The cost of allegiance on April 22, 2016The caretaker government in Punjab has the job on its hands to lead the most populous province into impartial elections. However, the extremists present a challenge of a different nature. Two separate incidents involving the Ahmadi community have taken place, requiring proactive engagement by the administration whose stance on human rights is being challenged, so […]
The final battleground on April 20, 2016The final battle for Pakistan’s soul will not be fought in either FATA or its eastern borders but in the streets of Karachi. Karachi represents Pakistan, being home to people from all communities and races that form the country’s citizenry. The Taliban agenda of power grab of the country requires Karachi to be taken over. […]
The motherlands betrayal on April 20, 2016November 21 is the death anniversary of one of Pakistan’s ablest sons, Dr Abdus Salam. It is a matter of shame though that the nation needs to be reminded of his services. On October 15, 1979, The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences announced the world’s highest award in Physics to three scientists “for their contributions […]
Second class citizens II on April 20, 2016Systems with de facto second-class citizenry naturally violate human rights and all civil societies act to dismantle such systems. Though our country claims a democratic set up and has a nominal human rights agenda, the real issues are not tackled by design for the simple reason that the fear of a radical backlash has made […]
Second class citizens I on April 20, 2016Ethnic and religious communities that are in a minority in our country are having a torrid time. Hazaras, Christians, Hindus, Ahmadis and Ismailis all are at the receiving end of harassment, discrimination and hatred. All have been relegated to the status of second-class citizens and are systematically discriminated against despite their nominal status as citizens. […]
Radicalism: the mother of all ills I on April 17, 2016Pakistan was created by the collective effort of all who believed in liberty. From within the community those who opposed it were either the ones like Abul Kalam Azad who believed that equity for Muslims was possible in a united India or the mullahs belonging to Majlis-e-Ahrar. They and their sympathisers were in opposition to […]
Islam is not the problem on February 5, 2016The happenings in the last few weeks have jolted the world. The people of the world have started seeing the actions of these terrorists who claim to act in the Islam to be the teachings of the faith and this is a very alarming situation. These so-called champions of faith try to justify their inhuman […]
Beyond the usual to fight extremism on December 8, 2015The people of France were exercising their right of spending a weekend in whichever way they deemed fit when the so-called Islamists chartered the final actions of their worldly life in a manner that ruined whatever good, if any, they may have done in their lives. The cardinal sin of taking 129 innocent lives and […]
Netanyahus stance on November 18, 2015At the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defence Committee meeting on October 27, the Israeli Prime Minister (PM) declared, “I do not want a bi-national state.” He further went on to say: “I am asked if we will forever live by the sword. Yes.” While his words may please the hawks within Israel his words run […]
For the people of Pakistan and South Asia on October 23, 2015While Pakistan is sadly a country marred by cynicism and corruption, where the rich do not hesitate in stealing from the poor and where calamities like earthquakes and floods can bring about limitless human misery, it is certainly not a land of extremists where the majority favours the use of violence to impose its will. […]