What are Pakistans values? on April 18, 2016A majority of Americans have expressed their distaste over the YouTube video insulting Islam that sparked violent protests in the Muslim world. Talking to media along with Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khan, who is on a visit to Washington, DC, US Secretary of State Hilary Clinton condemned the film. The US embassy in Islamabad […]
The power of the narrative on September 16, 2013“A bunch of weak people, even in numbers, aren’t strong. Get a whole bunch of confused people together and see how much clarity comes out of it. In other words, you just can’t add one more confused person to the pot, and expect to get any more clarity…One — standing outside of the confused group […]
The Indian renaissance on September 2, 2013The awakening in Indian society is very much visible to outsiders. Movies that have abandoned love stories and action thrillers in favour of highlighting social problems, cases of the public exercising the right to information, social activism to bring powerful culprits to justice, public protests to force authorities to take action such as in the […]
Womens political participation on August 26, 2013The recently held by-elections’ result shows that women continue to march ahead in politics despite heavy odds. Three more women made it to the National Assembly by contesting on general seats. PPP’s Shamsunnissa Memon and Shazia Marri won their seats from Thatta and Sanghar respectively, while PML-N’s Shazia Mubashar won from Lahore on a seat […]
The dream of India-Pakistan peace on August 12, 2013In a pattern that is very familiar to close observers of South Asia, tensions between India and Pakistan escalated during the past few days. An air of anticipation created by an exchange of goodwill statements between Dr Manmohan Singh and Nawaz Sharif after the latter’s ascendency to power in May and the subsequent flurry of […]
Dripping with hypocrisy on July 29, 2013Karachi, 2007: more than 100 dead in different incidents of toxic alcohol consumption in the month of Ramzan. Rawalpindi, September 2008: three men die of drinking toxic alcohol, another loses his eyesight. Multan, December 2009: 14 dead, four end up in hospital after drinking toxic alcohol. Police arrest a man named Mehboob and seize eight […]
A proud moment for Pakistan on July 15, 2013Among many bad news there was good news for Pakistanis last week. Watching Malala Yousafzai speak to the UN Youth Assembly on her 16th birthday and listening to UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon and UN Special Envoy for Global Education, former British Prime Minister Gordon Brown shower praises on her was a proud moment […]
Win-win solution for Balochistan on July 8, 2013Stephen R Covey, the author of the highly acclaimed The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People: Powerful Lessons in Personal Change, was once invited by President Bill Clinton to Camp David. President Clinton had read his book twice and wanted Covey’s counsel on how to integrate the concepts presented therein into his presidency. The Seven […]
Need to build soft power on July 1, 2013“Your actions speak so loudly that I cannot hear what you say” — Ralph Waldo Emerson. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s first communication to the Pakistani mission abroad read: “The immediate attention of government will be focused on our neighbours. Unless the region is peaceful, our efforts for growth and development will not meet with success.” […]
Political discourse on militancy on June 24, 2013“Two college-going sisters were killed after mortar shells hit their house in Darpakhel village in North Waziristan. Local people said that the Amin check post near Miramshah bazaar was attacked by unidentified men. The security forces responded with mortar shelling and some of the shells landed in residential compounds in Darpakhel, damaging nine houses. One […]