Altaf Khan

Post-colonial societies look at themselves through the eyes of their colonisers. Looking at oneself through the eyes of the other, is one of the worst ways to live. It is a sign of unending discontent, and eternal confusion. Some consider it progress, while others believe it is retrogressive. But this love and hate relationship has […]

The biggest delusion of the post truth world is the self assurance of having the truth. We are all believers in truth and take it as the truth, instead of a truth. Hence the strife. The essence of the modern individual is uniqueness! To not be like any other! We all take pride in individuality, […]

In our age of technologically globalised world, we see new questions regarding media and communication patterns, day in and day out. Some of these questions are more or less academic in nature, but there are others that need to be examined closely. Primarily, these are all ethical questions. The questions of truth and falsehood, objectivity […]

The task of governance is to develop the potential of a people so that they become citizens of a democratic polity. Unlike colonial administration, governance in democracies is not ruling the people for the purpose of exploiting their human and natural resources alone. It is meant to empower the citizenry Public representatives in Pakistan think […]

Governments in the developing world cannot find a way to progress unless there is public ownership of processes of change. Empowerment could not be sustainable without participatory debates within the common folk regarding the government’s initiatives. The problem with countries like Pakistan is that the governing elite considers itself as the custodians of good. They […]

The colonial mindset that has crept into the post colonial Pakistan has to be shed before any useful democratic progress is made. Otherwise, we will eternally be chasing the ghost in musical chairs. The question that follows then is how it can be done. The post colonialmindset thinks in terms of rulers and the ruled. […]

Efforts to raise awareness among the ruling elite are needed in order to foster understanding, especially for those involved in governance and direct dealings with the public, that they are here to govern and not to rule. Governance is an organic evolutionary process based upon the participatory principles of sharing rights and responsibility between those […]

The right to information (RTI) is one of the basic drivers of participatory democracy. Yet given that information is power there are those who are averse to relinquishing that power through the free flow of information for all. Democracy, for its part, represents the continuous struggle for inclusionary empowerment — making it a treacherous path […]

Men die but dreams survive. Each of us will die with a dream, a longing for tomorrow. The same happened to the young who died in Charsadda. Every death leaves some dreams behind. But the sudden, unexpected departure of any youth leaves a lot of unfulfilled desires. In places like Charsadda it is not only […]