False Sunni-Shia binary: Irfan Husain at Dawn wipes out Barlevi-Shia unity and Deobandi identity of terrorists: In his Dawn article, veteran columnist Irfan Husain constructs false Sunni-Shia binary while wiping out the Khariji Deobandi identiy of the terrorits who are not only target killing Shias but also Sunni Barelvis, Christians and also their rival Deobandi

PPP, R.I.P? – by Irfan Husain: An old Native American saying gives this sage advice: “If you are unfortunate enough to find yourself on a dead horse, the best strategy is to dismount immediately.” Sadly, I did not follow this wise counsel and found myself

Pakistan’s federal minister for tourism: Right man for the right job – by Irfan Hussain: I became convinced that Asif Zardari had a sense of humour when I first learned of the appointment of Maulana Attaur Rehman as the federal minister for tourism. Who better than this bearded, rotund cleric as the face of

Hate and horror in Lahore – by Irfan Hussain: Source: Dawn, 05 Jun, 2010 A day after the slaughter of nearly 100 Ahmadis in Lahore last week, Britain’s Channel 4 aired a programme on Iraq in its ‘Unreported World’ series. The narrator described the plight of the Christians and

The feudal as a role model – by Irfan Husain: I have a vague recollection that when I was a child in the 1950s, my mother would often say of me to her friends: “Mera beta bara hokay afsar banayga.” (“My son will become an officer when he grows

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.

Nawaz Sharif: Pakistan’s teflon tiger – by Irfan Hussain: Nawaz Sharif has a remarkable ability to retain the image of a clean, mainstream leader despite such a tarnished record. Teflon tiger Pity the poor tiger: hunted to the brink of extinction, it now has to suffer the indignity

Keeping the army in check – by Irfan Hussain: Routine administrative issues like the grant of an extension in the service of the ISI chief becomes headline news. This preoccupation reflects the central role the army has come to occupy in Pakistan. As the major political player, it

Morality and atheism – by Irfan Husain: Consider this demographic projection for the UK, and ponder its implications for a moment: within five years, the majority of babies will be born to unmarried parents. However, before you put this down to yet another example of Western

The PPP is its own worst enemy – by Irfan Husain: Power, perceptions and the PPP By Irfan Husain Saturday, 30 Jan, 2010 It isn’t often that I agree with Nawaz Sharif. However, when he said a few weeks ago that the PPP was its own worst enemy, he put

“The judge raj” in Pakistan is paving way for another military dictatorship: …Our lordships may be cautioned about the possibility that judicial activism sometimes runs the risk of intruding on turf strictly belonging in our constitutional scheme of things to other institutions of state. In the post-judiciary restoration era, the respect

Why are the Taliban losing support in Pakistan?: Two beautiful columns on this topic: by Irfan Hussain and Nazir Naji.Our foe’s failuresBy Irfan HusainSaturday, 14 Nov, 2009 (Dawn) IMAGINE a world where 9/11 did not happen. In such a scenario, the Taliban would probably have all of

The high cost of ‘ghairat’: By Irfan Husain Saturday, 07 Nov, 2009 JUDGING from the heated bombast that passes for informed debate on our airwaves, it would appear that ghairat, or honour, is a virtue restricted to those who permanently inhabit our TV studios.

The future of Pakistan People’s Party: The last chance saloon By Irfan Husain Saturday, 31 Oct, 2009 (Dawn) LEGEND has it that at the edge of many towns in the old American West stood a last chance saloon where cowboys could get a final drink

Treat Talibanisation, not Taliban – Analyses by Irfan Hussain and Saleem Safi: Treating symptoms, not the disease By Irfan Husain Saturday, 17 Oct, 2009 (Dawn) So what has fuelled this deadly trend? Zia’s zeal to send the country back to the medieval era was certainly one factor. And

Kerry-Lugar Bill: what’s the hype and hysteria about?: Hype and hysteria over nothing By Irfan HusainSaturday, 10 Oct, 2009 Surely the Pakistani opponents of the Kerry-Lugar bill are not pretending that we are innocent on all counts? Or has the state of denial penetrated so deeply into

The anti-American bandwagon and the distortions and delusions in Pakistani media: Distortions and delusions By Irfan Husain Saturday, 03 Oct, 2009 (Dawn) Poverty, disease and illiteracy are all pressing concerns. The excuse for this neglect has been the lack of resources. Now, however, the Kerry-Lugar bill gives us an opportunity

Many Politicians have yet to publicly denounce the Taliban. And the army has yet to demonstrate that it is serious about fighting this war.: The high cost of surrender By Irfan Hussain IMAGINE that a neighbouring country had killed a leading Pakistani politician, blown up a popular hotel in the middle of Islamabad and killed thousands of security personnel and innocent civilians in

Living with Bhutto’s ghost – by Irfan Husain: Saturday, 04 Apr, 2009 Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto and his family pose for a photograph – AP/File photo. EXACTLY 30 years ago today, I was driving back with friends from a weeklong fishing trip in Azad Kashmir.We did not have

The Zia-ist mindset, Pakistani media and the support of the right wing – by Irfan Husain: “My personal theory is that their lack of a grounding in politics, economics and current affairs is a direct result of the poor education they have received. Without wishing to be lofty or patronising, I can safely point to

Imran Khan vs Charles Darwin – By Irfan Husain: THIS year will see a large number of celebrations at campuses and scientific institutions around the world to mark the 200th year of the birth of Charles Darwin, and the 150th year of the publication of his seminal work.