Oh Dear Girl, Feminism Has Fooled YouBy: Zahra Khan on September 27, 2020In the 1990s, some years after Benazir Bhutto was sworn in as the first female Prime Minister, my tai jaan was waking up in the wee hours to cook food for the day before her two boys got up. Every morning she rose from her bed to perform the same tasks: get the meals ready […]
Ertugrul Ghazi: call for resurrectionBy: Asad Tahir Jappa on September 27, 2020Since April this year, the air is thick in Pakistan with the buzzwords of Ertugrul Ghazi, the Turkish drama dubbed in Urdu, being aired on Pakistan Television in collaboration Turkish Radio and Television (TRT). This unique genre has been welcomed as a pleasant change by the Pakistani audience who were simply sick of the run […]
Legislators, FBR, NAB, ECP & accountabilityBy: Dr Ikramul Haq on September 27, 2020Every year a large number of legislators-Senators, members of National and Provincial Assemblies-fail to file their annual statements of assets and liabilities to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) in time. The ECP, under the law, just temporarily suspends their membership and after filing of the required statements belatedly, the same stands restored. However, when […]
The cold war Era and the United Nations (part III)By: Shaukat Qadir on September 27, 2020In the rather dismal record of the UN in preventing conflict, there are some partial successes, just as there are some really impressive judgments by International Courts. This essay will discuss one of each. I have narrated both examples before in other contexts. They deserve to be viewed in this context as well. Noteworthy is […]
Under duressBy: Syed I Husain on September 27, 2020History of religious or sectarian conversions is quite long. However forced conversion that occurred after the seventh century generally took place during riots and massacres carried out by mobs and clergy without support of the rulers. In contrast, royal persecutions of Jews from the late eleventh century onward generally took the form of expulsions, with […]
Of administration and accountabilityBy: Haya Fatima Sehgal on September 27, 2020As the neighbor’s help threw a bucket of garbage water out of the window, it added to the misery amidst the chaos of living in a community that happens sometimes. The admin, once told, simply looked way and ignored my request to stop it. Not a single person dared to do anything about it as […]
COVID-19 hindering the prospect of Xi Jinping’s grand strategy of BRIBy: Mohammad Ali Zafar on September 26, 2020In the debate of emerging China, COVID-19 has entered as a wild card entry and has changed the global strategic equations. It is too soon to predict what curves will Chinese foreign policy take to keep its aspirations of great power alive, but Xi Jinping’s signature policy of Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has started displaying frailty. […]
A beginning to seek peace in AfghanistanBy: Frank F Islam on September 26, 2020On September 12, representatives of the Afghan government and the Taliban met in Doha to start the Afghan Peace Process negotiations. U.S. Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo referred to these negotiations as a “truly momentous breakthrough.” Max Boot, an expert for the Council of Foreign Relations disagreed. He advises “…no one should expect a breakthrough […]
The role of Uzbekistan in the settlement of the problem of AfghanistanBy: Sabah Aslam on September 26, 2020Throughout human history when borders were being drawn the neighboring states had a key role in determining the progress of the country. The history of central Europe is ridden by the influence and role of neighbors either its peace or war. The key evidence in this regard is the fact that when Europe intertwined with […]
The motorway tragedy Any lessons learnt?By: Huzaima Bukhari on September 26, 2020“Strength doesn’t lie in carrying heavy loads. Camels can do that. Strength lies in controlling your temper”- Hazrat Ali (AS) There is a general belief that a person who boasts of great physical strength is stronger compared to the one who has a frail body. This might be true if one is watching a wrestling […]