Military Establishment Archive
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.
Report of the UN commission on Benazir Bhutto’s assassination: General Musharraf and the ISI indicted: Commentary/summary by Abdul Nishapuri The UN Commission’s report clearly identifies General Pervez Musharraf, the ISI and the Punjab Police (collectively the powerful security establishment of Pakistan) as responsible for the tragic murder of Benazir Bhutto and also for impeding
Whither civilian governance?: By Raza Rumi Cross Posted from Pakteahouse While the gurus of security and international affairs continue to unpack and make sense of the high-profile and much-hyped Pak-US ’strategic dialogue’, the people of Pakistan continue to ask questions about its
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
Forecast of an imminent unrest – by Nadeem Khan: There is a real civil unrest on the horizon. We can verify the timings, immediately after the passing of 18th amendment. When the celebrations were about to take the second turn, instead we saw rallies and protests on power
“Real workers of PPP can never support Zardari.” Really? – by Khalid Wasti: نیا جال ۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔ پرانے شکاری ======================== پیپلز پارٹی کو ختم کرنے کی کوششیں اس کے قیام کے ساتھ ہی شروع ہوگئی تھیں – قیام پاکستان سے لیکر پیپلز پارٹی کے معرض وجود میں آنے تک جو طاقتیں مسلسل اقتدار
Pakistan: from martial law to judicial law – by Khalid Wasti: عوام کا حق حکمرانی نا منظور ================== کون نہیں جانتا کہ پچھلے ساٹھ سال سے پاکستان کا اقتدار اور اس پر حکمرانی کا حق چند مخصوص ہاتھوں تک محدود ہے – جب بھی ان آہنی ہاتھوں کی ہتھکڑی کو
Towards a government of pious Muslims in Pakistan – by Khalid Wasti: تمام مسائل کا حل —– صالح قیادت کا قیام ========================= پاکستان آزاد ہو جانے کے بعد بھی غلام ہے امریکہ کا ، ورلڈ بینک ،آئی۔ایم ایف اور عالمی استعمار کا ہماری پالیسیاں واشنگٹن میں بنتی ہیں ، پینٹاگون سے
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
Save the parliament to save the country – by Khalid Wasti: پارلیمینٹ کو بچاؤ ۔۔۔۔۔۔۔ !! ملک کو بچاؤ قائد اعظم کے پاکستان کو ایک ملاں (ملا) کا پاکستان بنانے میں جن غلیظ ذہنوں نے اپنا کردار ادا کیا اور قرارداد مقاصد کی منظوری سے لیکر اسلامی جمہوریہ بنانے تک
Punjabi judges must stop the witch hunt in the name of justice or risk backlash from other provinces – by Farrukh Siddiqui: Source: State of Pakistan blog The News reports the following on March 29, 2010 ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court (SC) warned the Chairman of National Accountability Bureau (NAB) that he may be put behind bars if the judicial ordersdelivered on National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO), were
Aftermath of the PPP-Judiciary confrontation: It’s not hard to imagine – by Nadeem Khan: Current judicial crisis is and will remain as an impasse and the outcome will be unpleasant for the Pakistan People’s Party as well as for the whole country. What options PPP have in the current situation, and what could
A review of PML-Q and other factions of PML – by Amir Mateen: PML-O (O for Others) By Amir Mateen Friday, April 02, 2010 ISLAMABAD: Mohammad Ali Jinnah must be turning in his grave at the various Muslim League factions that are pandering his name and integrity for their political perpetuation, and
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
Nawaz’s crowning glory – Fasi Zaka: Nawaz Sharif has finally achieved what no one has been able to do in politics for the past two years, which is to make Asif Ali Zardari’s PPP look good by comparison. He inadvertently whitewashed them when he decided
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
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
My Lord, Why NRO only? – Kamran Shafi: We are told that Ziaul Haq, yes the very same Ziaul Haq at whose door the responsibility of unleashing the demons responsible for most of our present travails can and should be placed, is to be excised from the
Controversial Chief Justice of Pakistan assumes executive authority; challenges the attorney-client privilege – by Aamir Mughal and Sarah Khan: Adapted from: Aamir Mughal’s blog Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, controversial Chief Justice of Pakistan, today created a new chapter in Pakistan’s history by assuming the executive authority of the federal government and also objecting to the attorney-client privilege. Pakistan’s
Nawaz Sharif, a true heir of General Ziaul Haq – by Junaid Qaiser: Mian Nawaz Sharif has, throughout his political career, by and large shown little respect for constitution, parliament and democratic norms and traditions. Because of these ‘virtues’ (lack of respect towards constitution, parliament and democracy), the nation always regarded him
Sharifs unveil ‘Punjab Card’ to prolong zero-sum game – by Saeed Minhas: ISLAMABAD: With the Sharifs unveiling their ‘Punjab Card’, Maulana Diesel trying to get even with the government, ‘Bhai logs’ of Karachi going into a pensive mood and nationalists getting a hint coupled with the success of the Kiyani-Qureshi-led strategic
Shahbaz Sharif – a real darling of right-wing media, establishment and Taliban – by Junaid Qaiser: Mian Shahbaz Sharif proudly identifies a number of commonalities between Taliban and PML-N, i.e., opposition to foreign dictation, stance against General Musharraf, and strong position against Kerry-Lugar Bill and the USA. It’s quite true that Nawaz Sharif and his
Another deal – by Faizi Mughal: Mixing politics with judiciary is a murky but profitable business in Pakistan. In the name of rule of law and dispensation of justice, this business is flourishing by leaps and bounds. One important and advantageous aspect of this business
Why did General Kayani chair a meeting of key federal secretaries at the army headquarters?: Strange things happen in the Islamic (military) Republic of Pakistan. For the first time in Pakistan’s history, a meeting of federal secretaries was presided over by a military chief in a civilian set-up. Where are we heading to? Have
The civil-military struggle within — by Sher Ali Khan: Changing the pattern of the civil-military relationship is a difficult task to achieve. Thus far the Pakistanis have gained some political space through their recent stand against the last dictator. This has not necessarily translated into governmental autonomy in
Dr Shahid Masood’s letter to Shaheen Sehbai – by Qais Anwar: مارچ کب ہو گا؟ میرے پیارے شاہین صہبائی میرا یہ خط جس وقت تمہاری نظروں سے گزرنے گا مارچ کی پندرہ تاریخ ہو چکی ہوگی ، مطلب یہ کھ آدھا مارچ گزر گیا ہو گا بغیر کسی مارچ کے.
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
The End of the Zardari Government is Near: Courtesy: Pakistan Media Watch This is the first post in a series on ‘Wishful Journalism’ – an unfortunate practice that seems to be taking place more than actual reporting in some parts of the media. There is a difference between
Most popular chants and slogans in Pakistani politics – by Nadeem Khan: When PPP is ruling, the chants are like: In favor of PPP or by PPP 1- Democratic 2- We believe in reconciliation with all parties, Army, ISI & Judiciary 3- Anti establishment 4- Anti fundamentalist 5- Anti feudalistic 6-
Pakistani generals’ oath at the Kakul Academy and the bloody civilians – by Kamran Shafi: The ‘happening place’ “PAKISTAN is the most happening place in the world where there is never a dull moment.” So pronounced the Commando to a “packed audience” at Chatham House in London, to much laughter and mirth. ‘Happening place’
In Pakistan we are fighting for our lives – by Asif Ali Zardari: In Pakistan we are fighting for our lives We will defeat the terrorists. Our security is backed up by democracy and a strong economy By Asif Ali Zardari Thanks: The Guardian 1 March 2010 When I was elected president
Evaluating democracy – by Ghazia Aslam and Wasim Q. Malik: Thanks: Dawn.com, Monday, 01 Mar, 2010 Advocates of democracy claim that it protects property rights, promoting an environment of collective growth. – File photo A passionate debate comparing and contrasting the performance of Pakistan’s democratic and dictatorial regimes has
Strategy to demonize civilian government? – by Anas Abbas: One of the main aims of Pakistan Army and its pro Taliban media sympathizers is to launch campaigns against the civilian government structure in order to justify its controversial interference. The strategy employed here to achieve this objective by
Mrs. Janjua where art thou? – by pejamistri: A few days back when I wrote “Do you remember Sajjad Ali Shah”, in the heart of my hearts I prayed that I was wrong. It is true that during the struggle against the 21st century mad dictator (General
Two years of democracy and counting – by Raza Rumi: ‘The obvious fallout of the media-government war has been a virtual blackout of what the civilian governments have achieved’, Writes Raza Rumi in his excellent article in The News on Sunday. Two years and counting Given the average shelf
These are the courts, and yes, this is the justice – by Saria Benazir: Today , the democracy is being challenged in the courts. Those cases, which stayed unproved after years of exploration are being opened again, and people, who themselves took illegal steps in the past, this day speak of law and
Military judiciary nexus is a threat to parliament – by Junaid Qaiser: Good news for Pakistan’s undemocratic forces and bad news for Pakistan’s Parliament and its supremacy: Government accepts judiciary’s recommendations. We are continuously moving towards judicial dictatorship. Pakistan army has always played an integral role in Pakistan government and politics
The Greater Game of Rightist Establishment: What we are today witnessing is a completely de-politicized youth of Pakistan trying to define Pakistan’s politics in a haste and in black and white. There are many grey areas in politics too. Our youth today needs to understand
Hijacking Democracy – by Anas Muhammad: Today we live in an increasingly dangerous world, which is filled with people who have their ulterior motives and willingness to harm others to benefit themselves. Our world is filled with criminals, gangsters, murderers, and terrorists. The people who
Judicial activism may lead Pakistan towards a military intervention – by Amir Mir: LAHORE, 15 February 2010: A fresh tussle between the Pakistani President Asif Zardari and the Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry over the appointment of the superior court judges has snowballed into a major political crisis which may lead to yet