The stirred-up Muslims on September 11, 2017 Pakistan’s murky relationship with militant groups in the region is once again in the international spotlight. Perhaps different this time is that the global pressure to address the problem may not go away so easily. The leaders of the five emerging market BRICS powers (including Pakistan’s key ally China) have for the first time […]
Pakistan and India: the dance of ruin on October 30, 2016Pakistan and India once again are at loggerheads. This seems to be one of the bleakest and darkest phases in the 70-year history of mutual conflict. What is most depressing is that there isn’t any way out. The two countries appear locked in a dance of ruin, hell-bent on destroying one another in a slow […]
Institutionalised misogyny on June 20, 2016In 2013, the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared violence against women as an “epidemic global health problem.” The WHO report highlighted the transnational exploitation and violence towards women and girls. It calculated that one in three women worldwide would experience sexual or physical violence, most often from their husband or male partner. This tragic situation […]
Chasing a mirage on June 4, 2016After 35 years of civil war and 15 years of the US led-intervention, prospects for peace in Afghanistan are bleak. The much- touted Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace process is a mirage. It is apparent that the vicious cycle of violence will continue unabated for the foreseeable future. The recent death of the Afghan Taliban chief […]
Contrasting campaigns on May 21, 2016The successful political campaigns of Sadiq Khan and Donald Trump are a study in contrasts. Khan won the mayoral elections as an inclusive candidate for all Londoners. Trump divided and conquered his way to become the presumptive Republican nominee. Both proved formidable candidates. Their campaigns rewrote the rules by devising a way to win. They […]
The democratic experience on May 7, 2016The revolutionary icon Che Guevera once said, “Democracy cannot consist solely of elections that are nearly always fictitious and managed by rich landowners and professional politicians.” Historically, many countries including Pakistan have suffered this fate. In a familiar pattern, political leaders use elections to buy the votes of a poor and submissive citizenry. Elections serve […]
A truly Islamic welfare state on April 26, 2016The establishment of a truly Islamic welfare state is a popular slogan in Pakistan, particularly during election season. It is presented by its proponents as an all-encompassing panacea for societal ills. It is argued that such a state would eliminate vices like feudalism, lawlessness, injustice, ethnic and sectarian conflicts, obscenity and vulgarity, and ostentation. It […]
Religious intolerance on April 26, 2016Religion should provide social control, cohesion, and purpose for people, as well as another means of communication and gathering for individuals to interact and reaffirm social norms. Historically, a turn to a religion based upon love was a great moral revolution and made possible a genuine humanisation of human life. The premise is that all […]
Questioning national meta-narrativess on April 26, 2016The national meta-narratives include the ideological and moral foundation of the nation being formed, and they represent its ethos as well as the legitimacy of, and justification for, its establishment and existence. Furthermore, grand narratives are laid down and maintained by political structures that seek to subordinate physical and natural laws to any given ideology. […]
Questioning national meta-narratives on April 26, 2016The national meta-narratives include the ideological and moral foundation of the nation being formed, and they represent its ethos as well as the legitimacy of, and justification for, its establishment and existence. Furthermore, grand narratives are laid down and maintained by political structures that seek to subordinate physical and natural laws to any given ideology. […]