Of freedom and injustice on July 8, 2017Mankind has always been fighting for freedom, but what exactly is freedom? Is it freedom from a yoke or the liberty to do anything one wants? I first read the American Declaration of Independence in my early teens. Although even then, I was struck by it, but I did not appreciate its profundity. My second […]
The Parachinar Cauldron on July 5, 2017Parachinar, situated at the northern tip of Kurram Agency,is the only area in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) where no single tribe dominates. Turis, most of them Shias, are in majority in Parachinar. Bangash come next, most of them Sunni but some Shias as well. Aurakzais are mostly Sunni. There are five other tribes […]
What if the King is forced to abdicate? on July 1, 2017Overtime, Pakistan premiership has become a virtual kingdom. He/she may not be all powerful, since there are numerous competing power centres and, even though none provide political systemic balance but the power-sharing formula is such that the king or queen can get away with corruption. It is my view that the Zardari era will remain […]
The real Victor was the game, not the team! on June 24, 2017 Pakistan won an epic victory at The Oval on the 18th of June. The victory was however more than that; it was a transformation over four matches from a humiliating defeat to a resounding victory. There are two pertinent Cricket expressions in this context. The first is a universal one, “the glorious uncertainties of […]
Where is the Gulf crisis headed? on June 17, 2017Is the Middle East going to war? Going by recent developments during the Riyadh Summit and after, this seems a distinct possibility. The question that begs an answer, therefore, is why? And what is Qatar guilty of? There are basically two groups in the Middle East. The Saudi-UAE-led group with Jordan, Bahrain and Egypt — […]
Concluding the CPEC debate on June 10, 2017So finally, is there something about CPEC that we should be concerned about or not and, if there is, what is it? All CPEC related projects presently underway are on infrastructure and energy. Their benefits take time to be visible. However, loans being offered to Pakistan are project specific. Which means that they are released […]
Living in interesting times on June 3, 2017In the Chinese language, if you say, “May you live in interesting times”; it’s a curse. Pakistan seems to have spent its life in ‘interesting times’. The uncertainty has been more or less, never absent. Except perhaps in the period of Ayub Khan’s first five years. I am beginning to wonder if this is a […]
I am in pain on May 27, 2017I try not to get emotional about my country and the institution I served for most of my life. Despite my best efforts, occasionally, I do. Maybe this is one such occasion. I have been publicly and repeatedly stating that the PML-N and Nawaz Sharif “do the least damage to my country”. Now my friends […]
Kashmir on fire again on May 20, 2017It took all these years of death, torture, rape and mayhem on the hapless people of Indian-held Kashmir (IHK) for the world to finally awaken to their sufferings at the hands of Indian state forces. Ironically, just as the world seems to have awaken, Pakistan seems to have lost interest. One cannot but wonder why? […]
Requiem for DAWN Leaks on May 13, 2017Finally it’s dead and buried; thank God. It was indeed a very sordid, ugly tale. It all started in October last year when demands for an extension in the term of the then Chief of Army Staff, General (retd) Raheel Sharif, were being made by the public and, perhaps, someone wanted to find a way […]