan, by Marvi Sirmed (in Daily Times,
PPP and its streak of wins! – by Maleeha Manzoor: While glancing into the history of Pakistan’s politics, the first and prominent name that you find in the endeavor of genuine democracy is – Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), which is not only a name but also an incessant struggle,
Run for your life: Persecution of Shias and Ahmadis in Pakistan – by Pervez Hoodbhoy: Source: Edited and adapted from Express Tribune Eighteen bloodied bodies, shot Gestapo-style, lay by the roadside. Men in army uniforms had stopped four buses bound from Rawalpindi to Gilgit, demanding that all 117 persons on board alight.Those with Shia
Organized Shia Killings in Pakistan and the Deep State’s Assets – by Marvi Sirmed: More kicks than half pence! — by Marvi Sirmed Probably the engineers of these dozens of sipahs and lashkars and jamaats did not realise that it might not be just Indians or Afghans at the receiving end of violence
Notes on Conflict: Political Immunology of Islamic Republic – by Shaheryar Ali: The fundamental confusion in analyzing Pakistan is the neglect of her foundational myth. A country locked in history and geography. Without taking into account the character of Pakistani nationalism, its various shades it is not possible to analyse the
Sacrificial beings and imperialist agendas – by Shaheryar Ali: What is currently happening in Kohistan, Gilgit, Parachinar, Quetta and other places in Pakistan to Shia Muslims has its roots in Pakistani establishment’s dream of renting itself out to imperialism against Islamic Republic of Iran. They want to bully
Benazir Model Village – Sinawan – Splendid execution: The government of Pakistan Peoples Party, always living under the shadow of swords hanging over it, has fulfilled a promise it made in the aftermath of the devastating floods of 2010. It has with the necessary support and assistance
The Slap: When a woman hits another woman, in normal cases it’s an assault. If there are many witnesses, good, the assailant gets punished quickly. Open and Shut case, we move on. But Pakistan doesn’t do normal; even our assaults have deeper meanings
Silence on systematic murder of Shia Muslims in Pakistan is criminal – by Saroop Ijaz: In Pakistan, at times one feels the need to check oneself and restrain the use of hyperbole and absolutisms; I personally am particularly prone to this tendency. Yet, some days are easy and have little room for shallow nuances
Ahl-e-Hadith Muslims reject Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD): Related posts: Four types of lesser Muslims of Pakistan Sunni Muslims reject Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan In defense of our Salafi (Ahl-e-Hadith) brothers and sisters Do not ignore the distinction between Deobandi jihadis and Salafi (wahhabi) jihadis in Pakistan Salafi cannon
Name and Remind: Cyril Almeida’s silence on Shia massacres in Pakistan – by Mustafa: [poll id=”9″] Cyril Almeida is a famous columnist, reporter and assistant editor at Dawn newspaper. Cyril after having begun impressively seems to have fallen in line with the dominant pro-establishment discourse in the mainstream media! In the last year
Najam Sethi allows ASWJ’s Ludhianvi on his show to obfuscate #ShiaGenocide in Pakistan: In a recent article highlighting refined tactics of urban elite affiliates of Pakistan army, Sarah Khan writes: Traditionally lifestyle liberals in Pakistan use an 80-20 mixture formula, i.e., they inject the 20% pro-military establishment discourses within the 80% objective
Difa-e-Pakistan Council will support PML-N in general election?: The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz PML-N’s president and the chief minister of Pakistan’s most populous province Punjab Mian Shahbaz Sharif once proudly claimed that PML-N and Taliban share same ideological background. He publicly requested the Taliban to stop targeting the
The ‘Gathri’ of Maya Khan – by Ali Raja‏: Punjabi, the language of love, the language of emotions, the language of expressions, the language of articulation and doubtlessly the language of idioms holds the peculiarity of grasping each and every instance of life with the iron claws of
Stout denial: Should someone not be held responsible for repeated killings of Shias? – by Kamran Shafi: First, my deep anguish and pain at the wanton and repeated killings of our Shia brothers and sisters and children across the length and breadth of our poor and blighted country: from Mastung to Parachinar, to Karachi to Kohistan to Khanpur
We welcome PPP Chairman Bilawal BZ’s statement on Shia Muslims and minorities of Pakistan: We welcome PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari’s statement and await actual steps towards safety of Shia Muslims and other persecuted and target killed communities of Pakistan: Sindh Minorities Minister Dr Mohan Lal calls on Chairman PPP Bilawal Bhutto Zardari
Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy: Contradictions of an Oscar win – by Safiya Khan: This class exploits the poor on selective causes and profitable NGO businesses but stands with anti-women politician Imran Khan and pro-establishment politician like Farooq Leghari. Esteemed anti-establishment writer and media critic, Nadeem F. Paracha wrote this blog in Dawn
On Shahbaz Bhatti’s death anniversary and Shia genocide – by Mehmal Sarfraz: Without tolerance, our world turns into hell” — Friedrich Durrenmatt. A year ago on this day (March 2), Federal Minister for Minorities Shahbaz Bhatti was assassinated. His assassination took place less than two months after Governor Punjab Salmaan Taseer