Reforming accountabilityon January 1, 2020The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has been a controversial institution, drawing the ire of both who claim it has not done enough and those who claim it has done more than its mandate. Whether NAB has stifled good governance or not and whether the economy can excel with NAB doing its usual cannot have clear-cut […]
A soft revolutionon November 27, 2019It was like a scene from a movie. The prime minister of Pakistan who before his ascension to the top executive office had lambasted other prime ministers for ignoring parliament and not being accountable to it sat in his chambers in the parliament building. He ordered his party cadre in the parliament to get all […]
The Dam Fundon November 20, 2019It’s not like the dam fund was the first appeal for charity by a high office holder of Pakistan for patriotic endeavours. Nawaz Sharif, as the Prime Minister of Pakistan, in 1998 came up with the idea of “qarz utaro, mulk sunwaro” scheme. The people of Pakistan were urged to donate in helping the government […]
Kashmir and Kartarpuron November 16, 2019Pakistan’s foreign secretary recently briefed an 18-member delegation of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) parliamentarians and civil society members on the continuing human rights violations in Kashmir by India. Just a few days ago, the Pakistani Prime Minister called upon the international community to play its role in ensuring an immediate end to the […]
Kashmir: a litmus test for international lawon September 21, 2019The Universal Declaration of Human Rights expresses in clear terms that “Whereas it is essential if a man is not to be compelled to have recourse, as a last resort, to rebellion against tyranny and oppression, that human rights should be protected by the rule of law.” In other words, international law as the guarantor […]
The implications of Article 149on September 16, 2019The invocation of Article 149(4) could do wonders for Karachi. Ever since Federal Minister for Law Faroogh Nasim made remarks over the invocation of Article 149(4) of the Constitution of Pakistan, many sides have come out to support or reject the suggestion. One of the broadly drawn lines for such support or rejection has been […]
Ambushing Judiciary’s Independenceon September 2, 2019Fundamental human rights defend every person in a cause affecting them to be heard by an independent, neutral and unbiased judge. The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights codified this right under international law. The constitutions of the numerous countries, including the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan guarantee the right to an […]
Playing with the Constitutionon August 28, 2019A constitution can be malleable or rigid; in other words, its provisions can either be directory or mandatory in nature. A directory provision is a constitutional instruction that is desirable but not absolutely necessary. The recent flooding of Karachi and the excuses by the PTI, the political party that holds Islamabad’s reins, in relation to […]
ReqoDiq Case II: Defending the Supreme Courton July 29, 2019A number of politicians and lawyers have been criticising the Supreme Court and a former Chief Justice due to the ReqoDiq case and the imposition of a $4.08 billion penalty and $1.87 billion in interest against Pakistan by an ICSID tribunal. It is astounding that the Supreme Court judgment is being criticised due to an […]
Reko Diq Case I: an indictment against ICSIDon July 24, 2019Investor-state disputes typically arise out of the complaints from a foreign business entity. There are two kinds of investment disputes under international law: state-state and investor-state. A large portion of state-state disputes is handled by the World Trade Organization. Whatever the merits of the World Trade Organization, it was humiliated after the Trump regime unitarily […]